Chapter 224 – Close Encounter (3)
The interior sights of the spacecraft were largely divided into two types.
One is the area where the infection first spread, where purification protocols and quarantine operations worked properly.
Although these places were severely damaged in one way or another, they still retained their appearance as spaceships.
The other is the compartments where the aforementioned measures were not implemented, and the Event Horizon was transformed so horribly that it looked like a nobleman.
Is this what cotton candy made in hell looks like? The thing that wraps around the stick is not sugar fiber, but organic fiber made from ground corpses.
Biological hoses that look like internal organs are spread all over the floor and walls, and something like a tumor grows between them and throbs as if breathing.
Some of the hoses seem to have something flowing inside them, and I think they may be carrying toxic gas.
Years later, and years later. No matter where you look, chunks of flesh fill your eyes.
Areas with particularly severe infections are filled with a light yellow-green toxic substance that gives the appearance of fog.
“It feels like I’ve entered the body of an animal, even its intestines. It’s so terrible.”
Artemis, disgusted just by looking at it, said, holding her pointed nose. Thanks to this, Nose-Meng-Meng’s voice came out, and it was quite cute even though it was a serious situation.
“I know. “I guess you were holding in a fart too?”
After trying a gag of conversion, I looked at Artemis, but what I got back was a cold response.
“It’s the worst joke ever. “Don’t do that again.”
She glared at me as if she was giving me goosebumps.
Even as the commander was talking pitifully, the soldiers dug deep into the ship.
“The priority target point is the bridge. “After your army clears the way, I can go and take control and put the entire ship under control.”
“I know, old man. “This type of operation is similar wherever you go.”
“The next most important places are the power reactor and warp engine room. The power reactor must be checked for possible explosions on the ship, and the warp engine is an essential facility for vaccine recovery.”
A cross-sectional map of the huge spaceship was displayed at the bottom of the screen, showing the location of each squad digging in from the outskirts.
Those shown as green dots are friendly infiltration units, those shown as red dots are infected entities, and yellow dots are objects suspected of being infected.
If the green dot blinks, it means firing or engaging in combat. Everything was changing in real time.
[Enemy encounter.]
A squad heading to the bridge discovered an infection on the ceiling of the hallway.
“I found a species that matches the shape.”
Artemis immediately showed me the original.
They have a body shape similar to that of a human, but their entire limbs, torso, and neck are thin and elongated. Their code name is the Kamino tribe.
The infectious agent is staring in this direction with its long neck, like an ostrich, hanging upside down from the ventilation hole in the ceiling.
It would be better if he screamed, but it’s even creepier if he just quietly watches.
Bang!
The stalker suddenly opened fire.
But the guy escaped by sticking his head into the vent like a turtle sticking its head in. And then he sticks it out again.
The face hanging upside down stares in this direction with an expressionless noise that is not typical of an infectious agent.
“… What is that guy doing?”
To be honest, if I were in that position, I think I would have grown some chicken skin.
This may have been the starting point, but the troops who had infiltrated safely began to be attacked from all over.
[Kyaaaaa-!]
A squad passing through a warehouse area encountered a large infected body charging forward and pushing containers.
“Is it an alien version of the Juggernaut?”
The medium-to-large sized monster had an exoskeleton carapace that looked incredibly hard at a glance.
If the Earth’s Juggernaut was similar in shape to an ape, that one was closer to a rhino.
Unlike Earth Mountain, which turns into a mushy mess in front of 12.7 mm, its charging power does not decrease even though it pours blood and flesh from gunfire.
When the stalkers realized that shooting from the front was not effective, they immediately dispersed to the north, south, east, and west.
Agile movement, like Tarzan, crossing containers and ceiling structures with one or two leaps.
The medium-to-large infected body seemed to be embarrassed by its rapid spread, turning its head here and there and hesitating as it tried to decide on a target to pursue.
It is definitely hard, but its action is much slower than that of Earth Mountain. If it were the Juggernaut I knew, it would have snatched one of the flying stalkers out of the air and tore it apart.
Ta-ta-tang!
In the meantime, the stalkers who had secured the back of the guy were aiming for the back of the head.
Puffuppuck!
“Kyaooooo!”
A scream of pain rings out.
The guy turned 180 degrees, blood pouring from the back of his head, blood pouring from his mouth and nose. He was so shocked that one of his eyeballs fell out and was shaking.
Ta-ta-tang!
“Gurgling.”
This time, the bullet that flew from the side tore through the flesh without any hindrance, ripping the insides apart and incapacitating the creature.
“The side, not the head, was the weak point.”
Without even being able to scream, he coughed up blood bubbles and fell over and stopped on the spot.
Meanwhile, there were also squads that encountered other types of obstacles other than infectious agents.
[Are we moving forward?]
The squad’s view screen shows a hallway with lightning.
