Chapter 62: Sea Without Light 62
“We can’t rush boarding. Let’s send the drones over first,” Red said as he took off the equipment box from his back, which was used to carry the drones.
Pressing the metal button in the center of the box, four drones detached from the equipment box, hovering in mid-air and flashing before entering optical stealth mode.
Eden said, “I have taken control of the drones. The footage recorded by them will be transmitted in real time to your visors.”
The imagery played back in real-time, showing Kui Xin and the others from above as they looked down on the Kraken.
The deck of the Kraken was deserted, and everything appeared quiet. However, billowing clouds of smoke were being expelled from the ship’s side exhaust pipes, thick smoke mixed with sparks; flames were also shooting from the pipes at the back of the cargo ship, resembling erupting fire columns.
It was impossible to determine the source of the fire from the footage.
“What’s going on?” Red analyzed the images. “Eden, have the drones fly around the ship.”
“Understood. Adjusting flight path now,” Eden replied coldly.
Compared to Adam, Eden’s tone was more rational, devoid of any emotions, while Adam’s voice was set to be slightly softer, making it sound less cold and jarring.
Red grew increasingly serious: “There are no signs of a fight… Not a single person on deck… How is that possible? The cabin is on fire; they should be taking refuge on deck. Did the ship’s firefighting system fail? The fire shouldn’t be spreading this way.”
Could it be the work of the Secret Cult? Kui Xin gazed intently at the distant large ship.
The last time Kui Xin boarded, the Investigation Bureau personnel had yet to take over the Kraken’s security, and the cargo ship was already occupied by suspected forces of the Secret Cult.
They had destroyed the ship’s AI, killed many crew members, and ultimately succeeded in sinking the Kraken into the depths of the sea, leaving the Investigation Bureau no choice but to order the escort vessels to retreat from the cargo ship amid the risk of an explosion. The rescue helicopters for the security officers had directly crashed, and not a single security officer who boarded survived, and Kui Xin also died.
Seeing the flickering flames on the cargo ship, Kui Xin unconsciously recalled the horrors and despair of that day.
Fire was everywhere, and the acrid smoke filled the air as they struggled to breathe in the oven-like corridors. After escaping from one deck below, they found xenomorphs floating on the sea. The lifeboats were damaged, and the escort vessels had retreated from the Kraken. The only escape route was into the sky… and in the end, even that means of escape was lost.
That was a true dead end.
Even though Kui Xin possessed the ability of Death Rebirth, she maintained a cautious approach, as this ability had a limited number of uses. Once those were exhausted, death remained certain… If she couldn’t find a way to break the cycle in this incarnation, then being reborn would be meaningless.
Kui Xin found it hard to escape the fate of boarding the ship; after dealing with the Investigation Bureau, she would also have to face Mechanized Dawn. There was no choice but to take one path or the other.
To break free from fate, the only option was to find a way out and survive the disaster aboard the Kraken.
Otherwise, death awaited her.
“Wait, something’s moving…” Red suddenly said.
On the transmitted footage, a man frantically dashed out from the deck entrance, glancing back as he fled. His movements were chaotic, but then another figure bolted out after him, moving at an incredible speed, quickly closing the gap.
Then, the pursuer’s face contorted as his head suddenly twisted and expanded, transforming into a monster with a horrific, gaping maw. The creature opened its mouth wide like a snake preparing to strike, large enough to engulf a human head entirely, and two tentacles extended from its mouth, serving as swallowing assist organs.
The monster bit off the man’s head, and his headless body collapsed to the ground, blood splattering everywhere. The creature then let out a satisfied belch, its body slowly melting away as its appearance began to change, gradually transforming into the visage of the man it had devoured.
“…What the hell is that?” The bartender nearly retched.
“Xenomorph, and possibly an unrecorded new variant?” Night Cicada sneered. “I’ve seen quite a few grotesque things, but this is a first.”
Red said grimly, “This monster is strange… It eats people, can shapeshift, and has tentacles. For now, let’s consider it an unknown xenomorph.”
Thorn Rose bit her lip, “Why is there such a thing on the ship?”
“Could it be the Secret Cult?” Ambereye’s gaze shifted to Red.
Black Obsidian followed up, “This is beyond our plan, Red. Someone got to it first; besides us and the bigwigs in the Federation, who else would be interested in the Kraken?”
“The Secret Cult shouldn’t have the capability to rob a ship…” Red muttered, “The grotesque features and certain traits exhibited by that man-eating monster perfectly match xenomorphic characteristics.”
“Don’t forget the experiments the organization previously conducted. Highly altered xenomorphs could coexist peacefully with xenomorphs without facing attacks—they regard them as kin. I have reason to believe higher-level xenomorphs can control xenomorphs,” Ambereye remarked, never having spoken so much in one go. “The monster on the ship is highly unusual; it is likely connected to the Secret Cult.”
Everyone fell silent.
Silverface looked around, blinking twice, “Uh… Are we still boarding?”
“Think about it: if the Kraken was robbed by the Secret Cult, what would they do?” Kui Xin spoke softly.
“Of course, they would blow it up,” the bartender shrugged. “They have always worshipped their deity; if they don’t have the strength to remove the whole ship, they would naturally opt to sink it, depriving the Federation of whatever is on board.”
Thorn Rose crossed her arms, “Exactly. If it were me, I’d do the same. Instead of letting the enemy profit, I would rather they get nothing.”
Kui Xin led on, “Then we need to change our mission objective first—find out who attacked the Kraken. Once we understand that, we can plan our next move.”
