Ch.291Moving (4)

Even in an era where humans freely roam among the stars, some things remain unchanged.

An age where genes can be manipulated at will, planetary environments transformed, and massive metal structures moved across entire star systems.

Humans can now recreate divine miracles with their own hands.

Yet there remains something that cannot be changed or altered: “the inherent limitations of the human species.”

Death, the end. Problems that can never be solved despite handling divine miracles, because humans are not gods themselves. Fear of these manifests in various forms.

Myths about evil entities lurking in the depths of space.

Stories of landing on uninhabited planets, then departing with more crew than arrived.

Rumors of ships that departed normally but arrived with no passengers aboard.

Ironically, even in the space age, ghost stories persisted.

Yamada, the rescue fleet team leader at the Megacorp space fortress in the OS-255 system, had often heard such tales in the past.

After all, sailors navigating the vast sea of stars typically shared such stories during drinking sessions.

But he had never heard a more terrifying story than the one he was hearing at this moment.

“No contact from the Gigacracker?”

Just as he was about to fall asleep, Yamada received a call from his subordinate and truly understood what it meant to feel a chill down his spine.

“Yes. The regular communication time has passed, but there’s been no contact.”

“Surely it’s not completely lost?”

“No, sir. The Gigacracker’s energy signature still exists.”

The rescue fleet was equipped with devices capable of tracking the unique energy signature of a Gigacracker. Unless the vessel itself was completely destroyed or the trace was too old, they could track it.

“…That’s somewhat fortunate. Wake everyone up and prepare for navigation immediately.”

“Understood!”

After ending the communication with his subordinate, he sent an emergency transmission to the entire fleet.

“Alert to all rescue fleets. Signal lost from Gigacracker No. 14! Signal lost from Gigacracker No. 14!”

Five minutes after the transmission was sent.

The rescue fleet gathered in the space outside the fortress.

If an ordinary vessel had encountered problems, they wouldn’t have assembled this quickly. This rapid response was only possible because of the unprecedented situation of losing contact with a Gigacracker.

“The Gigacracker’s energy signature? Is it still the same?”

“Yes. It’s still remaining in the same position.”

“…This might be the work of Star Union operatives.”

Naturally, having the Gigacracker seized by another power would be a bigger problem than its destruction. Because of reverse engineering.

Only House Saintkay knows the manufacturing methods and core technology of the Gigacracker. If that were to leak, it would be a tremendous blow.

It was obvious where Noble Capital would direct its rage after suffering such massive losses.

“The entire fleet is ready for hyperspeed navigation.”

At Yamada’s command, the entire assembled fleet glowed blue. The light that had illuminated the black void like a shining star disappeared in an instant.

A few minutes later, a completely different star system far away appeared before them.

“Arrival at target location complete.”

“No ships left behind.”

“No damage.”

“Good. Display the Gigacracker’s status in hologram.”

While reports from across the fleet were exchanged, a hologram displaying the internal situation of the star system appeared in the center of the command room.

Soon after, the image of the Gigacracker captured by the ship’s external cameras was reflected in the hologram. The spherical Gigacracker, 2km in diameter, appeared alongside numerical data analyzing its current status.

“Position unchanged… huh?”

The crewman stopped mid-report.

But Yamada didn’t blame him.

The figures appearing in the hologram were extremely unusual.

‘The energy readings are spiking?’

Just like when activating an ion cannon. Realizing this, Yamada’s face turned pale.

“Ev-Evade! Execute evasive maneuvers immediately!”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

Other ships seemed to notice something was wrong too, as they began rapidly breaking formation. Meanwhile, the readings displayed on the hologram rose to their limits and began glowing red.

And when those rising figures stopped, the ship AI’s emotionless voice echoed throughout the command room.

“High energy reaction detected from the front.”

“Everyone grab onto something!”

The moment the two voices intersected, a tremendous impact shook the ship.

–

Few players in Space Survival dislike superweapons.

That’s only natural.

It’s a chance to directly use weapons we’ve often seen in space-themed media—weapons that can wipe out massive fleets in a single strike or purify planets by burning them.

Beyond the romance of science fiction, superweapons perform well within the game too. Their overwhelming power can easily neutralize an opponent’s defensive measures.

Only comparable power can stop a superweapon. In battles between rankers, clans, and factions, the presence of superweapons acts as a major variable.

I’ve also had many difficulties fighting enemies with superweapons. Even if I try to hide on a planet, it’s over if they attack with a superweapon.

Despite these advantages, few players retain superweapons for long periods.

The reason connects directly to those advantages.

Possessing a superweapon gives you overwhelming advantage in battle. So when someone tries to acquire one, interference immediately comes from all sides.

This applies even if the one creating the superweapon is an ally. Not knowing when that weapon might be turned against them, they secretly work to sabotage it.

