A World with the Space Kaiju
Reading those gallery reactions, I felt it — the time had come to make my choice.
There was one tiny, deeply embarrassing snag in the middle of all this: I had no idea where the selection screen actually was. After digging through my status window and every corner of the command console, I finally found a newly generated Faction Selection panel tucked off to one side.
Just as the gallery had said, it looked virtually identical to what the veterans had written up. I nodded to myself and decided to stick with the original plan — our Space Kaiju gentlemen.
Of course, committing to that already-settled choice did not go entirely without protest.
"Boooooo…"
"Hey now, what's all this?"
Our Pirate Empress Marianne puffed out her cheeks and made her displeasure known.
"Everyone already knows the Pirate Empress is basically the Pirates themselves, right?"
"Well, that's true, but…"
"So the fact that I'm deliberately not joining the same faction as the pirates — even with you right here — you can take that as a measure of how much I trust you, can't you?"
"…Heheh. W-well, if that's how it is, I suppose there's no helping it! Of course you should trust me!"
I'd already used that line on her once before, but a vigorous round of cheek-pinching and affection was still more than enough to soothe the Pirate Empress's volcanic temper.
With her quietly simmering complaints successfully suppressed, I turned back to finish the faction selection I'd left hanging.
> You have selected the faction: Space Kaiju.
> A communications relay organism from the chosen faction will arrive shortly.
The moment I confirmed the selection, the message appeared — and almost immediately after:
Beep-beep-beep! Beep-beep-beep!
"Commander, a massive object — no, a life-form — has been detected at the northeastern coordinates!"
"Ah. It's already here, then."
At Jessica's urgent report, I turned toward the reinforced glass installed in the command center. Across the vast expanse of space, something enormous was flying toward us… a space chrysalis? A living satellite?
Whatever it was, the bizarre biological structure defied easy description. Jessica was already reaching to activate the base's air-defense network, but I stopped her.
"Jessica. Hold fire."
"Pardon?"
"They're friendlies. That thing."
"Ah — it just looks so grotesque I almost did it without thinking."
Strangely enough, the moment we stopped pointing our always-active air-defense radar in its direction, the space chrysalis seemed to understand the gesture for what it was. It gradually reduced speed as it approached, and a short while later—
"That enormous… chrysalis is about to make contact with the base, Commander."
"Leave it. From now on, half of it will end up parasitizing our research lab and communications facilities."
"Ugh… parasitizing?"
As if to prove my words true, the space chrysalis that had flown all the way from the distant homeworld nest of the Space Kaiju drifted up alongside the newly built biology laboratory and the Dimensional Signal Collection Type Communication Amplification System module. It pressed itself against them as gently and with as little impact as possible — and then tentacles and viscous slime began to emerge from between the hard outer shell, seeping into every corner of the base.
The sight was uncomfortably reminiscent of the Necromorphs from Dead Space, or the enemies from classic Contra. Jessica, watching beside me, scrunched up her face in open revulsion.
"Ugh, it really does look grotesque."
"Yeah, it does."
Frankly, the only reason I wasn't already scrambling troops and fleets to smash those modules — and the entire base along with them — was because the system had confirmed we were in an absolute alliance. The visual alone was that bad.
But as countless players before us had already proven, once you were on the same team, the Space Kaiju were genuinely gentlemanly sorts.
> Neural link with the Hive Mind has fused with the base.
> By joining the Kaiju faction, the following buffs have been applied to the Commander's base:
✦Kaiju Nest module unlocked
✦ While a Kaiju Nest is present: Biology Laboratory efficiency +15%
✦ Additional research points available when developing biology-related technologies
✦ Kaiju Fleet production enabled; existing fleets may be granted the Biological Ship System
The notification had appeared at just the right moment. Jessica and I headed straight for the biology laboratory, where the Kaiju representative would be waiting.
And the person who greeted us the instant we arrived was, of course—
"Oh my♡ Commander? I never imagined you'd bring me such a precious sample♡"
Griyanaar, whom I'd permanently stationed in the biology lab for daily quests and leveling, welcomed me with a smile that filled her entire face.
Knowing exactly what her character settings were like, I fired off a warning before anything unfortunate could happen.
"Just so we're clear, Griyanaar — they came here as our allies."
"I know, so don't worry so much, all right? I don't go around experimenting on allies without permission."
She said that, and yet she was openly licking her lips as she watched the glossy tentacles — a mix of dark crimson and violet — settling into place all around the biology laboratory. My concern was very much not allayed.
But that concern over the tentacles… vanished a moment later.
A living wall of pure flesh, with nothing else on it, split open — and from within emerged an eye-monster…
No.
«So you are the "Commander" who has newly decided to join our faction.»
The Kaiju side's representative had appeared, speaking directly into my brain like telepathy, and every other thought in my head evaporated on the spot.
A World with the Kaiju
«Ah, it is truly a pleasure. I am Oxianor — sent by Her Majesty the Queen to offer you counsel and support.»
"Ah… yes. A pleasure to meet you, Miss Oxianor."
A being created by the Queen of the Space Kaiju for the purpose of conversing with "sentient entities."
In ordinary circumstances she pursues a literally "gentlemanly" demeanor, and will request that proper etiquette be observed should anyone behave in a manner that violates decorum.