Chapter 274
Chapter 274
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 274
Chapter Title: Great Chaos (2)
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“Second Command Center fully sealed. Activating shields.”
“All VIPs in the banquet hall evacuated to the underground bunker. Upper-level VIP evacuation in progress.”
Dozens of androids in the central control room had cables plugged into the backs of their heads, taking full control of the Second Command Center. The fortress's owner, Montana Marcio, watched anxiously from behind as the robots worked.
Those androids were all high-end models manufactured by the Star Union. Originally designed as auxiliary units for ship computers, they had been retrofitted for fortress management.
Even the Marcio Cartel couldn't easily recruit talent skilled enough to run an orbital habitat. No one with that level of knowledge and expertise would ever defect to the Space Dogs.
That was why Montana had shelled out astronomical credits to purchase a fleet of Star Union high-spec androids. Along with all the weapons they would be managing.
“Anti-air shock cannons and defensive railguns activated and loaded.”
“Psychic power attacks deemed ineffective against the enemy. Switching ammunition.”
“Replacing with large-caliber high-velocity impact rounds and cluster missiles.”
“Patrol corvettes under Command Center control rearmed with identical specs.”
Proving the investment worthwhile, the androids were responding to the crisis with impressive speed. Even with the fortress guns neutralized, they immediately deployed backup countermeasures.
Watching them, Montana felt a mix of emotions. Relief that his judgment had been spot-on, yet the nagging anxiety that refused to fade.
Damn it! If this deal goes through smoothly, I was planning to get the hell out of here.
Rumors of Outspacer unrest and the sudden vanishings of major cartels were spreading everywhere lately. In such turbulent times, the control over Kasha Arma—secured through backroom lobbying—felt far too precarious.
His plan had been to use the profits from auction brokering to buy a small planet in Mega Corp territory. Operating legally there would make it easier to enjoy Mega Corp protection, ensuring his safety in turn.
But that plan had gone straight to hell.
An unknown entity outside had infected his men, twisting them into grotesque monsters. Whether it was an Outspacer beast or some deranged Mega Corp client's escaped experiment, he had no idea.
Either way, it had cost him dearly, and now his life hung in the balance.
...Should I prepare an escape?
Besides the military spaceport, Kasha Arma had one other way off the orbital habitat: a shuttle straight to the planet overhead.
Montana eyed the control room monitors as he considered his last resort.
On the screens, his subordinates scurried about, readying themselves for battle.
Three massive cylindrical pillars loomed visible from virtually anywhere inside the fortress.
One of the three command centers propping up Kasha Arma stood fully armed, waiting for us.
That shield wall's tough.
Breaching the command center would doom the fortress, so its protective walls were built to last.
Made from black silver—designed to halve psychic power—mixed with all sorts of high-strength alloys, piercing it would be a hassle. My psychic breath or acid breath could do it, but it'd take time.
No need for that.
The longer I dragged things out, the more my weaknesses would be exposed. Sure, my body was sturdy, but I wasn't planning to tank hits indiscriminately.
As always, head-on fights didn't suit an Aimorph.
Deceive the enemy. Strike from unexpected angles. That was the Aimorph way.
I ordered the mutants and mad legion beneath me to advance. An army of flesh-warped mutants and mind-corrupted maniacs charged toward the steel fortress.
The distance between them and the fortress was short. No major interference yet.
But Kasha Arma's defenses weren't limited to the fortress guns.
Flames flickered from the gaps in the thick shield wall encircling the cylindrical command center. Intense blasts and ensuing explosions swept through the mutant horde.
Those are shock cannons right now...
Direct hits reduced mutants to paste; even glancing blows tore off limbs. But this was nowhere near enough to stop them.
“Gigigigigi!”
“Grkiiiii!”
Legless mutants used protruding tentacles as replacements to scurry forward. Those bisected at the waist leaped ahead on freakishly developed arms.
Meanwhile, light flashed from the command center again. A massive electromagnetic surge sliced the air. A red line appeared through the heart of the packed mutant legion.
Hypersonic projectiles had pierced mutants and mercenaries alike, shredding them into bloody chunks.
That's the pricey railgun they shelled out for.
