Chapter 202
Chapter 202
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 202
Chapter Title: Storm Sovereign
-----------------------------------------------------------------
In myths, the sky has always been an object of longing. The vast expanse of the heavens is imbued with the divinity of a father or mother, closely tied to the act of creation itself.
Even without divine attributes, the sky was revered as the realm where gods resided. Sometimes it was seen as paradise where the dead found salvation, other times as the abode of beings transcending humanity.
Even after the age of ignorance ended and the era of reason and technology dawned, the sky retained its allure.
The same held true in Space Survival. With the immense universe as its backdrop, the sky inevitably became a challenge to conquer and overcome.
But caution was essential.
Who knew what lurked within the unknown domain of the skies?
Rain, hail, and storms. My wings cut through the symphony orchestrated by nature.
Lightning flashes, followed by deafening thunder. With each bolt, my shadow flickers across the ash-gray clouds.
Muscles tense in my shoulder blades and shoulders, rippling beneath my carapace and scales. The wing membranes stretch from my elongated finger tips, slicing through the clouds. Each fully spread wing spans over 40 meters. Even one wing alone is longer than my body.
Considering my size and weight, this is about right for soaring through the skies.
And the Cults under attack from me wouldn't find this situation welcoming at all. My body was far smaller than the cruiser spanning hundreds of meters, but the Cults watching me through their cameras wouldn't see it that way.
Crashing it would be a bit much.
I'd just rammed the front section where their command center was with my torso. It was meant to throw them off balance.
As I'd hoped, the cruiser crew couldn't make sound decisions. Instead of fleeing at full speed when they should, they were firing back with their ship guns.
Mingled with the eerie roar of the blizzard and lightning came the sound of psychic cannons firing. I adjusted my wing arms and dove sharply downward. An enemy shot grazed the tip of my tail.
｢B-Be careful flying! If we fall, we're done for!｣
"I was designed with planetary atmospheric descent missions in mind, so that won't be an issue..."
｢Shut up!｣
｢Woo! Flap flap! This is fun!｣
Riding on my back at this insane speed were the kids. To prevent any falls, I'd extended erosion tentacles to gently wrap around them. As the Mother of the Skies had said, plummeting from here wouldn't end well.
That's surprising.
Despite her name, the Mother of the Skies didn't seem fond of high-speed flight. She'd been clutching my erosion tentacles like safety bars on a roller coaster since earlier.
Gryphons had gliding abilities that let them hover briefly in midair, so I'd thought she'd be fine. My mistake.
26 seems to be enjoying it, though.
True to form, the one who loved everything I did looked thoroughly entertained. PS-111, more machine than anything, showed no reaction at all.
Alright, time to clip their wings first.
It was unlikely, but if their captain activated the hyperdrive engines, it'd be a headache. If they luckily jumped into a star, fine—but if they escaped unscathed, it wouldn't bode well for me.
The Cult Empire might bring reinforcements.
This wasn't a holy planet like last time; the situation differed. One wrong move, and I'd be fighting the entire empire.
I'd take on the empire once I reached adulthood, but not now. I had to prevent their escape.
Starting with the thrusters, then.
I slowly flapped my wing arms, gliding along the clouds. The enemy cruiser's guns fired relentlessly at me. Purple energy rounds, each meters wide, punched holes in the clouds as they chased me closely.
Even when synced with a spaceship, I'd dodged them easily. I slipped into the thunderclouds and evaded without issue.
They probably can't use the main guns.
The Cult cruiser was equipped with powerful main cannons.
Once, Muriel's pirate fleet and the Humanity Cartel's cruiser had intercepted me from a great distance. I'd taken over a Star Union freighter then, but one main gun blast had split that massive ship in two.
Their firepower was immense, but unlikely to be used now. Activating the main guns required concentrating vast psychic power—practically advertising their position to every Galleron nearby.
Unless they've lost their minds and fire anyway.
I needed to finish this quickly.
Hidden in the clouds, I rapidly approached the cruiser's side. The guns swiveled frantically upon spotting me bursting through.
A few quick ones hit me, but it meant little. I'd already closed the distance sufficiently.
Judging the range right, I extended my wing arms fully backward and spread my membranes wide. My forward momentum halted abruptly in midair.
Using that recoil, I whipped my tail forward like a pendulum. The pincer at its end smashed into the diamond-shaped cruiser's flank like a flail.
An explosion erupted in flames, tilting the ship sharply. Thrusters on that side shattered, throwing off its balance.
While the enemy panicked, I landed atop the cruiser. The guns couldn't aim properly amid the ship's shaking.
I had work to do before it stabilized. For the first time in a while, I activated my Acidic Fungus Gland trait. Beneath my parted jaws, acidic slime poured mercilessly downward.
