Chapter 8: 8

 

John Bronson being "forced out" (an understatement of the word, but who cares) was the invisible signal to the emergency meeting, which hadn't made much progress.

The condition of the crew wasn't very good, John's yelling was just some crazy words, but it still affected everyone present.

Disturbed.

Hesitant.

Panic.

Confusion.

Lin Xi could almost read those words on the faces of those who silently left the meeting room. Among these people, Alisa's complexion was particularly bad. Her pretty face was now covered with greasy cold sweat, her lips pale and dry, and her hair messed up like a mass of straw.

"Hey, Alisa, are you okay?"

Lin Xi had never seen Alisa in such a state, it made him feel a little worried.

Hearing his whispered inquiry, Alisa trembled suddenly, and then turned her head to look at him.

Lin Xi felt that his question just now seemed to scare Alisa, which made him very surprised.

Alisa wasn't a delicate or weak woman, it could even be said that her willpower and adaptability was much stronger than many people— she's the kind of person who's really suitable to be the captain of a spaceship.

An accident like a failed warp was really bad, but it shouldn't have worried Alisa like this.

"I... I... I think I'm just a little too tired."

Alisa stared straight at Lin Xi, her gaze lost for a moment, and then quickly returned to normal.

She came back to her senses, and then answered Lin Xi dryly.

"You know, it's a bad situation. Everywhere."

She said.

"You look very bad now... I think you really need a professional doctor and a considerate lover to accompany you."

Lin Xi tried to look relaxed, he happily spoke to Alisa: "Luckily, if I remember correctly, there happens to be a man named Bryce on board who mets this requirement— I'll send you to him, I think he'll probably also be very happy to check up on you."

Alisa's pupils trembled slightly, and after mentioning Bryce, her gray and hard face, which was as lifeless as concrete, finally loosened a little.

But at this moment, Talan's ghostly voice sounded behind him.

"Dr. Lin Xi, allow me to remind you that there's still a task briefing between me and you that hasn't been completed yet."

Lin Xi rolled his eyes with his back to Talan.

For God's sake—

He silently whispered to Alisa with his lips.

The situation's already like this, why is Talan still thinking of him?

Lin Xi originally thought that he could fish in troubled waters and hand in a written briefing, before then slipping away with the excuse of being busy.

"I'll check with Bryce, don't worry about me," Alisa looked at Lin Xi being stopped by Talan, she seemed to cheer up a bit, forcing an ugly smile and telling him, "... By the way, I wish you luck."

She casted a quick glance at Talan before leaving the conference room.

The metal hatch creaked and closed in front of Lin Xi.

At this moment, only Lin Xi and Talan were left in the huge conference room— that fact alone was depressing enough.

Thinking of Alisa's tired and sympathetic eyes before leaving, Lin Xi took a deep breath, and then turned around, meeting the gloomy captain.

"I've sent all mission logs to your personal terminal, sir."

Lin Xi immediately said.

Whatever his personal opinions were toward Talan, at least on the surface, he was trying to appear submissive and friendly.

After such a meeting, and John Bronson's sudden madness, you could guess with your toes that Taran must be in a bad mood right now. Lin Xi didn't intend to make too much trouble for himself.

Talan sneered.

"Oh, you mean a mission report? Ah, I'm sorry, I thought it was a middle school student's composition that someone sent to me by mistake... did you write the same way in the Union University before?"

Taran said, the contempt in his tone unabashed.

(Oh, hold back)

Lin Xi looked at Talan, and said to himself in his heart.

(It's not the first time you found this guy to be a complete jerk.)

The little angel in him called Sanity was trying to convince himself.

"Well, in fact, my papers have been published in quite famous journals. Maybe those professional and top editors have different opinions about my style."

Lin Xi took a step forward so that he could directly Confront Talan.

It's just that he quickly moved his eyes away from Talan's face. Probably because of a strong dislike for Talan in his heart, he always felt that there seemed to be some subtle changes in Talan's face. Those deeply sunken eye sockets, excessively thin cheeks and the lavender blood vessels protruding from under the pale skin, matched with those nervous eyes that always tremble slightly— Talan was already ugly enough, but Lin Xi never felt this man so disgusting before he entered the sleeping cabin.

Lin Xi couldn't even face him calmly, even though he kept reminding himself to not cause trouble in his heart.

After hearing Lin Xi's response, Talan's facial muscles twitched again. He seemed to want to say something, but Lin Xi interrupted him first.

"Oh, by the way, I actually want to remind you of one more thing, my respected Mr Captain— in a strict sense, I am just an 'auxiliary' assigned to do some simple professional work, not your crew member. In the agreement I signed before boarding the ship, my scope of work doesn't include this kind of exploration and the repair of the inside of the spacecraft. If you really have any dissatisfaction with my mission results, then I have a better suggestion— Send someone more professional to go there and have a look."

Lin Xi smiled, and spoke in one breath.

(Whoa, plan failed)

The voice inside him whistled.

He really didn't want to make trouble for himself, but... you see, things are so strange, sometimes it's hard to control your emotions while confronted with Taran's nervous face.

What's more, Lin Xi swore that there was nothing false or exaggerated in what he said.

Although he had to pretend that he didn't know the customs as he talked: on a spaceship, the captain has the right to order and control everyone on board, whether a crew member or not.