In Space Survival, railguns were staples on Mega Corp orbital fortresses. They shone against energy-resistant foes like me. I'd be seeing them constantly once I entered Mega Corp space—especially the solar system.
Kadun had said the Marcio Cartel installed one in each command center after seizing the fortress. Even cheap small-scale models had cost a fortune.
Yeah, railguns are expensive. And maintenance is a nightmare.
Compared to your average pirates, the Marcio Cartel was remarkably well-prepared.
Too bad their opponent was me. Their misfortune.
Railgun's in cooldown.
Shock cannons stationed in the shield wall gaps belched fire relentlessly. My mutants and mad legion died by the shellful but never halted their advance.
I'd created over a thousand mutants alone. And residents driven insane by the Herald of Great Chaos were steadily joining their ranks.
The growing legion of madness soon reached the command center's shield wall. But they couldn't breach it—their claws and the mercenaries' and pirates' weapons couldn't even scratch it.
The command center responded by unleashing Claymore-like missiles at the approaching foes. Whenever the head-sized cluster warheads detonated in midair, the mutants and mercenaries below were pulped.
“Kaaaaaaaagh! You fuuuuuckers!”
“I'm gonna kill you! You goddamn bastaaaards! Graaaah!”
The maddened mercenaries and pirates bellowed like the damned. Their minds were corrupted, but the pain was all too real—their states were utterly wretched.
I'd figured mercenaries might hesitate against their own. Wrong. The enemy was far more resolute than I'd anticipated.
Former comrades' screams fell on deaf ears in the command center. Cluster rounds poured down mercilessly from above, red flames licking the wall with every volley, claiming dozens of lives.
Can't have them dying yet.
For the madness bomb's full effect, they needed to die inside the command center.
Time to get started.
While the command center focused on the others, I descended to the ground. I folded my vast wing membranes into the hollow casings of my wing-arms, then lowered my head until my maw nearly touched the floor.
Somewhere around here.
Probing the ground with my auxiliary organs, I halted before a building with one wall collapsed. The fortress had changed a lot from the game, so it wasn't exact—but it should be close.
I smashed the wall with my wing-arms, fully toppling the structure. Then I gaped wide over the rubble.
My deep-throated fungus gland activated, vomiting a torrent of acid. The green fluid devoured the ruins and bored into the floor beneath.
The enemy still had no clue what I was up to. A stray shock shell flew nearby, though.
No concern. Specimen 026 was with me.
｢I'll clear the way so no one bothers big baby.｣
The one perched on my head toppled nearby buildings, levitating the debris into the air. Incoming shells smashed into the spinning obstacles and detonated harmlessly.
Good kid.
Guess all our time together paid off—we were perfectly in sync.
Under Specimen 026's cover, I continued the excavation. Once the gland's reserves were spent, I used the cannons on my back to lob spores filled with explosive bodily fluids into the hole.
But this isn't the end.
This tunnel needed to go deeper than the underground vaults.
The monstrous tentacles dangling like a mane from my neck and rear carapace writhed at my command. The high-concentration psychic power they generated coalesced before my maw, taking form.
A purple orb blazing like the sun erupted into a colossal inferno, surging into the hole I'd bored. The insane heat began cracking the metal floor plating.
Not just that—the surrounding area shook like an earthquake. Intact buildings crumbled. Psychic flames gushed from the fissures like lava.
Perfect.
The blaze—even Apex creatures couldn't survive—slowly died down.
Thick smoke billowed from the black pit. Amid the chemical fumes, my auxiliary organs caught a familiar scent.
The stench of humans gripped by terror. A sign that my goal and this pit were close.
The shield wall's weakness.
The wall protected the entire above-ground cylindrical command center. Meaning underground facilities—like bunkers—went undefended.
If the enemy's walls were solid, I'd just go around.
Some pirates in the game lined the underground with the same material too...
But pirates who winced at one railgun's price probably couldn't afford that.
Even if they had, I had ways to punch through. Just no need right now.
I reactivated Herald of Great Chaos, canceled earlier for the breath attack. Mutants within 500 meters of me responded to the psionic wave. Some pounding futilely at the shield wall broke off and leaped into the pit at my guidance.
Specimen 026 and I plunged into the abyss.
The bunker below. And those who believed it the safest refuge.
Great Chaos was coming for them.