Ch.85Encounter with the Unknown!

#085

“Why is someone like that in this prison? Shouldn’t he be in a supermax facility?”

“I don’t know that much either. What can I do about him being here?”

Indeed, even if Dexter complained to Jesse, there wasn’t anything Jesse could do about it.

“It’s one of the reasons why inmates avoid Blocks 3 and 4, and I don’t even want to go near there.”

“Why?”

“What do you think happens when a rabbit is thrown into a pride of lions?”

Dexter recalled a documentary he’d seen as a child showing lions hunting deer. He was about to nod when a question occurred to him.

“Did you just compare yourself to a rabbit?”

“…What? Compared to them, I am a rabbit.”

“No, you’re at least a hyena… oops.”

Jesse suddenly got angry and threw the toilet paper roll he was holding. Dexter caught the flying roll with one hand.

“You had to catch that?”

“It’s instinct, can’t help it.”

As Dexter tossed the toilet paper toward the bed while talking to Jesse, Emily, who had been folding Jesse’s prison uniform, spoke up.

“El Firme… he was a rough-looking man. I think he owned quite a collection of vintage cars.”

Jesse gave Emily a puzzled look as she spoke as if she’d met him before.

“What? You’ve met him?”

“Just once last year. I disguised myself as a waitress to get into El Firme’s house to steal a car.”

Emily’s lips curled slightly upward as she recalled the car she had stolen.

“I heard El Firme had a model identical to the Alfa Romeo that Mussolini drove right before his death. I stole it successfully, loaded it onto a ship, and stored it in my secret warehouse.”

Emily continued as she put the folded prison uniform in the drawer.

“I guess the woman next to El Firme back then wasn’t his wife. People were saying he was impotent, that he couldn’t even get it up.”

Emily casually revealed El Firme’s secret that had been unknown until now.

“Wow, El Firme is impotent?”

“That’s what they say. Apparently, he took a bullet to the testicles over a decade ago.”

“That’s the kind of information the FBI and CIA would laugh hysterically about.”

‘The OSA people would find this amusing too.’

Dexter grinned, surprised by this unexpected information from Emily.

“Is that what you came to ask about?”

“Half of it. The other half was to see you two. Emily, how are you handling the boredom?”

She would have to live in prison without Jesse until Dexter could arrange another parole hearing.

If Emily had the same personality as other inmates, Dexter would worry less, but even Marcy, who played a motherly role to the inmates in Block 2, couldn’t stand Emily’s personality and would throw punches at her.

‘I should either pair her with a more moderate inmate or give her a cell to herself.’

Dexter was trying to think of any moderate inmates he knew when he noticed Emily staring at him.

“What?”

“Dexter could take care of me.”

Dexter chuckled at Emily’s tone, which suggested this was the most obvious solution.

“I need to think about when I’m not around.”

The atmosphere suddenly softened.

As Dexter and Emily created a lukewarm atmosphere that seemed like it would soon warm up, Jesse, who had been organizing his things, flared up.

“Excuse me. Even though I gave permission, are you two creating that kind of atmosphere without me?”

Even though Jesse had become more docile, when his eyes rolled back like that, even Dexter was afraid.

“Ahem, anyway, take good care of Emily. She still has a lot to learn.”

“I’m already asking the other girls to look after her. It was hard enough for me to shed my own crazy image, and now this. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

Though Jesse grumbled, he was clearly going out of his way to help Emily.

“Thanks. I’ll take good care of Emily too, so you don’t have to worry.”

“…Is Emily some kind of animal? Take good care of her.”

As Jesse pouted, dissatisfied with Dexter’s words, Emily muttered with her usual expressionless face.

“I wouldn’t mind being treated like an animal by Dexter.”

“You’re a person, a person!”

While the three of them were bickering in prison, Rascal at OSA headquarters was standing with his hands behind his back, having just handed a report to his superior.

“…So this is about deploying a rapid response team for a spacecraft that’s expected to crash?”

“Yes, since we don’t know which spacecraft will crash, I believe we need to prepare thoroughly. The loss from over-preparing is less than the loss from under-preparing.”

