Chapter 38. Insect Man Feiyu
Completely exhausted, Noah huddled on the cave floor. Work in the mines was simply horrific and cruel. Five crew members have died. Two of them are seriously ill. Lieutenant Larry had just had heart surgery three weeks ago and was still recovering from heart surgery. His heart couldn't handle the strain. Paige needs to take medication regularly, and she cannot live without them. Of course, she was not provided with these medications. So, Paige died in agony and there was nothing they could do. Two days ago, Felic and Hogan were brutally murdered for saving Tiny from the demonic flames. Pike was dead too, but no one shed a tear for him.
The deaths of Larry and Paige left the trapped crew angrier and angrier than their already angry state. Noah had tried to exploit this anger and find a way to escape. But Hogan's death was like a wake-up call, hitting the crew deeply. It's not that Hogan is more popular than the other two. They had little contact with the crew. But because his death was so cruel. For most people, this is unacceptable. Now, the mood among the crew is low. They accepted their fate almost without resistance. Not much different from other prisoners.
Additionally, Hogan's head still lies in the center of the cave. The demonic flames threw it at Noah's feet. The prisoners avoided it and dared not touch it. It's been there ever since, continuing to demoralize the prisoners. As Noah admitted, the demonic flames were successful. Gradually, Noah began to doubt whether they could escape from here.
"We have to get out," Noah whispered to Jeffrey, who was sitting next to him. "The sooner the better."
"How are you going to do that?" Jeffrey asked.
Noah remained silent. He wasn't sure. In fact, he had no clue. But he knew something had to be done now because they were getting weaker. He would rather die trying to escape than wait to die here.
"You might need some help," a small computer translated from the sudden hiss and click behind them. Then, suddenly, two tentacles appeared on the captain's head.
Noah suddenly stood up and stared at a strange creature. They have narrow, two-part bodies. The head is mainly composed of two large, dark compound eyes and a large mouth with movable claws in front of it, just like a spider. This creature is an insect. It looks like a cross between a human-sized ant and a praying mantis. Two long antennae that curve forward extend from its forehead. It has three clawed fingers on each hand. Like the others, it was only covered in fragments. But it was impossible to tell whether the creature was emaciated or otherwise suffering from the pain of captivity. After all, Noah didn't know what this species normally looked like. But he remembered his high school biology class. That's when they looked at a grasshopper through a microscope. Through this magnification effect, small insects appear so alien, as if they are from another planet. Now, such a creature stood before him. And it looks no less unfamiliar than the grasshopper under the microscope.
"You want to run away?" The insect made another similar clicking sound and was immediately translated. Noah saw that it was wearing a collar that apparently contained a small translation computer. The strange thing is that the demon flames did not take away this device.
"Who are you?" the captain asked, without answering the other party's question.
"I'm Feiyu," the insect man introduced himself. "I can help you. If you can help me too."
Noah looked at Jeffrey in disbelief. Yet another new species willing to help them. First Nealfer, and now this insect with an indescribable sound. But Jeffrey's expression didn't change at all. He didn't offer much help. So Noah turned back to face the insect. "How can I help?" He just wanted to know the details. Whether he trusted the insect man or not would be decided later.
"I have a promising tactic. If you follow my instructions, we can be free tomorrow." The insect clicked so fast that the translator could barely keep up. While listening, Noah looked around and noticed that his crew had moved closer to him.
"How do we know your tactics won't lead to us falling into a trap and getting killed?" Noah had to ask this question, even though it was redundant. If this was a trap, Fei Yu would obviously not admit it. And why would he lead them into a trap? Here, they are almost equal to death. There's really no point in setting another trap.
"Because I want to escape from here, just like you," Feiyu replied. "I have the same vision as the Demon Flames. Only I can understand how they see things so we can act accordingly. If we want to fight the Demon Flames, we must cooperate. Otherwise we will all die here." Fei Yu emphasized.
Noah looked around thoughtfully. He couldn't look at the creature. It's impossible to tell from the expression on its face whether it's telling the truth. The insect's face is completely expressionless. Perhaps this exoskeleton body would be impossible to produce facial expressions at all.
"Captain, we should take advantage of this opportunity," Ingmar whispered. "Because I myself can't see how we get out of here. We should be grateful for all the help and accept it. We can think about cause and effect after we get out."
Noah was silent. Ingmar's advice was not typical of Starfleet, nor was it typical of him. But no matter what they do, the diplomatic dispute won't get worse. And he had to get his crew out of here. So, he could at least listen to the proposal. If it involves too high a risk, they can choose not to adopt it. "Okay," he turned to the insect again. "What's your plan?"
"Everyone prepare for battle!" Carol ordered, then sat on the command seat. Her face was filled with determination. She is determined to save the crew, as well as the other survivors. Although they could almost touch the fear of being caught by the demonic flames.
"Phasers and shields at 89%. Photon torpedo tubes at the ready. Shuttles in position, docked to the left and right of the ship," Ted reported, sitting at the weapons console. He smiled and looked at Carol. "We can do it," he said confidently.
"We will succeed," she stressed. She leaned on him and ultimately proved him right. Ted found the weakness. A very clear and logical weakness that went unnoticed simply because it violated the rules of war and tactics. And it comes with considerable risk. Moyan's spaceship does not have any shields, and its outer shell is reinforced. Although this reinforcement can prevent defenses like energy shields, it cannot prevent teleportation. Moyan probably didn't consider teleportation technology when designing the spacecraft, because they didn't have such technology at all. And this is the weakness of their ship. In this way, the crew has the opportunity to transmit a high-power photon torpedo directly into the interior of the Demon Flame spacecraft. But this also brings certain dangers. If they lower the shields themselves, they can send the target overboard. In the face of Demon Flame's powerful weapons, this will cause the Republic to be destroyed in a matter of seconds. In this period of time, they can only destroy one magic flame spaceship at most, but they will get no benefit at all. So this strategy is pointless.
