Chapter 15: The Smile and Tears of the Stars (Part 2)
When Theresa heard that Andre had returned to Feinheim and chased him to the ground, she never expected this to happen.
She clearly only wanted to return the star power, so why did she cause a third catastrophe? What sin had she committed that the causes of three major disasters in the world could be directly or indirectly attributed to her?
Looking at the rampant possessed Moon Envoy, she couldn't help but have sad thoughts about what she had done in the past two hundred years.
He thought he was helping Feinheim, but in fact, it only made his current situation worse.
For ten whole hours, she sat blankly on the spaceship in the air, motionless, unable to recover from the shock of this reality.
The endless despair made her think of committing suicide.
Anyway, whatever I do will cause a bigger disaster, so I might as well just die and apologize.
However, when she raised her self-defense gun and pointed it at her temples, she found that she could not pull the trigger.
──Even though she was immersed in the red star power, even though she had the red star sword, even though she was now a powerful warrior, she was still so cowardly and afraid of death, just like she was back then──In order to escape death, she concealed her crimes and then brought in the scourge of Andre.
When people are helpless, they tend to think of their loved ones, so she thought of her mother.
For two hundred years, Andre used almost all means to capture her. Except for the relative safety of Poison Moon, she could not leave easily - so she was not only a sinner who harmed the entire planet, but also not a filial daughter.
Because she couldn't return to the Ark and expose her whereabouts, she never went to take care of her mother until she died.
She simply transferred half of all the money to her mother's account, and for the other half, she hired a few mercenaries with good reputations through the Internet to move her mother to the most concealed and safest place to guard her, and then she kept writing emails to her.
Every email I wrote to my mother was answered very quickly. Almost an hour after I wrote it, I would receive a long reply.
It was just like her mother was holding a laptop and always waiting for her letters.
Feeling guilty and touched at the same time, she turned her thoughts into long words and conveyed them to her mother through the Internet - she was her most important and last harbor besides Du Yue.
Parents always understand their children.
Although Theresa didn't say anything explicitly in the email, her mother still understood that her daughter was doing something big that could not be announced to the world.
So, the frail middle-aged woman wrote in the email:
"No matter what you're struggling with, I believe you haven't forgotten Mom. Don't worry about me. Just go for what you want to do most. Whether you succeed or not, no matter what others say about you, remember to be true to your conscience. You may not be smart, but you're the most patient. Although Mom can't see you, she'll always be there to cheer you up."
Those simple words became the strongest force, supporting Theresa as she repeated the boring and bloody work of carrying out the plan to return the star power for two hundred years. Even after learning that her mother had committed suicide when Andre's men finally found her and wanted to take her hostage, she had no intention of stopping.
Yes, she has no talent, but at least she has patience.
As long as I have patience, I will be able to kill Andre one day, put an end to my sins, and mourn my mother's soul in heaven.
But looking at the mirror image in front of her──even if she had patience, what did she do?
The cold barrel of the gun was pressed against his temple, and his mind recalled his mother's voice.
"No matter what happens, don't give up your life easily, because you are my precious treasure that I brought into this world with countless expectations and blessings, and after enduring great pain."
She lowered the gun tremblingly, then slowly closed her eyes and took a breath.
Even if she died, so what? Her life had cost so many lives, could death offset that? Before everything was over, did she have the right to die?!
With some trepidation in her decision, she did not go to the Ark, but instead drove her spaceship to the former site of the Senate - this was where Feinheim, the consciousness of the planet, was sleeping.
Navigating the dilapidated buildings, defeating the attacking Moon Emissaries, Theresa reached the center. She spent several days repairing the power system and then managed to power up the computers that could be used. After all, technology had advanced significantly over the past few hundred years. She cracked Andre's Trojan Horse and freed Feinheim from his imprisonment—and then was immediately berated by Feinheim.
Then, a stalemate ensued between the two parties. One side hated humans who repeatedly destroyed the environment, while the other side shamelessly apologized continuously and humbly, asking him to provide a solution.
After a few days, feeling helpless and soft-hearted about Theresa's persistence, Feinheim finally gave in.
