Ep. The battles in
237 Space Survival are usually on the rough side.
Energy cannons rain down from ships hundreds of meters in size from the sky, and on land, soldiers in reinforced suits and various monsters clash with each other.
Among the players, there are those who sit on the flagship and control it, while there are also those who run directly on the battlefield. No matter what group the player belongs to, war is like a colorful and noisy festival.
Rather, it would be safe to say that Amorph is unique in that surprise attacks and stealthy movements are encouraged until the mid to late game.
Now that I think about it, I missed one. In fact, there is another being that fights quietly like Aimorph.
Screamer.
Controlled by machines, they only say what they need to say and rarely make any other sounds. There are no noises commonly heard on the battlefield, such as the screams of wounded soldiers and the screams of soldiers who want to go home.
Is that why?
The swamp lake within the cliffs where we were fighting was surprisingly calm. Dozens of screamers moved to attack me, but there was no sound. Except for just the sound of the water moving.
The tentacles sleeping inside the thick shell suddenly woke up.
The target is the screamers located in the rear. The tentacles, with their six appendages wide open, swam over the swamp like snakes hunting for food and caught them.
The screamers who were relatively close to me took out their weapons.
Their appearance was overflowing with individuality, as if they had been remodeled again while I was not seeing them. Things like having multiple legs, becoming fat due to sagging flesh, or having multiple eyes, etc.
When PS-111 met me, there were a total of five species that were fused with him. And in the process of restoring the body, blood river and Gallagon’s claw sword were used as materials.
The same was true for the screamers who came to the dragon’s nest. They had been strengthened by adding the remains of dead Screamers to their bodies.
‘It looks much more unstable than PS-111.’
They only had more genes applied, but they were more messed up than PS-111, which reconstructed its shattered body. It didn’t look that good in terms of design or efficiency. At that time, the energy consumption rate was too high and each had different specifications, so it seemed difficult to repair.
I guess it could be said that everything was invested in killing me in a short-term battle.
‘Well, you can’t beat me.’
Even now, my friends are defeating the screamers one by one throughout the nest. Hiding behind a wall made of slime and making a surprise attack at the right time, or being attacked from behind while paying attention to the fog created by a smog tower, etc.
Then, when the enemies die, the black slime absorbs the corpse and delivers nutrients to me. This is thanks to the effect of the nest-related trait ‘Human Sacrifice’.
‘There’s also Blood River.’
A screamer rushes towards me. It jumped on my back and started attacking.
It may have been implanted with the Hellside Hornet’s genes, but three or four of its legs had scythe-shaped claws. Every time its claws flashed, a large scratch was created on its shell and a long scar appeared on its tentacles.
While it was attacking, other screamers also rushed in. At other times I would have avoided it, but there is no need to do so now.
I pulled out my fighting arm from the swamp floor and caught the screaming Screamer.
When the ‘Predatory Leech’s Hand’ effect was activated, the flesh on its body shrunk. A screamer that instantly turns into a high-calorie energy source. All that remains is the solid metal skeleton that makes up its body.
When one dies, another comes to life. The vitality gained from the Screamer spread to every corner of my body. Even the broken shell and bleeding wounds came back in perfect condition, as if they had never been injured.
Screamer, who was attacking me by climbing on my body, stops. It must be because a phenomenon has occurred that even the AI controlling its body cannot understand.
I stretched out my curled tail. A large tail, well over 20 meters long, rising from the surface of the water, combined with a snake-like lower body.
A screamer fluttering on its shell sees its tail and tries to run away. I have no intention of leaving alone this guy who has attacked so much and is trying to get away.
I hit it hard with the pincers on the end of its tail. When it collided with the hardest part of my body along with its carapace, its metal skeleton was completely shattered.
That wasn’t the end of it, it was wagging its tail left and right loudly. The screamers that approached me quickly retreated, but not all of them did so.
Some were hit by their tails and flew off, hitting the ceiling or walls of the communal area, while others were caught in my claws. I could have used tongs to break it in two, but I didn’t.
I opened my mouth wide and pulled the tail inside my body. The guys caught in the pincers realized what I was going to do and started running wild, but their resistance was futile.
