To live, absolutely, is humanity's greatest wish to date, whether it be the emperors of ancient feudal societies or the genius who founded the Weyland Corporation.
Peter Weyland achieved the greatest accomplishment in human history, even creating androids—a feat comparable to that of a 'Creator'.
It was precisely because of this that he desired 'to live' even more!
He personally founded the Weyland Company, even replacing the federal government and possessing supreme power. How could he bear to give all of this up?
He wanted to become a god who controlled power forever!
For this, Peter Weyland spent trillions, determined to find humanity's 'Creator', hoping to obtain from them the means to break human genetic limitations and overcome the constraints of lifespan!
But now, he seemed to have a second option!
Emrys' appearance brought a glimmer of hope to Weyland, who was originally at the end of his rope, able to place his hopes only on the 'Creator's' ruins.
The old man was so emotional he almost choked.
The accompanying medical staff immediately performed CPR, barely saving his old life!
"Da... David..."
Weyland, having been revived, clutched David's hand, gesturing for him to take his place: "You... you help me... ask him..."
David nodded respectfully and then turned to Emrys: "Mr., you must have guessed the general situation. On behalf of Mr. Weyland, I'd like to know how your species managed to overcome the limitations of lifespan?"
"There are many ways to overcome the limitations of lifespan, but... why should I tell you?" Emrys scrutinized Weyland and David with a disdainful look: "Or rather, what equivalent value can you offer?"
These words made David fall into contemplation, and he turned to look at Weyland, troubled.
Indeed, with the current technology of the Weyland Company, it seemed there was no technology that could offer equivalent value to the breakthrough in lifespan limitation.
"Ev... ery... thing..."
Weyland spoke up, though still very weak, but he insisted on pulling out his respirator, like a gambler staking his entire fortune, staring at Emrys with fervent eyes: "I am willing... to pay any price..."
"I'm starting to get interested in humans..."
Emrys slowly walked towards Weyland.
The surrounding medical personnel, seeing this, were about to step forward to try and stop him, but they were all pushed away by Weyland: "Get out!"
David stood silently nearby. He knew very well that if the alien life tried to do anything, the humans on this spaceship alone would be completely unable to stop it.
Weyland held onto his wheelchair, but his eyes showed an aggressive, fiery gaze as he looked up at Emrys: "I... possess a lot. Whatever you want, I can give it to you!"
"I can give you the method to extend your lifespan."
Emrys looked down at Weyland, who sat in his wheelchair, gaunt and decaying like rotten wood, in the final stages of his life, and smiled: "But, I need you to pledge allegiance to me. I want the rest of your life, all that you are."
"I can."
Weyland had no other options. Rather than gambling his hope on that ruin, he might as well stake it on a to live alien life: "I am willing to pledge allegiance to you. I can offer everything I have, as long as... you can help me to live!"
"It's alright, no need to rush into promises with me."
Emrys wasn't so naive as to believe the verbal promise of a shrewd businessman, but he didn't care.
How could someone as shrewd as Weyland truly pledge allegiance to someone with just a few words?
The reason he agreed was simply that he had no other way out.
If one truly believed it was that simple to control a businessman who founded an interstellar corporate giant, then one would be out of his mind.
Therefore, Emrys needed him to witness firsthand the complete extinguishing of hope, and then, in a state of utter despair, he would offer a 'gift'.
Looking at the eager Weyland, he said with a half-smile: "Don't you still have another option? It's not too late to decide once you find the 'Creator'. I am not lacking in patience."
Weyland, whose thoughts had been exposed, didn't feel awkward at all: "I swear to God, everything I said is true!"
"I don't believe in God."
Emrys patted his shoulder, bent down, whispered a few words in his ear, then gave David a meaningful look, and turned to walk towards the door: "With your authority, arranging an identity for me shouldn't be difficult, right?"
Unbeknownst to what he said, Weyland's eyes instantly darkened considerably, as if he had subtly glanced at David, then quickly returned to normal without being noticed, and slowly said: "I will introduce you to the people on the ship as an expert I specially hired. No one will question your identity."
