A huge spaceship that looks like a Hercules beetle, overshadowed the forests as it flies over it. The forest is no normal forest. Its trees are taller than buildings. It has roots that are as big as a house or maybe even bigger. It has vines that are thick as a school bus. Yet, up in the sky, the whole forest looks like a grass and the huge spaceship is like a bug hovering over it.

The huge spaceship continues to hover until it reaches the middle part of the forest, and where it lands. Some parts of the giant trees were burned after the spaceship tries to land. After landing successfully, the huge door at the back of the spaceship opens up like the mouth of a giant monster.

A huge man wearing a thick military space suit standing at the door. He looks like a tired old man with a disfigured face. Like someone burned or thrown acid in his face. His hair is white and thin like a newborn baby. He has big arms, thin legs with small hands and feet.

He looks around before descending from the spaceship. As he descends, an army of huge soldiers who all looked alike, marched in sync and followed him.

The soldiers are huge. Their bodies looked like a huge ball with a head, arms, and legs. They have big arms and legs, but small hands and feet and barely have any neck. The soldiers are wearing metal armor, covered in mud and rust. Their head is not that big, yet they are wearing a small metal mask barely covering their whole face. The mask covers their mouth and nose. They have blood-red robotic eyes. Each soldier is carrying the same weapon. An assault rifle, a sidearm, and machete on their waist.

The man with the disfigured face looks at his hand and a hologram map shows up. He followed the red dot that's blinking on the hologram map. There are ruins around the forest, but barely visible because of the moss and grass that covered it. Sign that there was a civilization that stood there before. There is also wreckage of old spaceships, indicating that a war happened a long time ago. The ugly man and his army continue walking until the hologram map made a weird sound. He had reached the center of the forest, where the biggest tree grows.

The tree is much bigger compared to the other giant trees. The Soldiers are like insects in front of the tree. Under its roots, a stone wall stood erect. It was barely recognizable since it was covered with moss and some roots.

The man with the disfigured face approached the stone wall and wipe out some moss. He smiled after seeing that the white stone wall. His smile looks creepy and disgusting because of his disfigured and ugly face. He turns around to face his soldiers and ordered them. "Bring out the rift-reactor"

Another group of soldiers came out of the huge spaceship. Four soldiers are carrying a machine that looks like a huge laser cannon. Behind them is a creature with a giant human head and a wide face. It doesn't have a body. Instead, it has six mechanical legs like lobster. Two mechanical claws like a crab with cannons in the middle of the claws, and a tail like a scorpion.

The soldiers and the giant head follow the path that the man with a disfigured made. After reaching the location of the giant tree, the soldiers placed the cannon in front of the stone wall and moved away.

The creature with the giant human head is standing behind the cannon. The man with the disfigured face approached the giant head. The giant head didn't even look at him. Instead, in a hoarse voice, the giant head said: "Is everything, ready Captain?"

The man with the disfigured face stand firm and answered: "Yes Colonel. We have everything is in place. Now, all we need to do is open the gate."

The giant head smiled and said: "That's good to hear, Captain. Now use this and power up the reactor for me." A soldier approached them carrying an open chest with a transparent-blue crystal.

The Captain grabs the crystal and raised it toward the sun like he is trying to check the content inside the crystal.

"Colonel, are you sure that this is the real thing?"

"What are you implying? Are you questioning my capabilities, Captain?"

The man with a disfigured face look at the giant head and answered in a wobbly voice: "N-no Colonel. That's not what I meant. It's just that, the collector is infamous for selling counterfeit across the galaxy."

"Oh!... I am well aware of how the collector does his business. But I assure you, Captain. What you are holding right now is the real rift key... And if it's not, I will make sure that the only thing the collector will be collecting is his dismembered body." He smiles as he said it. "Now go, and open up the gate for me."

The man with a disfigured face did not answer. He just stands firm again and nods to the giant head. He approached the rift reactor and placed the crystal inside the canon before giving the order: "Power up the rift reactor!"

The soldier who was assigned to powering up the reactor connect the two thick wire. One end connected to the reactor, while the other connected to their ship.

The reactor produced a defining sound and a ball of blue light shows up at the end of it. Like laser cannon charging before firing. After reaching 100%, it fired a laser directly to the stone wall. All the moss and vines that grew and attached to the wall were slowly burned and disintegrate. The reactor continued firing a laser on the stone wall until a portal was created.

The creature with a giant human head smile after seeing the portal. He felt a tremendous joy seeing the portal open, the same goes to the man with the disfigured face.

"Finally!" Said the giant head smiling. "It's within my grasp now."

"The Queen mother will be pleased." The man with the disfigured face added.