 

"..."

Hearing Lin Xi's unceremonious words, Talan's face quickly twisted.

He took a deep breath and seemed to be about to say something.

Lin Xi secretly clenched his fists and made preparations. He was sure that what Talan would say next wouldn't be pleasant, and he might really have to fight the bastard in front of him.

But...

The changes that happened to Talan the next moment made Lin Xi feel a little at a loss.

Just after taking a deep breath, Talan's body suddenly trembled violently.

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Lin Xi had been on guard against Talan, so he noticed the obvious changes on the guy's face very clearly: the man's nose contracted, his lips trembled unnaturally, and those pair of small eyes embedded in the deep sockets suddenly opened wide, so wide that it seemed like his eyeballs could roll out of their sockets, but his pupils were very small.

"Ho—"

A strange mumble rolled out of Talan's throat.

But that was just a simple syllable, in the next second, Taran's throat choked up, and he stood there straight like he had been struck by lightning, without making any sound for a long while.

Lin Xi watched him in surprise, and accidentally looked at Talan again.

He swore he's never seen Taran look like this before, the latter looked at him with an extremely strange expression.

It's as if he's no longer him, but had suddenly turned into a panda or an elephant...

Lin Xi felt that Talan might as well follow the familiar routine, but although he looked calmer now, Lin Xi felt even more scared.

A coldness kept sliding down his neck.

"Do you... do you have any orders, Captain Talan?"

Lin Xi and Talan looked at each other for a few seconds.

Those were literally the longest seconds of his life.

In the end, Lin Xi was the first to lose, his attitude softened, and he asked tentatively.

The battered air conditioning unit in the conference room was still running, creaking and gasping for breath, the noises mingled with Talan's increasingly heavy breathing.

Lin Xi himself admired his overly strong willpower - if it weren't for this willpower, he probably would've run away.

The way Talan looked just now, and his gaze...

Lin Xi couldn't find any words to describe his weirdness, that sticky and hot gaze was more terrifying than any horror movie.

"Get out of here— get lost—"

The moment when Lin Xi thought that Talan would faint in front of him because of an epileptic seizure or something, Talan suddenly spoke again.

He staggered back a few steps, then yelled at Lin Xi.

He was as still arrogant and rude as usual, but Lin Xi wouldn't miss the shock and panic in his voice.

...... In the end, what happened?

Lin Xi recalled the previous conversation between him and Talan.

He couldn't guess why Talan had suddenly become so strange.

However, even though he was confused and befuddled, since Talan asked him to leave so bluntly, Lin Xi happily and speedily walked out of the meeting room.

However, just as the metal hatch of the conference room closed behind him, he clearly heard a loud noise coming from behind the door.

Obviously, Taran seemed to have thrown something on the hatch—Lin Xi guessed that it should've been the chair he had in hand.

And he was sure that he was the one Talan really wanted to smash.

"Hmm..."

Lin Xi's confusion swelled like never before, almost arousing his curiosity about this scumbag, Talan Ida.

But thank God, the distaste for the guy eventually outweighed his curiosity.

"Who knows if that guy's also insane?"

Lin Xi muttered.

On the way to find Bryce and Alisa, Lin Xi looked at the scene outside the viewfinder window.

What filled the view outside the window were those strange creatures with bright colors that looked almost artificial (if this is really as192 like what's said in the meeting, then those things could be called plants), they were very tightly clustered besides Helios, swaying slowly like a living creature under a hazy unknown fog.

For some reason, Lin Xi felt uncomfortable just looking at the scene outside the window.

This is a maddening planet.

This idea appeared in his mind for no reason, and he couldn't get rid of it.

As he gazed at the limbs of plants as limp as sea anemones, it was the faces of the crew that kept haunting his mind.

Bryce, John, Alisa... even Talan.

They are all completely different from before.

Although he could use the pressure brought about by the failed jump to explain their oddity, deep down, Lin Xi couldn't deceive himself.

No matter how dull he was, he should be able to faintly feel that vague and unknown aura spreading in this spaceship. Thinking of this, Lin Xi shivered involuntarily, as if a hairy spider had crawled over his feet.

Of course, if Lin Xi could see the scene behind that metal hatch, he might not have only cold feet.

Talan was alone in the conference room. This closed cabin empty due to the departure of the other people.

The air purification system was still running like crazy, humming, mixed with the indistinct sound of metal breaking.

However, not only did this oppressive atmosphere not fade away with Lin Xi's departure, but it became more and more intense.

At least that's how it was for Talan.

After completely locking the memory room, he no longer had to care about his appearance in front of others.

He fell to the ground, his body huddled tightly, twitching non-stop.

His heart was beating violently, there was pain in his chest, an intense itching spreading beneath his skin.

Talan's nails dug deep into his skin, and he scratched until they were coated with his own blood and skin.

It was hellish pain, but even at this time, Talan couldn't help himself, sucking in the air like a drowning man desperate for his last breath.

He greedily absorbed the smell.

There was a faint smell coming from Lin Xi's body.1

"Ho- ho- ho-"

Taran's throat began to growl again, his jaw was so wet he knew he was drooling.

But he couldn't care less.

He passed out.

______

PastTimer: Got a blackout exact time I finished this

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