Interstellar Survival: Invasion

"They're coming. Be careful," Temo said.

"Who's coming? Buers? What are these creatures?" asked Zhang Bao'er.

"These little things are nothing compared to what's coming. That's the most terrifying fellow here," said Temo coldly.

After the terrifying roar, our surroundings sank into silence. The numerous smaller beasts around us stayed silent, and even though they were squeezed together, they had not attacked us.

"Canyue, we have been surrounded by these little beasts," said Anxashe.

Only then did we discover that we had been fully surrounded by ugly beasts. There were thousands of them around us. Suddenly, a sense of oppression came from afar and slowly approached us. I could vaguely see numerous black figures from behind the red fog.

"Watch out, everyone. They're coming," reminded Old Du.

"Our body temperature is lower than the surroundings. They have locked onto us," said Temo.

We prepared for combat. Not long after, numerous elephant-like silhouettes started appearing from all directions. We realized that we had been surrounded by two different encirclements.

"Looks like there is no escaping. We have to face them," said Anxashe. There was no fear in his voice. Instead, excitement could be heard in his voice.

The silhouettes of the variance sensor beasts silently came nearer and nearer. Finally, I was able to get a clear look at them. These elephant-like beasts did not have any eyes on their heads. Each head had a long nose sticking out of its face. I believed that the long nose was the organ they relied on to detect temperature. Each head had a mouth filled with fangs, and each of their bulky bodies was propped up by four clawed limbs. Some sort of barbed armor covered their bodies, seemingly with powerful defensive capabilities.

"These fellows are too ugly," said Zhang Bao'er.

An odd scene appeared. The moment Zhang Bao'er spoke, their long noses were all aimed in his direction. The sight shocked Zhang Bao'er so much he shut his mouth and stopped talking.

"The moment you speak, the temperature around you will fluctuate. That will provoke a reaction from the variance sensor beasts," explained Temo. Once again, the same thing happened as they all aimed their noses at Temo.

"What are we supposed to do? Are we going to stop speaking entirely?" complained Zhang Bao'er.

"It doesn't matter. As long as your temperature is either lower or higher than theirs, you will be a target," said Temo.

The variance sensor beasts were alternating pointing their noses at Zhang Bao'er or Temo as the two conversed, so the scene looked rather comical, which helped lessen everyone's nervousness.

"These beasts seem to be observing us. We might as well strike first and grab the upper hand," suggested Anxashe.

I gave it some thought and decided to agree.

"There's no rush. Attacking is the same as suicide. Let's see what these variance sensor beasts are trying to do first. I'm very curious. They have not been attacking, so they are seemingly worried about something," said Temo.

His words also made sense so I changed my mind. The standoff lasted for a few more minutes, the variance sensor beasts constantly aiming their noses at anyone who spoke.

"What are they thinking, exactly?" asked Zhang Bao'er, who was becoming impatient.

Temo started messing with Zhang Bao'er. "Maybe they're trying to decide on who gets to eat us."

Zhang Bao'er was about to start bickering with Temo when one of the variance sensor beasts left the group and slowly approached us.

"Watch out, everyone. One of them is coming. That must be the one picked to eat all of us," said Dodo.

The smaller beasts on the water's surface parted for the variance sensor beast, allowing it to strut straight toward us. Anxashe raised his bow and arrow, aiming at the head of the variance sensor beast, preparing to attack.

Even so, the variance sensor beast showed no fear. When it neared us, we felt incredibly small before its massive body. Silence continued to reign as it raised its nose to scan all of us. None of us dared to make any sound, worried about attracting its attention. Suddenly, the nose stopped moving. When we looked over, we saw that it had stopped when pointing at Dodo.

"What is this? Is this fellow picking Dodo for a one-on-one fight?" blurted Zhang Bao'er.

"Picking Dodo for a one-on-one fight? Dodo is an android with zero combat capabilities," said Old Du.

"Why is it pointing at me? Is it really challenging me to a duel?" asked Dodo anxiously.

"Yes. Since it has chosen you, answer the call bravely. This is good for us. Solving this through a duel is better than everyone perishing after being swarmed," said Temo.

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"But how are you sure that it has selected me?" Dodo argued, unwilling to accept the fact that they had been chosen.

"Look at its nose. Even when we're speaking, it remains still. I am sure it has selected you. Stop wasting time, or it will be viewed as an insult," said Temo.

