"Can you tell me more about this 'Nineveh'?" Ignis searched his memory. The last time he and Anby had dealt with the Intellision Tech incident, it was the other three members of the Cunning Hares who had helped Phaethon pass the Hollow Zero investigator test.
The information Nicole and Nekomata had shared mainly focused on their encounter with a member of the Hollow Special Operations Section 6—particularly on one of the current Void Hunters, Hoshimi Miyabi.
Only Billy had described Nineveh, but his words were limited to things like "super huge," "looks really powerful," "even a Starlight Knight's ultimate flying kick can't kill it," and "definitely a final-movie-level boss."
In truth, they had no substantial understanding of this thing. Even asking around the Inter-Knot yielded nothing useful—most of the details were classified, and not a single clear video or photo could be found.
"I'm thinking of how to describe that thing. Ignis, do you know what a jellyfish is?"
"Yeah, it's a kind of planktonic creature with lots of tentacles."
"Then imagine a gigantic jellyfish—at least five or six stories tall. Its body is white with the same magenta hue you just saw. Or better yet, picture a flower bud that hasn't bloomed yet, with its petals drooping downward and the stem pointing upward. At the top of that stem grows something resembling the upper body of a human woman. On both sides of its torso hang numerous tentacles, most dangling loosely—but two of them are strong and capable of attacking."
"Even though everyone at the Cunning Hares said that thing moves by flying, I still can't picture it properly—it just sounds strange."
"It carries an immense amount of highly active Ether, and like a flower, it sheds 'pollen' as it moves. But those who get exposed to this volatile Ether dust contract Pollen Fever—and without treatment, they quickly develop Wilting Syndrome, their life force drained until they become Ethereal. Even if those Ethereal are destroyed, the pollen can cling to objects and remain behind with a small chance of surviving."
Bangboo patted the cargo vehicle it was sitting on.
"The sample we just found came from a Wilting Syndrome victim. The White Star Institute has been searching for more samples to unravel the mystery surrounding Nineveh."
"Sounds like a dangerous creature—spreading a plague that transforms living beings endlessly," Ignis thought, but this shouldn't be related to Nurgle… at least not yet.
"If you call it dangerous, yes, but most of the time it doesn't attack first. It's like a real flower—floating inside the Hollow, searching for Ether-rich areas where it can root itself temporarily to absorb nutrients. But the pollen it releases unconsciously is enough to turn the unlucky into Ethereal, feeding the Hollow's expansion. It's just performing photosynthesis—peacefully feeding on what's around it. The problem is, we're the nutrients."
"So the Defense Force squad must have been confronting a gang when they ran into a wandering Nineveh… and the pollen turned them all?" Ignis tried to reconstruct the truth.
"Pretty much. Ether Mutants—especially the freshly turned ones—sometimes retain fragments of their former consciousness. For example, they might still face off against each other but won't actually fight."
"Like that dog tag—it tried to reclaim it. Somewhere in its fading mind, it still believes it's a Defense Force soldier."
As Belle guided the small cargo vehicle through an archway between buildings, they arrived in what looked like the interior courtyard of a residential block. Judging from the terrain, it used to be a greenbelt—now overrun by jagged Ether crystals glowing a bright magenta. A huge circular pit dominated the center, once home to a massive tree, surrounded by benches where people once rested.
No tree remained now. Instead, a colossal magenta-and-silver Ether stalagmite rose from the pit like a frozen beacon.
"If the coordinates the White Star Institute sent me are right, this should be the data spire we're looking for," Bangboo said, its head turning about. "Ether radiation is weaker around here—maybe because it's all crystallized?"
"What does a data spire even look like?" Ignis asked.
"It's just a pillar—automated. Once deployed, it unfolds its scanning coils." Eous's gaze locked onto the giant crystal. "Could it be encased inside that thing?"
Hearing that, Ignis approached the Ether crystal. Compared to earlier sections, the radiation here was far weaker. Even touching it with his bare hand produced no adverse reaction.
"It's completely sealed. Nothing visible." Ignis brushed his gauntlet across the crystal. "So, how about we break it open?"
"That's our only option—but be careful. It's still delicate tech, easy to damage."
Ignis powered up the decomposition field in his Flamestorm Gauntlet, setting it to low output. Combined with the weakened Ether field of the crystal, it worked perfectly as a disassembly tool. He pried away the cubic fragments piece by piece until they dissolved into the air. As the first layer broke apart, a surge of Ether dust burst out, spiking the radiation and making Ignis momentarily dizzy.
"What's wrong? You don't look good! Do you need another dose of suppressant?" Belle's voice was full of worry as she called his name, snapping him out of his daze.
"Damn it… how much Ether energy is packed into this thing?" Ignis smacked his helmet, regaining focus, though he could feel his body reacting slower.
"I think I've gotten sluggish…" Ignis frowned, watching his hand move a beat behind his thoughts.
"Showing early corrosion symptoms, huh? I knew touching it bare-handed was too risky." Belle sounded guilty. "There's an exit passage nearby—we can withdraw."
"No need. It's manageable," Ignis refused flatly and continued prying open the massive crystal column.
Deeper inside, he discovered the crystals encased Ethereal remains—twisted forms fused together as if they were embracing something.
"You should see this. It's packed with lower-class Ethereal, all crystallized back into Ether itself," Ignis said, snapping off an arm and tossing it aside.
