Black Box

It was late at night, a blanket of dark clouds covered the sky, allowing only faint traces of moonlight to filter through the small openings.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Suddenly, a deafening roar echoed in the night air. The clouds broke open in a large hole as multiple shockwaves, like the roar of a giant, announced their arrival. A red pyramid-shaped craft emerged, moving at a dizzying speed that easily exceeded Mach six.

The spaceship swiftly reached an immense structure that made it appear as small as an ant before a ten-meter giant.

It was a majestic pyramid-shaped tower, its exterior covered in thousands of small hollow triangles, with a trident-like opening in the center of each face. It was erected using a mysterious iridescent red material that emitted a faint but intriguing glow.

Thud!

The ship landed on one of the designated triangle landing points. On the outside, the wall and the ship seemed to seamlessly merge, as if they had always been part of the same structure.

Ssshhh!

The spacecraft's hatch slid open with a hypnotic elegance, revealing the imposing figure of a two-meter-tall man. His helmet, bathed in a deep black color, emitted a gentle green light around his three eyes, creating a mysterious aura. The armor, of the same dark hue, displayed obvious signs of wear, as if it had been used for many years.

With a simple gesture, he removed the helmet, revealing a male face with three orange-pupiled eyes and black hair with red-tipped strands.

Clac, clac, clac!

He walked arrogantly down a long, silent metal corridor, where his footsteps echoed loudly. In his hand, he held a matte black box with determination. The contrast between the gleaming red walls and the white floor was evident with every step. White lights embedded in the ceiling cast a soft, dim glow on his path.

After a few minutes, the man arrived in front of an immense golden door, guarded by two men in red and black armor.

"I require an audience with Major Zarok; it's a matter of utmost importance," the man said to the two soldiers. They held long grayish firearms, their barrels glowing in an intense red hue.

The two soldiers exchanged glances, and one of them said with a mocking tone, "Utmost importance? Soldier... with that haughty look, you seem like we're dealing with some noble. How about you change that smug face of yours to a more submissive one before seeing the Major?"

"Pfff!"

The other soldier burst into a mocking laughter, "Impressive! I also had the impression that the one speaking to us was a noble, based on his condescending attitude when speaking, but he turned out to be the only one with the exclusive title of 'Collector' on this planet!"

"Fortunately, even from a hundred kilometers away, I could recognize the collector's armor," the other soldier remarked disdainfully.

The man frowned, causing his orange pupils to shimmer with anger: "It is of the utmost importance," he warned with a threatening tone, "if this is not handled properly, I can guarantee that even the heads of your families will roll."

"What are you saying about my family, you damn bastard!?" one of them snapped with burning anger, pointing his weapon.

"Hold on! Let him through," a commanding voice came from behind the large door before the situation could escalate further.

The soldier lowered his weapon, and with a mocking tone, he pressed a series of buttons on a small touch screen, saying, "You're lucky, a few seconds later, and you'd be turned into an unrecognizable mass, though it would be a fitting end for a collector."

Zhhhwoosh!

The large door opened, and the man entered without glancing back at the two soldiers, who made derogatory gestures with their hands as the door closed behind him.

"So, what important matter do you have for me, soldier...?" A huge, fat man, dressed in red and gold armor, drawled, elongating the words at the end. He was seated in a floating chair, surrounded by tables filled with all kinds of delicacies. What was curious was that all the delicacies were human food.

"Rylokian, sir, that's my name. Don't you remember? You were the one who assigned me the position of collector when we arrived on this low-ranking planet..."

Major Zarok stroked his chin with one hand while devouring a roasted chicken thigh with the other, "Oh, yes, of course! I remember you now. It's my fault, you know I have so many soldiers under my command, and, well, it's hard to remember each and every one of you."

Rylokian noticed that every word was filled with indifference, causing the veins in his neck to swell with anger. However, he managed to compose himself and said, "You see, I was about to carry out a 'collection' in sector N-187, and coincidentally, I noticed that there were louder than usual sound activities in sector N-201."