He transferred part of the planet's energy into Wan Zu's body, allowing him to develop a clear personality consciousness. Then, he commissioned Wan Zu to do a thing - let him try to create a living weapon that could kill the Moon Envoy Zhonghe and the Poison.
Then, the earliest shapeshifting weapon was born.
Theresa was so grateful that she almost knelt down and kowtowed to Feinheim. Then, in order to avoid being discovered, she changed her appearance and happily took the first batch of transformed weapons to find the secret settlement of humans. Naturally, she once again caused everyone to cheer and even cry with joy.
With weapons specifically designed to deal with the Moon-Bending Angels, humanity's situation immediately improved. Theresa, who brought the gospel and was extremely powerful, was shrouded in mystery and worshipped by everyone. Although she always tried her best to deny this, people just thought she was being modest and showed even more respect to her. Some people even secretly spread rumors to each other that Theresa was a messenger created by the planetary consciousness to guide mankind out of disaster.
Andre also appeared in front of her several times, but did not realize that she was Theresa. He just often looked at her with a calculating look, and even when she was hailed as the messenger of the planet, he agreed with a few words for unclear purposes - as if he really believed those absurd statements.
Because of this incident, the offensive plan that Andre had decided on was suspended for some reason.
After the survival crisis faded, people's desires slowly returned to their lives.
Some people thought about how to rebuild the town, some thought about how to make use of the ruins from two hundred years ago to make a comeback, and some were very interested in the gift bestowed by the planet and the ancestors - the shapeshifting weapons, and began to study them.
How did the shapeshifting weapons come from? They were made from Protoss ore.
What about the Star Spirit Mine? According to research, it's the root tissue at the end of the largest tree on the planet, a living, active mineral vein.
Therefore, the research object changed again and again, and finally shifted to the Wanzu - Zanzha Kalla.
What Theresa worried about finally happened a few years later.
In the year 231 of the New United States calendar, because humans were dissatisfied with the functions of the shapeshifting weapons and their requests to the Wanzu were fruitless, at the instigation of Andre, humans began to create a huge Wanzu control device. Theresa tried to interrupt this plan several times, but failed because she was held hostage by Andre.
In 233, the device was completed and an installation team of 8,000 people went to the primeval forest where Wan Zu was to install the device.
In 234, the device was successfully installed. A total of 12,000 people went there, but only more than 400 returned.
In the winter of 234, humans began to formally transform the functions of their transformation weapons through Wanzu.
Humanoid intelligence, the ability to transform into humans, the settings for various types of weapons, the restrictions of contracts, the limits on emotional development... step by step, humans transformed the beautiful new species that was originally a gift from their ancestors into a subordinate race that completely served their own desires.
Faced with this situation, Feinheim, who had finally managed to feel a glimmer of forgiveness, was once again filled with anger and extreme disappointment. He contacted Wan Zu, and then—
He demands, and Wan Zu does his best to create a living weapon to kill him.
That group of humans transformed Wanzu's roots, but were unable to transform Wanzu's body. Therefore, the child born directly from Wanzu's body should still be an uncontaminated and untransformed child.
So, he didn't want to endure it anymore.
He would rather end his own life and die at the hands of the killer star he created from his body than to see those termites that were rampant on his body continue to act so arrogantly!
Even if it means destroying all the living things in him, he must completely remove these dregs from him!!
Wanzu began to create Ragnarl, the "Destroyer of All Things". Theresa was driven to despair by her current situation and her guilt towards Feinheim. She tried to assassinate Andre several times but failed. The last time, she was caught by Andre himself and locked up.
Seeing that the time was ripe, Andre took action. At the same time that Ragnarl was created, he used the computer where Feinheim was to threaten Wanzu, forcing him to change the action standards of the "Destroyer of All Things" so that it must obey Andrew's orders unconditionally.
Then, a giant dragon covering the sky became the most powerful general beside Andre.
Andre's time had arrived. He used absolute violence to unify the people, destroying the computer housing Feinheim's consciousness. Following pre-existing public opinion, he declared Theresa the "Red Moon Priestess," a divine messenger who would destroy the old era and usher in the new, establishing a symbolic image for her so she could solidify his people's hearts.
