Chapter 124: What an Irony
The Purnas Mansion Underground Base hummed with suppressed energy, a stark contrast to the guttural roars now emanating from the specialized containment lab. Within a cylindrical cell, its walls crafted from a rare, shimmering mineral glass, the reptilian Krill thrashed furiously.
"RRRAAAGH! DAMN THESE FOOLISH MEATBAGS! WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE, I WILL TEAR YOU TO PIECES! I’M A KRILL HONOR WARRIOR! " it roared in its guttural, alien language, its reptilian features contorted with rage and frustration.
Each desperate slam of its scaled fist against the transparent barrier was met not with a crash, but with a silent, almost imperceptible shimmer as the glass visibly absorbed the kinetic force, dispersing it instantly. The more violently the Krill impacted, the deeper the glass seemed to glow, its rigidity and durability visibly increasing with each absorbed blow. The air inside the lab vibrated with the muffled alien screams, a sound of pure, unadulterated rage and frustration.
Richard having returned to the base and already shed his Prometheus armor for his business suit, stood with Lina outside the cell. His gaze was fixed on the captive, a mix of grim satisfaction and cold calculation in his eyes. Lina stood beside him, her cyan eyes observing the creature with a calm, analytical detachment. She was utterly unaffected by the Krill’s furious display.
"Sir, a curious acquisition," Lina’s voice was smooth, a perfect blend of composure and inquiry. "Where did you encounter this specimen?"
Richard stepped forward, the faint dust on his business suit a lingering testament to his recent violent encounter.
He gestured towards the captive with a weary hand. "On our way to Iligan city. We were ambushed by armed men, likely an NPA insurgent cell. I accessed their memories, traced it back to the coordinates you gave me earlier – a camp near Lake Duminagat. It was feasting on them. Even if they were insurgents, they were still... humans. That sight... The utter disregard for life." He paused, a slight frown creasing his brow, then sighed.
"I attempted to access his memories scurrying for more information, but I couldn’t read its mind. Nothing. Just... static. I suspect these lizards have an implant or something in their brain, specifically designed to block any psionic infiltration. An unpleasant surprise, that."
His gaze sharpened, now fixed intensely on the Krill’s head, even as the creature continued to thrash. "My immediate interest now lies in that material. The one that blocked my ability. If there’s an implant in its head, we need to understand its composition, its atomic structure. This could be critical for defense."
He then glanced at the shimmering containment glass, his interest broadening. "And this material," he added, tapping the glass with a gloved finger. "The glass. It absorbs and disperses kinetic and electromagnetic energy on contact. I know these Krill possess psionic abilities, since I learned from my previous battle data, he used psionic to enhance his movement speed and we can be sure the higher their rank on the hierarchy, the more powerful they are. A single thought projection from a high-tier Krill could bypass our current defenses, easily."
He continued, his voice firm with a newfound urgency. "We need AMFS to scan it. Its brain, for that psionic-blocking implant, if there’s one. If we can mass-produce the material, especially anything that can counter their psionics directly, it’ll be paramount for our future defensive structures. We don’t know if one of them has already project their consciousness directly into this base right now, so we have to be more wary."