Chapter 190: You Are the Final Boss
Emperor Milleous, a massive, wart-covered Incursean who looked like an overgrown toad stuffed into royal armor, somehow understood the chaotic, static-laced gibberish spewing from Sevenseven.
Under normal circumstances, the Emperor would have coughed up whatever exorbitant ransom the bounty hunter demanded to get his precious daughter back. But right now? The circumstances were far from normal.
"I'm telling you right now!" Milleous bellowed, spittle flying from his wide, amphibious mouth. "You aren't getting a single tayden from me! Even if you hand Attea over on a silver platter, I don't want her!"
He grabbed the communication console, violently twisting the camera feed to center on the figure lounging carelessly on the command throne.
"You see that person?!" Milleous shouted at the screen. "Lord Klein wants to play a little battle royale game with you, and congratulations—you are the final boss! Just survive for two hours! Did you hear me, you bucket of bolts?!"
Kevin stood off to the side, watching the Incursean Emperor grovel and help Klein's twisted games. He rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly realizing he still had a long way to go in the art of being a proper lackey. This giant toad was operating on a whole different level of sycophancy.
On the other end of the transmission, Sevenseven froze. The heavily armored bounty hunter stood absolutely dumbfounded.
What kind of twisted joke was this?! Not only was his massive payday evaporating before his eyes, but he was suddenly drafted into a lethal game of survival. Actually, calling it a game was generous. He was the prey.
Klein's name carried a terrifying weight in the galactic bounty hunter underworld. Rumors whispered that the veteran mercenary Kraab, along with Sevenseven's own kin, Sixsix, had been toyed with until they met gruesome ends at this very human's hands. Whether the legend was entirely accurate didn't matter. If anything, the stories probably glorified Sixsix and Kraab, making their defeats sound more dignified than they actually were.
Klein was widely regarded as a walking natural disaster. There were tales that after he took a casual stroll through Incarcecon, the galaxy's most secure prison, the inmates barricaded their own cells and refused to leave.
Sevenseven was just a guy trying to make an honest, violent living. How did he end up in the crosshairs of a cosmic anomaly?
Panic overriding his usual cold professionalism, the bounty hunter frantically began spewing a rapid-fire stream of clicks, whirs, and guttural alien gibberish, desperately trying to negotiate a surrender.
"Hmm... No!" Milleous crossed his thick arms, completely shutting down the plea. "You absolutely cannot send my daughter back. Keep her!"
Realizing the Emperor was a lost cause, Sevenseven slammed his fist onto the console, instantly cutting the transmission. He hadn't accepted his fate as the final boss. Far from it. His immediate plan was to dump the Incursean Princess at the nearest airlock and flee to the farthest edge of the galaxy.
Meanwhile, deep within the starry, infinite void of Alien X's consciousness space.
"I want to get out of here!!!" Ben's voice echoed into the endless cosmic expanse, thick with utter frustration.
He floated in the center of the void, glaring at the two giant, floating faces of the Celestialsapien's inner personalities.
"No," Bellicus rumbled, his deep, aggressive voice vibrating through the starlight. "Every single action Alien X takes must be thoroughly debated and agreed upon. That includes releasing you from this form."
Ben's jaw locked. A vein throbbed visibly at his temple. "Alright then!" he snapped, grinding his teeth together. "Then I officially propose a motion: let me out!"
"I am so sorry, Ben," Serena chimed in, her voice sickeningly sweet and gentle, effectively dumping a bucket of ice water over his hopes. "But you have to finish discussing the previous backlog of topics with us first. We must proceed in the proper chronological order."
"Are you kidding me?!" Ben threw his hands up, his anger flaring. "What, are we going to start by debating whether or not we should save the dinosaurs from the meteor?! Give me a break!"
He took a deep, shaky breath, forcing the rising panic down. He had faced down warlords and cosmic conquerors; he could handle two stubborn voices in his head. He needed to be smart about this.
"Fine," Ben said, his tone dangerously calm. "Then I propose a motion to discuss a brand-new topic first."
