Chapter 530

The first thing Jake tried to do was probe Owen’s brain chip. However, he quickly realized that whatever it was doing to his friend, he couldn’t simply cancel it. He would first need to hack into the chip, and that would take time. Which he simply didn’t have. Owen could die at any moment. Every second he spent trying to break through the chip’s security was another second his friend slipped closer to death. If he wanted to save him, he would have to find another way.

Ignoring the energy bolts streaking through the air around him, he leaped toward the control console occupying the center of the bridge. Bright flashes erupted in his peripheral vision as several bolts struck the organic walls behind him, sending ripples through the living flesh. Mick had told him he needed to use the console to gain full access to the bio-ship’s systems. That would have been much easier if Mick were still guiding him, but the connection between them had been severed when Mick had been completely locked out of the ship’s systems.

Worse, the organic console controlling the entire vessel turned out to be nothing like anything humans had ever built. There were no screens, no keyboards, no recognizable controls, nothing that hinted at how it was meant to be operated. Jake had no idea whether he would be able to use it at all. But standing there and doing nothing would guarantee Owen’s death. He had to try.

He approached the control panel. The fleshy tubes that had previously been attached to the Grafter’s body had retracted into the top of the console, seamlessly merging with its organic surface as though they had never existed in the first place. The faint pulsing that ran through the living flesh made the entire structure seem as if it were quietly breathing.

He gave the panel a quick once-over. Its broad, flat surface was lined with several neat rows of fist-sized organic knobs. They were all roughly the same size and lacked any distinguishing features, just fleshy lumps rhythmically pulsating as though they were living, breathing organisms. They all looked the same, none of them standing out from the others.

Other than that, there was nothing else on the console. No displays, no symbols, no markings, nothing that could be considered controls. He just stared at it for a second. Should he try touching those knobs? He hesitated for only a brief moment before deciding to give it a shot. As alien as the console looked, there didn’t seem to be anything else he could do.

Just as he reached toward one of the knobs, another energy bolt slammed into his armored chest, staggering him and forcing him to take a step back to regain his balance. The impact echoed through his body, sending a dull jolt through his body. Now that he was standing still, it was much easier for the crab-things to hit him. Several of the creatures had spread out around the bridge, peppering him with blasts whenever he slowed down long enough to become an easy target.

A thought occurred to him that maybe he should deal with them first, but a quick glance over his shoulder at Owen writhing on the organic floor told him his friend didn’t have much time left. His entire body was convulsing as the brain chip continued its assault, and every passing second seemed to make it worse. Jake couldn’t afford to waste precious time fighting the monsters. He needed to save Owen first. As for the occasional energy bolt slamming into him, he could take it.

He rushed back to the central console, once again reaching toward one of the fleshy knobs. His armored hand closed around it, but nothing happened. The organic lump compressed slightly beneath his fingers, yielding like firm rubber. He tightened his grip, almost expecting it to react to the pressure, but that accomplished nothing either. It simply continued its slow, rhythmic pulsing as though completely indifferent to his efforts.

Another energy bolt slammed into his chest, making him release the knob as the impact knocked him away from the console. He stumbled backward several steps before catching himself. Well, at least now he knew that simply grabbing the controls clearly wasn’t enough.

Another idea occurred to him. Instead of stepping closer, he simply stretched his hand toward the panel, keeping a short distance between himself and the console. If this bio-ship was truly a living organism, perhaps it wasn’t meant to be operated through physical contact at all. After all, the Grafters didn’t need any limbs to operate it. Focusing his thoughts, he mentally instructed the console to activate, trying to take control of it through sheer force of will.

And it actually worked. One of the fleshy knobs twitched before suddenly unfurling into a long, muscular tube that shot toward him with startling speed and agility. Jake barely had time to react. He caught only a brief glimpse of its tip as it closed the distance between them. It resembled the sucker of a leech, surrounded by several rows of tiny hook-like teeth that flexed eagerly as it rushed toward him. Suddenly, touching that thing no longer seemed like such a good idea.

But before he could yank his hand back, the tube lunged the final few inches and latched onto the center of his palm with surprising force. He felt the tiny teeth bite into the surface of his flesh, digging in just enough to secure their grip. The tube strained, pulsing more vigorously as though something alive was flowing through it.

Immediately afterward, a flood of new sensations coursed through him. His vision blurred for a split second as his mind was overwhelmed by an avalanche of unfamiliar thoughts and instincts that weren’t his own. Then everything snapped into focus. He suddenly became aware of everything happening both inside and outside the living vessel, as though he had become one with it.

