We need Taran.
Elisa stood with the crowd in front of a metal door, and for some reason, that sentence suddenly resurfaced in her mind.
This was what Third Deputy Lavvich told her at an emergency meeting a few hours earlier.
The scene was chaotic; well, it seems their meetings have been chaotic for a long time.
The massive ingestion of food bags has already made many people mentally agitated and intellectually impaired, while the remaining people, some of whom haven't yet gone completely insane, have already foreseen the impending disaster for the people on the ship and have become taciturn, sad, and world-weary.
Elisa didn't expect these bastards to help with the situation at all; she had been doing her best to keep the Helios running smoothly. But when that serial killer named Sam escaped from the medical bay and brutally murdered more than a dozen innocent crew members, people piled all the blame on her, and then, like three-year-olds begging for candy, they shouted to the sky that they needed Taran.
“I hope you don’t overthink it, Alyssa…you’ve done enough. But it’s clear there’s something wrong with our ship right now, and we need to stabilize this chaotic situation.”
That's what they said at the time. They told Ellie it wasn't directed at her, but even a fool could tell they were full of condemnation and resentment towards her.
Oh, in that case... then you should come and find Taran.
Lost in thought, Elisa stared silently at the weathered metal door before her. A plaque on the door read "Captain Taran Ida of the Sun God." They had already pressed the visitor button, but Taran had completely ignored them.
If Taran's personal terminal weren't still receiving and processing information as usual, some people might think that Taran had already died in his dark captain's cabin.
“Captain Taran—we all know this is not the right time, but it is an emergency, and we need you very much right now.”
A burly man appeared. Alyssa glanced at him; it was Robert, the head of the energy team. Of course, he was now the main person in charge of the emergency response team, and he had always disliked her, a fact Alyssa had always known.
So that's why this guy was barking incessantly at Taran's hatch like a puppy begging for food? Alyssa thought somewhat cynically. She knew she shouldn't be so negative, but she was exhausted and anxious, sweat pouring from every pore.
The ventilation system's filter components had already failed several days ago (before they failed, they had been operating beyond their capacity for a long time), so the interior of the Helios was now smelly and stuffy, which made Elisa feel very uncomfortable. She hadn't had a break for a long time, and now this had happened.
To make matters worse, her "little premonitions" started screaming again deep inside her brain.
These days, Elisa had almost gotten used to this feeling of unease and fear, but never before had her ominous premonition become so intense and sharp.
There were several moments when Elisa even considered running away—getting as far away as possible from that damned metal hatch.
But her feet seemed to defy her will, remaining rooted to the spot and motionless.
"Captain Taran, please come out, the situation is extremely critical—"
Robert started barking incessantly again.
Elisa suddenly pressed her hand to her temple, and she staggered.
She heard a faint sound.
There was a rustling sound, like something was moving very quickly...
Gradually moving from the ceiling to the walls.
There was a pause, then the soft, fragmented sound resumed.
Elisa's breathing gradually became rapid, and her head suddenly throbbed with pain, but it wasn't a real headache; rather, it was a kind of excessive mental pressure.
Her premonition...
Elisa trembled uncomfortably.
She tried her best to calm herself down, but large beads of cold sweat kept pouring out, quickly soaking her clothes.
rustle--
rustling sound—
The sound gradually moved closer to the door.
Elisa slowly turned her head, observing her surroundings, wondering why no one was reacting to the strange sound.
The sound was absolutely disgusting and disturbing.
Elisa couldn't even find the words to describe it. Well, if she had to use an analogy... it was like countless fingers gently scratching the hard, frosted metal surface with their nails, moving up and down repeatedly.
The sound was getting closer...
Getting closer and closer...
Robert and the others remained completely unaware, staring anxiously at Taran's cabin door.
If Taran is truly so ill that he can no longer get up, then Elisa will still be the person with the highest authority on the ship. However, almost everyone has now noticed the rift between the higher-ups.
