The Spider Queen

Chapter 276: Sacrifices Must Be Made

(Unova Syndicate- Sector Alpha-099)

(Unknown Planet)

“God, I feel like shit,” Sophie muttered as she opened her left eye.

It was quite disorienting to have her vision reduced by half. 

There was a dull throbbing sensation in the spot where her left arm was now nothing more than a stump. 

She touched the bloody area where her right ear used to be and feeling the mutilated flesh was one of the worse experiences of her life.

Sophie tried to get up but the sharp bursts of pain coming from the wound in her stomach forced her to lay back down on the bed.

Where am I?

What is this place?

The hybrid girl tilted her head sideways to get a better look at the room. She appeared to be inside a tent or a temporary housing unit.

The space inside the tent was around the size of a small house complete with a kitchen, a dining area and two rooms in the back that Sophie assumed led to a restroom.

“Lily? Lily are you there?” Sophie called out.

There was no response as it seemed that Sophie was in the tent all by herself. 

Sophie tried once more to leave the bed and find her missing child, but it was no use. 

She could not get out of the bed no matter how hard she tried.

But even if she could somehow get up…

How far could she possibly move with her heavily injured body?

Time passed slowly as Sophie stared at the ceiling quietly thinking about what to do next. Her train of thought was suddenly interrupted by a loud noise.

Knock! Knock!

Two sharp knocks could be heard outside the room before a door swung open and a heavily armoured alien strode inside with a little girl in his arms.

“Big sister… you woke up!” Lily cried out in excitement and leapt out of the strange alien’s arms.

She dashed towards Sophie and flung her small body onto the bed. 

Lily wrapped her arms around Sophie’s chest and stared at the hybrid girl with tears welling up in her eyes.

“I thought you were going to die,” Lily sobbed with heartbreaking cries.

Sophie gently stoked Lily’s hair and whispered into her ear, “Do you think your big sister would die that easily?”

This didn’t seem to stop Lily from crying so Sophie just continued to lovingly tease and reassure the little girl that she would recover.

As for the strange alien that entered the room….

Sophie could not help but feel slightly confused. 

Why was a humanoid alien from the Unova Syndicate wearing what appeared to be armour modelled after medieval battle gear from Earth?

The alien wore metallic armour with thick shoulder pads and a breastplate with a red painted sun drawn in the center.

A long flowing golden cape swayed gently from side to side as he walked and the helmet the man wore obstructed his facial features.

“It is good to see that you are finally awake,” the alien spoke in a soft tone.

Sophie was instantly on guard as she heard the alien speak in the common trade language of the Earth Federation.

Lily was still wearing her facial mask, but it was clear that her identity as a human had been exposed.

Now the only thing Sophie could do now was figure out if this alien were a potential ally or a threat to be eliminated.

“Who are you and what to do you want?” Sophie tersely replied.

Lily sensed the tension between her big sister and her saviour, so she hurriedly spoke up, 

“Big sister this man is a hero!”

“He saved us when you were unconscious in the desert!”

“No…I will explain,” the alien removed his helmet and Sophie felt her heart instantly skip a beat in terror.

It was him!

The androgynous beauty with dirty blonde hair and facial features that were both masculine and feminine was exactly the same as the one in her vision.

Sophie’s right hand trembled involuntarily so she quickly shoved it under the bedsheet in order not to rouse his suspicions.

What was he doing here? 

Was the vision going to come true now?

Numerous thoughts flashed across Sophie’s mind, but her expression remained unchanged even as storms were set off in her heart.

“My name is Captain Dawn, and I am the twelfth commander of the Hyperion Order,” the man said proudly.

He raised his right hand in the air and then performed a series of hand signs. 

Captain Dawn then kneeled and clasped his hands piously in religious fervor.

“We are an ancient and proud order dedicated to spreading the good word of the Sun God to all creatures suffering in the dark,” he muttered.

“Our members include those of all races.”

“No matter your species, class, or identity. We welcome all to bathe in the holy fire and be reborn as true believers.”

Captain Dawn continued to talk about the great mission and the impressive deeds that the Hyperion Order had managed to accomplish.

The speech lasted for ten long minutes that seemed like an eternity. 

The entire time during the sermon, Sophie could not help but think….

Oh great.

Another goddamn cultist.

Sophie raised up her palm to halt the captain’s religious speech and spoke, 

“Okay I understand.”

“Thank you for saving me and looking after Lily while I was injured.”

Sophie maintained a friendly attitude on the surface even as her danger sense begun to trigger in alarm.

This man was powerful.

Sophie was not sure what his cultivation level was but the threatening aura surrounding his body was unlike anything she had seen before.

No good hearted or kind religious servant that the captain portrayed himself to be could have such a strong murderous aura.

Lily may have been too young to sense it, but Sophie could see the dangerous predator lurking beneath a mask of benevolence. 

Sophie remained silent and continued to pat Lily’s head all the while thinking of possible countermeasures and plans.

Captain Dawn smiled gently as he saw the loving relationship between the little girl and the hybrid monstrosity.

There was a strong mortal chain connecting the little girl to this injured warrior. 

The two clearly regarded each other as sisters.

Captain Dawn’s smile only widened as he saw Lily plant small kisses on Sophie’s cheek. 

His daughters used to kiss him like that.

Sarah and Anna would have been around Lily’s age if they were still in this mortal realm.

It was good that this little girl was clearly fond of the hybrid… 

But she would not need her companionship in the future.

To join the Hyperion Order….

Sacrifices must be made.