"As long as it is creature, Zerg accept all comers." Doctor Flanx said while walking: "Dogs, cats, birds, even creatures in water—either they are devoured by Zerg or transformed into twisted deformed monsters. Maybe Zerg want to find some redundant parts from genes of these creatures, or maybe only to assimilate other species."
"Confederacy Zerg researchers have continuously recorded characteristics of Zerg they have discovered, and have found that every period of time Zerg appearing are different from individuals discovered first. New individuals either possess more efficient organs and muscles, or grow more solid carapace."
"It is foreseeable that Zerg will continue evolving. Finally, after infinitely endlessly long time, only Zerg will remain in this universe, and their forms will already have reached peak that organic lifeforms can reach, becoming ultimate rulers of universe."
"What did they come to Koprulu sector for?" Raynor asked doctor.
"To consume everything." Flanx said: "Zerg are locusts of universe. They continuously devour other races considered valuable in order to constantly optimize their own genes. On path of evolution it is either advance or retreat. Brilliance of civilizations and races in this universe may far exceed Terran imagination. We have a limited view."
"Terran are only coincidentally on Zerg hunting route, or said another way, sector we are in is very unfortunately exactly located inside Zerg hunting ground."
"Result is we can only consider ourselves unlucky?" Raynor said: "How many Zerg like these still exist, how many groups like Jormungandr still exist? I truly fear these bugs are even more numerous than bacteria in universe."
"Now, these are all unknown to us." Flanx said: "If lucky, Zerg will not care too much about existence of Terran, because aside from possessing developed brains we have nothing, and Zerg do not need brain capable of thinking. This very likely is gestalt-type race, they only possess one brain that thinks."
"Who controls Jormungandr swarm, and what is used to control it?" Augustus asked.
"Not clear, maybe all Zerg are extensions of same unified will." Doctor Flanx said. "But I roughly figured out how they coordinate attack timing and communication — psionics. In vast majority of Zerg, no psionics is found, yet Overlords possess obvious psionic power, and their intelligence also far surpasses their kin."
"This may be reason for Hydralisk riot at Umoja Cerberus research station. They are extremely sensitive to psionics." He said. "For Zerg, psionics is like one beam of light in extreme darkness, an irresistible lure."
"When psionics users or Confederacy Ghost operatives appear on battlefield, Zerg without exception become abnormally frenzied. When Terran psionics users release their psionic signal, it is equivalent to dripping one drop of blood into ocean full of sharks."
"We obtained file cabinets from Confederacy Zerg laboratories. Archives inside show Terran Confederacy is using attraction Zerg have toward psionics to manufacture one weapon."
"They want to use bugs to deal with us?" Raynor said in surprise. "Back in year 2485 was Confederacy already preparing to do that? But at that time Augustus was still in high school."
"Maybe it is not only that." Augustus said at this moment. "Confederacy must also have discovered Protoss long ago."
"Doctor, what is name of this weapon, how does it work, and has Confederacy developed prototype weapon?" Augustus had not yet had time to read report submitted by Revolutionary Army xenolaboratory after Chau Sara evacuation operation.
"Confederacy researchers named this weapon psionics emitter. As name suggests, it emits psionic signal. It is like firing extremely bright, long-burning flare in dark universe without any light."
"Hydralisks can sense distance of Terran psionics users at about five yards, and Confederacy use method in very simple way." Doctor Flanx finally brought Augustus and others to one prototype weapon platform.
This prototype weapon looked like only square black box. Box was locked with simple clasps, with many pairs of signal lights of unclear purpose on outside.
"Just like I amplify voice, psionic voice can also be amplified, because that itself is another wavelength of signal." He said.
"As long as this signal is continuously amplified, then for Zerg this distance is no longer merely five yards."
"But twenty-five light-years."
"This is the prototype we manufactured according to the Confederacy's design blueprints." Flanx pointed at the prototype weapon platform and said: "Of course, its effect is not ideal, and it can only cover a few square miles."
"Research on the Psionic Emitter is still at an early stage. The original research cycle expected by the Confederacy should have been 5 to 10 years. There are still many imperfections in the prototype's design."