"Ah! Yes, the Queen." Said the giant head in a low voice and then in a loud voice, he gave an order to the man with the disfigured face. "Captain! Prepare your men to enter the portal and leave half of them here to guard the reactor. I don't want any maggots spoiling this day and make sure that the portal stays open."

"Understood, Colonel." He answered.

There are at least a hundred soldiers in the area. Half of them left behind to guard the portal and the reactor. While the other half enter the portal to secure the area.

The man with the disfigured face enters the portal, followed by the giant head and with the remaining soldiers. The whole place is different from where they came from. It's like they were inside the ruins under the tree. There are giant roots along the hallway and it looks like it is going to collapse. Even though it been centuries old and its already in ruin. There are still light inside the whole place, also some traps are still active. There are laser turrets hidden in the ceiling or walls. There are other various traps that will be activated in one wrong move. Aside from the debris on the floor of the destroyed ceiling, the whole place is still neat and looks clean. The place looks abandoned and yet it feels like there is someone or something lurking inside the place.

The man with the disfigured head checks his hologram map again. But this time the hologram doesn't show any red dot on the map. To be sure that nobody is inside and to avoid any ambush, the man with disfigured face gave out an order: "Eight of you follow us, the rest spread out! Look for any sign of life form in this area. Alert us when you find something"

Every soldier produces their own rumble sound like an answer. All of them are unable to talk, much less make a proper sound. Like a dog who doesn't know how to bark in a correct way. That is why there is no consistency in the sound they make whenever they answer. But this kind of thing is already expected to them since they were made that way. No feelings, except pure loyalty to their ranking officials and to their kind. Especially to their Queen and Empress. No emotions, that is why they don't fear anything and will follow any orders. And enough intelligence to follow orders and complete any task that was given. The soldiers are like zombies with brains or robots with flesh, able to follow any given command without question. A perfect soldier.

The man with the disfigured face and the giant head, continue on following the huge hallway. The design of the place is simple. The walls are white and the doors and every corner is made out of gold. It was well built since it didn't collapse even after it was attacked during the war and some roots went inside.

The giant head and the man with a disfigured head, continue walking until they reach the end of the hallway. There is a huge golden door that blocked their path. The golden door looks thick and heavy. There is no sign on how to open it.

If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

The man with the disfigured face scans the place for any means of opening the door. After making sure that there is no way to open it he approached the door and touched it and said: "This must be it. But how are we going to open this? Will our bombs are sufficient enough to destroy this Colonel?"

"Captain, oh my Captain. Why do you always want to blow things up? There are gentle ways to open this door without using any explosives. All it needs is a gentle touch and it will open. Here, let me show you."

The giant head pierces its mechanical feet into the floor. He raises his scorpion-like tail and points it toward the door. The end of his tail transformed into some kind of a cannon with a huge barrel. It started gathering some yellow lights toward the end of the barrel and after charging to maximum power, it fired its cannon.

The blast of the cannon was so powerful, the man with a disfigured face and its soldiers were blown away. The huge ammo that came out to the cannon went straight to the door. The impact on the door was so powerful it was able to force open the huge thick door. Even though blast and impact were able to open the door forcefully, the door is still intact. The bullet just gave the door a small residue.

The recoil of the powerful shot is so strong that it pushed back the giant head. Even though he already pierced its feet on the ground he was still pushed back, five meters away from where he was standing.

The giant head was shocked to its power and yet he said boastfully: "I told you, Captain, all you need is a gentle touch and it will open" Followed by a boastful laugh.

"Is that a new weapon Colonel?" The man with the disfigured face asked as he tried to stand up after being blown away. "I can't believe the firepower it has."

"Yes, and the good part is, this is just a mere prototype. A mini version of the original cannon that our engineers are trying to build. Our engineers are trying to develop a cannon, powerful enough to destroy a ship in a single shot. Although it is powerful. I can only fire this baby once. It requires a single fortress ammo and a huge amount of energy in every shot. Since my energy is limited and I can only carry one fortress ammo. Although this is a mini version of the original canon. It supposed to have the same amount of firepower of our fortress cannon. But our engineers decided to reduce its firepower in half. They say that it will only destroy me if they put the same amount of firepower of our fortress cannon to this small body. At first, I was mad for reducing its firepower, but after experiencing its power first hand. I'm glad that they reduced it in half, or else it might be the end of me."

"Pity, it can only be shot once. With that kind of firepower, I bet you can also one shot the Sentient Beings."

"Like I said Captain, this is just a mere prototype. This type of firepower is not enough to destroy a Sentient being. But maybe once I got a new body, I can fire this baby more than once, and I can even raise its firepower to the maximum. With that kind of power, combined with the weapon of the Sentient being, our empire will be unstoppable." Said the giant head followed by a devilish laugh.

"I could not wait for that day to come to Colonel."

"Soon my young Captain. Soon. But for now, let's go and get my prize."