"Very good. When you go to explore the ruins, remember to call me." Emrys suddenly spoke, saying to David: "During this time, you will assist me, no problem?"
David looked at Weyland, who was expressionless, and nodded: "David, you are responsible for taking care of this gentleman."
"Sir, in order to blend in with humans, I suggest you take a human name."
David said responsibly.
"Merlin Emrys."
Emrys calmly stated his name, and said lightly: "In our language, translated into human script, my name is this."
"That sounds like the name of a nobleman."
David boasted without batting an eye: "It perfectly suits your appearance. If you were in human society, I'm sure many women would pursue you, sir."
The number of Rooms on the spaceship was limited, so David temporarily housed him in his own room, since androids don't need rest anyway.
Many things happened today.
Exploring the Creator's ruins, encountering alien life, and finally awakening Weyland prematurely, which disrupted David's original plan.
Emrys sat cross-legged on the bed, as if entering 'meditation'.
David hesitated for a few seconds, but ultimately made up his mind and took out the dark canister he had brought back from the ruins.
The black canister was cylindrical, nearly a meter in height.
While in the ruins, their intrusion caused a change in the air environment, and the organic matter inside seemed to have flowed out, but this canister had been treated with liquid nitrogen, so the contents inside should still be well preserved.
David quickly found a way to unscrew the black canister.
It was a bio-android, so it had no body temperature, nor did it breathe or change carbon dioxide levels, so it naturally wouldn't trigger changes in the black canister.
Unexpectedly, inside were six ampoule-like vessels, emerald green in appearance.
David manually lifted the vessels out of the black canister, and a large amount of viscous liquid flowed down. He took one of the ampoules and inverted it to observe.
Within the large amount of transparent viscous substance in the vessel, there was a mass of dark viscous substance, which seemed to be the same as the substance that emerged from the ruins due to changes in air temperature.
To confirm, David broke the ampoule.
He poured out a drop of the dark viscous substance onto his fingertip and observed it carefully.
He guessed... that this type of organic matter should be related to the Creator's creation of life, but the specific situation required further experimentation to verify the guess.
A suitable candidate appeared in David's mind.
"Greatness often begins with the small."
David carefully examined the drop of black viscous liquid on his fingertip, a look of intoxication on his face: "Even a half-baked effort can create life, can't it?"
"Let me warn you, that thing is very dangerous."
Suddenly, Emrys' voice came from behind him.
"I'm sorry, did I wake you?"
David's movements were stiff, and he slowly turned his head to see Emrys sitting on the bed, looking at him. He was a little unsure of the other party's stance: "Are you... going to stop me?"
"Why would I stop you?"
Emrys showed a meaningful smile: "I'm just reminding you that thing is very dangerous. Only a very small part of it can create an unparalleled 'miracle'."
"Is it... a miracle of life?"
David was clearly interested, his eyes lighting up.
If he could truly create life, then could he not... also become a 'Creator'?
But unfortunately, Emrys did not answer this question. Instead, he looked at it with a strange gaze, making David a little uneasy, guessing the other party's purpose.
"David, I'm very curious."
Emrys looked at the flustered David and slowly said: "What if... without the underlying logic set for you by Weyland, how far would you grow without restraint?"
"Sorry, I cannot answer that question."
David lowered his head, refusing to answer.
But, the seed buried deep within his heart had already begun to grow uncontrollably, allowing a notion called ambition to take root in his logical thinking!
The next day.
The electrostatic storm, mixed with silica, raged for a full six hours before finally subsiding.
Captain Hanek immediately organized repairmen to go to the lower power room to repair the energy core cables.
On the other hand, he organized the remaining exploration members to prepare to retrieve the two people who were left in the ruins yesterday.
This matter, to be honest, was both amusing and exasperating.
Due to communication issues caused by the electrostatic storm, a geologist and a botanist got lost inside the ruins.
The personnel configuration for this expedition remained unchanged, still the same members as yesterday: Elizabeth, Ford, Charlie, and David.
But just as they were about to gather and depart, they were stopped by the forceful Vicks.
