Over the next few days, Zion trained relentlessly inside the storage area, pushing his nanosuit for hours on end.
The confined space was filled with the sounds of metal clashing, the training module resetting endlessly as he forced himself through the same level over and over again.
Finally, as his surroundings shifted back to the ship's storage bay after clearing Level Twenty, Zion collapsed onto the floor, his chest rising and falling rapidly.
[Congratulations, Host,] Uriel said calmly. [You have reached the required neural synchronization rate.]
Zion laughed weakly, staring up at the lights above him.
"Finally."
His muscles burned, his limbs felt heavy, and even his throat was dry. Yet, he'd finally done it.
He raised a hand for a moment, then let it fall to the floor again.
After slowly steadying his breathing over several minutes, he pushed himself up again, heading straight for his private shower.