Everyone focused on Dodo. Even Dodo themselves felt the heavy pressure on their shoulders. Thus, they stepped forth unhesitatingly.

"Canyue, have you gone crazy? You're really letting Dodo go? They will be reduced to scrap metal! That fellow is still very important to us! We can't allow them to die for no reason!" said Zhang Bao'er.

"What choice do we have? We'll have to let Dodo give it a try, and we need to be ready to provide assistance," I said.

"Don't interfere in the duel. Otherwise, they will immediately tear us apart," said Temo, discouraging me from what I had in mind.

At that point, Dodo had stopped in front of the beast.

"Screw this fellow. Why did it pick the weakest of us? Hey, if you're really so incredible, why don't you pick your grandpa Bao'er?" shouted Zhang Bao'er at the variance sensor beast.

Not one of the beasts paid Zhang Bao'er any attention. They were all focused on the duel that was about to start.

"Weird. The variance sensor beasts shouldn't be behaving like this. They are extremely ferocious and barbaric. Why would they be so polite and not swarm us? This is too weird," muttered Temo, still doubtful about the beasts' change in behavior.

Abruptly, the beast kicked out, sending Dodo flying several meters away before they could react. Our hearts thumped nervously. Dodo stood up tenaciously, one of their legs bent at an odd angle due to the kick. Surprising all of us, the same Dodo who lacked any combat capabilities limped toward the beast. Once again, the beast kicked them away.

"Droids can't feel pain, right?" said Zhang Bao'er, sorrow in his voice.

Once again, Dodo stood back up tenaciously. A large part of their belly had caved in from the kick.

"I can't take this anymore. They're pushing an android incapable of combat. Canyue, let me blast its nose away with my gun," said Zhang Bao'er furiously.

Old Du hurriedly stopped Zhang Bao'er, stopping him from launching any rash attacks. This time, the variance sensor beast bit Dodo's head before vigorously flinging Dodo around, trying to shake Dodo's body off their head.

Dodo constantly struggled with both arms, but they were no combat droid. Thus, their arms were only able to exert a small amount of strength, completely incapable of harming the beast. We could no longer keep watching while Dodo's life was in peril.

"You can't help. The moment you help, all of us will die," reminded Temo, having seen through our thoughts.

Looking at Dodo struggling, I suddenly thought of something. I hurriedly drew the laser pistol strapped to my thigh.

"Dodo, catch this! Shoot into its mouth!" I shouted as I tossed the pistol over.

Dodo, who had sunk into despair, concentrated and caught the pistol. They unhesitatingly fired several shots into the beast's mouth. The other variance sensor beasts started roaring upon seeing our movement, breaking the silence that had enveloped the area. But since we hadn't actually helped, no rules were broken. Thus, they had to keep restraining themselves.

The variance sensor beast that was bullying Dodo had not expected to be struck by a pistol. The laser beams were sent straight into the inside of its stomach, and the intense pain forced it to release Dodo and made it stumble backward.

Dodo regained their freedom and immediately realized the benefits of having a gun in hand. They took two steps back before raising the gun and madly firing at the variance sensor beast. However, the shots weren't able to do much damage when they hit the variance sensor beast's sturdy armor. The beast was shaking its head, still trying to recover from the pain.

"Dodo, take this!" said Zhang Bao'er, who tossed his cluster laser gun toward Dodo.

Dodo caught the gun and returned the pistol to me. Then, the fierce firepower of an automatic weapon was unleashed upon the beast. The improved firepower proved effective;  the variance sensor beast's armor started breaking apart. However, this also infuriated the beast.

It braved the gunshots and charged forth, ramming into Dodo with its massive body. The force behind the collision was massive, sending Dodo over a dozen meters away. Dodo slammed into the midst of the spectating small beasts. The startled small beasts hurriedly scattered, allowing Dodo to slowly sink into the blood pool.

"Dodo, are you good?" Zhang Bao'er shouted loudly and rushed forward, but Old Du promptly stopped him.

"Androids won't drown. Don't act rashly," reminded Temo.

The situation was much more serious than before. The variance sensor beast did not give Dodo any respite and charged toward Dodo. It raised its front limbs high, preparing to crush Dodo into a piece of metal scrap. At this point, we were no longer able to rush over and help in time. I saw Anxashe raise his bow and arrow high.