Through the numerous oculus-like appendages embedded across the bio-ship’s exterior, he could see the aerial battle raging outside from dozens of different angles at once. Wingclaws swooped through the sky, relentlessly hunting down and tearing apart what remained of the synthetic flying creatures. He could see the Saurian Beast still clinging stubbornly to the hull, its massive claws buried deep within the living flesh while his crawlers scuttled frantically across the organic surface in every direction. He could even sense the movement of those creatures through subtle vibrations traveling across the bio-ship’s skin.

Then a surge of pain rippled through him as his Kaiju raked its claws across the bio-ship’s hull, tearing long gashes through the living tissue. Jake not just witnessed the damage but also felt it as if he was the bio-ship himself. The bio-ship was alive, and through their connection, its pain had become his.

He now understood why the central console had no conventional instruments. There was no need for them. Unlike a regular machine designed to be operated with buttons, switches, or displays, it was an extension of the living vessel itself, meant to be controlled through direct neural contact.

By connecting to it, Jake could not only see and feel everything happening inside and around the bio-ship but also command the living vessel with nothing more than his thoughts. Every organic structure, every creature living within it, every movement of the ship itself now felt like an extension of his own body. For all intents and purposes, he had become the ship.

He didn’t have access to every system of the bio-ship, though. To do that, he would need to command more of the organic tubes to attach themselves to his body. As the knowledge flowed into his mind, he instinctively understood that each tube granted control over a different section or function of the living vessel. Some regulated internal systems, others commanded the bio-ship’s defenses, while still others appeared to oversee the countless creatures living within it.

The first tube, attached to the palm of his hand, granted him access only to the vessel’s primary functions. It allowed him to pilot the bio-ship as though it were his own body while simultaneously flooding his mind with a constant stream of information about everything happening both inside and outside the living vessel. He didn’t have to consciously search for that information. The ship simply shared it with him, making every change in its condition instantly known.

Another interesting thing he noticed after linking with the console was that the crab-monsters suddenly stopped firing at him. The bridge, moments ago filled with crackling energy bolts, fell quiet. The creatures remained where they were, their beady eyes fixed on him as they shifted uneasily on their many legs. It was as though they no longer knew what they were supposed to do. Several of them lowered their weapon-like appendages altogether.

They seemed to recognize something had changed. The living vessel itself now acknowledged him as the one in command, and the creatures appeared to sense that instinctively. They accepted him as the captain of the bio-ship and therefore their master.

It was incredible. No, it was far more than that. He could fly the ship as though he was the ship itself, controlling every movement with nothing more than a thought. There were no controls to manipulate, no commands to issue. The bio-ship responded to his will as naturally as his own arms and legs responded to his mind. It was amazing. Inspiring, even.

Jake couldn’t help but wonder if he could create something like this himself. A living vessel that served as both transportation and a fully functional base. If he had a bio-ship of his own, he wouldn’t need a lair at all. Instead, he could travel anywhere he wanted while growing new creatures inside the ship itself. Genetic laboratories, storage chambers, hive nexuses, everything he needed could exist within a single massive organism. Having such a mobile base was undeniably better than being tied to one hidden location. He would no longer need the ten-story lair located in New Hope or even the Apex Hollow hidden deep within the Scarlands. A living fortress that could simply fly anywhere he directed it was far better than any stationary base.

But was it even possible? Could he actually create such a ship? The largest creature he could currently develop was a Kaiju, yet this bio-ship dwarfed even the Saurian Prowler. It was less like a creature and more like a living city drifting through space. He simply didn’t possess any structures capable of growing an organism on this scale.

Still, now that he had experienced controlling a living vessel firsthand, the idea lodged itself firmly in the back of his mind. If there was a way to create something like this, he intended to find it. However, now was not the time to dwell on that. Owen was still in danger.

Using his link to the bio-ship, he searched for information concerning his friend. The response came almost instantly. Streams of unfamiliar data flowed through his mind, and among them he found what he was looking for: the brain chip embedded inside Owen’s head. He wasn’t entirely sure the bio-ship’s systems would actually grant him authority over it, so he was pleasantly surprised when they did. The chip immediately recognized him as an authorized user, opening every one of its functions to his command.

Jake wasted no time. With a single mental command, he shut the device down. Then he looked over his shoulder at Owen. His counterpart was no longer thrashing across the organic floor. The violent convulsions ceased almost immediately. Owen slowly unwrapped his arms from his head. After remaining still for a few seconds, he pushed himself upright.

Then he looked at Jake. For a brief moment, neither of them moved. They simply stared at each other across the bridge. Jake searched Owen’s posture for any sign that the chip was still affecting him, but it didn’t seem to be the case. As if to confirm his mental conclusion, Owen lifted one hand and gave him a thumbs-up.