Chapter 23. Whistleblower [Bonus Image]
Hearing 1068's tipoff, the three flying locusts which were still regurgitating rats suddenly turned around. Their eighteen eyestalks turned onto Charles who was wedged into the corner.
"You bloody son of a—!!"
Charles immediately unlodged himself and made a dash for the door. His left hand reached for his revolver.
Bang!
Just as he was about to exit the room, he fired his weapon and half of the 1068's bloodied head was obliterated in a grotesque display of exploding flesh. Amid 1068's screams and curses, Charles charged out of the room and sprinted for his life.
This time, the locusts no longer engaged Charles in close combat. The three airborne monsters gathered in the distance and continuously aimed their corrosive venom at Charles. Charles contorted his body to swiftly maneuver through the "rain of bullets" as he made his escape.
However, this was just the beginning. More and more locusts pursued Charles, and for the first time in a long while, the silent Laboratory 3 was lively once again.
With the flying locusts in pursuit, Charles found his way back to where he had come from.
As he struggled to get out of the laboratory, a blinding red light emanated from behind him. Horrified, he turned around to see that the entire wall had been illuminated in red. The creatures roared as they emerged from the walls, their eyestalks fixated on him with an angry glare.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of flying locusts twisted their bodies and vanished into thin air.
An instant chill coursed through Charles' body. He speedily turned around and dashed toward the coastline with all the strength he could muster.
"Fuck. Did I try to sleep with your wife? How in the world do I deserve this pursuit?" Charles lamented as he jumped from one stone to another to ascend a three-meter-high ledge. With his exceptional body control, he skillfully jumped from rock to rock.
Armed with enhanced night vision, Charles ran at an incredible speed. However, he felt no sense of assurance. He scanned the surroundings in a tense expression for fear of the sudden appearance of those invisible locusts.
Just then, he spotted the bright searchlight of the Narwhale in the distance.
If the lights are turned on, it means the crew have boarded the ship. I just need to make it back to the beach to be safe! With this thought, Charles quickened his pace.
Buzzzzzz.
The buzzing sound of the flying locusts echoed throughout the area as they revealed themselves. A vast expanse of red light blocked Charles' path, forming a pocket formation as they closed in on him.
"I'm so honored to have you guys think so highly of me to even use tactics to deal with just one measly me," Charles said with a smirk while standing on top of a boulder to catch his breath.
Observing the sea of red light, Charles couldn't help but remark, "How beautiful. Even a drone performance pales in comparison."
"But you know what. Compared to you glowing insects, I'd much rather see some drones." Charles tightly held onto the few remaining artifacts in his possession. With a kick, he charged toward the wall of red light in the distance.
Plop, plop, plop!
All the flying locusts began to spit their corrosive liquid and the illuminated red sky started to pour with acid rain.
Once again, Charles dived into the labyrinth of rocks. He planned to make use of the boulders as cover to make his way to the coastline.
The sound of sizzling echoed above as the acid corroded the stones. Charles used the remaining ground as a foothold to push himself forward. He was closing the gap between himself and the coastline.
The locusts seemed to have anticipated Charles' actions. Countless mouthparts with sharp teeth emerged from the ground and aimed for his legs.
Unable to gain leverage, Charles forcefully pushed off the wall to return to the top of the rock, only to be greeted by another shower of acid rain.
Despite his agility, Charles' acrobatic maneuvers in mid-air were ultimately futile.
The corrosive venom riddled large and small holes on his clothes, and the viscous acid came into contact with his skin, emitting puffs of white smoke.
Hiss~
Charles could feel the burning sensation on his body growing more intense and slowly expanding its territory. He was trapped in despair and knew he couldn't hold on much longer.
"Is this the end?"
Boom!
Suddenly a thunderous explosion sounded in the distance and a large section of red light overhead faded.
Standing on a small patch of open ground on one foot, Charles wore an expression of ecstasy behind his mask. "That's the deck cannon of the Narwhale! My crew is here to save the day!"
No matter how many the flying locusts numbered, they were still nothing more than fleshy beings before cannonballs.
Boom!
Another chunk of the red curtain was torn off. The locusts seemed to be thrown off and became disoriented. They didn't know if they should run or continue in pursuit of Charles.
With the pressure greatly reduced, Charles sprinted at top speed and arrived at the beach.
He leaped into the seawater, the icy sensation temporarily soothed the burning pain he felt all over his body. His limbs thrashed wildly as he swam toward the Narwhale.
The first words that escaped his lips as he climbed up the rope ladder onto the deck were, "Set sail now!"
Already fully prepared, the Narwhale revved its engines and swiftly departed the island.
Lying on the deck and completely exhausted, Charles turned to look at the few damp relics lying next to him. He suddenly burst into a maniac laugh, "Hahaha! You bugs! See this? I've taken your things and even escaped! I've won this time!"
Dipp nervously ran up to Charles and helped him out. He then quickly commented, "Captain, quickly take off that mask."
A sudden realization struck Charles.
How long have I been wearing this mask?
Before he could fully process this thought, a sudden foreign voice sounded in his head.
"God knows. Probably an hour or two. At least."
Charles quickly removed the mask from his face. In that instant, his surroundings instantly dimmed by several degrees of brightness, and the pain coursing through his body intensified several-fold.
However, Charles' focus was on that voice in his mind. He continuously questioned it for its identity.
Seeing his captain standing still in a daze, Dipp extended a hand and waved it before Charles' eyes.
"Captain, are you alright? What's wrong?" Dipp asked.
Charles ignored the boatswain and sat on the ground as if waiting for something. Once he realized that the voice in his head had vanished after he removed the mask, he finally let out a heavy sigh of relief.
Soon after, a sense of unease washed over Charles.
"Thank goodness. If I had kept the mask on for a few more minutes, I'm afraid I would be fighting with my other personalities over control of my body at this point in time."
"I need to be cautious about wearing this mask next time. The benefits are great but its drawbacks are equally alarming. Though I don't resist taking off the mask, I seem to become very impulsive," Charles continued.
Seeing that their captain had returned to normal, the crew members also breathed a collective sigh of relief. They hurriedly carried Charles and rushed him to the captain's quarters.
After a flurry of activity, Charles' acid-corroded wounds were finally bandaged. Currently, Charles looked more like a mummy as compared to Bandages.
In his weakened state, he propped himself up to sit against the bedrest. He scanned the circle of crew members surrounding him and asked, "Who fired the cannon just now?"
If not for the assistance of the deck cannon, he would never have made it back.
"Me! Me!" Lily, the white mouse, climbed up the bedsheets and positioned herself before Charles.
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