Suddenly, the ground beneath the surface chamber trembled violently. A deafening rumble echoed through the tunnels eerily synchronized with a series of faint, pulsating sounds emanating from deep within the planet's crust. The ancient relics and glyphs lining the chamber flickered wildly as seismic activity intensified.
Esharok's eyes widened in horror.
"It's begun," he rasped, voice trembling. "The creature… it is waking."
From the abyssal depths beneath the planet's surface, a writhing, dark mass pushed upward a colossal form shrouded in shadow, with countless jagged teeth flashing in the faint light filtering through cracks in the crust.
It was the Krymaloth.
The Krymaloth: The Silent BehemothA race of ancient, planetary-devouring worms long thought to be myth plunged into legend and recorded data as the Krymaloth. Crafted by the Silent Ones eons ago, this monstrous race was purposefully planted on planets like this one in a desperate effort to prevent recovery, to erase the worlds and their remnants for all eternity.
Their segmented, armored bodies unfurled like a vast, writhing nightmare, with a hundred giant, gleaming teeth each razor-sharp and capable of tearing through stone, metal, and flesh alike cascading in waves as they extended upwards from the planet's core.
A living, breathing nightmare from the void.
Saumu's Swift Action back aboard the Giza Mtuji, her mind sharpened at the sight of the planet's surface convulsing. She immediately clenched her fists, her voice ringing with authority through the ship's channels.
"Engage fighters and bombers target that creature immediately! Do not let it reach the surface destroy it with everything we have!"
Her pilots responded instantly, switching to combat protocols. Fighters streaked toward the planet's surface, armed with plasma cannons, shadow missiles, and nanobot swarms designed to weaken and disintegrate organic monsters.
"Use orbital bombardments," Saumu continued, eyes narrowing. "Raze the region before it can spread do not give it time to reveal itself fully."
Simultaneously, the ship's scientific team hidden in their labs and war rooms had already begun decrypting the data streaming from the ship's advanced analyzers.
Discovery: The Origin of the KrymalothOne of the lead xenoscientists, Dr. Malika, was frantically analyzing the incoming data. Her eyes widened as she uncovered the truth.
"This species," she announced, voice tense with excitement and dread, "is known as the Krymaloth a race of parasitic, worm-like entities originally created by the Silent Ones. Their purpose was to act as planetary-scale tools of destruction planted deep beneath worlds to feed, grow, and then unleash devastation when commanded."
Her fingers danced across the holographic displays.
"The data indicates this particular Krymaloth was deliberately seeded here intentionally placed to prevent any recovery or colonization. It's what they used on other worlds, too, in the past each one eradicated to ensure no one could rise from the ashes."
Her expression darkened as she added, "This isn't just a beast it's a biological weapon, a failsafe embedded by the Silent Ones to prevent any threat of resurgence. And now, it has begun to feed."
The Battle UnfoldsThe Giza Mtuji's fighters and bombers engaged the writhing form of the Krymaloth, blazing with all their weaponry. Explosions rocked the creature's armored segments, causing it to thrash wildly, spewing debris, dark ichor, and bursts of shockwave energy.
Despite their efforts, its titanic body churned and lurched, feeding on the planet's core with relentless hunger. The silence of the crew was deafening as the ship's sensors tracked the beast's movements its teeth gnashing, seeking to emerge fully into the surface.
"Keep up the assault," Saumu ordered, her voice tight with frustration. "We cannot let it escape no matter what it takes!"
The Krymaloth was a living record of long-forgotten warfare brought back from the depths deliberately to ensure the silent erasure of this world, and perhaps much more.
The battle for this forsaken world had only just begun.