Robert and his group certainly wouldn't want to see Elisa retain her power.
"Captain Taran—"
Robert was still calling out.
This time, he finally received a subtle response.
"Sizzle—"
The metal door, which had not been opened for a long time, was opened, and because it had not been opened for so long, it made a sharp scraping sound.
However, the metal door did not slide open completely, but instead revealed a narrow crack.
Taran's pale face slowly emerged from behind the metal door; the room behind him was pitch black.
If Lin Xi were here, he would definitely feel that the scene before him was so familiar—Dr. Ando had appeared in front of him in the same way before.
Strictly speaking, Taran's current state is probably worse than what Lin Xi saw in Shizuo Ando.
"For God's sake, Captain Taran, you—"
Even Robert, who was most enthusiastic about Taran's reappearance, was startled when he saw Taran, and his speech became stammering and incoherent.
You can't really blame him, after all, Taran did look terrible.
His hair was almost completely gone, with only a few strands clinging to his scalp. His skin was deathly white, a dull gray, swollen, smooth without a single wrinkle or elasticity. Even more disgusting, a layer of greasy substance covered his skull and cheeks. His eye sockets seemed to have become two dark, empty holes, his pupils small and black, devoid of any light. Even his lips had turned bluish, his chin protruded morbidly, and his gums showed signs of atrophy.
That intense, even headache-inducing premonition returned once again.
Elisa almost screamed the moment she saw Taran.
“I’ve already said I need to rest. I’ve seen all the questions you sent me—that a mercenary who’s had a mental breakdown due to stress is worth all this fuss about? What you’re doing is just making everyone panic and making things worse. Stop the alarm and have the other mercenary ships search for that man. He’ll be there soon, unless he’s really bold enough to escape the ship.”
Taran glanced at the crowd outside before speaking in a hoarse voice.
His voice was cold.
The people Sam killed after escaping the medical room didn't seem to elicit any emotional response from Taran.
Elisa noticed that he had indeed lost all his teeth.
"You, you're right."
Robert hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement. After he said this, many people behind him gave him insincere echoes.
Surrounded by this group of people, only Alyssa, pale-faced and covered in cold sweat, stood out from the crowd.
There must be something wrong with Taran!
Elisa's body was convulsing slightly from excessive tension, and she had to do her best to control herself so as not to scream.
This took so much of her energy that she didn't realize she was being stared at until half a beat later.
—A gaze coming from Taran.
Elisa suddenly looked up and met his dark, hollow eyes.
Are those really human eyes?
The thought flashed through Elisa's mind, and she felt a chill run down her spine.
But Taran stared at Elisa and said hoarsely, "More than the mercenary Sam, I'm worried about the rumors circulating on the ship. I can't believe these rumors that cause conflict among the crew have spread..."
...
Taran exchanged a few brief words with the other crew members at the door of his cabin before slowly retreating his pale body back into his dark room, like a snail wriggling its eyelids.
But his orders (which, in Taran's own words, were just minor suggestions) were carried out without hesitation.
Shortly after the ship's martial law was lifted, Sam's bloodstained clothes and shoes were found in a secluded corridor, and he was never seen again.
Over the next few days, the mercenaries thoroughly ravaged the ship, both inside and out, with astonishing efficiency.
They were much more serious about their work than before, probably because the person who committed this horrific act was their comrade.
But no matter how hard they searched, they could not find Sam himself—there were some fresh bloodstains at the openings of the water system pipes, but that was all.
Some people have speculated that Sam may have escaped to the outside of the spaceship via the waterway system.
Well, that's actually the most plausible possibility, but if that's the case, the whole thing instantly becomes even more confusing.
After all, once the mercenaries discovered the bloodstains, they quickly counted the remaining outdoor suits on the ship. They found that none of the suits were missing, and similarly, the number of oxygen devices used for outdoor exploration matched the records perfectly.