Before he could continue, Zarok interrupted, disdainfully asserting, "Of course, the sound activities in sector N-201 are high. After all, it's the habitat of a Sonarix."

"I know..." the corners of Rylokian's mouth quivered as he continued: "The Sonarix in sector N-201 had maintained a normal noise level for five hundred years, but suddenly, it started generating this exaggerated noise, as if it were fighting something. So, I took the trouble to investigate, but I found nothing unusual."

"You found nothing? Then, what's the purpose of wasting my time?" Zarok said with irritation as he dipped a handful of greasy meat into his mouth, leaving his hand smeared with black grease.

Rylokian didn't react and simply extended the hand holding the small black box, saying, "Just have a look at what's inside."

"Hmm..." Zarok looked at the box suspiciously and added, "Isn't this a trap to kill me?" Seeing that Rylokian didn't respond and noticing that he was starting to get angry, he frowned in irritation and stopped wasting time, taking the black box with his greasy hand: "I hope this is really important, or your punishment won't be light."

He pressed the center of the lid, causing it to open in layers until it revealed its contents.

Crash!

Zarok gave a bored look inside, but suddenly, he was so startled that the mass of fat on his body began to tremble, causing the tables with the surrounding dishes to collapse, creating a mess.

"W-where did you get this!?" Zarok asked in panic, his three brown eyes trembling with fear.

Inside the box rested a piece of pink flesh emitting a peculiar purple light, vibrating slightly. Not to mention the purple blood that covered it.

"I found it floating at the boundary between sector N-201 and N-200, and not only that, there was also a large amount of purple blood. I suppose you understand what happened, right?" Rylokian said.

Although his tone was arrogant, Zarok was so taken aback that he didn't pay it any mind.

"..."

Zarok fell silent, his gaze filled with nervousness: "What was a fragment of a Sonarix's brain doing floating around? If what you're telling me is true, then the Sonarix in sector N-201 is... dead."

"How is it possible for such a powerful and practically impervious creature to perish on a planet like this? Was it the work of one of those disgusting beings? No... there shouldn't be any of that repulsive species alive on this planet, and besides, they barely live for a miserable hundred years."

"Then, could it be some native creature we were unaware of?" Zarok began to speculate about the reason behind the Sonarix's death.

"Damn it, how the hell do I explain this to them? And what if I tell them it was an accident? No, I'll still be screwed, what the hell do I do!?"

Suddenly, he stopped talking and looked at Rylokian.

"Select ten soldiers and go investigate what happened!" he ordered impatiently, but then retracted, "No, wait, you can't do that yet. Important guests are coming tomorrow, and if they find out about this, we'll all be in deep trouble."

Rylokian was confused about what to do, deeply regretting having taken on this job five hundred years ago.

"Eliminate any trace of evidence, and once the guests have left, thoroughly inspect sector N-201 and all the surrounding sectors," ordered Zarok as he gestured for Rylokian to leave.

"As you command, Major Zarok," Rylokian responded with a bow, although his gaze reflected his dissatisfaction as he walked away.

…

Inside the underwater laboratory, Kraynnor was in a vast room filled with a diverse collection of tools and technology.

This place was his sanctuary, the workshop where he forged his creations, whether it was the androids he used to infiltrate the Sonarix's interior, the numerous upgrades he incorporated into the Cognitron X-12 over the years, or a myriad of other projects.

On an extensive table lay the hilt of his Biomass Energy Saber, now disassembled, with its components scattered in all directions.

"Its internal structure is undoubtedly complex, as are the materials it uses; some seem familiar to me, but others are entirely unknown," Kraynnor murmured.

With meticulousness, he picked up a tiny, gleaming green pearl that was half-filled with green liquid emitting small electrical discharges: "Undoubtedly, this is the power source. Its half-filled level is a clear indication of how much I've used it today."

"Discovering how to harness this advanced biomass energy is undoubtedly a challenge, but nothing that can't be solved with a couple of sleepless days."