The cruiser's smooth ivory hull plating sizzled and melted. The fungi pierced the outer wall in seconds, infiltrating internal sections.
That should do it.
I widened the hole with my combat arms and shoved my head inside. A dazed Cult stared up from the corridor within.
Before he could react, I snapped my jaws wide and bit him clean.
"H-Hiiik!"
"The monster's breached the ship!"
Crew screamed at the sight of their comrade vanishing into my gut, save his ankle.
Too cramped for me to roam here.
My body had grown too large for these corridors. Without Clever Weakling form, even entering was a squeeze.
Target the hangar next.
I fired fungi at the fleeing Cults' heels, then pulled my head out.
｢Got it. Command center and engine room first, right?｣
｢See ya later, big guy.｣
"An opportunity to update the Cult cruiser schematics database."
I carefully deposited the kids, wrapped in erosion tentacles, inside the ship. Feeling their presence fade, I spread my wings again.
"Damage report!"
The captain bellowed. He'd banged his head in the earlier impact, but that was irrelevant.
"Hull integrity down 9%! 23% of internal sections damaged!"
"Crew status unknown!"
"Th-The unidentified psychic lifeform is heading for the engine room! Th-The warrior squad guarding it has been wiped out!"
"Damn it! What the hell is the Temple Guardians doing?!"
"Th-They're blocking the monster that appeared on the hangar..."
He knew better, though. He couldn't not know. The myriad holographic feeds floating in the command center laid the situation bare.
All twelve Temple Guardians were in the hangar, facing a flying behemoth dwarfing even Gallerons.
Calling it "facing" was generous. It was a slaughter.
The thick tentacles erupting from its back were as swift and lethal as energy rounds. If the appendages at their tips latched on, even the dragonscale suits the Guardians wore offered no protection. Being swallowed dissolved the body whole—what good was defense then?
And that wasn't all. Its massive bulk was no empty boast; it was incredibly tough.
"D-Damn it! It reflects psychic power!"
"Then what do we do?!"
"Deploy the Demolisher... Gaaahhh!"
In the momentary distraction, another Guardian fell. His spine snapped backward, head coated in viscous, glowing foam.
They'd guarded this ship until departure, but the foe was too much.
That flying monster was overwhelmingly strong.
Seeing another Guardian lose limbs, the captain turned away.
They'd been his last hope, now gone. He needed another plan.
Abandon ship?
Escape pods might evade the monsters.
But fleeing here wouldn't improve matters. Abandoning the ship left them on this planet with terrifying beasts and brutal weather—survival was impossible long-term.
A few extra days at best.
"...Prepare hyperdrive engines."
"Captain! That's suicide!"
The bridge crew protested, but he shook his head. It was their only option left.
The ship was badly damaged; it might tear apart mid-jump. But death was death either way.
Plus, one monster was heading for the engines—minutes from rendering this impossible.
Hyperdrive to a nearby planet, then eject.
The attackers' origins were unknown, likely native lifeforms. Survival in alien environs was doubtful.
"I repeat, authorize hyperdrive activat—"
The floor shuddered violently as he spoke.
No.
The ship hadn't shaken. Emergency thrusters kept it balanced aloft.
The flying monster capable of breaching it was still battling Temple Guardians in the hangar.
The ship isn't shaking...
His gaze fixed on the sealed bulkhead. To protect the bridge from assault, all connecting sections were locked down.
No way.
As if answering, the command center shook again. This impact was felt by all.
Crew monitoring ship status froze, staring at the bulkhead like the captain.
"...Check all adjacent sections."
"Y-Yes, si—"
A roar interrupted—like a cannon firing, but perilously close.
Right behind that bulkhead.
And the captain's hunch was spot on.
The bulkhead trembled violently from impacts. It shook several times, then stilled.
"......"
No further attacks, but no one thought the enemy had retreated. Some crew grabbed armory weapons at the captain's nod.
As they armed, the bulkhead changed. A red dot appeared dead center, expanding rapidly into a gaping hole.
Energy concentration had vaporized the material.
All eyes locked on the breach. Faint screams echoed from beyond.
Then, from the pitch-black void, it emerged.
Blood-red eyes contrasting a deathly pale face.
A woman's visage—beautiful if eyes closed—glaring into the command center.
"A... a woman?"
Someone muttered incredulously. But he retracted it instantly.
As the floating white face in the dark gaped impossibly wide, everyone knew.
That was no woman.
No human or Cult woman's mouth split that far.
Maw agape like a Cult's face, indigo flames rising within. The captain tried to order fire.
But he couldn't.
The world twisted. The smooth ivory deck rushed up. Familiar sight: his uniformed torso.
Only then did he realize his head was severed.
Myriad arms tearing through the hole and the crew's silent screams were his final memory.