And superweapons are highly conspicuous. Despite their tremendous power, their defensive capabilities aren’t necessarily equivalent. With just a slight misstep, they’re likely to be lost under enemy fire. The expensive production and maintenance costs are just an added burden.

Yet despite these adverse conditions, it’s what many aspire to possess. That’s a superweapon.

A weapon with catastrophic allure is now moving in my hands.

The Gigacracker’s core armament, the massive ion cannon. A weapon powerful enough to split small celestial bodies like asteroids and dwarf planets in a single shot is now operating.

A cyan beam fires from the cannon with a bore diameter of hundreds of meters. It resembles the particle beam fired by Crystal Wing, but its range and destructive power are overwhelmingly superior beyond comparison. It’s nonsensical to compare the power that can destroy stars with any living being.

A beautiful death cuts through the darkness filling space and flies toward its target.

The target at the end is not a star but ships. The rescue fleet that appeared for rescue operations.

The enemies who just arrived in this star system are in disarray. Their reaction shows they never expected the Gigacracker to target them. They try to switch to a dispersed formation too late, but the ion cannon’s beam is already right in front of them.

The moment the beam collided with the fleet, an intense light flashed.

There were no spectacular fireworks typically seen in fleet battles. It resembled waves washing away a sand castle. Hundreds of ships—battleships, destroyers, patrol ships—all vanished without a trace upon contact with the beam.

‘In the game, I was the one in that position.’

Even as an adult form, the means to defend against superweapons are extremely limited. Even with unique traits. Perhaps only by gathering the traits of extremely powerful Apex creatures could one hope to counter them?

‘Come to think of it, it was the same when fighting the Imperial Mothership.’

Even when blocking the Imperial Mothership’s Cosmic Bolt, I could barely win only after deploying everything—adult form, King of Monsters, God’s Whip, and Psychic Breath fired from all three heads.

In the game, I would finish things before superweapons could activate. If I failed? I’d end up like those ships.

‘Is it over?’

The Gigacracker’s hull, which had opened like a blooming lotus flower, was folding back. Normally it maintains a spherical shape, but when firing the ion cannon, the outer walls and hull around the weapon unfold like a flower bud.

‘The nickname “tangerine”—whoever came up with it chose well.’

The ion cannon entering dormant state and the Gigacracker returning to its original form.

I had been watching the entire process from space while maintaining my “Dark Veil.”

‘Now it’s my turn.’

Only patrol ships with quick movements and a few battleships that executed evasive maneuvers with swift judgment survived.

It would be problematic if they returned safely.

I flew toward them with my veil activated. The surviving ships immediately scattered as I approached.

Thanks to the Dark Veil, my body is wrapped in a substance that disrupts the enemy’s detection systems. To the enemies, I must appear as a massive energy mass right now.

Whether due to the ion cannon or this new attack following it, the enemies seemed completely disoriented.

I penetrated the enemy formation and swung my right tail toward the ships. A patrol ship, now smaller than me, was struck by my pincer-equipped tail and split in two.

While swinging my tail, my other body parts weren’t idle either. “Gremlin Moss,” enhanced by the “Great Infector” trait, was released in smoke form from the pipes attached to my body.

The cloud of Gremlin Moss, which neutralizes machinery, clung to the rescue fleet remnants. Ships touched by the smoke flickered a few times before completely stopping.

The incapacitated prey was handled by the two heads attached to my sides. The right head bore large holes in ships with enhanced acidic breath, while the left head simply bit ships and threw them toward other vessels.

My combat arms transformed into either sharp scythe forms or forms with large hook-like claws to strike approaching ships. Arms with “Variable Bio-weapon” applied constantly changed shape to torment the enemies.

As the number of patrol ships rapidly decreased, the enemies seemed to recognize what was attacking them. The surviving battleships pulled back and unleashed a barrage.

Plasma energy fired from the battleships’ main guns struck my body, but there was little impact. It wasn’t completely painless, but compared to before, it was essentially negligible damage.

‘You want a cannon battle?’

Then I’ll give you what you want.

The two heads that had been fighting well on their own stopped moving and turned forward following my will.

Massive energy pumped by the dragon’s heart surged upward like a fountain throughout my body. Psychic power that would have been concentrated in a single head before now flowed into three directions. The monster’s tentacles, absorbing all that intense energy, writhed in unison.

When the gathered energy reached an appropriate level, my tentacles spewed fire.

The dragon’s breath, which had long surpassed the original, engulfed the ships. Battleships with thick outer walls melted right through their armor, while smaller patrol ships vanished without leaving a trace.

After the fiery judgment ended, nothing remained moving. Only a graveyard of metal that had once been ships.

‘I’ll clean this up before returning.’

I spewed purple flames one last time. The psychic breath burned all remaining debris.

After erasing all traces of the rescue fleet, I turned around.

The kids are waiting for me in our new home.