Became an Evolving Space Monster - Chapter 291
Only Noblemtl
Episode 291 – Moving (4)
–
Even in an age where humans can run freely among the stars, there are some things that do not change.
An era where genes can be manipulated at will, planetary environments can be altered, and massive metal structures can be moved across star systems.
Now humans can replicate the miracles of God in their own hands.
However, if there is something that cannot be changed or altered, it is the ‘limitations of humans as creatures.’
Death, the end. The miracles of God, but problems that cannot be solved because God is not God. The fear of this is expressed in many forms.
A myth about an infinite evil lurking in the depths of the universe.
The story goes that they landed on an uninhabited planet and took off again, only to find that the ship had more people on board.
There was a rumor that everything was fine until departure, but after arriving, there was not a single person on the ship.
Ironically, even in the space age, ghost stories still remained, just transformed into forms that reminded us of human limitations and stimulated primal fears.
Yamada, the leader of the rescue fleet of the Megacorp space fortress located in the OS-255 constellation, also heard ghost stories often in the past.
He was once a mere crew member, so there was no ghost story he hadn’t heard. After all, these are usually the only stories that sailors sailing the vast sea of stars can tell while drinking.
But I have never heard a story as scary as this moment today.
“You can’t hear from Gigacracker?”
Just as he was about to fall asleep, Yamada received a call from his subordinate and felt a chill run down his spine.
“Yes. It’s the regular contact time, but there’s been no contact.”
“Surely it’s not a complete loss?”
“That’s not it. The energy reaction of the Giga Cracker still exists.”
The Rescue Fleet is equipped with equipment that can track the energy signature of a Giga Cracker. It can be tracked unless the ship itself is completely destroyed or the signature has been there for a long time.
“… That’s fortunate. Wake everyone up and prepare to sail immediately.”
“All right!”
After terminating communication with his subordinates, he sent an emergency transmission to the entire fleet.
“Notice to all rescue fleets. Signal lost from Gigacracker 14! Signal lost from Gigacracker 14!”
Five minutes after the communication was lost.
A rescue fleet has gathered in space outside the fortress.
If there had been a problem with the regular ships, they wouldn’t have gathered this quickly. This was possible because of the unprecedented situation of losing contact with the Gigacracker.
“What about the Giga Cracker energy response? Is it still the same?”
“Yes. Still staying in the same spot.”
“… It might be the work of Star Union agents.”
Of course, it is a bigger problem for Giga Cracker to be taken over by another force than to be destroyed. The planets of Megacorp are in danger, but the biggest threat is reverse engineering.
The method of making Giga Cracker and its core technology are known only to Saint K. If it were to be leaked, Saint K would suffer a huge blow.
It was obvious where Noble Capital, which had suffered enormous losses, would vent its anger. Those who were part of the rescue fleet would be punished so severely that they would feel it was a luxury to even be employed.
“All fleets ready for superluminal travel.”
The entire fleet that had gathered at Yamada’s command glowed blue. The light that had illuminated the black space like a star disappeared in an instant.
A few minutes later, they appeared in a completely different constellation, miles away. Thanks to the hyperluminal engine, the distance that would have taken months to travel at the speed of light was shortened to a matter of minutes.
“Arrived at target point.”
“No stragglers.”
“No damage.”
“Okay. Show the Giga Cracker status with a hologram.”
As reports from across the fleet were exchanged, a hologram displaying the situation within the constellation was displayed in the center of the situation room.
Immediately afterwards, the image of the Gigacracker recorded by the ship’s external camera was reflected on the hologram. The image of the Gigacracker, a sphere with a diameter of 2km, and the numerical analysis of its current status appeared next to it.
“The location hasn’t changed… huh?”
The sailor stopped talking as he was giving his report.
But Yamada didn’t blame him.
Because the numbers appearing on the hologram were extremely strange.
‘The amount of energy you’re emitting is skyrocketing, right?’
Just like when you activate an ion cannon. Yamada’s face turned pale as he realized that fact.
“Evasion, evasion! Evasion maneuver now!”
“Yes, yep!”
Other ships also noticed the anomaly and began to rapidly leave the formation. Meanwhile, the numbers displayed on the hologram reached their limit and began to glow red.
And as those numbers stopped rising, the ship AI’s dry voice echoed through the situation room.
“High energy reaction confirmed from the front.”
“Everyone, grab anything!”
The moment the two voices crossed, a tremendous shock shook the ship.
–
There are few players in space survival who dislike superweapons.
Of course, it can’t be otherwise.
Because it’s a chance to use weapons we’ve often seen in space-based media, like wiping out massive fleets in one blow or burning planets to the ground.
Aside from the romance of SF, the performance of the super weapon is not bad when viewed in-game. First of all, its power is so great that it can easily neutralize the opponent’s defenses.
Only a power of equal strength can stop a superweapon. In battles between rankers, clans, and forces, the presence or absence of a superweapon has a major impact.
In fact, I’ve had a lot of trouble fighting enemies with superweapons. Even if I try to hide on a planet, they’ll shoot me with their superweapons and I’m done for.
However, despite these advantages, few players manage to keep their superweapon for long.
The reason is connected to those advantages.
Since it gives an overwhelming advantage in battle, if someone tries to get their hands on a super weapon, they will be interfered with by those around them. Not to mention the enemy, even if they are allies, they will secretly carry out sabotage operations because they do not know when the weapon will be turned against them.
