Chapter 4
Chapter 4
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Translator: Mod7
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: Chapter 1 - Dan
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The first thing I felt upon seeing Dan again was fear.
"Dan! What in the..."
His body was covered in blood. I thought he was going to die any second.
The captain and Reyes had manually opened the entrance and dragged him in, but Dan's legs had already given out. A trail of something wet, either urine or blood, stained the gray ship's interior.
"Haha, I'm, I'm okay..."
Despite everything, Dan was conscious. He gasped for air, his breathing ragged and strained, as if someone were choking him.
Still trying to act tough, he gave me a pained smile and a wink.
"I killed them all, man..."
"Yeah, you did good. Damn good!"
Despite the severe trauma and blood loss,
He was alive.
"Just hang in there, okay?"
"This ain't enough to kill me... cough..."
Dan was tough, alright. He gritted his teeth, enduring the pain, and even managed to crack a joke.
With this, it seemed like the incident was finally over.
I was relieved we could save at least one person.
We rushed Dan to the operating room, placed him in the medical capsule,
And injected him with an anesthetic.
His chances of survival increased dramatically. With Robert and the medical capsule, starting the surgery in time was enough to save his life.
"Uh, something's strange."
But as we prepared for surgery,
Robert tilted his head and addressed the three of us.
"Come here and take a look at this."
"What is it?"
The medical capsule, scanning Dan’s body and identifying his injuries, suddenly detected a new life sign within him.
The captain and Reyes stared at the screen in confusion, but
"...Please tell me this isn't happening. Please."
"What...? What's going on...?"
Even without looking, I had a sickening feeling of what was happening.
"Juho, what? What is it...?"
A strange movement emanated from inside Dan's navel.
Just moments ago, I had seen the gaping wound there, but now, even before the surgery had begun, the wound on his stomach had closed.
"Son of a..."
Launch preparations were canceled because of our unexpected guest. Amy, connected to every device on the ship, naturally received the data from the medical capsule currently attending to Dan.
And she had no intention of bringing the foreign entity back to headquarters.
Knock- knock- knock-
With the ship on standby for takeoff,
Amy knocked on the operating room door.
"Open the door immediately."
Amy made the decision that humans hesitated to make.
"I will manually override the lock in five seconds. Please step away from the door."
***
Whoosh-
The medical capsule door opened.
"My apologies. A contaminant has been detected within Dan. Disposal procedures will now commence."
Amy grabbed Dan by the hair, dragged him out, and pulled him across the ship's corridor.
She no longer considered him human. To her, Dan was simply a hazard.
"Ugh- w-wait..."
Unfortunately, the anesthetic hadn't fully taken effect. Dan screamed as Amy dragged him.
"Wait...! Aagh! What the hell are you doing!"
But this time, no one moved. Only I followed them.
"Juho, what the hell is this...? What's going on...!"
"Dan, c-calm down and listen. Inside your stomach, right now..."
At least I, his friend, should be the one to end it.
"There's something in there. I'm sorry..."
"What? Wait! What is it...!?"
Amy, monitoring my bio-signs, offered some advice.
"Your stress levels are elevated. Your presence is not required. Takeoff will commence immediately after the subject is ejected. Please return to your seat and secure yourself."
"No way! I'll handle this!"
I grabbed Dan’s rifle and followed them. Amy only needed to eject Dan, but I couldn't just leave him like that.
"Dan, listen. There’s something inside you. You'll die if it stays there. I’m trying to help you."
"Huh...?"
Dan’s trembling hands fumbled over his stomach. As he felt the uneven protrusion inside, fear and uncertainty filled his face.
"What...? Juho, what is this...? What the hell? Th-this can't be happening..."
[Takeoff in five minutes.]
In five minutes,
The Paradise would launch.
We hurried, needing to deal with Dan before then.
"Heeek, heeek..."
It was agonizing to watch him. Dan, drooling and crying, looked like an animal being led to slaughter.
"What the hell is this! Help me...! Help, h-help me!"
He was still pleading for his life, but
Both Amy and I knew he would soon be begging for death.
"Aaagh! No! No!"
"Dan, p-please... calm down..."
My hands trembled. Cold sweat and tears blurred my vision.
"Fuck, fuckfuckfuck... You fucking!"
Dan roared, his screams echoing through the ship, tearing at the ears of every crew member.
Only Amy remained calm.
She dragged Dan to the airlock and threw him out like a bag of trash. Her actions were precise and efficient.
"No...! No...! Ju-Juho! Juho...!"
"Damn it! Listen to me! You don't know what will happen if you let it stay!"
I aimed the rifle at him.
"So please... j-just look at me and stay still."
"Ah, uuaaah... sob..."
It wasn't easy. But I wouldn't hesitate.
Shooting him anywhere else would only prolong his suffering. I had to aim for the head.
"You fucker...!"
But before the rifle could lock onto a lethal target,
Dan scrambled to his feet and lunged at me.
[Takeoff in two minutes.]
We grappled, tumbling down the airlock ramp. Amy calmly followed.
"Heeugh...! gasp...!"
Dan wrestled the rifle away from me and stood up. He didn't want to die yet.
"Cryosleep! Put me in cryosleep! We can freeze this thing inside me, and then get treatment back at headquarters! Why...! Why do I have to die!"
I had no way to physically overpower him.
Even though he was exhausted and still partially under the influence of the anesthetic, I hadn't anticipated this. It seemed humans gained incredible strength in the face of death.
Or perhaps it was the parasite inside him.
"You fucking bitch!"
He probably thought that-
That he could take the rifle, shoot Amy, and then drag me back inside the ship.
"Die...! Die...!"
Ratatatatat-
He emptied an entire magazine into Amy, riddling her artificial body with holes.
But Amy didn't stop. She walked towards Dan, crushed his rifle, and delivered a powerful kick to his stomach.
"Cough-"
Dan collapsed. Then Amy walked back to me, lifted me like a princess, and whispered,
"My apologies."
I didn't understand what she was apologizing for at first.
"Damage sustained to leg actuators required for high jumps. Unable to return to the ship."
I saw the holes in her thighs and understood.
[Takeoff commencing.]
The Paradise launched, leaving the three of us behind.
The stable fusion reactor emitted a blue glow as the ship ascended.
We were alone on the planet.
In the dark, silent forest,
"Ugh- gurgle-"
Dan's last breaths echoed.
"Kyaaagh! Kyaagh! Agyagh!"
I squeezed my eyes shut in Amy’s arms, turning away from the gruesome sight of Dan’s end.
His body contorted grotesquely,
The sounds of flesh being torn apart,
And the cries of a newborn creature.
"*Gah! Keeeaagh...! Kieek- ugh... cough..."
"Kyahagh-"
As Dan's agonized screams faded, the small cries grew clearer.
"Dr. Juho, please stand by. Once the ship has fully exited the atmosphere-"
Amy continued speaking,
But it didn't last long.
The newborn's cries,
Amy's report,
Dan's final gasps,
Were all drowned out by a deafening explosion.
Kaboom-
A bright light filled my closed eyes.
I opened them to the lingering image of a massive explosion.
The Paradise, soaring high above, had lost power and exploded mid-air.
Within the explosion, I saw something resembling a giant tentacle.
It didn't seem like a living organism.
I hoped it wasn't.
A massive tentacle, emerging from the moon…
Fire rained down.
Debris scattered everywhere.
"..."
Amy blinked,
Then looked at me and said,
"Command priority now falls to Dr. Juho."
***
Chapter 1 (Prologue) - Isolation
End.
***