I Became an Evolving Space Monster

Episode 266 – Nightmares Incarnate (4)

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The pirates in security room A looked at the monitors with puzzled faces.

The screen showing the video captured by the camera was turning off at a rapid rate. First a guard post, then an entrance and an underground passage. Looking at the sequence of malfunctioning cameras, they were getting closer and closer to the security room.

Everyone here knows that the camera didn’t break down for no reason. This is because the walls of the security room are still slightly trembling. The space vibrates intermittently, as if something huge is moving.

The problem is that the vibration is getting bigger. An unknown entity is coming here, breaking through the cameras and shielded doors in the passage.

“What are the aisle closure procedures?”

“The surveillance post camera was already operational when it was taken down.”

“…Damn it. Even if you use a plasma cutter, you can’t get there that fast.”

“I can’t do it. Everyone get your equipment. You skinny guy. “Go to Area B.”

“I’ll talk to the mercenaries on the way.”

“…shit. okay.”

The pirates hastily packed up the equipment provided in the security room. While his comrades prepared to fight, the skinny pirate ran out of the security room with only a psychic rifle.

The electric light embedded in the ceiling of the passage gave off a bright light and illuminated his head. The passageway had a simple cylindrical design without any decoration and was the same as usual.

Unless there is a vibration that shakes the light of the lamp.

The skinny pirate ran to the shielded door across the short passage and operated the terminal next to the door. Meanwhile, the period of vibration was getting shorter.

“Open it quickly!”

The pirate stamped his feet in front of the slowly opening door. At that time, the light above his head began to shake uneasily.

Startled, he turned around and saw that the light in the security room was blinking and then turned off. The only remaining fire is the light flowing from inside the security room.

Even that went out with a puff, like a candle going out.

“…gulp.”

While the pirate who witnessed the scene was swallowing his saliva, the shield door opened. He entered, almost half-crawling, and closed the door.

These shielded doors installed between passages are over 1m thick and have a double structure, making them difficult to break through even with a plasma cutter. Since the shielded doors between passages are stronger than the entrance doors, even a mysterious intruder will not be able to easily enter.

Nothing came out of the darkness until the door was completely closed. There was only unnatural silence in the black passage.

“Phew.”

He heaved a sigh of relief and fell from the door.

We must go to Area B and report this before he comes.

The space he was currently standing in was so wide that he had to crane his neck to its limit to look at the ceiling. However, it was not empty; there were several layers of refrigerated containers piled up everywhere.

This is the area A storage area.

All of those containers were items brought by customers who visited this city to be put up for auction. You can’t see it from here, but if you go inside, there will be mercenaries and androids guarding the container.

The skinny pirate connected the battery to the psychic rifle and went inside. The temperature in the space was low, perhaps due to the cold air flowing from the container. If it weren’t for the android standing in front of the container, I would have walked trembling from cold and fear.

“It will be fine. There must have been some mistake. “Of course.”

After walking for a few minutes while talking to myself, I heard a voice coming from behind a large container. When I returned to the container, I saw five mercenaries chatting.

“huh? “Aren’t you the pirate in the security room?”

“What’s going on here?”

The skinny pirate who encountered the mercenaries shouted urgently.

“This is not the time to be like this! “It’s all chaos outside right now!”

“outside?”

“What kind of bullshit is that?”

“I haven’t heard anything from my team.”

“Of course, since everything has happened, there is no contact! We need to inform the outside world as soon as possible….”

“What? Wow. “What nonsense.”

“You think we are who and say such bullshit?”

The skinny pirate was frustrated as the mercenaries showed no sign of listening. Perhaps because they heard his cries, the mercenaries guarding other containers also approached where they were.

“What is so loud?”

“I heard the kids on our team guarding the outside got hit?”

“Please! “If you don’t believe me, please check with someone!”

The pirates attacked the mercenaries who had gathered in an instant, about 20 in number.

“The world has become better. “The pirate bastard is yelling at us.”

“You guys deserve it. Because it’s a piece of shit.”

“What are you doing?”

Among the Space Dogs, there were many who worked as mercenaries, and among the mercenaries, there were quite a few who engaged in piracy. The same goes for the people here, so it’s hard to say that the quality is that good.

Even skinny pirates know this. But shouldn’t we at least know how things work? It was pitiful that they had no idea what was going on outside or what was happening to their colleagues.

“Hey, the security guard is making a request. “Please call someone.”

“Know that if you make a mistake, you will get behind me.”

While most of the mercenaries were laughing with their arms crossed, one of the mercenaries picked up the radio.

“What are they saying outside?”

“….”

“Why? “Don’t be a slut?”

“I can’t contact you?”

The other mercenaries stopped at the words of the mercenary holding the walkie-talkie.

“Oh no.”

“No, it’s true. “You guys also try contacting me.”

The expression on the mercenary’s hand holding a walkie-talkie was too unusual to be considered a joke. The other mercenaries called their team members outside with smiles on their lips.

And after a few minutes, the smiles disappeared from their faces.

“Why can’t I contact you?”

“What happened?”

While they were panicking, the lights on the ceiling suddenly turned off. In a place that quickly became a place of darkness, the only source of light was the cigarettes lit by some of the mercenaries.

“Everyone prepare for battle!”