Streams of blue-white lightning as thick as an anaconda are swirling around, so if you get hit, it will cause an immediate shutdown.
“What do you think of Artemis?”
“Pattern analysis not possible. It’s an energy leak with a lot of randomness. The expected loss of combat power when advancing like this is a minimum of 4% and a maximum of 22%.”
She mechanically laid out the results.
“Hearing this, it seems like a gamble worth taking. Will we force a breakthrough?”
If it were human soldiers, they would have protested and said, ‘Don’t talk nonsense,’ but the machine soldiers waited silently, ready to charge as soon as the order was given.
“Don’t act recklessly.”
Solaver stepped forward to stop him.
“It looks like the pipe that sends energy from the power reactor to each part has burst. That hallway is right next to the transmission grid. “It was already weakened, and I don’t think it could withstand the load placed on it while sailing by remote control.”
“Then shall we go back? “It’s a bit disappointing as we are the team that has advanced the most deeply.”
“There will be no need for that.”
Solaver held the keyboard and mouse in front of him in an awkward position.
He has been trained how to remotely control the stalker robot over the past few days.
The stalker under his control tore off a panel from the hallway wall and made several manipulations.
Pajik!
Then, the anaconda-like lightning became as small as a snake. Then it became as weak as a water snake, and finally as weak as a worm.
I silently gave Solaver a thumbs up.
When the lightning that had been flashing just now disappeared, darkness fell in the hallway.
[Go forward.]
The area beyond was clean and free of contamination.
“It seems that there are not many areas that have been successfully quarantined.”
Looking at the screens of other squads, most places were covered with infection.
“At the time I hibernated on the spaceship, it was about 67% quarantined. As time passed, the isolation was gradually broken and the contamination spread.”
[The street is blocked.]
At the end of the hallway, the bulkhead was down. Next to it, a uniquely shaped panel stands out.
“Leave it to me.”
Solaver came out again, and the robot under his control manipulated the bulkhead panel.
Guuuuung-.
The blockade that had been firmly maintained for a long time was lifted, and the cabins inside began to be revealed.
“This place is clean.”
“Well, I don’t know if I can call this clean.”
The cabin was a mess, and there were mummified corpses and dried blood everywhere.
“Anyway, there are no six walls, right? Then it’s done.”
The entire interior came into view of the advancing robots.
As the ship was boarded by various races, the colors of the blood stains were also diverse, and the languages of the graffiti and wills written on the walls before death were also different.
Solaver looked at them with a sad face, but honestly, it didn’t really make a difference to me.
It is not easy to empathize deeply with a suicide note written in a geometric alien language or blood sprayed like blue paint.
[Keeeeek-!]
The squad headed to the break room and encountered six infected entities.
However, they were in very bad condition, and many of them had severe injuries such as severed limbs or mangled bodies, so they were easily disposed of.
“Chez.”
Solaver muttered in a voice full of sadness.
In one corner of the robot’s field of vision, there were two dismembered remains. He must have been a great businessman when he was alive, as he was 2 meters tall and had enormous bones.
“It’s the same Exos.”
Artemis whispered in my ear.
The moment I saw the clothes worn by the remains, my instincts as a soldier told me that they were ‘of the same kind.’ That must be a military uniform.
There were three shattered infected bodies rolling around the corpse.
“Are you an acquaintance?”
“He was a security officer on our ship. Although we weren’t close in private, we had a close relationship in public. He was a very brave man. “He was the one who picked me up, carried me while I was exposed to infection, and ran to the survivors’ area.”
Solaver stretched out his hand to the screen.
“As soon as I heard the stranded crew’s request for rescue, I went out to rescue them, but I never thought I would see them again like this… I’m sorry.”
For the first time, he let out a wet voice.
Next to Chez’s body lay a fat, cylindrical weapon. Judging from the fact that there is a trigger on the lower handle, it appears to be a weapon that fires like a firearm.
However, there is nothing that appears to be a magazine, and the muzzle is too large compared to the body, making it difficult to understand what the mechanism is.
Inside the muzzle, strange blue coils were wrapped in layers.
What is certain is that while dealing with 10 infected entities, it has the power to kill half and turn half into idiots.
[I will retrieve it.]
It was so large that it took up the entire backpack that the stalker was carrying, and it was also quite heavy.
After that, minor skirmishes took place here and there, and one of the squads once again brought out a nightmare that had been long forgotten.
[Guuuuung-.]
A bizarre sound that seems to be a mixture of the cries of animals, waves, and the sounds of huge trees swaying in the wind.
[Pusheeeeek-.]
A huge tentacle spews out toxin-filled gases through its snout.
[Guuuuung-.]
This beat can be felt like the sound of a factory operating.
The giant nest that led to the decision to start the shelter normalization operation in the past filled the screen.
