Kael glanced back at the container.
He did want to know what kind of "wisdom creature" was cowering inside. Human? Or some alien species? Honestly, it didn't matter much. If they tried anything funny, he still had a freshly-caught xenomorph squirming in his grip—ready to be thrown like a grenade.
He reached for the container latch again.
Locked…?
A second later, his claws ignited with a flick of thought. Flame danced across his fingers as he sliced cleanly through the metal like a blowtorch through butter. With a final thud, the container door fell forward, thudding against the floor.
Inside stood a humanoid alien, two crimson horns jutting from his head. Lab coat, trembling hand, pistol aimed right between Kael's eyes.
"<█████!>" the horned alien barked in a guttural language. He gestured frantically at Kael—and then to the xenomorph in his hand.
Kael blinked and thought.
…Bro. Speak English.
The alien kept yapping.
Kael gave him a blank stare, then turned and floated away, the xenomorph still writhing in his grip like a misbehaving pet snake. If they couldn't communicate, there was no point wasting time. What's he even yelling about? "Don't touch my science project?" perhaps.
He sighed internally.
Whatever, man.
The xenomorph had gone oddly quiet in his hand again. Not dead—just… compliant. Like it knew it couldn't win.
Kael looked at it. "You better have friends," he muttered in thought. "Two of you are way too slow for point farming."
If there weren't more xenomorphs on the ship, he'd yeet this thing into the void and incinerate it mid-flight. Fireball skeet-shooting with a live alien. Boom. Points and fireworks.
He exited the cargo bay and floated into the ship's corridor. The atmosphere shifted immediately.
Not messy with garbage—but signs of a massacre. Walls scarred with acid, melted panels, structural holes. Viscous saliva trailed along the ceiling and vents. Scorch marks and burst-open corpses littered the floor—horned humanoids like the one from earlier, most of them with gaping wounds in their stomach.
Kael hovered silently.
stomachbursters. Classic xeno mess.
At least now he was sure—this ship had more of them. Maybe even a Queen. If so, today might actually be profitable.
And maybe, he thought, This ship got an energy core I can eat. Fancy glowing lunch.
He turned a corner, sensing motion behind him.
He turned—and sure enough, the horned alien was tailing him, muttering in his strange language again.
Kael raised a brow.
Is this alien guy seriously following me?
The guy just barked something else Kael couldn't understand.
Bro. Please. Kael rolled his eyes and shrugged.
If he could understand him, he'd at least ask where the energy crystals were stored. But this was pointless.
He was about to wave the alien off when—
Kael stopped.
The horned alien bumped into his back.
Kael didn't react.
He was staring down the hallway ahead—pitch-black, the only section of the corridor where the emergency lights had failed.
Or been destroyed.
Dozens of invisible eyes stared back from the shadows. Watching. Waiting.
Kael could feel them. The silence was thick—pressurized. Tense.
He looked at the xenomorph in his hand.
Then, raising it like an offering, he aimed it toward the darkness.
What happens, he wondered, if I kill one of their own… right in front of them?
Would they swarm him?
Would they erupt in rage?
Would they flood the corridor like a black tide of chitin and claws?
He hoped so.
Kael let the flames slowly rise across his palm.
The xenomorph screeched, body twisting in panic as its flesh began to sizzle.
A sickly scent of burning alien flesh filled the air. The creature's skin crackled and popped.
The hallway remained still.
No movement.
Nothing?
They were watching, yes—but… afraid?
Did they truly see him as that much of a threat?
Kael narrowed his eyes. The sizzling in his hand grew louder. The xenomorph convulsed, letting out a final wailing shriek.
[Gained 3 Points from Terror Emotion]
Kael nod.
Okay. That's a reaction.
Still, the others didn't move.
The horned alien behind him took a half-step back.
What, buddy? Scared? Kael thought as he glanced at the horned alien backing away, clearly shaken.
Seriously? I just cooked a xenomorph alive. It's not like I did anything worse than what those things do—bursting out of your crew's guts like they're some kind of gruesome jack-in-the-box.
Then—BANG. BANG. BANG.
Kael blinked.
Really? You're shooting me now?
But no—the horned guy wasn't aiming at him. The shots were going somewhere behind Kael.
He turned.
And froze.
A different xenomorph stood there now. Bigger. Muscular. Taller than the average drone—nearly Kael's height but a little stockier. Its sleek black exoskeleton looked reinforced, almost armored. More like something straight out of that one manhwa.
What the hell—do they work out in this universe now?
The horned alien kept firing.
Kael sighed.
Bro, stop. You're clearly not doing anything with that peashooter. You've got a spaceship that can travel galaxies, and this is your best weapon? No plasma rifles? Railguns? Nothing?
Still, Kael gave him credit. He didn't run. If he had, Kael might've let this thing eat him just to justify hunting him later.
Then—CRACK.
Kael's body jolted.
Did… did this thing just slap me?
A stunned silence.
Then laughter.
It started as a low chuckle and built into a full-blown grin.
"You're dead," Kael muttered with glee. "I'm gonna turn you into well done steak."