Rascal’s report contained numerical results based on different actions OSA might take.

“Thorough. Well done. I’ll report this to the higher-ups and have a rapid response team sent to the Valley of Fire area.”

“Thank you.”

As Rascal left his superior’s office, he had a slight question about the order Libertron had given.

‘What kind of spacecraft needs a rapid response team for its crash?’

OSA’s rapid response team was similar to SWAT but staffed with more specialized combat personnel.

The need for such personnel itself meant that force might be necessary.

‘I just need to do as I’m told.’

But Rascal soon dismissed the thought and entered the lab where Libertron was for his report.

Inside the lab, Libertron was still standing alone.

“I delivered the message. Anything else to say?”

[……Affirmative.]

Despite the continued delay in the response, Rascal didn’t particularly mind.

“I’m leaving, tin can.”

Rascal left without looking back, and Libertron, watching him go, maintained his posture until the lab door closed.

[……]

* * *

Having completed a still life painting of grapes, apples, and pears, that person was smiling with satisfaction, hands clasped together.

“It’s quite good, even if I painted it myself, don’t you think?”

“It’s excellent. If given the chance, I’d like to put it up for auction at Christie’s.”

“…Such flattery won’t get you anywhere.”

Though speaking coldly to the man, that person couldn’t hide the smile at the corners of their eyes as they placed the brush in a cleaning solution.

“Has there been any contact?”

“Yes. Fortunately, it seems to have been handled well. However, there is one problem.”

“What is it?”

“The robot we planted seems to be experiencing errors in its logic circuits.”

That person shook their head.

“That can’t be… It was difficult to obtain a qubit CPU, so we used a prototype, but there shouldn’t be any problems with the logic circuits. What’s the current status of the robot?”

“It doesn’t seem particularly unusual to the OSA agent. However, the project engineer says there’s excessive computation happening in the logic circuits beyond the allocated amount.”

“Hmm.”

That person, looking at their painting, nodded.

“Leave it be.”

“Pardon?”

“When this project is over, tell our friend to destroy it cleanly.”

“Understood.”

As the man bowed his head, that person sighed deeply.

“It’s truly regrettable that I can’t control a robot I created as I wish. Perhaps I shouldn’t have used a quantum computer.”

After saying this, that person slowly exhaled and pointed at the painting.

“Put this in my bedroom. How is the casino matter progressing?”

“We’ve scouted it, but it seems Tenpenny Finance has noticed the issue. They say they won’t provide any more loans as it could violate the neutrality treaty on Earth.”

-Whoosh.

As soon as the man finished speaking, a sudden gentle breeze swirled around that person.

The man visibly panicked and bowed his head deeply.

Soon, as the wind subsided, that person slowly spoke.

“…How do they run a business with such a narrow mind? If they want big money, shouldn’t they have a broader perspective?”

“Indeed.”

“And the event scheduled for tomorrow morning is well prepared?”

“Yes. Since time was tight and they had to synthesize it anew, there’s a request for additional research funding…”

“Give it to them, and then have them eliminated without a trace. Are they trying to climb higher because I keep giving in?”

That person shook their head and, with a complicated mind, went out to the terrace in the room.

Upon stepping onto the terrace, the brilliantly lit Strip filled that person’s eyes.

“It will be soon. If Earth doesn’t work, we’ll have to proceed by borrowing the name of another planet.”

“I’ll look into it.”

Lying on the sunbed on the terrace, that person looked up at the sky, darkened by the lights of the Strip, and sighed.

“I can’t see the stars.”

* * *

The next day.

From early morning, OSA’s rapid response team and field agents were gathering at Valley of Fire State Park on the outskirts of Las Vegas.

Valley of Fire State Park was a wasteland with red rocks and sparse vegetation, making it easy to control civilian access.

“What if it doesn’t come?”

One of the rapid response team members looked up at the sky with a disgruntled expression.

“It’s better to hope it doesn’t come. We don’t know what kind of spacecraft will crash.”

