Ch.214A Sky Full Of Stars! (2)

#214

The four women walked around the spacious room, examining the capsules that filled it.

The clothing, ethnicity, and ages of the people inside the capsules varied greatly.

What was peculiar about the capsules was that the noise they emitted increased when the people inside were suffering.

Seeing this, Jesse thought for a moment, then put her ear close to a capsule to listen.

“It sounds just like a breast pump…”

“What? Jesse, what did you just say?”

“It sounds like something’s being sucked in.”

At Jesse’s words, Himena put her ear against a capsule.

-Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…

Just as Jesse had said, it sounded like something was being mechanically sucked in.

“What’s it sucking in?”

“It can’t just be air, right?”

“Um, could it possibly be that thing?”

“That thing?”

Judy pointed to the hose connected to the capsule as she spoke.

“Negative.”

“Negative? But that’s a liquid…”

“No, they said Negative was initially a gaseous energy. What we see as Negative is that energy extracted and liquefied.”

“…How was Negative produced again?”

“When humans experience negative emotions. That’s when the most secretion occurs.”

After Emily added this information, Himena pointed to a boy inside one of the capsules with an incredulous expression.

“So, they’re deliberately causing people pain right now?”

“Himena, remember when you said Jupiter was a ship attempting orbital bombardment with Negative?”

“…They’re using people like they’re extracting oil?”

“We can’t just leave people like this!”

“Judy, calm down for a moment. Even if we break the capsules right now, we can’t save all these people at once.”

“But they’re suffering…”

“I agree with Himena. It’s pitiful, but we need to find another way.”

Simply releasing people from the capsules wouldn’t solve the problem. They needed to eliminate the root cause.

“By the way, there were stories about people being kidnapped recently. Could these be related to those kidnappings?”

“Kidnapping victims?”

“It’s hard to see clearly with their eyes covered, but they look like people I’ve seen on TV.”

As Judy spoke, Jesse and Himena focused on the people in the capsules when suddenly the door opened.

“Sm…ell…!”

When they heard the distinctive phlegmy voice of an Abomination behind them, the four women turned their heads.

“It’s an Abomination!”

At Himena’s reaction, Judy immediately shouted.

“Emily, Jesse, step back!”

“Wo…men… huh, wo…men…”

Unlike typical Abominations, this one showed no signs of wanting to attack the four women.

It was approaching them, but it seemed to be approaching with a different intention than attack.

Feeling something strange about the Abomination’s behavior—which was more disgusting than frightening—Himena sensed something odd, and Jesse, who was aiming her pistol from behind, said to Himena in front:

“Wait, doesn’t that bastard look familiar?”

“What? Where would you have seen an Abomination like that?”

“No, look closely at its features. They’re familiar. It looks pretty decent for an Abomination.”

“I didn’t know you had that kind of taste.”

“Ah, cut out the jokes Dex would make. Look at its face. Doesn’t it seem familiar?”

“Now that you mention it, it does look like someone I’ve seen…”

As the Abomination continued to approach her, Himena stepped back and said:

“Wait, isn’t that bastard Rascal?”

“That test subject is Rascal?”

“Who’s Rascal?”

As soon as the name “Rascal” was mentioned, the Abomination hesitated, then tapped its chest with its right hand and said:

“My… na…me… Ra…scal…”

“It is him. I wondered where he went after escaping. Looks like the General caught him and turned him into an Abomination.”

“Isn’t he an idiot?”

“Don’t you think the General is heartless? He was once on his team, but he mercilessly turned him into that.”

“Regardless of the General, if it were me, I would have run away as fast as possible. Once caught, the fate of a traitor is never good.”

“That’s true.”

“Um, it’s nice to chat and all… but I think the Abomination named Rascal is listening to everything you’re saying…”

Judy, holding her rifle, said nervously.

When Jesse and Himena looked at Rascal, he was snorting heavily.

“I’m… not… stu…pid…!”

“Bullshit, you are stupid. That’s why you got caught by the General and ended up looking like this piece of shit.”

“No…o…!”

“Just try coming at me.”

“I said… no…o…!”

An angry Rascal took a step forward.

Himena and Judy kept their eyes on Rascal, gripping their rifles tightly.

“Can I shoot this bastard?”

“No. What if he throws one of the capsules?”

“I really can’t stand looking at him.”

Jesse and Emily also held their pistols, not letting their guard down. At that moment, the door opened again.

A man appeared wearing a makeshift combat suit with two rifles slung over his shoulders.

The man carefully observed the situation inside, saw the four women facing off against the Abomination, and silently entered the room, closing the door behind him.

Then, looking at the four women, he gestured for them to move back.

“That person, could it be…”

“…Let’s quickly move back.”

As the four women, who recognized the man’s identity, slowly retreated, the man tucked both rifles under his armpits and said:

“Rascal!”

“Dex…ter…!”

“Long time no see? You’ve changed a lot since I last saw you.”

“You… bas…tard…!”

Blood vessels began to bulge all over the Abomination’s body.

Then Dexter shouted:

“Aim for the head!”

-Ratatatatat! Ratatat!

Countless bullets fired from the muzzles of the two rifles Dexter was holding.

“Ah, fa…!”

“Himena, the eyes! Aim for the eyes!”

“Got it!”

What was once Rascal tried to block the attack by covering his face with both hands, but he couldn’t withstand Himena’s concentrated fire.

“No…o… don’t… hit me…e…!”

“This bastard seems to have gotten even dumber after becoming an Abomination… He’s charging! Everyone be careful!”

Unable to endure the attacks from Dexter’s group, Rascal began to charge.

“Himena, dodge!”