"Compared with the final envisioned result in the Confederacy's blueprints, the so-called ability to attract Zerg from the entire universe is still far from achievable, and there remains a great deal of room for improvement."
"In other words, this is like throwing a piece of candy into an ant pile." Raynor shook his head: "But once it sticks onto Zerg, can there still be any salvation… truly vicious. I dare say this was absolutely that old hag of the Tygore Old Family's idea."
"How is it used?" Augustus finally threw out one more question.
"We absolutely must not use this kind of thing. This is opening Pandora's box!" Raynor's eyes widened as he spoke in disbelief.
"Of course it is impossible to use it against our own planet." Only Kerrigan understood what Augustus was thinking inside: "And the Psionic Emitter can be thrown onto an uninhabited planet to protect a planet that is currently on the Zerg's route of attack. We can even let the Swarm move along a route we have planned, avoiding planets with dense populations."
"The Psionic Emitter needs a level-5 or above psionic user as the signal emission source to activate it." Dr. Flanx answered: "What the Psionic Emitter emits is precisely the psionic signal of the activator."
"Place this weapon under level-7 confidentiality." Augustus looked at Flanx and spoke.
Level 7 was already the highest confidentiality degree of the Terran Confederacy, and Augustus's Revolutionary Army had inherited this standard. Before this, such projects usually included the resocialization engineering program, the Ghost Program, and the existence of the Zerg and Protoss.
"We must also research the Psionic Emitter. Although I do not wish for the day to come when we need to use it, it is better for me to have it than for someone else to have it while I do not." At the same time, Augustus also made a silent decision that Kerrigan must absolutely never activate a Psionic Emitter. With Kerrigan's psionic strength and her special significance to the Overmind and the Swarm, the Zerg attracted at that time would likely be far more than within 25 light-years—certainly not just one or two Brood detachments.
"No matter what, if there is a sword, the ones wielding it must be us."
After Augustus finished speaking, he silently looked at the black box on the prototype weapon platform for a long time, until that black box was wrapped by a blue plasmatic light screen that closed over it.
"Let's go. Let me see the monsters you mentioned." Augustus waved his hand.
Upon hearing this, Dr. Flanx immediately led Augustus and the others toward the other end of the laboratory. There, the laboratory had already been completely transformed into a cage, inside which were held all kinds of infected individuals.
The forms of bodily mutation in these infected were almost no different from the several corpses Augustus had seen at the entrance. The fanged, sharp teeth from the xenomorph and the violet-black carapace had turned them into one hideous monster after another, and the skin exposed outside was covered in ugly pustules, spikes, and twitching tendons and veins.
Unlike the corpses lying on the dissection table waiting for autopsy, the infected locked inside the cage were clearly still "alive." Their knees and elbows were all twisted, and their lower legs and forearms bent to inconceivable angles, as if their limbs had been broken and then stitched back together with threads.
"They"—these beings that once could be called Terran—shuffled and staggered like puppets with their strings pulled, occasionally letting out beast-like roars. Thick flesh-colored tendrils filled their gaping mouths, and green acidic fluid and nauseating mucus flowed from mouths that could no longer close, dripping onto the ground.
"Before they were infected, they were once Los Andares's sheriffs, construction workers, doctors… before infection, everything is equal." Flanx said to Augustus.
"Marshal, please keep your distance. These infected are quite special. Compared with other ordinary infected, their bodies have undergone a certain terrifying mutation."
"Their bodies are filled with a large amount of unstable chemical substances. These chemical substances can be triggered by a kind of Zerg enzyme, producing a world-destroying explosion." He emphasized this to Augustus.
"Although we have added enough protective measures, please make sure to stay far from these monsters."
"You are saying 'world-destroying'? Just how world-destroying?" Raynor did not quite believe it: "You must know they were just ordinary Terrans before, some of them had not even done farm work."
"When these infected detonate the unstable chemical substances inside their bodies together, it is enough to destroy this enormous scientific research laboratory. Its power is proportional to the amount of chemical substances in the infected's bodies." Flanx added.
"But the stench produced at the moment of explosion is also at a world-destroying level, and its effect is equivalent to a kind of biochemical poison gas."
Dr. Flanx must have once experienced the explosion he was describing, to the point that he even shivered with lingering fear while speaking.
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