Under the black-gem-like night sky, the "Destroyer" meteorite, which had shrunk in size but was still oppressive to humanity, was wrapped in countless force fields flashing with brilliant, multicolored light, suspended in midair.
Admittedly, the sight was very sci-fi and shocking.
But Alex wanted to curse.
'What happened to the meteorite falling from the sky?'
'What happened to the end of the world?'
'I had already written the script, and now you're just going to stop in midair and not come down!'
'Is all my work for nothing?'
Alex immediately felt as though he had been toyed with.
However, at present, Alex was probably the only person in the entire world who was unhappy.
Everyone else was delighted because the "Destroyer" had stopped in midair and showed no further movement.
"Look, the 'Destroyer' has stopped. This proves that the alien life-forms inside the meteorite didn't come here to destroy Earth."
"Right, they might have come to help humanity."
"The Aerospace Administration acted far too rashly. They didn't even know what was inside the meteorite, yet they wanted to destroy it."
"Fortunately, the 'Destroyer' only destroyed the spacecraft. It didn't get angry because of that, it didn't cause any destruction, and it didn't turn around and leave."
"Everyone, I think we shouldn't call it the 'Destroyer' anymore. If it's here to help humanity, then we should call it the 'Gospel'!"
All kinds of opinions spread across the internet.
At the same time, the Federation also made a bold decision.
Several helicopters took off from a military airfield and headed toward the vicinity of the "Destroyer" meteorite to investigate.
While people speculated about the super meteorite suspended in midair, and while the Federation actively began taking action, the pits created by the meteor shower were filled with masses of liquid-like things writhing around.
Taking advantage of the shadows around them, they hid themselves, and whenever a human or animal passed by, these things would attach themselves to the creature's body and then mimic the clothes or fur covering its body.
In this way, these things quietly and unnoticed parasitized suitable hosts.
Afterward, whether human or animal, every creature that had been parasitized began making its way toward New York.
———
[White House, New York]
The Secretary of Defense rubbed his temples, holding a cup of coffee as he found a quiet corner and sat down.
He was exhausted. He had basically gotten no sleep for the past few days.
Now that the "Destroyer" was suspended in midair, seemingly bringing a new turn of events, the secretary couldn't help but relax somewhat.
Once a person relaxed, they would feel tired, especially after being busy for several days.
So as soon as he sat down, the secretary began to doze off.
No one noticed that something was writhing in the patch of shadow behind him.
It was a mass of pitch-black liquid, but within it, points of dazzling light like red gemstones flickered.
It came beneath the Secretary of Defense's chair, then the strange mass began climbing up the chair.
When it came into contact with the chair, its surface mimicked the chair's color and sheen.
This made it difficult to notice from a distance, especially in the dead of night.
Before long, it had climbed onto the chair and slipped through a gap, beginning to make contact with the Secretary of Defense.
It spread piece by piece from behind onto the secretary's back. Once it was fully prepared, countless things as fine as ox-hair needles emerged from its inner side.
These things easily pierced through the Secretary of Defense's clothes and into the skin beneath.
The Secretary of Defense suddenly opened his eyes. He tried to call out, only to discover that he couldn't control his body.
Then a voice echoed through his mind.
["You're mine now!"]
["I am 'Black Skeleton,' and I am your eternal master!"]
The Secretary of Defense looked horrified. Then he watched himself stand up. His clothes writhed and changed for a moment before becoming no different from normal.
But by then, he could no longer control his own words or actions.
The billions upon billions of fine needles from the creature known as "Black Skeleton" that had pierced into his body had completely taken control of his nerves and muscles.
They turned him into a puppet on strings, making him the vehicle of "Black Skeleton."
———
[White House]
[Inside the President's Office]
Archibald was watching the screen in front of him. On the screen, several military helicopters had already approached the "Destroyer."
An official recorder aboard one of the helicopters was livestreaming with a camera. At this moment, the camera turned downward, allowing Archibald and the other officials to see several rooftops below where fanatics had lit bonfires and were holding up banners.
They were covered with slogans such as "Earth Welcomes You."
Without a doubt, they were alien fanatics.
The camera then turned toward the "Destroyer" meteorite, which was protected by layers upon layers of force fields. One of the helicopters got too close and suddenly lost power. As alarms blared, it was pulled toward the force field.
The moment the helicopter touched the force field, it began twisting and deforming on its own. In the blink of an eye, it turned into a mass of scrap metal, like a paper airplane crumpled into a ball, and remained attached to the force field.
This made the remaining helicopters afraid to get too close.
Then the helicopter's loudspeaker sounded.
["We are humans from Earth. We request to communicate with the intelligent life-forms inside the meteorite."]
The loudspeaker continuously switched between different languages, from the Federation's English to French, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and others.
However, even after they had spoken every language on Earth, including some ancient languages that had already been lost, there was still no response from inside the "Destroyer" meteorite.
An official asked in confusion, "Could it be that they're not intelligent life-forms and can't communicate?"
"After all, for a civilization capable of interstellar travel, language shouldn't be an obstacle."
Before Archibald could respond, a voice came from outside the door.
"No, communication is possible."
One after another, everyone's eyes turned toward the Secretary of Defense.
The Secretary of Defense walked in, looked around, and finally fixed his gaze on President Archibald.
"My host tells me that you are one of the most powerful people on this planet, as well as the leader of this country."
"So I believe you should be qualified to speak with me."
Archibald froze for a moment, "What are you talking about? What host? Have you been drinking?"
"No, I haven't consumed any alcohol."
The clothes behind the Secretary of Defense writhed. Suddenly, they transformed into pitch-black liquid flickering with red light.
It rose up, forming a featureless figure.
The Secretary of Defense's mouth opened and closed as he spoke, "I am 'Black Skeleton,' the spokesperson chosen by the great 'Hive.'"
"I'm pleased to tell you that this planet has been deemed habitable by the 'Hive.'"
"The Hive will remain on this planet until all of its energy has been absorbed by the Hive."
"During this period, you humans will need to provide us with 'food.'"
"We feed on the blood of living organisms. I hope you can regularly provide us with human hosts."
"We will parasitize their bodies and feed on their blood."
"In return, we will restrain our own kind and do our best to allow your species to continue."
"So, rejoice."
"At least you can survive, Mr. President."
"You will be the bridge of communication between us and humanity. We will allow you to retain your own will."
"On the condition that you cooperate with us."
"So, do you have any questions?"
Archibald was dumbfounded.
Then he realized something.
"You said 'you.' How many of you are there?"
The Secretary of Defense spoke mechanically, "You can look outside the window."
Archibald turned around, only to discover that at some point, figures and all kinds of animals had appeared outside the window.
[T/N: I think, I have seen that somewhere.]
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