"Oh, agreed!" Serena smiled warmly, her starry features shifting with delight.
Bellicus narrowed his glowing eyes, pondering the procedural loophole for a long, agonizing moment. "Acceptable," the aggressive voice finally boomed. "Motion passed."
Ben's eyes lit up with sudden, desperate hope. He had them! "Great! Then I propose my new topic: let me out!"
Serena's smile didn't waver. "Rejected."
Bellicus glared down at him. "Motion denied."
Ben stared blankly into the cosmic void, his eye twitching. "I f hate you guys."
Back in the physical universe, aboard Sevenseven's sleek mercenary vessel.
Princess Attea paced the metal floor, aggressively waving a digital credit chip in the bounty hunter's face. She was offering him a fortune, trying to hire him on the spot to help her storm the Incursean flagship and usurp her father's throne.
Sevenseven crossed his arms, his mechanical vocalizer emitting a series of sharp, negative buzzes. He stubbornly refused. He made it abundantly clear through his frantic gestures that there was a monster on that flagship he absolutely could not afford to offend. Storming the ship with her wouldn't be a coup; it would be a highly efficient suicide.
Watching the usually fearless bounty hunter tremble like a cornered rat, Attea actually understood his hesitation. If Klein was genuinely backing her father, she wouldn't dare attempt a coup right now either. She hadn't interacted much with the human anomaly, but she knew the terrifying history attached to his name. When she was still a tadpole swimming in her mother's arms, Klein had casually blown up half of the Incursean Empire's military infrastructure just because they annoyed him.
But Attea was cunning. She had analyzed the rumors surrounding Klein. He wasn't a loyal soldier or a righteous hero. He was an agent of chaos who thrived on entertainment. He didn't mind trouble; in fact, he actively encouraged it. The bigger the mess, the more amused he became.
That single character flaw was her golden ticket. She dared to usurp the throne right now because Klein wouldn't possibly want to ruin a good show. He wouldn't interfere to save her father; he would just grab a front-row seat.
She laid out her logic to Sevenseven. Between her tactical analysis and the astronomical sum of taydenite she was offering, the bounty hunter's greed finally overpowered his survival instincts. His mechanical optics flared red. Damn it all, he was in.
Aboard the Incursean flagship.
Klein stretched his arms, yawning lazily as he prepared to gather his group and depart. Just as he stood up, the main communication screen flared to life, displaying Sevenseven's masked face once more.
Emperor Milleous groaned, waving a webbed hand impatiently at the monitor. "Didn't I explicitly tell you not to bring Attea back? Just be a good little target and—"
Sevenseven cut him off with a rapid, aggressive burst of electronic static and clicking syllables.
Milleous's bulbous eyes widened. He bolted upright from his seat, his massive belly jiggling. "What?! What do you mean you're already here?!"
A heavy hiss echoed through the command center as the reinforced mechanical doors slid open. Sevenseven marched onto the bridge, his weapons drawn, with Princess Attea striding confidently right beside him.
"Daughter!" Milleous wailed, his warty face scrunching up in genuine distress. "How could you just come back?! If you're here, what am I supposed to do?! How am I supposed to explain this to Lord Klein?!"
Attea ignored her father's pathetic display, stepping smoothly in front of the heavily armed bounty hunter. Sevenseven's cowardice had certainly played a part in their swift arrival, but her own ambition was the driving force.
Klein leaned back against the edge of the command console, crossing his arms. A faint, amused smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth as he observed the young Incursean Princess, waiting to see how she planned to justify interrupting his entertainment.
"I ruined your battle royale game," Attea declared, keeping her chin held high as she met Klein's gaze. "So, I'm going to give you an even better show in return. A royal coup. How does that sound?"
Outwardly, she projected absolute calm. Inwardly, her twin hearts were hammering against her ribs like war drums. She was gambling her life on a psychological profile. There was zero guarantee that Klein wouldn't just vaporize the entire bridge in a fit of annoyance.
