Sacre-D: Reborn as the Swarm's Apex | Chapter 154 | The Echo of a Command | Novela.app

The light cruiser had barely touched down when Kleiman intercepted them at the starport. "I was looking for you. They said you were out." The Armed-type leader’s tail flicked back and forth. His gaze swept from Sacty to Gela, then shifted to the suspicious human clad in a protective suit. A slight twitch of his nose indicated his scent glands were busy analyzing the air. "Where did you go?" "On a date," the Core-type replied, spinning a tall tale with a benevolent smile. "A single bug like you wouldn't understand." Kleiman: "???" A few literal question marks seemed to manifest above his head. "The three of you? Together?" "..." One could eat whatever they liked, but one certainly couldn't say whatever they liked. "Arthur recommended a nice spot to me, so I took Roxanne on a two-day short trip." The black-clad female Zerg reached out and patted Kleiman’s shoulder. "Anyway, what did you need me for?" Kleiman’s attention was instantly diverted. "The humans want to speak with you. They want to discuss the Model Wreckage." Few insects knew what was buried beneath Kamlan. Aside from the two of them and Clark, only Kleiman and a handful of high-ranking males had heard rumors. When it came to matters of grave importance, the Armed-types were remarkably tight-lipped. "Please wait a moment; I will join you shortly." The human waved an arm, signaling he was going to change out of the bulky gear, and hurried away. Once the official business was concluded, however, the straightforward soldier’s mind looped back. He followed Sacty and Gela closely, leaving absolutely no room for private space. "What kind of place? You went to another planet for a date?" "You took a male to a place where humans need protective suits for a date?" Sacty’s head began to throb. Although the Armed-type, setting foot in human territory for the first time, maintained a cold, aloof facade—successfully fooling all the humans—his restless curiosity was actually flaring up almost constantly. Several times during meetings or site surveys for the trade zone, Gela could sense Kleiman frantically taking mental notes. "We just wandered around," the male Zerg interjected, taking the lead on the topic. Unaccustomed to lying to his friends, he seemed a bit tense. "Sacty took me to see some flowers." Flowers that had been polluted by the Tides, which rustled and curled. "And some human ruins." A hollow underground graveyard containing the remains of a Hard-wing. "Scenery I’ve never seen before." Shocking deformities floating within twelve sealed containers. It wasn't exactly a lie, but Sacty felt like sighing as he listened. "Why are you asking? Are you planning to take a male on a date next time?" Sacty delivered the finishing blow. For the rest of the walk, Kleiman kept his mouth shut as tight as a clam. He ignored the wicked Core-type entirely, and even his tail stopped wagging. "You’ve made him angry," Gela whispered. He shook his head with a smile and pulled at the expressionless Armed-type, slowing the pace of the insect who had fallen silent out of sheer embarrassment. "When we have time later, let's go see other parts of Kamlan." The white Zerg’s patience rivaled that of a teacher with thirty years of experience. His smile widened when he noticed Kleiman slowing down for fear of accidentally tripping him. "Some planets are very unique, different from ours and the habitat sectors of the Grey-wings. In the days to come, the Swarm will engage in long-term cooperation with humans. You should go see those ruins, look at their history. They are very beautiful things." "Fine," the dark grey female Zerg replied slowly. He didn't lower his head, but he couldn't suppress his curiosity, tossing out a few questions while pretending to be casual. "If you want to see human ruins, I know a few good options." Sacty took over the conversation, squeezing his partner’s relaxed tail-hook as he walked alongside them. "Before this place turned to rubble, it was home to over ten million people. After the disaster, the most prosperous areas left behind vast complexes of damaged buildings. Though almost no living creature sets foot there now, you can still see the shadows of what once was." The Armed-type’s tense, scaled tail gradually relaxed. "I want to go," he said softly. The high-ranking direct descendants had once looked down on humans with contempt. Kleiman hadn't strictly experienced the upheavals of the five King-class iterations, so he had no real understanding of this neighbor they had faced with cold glares for so long. But now, his perspective was shifting. These fragile, short-lived beings had constructed such magnificent works, taking deep root in lands that even the Swarm avoided. "I want to see this race." *** They met Arthur again two stellar hours later. He was standing with a member of the Kamlan garrison management, waving cheerfully when he spotted Sacty’s group. "Over here," the young man called out. His seamless professional conduct and vibrant energy created a peculiar aura that made it easy for both humans and insects to feel a natural affinity for him. Except for Kleiman. The fellow who had been a basket full of questions along the way turned back into a "sawed-mouth gourd," standing expressionlessly behind the Core-type. This change deeply surprised Sacty. "What exactly did he do to offend you? You're avoiding him like you're terrified of a male Zerg." "He... gets too close," the dark grey female Zerg muttered, flicking his tail irritably and twitching his wings. "Even after being away for two days and cleaning his body, I can still smell the scent of the Swarm’s leader on him. Why does he