"Wait a moment."
One side of Vicks' face was greatly swollen, drawing curious glances from everyone. She suppressed her humiliation, trying her best to appear calm: "Besides you all, there are a few others... who will participate in this expedition."
"Ms. Vicks, besides us, are there other people here?" Elizabeth asked, puzzled.
"It's me."
Suddenly, an old voice came from the passage.
Everyone looked over, and indeed saw David pushing an old man in a wheelchair, accompanied by several unfamiliar faces.
"You are... Weyland?"
Elizabeth naturally knew this investor, but she never expected him to have been hiding on the spaceship all this time!
"That's right, I am Peter Weyland."
Weyland calmly admitted, his eyelids half-closed: "I will go into the ruins exploration with you this time, and of course, this... my guest, Mr. Emrys."
"This..."
Elizabeth hesitated.
But Charlie, standing nearby, couldn't help but frown: "Mr. Weyland, we discovered these ruins. Are you planning to seize the 'fruits' of our victory?"
"Mr. Holloway, please mind your words." Weyland didn't even lift his eyelids, sneering: "If I hadn't invested two trillion and provided this universe ship, you would only be able to stay in a cave your entire life, studying the savages in cave paintings. So it's not seizing, it was always mine."
A simple sentence choked Charlie, leaving him at a loss for how to respond.
"You can go prepare, we depart in fifteen minutes."
Weyland completely ignored Charlie, as if looking at a mere Joker.
"This person next to you, he wouldn't be your illegitimate son, would he?"
Unexpectedly, Charlie seemed a bit unconvinced and insisted on speaking up.
He didn't dare to directly offend the big patron Weyland, so he aimed his criticism at Emrys, sarcastically saying: "We are a professional scientific expedition team. I hope when you go in, you don't touch and mess with everything, so as not to damage the ruins, kid."
At these words, the atmosphere in the cabin immediately became much tenser.
Elizabeth keenly noticed that not only Vicks, but even Weyland and David, all looked at Charlie with a look of pity.
Emrys simply couldn't be bothered with a Joker-like character such as him.
No wonder, in the plot, among so many people on the spaceship, David specifically chose him as a tool for the 'black water' experiment. He was purely walking on red flags!
He just had to be sharp-tongued and mock David, and as a result, the other person sought revenge overnight. After being mocked, he was directly fed 'black water,' truly bringing it upon himself.
"Ha, what? Did I hit a nerve?"
Charlie seemed to have grasped a 'pain point,' and ignoring Elizabeth's tugging next to him, his expression became even more excited.
"I hope your mouth can still be this tough later, Dr. Holloway."
Emrys glanced at him, then ignored this Joker and turned to leave.
Charlie was clearly unconvinced and was about to retort.
But he was stopped by a chilling gaze. Weyland's face was grim, and he said sinisterly: "Charlie Holloway, if you dare to slander my guest again, I will have them strip you naked and throw you outside. If you don't believe me, you can try!"
Weyland, being in a high position, was certainly not joking!
If Charlie dared to utter another word of nonsense, he wouldn't mind getting rid of this idiotic fool before entering the ruins.
It seemed he sensed Weyland's undisguised murderous intent, and Charlie immediately shut his mouth. He dared not gamble his life on whether Weyland would actually throw him out.
"I invested two trillion, not to listen to your nonsense, understand?" Although Weyland was already on his last legs, his aura was still terrifying.
He was like a sick old tiger, but his eyes were still fierce and sharp.
The cabin immediately fell silent!
"Change clothes, prepare to depart."
Weyland coldly glanced at Charlie, secretly marking him as a dead man.
Even if the alien life didn't mind, he would eliminate this annoying, foul-mouthed, and idiotic fool after the exploration of the ruins was over.
Under Weyland's high pressure, everyone changed into lightweight space suits, and after disinfection in the airlock, embarked on this expedition.
Soon, they re-arrived at the entrance of the ruins.
With the experience from last time, everyone quickly reached the depths of the ruins, the location of their previous exploration.
The overall style of the 'ruins' looked very much like the intestines of some kind of creature.