If there was any silver lining, it was that Rascal was slower than other Abominations, and he took a rather gentle approach toward the women other than Dexter.

He wasn’t rushing to kill someone, but rather reaching out like a child trying to grab a doll.

But that was frightening in its own way.

‘He’s still the same perverted bastard as before!’

Himena thought with a disgusted expression as she dodged Rascal who was trying to grab her.

And for good reason—the expression on Rascal’s face, now an Abomination, was drenched in lust.

Dexter poured bullets into Rascal, who was focused on Himena.

However, seeing Rascal recover as fast as the bullets hit him, Dexter looked on with a somewhat nauseated expression.

“His recovery is no joke compared to other Abominations. Does anyone have grenades?”

“Where would we get grenades? If one exploded, the whole spaceship would blow up!”

“We’re screwed.”

He needed to subdue the target with strong firepower in one go, but all they had were rifles.

At the very least, they needed grenades or grenade launchers to easily eliminate him, but unfortunately, there was nothing like that around.

Dexter patted various parts of his combat suit to check if there was anything else.

There were two sharp bayonets in his tactical vest pockets.

Dexter examined the bayonets carefully, then looked toward Emily, who was standing at the back, and said:

“Emily!”

“Yes?”

“Go get some chains!”

“Chains?”

“Yeah, hurry!”

Emily quickly left the room.

“Don’t… inter…fere…!”

With those words, Rascal charged at Dexter.

Every time Rascal jumped, the entire room shook.

Dexter, thinking he would die if hit, put all his strength into his feet.

Springing forward as if bouncing, Dexter avoided Rascal who was charging toward him.

“Ah…h… fa…a…!!”

-Boom!

Rascal threw a punch at the spot where Dexter had been.

It wasn’t as powerful as the attack Dexter had desperately driven into the Secretary’s side, but Abominations could demonstrate such destructive power countless times.

‘I’d be done for if I got hit.’

Dexter thought.

As Rascal tried to locate Dexter again, a bullet from Himena pierced his eyeball.

“Aaa…h… aagh!”

Taking advantage of the momentary opening, Dexter ran in another direction and shouted:

“How many magazines does everyone have left?”

“Still two!”

“I have one!”

“I’m… almost out!”

Despite trying to conserve ammunition, the magazines were running low.

‘Emily needs to hurry back.’

Meanwhile, Rascal, having somewhat recovered his eyesight, searched for Dexter again.

“This bastard is only after me, again.”

“It’s… because… of you…!”

“Look who’s talking, you couldn’t swallow your pride and ended up with the General.”

Rascal became even more agitated at Dexter’s scathing assessment.

“You… bas…tard…!”

-Crash!

Unable to contain his anger, he threw a punch at a capsule with a person inside.

-Crack!

“Oh no!”

The capsule cracked, but fortunately, the person inside wasn’t harmed.

“That crazy bastard, seriously. Is he insane?”

Jesse continued to complain.

Meanwhile, red smoke began to leak from the capsule Rascal had cracked.

“Uh, ugh… no…o…”

As the red smoke approached him, Rascal backed away as if he had seen something terrifying.

Seeing this, Dexter’s expression changed to one of interest.

“Himena, what are those capsules?”

“They seem to be devices collecting Negative.”

“Collecting Negative?”

‘Then that must be vaporized Negative… Is he afraid of it?’

Dexter didn’t know why Rascal, as an Abomination, was afraid of Negative.

But he couldn’t miss this opportunity.

“Himena, crack the capsules just enough so the people inside won’t get hurt.”

“What? What are you saying?”

“Quickly, we don’t have time. If other forces arrive, we’re done for!”

“…Alright, but you better explain this later!”

Himena took a pistol from Jesse and fired it at the neatly arranged capsules.

With a bang, bullet holes appeared in the capsules, and vaporized Negative began to leak through those holes.

“Ugh, ugh…!”

As vaporized Negative suddenly appeared from various places, Rascal panicked and began to back away.

Just then, Emily returned with thick chains.

Without saying a word, Dexter connected the bayonets to both ends of the chains Emily had brought, then immediately threw one of the bayonets.

-Thunk!

“Aaa…h, it hurts…!”

Rascal, now an Abomination, tried to pull out the bayonet properly embedded in his back, but couldn’t.

The form of an Abomination resembles a human with heavily trained muscles expanded several times, making it impossible to reach their back.

So he couldn’t reach the bayonet with his hands.

“What are you trying to do by connecting the bayonet to the chain…?”

“You’ll see.”

Then Dexter threw the bayonet attached to the other end of the chain, embedding it in the wall.

Specifically, in a section with thick electrical wires.

-Zzzzzzzap!

With a loud sparking sound, Rascal began to convulse.

“Aaaaargh…!”

The lights attached to the ship’s ceiling flickered due to unstable power supply, and the chain, though glowing red-hot, continued to deliver electricity to Rascal.

Acrid smoke and the smell of burning flesh filled the air, and the four women tried to leave the room, either dry heaving or covering their noses.

The only one who remained in the room was Dexter.

Rascal continued to cry out in pain before finally collapsing.

But the electricity flowing from the wall continued to supply power, thoroughly cooking Rascal, until the entire room went dark.

Until the circuit breaker in the room tripped.

“This should definitely have killed him.”

With that, announcement messages sounded from all the capsules simultaneously.

[No power. Please supply power.]

The announcement message sounded three times before turning off, and soon all the capsule doors opened.

“Gasp, what on earth…!”

“Where am I? James! James!”

“I can’t see anything!”

“Is anyone there? Strange people were…!”

Amid the noise, shouting, and confusion from people emerging from the capsules, Dexter wiped under his nose and said:

“Heh, what a mess.”