The autocratic centralization he had longed for was finally achieved. He became the king of the remaining human society, renamed the high-altitude Sky Tower Ark into Chita, and used it as his own imperial palace fortress. He also established a huge surveillance system for the entire planet on Chita - he had a strong desire for control and wanted to know the situation everywhere on the planet at all times.
But no matter how he planned to prolong his reign, the reality did not allow him to do so for long.
The computer that hosted Feinheim's consciousness was destroyed, but that didn't mean he was killed.
Andre seemed to have forgotten that before his consciousness was transported to the computer, it could roam around the planet. However, after entering the computer, it was confined to this fixed carrier.
So Andre actually did Feinheim a big favor - he allowed the planet's consciousness to regain freedom.
This time, Feinheim had his own plans.
He first took possession of a transformed weapon—no, it should be called a "war weapon" now—and then used it to attach himself to the body of a winged moon messenger who was killed by him and the owner.
Then, he spread his wings and flew into the air, leaving the ground beneath his feet. Under the protection of the star spiritual power, he flew alone towards the poisonous moon above his head.
Poison Moon was very curious about outsiders other than Theresa, and Feinheim, who originally planned to use Poison Moon as his new body, was also very curious to see that there was also planetary consciousness here. The two immediately started chatting and soon exchanged all the information they knew. Feinheim also learned about the hard work Theresa had done in the past two hundred years. Although it eventually led to consequences that made him angry, the original intention was good.
And when it comes to the Moon Messenger leaning over, Feinheim feels somewhat helpless.
Now, with the appearance of a weapon that feeds on the active negative star spiritual energy in the body of the Moon-Bending Messenger, it is too late even if one wants to stop the production of the Moon-Bending Messenger - are they going to let the weapon and those children of the Ten Thousand Ancestors starve to death?
Unless he really decides to commit suicide.
The two great minds quickly reached a consensus - Theresa was an ally, but Andre must not be kept.
Then, Du Yue quickly figured out how to kill Andre: first, he also created a huge weapon to help, and second, he modified the action program of the Moon Envoy and added a clause "track the location of the Red Box and kill the holder at all costs."
Over here on the poisonous moon, the two planetary consciousnesses were discussing their war plans, while here in Feinheim was in chaos again.
It turned out that the Red Moon's consciousness had just been suppressed by Andre a while ago, and now it came to take revenge - the stone giants that fell from the Red Moon attacked again and again, but were repelled by Andre and his men. The imprisoned Theresa quickly took the opportunity to escape and contacted the Poison Moon. Then, the "Laugher at Everything" from the Poison Moon - a huge wolf-shaped poisonous life form monster, and countless crouching moon messengers who suddenly turned their spears and attacked Andre took advantage of the situation and made Andre retreat step by step.
After half a month of fierce fighting, Andre finally died under the claws of a crouching Moon Messenger. For some reason, his proud Ragnarl was unable to exert his full strength and was seriously injured.
Andre's death finally made Theresa breathe a sigh of relief. Then, she found the "Red Box" from his body and put it away carefully. Next, her mission was to protect the remaining humans and the environment of the three planets.
After Andrei's "accidental death," the centralized power he had established immediately fell apart. Many people immediately formed various small groups, and Andrei's confidants also secretly launched a struggle for power. However, for Theresa, everyone still had a certain respect and fear.
Theresa took Andre's relics, including the red box, and went to the place that had always scared her - the Red Moon.
Because she was immersed in the spiritual power of the red star, she barely found the planet hidden by Andre. Then, she spent a long time to persuade Chi Yue, whose personality was distorted because he had been exposed to distorted things since birth, to calm down and listen to her.
Then she slowly explained the whole story and told the other party that there was no need to create those stone giants because the people he hated were already dead.
The calmed-down Chiyue was relatively easy to communicate with—but, perhaps because of the fledgling effect, his personality already had a certain inherent coldness.
"Do you think you can relax now? It's because of your fear of death that Andre has reached this point, right? Isn't it because of you that I've suffered? Since you owe me so much, you can't die easily before I've exacted my revenge. Install the 'Red Box'! Don't even think about escaping by dying before you've repaired my body!"
Theresa silently agreed.