They swing their legs to avoid being eaten by me. Three synthetic claws sink into my snout and flames from their bodies burn the roof of my mouth.
The pain was brief. Every time I got hurt, the nest healed my body.
Having neutralized their resistance, I closed my jaw, which was as wide as a snake’s mouth, in one go. Their torsos and heads popped out of the tongs and flowed down my throat in a crushed state.
‘It tastes awful.’
It tasted terrible, like eating peppermint candy and orange juice jelly at the same time. Perhaps because I’ve only been eating delicious food like Gallagon lately, I felt like my threshold was getting worse.
Instead of keeping it in my mouth, I just swallowed it, lost my head and upper body, and threw the loose remains into the swamp. The retreating screamers poured various bullets at me.
From the Star Union’s conventional weapons, such as cluster bombs and high-speed impact bombs, to energy-type weapons such as energy bombs that concentrate psychic power. Some of the weapons they had hurt me and caused me pain.
But that was all.
Even if they destroy my body, I will not die. To attack Aimorph, who has completed all preparations on the nest, you need a stronger weapon.
While receiving the enemy’s attack, I prepared my next weapon.
The tentacles that were hanging down the neck writhe and raise their heads. Thanks to the heart obtained from the black dragon, psychic power is quickly charged.
In an instant, the monster’s tentacles filled with all the energy burst into flames.
The dragon’s breath swallows everything. The metal skeleton shining bright purple as the light reflects, and the sound of heavy breathing coming from the mouth buried in the flesh.
The thieves who broke into the dragon’s cave tried to run away when they saw their comrades being burned to death.
Behind them as they exited the cavity, I spread my wing arms wide. My wings filled the swampy lake like the night god in Slavic mythology spreads the hem of his clothes.
No one can leave here without my permission.
No one.
–
PS-005, who remained outside the nest, knew that the situation was going to be unfavorable.
All news was cut off from a total of 98 screamers in 4 groups that entered the cave located on the opposite cliff. It could have been due to a simple communication failure, but the AI in his head didn’t think so.
This is because of the messages left by the screamers before the communication was terminated. A situation in which all environmental factors are unpredictable is not common.
It was not difficult to guess what would happen to those who fell into the trap. It will probably be difficult for most of them to come back.
The 209 units deployed to attack Gallagon’s nest suffered damage close to annihilation. Now all that’s left is yourself and another PS model next to you.
Even though he would have run away long ago if not for the machine, he waited for Pyrrha Eleven’s orders.
And soon the answer I had been waiting for came.
“Preparing to retreat.”
“check.”
The information obtained before communication with the incoming unit was cut off was passed on.
Although 200 objects were lost, it was not just a loss. Since we have acquired at least a little information about Special Objective A, all we have to do is establish a new strategy based on this.
After disabling communication with Pyrrha Eleven, they left the cliff.
Half-living, half-machine beings with multiple metal legs crossed the forest. Although some time had passed since we left the cliff, it was still dark inside the forest.
Of course, for them who could switch to various perspectives, this level of darkness was nothing. They switched to infrared detection vision and moved their protruding legs busily.
While running towards the ice canyon where Pyrrha Eleven was, PS-005 heard a sound.
The sound of frozen soil cracking slightly. When the native creatures living on this planet move, they make that sound.
The two screamers stopped running and looked around. Of course it had to be that way.
There are no wild animals in this forest. This is because they dried the seeds of creatures living in the forest before attacking Gallagon’s nest.
In other words, those footsteps were made by a being that was not in this forest.
PS-005 remained on alert and released a small detection drone. The exploration drone moved between the trees and began exploration.
As I was checking to see if there was a moving target in sync with the drone, the drone’s vision shook significantly.
As PS-005, whose synchronization was forcibly canceled, took out the biological weapons implanted in his body, Screamer who was nearby also prepared for battle.
They moved to the location where the drone was destroyed. Not far away, they found a broken drone.
Unusually, the remains of the drone were not on the dirt ground mixed with ice, but on a tree.
The vision detection camera was pierced by a metal spear that flew from somewhere.
PS-005 replayed in his head the last thing he saw before his vision was cut off.