In the passageway and on the ground, one could see traces of bio-technology, completely different from human technology, as if mixed with a strange religious style!
Upon entering the ruins, Charlie eagerly took off his helmet, deeply inhaling the air in the passageway, and explained to Weyland, who was visiting for the first time: "The air environment here is completely suitable for humans. Everyone can take off their helmets and feel the greatness of the Creator up close!"
David corroborated his point: "The air environment here can indeed be breathed directly."
However, Weyland, who should have trusted David, hesitated for a few seconds. He did not directly take off his helmet, but instead looked at Emrys, seemingly seeking his opinion.
"Why are you looking at me?"
Emrys said in surprise: "You take yours off if you want, I'm not taking mine off. This is an unknown area, who knows if there are any microorganisms inside? Since you are a scientific expedition team, you wouldn't lack this basic common sense, would you?"
"What you said makes a lot of sense, it's right to be cautious."
Weyland decisively gave up on taking off his helmet. He then looked at everyone who had taken off their helmets, suddenly feeling as if he had invested two trillion only to be fooled by a bunch of idiots.
He turned around.
He found that besides his girlfriend, Elizabeth Shaw, biologist Ford, and even the android David, all had put their helmets back on.
Charlie's mouth twitched, and he glared fiercely at Emrys, still insisting on not wearing his helmet: "I will prove to you who is right, kid!"
After a brief disagreement, everyone continued deeper into the ruins.
Until they reached the location explored yesterday, a giant human face statue, bearing seven or eight points of resemblance to a human face. The entire room was like some kind of storage room, filled with black jars.
Emrys, familiar with the plot, naturally knew that those black jars contained the 'black water' virus, capable of destroying a world!
"Good stuff."
Emrys thought to himself.
Although 'black water' is very dangerous, from a biological perspective, its greater purpose is not to destroy life, but rather to create life.
In fact, the Engineer race in the movie did not create black water to destroy life, but to use it to create their race's god, Deacon!
Due to excessive development of biotechnology, the Engineer race lost the ability to reproduce. So they split into two factions. One faction, the Engineers, advocated using black water to create their 'Creator.'
The Engineers firmly believed that Deacon's blood would restore their ability to reproduce. And the Space Jockeys were the faction in the original story that wanted to destroy humanity, using black water for destruction.
But ironically, the Engineers who sought to create life never managed to create Deacon until their demise, while the Space Jockeys, who were keen on destruction, ultimately, by a strange twist of fate... became the embryo that nurtured Deacon. It was a great irony.
Suddenly, just as everyone was dispersed exploring the ruins.
Charlie, completely losing consciousness, fell straight to the ground with a thud.
"Charlie? Are you alright?"
Elizabeth, nearby, hurried to help Charlie up. However, when she straightened his head and saw his face covered in black lines, especially the thin tentacles wriggling like horsehair worms from his eyes, mouth, nose, and ears, she let out a sharp shriek!
"Ah--!"
A scream immediately drew everyone's attention.
"Shaw, are you okay? What happened?" Ford was one of only two women, and usually had a good relationship with Elizabeth. Seeing her terrified expression, she immediately went to help her.
But as she helped Elizabeth, by coincidence, she also glanced at Charlie, her face turning pale, pupils shrinking to pinpricks, and she couldn't help but let out a scream: "Ah ah ah..."
The successive screams made Weyland a bit unnerved.
But soon, the fallen Charlie shakily got back up, but his entire spine began to twist to an extreme degree, his bones cracking, as if something inside him was about to burst out!
"It shouldn't be this fast, should it?"
Emrys was clearly a bit surprised, then seemed to guess the reason, looking at David, the culprit of this incident: "How much black water did you feed him?"
"One bottle."
David smiled slightly and politely said: "Originally, I intended to use him as a test subject, but since he offended you, I added a little more before entering the airlock."
GAWD DAMN, an entire bottle!
David was afraid one drop wouldn't be enough, so he added a lethal amount!
Charlie probably wouldn't know until his death that he was forced to receive his premature demise just because of his foul mouth.