The surface of the Red Moon was riddled with holes, all the debris from the battle between the Stone Giant and the Red Spirit Turret. Repairing it would take time.
However, it would be different if there was red star spiritual power.
She studied in the base for a while, cracked Andre's code and research data, and then transplanted the red box into her own body.
With such a body, it is not impossible to repair the Red Moon alone.
But even so, it took two years to complete the basic repairs and return to Feinheim.
In the 237th year of the New United States calendar, the long-lost "Red Moon Priestess" once again returned to the ruined land of Feinheim.
After she came back, she found that for some reason, the possessed Moon Messengers could always find her quickly and attack her madly. Although it was not a problem for her to repel them with her ability, it was also very exhausting in the long run. So she went to Chita, which was high in the sky. There were few possessed Moon Messengers there, and it was relatively safe except for having to deal with a small number of winged ones.
And on Chita, she discovered an unexpected existence - the huge star killer, Ragnarl.
Because Andre's red box was in her body, she gave orders to Ragnarl on Andre's behalf, so that he no longer had to obey her orders and gave him freedom.
Ragnarl felt a little strange about Theresa's behavior, and then went to Wanzu to recuperate, and disappeared into the sky. But not long after, another humanoid monster found Theresa and scared her - the one living in the humanoid was actually Du Yue's consciousness!
It turned out that on the Poison Moon, Feinheim and the Poison Moon consciousness had reached a consensus and had done what needed to be done. Feinheim was completely tired of his original body and planned to stay on the Poison Moon to manage the planet for Poison Moon in order to have some peace and quiet. Poison Moon, who missed Theresa very much, borrowed the body of the human-shaped possessed Moon Messenger to come to this land to look for Theresa. Unexpectedly, with the function of the "Tracking Red Box" of the possessed Moon Messenger, he originally wanted to kill Andre first and then go find Theresa, but now he found her instead.
The function of tracking the red box was quickly turned off, and Du Yue excitedly told Theresa──
"Feinheim named me 'Selenkrad.' It means 'Star of Death.'"
"The Star of Death—yes, possessing the Moon Envoy, so perhaps it can indeed be called the Star of Death."
"The Red Moon has also been given a name. It's called 'Selland'. It means 'Star of the God of War'. It's a pity that I can't meet the Red Moon now, otherwise I could tell him his name."
Theresa smiled bitterly and fell silent.
"By the way, Feinheim gave me a lot of instructions—he asked me to assist him in selecting people to monitor this planet."
"Surveillance?"
"Yes. To prevent humans from causing trouble again, every hundred years, I will select a human to serve as a 'Guide.' Feinheim and I have collaborated to create a special type of possessed Moon Envoy—a humanoid, like me—who appears every hundred years and is accompanied by a corresponding Guide. Their mission is to assist the Guide and monitor the planet."
"...Then, what if someone breaks the rules set by the guide?"
"Clear everything that could be detrimental to the world without leaving any trace."
Theresa nodded silently.
Having a monitor is definitely good for this planet. After all, stellar spiritual power is so useful that it's hard not to arouse human greed. If no one monitors it, perhaps after a while, humans will start to make other plans. Wasn't it because of this that the previous home planet was completely destroyed and eventually became uninhabitable?
After reaching a consensus, Theresa returned to the surface accompanied by Poison Moon - Silenkrad.
Du Yue went to work on the selection of the "Guide", while Theresa entered the huge control base beneath the roots of Wanzu, intending to release Wanzu from his restraints - but before she could come up with any feasible plan - the three unfavorable factors of years of fatigue, large amounts of toxic air, and geothermal heat combined to make Theresa's body, even with the protection of the red star spiritual power, unable to bear the heavy burden and she fell ill.
Although Wan Zu was disgusted by human behavior, he softened his heart a little after seeing what Theresa had been doing.
He began to consider finding a place for Theresa to recuperate, but Theresa ignored his advice and continued to travel around the world, solving problems that arose after various disasters.
Theresa's health was getting worse and worse. Finally, Du Yue couldn't bear it anymore, so he kidnapped her and took her to a large underground base of humans and ordered her to recuperate. Unable to resist Du Yue, she had to stay quiet for the time being, staying in bed, taking medicine and sleeping.