Before the drone equipped with a heat detection system stopped, a ray of light flew out. He stopped playing the record after checking where the spear came from. PS-005’s gaze turned to the location where the halo of light, or rather, that golden metal spear had come from.
“Need to be confirmed.”
“I will check.”
The screamer next to me crawled to the location where the spear came from.
Meanwhile, PS-005 has switched to a detection system that can detect physical projectiles in advance.
Since I came here, I have never seen a creature using such a primitive form of weaponry. This planet, with its extremely variable climatic conditions, is not a suitable place for civilization to grow.
I don’t know who it is, but I can capture it anyway. Even if he doesn’t want to say it, his genes will know the answer.
He switched detection systems within seconds and looked ahead.
A screamer can be seen going ahead to investigate traces of the being who threw the spear.
Or, to be more precise, a screamer with a separate head and body.
And in front of him was a huge wild animal walking on all fours.
Its head resembles that of a bird of prey living on Earth, with pointed horns, and its body resembles a large cat or a wild beast. The body was covered with dark golden fur with black wave patterns.
It stomped on and crushed the head of its colleague with its large front paws. Amber eyes, shining clearly even in the dark forest, were staring at PS-005.
A being that has never been seen anywhere on this planet. PS-005 knows who that creature is.
“77% consistent with Special Objective C.”
Although it is not as high as Special Objective A, which is the highest priority target, Special Objective C is also one of the kill targets.
PS-005 chose to retreat rather than fight it. There was no guarantee that I could kill him alone, and the priority was to report this to Pyrrha Eleven.
PS-005 quickly retreated from the spot and reactivated communication with Pyrrha Eleven. With several legs moving, he prepared to transmit the information he had just seen to the commander-in-chief.
Is it because of that?
He had neglected the fact that he had switched the detection system to a mode that detected physical projectiles. It wasn’t until he saw the purple heat rays flying between the trees on the other side that he realized his mistake, but by then it was already too late.
–
“I thought it was strange that the nest suddenly disappeared, but as expected.”
The Heavenly Mother did not return to the dragon’s nest with Nell Germa. Since Ham Ort’s wounds were not yet completely healed, he stayed with her in the nest that Aimov had made.
After resting for another day, Ham Ort’s body was almost fully recovered. I was planning to head to the dragon’s nest after about two more days, but suddenly the nest stopped expanding and began to wither.
She knows what it means for Aimorph’s nest to decline.
She had fought Aimorphs many times, so she knew there were limits to how she could set up a nest. If the limit for maintaining a nest is exceeded, the nest installed in front is automatically released.
When she saw the black swamp in the small cave drying up, she realized that Aimorph had set up a new nest. It is also related to the crisis of Amov and his group.
Moffak is not a human, but acts as if he was born an Amorph. There’s no way a guy like that would just lay down a nest without even thinking about it.
And around here, there is only one place where Eimorphs can build their nests.
「Yuseong’s Daughter」「Is it safe?」
「I think he’ll be okay. Moff…if it’s a black kin, I’ll definitely protect it.” ”
I believe it.”
She knows how powerful Aimorph is in the nest. There was a similar situation in the game where the clan was destroyed.
‘Seeing that they are moving in the opposite direction from the dragon’s nest, they look like remnants.’
Returning to her griffon state, the Heavenly Mother approached Screamer, who had lost half of his body.
Ham Oort’s wing wasn’t fully healed, so it was beneficial to fly slowly on purpose. Thanks to this, I was able to spot screamers moving under the tree while flying to the nest.
She stomped on his head, which was completely mangled and wriggling.
Considering PS-111, Screamers are dangerous even if only their heads remain. You can escape alive, or you can activate the incineration system and harm her.
“These guys need to break their heads. Otherwise, it will self-destruct, so be careful.”
“Confirmed.”
The Mother of Heaven, who warned Ham Ort, retrieved the priest’s golden spear stuck in the tree. She bit the spear in her beak and climbed on top of Ham Oort.
“I know how you feel, but there may be people running away like you are now. Please go a little more slowly.” “
Okay.”
Even on Ham Oort, which was soaring through the branches, her amber eyes stayed only on the forest.