The light disappeared, but the mercenaries did not panic. They prepared for battle in the dark by wearing goggles with a see-through function or, in the case of cyborgs, activating the lenses on their eyes.

“Hey, security guard. “You don’t know what’s going on inside, right?”

“You might know that, but it’s not accurate.”

“Put this on and go. “Go and call some reinforcements.”

“Ah yep.”

Realizing that the pirates were not wrong, the mercenaries sent him to Area B. His colleagues were inside, so he sent them to go directly and ask for support.

The pirate, wearing the goggles given by the mercenary, ran in the direction of the passage leading to Area B. While running, many androids passed him by. They are aware of the abnormal situation and are trying to join the mercenaries on the other side.

A loud gunshot was heard immediately after the android disappeared into the darkness. The crackling noises, as if an automated factory machine was running, were reflected off the containers and grew louder.

Fully armed mercenaries and expensive androids. Although the situation was objectively safe, his heart did not calm down.

It was ominous. It felt like the entire cellar was submerged in a bottomless mire. Even though the vibrations stopped after entering the storage area in Area A, where does this feeling of anxiety come from? Even though he thought hard, he couldn’t come up with an answer.

“Huh huh huh huh…”

It was the sound of breathing coming from his mouth that broke the silence that filled the cavity.

There was no other sound other than that. No gunshots, no human screams, no mechanical sounds when the android is destroyed, nothing.

Did the mercenaries win? That would be fortunate, but if not….

“….”

The skinny pirate barely activated the terminal with trembling hands. The large screened door slowly opened. As soon as the door started to open, he crawled in and closed the shield door before it was even fully open.

What’s so relaxing about the door that slowly closes? As he was biting his lip nervously, he saw something across from him.

“!”

“wait!”

One of the mercenaries I had encountered earlier was running towards the shielded door.

“…Fuck!”

The pirate thought about just closing it, but changed his mind. Two people are better than one to escape the mysterious intruder. He controlled the terminal and stopped the door that was just beginning to close.

The moment the mercenary was about to cross the shielded door, there was a loud noise and the door shook violently.

“What?!”

“You bastard! “A monster is chasing me!”

“Holy shit!”

The pirate, who heard the mercenary’s shout, quickly closed the door. A door that closes slowly. Beyond it, as the mercenary said, something was seen writhing.

‘!’

It was only visible for a brief moment, but it seemed like the pirate would never forget that sight for the rest of his life. It was a pink snake with many eyes. The snake wriggled towards them as if to greet them and then disappeared.

“What is that? “I have never seen such a hideous thing in my life.”

“…I don’t know.”

“shit! “I need to talk to Area B quickly…what about the weapons?”

“I threw it away because I was running away from that guy.”

The skinny pirate frowned at the mercenary’s words. Without weapons, there would be no way to stop the monster if it came after them.

‘No, I guess I can use it as bait.’

The only one holding a gun here is the skinny pirate. In the unlikely event that a monster breaks through the shield door before they go to Area B, they can just throw the mercenary as food.

“Let’s start from the security office in Area B.”

“Sure.”

The mercenary seemed to have no idea what the skinny pirate was thinking. The two walked on the passageway connected to the Area B security office.

‘First of all, the camera is in good health.’

The skinny pirate walked and looked at the cameras installed in the passage. Fortunately, the cameras installed on the ceiling did not lose power. The Area B security office must have known they were here, so they must be taking action somehow.

‘no. Let’s get in touch here.’

Even if your wireless communicator doesn’t work, there’s only one way to contact you.

In this underground storage room, a wired communication device operating as a closed circuit is placed between each area. It was installed by the Marcio Cartel to prepare for cases where the communication device does not work or is attacked by another race’s EMP, as it is now.

I wanted to contact them before coming over here, but I had no choice because the wired communication device in Area A is located near the entrance to the underground storage room. The skinny pirate signaled to the camera in the passageway that he would use the wired communication device.

“What are you doing?”

“I don’t know anything.”

There is no need to be polite to mercenaries who will be used as bait anyway. He answered briefly and approached the wall of the passage. Only one part of the unadorned wall had a small switch. When I pressed the switch, an ivory colored stick connected to the inside of the wall and a string popped out.

“What is that?”

“It’s a cult-style wired communication device.”

“Hmm? Was there anything like that here?”

The mercenary said he was interested, but the skinny pirate did not respond.

He disconnected the charger from the psychic rifle and connected it to the port on the stick. Because it was a communication device made by a cult, it needed psychic power.

After a while, the communicator light came on.

“it’s okay! This is the Area A security office. Can you hear me?”

｢Chijijijijik, chijijijijik, chijijijijik, chijijijijik｣

The skinny pirate briefly cheered and shouted into the communicator. Then, someone’s voice was heard along with static from the communicator.

“Can not hear clearly. This is the Area A security office. Can you hear me?”

｢Chijijik after chijijik after chijijijik｣

“What?”

“back! back! Look behind you!”

As soon as communication was stabilized, what was heard was an urgent cry.

“back? Why is it in the back…?”

The skinny pirate, not understanding, looked back. And he was able to understand what was being said in the area B security office.

“There’s a monster behind you!”

There wasn’t a single person on this passage who could answer the shaking communication device hanging on the wall.