Chapter 661: The Omophagea
Inside the highly classified laboratory, Ryo was left completely alone. He had temporarily sent Dr. Grace away.
The faint, lingering scent of disinfectant mixed with alien blood hung in the air.
Standing before the dissection table, Ryo gazed down at the lifeless corpse of the Predator. His eyes were calm, but deep within them surged a razor-sharp intensity belonging to a warrior and a conqueror—an aura that sharply contradicted his appearance as a young scientist.
Through the trans-dimensional consciousness link, he transmitted the preliminary report on "Yautja Prime" back to his main body on Necromunda.
Almost instantly, a far more massive, colder, and inquisitive will flooded in like a tidal wave, seizing core control of this avatar.
The main consciousness of Ryo's true body—the Tech-Magos who had weathered countless wars and mastered dark technologies—personally descended into the vessel.
Without a shred of hesitation, as if performing the most routine of operations, a surgical scalpel appeared in his hand. With fluid and ruthless efficiency, he sliced open the Predator's hardened skull, exposing a highly developed brain with a structure vastly different from a human's.
His gaze locked onto a specific memory center, and he carefully excised the tissue.
Then, after erecting the necessary psychic shielding, he commanded the second avatar to swallow that small cluster of alien neural matter.
Instantly, a torrential flood of chaotic, blood-soaked data fragments driven by the primal urge to hunt crashed into his consciousness.
The specialized Adeptus Astartes organ known as the "Omophagea" fired at maximum capacity, rapidly filtering, deciphering, and reconstructing these foreign memories.
He saw it: an endless starry expanse, and a brutal society that worshipped martial prowess and absolute honor.
He perceived the life of this young Predator—a Young Blood hunter.
He saw the rigorous training, the insatiable thirst for glory, and the ultimate purpose of his journey to Pandora: to complete his coming-of-age Rite of Passage by hunting a mighty Toruk (Leonopteryx) and claiming its skull to prove his worth, exactly as his father had done two centuries prior.
Memory fragments flashed rapidly. The dense jungles of Pandora; Celtic stalking in the shadows, tracking the flight paths of the Toruk.
He also witnessed the escalating conflict between the humans and the Na'vi. Through the Predator's eyes, those intense battlefields were merely a yardstick to measure the value of his prey. He acknowledged the raw bravery of the Na'vi and the devastating technological might of humanity, deeming both factions as "honorable prey" worthy of the hunt.
That was the catalyst for the massacre at the RDA outpost and the Na'vi patrol. The extracted skulls and spines were intended to be his prized trophies.
Then, the most critical piece of intelligence surfaced: Celtic had arrived on Pandora piloting a small, single-occupant spacecraft.
That ship was hidden somewhere on this planet!
The memories revealed that the gear he currently wore was strictly designated for the hunting trial, heavily favoring melee weapons and basic cloaking technology.
Safely stored aboard his hidden ship was his complete, standard-issue combat loadout—including far more powerful, long-range plasma casters and other devastating heavy armaments!
The spirit of Ryo's main body jolted with profound interest.
An intact extraterrestrial spacecraft and a complete arsenal of advanced alien weaponry. This was a priceless harvest, easily rivaling the value of the biological specimen itself.
He had to acquire these alien technological constructs!
Like a receding tide, the primary consciousness withdrew, returning full autonomy to the second avatar.
Ryo opened his eyes, feeling the newly integrated memory fragments belonging to Celtic resting within his mind, perfectly archived and ready to be accessed at will.
He methodically cleaned the surgical site, erasing all traces of his unconventional extraction method.
The next step was clear: locate the hidden spacecraft.
The heavy metal doors of the isolation lab slid shut silently behind Ryo, sealing away the sweet, metallic stench of the alien corpse and the sharp bite of disinfectant.
Standing beneath the cold fluorescent lights of the corridor, his usual mild-mannered expression vanished entirely, replaced by a chilling, absolute focus.
Within his mind, Celtic's memory fragments flashed like shards of broken glass, presenting disjointed images: steep, anti-gravity floating mountains, swirling mists, and a slender, metallic silhouette concealed behind a roaring waterfall and a curtain of mist.
He rapidly parsed and synthesized the data stream.
Rather than returning to the main control room, he headed straight for the communications center. Speaking into the air, his voice was steady and commanding: "Alert Maine's squad. Condition One combat readiness for all personnel. Simultaneously, establish an encrypted channel to Colonel Quaritch."
Moments later, Quaritch's scarred, slightly impatient face materialized on the comm screen.
"Dr. Chen? I hope you aren't bringing me bad news. The base is on edge right now after those massacres."
"I am bringing you a potential opportunity, Colonel," Ryo bypassed the pleasantries and cut straight to the point. "Our analysis of the unknown attacker has yielded a critical breakthrough. We can confirm with absolute certainty that it is not a native Pandoran organism, but an extraterrestrial entity that arrived via a spacecraft. Furthermore... we have pinpointed the probable coordinates of its hidden vessel."
Colonel Quaritch leaned forward slightly, all traces of impatience instantly replaced by a razor-sharp intensity. "A spacecraft? Are you certain?"
"With a sufficiently high degree of confidence," Ryo affirmed. "This means we have a viable window to secure an intact alien technology specimen. That includes its propulsion systems, weapon platforms, and potentially its communication logs—which will allow us to assess whether more of its kind are currently operating in this sector."
Quaritch's breathing grew noticeably heavier.
As a career military commander, he understood exactly what a spacecraft possessing advanced cloaking and high-speed orbital penetration capabilities represented—both the immense threat it posed and the staggering strategic value it held.
"Location?"
"Nestled near the Hallelujah Mountains. The exact encrypted coordinates are being transmitted to your terminal now," Ryo seamlessly introduced his terms for cooperation. "Securing this target involves inherent risks. We require professional military support and heavy aerial transport. In return, the RDA will be granted access to select non-core technological data—excluding the primary flight control and weapon systems—and the opportunity to jointly research its power source. Additionally, this operation will definitively confirm whether the alien threat has been entirely neutralized."
Quaritch barely hesitated.
The prospect of a massive technological windfall, the absolute necessity of neutralizing any lingering threats, and his growing reliance on the technical prowess of these "Seekers" compelled him to make an immediate executive decision.
"Deal! I will dispatch an elite Hellfire squad led by Sergeant Reynolds, and I'll authorize the use of my personal Samson gunship to provide close air support and heavy transport. Your people will take point on navigation and technical decryption." He stared hard at Ryo, adding a low warning, "I expect this cooperation to be fully transparent, Dr. Chen."
"Of course, Colonel. Our interests are perfectly aligned." Ryo offered a slight nod and terminated the connection.