Chapter 389: Unexpected Guest
The crew had seen their share of horrifying sights. Witnessed the fall of great cities, had taken part in massive wars with momentous death tolls...
Yet, without a doubt, they had never witnessed anything as grotesque as the Hreh’tar’s breeding grounds.
Corpses lay scattered across the hard ground, their mutilated remains defiled so brutally that it was hard to believe they had once been human.
Some had been stripped of their flesh, leaving only bones behind, the rest devoured by the aliens. Others had parts of their bodies violently inflated, their insides bloated by the ravaging creatures feasting on their insides.
Scenes this unholy were the reason many soldiers chose to incinerate their own bodies, effectively ending their lives upon being infested by the Hreh’tar. Death seemed a merciful outcome compared to such a heinous fate.
Everybody but Michael averted their gazes in order to gather their composure. He in turn tightened the grip on his two weapons, knuckles turning white.
Michael did everything in his power to not turn a blind eye to the truth... This was their reality, and he was determined to confront it as many times as needed to enact change.
Of course, he was well aware that his comrades didn’t bear the same mental scars he did... thankfully. He gave them several moments to catch their breath.
"Victoria, if you would." He called out in an emotionless tone.
She nodded, conjuring an inferno that surged around her stunning figure. The aliens here were in the thousands, possibly more, and were multiplying at an alarming rate. If left unchecked for any longer, only disaster could befall them.
Luckily, the underground chamber seemed to have only a single entrance, which gave her the opportunity to turn the breeding grounds into a blazing furnace.
Her flames ignited, quickly spreading across the entire chamber.
Unsurprisingly, the Hreh’tar who had remained lying in wait instantly sensed their presence, pouncing on the crew with killing intent.
Michael and the rest responded in kind, meeting them unfazed while the fire rapidly spread, dwindling their numbers.
Notably, the bulk of the alien forces had been stationed outside the breeding grounds, and with the crew having already dealt with them, the remaining enemies didn’t hold their ground for long.
"This should be enough, I reckon?" Claire murmured, her eyes scanning the scene of ash surrounding them.
"Hopefully." Ava sighed. "This tunnel network can be considered sealed off from foreign presence, but that raises a bigger question... How did the aliens find their way here? There doesn’t seem to be any obvious passage leading outside the capital’s domain, so it’s more likely someone brought them here..."
Michael was inclined to agree. "First, the plague that seems to target felines the most, and now these aliens... that..."
He paused, his mind racing.
Wasn’t there a connection between the two? The plague was capable of seeping into the victim’s body, draining them of spiritual energy. Similarly, the Hreh’tar used bodies for nourishment, feeding not only on the flesh but also on the spiritual energy, which allowed them to evolve into a higher tier.
If he were to reverse-engineer the events, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume that someone could have constructed the plague by mirroring the Hreh’tar’s behavior.
Yet that didn’t complete the whole picture. If the perpetrator was the same... Why would they go out of their way to target the felines specifically, rather than the population as a whole? Surely, limiting themselves to only one variation of humanity would only slow them down.
’I got a theory.’ Devil chimed in. ’I believe their goal is to refine the plague so it only infects the felines. Maybe the disease affecting normal humans is just a side effect they’re trying to eliminate. That could explain why there are different branches of the cult and why they’re conducting experiments. They’re trying to make the plague more harmful to the felines while canceling out its impact on the rest.’
All things considered, the hypothesis seemed sound. The felines didn’t catch the plague more easily simply because they were more gifted in cultivation, but because it had been designed to target them specifically. It also explained why the cultists they had interrogated didn’t know much. From their point of view, they had simply been tormenting the poor felines while unknowingly examining different variations of the plague.
Given that Heaven’s Judgment had been summoned yet remained silent, it implied that she shared the same belief.
"Can we get out of here already?" Enzo shuddered. "Even if the corpses are gone, I can still picture the sight clearly."
Amelia nodded in agreement. "It would be wise to explore the other problematic tunnel networks and incinerate any similar breeding grounds before they spread out of control."
They had a point. Even if Michael’s hypothesis was correct, it still didn’t solve the biggest problem. With all the secrecy going on, the identity of who exactly commanded the whole operation remained a mystery.
Even if they somehow found a cure for the plague and eradicated every nest the Hreh’tar had created, it would all be for naught if the source could just create more in their absence.
Just as they turned to leave, Ruby’s voice halted them.
"Wait!" Her eyes widened, and her ears perked up. "Do you hear that?!"
Ruby’s senses were sharp, thanks to her feline nature. However, being of the Lord realm should have made Michael’s senses superior to hers, yet he failed to detect anything.
’Something is wrong.’ He thought. Closing his eyes, he blocked out all distractions.
Ding!
The only thing he noticed was the echo of a distant, high-pitched vibration that made him inexplicably lightheaded.
"What was that? Why did it hurt?" He whispered, rubbing his temples. It was rare for him to admit something pained him, yet for a brief instant, his soul ached with intense agony.
Strangely, he seemed to have been the only one affected. Perhaps his heightened senses had detected something so subtle that nobody else of the crew could notice.
Regardless, it became apparent what sound Ruby had heard earlier when the ground protruded outward, the earth pushed aside as a blind creature emerged from its depths.
An animal, which the cultists supposedly used to establish communication with their higher-ups... a mole.