The leader of the first rapid response team replied in an annoyed voice.

“That’s true.”

“Surely we won’t keep waiting like this… What does the Science and Technology Department say?”

In response to the team leader’s question, an agent listening through his wireless earpiece looked at his wristwatch and said:

“They say an unidentified cargo ship has been detected coming through a warp gate.”

“A cargo ship? Isn’t that huge?”

“They say it’s a small cargo ship, similar to a trailer truck on Earth. Anyway, all we can do is wait.”

Not long after, when the sun had risen a bit higher, a tiny black dot was spotted near the sun.

“Is that it?”

“…Yes, that’s the unidentified cargo ship.”

Belying the term “crash,” the small cargo ship was gradually reducing its speed.

“Is there anyone inside?”

“No, we can’t determine that at all. It’s not responding to OSA’s control communications.”

“Damn it…”

The team leader assessed the approximate landing point of the spacecraft and informed the rapid response team members.

“Everyone evacuate from the current position! Spread out 100 yards each, execute!”

“Execute!” “Execute!” “Execute!”…

With that command, the clustered rapid response team began to spread out 100 yards in all directions.

“Agent, you should evacuate too!”

“What? Oh, yes! Let’s go!”

The team leader, running with the agent, saw the cargo ship crash exactly where he had predicted. He took cover behind a rock and aimed his service rifle at the ship.

“Everyone take cover and maintain surveillance until the cargo ship crashes.”

“Affirmative.” “Affirmative.” “Affirmative.”…

The team members, hidden behind nearby trees and rocks, held their breath.

-Swoosh… CRASH!

Normally, a spacecraft would deploy landing gear, but this one crashed straight into the ground, putting the OSA agents and rapid response team on high alert.

“I thought a crash meant the spacecraft would be half-destroyed, but that’s not the case.”

“Shh.”

True to its cargo ship nature, it was a white container larger than a typical single-family home, embraced from above by what looked like an Earth space shuttle.

This meant that unidentified cargo was contained within the white container.

“We don’t know what biological threats might be present. All team members, put on Level 4 protective suits and masks!”

Level 4 protective suits and masks were built into the combat uniforms worn by OSA agents, designed for situations where chemical or biological threats were present or suspected.

When the rapid response team members pressed a button on the right side of their ballistic helmets, futuristic helmets that covered their entire faces and necks instantly appeared.

Their uniforms also transformed from conventional military-style combat gear to white, fully sealed combat suits that left no skin exposed.

“Support team, can you see inside the container with thermal imaging?”

About 300 yards away from the team leader’s position, a support team equipped with various devices was checking the container’s interior with thermal imaging equipment.

-We’re picking up something… but it’s not clear what. A large entity about the size of a dump truck, suspected to be a life form.

“If it’s a life form, we should stop interfering here and transport it to an OSA external testing facility.”

The team leader cautiously said to the agent wearing a protective mask.

“I think so too… Wait. Did that just move?”

-THUD!

Suddenly, there was a loud sound of something violently hitting metal inside the container, and vibrations shook the ground.

“Everyone, weapons on auto!”

With a click from the service rifles, the team leader prepared to fire immediately, but the agent next to him intervened.

“Wait, do you know what you’re preparing to shoot at?”

“I’m preparing for contingencies. It’s not just us here; there are OSA agents too.”

The team leader aimed his rifle toward the container.

-THUD, THUD, THUD!

With heavy sounds, the ground shook again, and the container door began to buckle.

-THUD, THUD, CRACK.

Under the violent assault from inside, the container door was torn off.

The crumpled door looked like a torn piece of paper.

-BOOM, BOOM…

As everyone held their breath, something massive emerged from the container.

“W-what is that?”

One of the agents at the scene spoke as the enormous life form crawled out of the container.

“It’s not a typical alien or extraterrestrial animal, that’s…”

The massive creature had a body like a person who had taken too many steroids, an alligator’s head with huge mountain goat horns, and hands with long, sharp, thick claws.

Instead of human skin, it was covered in what looked like scales, a truly bizarre life form.

“An Abomination…!”