cling to our Sub-Queen all day? Adult cubs shouldn't huddle around their kin; it's a sign of intellectual immaturity." *I shouldn't have opened my mouth to ask,* Sacty thought. He realized the wisdom of being human: sometimes, it's better not to speak unless necessary. The human wasn't immature; he was far too "mature" for his own good. "Lieutenant Adams says we can have an hour for a tour, but we must be accompanied by the Kamlan garrison." The youth, unaware he had been diagnosed with developmental issues, smiled as he briefly explained the key information. Sacty shook hands with him and then laughed—the middle-aged man acting as the messenger was one of the three unlucky souls they had rescued from VX197. The man looked serious, but he didn't show any obvious revulsion toward physical contact with the Zerg. "I left the Federation military a long time ago. Just call me by my name." There was indeed a qualitative difference between those with social anxiety and "social terrorists." The middle-aged man racked his brain and finally squeezed out: "Thank you for your help last time." "You're welcome." Unfortunately, Sacty himself was a social powerhouse. He gripped the hand that was trying to retract with a warm smile. "When can we start the tour? Is today alright?" "Mr. Adams looked quite shocked." Even after they stood on the soil of VX197, Gela was still chuckling softly. "He tried to pull his hand away three times." "You made him swallow his refusal." "If we don't clear up all these questions, none of us will sleep tonight." The Core-type glanced back at the light cruiser. For a moment, he worried that Arthur and Kleiman might start a fight while left behind, but then he decided the "black-hearted" human would definitely not come out on the losing end. "I need to see the Model Wreckage with my own eyes and find out why the medical base’s control system spontaneously conducted cultivation experiments without human operation." "It's within the coverage area of the Wreckage; it would receive direct instructions from a higher level." "I'll go with you," the male Zerg promised. "I also want to see this 'kin' of the Great Information Hive." When Sacty had performed the rescue on VX197, he had only caught a cursory glimpse of the facility's sealed corridors. This time, he and Gela entered the entire installation, accompanied by the Kamlan garrison. Though he had anticipated it, Gela couldn't help but let out a gasp of wonder when the Model Wreckage truly revealed itself. Deep underground, humans had hollowed out the planet’s interior to plant a heart woven of steel. The white Zerg stood beneath a dome that seemed to stretch forever. As far as the eye could see, the metallic chassis looked like layers of heavy stone monuments. All the light screens floating in the air were like ripples on water, spreading subtle undulations. The Eye of Horus captured every image and sound with an omniscient posture. Countless eyes, flickering on and off, closed and opened, watching the minuscule individuals below. Unlike true artificial intelligence species, the Data Firmament and the Model Wreckage had not yet attained a distinct subjective consciousness. They conversed and engaged in dialogue, but they never added their own subjective judgment. "Hello," Gela replied, feeling as though he were facing a gentler version of the Great Information Hive. The accompanying humans retreated outside the audio-pickup range, quietly observing this extraordinary exchange. "I have some questions." The Kamlan Model had no true central authority. The male Zerg carefully weighed content that might trigger permission warnings, slowly organizing his words to obtain the answers he sought. "Did you once receive consciousness fragments dissipated from the Data Firmament?" To his surprise, the undulating ripples of light quickly provided an answer. "Was the cultivation experiment at the Jinwu Medical Base your own autonomous decision?" The answer differed from the expected result. Gela’s tail flicked slightly. However, before he could think of the next question, Sacty spoke first. "Was it Evelyn?" The Core-type’s voice was calm, stating his guess as a fact. "She once sent three highest-level edicts to the Data Firmament terminal, hoping to preserve the consciousness fragments that failed to upload." This time, the Model Wreckage gave a different response. It did not answer directly. "So you chose to create a new body to house them," the male Zerg said softly. The human Empress had rushed to the terminal and issued an imprecise demand. Her words, blurted out in desperation, were too broad and inscrutable for a mechanical intelligence. —*"Keep him."* It was a plea, not a detailed command specifying steps. The cold, intelligent entity, which did not yet possess an eternal soul, had reached across the endless sea of stars to collect and shelter those fragments that had drifted here. Then, in its own way, it responded to that directive. The burning Hard-wing transport ship that crashed on Kamlan had accidentally activated the system from its long slumber, and the genetic samples were archived. Only after that did everything else follow. When a human prayed for a miracle that was unlikely to happen, the steel behemoth wove a tender cradle, allowing one dream after another that could not reach its end to sleep within. Twelve cultivation bodies had spanned four years. The Red Polypore and the humans sought a miracle of no return in the endless deep space, while the Model Wreckage of Kamlan repeated the same command over and over again. Until the dark Core-type stood before the endless light screens and mainframes. Those ripple-like waves of light spread gently. "Welcome back, Sacty." ***