And super weapons are very noticeable. Even though they have incredible power, their defensive power is not the same. If you roll them wrong even a little, you will most likely lose them to enemy fire.
In addition, expensive production and maintenance costs are a bonus.
For these practical reasons, not many people keep a superweapon for a long time, but it is still coveted by many. That is a superweapon.
The weapon with that destructive charm is now moving in my hand.
The Giga Cracker’s core weapon is the super-giant ion cannon. A weapon with enough power to instantly split apart small stars such as asteroids and dwarf planets is activated.
A blue-green beam is fired from a cannon with a diameter of several hundred meters. It is similar to the particle beam shot by Crystal Wing, but its range and destructive power are overwhelmingly incomparable. In the first place, it is nonsense to compare the power to destroy a star to a living creature.
A beautiful death cuts through the darkness that fills the universe and flies toward its goal.
The target at the end is not a star, but a ship. It is a rescue fleet that has appeared to rescue them.
The enemies who had just arrived in this constellation were in disarray. They reacted as if they had never thought that Giga Cracker would target them. They belatedly tried to change to a spread formation, but the beam fired by the ion cannon was already right in front of them.
The moment the beams and the fleets collided, an intense light flashed.
There were no flashy fireworks that are usually seen in fleet battles. It was more like waves washing over sand castles. Hundreds of ships, battleships, destroyers, and patrol ships were hit by the beam and disappeared without a trace.
‘In the game, I was that role.’
Even if it becomes an adult, the means to defend against super weapons are extremely limited. Even if it is a unique trait. Even among Apex, would it be necessary to collect a lot of traits from the most powerful ones to be able to counter them?
‘Come to think of it, it was the same when we fought the Imperial Carrier.’
Even when blocking the Imperial Carrier’s Cosmic Bolt, he was barely able to win after using all of his abilities, including the Holy Grail, the King of Monsters, the Whirlwind of God, and even the Psychic Breath from all three heads.
Actually, that didn’t happen that often in the game. Most of the time, it was finished before the superweapon could work. And if it failed? You’d end up like those ships.
‘It’s over.’
The hull of the Giga Cracker, which had spread out like a lotus in full bloom, was folding again. Normally, it had a spherical shape, but when it fired the ion cannon, the outer wall around the weapon and the hull unfolded into the shape of a flower bud.
‘That’s why his nickname was Tangerine.’
Ion Cannon enters a dormant state and Giga Cracker returns to its original state.
I was watching it from beginning to end, with a ‘dark curtain’ spread out in space.
‘Is it my turn now?’
The only survivors were the fast-moving patrol ships and a few battleships that made quick decisions and made evasive maneuvers.
It would be a problem if they returned safely.
I flew towards them with my shield activated. The surviving ships immediately scattered as I got closer.
Thanks to the Dark Veil, my body is covered in a substance that confuses enemy detection systems. To their eyes, I will now appear as a large ball of energy.
The enemies seemed completely out of their minds, perhaps due to the continuous new attacks from the Ion Cannon.
I dug in between them and swung my right tail at a nearby corvette. The corvette, now smaller than me, was hit by the pincer-equipped tail and split in two.
While swinging its tail, its other body parts were not idle either. Instead of a dark curtain, the pipes attached to its body released ‘Gremlin Moss’, enhanced with the ‘Great Infectant’ trait, in the form of smog.
A cloud of gremlin moss, disabling machinery, clung to the remnants of the rescue fleet. The ships that were touched by the smoke flickered their lights a few times before coming to a halt.
The neutralized prey was then dealt with by the two heads on either side. The right head used its enhanced acid breath to blow a large hole through the ship, while the left head simply bit the ship and hurled it towards another ship.
The battle arms changed into sharp scythe-like shapes, or large hook-like claws on the hands, and struck ships that came close. Thanks to the effect of the ‘transformable bioweapon’ trait, the arms changed shape frequently, taunting the enemies.
As the number of patrol ships rapidly decreased, the enemy seemed to recognize the presence attacking them. The surviving battleships fell back and began to fire their main guns at me.
The plasma energy fired from the main guns of the battleships struck my body, but there was no significant impact. It wasn’t that there was no pain at all, but compared to before, it was practically at a level where it could be said that there was no damage.
‘You want to have a cannon battle?’
I figured they wanted it, so I decided to give them what they wanted.
The two heads that had been fighting on their own stopped moving and headed forward according to my will.
The massive energy pumped by the dragon’s heart surged upwards like a fountain throughout my body. The psychic power that would have been concentrated in one head like before now flowed in three directions. The monster’s tentacles, which had absorbed all of that intense energy, shook in unison.
And when the accumulated energy reached the appropriate level, my tentacles spit fire.
The dragon’s breath, which had long since overwhelmed the original, engulfed the ships. Even if my power was not yet as strong as a superweapon, it was a separate issue for them to withstand the psychic breath. The battleships with thick outer walls were melted down to their armor, and the small corvettes were left without a trace.
After the judgment of fire, there were no more moving beings.
All that remains are the common ship graveyards seen in space.
‘Shall we go back after tidying up this?’
I vomited purple flames one last time, my psychic breath burning all the ships to scrap metal.
After erasing all traces of the rescue fleet’s presence here, I turned my head.
The kids are waiting for me at my new house.