"No thanks. Even with Eous's anti-corrosion buffer, this is already my limit. Any closer and I might shut down entirely." Belle watched the severed limb fade into the air.
As Ignis cleared more fragments, a glimpse of metal appeared—followed by letters etched into its surface.
"So we did find it. But why did these Ethereal merge with it?"
"Could a data spire attract Ethereal?" Ignis tossed out half of a broken Tyrfing blade, its silver, red, and black hues shimmering faintly.
"During operation, a spire emits signal noise and extracts ambient Ether for analysis. That can attract Ethereal," Belle explained, sifting through the remains. "But this many fusing into one? That's new. The crystal column must've drawn in a lot of them."
"No clue. But they all look inert—dead, maybe." Ignis grabbed a crescent-shaped blade, patterned with magenta lines.
He tried to snap it off, the decomposition field crackling—pzzzt! pzzzt!—but it wouldn't budge.
He stepped back to get better leverage. Suddenly, the blade vanished from his grasp.
"Watch out!" Belle shouted. "Behind you!"
Ignis spun around—just in time for a crescent blade to scrape across his chest plate, showering sparks.
"There's a live one?" Ignis stared at the gaunt, shadow-like Thanatos before him. Not good.
"Be careful! Ether levels spiking fast, Ignis!"
A roar erupted behind him—the Ether crystal around the data spire exploded. From it emerged a Farbauti, even larger than the one they'd fought in Dead End Hollow—easily twice Ignis's height.
With one enemy ahead and another behind, Ignis steadied himself. He thrust out a gauntlet and unleashed a torrent of flame. The shadowy Thanatos recoiled, retreating rapidly before slicing the air and vanishing into a spatial rift.
With that immediate threat gone, Ignis turned to face the giant Farbauti. He powered his gauntlet to maximum and intercepted its punch with a thunderous clash.
The creature's strength was overwhelming—its force shoved Ignis back meters, his armored boots cracking the hardened ground beneath him.
The decomposition field clashed with the Ether radiation field around the beast, erupting into bursts of electricity. Shattered crystals rained down on Ignis's armor.
"Right side! It's back!"
Out of the corner of his eye, Ignis saw Thanatos reappear, its body glowing—its crescent blade gleaming with rainbow light. Pinned down by brute force, then flanked by a sneak attack—classic tactic.
Ignis activated his Iron Halo shield and ignited both flamethrowers.
"Burn!" he roared.
Flames engulfed Farbauti's fists; the creature recoiled, releasing its hold.
Ignis spun toward the right. Thanatos was charging, its speed so great even a Space Marine's eyes couldn't track it. The corrosion slowed his reflexes—he raised his arms, shielding head and chest. The Iron Halo shattered instantly, buying just enough time to absorb the impact.
The magenta-white blur slashed across him—the energy so intense it destroyed the shield entirely. The Halo flickered out, temporarily overloaded.
But the effort drained Thanatos too—its glowing lines dimmed after the strike.
Ignis wouldn't waste that opening. Before Farbauti could extinguish the flames on its body, he had barely three seconds.
He raised his left fist, launching fire toward Thanatos, preventing it from cutting open space again. With his right, he pulled a high-explosive anti-armor grenade and hurled it forward.
Thanatos, burning, tried to phase away—but the previous attack had drained its energy. The rift didn't form. The grenade hit squarely—
BOOM! Ten kilograms of explosives vaporized its core. The proud crescent blade flew free, embedding itself in Farbauti's torso.
With no one left to distract him, Ignis now faced the brute unrestrained. Farbauti's movements were easy to read, though its raw strength was immense. Ignis feinted, baiting it into swinging down, then dodged aside as its massive fist struck the ground.
Even dulled by corrosion, he moved with purpose. The impact exposed a joint in the monster's elbow.
Lightning crackled around Ignis's gauntlet—two resounding strikes later, the arm snapped, sending the beast crashing down. Ignis drew his autocannon, stepping onto its back—his sheer weight pinning it.
He aimed the barrel at its crystal-studded head.
"Farewell. I won't miss you."
He pulled the trigger.
The cannon roared, ejecting five shells that obliterated Farbauti's core. The giant body fractured, collapsing into shards of shattered Ether.
As both upper-class Ethereal disintegrated, the crystal encasing the data spire crumbled, revealing the structure beneath.
"Externally, it's intact… but no telling about the inside," Eous said, connecting cables to the spire.
"It's damaged—but it recorded something interesting."
"Nineveh stopped nearby, scattering a massive amount of pollen. That's what drew the Ethereal here. The last surveillance data shows two Defense Force soldiers approaching, but they couldn't breach the crystal—so they withdrew."
"So the Defense Force team might still be alive." Ignis switched to Fire-Sight, scanning for residual heat signatures—but found nothing.
"There's a stable supply point in the direction they went," Belle said, comparing coordinates. "But no further reports. Maybe they met trouble en route. Data copy complete—the White Star Institute mission is done."
"We could use a resupply too. Let's head that way." Ignis watched Bangboo pack up its cables and climb onto the cargo vehicle. "Not a bad day—didn't even have to walk."
"If there's transport, might as well use it," Belle said, steering the vehicle forward. "Let's go. Whether we find them or not, we still need to rest at the supply point."