He hurled the charred corpse of the earlier xenomorph at the new one like a warning shot—and then launched forward, his fist igniting like a solar flare. His punch collided with the buff xenomorph's face, sending it flying across the corridor until it smashed into a wall.
The beast hissed, furious—but before Kael could close the distance again, the shadows behind it moved.
Dozens of lesser xenomorphs emerged from the darkness, screeching and lunging.
Kael's heat surged. His body glowed hotter, brighter. One by one, the small fry leapt toward him, and he swatted them aside, splattering them like oversized insects. Their exoskeletons hissed and cracked on contact with his searing skin.
He floated again toward the buff xenomorph.
It didn't charge—no, it yanked a massive metal panel from the wall and swung it like a makeshift club.
Kael caught it. Melted it instantly.
The xenomorph, now cautious, started retreating—throwing debris, trying to keep distance.
Oh, so now you're shy? Kael thought, unimpressed. You were real bold back when you slapped me, huh?
He considered just nuking the entire hallway—burning the ship, purging it all. But…
If I destroy everything, I won't find the energy crystal or whatever fuel these people use. Even in this form, 'Blaze Out of Space' needs power. You think I can shoot flames across galaxies for free? I wish. Even monsters need lunch.
He glanced back. The horned guy was still alive, still fighting off the smaller xenos. Not bad. Kael would keep him around—for now.
He turned back to the buff xenomorph.
Enough is enough.
Kael's body blurred into motion—rocket-boosting forward like a meteor. He slammed into the creature and tackled it to the ground. His hands pinned its arms down.
It flailed beneath him.
Yeah, from this angle, it probably looks weird, Kael thought, ignoring how awkward the pose was. Doesn't matter.
The xenomorph's tail stabbed wildly at him—but Kael didn't even flinch. Its attacks couldn't scratch him.
The thing screeched—loud enough to rattle the walls. The smaller xenos responded, launching themselves at Kael in a suicidal frenzy. They latched on, burning alive just by touching him.
Kael's body temperature soared again—turning the swarm into charcoal before they could bite.
The buff xenomorph beneath him began to writhe. Its armored skin started to crack from the heat. Kael raised one hand, gripped the beast's jaws, and forced them wide open.
Then he gathered his power.
A searing orb of concentrated fire formed in his palm—pulsing, glowing white-hot.
Like Godzilla cooking Ghidorah…
He blasted it down the creature's throat.
The xenomorph bucked violently, screeching until its voice broke. Its limbs thrashed, then weakened. Its body twitched one last time—and went still.
Kael stood.
Smoke rose from the smoldering corpse. The air smelled of acid and charred meat.
In front of him lay a well-done alien steak.
Kael exhaled slowly, flames flickering across his skin.
Kael turned back. The horned guy was gripping his hand, bleeding and shaky.
Kael just shook his head and floated forward, muttering to himself, "Should've stayed in the box, buddy."
Of course, the horned guy still followed him.
Guess I've got a sidekick now. Great.
Kael's thought.
Man, I should keep some real food around... Wonder what alien cuisine tastes like? he thought. Too bad I can't shift back to human form in this kind of situation. Way too risky. Good thing the system lets me store stuff for later.
Behind him, the horned alien kept muttering something in his weird language. Kael still couldn't understand a word of it—but the object in his hand caught Kael's attention.
A flashlight?
No—Kael floated closer, narrowing his eyes.
Wait... is that thing powered by crystal?
He zipped toward the horned alien without warning. The guy flinched hard, practically vibrating with fear—and to be fair, Kael's body temperature was still scorching hot.
Oh, right... Kael sighed.
He cooled himself down a bit, letting the air sizzle less around him. The alien visibly relaxed—only a little.
Kael reached out and took the flashlight.
The horned guy tried to take it back, but Kael simply used his other hand to block him, like telling a kid to wait his turn. He inspected the device, unscrewing the base.
Sure enough—there was a tiny glowing crystal inside.
Kael plucked it out, unimpressed.
Too small to be satisfying... but whatever.
He handed the empty flashlight back to the alien like giving someone an ice cream cone with just the cone left, then absorb the crystal.
Hm... tastes like peach.
He floated forward again, savoring the flavor.
Behind him, he heard scribbling. Kael turned slightly—saw the horned alien frantically drawing something in his notebook.
Now what?
The alien tapped Kael's back.
Kael turned around, mildly annoyed.
The guy held up the notebook. On the page: a drawing of a crystal. He pointed at the crystal, then at Kael.
Kael tilted his head.
What? You offering me art now?
The alien seemed to realize Kael didn't get it—so he mimed Kael's earlier motion of eating the crystal. Then he flipped the page.
Now there was a sketch of a small ship—an escape pod, maybe.
Oh… I see what this is…
He wants to trade. Crystals in exchange for Kael's help getting off this ship.
Kael grinned. Finally, something useful.
He pointed a claw at the picture of the crystal first—then to himself.
As if saying give first then he will help.
The alien nodded eagerly, then extended a hand for a handshake.
Kael glanced at it.
Really? Still doing handshakes in a place crawling with acid-spitting monsters?
Still, Kael extended one of his claws for a handshake.
Deal struck.