However, Ted had the idea of using two shuttles. The shuttle silently approached the Demon Flame as the Republic drew the photon torpedo's line of fire, then within seconds lowered its shields and teleported the torpedo into the ship. For a few seconds, the shuttle had little protection. One hit is enough to destroy them. Privately, Carol didn't hold out much hope either, thinking that there was a slim chance that either shuttle would survive the battle. Therefore, choosing a pilot also becomes very difficult. But nearly every remaining crew member volunteered for the mission. This is the only chance to save the crew.
Now, Daisy and her engineers have regained control of the Republic ship. Over the past few days, they have accomplished the near impossible. Of course, there's still a lot that doesn't work. But these are mainly unnecessary luxuries that can be given up for now. The shell was still as damaged as the day they arrived on the shuttle. This needs to be repaired in a space dock. But the drive system, navigation and some weapons have returned to normal. The same goes for shields. And Carol definitely didn't want to wait any longer. Otherwise, they are playing with other people's lives.
Carol looked around determinedly on the bridge. "Have any of you heard of the proverb: Luck is always on the side of the brave! Today, we're going to see why." She leaned back in her chair, trying to exude as much calm as possible. She wanted to remain calm before the storm came. Now the crew cannot overwork themselves, they must save their anger for the coming battle, which they certainly cannot escape. "Helmsman, accelerate, the speed increases to Wa
p5 and follow the route taken by the demonic flames. My guess is they took the prisoners directly to the mines that Charles was talking about. "
The helmsman responded immediately and entered the course.
Carol looked at Ted again and he nodded. Then she turned to the helmsman and said, "Speed up."
As usual, the cave door creaked open. Through the extremely noisy powerful speakers, an unpleasant high-pitched sound echoed throughout the hall-like cave. The echoes were repeatedly distorted, forming a chaotic sound that made it impossible for everyone to sleep again, with harsh sounds echoing in their ears. The prisoners struggled to their feet. Like machines, they act according to routine. No one hesitated, although the night was, as usual, too short to truly recuperate. But everyone is afraid of the cruel guards. No one wanted to give them any excuse to vent their endless rage. They try to remain inconspicuous in the crowd. This is the only protection. Like a group of animals threatened by lions.
In the crowd, Noah saw the disheveled curly hair of the Klingon Nilf. He stood up seemingly effortlessly. This may be because of his rugged physique and Mars' disciplined mind at work. While still kneeling, he shook the thin man next to him. Apparently the man was not awakened by the piercing sound. To Noah, this was incomprehensible because the sound made his whole body tingle. He saw Nilf shaking harder and harder. Then he turned gently to the man and touched his face with his fingers. Nilf closed his eyes reverently. Then he stood up, leaving the man on the ground. Noah had time to glance at the dead man's face, and seemed to see Commander Gram in him. However, before he could be sure, his view was blocked by other prisoners, who were slowly moving towards the exit.
The captain joined the moving crowd and moved forward with it. It's time to put the plan into action. For two days, Noah and his leadership team had been discussing Feiyu's escape plan, weighing the pros and cons, and last night they decided to try it. The insect man's plan is very detailed, with some inside information. He would not elaborate on the source of the information. But if this information helps them escape this hell, what's the problem? Jeffrey calculated their chance of success at 2.876%. Not a particularly optimistic number. But if they don’t try, the odds of success go to zero, which is even worse.
The tunnel passed through the crowd, everyone heading towards their assigned station. The guards watched them warily, and the prisoners quietly passed by the magic flame guards like criminals about to be executed.
Nilf walked over to Noah. He had made his way through the crowd without looking at the captain. "Are you really willing to take such a risk?" he asked softly. He's also drawn into the crew's plans and he can help, and they really need as much help as they can get.
"Yes," Noah replied seriously, while just looking straight ahead. There was no way he wanted the guards to see a conversation taking place here. Because in that case, the demonic flames will immediately conduct an interference check.
"You risked all of our lives," Nilfer said quietly. This is not an accusation, just a statement of facts.
Noah looked at him briefly, then looked ahead again. He had to think of Gram. His narrative and his condition. and the condition of all other slaves. He knew very well that if he tried to escape, someone would definitely die. This was beginning to weigh on his conscience. But does he still have a choice?
"Commander Gram is dead?" It was more of a statement than a question.
"Yes," Nilf confirmed briefly. There is nothing more to say about this.
Noah nodded. Gram left the mine before them, the only way he could. He hoped he could find inner peace.
Noah looked around cautiously. Everywhere he saw empty faces and lifeless eyes. Then he remembered what Nilf had just said. He risked everyone's lives. But is this any big difference compared to where things stand now?
"We're all probably going to die," he said slowly, not knowing whether he was speaking to Nilf or for his own comfort.
Nilf understood and just nodded. The captain was right. His Klingon side comes back. Rather than suffer a slow and painful death here, he would rather die a straight and honorable death. He thought about the other slaves. Most of them were dying men who, with just a gentle push, would fall over and stop moving. His Klingon ancestors would surely have viewed the odds of success as the best chance of an honorable death. "Today is a good day to die," is a Klingon saying. That's certainly the case today. He looked up into the compound eyes of a guard. Thousands of thoughts, memories, and emotions flooded my mind. Their hard years, torture, pain, and the deaths of countless accomplices. Today there will finally be a decision. Either they are free or they die. He expected the latter. But this didn't shock him because it was the relief they had longed for.