After she finished speaking, suddenly, the voice of Kui Haidong came through the communication channel.
“Board the ship,” he commanded. “As Lady Fortune suggested, the primary objective of the mission is changed to investigating who is on the Kraken, then we will blow up the cargo ship. I’ve reviewed the footage returned by the drones; that shapeshifting monster has great research value. Attempt to bring back a live specimen.”
“And…” he paused, “the AI’s machine bay on the ship should record all operational data and sailing logs during the voyage. Find a way to remove the motherboard and bring it back; the intelligence inside may be crucial.”
“Got it,” Night Cicada scanned the others. “Everyone prepare. I will open the portal on the Kraken’s deck. Once we teleport, scatter immediately. You will work in groups to execute tasks; I’ll handle the response and won’t board the ship. In case of emergencies, contact me via the communicator.”
“There’s no one on the deck. See if there are any survivors. Lady Fortune and Silverface, search the lower deck. Thorn Rose, the bartender, and I will head to the machine room to remove the motherboard,” Red quickly assigned tasks. “Ambereye, you will be in my group; Black Obsidian, stick with Lady Fortune’s team.”
The reasoning behind these arrangements was that although Red and the bartender possessed some combat capability, their extraordinary abilities were not combat-oriented. They needed a combat-ready Thorn Rose to fill the gap, while Kui Xin and Silverface complemented each other with strong survival and extraordinary abilities, effectively covering weaknesses. The extraordinary abilities of the Ambereye and Black Obsidian twins were both mental, so it was reasonable to balance one in each group.
Red, being exceedingly cautious, checked every piece of gear he carried and asked all team members to report their equipment. Only after confirming everything was in order did he let Night Cicada open the spatial portal.
Red’s team stepped into the deep blue vortex; Black Obsidian looked at Kui Xin, waiting for her to go first, while Silverface eagerly gazed at her.
Kui Xin pulled out a submachine gun from behind her waist, saying, “Let’s go.”
Passing through the thin barrier, she stood once again on the Kraken’s deck.
The sensation of boarding this time was starkly different from her last. The previous time, she was completely unaware of the situation and could only passively execute her mission. This time, she had made 95% progress in her investigation and had a few “reliable” teammates, with Night Cicada serving as a mobile portal, greatly increasing their chances of survival.
Kui Xin caught a whiff of the acrid smoke; the pungent odor intertwined with the briny sea breeze was increasingly unbearable… However, this time her helmet was mostly full-coverage, covering her chin and mouth, with the helmet’s built-in gas mask function.
Calmly, Kui Xin activated the helmet’s gas filtration mode and walked towards the deck entrance. Should she encounter a situation like last time, she wouldn’t have to fear; Silverface was a handy fire extinguisher.
In contrast to the flaming deck and thick smoke, the air one deck below remained relatively clean. Unlike last time, the ventilation system was not completely destroyed; it was still operational, expelling the choking smoke.
When entering the lower deck, the first thing Kui Xin saw were long drag marks on the floor.
They were bloodstains, with a corner cleaning robot persistently scrubbing the blood from the ground. The buzzing sound of the robot echoed in the corridor, creating a scene that was both chilling and cold. The lives of the crew members were uncertain, yet the machines continued operating as per their programmed routines.
The long bloody drag marks seemed endless, extending deep into the corridor.
The cleaning robot scanned past Kui Xin’s feet.
“Beep beep, please clear the way,” the robot announced. “Beep beep, please clear the way.”
With a blank expression, Kui Xin stepped on the annoying robot, crushing it to pieces.
“Search room by room,” she whispered. “Find all survivors but do not kill them immediately; we need to interrogate them.”
Silverface and Black Obsidian nodded slightly.
As they passed the first door on the lower deck, Kui Xin’s Absolute Prediction alerted her to a danger warning.
Kui Xin suddenly turned her head, gazing at the metal door before her.
The metal door sprang open abruptly, and a tall crewman burst out from within! The crewman was armed with a gun, deliberately lying in ambush.
He pulled the trigger, and the bullet spiraled out, striking Kui Xin’s exoskeleton armor with a crisp sound, causing a spark to fly from the metal armor.
Kui Xin reacted the fastest, quicker than Silverface!
Before Silverface could raise the water curtain, Kui Xin quickly crouched down, her leg sweeping forcefully to knock the suddenly attacking crewman down, who hadn’t managed to fire a second shot.
Raising her already-chambered gun, Kui Xin aimed mercilessly and fired at the crewman’s head.
The silencer installed on the gun emitted only a faint sound, yet the crewman’s head acquired a bloody gaping hole; blood splattered forth, staining Kui Xin’s gun.
The dead crewman’s face contorted as his body melted, reverting to the form of the monster, which bore three human faces, each expressing pain.
Kui Xin examined closely but found no trace of Captain Adam’s face on the monster… Was it because Captain Adam was still alive and the monster hadn’t had the chance to eat him, or was there more than one shapeshifting monster aboard the ship?
“We need to stay vigilant… This monster possesses considerable intelligence,” Kui Xin said.
Silverface hesitated, “Didn’t you say to leave a survivor?”
Before he could act, Kui Xin had already killed the enemy.
Kui Xin was momentarily taken aback: “…I forgot we were supposed to leave a survivor.”
She genuinely forgot.
After everything she had been through, she had developed PTSD without even realizing it. In combat, this symptom displays more prominently, specifically manifested in… the moment she picks up a weapon, she loses control and wants to kill her opponent, regardless of who they are.