Not long after, she fell in love with a young doctor who treated her - no, it would be inappropriate to say that she fell in love. The doctor was a very smart man. He keenly saw the story behind her identity as a "witch" and even guessed some of the details of the story. He did not blame her, but encouraged her to recover and keep working hard.
She was moved by his gentleness and tolerance, so even though she knew there was a huge gap between her and him, she finally accepted the doctor's proposal and held a simple wedding in a simple chapel.
In the 239th year of the New United States calendar, Theresa and White's child was born.
In the 240th year of the New United States calendar, Theresa's illness worsened due to the burden of childbirth. The red star power protected her body, but her mental state could not be recovered due to deep depression.
In the 241st year of the New United States calendar, Chi Yue's consciousness also came to Theresa in the body of a weapon, dealing her a blow that made the situation worse.
"I've researched why a planet like Feinheim has been ruined like this by a bunch of ants like you."
Chiyue stood beside Theresa's bed, looking down at her with a condescending and mocking expression.
"You are so greedy because you possess such advanced technology. You believe you can change everything with it. You have lost all fear of the environment. You no longer fear the heavens, the earth, or situations you cannot understand. Instead, you fantasize about controlling everything within your sight. As far as biological creativity is concerned, you are exceptional, but precisely because of this excellence, you suppress and kill all other creatures living in the same environment as you, even destroying the environment itself."
“…”
"You are the most numerous pests on this planet."
Chiyue said this in a firm tone.
"So, if you are to continue living here, there is only one solution left—destroy all of your civilization, leaving you to become the primitive animals of this world. At the same time, use the 'Guide' to constantly monitor the world. If we discover any technology that could cause a technological revolution, we will ruthlessly and completely eliminate it, completely suppressing all technological development of humanity!"
"'Guide'...you...have you ever met with Poison Moon and Feinheim?!"
"No?" Chiyue sneered, "Besides the other party, do the three of us have any other real allies left?"
"But destroying all human civilization—this... there are good things in human civilization, too."
"They are just good things for you, right? Do they mean anything to us, to the environment?"
"I……"
"Stop talking nonsense," Chiyue ruthlessly interrupted Theresa. "Don't forget how much you owe me, and don't forget that I have a huge turret on my body that I have taken control of. If you don't want the entire planet of Feinheim to be completely destroyed by the turret, then do as I say. I, Chiyue, have absorbed a lot of stellar spiritual power in the past two hundred years. Maybe it would be a good idea to return it in that way?"
“…”
At that moment, Theresa completely gave up fighting against fate.
She was in a trance. She silently got up from the bed, left the ward in her pajamas, and disappeared from Chi Yue's sight.
Then she never came back here, leaving her husband and children behind.
In the 242nd year of the New United States calendar, there was a woman who called herself "Red Moon Priestess". She joined forces with Poison Moon Serenkrad, Red Moon Serland, and Star Killer Ragnarl, and continuously attacked the newly built underground bases of mankind. She drove people out of the bases and blocked the access rights to the bases. Only she or people who held her body parts could enter the bases.
In the 248th year of the New United States calendar, the Scarlet Moon Priestess completely sealed off humanity's former civilization. All bases were restricted, and anyone other than the Priestess could not approach. Anyone who approached would be transported to a nearby location via a pre-set teleportation field. Spacecraft were destroyed en masse, and any equipment outside the base was destroyed upon discovery. Despite the scholars and researchers' cries and outcries, some even committed suicide after their important research reports were burned, and she remained unmoved.
In the 249th year of the New United States calendar, the "witch" Theresa was critically ill. Although her body was intact, her mind was in a trance. She would often be stunned for a long time and sometimes talk nonsense. When she was conscious, she would often lock herself in the room and say something to the video recording equipment.
That day, Wan Zu met Theresa again after a long absence.
"I'm almost... at my limit. Zanzhekalla."
"Indeed, your mental state is very bad. If you continue like this, you will definitely die mentally."
"But you seem to be in perfect health?"
"In other words, this is a purely preventable mental illness."
"Have you ever thought about going for treatment?"
"Dying from depression is not a glorious way to die."