This means that Sam did not take any equipment for extravehicular activities; he left the Apollo naked and with significant blood loss.
This is absolutely insane, but... perhaps that's exactly why he did it.
He was a madman to begin with, and madmen do such crazy things.
Lin Xi should have been very concerned about Sam's whereabouts, after all, he had knocked Sam unconscious before.
Unfortunately, Lin Xi was currently too overwhelmed with problems, and Sam's next move became a trivial matter to him.
As for why he was in such a state of panic—
"Taran assigned me to the exploration team. Now I have to go on an exploration mission? Has he gone mad?"
Lin Xi still remembers the extreme surprise she felt when she heard the order.
"Now the ship's crew members are taking turns to conduct outdoor exploration."
Elisa said to him with a bitter expression.
"According to Taran, this method can reduce the burden on the exploration team... to prevent another crazed crew member from going berserk and killing people on the ship."
"What kind of bullshit is this?"
Lin Xi swore.
Seeing his appearance, Elisa sighed. She secretly decided to keep quiet about the things Taran had casually said in front of everyone.
Participating in the exploration mission also helped dispel the exploration team members' misunderstandings about Lin Xi.
Only Taran could utter such nonsense. Whether he is still human or not, the cunning and treachery in his bones have remained.
Elisa couldn't be sure if the exploration mission would really quell the comments targeting Lin Xi, but she was certain that once Lin Xi was outside the spaceship, he would be in an unprecedentedly dangerous situation.
“I’m sorry. I protested, but…”
Elisa felt incredibly frustrated every time she thought about it.
“Oh, don’t say sorry, Alyssa, I know what you did for me.”
Lin Xi looked at Elisa's guilty face, felt a pang of sympathy, bent down and gave her a hug.
“I believe that even if you refute him this time, that guy will definitely find a way to cause me more trouble.”
He said this, then carefully observed Elisa's reaction.
He could tell that her physical and mental state had been deteriorating rapidly since the day she met Taran. Lin Xi suspected that Elisa had noticed something he didn't know, but no matter how Lin Xi questioned her, Elisa never revealed much.
“I will try to have some trustworthy people with your squad—that way, at least when those lunatics try to attack you, you will have helpers and witnesses by your side.”
Elisa couldn't help but say.
"This is probably the only thing I can do for you."
She said.
“You have done so much for me, Alyssa, I am so grateful to you.”
Lin Xi forced a bitter smile and then said to her.
After seeing Alyssa off, Lin Xi rubbed his temples and checked the team roster. The exploration mission itself wasn't particularly difficult, but those exploration team members who inexplicably harbored great malice towards him would definitely be a big problem.
Lin Xi sat at the table for a while, but he couldn't think of any way to solve his current predicament, so he simply got up, put on his clothes, and walked towards his greenhouse.
The metal door slid open slowly, and after the lighting in the greenhouse was turned on, "Number One" came into Lin Xi's view.
However, the star butterfly, which used to be as excited as a puppy at his arrival, was now hanging motionless on the branch—
Because the current "Number One" is just a cocoon nestled between tree branches.
This is the second thing that's giving Lin Xi a huge headache: that's right, "Number One" is actually pupating.
That was the day Sam escaped from the healing device, killed someone, and triggered the ship's alarm.
When Mingming brought Oni to observe "Number One" in the morning, the cheerful alien insect seemed perfectly normal.
However, when Lin Xi finally returned to the greenhouse after the alarm was lifted, what he saw was this huge cocoon in front of him.
A thick, pale golden cocoon completely enveloped "Number One" from head to tail.
The color was exactly the same as the filaments that "Number One" had used to build its nest. As an alien insect, "Number One's" cocoon didn't look much different from its Earth counterparts, except that it was larger. Some red and black spots were unevenly distributed on the surface of the cocoon. In the first few hours, these spots, like "Number One's" wings, would respond very faintly to external stimuli. But they quickly solidified on the rough surface of the cocoon.
