Chapter 1701: Chapter 1518: Hyperion

Chapter 1701: Chapter 1518: Hyperion



The commander, a distinguished man adorned with military medals and a proud mustache, spoke up.

"As of now, the death toll has reached 210,400" His voice wavered and tears welled up in his eyes.

A heavy silence settled over the room, each person feeling the weight of the devastating loss they had suffered. The sheer magnitude of lives lost was incomprehensible, and the reality of their situation became more dire with each passing moment.

Emperor Julius, his face grim, broke the oppressive silence.

"We mourn the fallen," he declared, his voice heavy but resolute.

"But their sacrifice shall not be in vain. We must act. Now."

A flurry of activity followed. Freya, her white hair ablaze under the harsh lights, leaned in towards the Emperor, her voice a rapid whisper.

The turning point came from an unexpected source. Maria's flickering image, previously silent, solidified into focus. Her voice, though distant, rang with a chilling certainty.

"We deploy the Hyperion," she declared, the name of the battle airship rolling off her tongue with a weight of finality. "We unleash the Aethon Project."

A collective gasp resonated through the room, both physical and virtual. The Aethon Project, a weapon shrouded in secrecy and whispered warnings, was a last resort, a weapon of immense power bordering on the mythical. The murmurs of concern were quickly quelled by a steely glint in Emperor Julius' eye.

Back within the empire, Emperor Julius watched the unfolding scene on his holographic display. The tension in the air was thick enough to choke on. The missile slammed into the beast's side, erupting in a blinding flash - a miniature sun against the backdrop of the brewing storm. A shockwave rippled outwards, a ripple of destruction echoing through the very sky. For a heart-stopping moment, a mushroom cloud, a chilling symbol of unimaginable power, bloomed into existence.

But the euphoria was short-lived. The monstrous beast, despite the earth-shattering explosion, remained virtually unscathed. With a single, shuddering breath, it let out another ear-splitting roar, its voice carrying a chilling message: this attack was merely a gnat bite.

Disbelief settled over the Hyperion's crew. They had unleashed a weapon that could level a city, a weapon spoken of in hushed whispers as the final deterrent, and the beast... the beast didn't even flinch.

Two more missiles streaked across the stormy sky, silver arrows launched in a desperate attempt to pierce the beast's seemingly impenetrable hide. They slammed into its obsidian flesh with thunderous roars,

BOOM! BOOM!

Each explosion a miniature sun briefly illuminating the churning clouds. Smoke and debris spewed from the impact points, momentarily obscuring the beast's form.

But as the smoke cleared, a chilling reality settled upon the Hyperion. The monstrous creature remained largely unscathed. Its obsidian hide bore only superficial burns, like fleeting annoyances on a creature far too large and powerful to be bothered. A low rumble emanated from its throat, a sound that vibrated through the Hyperion's very hull, sending shivers down the spines of even the most seasoned crew members.

A sense of despair began to creep into the air, a suffocating weight settling over the once- hopeful atmosphere within the battleship. This wasn't a beast of flesh and bone; this was an entity forged in the fires of some distant, unimaginable world, a creature impervious to humanity's most destructive weapons. Emperor Julius, his face grimmer than ever, gripped the armrest of his command chair, knuckles turning white with the strain. Freya, her white hair reflecting the harsh glow of the holographic displays, stood beside him, her lips pressed into a thin, determined line. The technicians, their initial awe replaced by a chilling dread, monitored the displays with trembling hands.

"What now, Your Majesty?" Freya's voice crackled over the comms, her tone betraying a sliver of doubt that had previously been absent.

Julius locked his gaze on the holographic image of the seemingly unfazed beast.

"We have one option left," he replied, his voice steady despite the churning fear in his

stomach. "Prepare the Aethon Project."