Theresa was basically accustomed to Wan Zu's habit of talking a lot in one breath, so she just barely curled the corners of her mouth.
"Let's not talk about me anymore. How are you?"
Wan Zu was silent for a moment.
"If even you, Poison Moon, and Red Moon can't remove that giant control device together, then this is probably the only way forward."
"The main problem is that its structure is too complex. Any tampering will cause a massive explosion. We need to find complete and precise blueprints, and then have people dismantle the device at several key points simultaneously...it's too difficult."
"Forget it."
"If it can't be dismantled naturally, let time do the work. These machines of humankind have a lifespan, after all."
"But... machinery soaked in star power... this concentration isn't enough to generate consciousness. But regardless... the lifespan of the machinery will be much longer."
"Then I can only fight it to the death. ...The production of modified warships consumes much more energy than the production of transformed weapons...It depends on whether I will be killed by its toxins first, or it will be reduced to useless scrap metal first."
"Based on the current rate of consumption, I can probably hold out for another 10,000 years."
Theresa lowered her head.
"Ten thousand years?"
"Yes, in ten thousand years, I might die, or I might be forced by this poison to become something strange, and then the entire planet will be contaminated by the toxin."
"What are you planning to do?"
"Then let's limit the miko's plan to ten thousand years from now."
Theresa nodded to Wan Zu expressionlessly.
"I will announce a prophecy. If the poison in your body takes effect and causes a disaster, my descendants will bear the blame. If the poison does not take effect, he will take my place and detoxify you."
"What about you?"
"Are you really planning to continue this theory of the witch destroying the world?"
"Let the people of this land live in terror forever, suppressing their civilization and development?"
"What do you mean by 'time limit'?"
"It's the time when the next 'Witch' is born. I'm predicting the end of the world, but you and I both know that the end of the world is already predetermined, thanks to the existence of your control device. So, it's up to her to decide whether she will become your scapegoat and live a life of mediocrity, or break my fate and successfully defeat the predetermined destiny."
Theresa said, her eyes fixed on Wanzu's trunk for a moment:
"If by then, human technology reaches a point that the will of the three planets cannot tolerate, she will still be forced to be exploited by them, and the destruction of an era will come again."
No matter which way you go, there are always more dead ends than ways to survive.
"Why do you do this?"
"What good will it do you to leave this responsibility to your descendants?"
"Because they are my descendants, they have the blood of the most sinful person in the world in their bodies. Bearing the responsibility I left behind is their atonement."
"Letting a completely unrelated queen atone for your sins? You're seeking revenge. You're so selfish."
"If I weren't selfish, would I be alive today?"
Theresa smiled sharply and twistedly, but her eyes held a deep pain that could not be released.
Wan Zu knew that this woman had made up her mind—perhaps she had already arranged everything.
He decided to change the subject.
"If this is your last wish, I can't stop you."
"Before you leave, is there anything I can do for you?"
"The Red Box is immensely powerful," Theresa said, pressing her hand to her chest. "To this day, nothing can rival the spiritual might of the Red Star. It's terrifying. I hope my descendants will inherit my sins, shouldering the guilt of bloodshed and slaughter in exchange for peace on the planet—but I don't want them to be executioners who abuse their power."
"You hope I can create something that can suppress this astral energy? I'll try—but this time I'll be more discreet. I'll call it 'Star Remains'. Have your people go to the astral mines around the world in six months to see what the results are."
"Okay, thank you. ...Thank you for listening to a human's request."
"That's because you're pathetic, and I sympathize with you."
"Shouldn't you go back? Du Yue will be very worried about you."
"No." Theresa shook her head with a wry smile. "I've already told him everything—I've also given him the video and the memory card that records the entire incident."
"……Yeah. "
Wan Zu's voice sounded a little softer.
"Good night then. You should get some rest."
As she said this, the woman fell down in front of the huge tree with her eyes open.
Her heartbeat continued, her chest still rose and fell, her body was warm, and her blood was flowing - but her consciousness had already faded, her pupils had lost all light, and now she was just a body with a dead soul.
She is dead.
A few crystal-clear leaves of the Star Spirit Ore fell gently on her, emitting a little sad light.
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