Imposter System

In a white open space, a man sat on a single chair in front of a small table. The space around him stretched infinitely in every direction. Neither an end nor a blemish in the tapestry could be seen. His eyes were half closed while he muttered to himself. Occasionally he'd smile slightly before his face returned to a neutral expression. He had a scraggly beard and unkempt hair as a testament to his isolation in this white space.

He suddenly opened his eyes as if sensing something. A black line appeared not too far from him and began to create the outline of a door. Then, the emptiness of the white space disappeared. A door stood like a foreign object. It opened with a swish, and another man walked in. They were strangers in many ways, but their paths had crossed, and their fates were irrecoverably intertwined. Another chair appeared in front of the table and the well-dressed well-groomed man sat down and stared at the man in white.

They sat in silence for a long time, as if testing each other's mettle. The door behind the newcomer had long since disappeared and time seemed to suspend in this empty void. Neither party knew how long it had been, but neither gave up this silent war. Eventually, the man in white couldn't hold it in anymore and smiled. The smile grew bigger and bigger until he started laughing maniacally.

"I knew you'd come find me one day. We are the same. No one else can understand you like I do." The man said, there were a few mistakes in his speech due to his prolonged isolation.

"Cut the crap Willard, you know exactly why I am here." Matt said with an unimpressed expression on his face. Willard's merry mood instantly turned sour. He flipped the table directly toward Matt, but it seemed to hit an invisible wall. The wall pulsated before becoming imperceivable again, and the table's position reset to where it was previously. After his conniption ended, he waved his hand and a chess board appeared on the table.

"You fancy a game?"

Matt narrowed his eyes but didn't immediately refuse. He had a decent understanding of Willard before, but after their last meeting and his long time in isolation, he feared that the man had changed. The previous Willard would have begun gloating already. The fact that he can sit down and suggest a game of chess means he has leveled up as a boss.

Willard chooses white, and smirks at Matt. It was very symbolic, Matt recognized it immediately. He wore his black windbreaker and black pants, coupled with his dark hair, he represented black. Additionally, Willard has the advantage in the game. Making the first move sets the tempo of the match. This was also the case in Matt's current predicament. He is only responding to his opponents move. Although Willard was a good schemer before, he was never like this.

Willard picks up his knight and looks at it for a while. He shakes his head and laments. "Ah, the valiant knight. He charges forward on the battlefield despite knowing that he will ultimately become a sacrifice for the king."

He then places it back down and moves a pawn forward.

Pawn to E4.

Matt looks down and recognizes this play. It was the most common and most aggressive play for the white player. It was called King's Pawn opening and it immediately takes control of the center. Although Matthew was a dunce in chess, Matt did play quite a bit in his college days… Thinking of that, he suddenly remembered his recent discover and shuddered. Regardless, he had the knowledge.

Matt countered with a pawn move of his own.

Pawn to D5.

Willard looks up at Matt and smiles at his small victory. He immediately takes Matt's pawn and begins talking. "It must be unfortunate to be caught in this position. You perceive that you are in control, but in reality, you are just playing to someone else's tune."

Pawn takes D5.

Matt doesn't bother explaining himself and continues playing. Although Willard had changed, it seemed his arrogant personality was still there.

Queen to D5.

Matt hadn't even looked down to see the board. He simply stared at Willard the whole time. Due to his crimes and his abilities, Willard was placed in a very unique isolation room. The room was actually a holodeck designed for high level combat training. The technology in this room was a step above the standard holodecks. Although it seemed they were right next to each other, Matt was in another room seeing a holographic simulation of Willard. Meanwhile, Willard was seeing a holographic simulation of Matt.

Due to this, he was unable to exert any of his abilities onto Willard. He had attempted to approach with his astral body and invade his dreams, but Willard's mental strength had been steadily increasing ever since Matt used Sunder on him. Matt was very curious how Willard accomplished this, and unconsciously licked his lips thinking of Sundering him again.

Willard didn't notice the slight action as he studied the board. He picked up the knight he had grabbed before and places it down.

Knight to C3.

Matt glances at the board for a moment. Willard made another aggressive move, challenging his Queen with the knight he had just called a sacrificial piece before the game began. He narrowed his eyes at the implications. The Queen was an easy guess, but who represented the knight? Matt decided to momentarily retreat.

Queen to A5.

Willard no longer went into monologue or contemplated; he just began playing the board. Because of this, the game quickly progressed. Matt could tell after a few moves that Willard was setting up a Boden's Mate pattern. He realizes this is his chance and perfectly plays into it. After castling his king queenside, Willard suddenly smirks unconsciously.

The game ends soon after, and Willard stands up in victory.

"Haha, you played well but do you know what your mistake was? You were too focused on your queen and ignored your pawns. Don't you realize that the pawns, although weak, protect you? Yes, your queen is powerful, but if you are separated, then it is pointless!"

"I see." Matt says while leaning back, tilting the chair slightly. Willard calms down at Matt's calm reply and then looks over at his nonchalant attitude. He then looks down at the board and replays it in his mind. After a moment, he sits down and begins chuckling.

"So, you already knew my plan. Are you saying that victory or defeat, they are both things you control? Does your arrogance know no bounds?!" Willard shouts.

Matt shakes his head slightly. "It's just a game."

Willard nearly collapses as he laughs at himself. "Just a game… Just a game…"

"Alright, I've indulged you this long. Tell me what you did, and how to remove it, or I'll put in a suggestion that you have too much freedom and they'll switch you to some more 'secure' clothing and a dimmer room."

Although Matt shrugged off Willard's comments, he actually thought hard about them. Willard knew a lot about the ship's underside than Matt. He also had insider knowledge from Earth, had access to the whole database, and freakishly smart. Based on his personality, he wasn't talking about the chess game previously, but pointing out the flaws in his situation. Alexis was his Queen, and although she was strong, she was alone. Although Alexandria has been added in, she wouldn't be considered a pawn. What Matt desperately needed were disposable allies to cover him.

"Didn't I already tell you that night? You inspired me to create this little ability. I never considered seizing other people's strength directly, it's very insidious!"

The ability that Willard used was based on Matt's Sundering Strike. This was a perfect example of Willard's intelligence. Although only experiencing it once, he was able to create an ability on his own based on it. Although not as destructive and instant, based on Matt's initial probing, it would do something similar to Sundering Strike. It was more like a farmer patiently waiting for his crop to ripen before harvesting it.

"Don't bother trying to remove it. The moment you disrupt the energy flow, it will detonate. At best, you have a splitting headache and lose a lot of memories. At worst, you go into a coma. It has already dug in too deep. I call it Energy Parasite, aren't I clever? Haha"

Matt's eye flinched at the mention of parasite. 'You dare to name something parasite in front of me?'

[Analyzing New Information… Complete. Automatically Deducting Evolution Points…]

[Psionics Lv. 3 has Mutated!]

[Psionics Lv. 3+: Your mastery in mental energies has unleashed the full potential of your grade. Due to your mutation towards the Eldritch Horror pathway, you are the pioneer for future powers. You have pushed the limits of this skill in your current grade.

]Ability: Telepathy

]Ability: Mind Blast

]Ability: Phantom Voices

]Ability: Sundering Strike

]Ability: Energy Parasite]

[Energy Parasite: By altering the properties of Sundering Strike, you are able to place a portion of your soul that has retained your consciousness inside a cocoon of mental energy and penetrate the target's mind. It will slowly feed on the target until sated. Once harvested, it will return without leaving a trace.

Activation: Thought

Duration: Indefinite

Active Limitation: 2]