It's important to know that this process of the Star Butterfly wasn't recorded in Dr. Ando's notes. Lin Xi was terrified and immediately called for Oni. Thank goodness, the man who was always terrified of insects was quite calm when he saw the cocoon, provided that you ignored his cold sweat and trembling (it's said that he had nightmares for several days afterward).
If Oni had been able to give a clear explanation after all those tests, Lin Xi would probably have felt more genuine sympathy for him... But the reality was that even though Oni gritted his teeth and examined her again and again, he still couldn't tell Lingxi anything useful.
"I don't know what's going on. Its cocoon is incredibly thick and blocks all the probe beams. Maybe we'll know what happened to it after it completes its pupation."
Faced with Lin Xi's worried gaze, Oni always said the same things.
In comparison, he said his nightmares actually had more details.
You probably don't want to know what I dreamt about yesterday... I dreamt there was a human corpse inside this cocoon. Good heavens, that was horrible! It must be because the cocoon was so huge; it didn't seem to match the size of the insect at all... Oh, right, I dreamt the corpse inside had become limp and lifeless, like a thick, gooey mess, and your insect was lying there sucking up the nutrients...
Lin Xi frowned as she recalled the vivid nightmare that Oni had described yesterday.
Even though she knew it was just a scene imagined by this hardcore horror enthusiast who had watched too many boring stories, Lin Xi inexplicably felt as if she could see that terrifying and evil scene through Oni's narration.
He felt incredibly nauseous, but he also couldn't hide his worry.
After all, in the first day or two, Lin Xi could still sense some faint movements from the cocoon. Sometimes it was a soft hum, and sometimes it was a violent vibration, but soon those movements disappeared.
The cocoon became quiet, as if it were a dead object.
Star butterflies are not creatures with exceptionally strong vitality. On the contrary, they often inexplicably begin to lose their activity, such as the egg case in Lin Xi's room that is currently in the incubator.
Even though "Number One" hatched successfully under much worse conditions, its brothers and sisters seemed to be fast asleep, remaining silent and gradually becoming inactive for many days.
What if... what if "Number One" was like that too?
Just thinking about this made Lin Xi feel a tightness in her chest, as if she couldn't breathe properly.
At this very moment, Taran actually wants him to go outside the cabin to conduct exploration activities. How is he supposed to find time to take care of "Number One"?
Thinking of this, Lin Xi's disgust for Taran deepened even further.
"Hurry up and come out, 'Number One'."
Lin Xi himself didn't know how many times he had sat in front of the cocoon and talked to "Number One" today. He reached out and gently pressed his hand on the cocoon shell of "Number One".
After a while, Lin Xi frowned thoughtfully.
The things Unnie had said to him in a joking manner before were now starting to echo in his mind inappropriately.
"You don't need to worry too much. Since you can have 'Number One,' then there will be 'Number Two,' 'Number Three'... One of them will survive..."
"After you come out, perhaps I should give you a more formal name?"
Lin Xi couldn't help but whisper to "Number One," who was still in the process of pupating.
"After all, if you can successfully pupate, you should be a more mature insect?"
At this point, Lin Xi couldn't help but smile slightly.
"Of course, that's assuming you can get out safely..."
He added.
The golden star butterfly cocoon remained motionless and unresponsive to Lin Xi's gentle touch.
However, Lin Xi would never know that the moment he finished speaking, in the pitch-black, chaotic liquid filled with viscous protein slurry, two eyeballs that had been gradually losing their luster suddenly began to flicker.
At first, it was very faint, but gradually, the two red lights became more stable.
A pale green neural network gradually spread along the spine, then began to coalesce and take shape, forming bones, muscles, internal organs, skin... as well as wings and tentacles.
Where no one could see, a strange and terrifying creature slowly began to coalesce again.
Lin Xi... name... my... name...
He hummed happily within his own cocoon.
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