Klein didn't respond immediately. He just stared at her, his dark eyes unreadable. The silence stretched, heavy and suffocating. Sweat beaded on Attea's green forehead. She didn't dare utter another syllable, forced to wait in agonizing suspense.
Finally, the corners of Klein's lips curled upwards into a genuine, lazy smile. "Interesting. Fine. Let's see your show."
The invisible pressure crushing the room vanished. Attea exhaled a sharp, shaky breath of relief. She immediately spun around, pointing a commanding finger at the Emperor. "Take down my father!"
Sevenseven didn't hesitate. He raised his gauntlet, the heavy laser cannon whining as it powered up and locked onto Milleous's chest.
"Daughter... you..." Milleous stared down the barrel of the weapon. Oddly enough, there was no fear in his bulbous eyes—only a strange, twisted sense of paternal pride. His little girl finally had the guts to overthrow him.
"Soldiers of the Empire! Listen to my command!" Attea's voice rang out across the bridge, sharp and authoritative. "Arrest the Emperor!"
The elite Incursean guards stationed around the room exchanged uncertain glances, their energy rifles wavering. Mutiny wasn't exactly covered in basic training.
"You heard the Princess. Listen to her." Commander Raff stepped forward, his gruff voice cutting through the hesitation. He had made his choice.
Seeing their commanding officer side with the usurper, the guards immediately swarmed forward, grabbing Milleous by the arms and forcing the heavy Emperor to his knees.
Raff dropped to one knee before the young Princess, bowing his head in total submission. "All hail the Great Empress Attea! The radiant lighthouse of the Incursean Empire, the supreme destroyer of the Galactic System, the absolute master of the death ray! The entire universe shall bow before your—"
"Alright, alright, wrap it up," Attea interrupted, waving her hand dismissively. She turned back to the human lounging by the console. "Thank you for your—"
"Usurpation?" Klein finished for her, his smile carrying a cryptic, almost mocking edge. "It was a decent show. A bit short, but entertaining." He shifted his gaze past her, locking eyes with the heavily armed bounty hunter. "You. Scram."
Sevenseven didn't need to be told twice. The mercenary practically tripped over his own armored boots as he spun on his heel and sprinted out of the command center, leaving a trail of panicked electronic squeaks in his wake.
"No! Get back here!" Attea shouted, watching her expensive hired muscle abandon her without a second thought. She whipped her head back to Klein, her eyes wide with sudden, dawning horror. "How could you just dismiss him?! I thought—"
"Did I ever promise you anything?" Klein asked, his voice smooth, casual, and utterly devoid of sympathy.
Attea opened her mouth, then snapped it shut. He hadn't. He hadn't promised her safety, success, or support. He just said he wanted to watch the show. She had severely underestimated just how ruthlessly unpredictable this human could be.
"Alright, show's over. We should get going too," Klein announced, pushing himself off the console.
Taking the cue, Commander Raff immediately activated the bridge's teleporter, bathing Klein and his companions in a flash of bright light before they vanished from the warship entirely.
The moment the blinding light faded, the atmosphere on the bridge shifted instantly. Milleous casually shook off the guards holding him, rising to his full, imposing height. He dusted off his royal armor, a wide, ugly grin spreading across his warty face.
"Alright, daughter. The game is over."
He was genuinely relieved and proud that she possessed the ruthlessness to attempt a coup, but she was still far too young and naive to play in the big leagues. Klein was a walking anomaly who thrived on chaos and loved nothing more than pulling the rug out from under people. Trying to use a monster like him as a stepping stone? She was lucky she still had her head attached to her shoulders.
Milleous gestured lazily to the guards. "Take her down. Lock her up in the detention block with her mother." He looked down at Attea, his grin widening. "My sweet daughter... when you grow up a little more, feel free to come and try to overthrow me again."
Meanwhile, light-years away, a flash of green light illuminated the interior of the Rustbucket. Ben Tennyson collapsed onto the floor, gasping for air as he finally reverted to his human form. He stared up at the ceiling, his eyes wide and haunted. He swore to himself right then and there: he never, ever wanted to transform into Alien X again for as long as he lived.
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