The giant head and the man with the disfigured face enter the room followed by the remaining four soldiers.

The room is not that big, not bigger than a basketball court. There are roots inside the room that looks like trees. There is nothing worth seeing inside the room, except for the huge fountain in the center. The huge fountain has continuous and overflowing water. The water on the fountain keeps pushing upward but being prevented by something. On top of the water lies a cryogenic pod that is perfectly balanced.

The giant head and the man with a disfigured face can't stop smiling. They approached the fountain. The giant head stopped in front of the fountain, avoiding any contact with the water. He looked at the old man with a disfigured face and the man with the disfigured face looked at him as well. The giant head commanded his captain to go ahead by waving his claws toward the cryogenic pod.

The man with a disfigured look hesitant, but he doesn't have a choice. He was going to step on the water and approach the fountain when he saw his soldiers. He smiled and ordered his soldiers.

"You four! Get up there and bring me that cryopod."

The four soldiers followed his orders and went straight to the fountain. Nothing happens to them aside from getting wet. They lift up the cryogenic pod out of the fountain and the water reached the ceiling. Making the whole place wet, including the soldiers and their ranking officials. Because of the continuous water of the fountain, the whole room looks like it's raining.

The man with the disfigured face wiped his face to remove some water and approached the cryogenic pod to check its content. He wipes the glass, but unable to see anything. He looks at the giant head and said:

"Are you sure that this is the right one Colonel?"

The giant head did not answer but approached them instead. He is starting to doubt if there is something inside the cryogenic pod or if he is already too late. He wants to make sure that one he is looking is still inside, before presenting it to their Queen mother.

"Open it." He said while facing the cryogenic pod and the man with the disfigured face.

The man with the disfigured face grabs the machete on one of his soldiers. The machete is made out of metal but its blade is made of a laser. This way, no matter how many times the soldier uses the machete, it will remain sharp. He stabbed the cryogenic pod and sliced it like butter and forcefully open it. The giant head smiles widely after seeing what is inside the cryogenic pod.

Inside the cryogenic pod lies a robot. It looks like a full-grown man wearing a full body mechanical suit made of iron. Its whole body is gray, its head is like a helmet of medieval knight's armor. Its eyes, the palm of his hands and sole of its shoes are pitch black. There's a letter J engraved on his left chest.

The man with disfigured face raised its hand it's going to stab the robot when the giant head stopped him.

"No, Captain. This one is mine. I am going to turn this one into one of our loyal soldiers and this will be the first of many. With this type of army combined with our latest weaponry. The empire will be unstoppable and I, Colonel Europa, will lead everyone on a mission to conquering the whole system." The giant head can't stop laughing.

The left hand of the old man with a disfigured face started making some weird sound. He checked his hand and a hologram of his soldiers shows up. He smiles and said: "Looks like our boys found a Sentient's fighter ship and they are currently looting everything inside the ship."

The giant head was surprised at the good news that he heard. He looked at the man with the disfigured face and said:

"Looks like I will be able to acquire more than I plan to. Come, Captain, let us go and claim another prize."

"Yes, Colonel." Replied the man with a disfigured face. He looks at his soldiers

and said: "Bring that cryo-pod to the ship."

The soldiers lift the cryo-pod and walked toward the ship. The giant head and the old man with a disfigured face follow the hologram map where their soldiers are located.

They reached another door but this time the door automatically open itself after they stand in front of it. They are now outside of the ruins. The place is not that different from the forest they came from. There are huge trees and ruins but there's a ship pad with a black spaceship.

The ship is small compared to the ship where the giant head and the man with disfigured face came from. But it is big enough to accommodate 10 huge soldiers. It got a huge three thrusters and no visible weapons.

The soldiers are going back and forth inside the ship. Looting every item they can find. The giant head was surprised when he saw the ship in front of him. He can't stop himself from smiling and then he starts laughing uncontrollably.

The man with a disfigured face look at him and asked: "What is wrong Colonel?"

The giant head steps forward, amazed at what he is seeing and said.

"I just could not believe the good fortune I have today. Captain, you are well aware of the Sentient's ship right?"

"How could I not? Those pests are using it to roam freely across the galaxy and I must admit, those ships are quite fast."

"Yes! The Sentient ships are well known for their unparalleled speed. It can reach any planet in the solar system in minutes. But do you know that there is one ship that is faster than any other Sentient ship?" The man with the disfigured face turns his head and look at the giant head. The giant head is still smiling and looking at the ship. He then continues.

"...And that ship is called the Black Comet. I could not believe that I am looking at it right now. The Black Comet was supposed to be used during the ancient war. But before it can even be used, it went missing. The Sentient was not able to replicate or reproduce another Black Comet after their downfall. Up to this day, no other ship can match its speed. They say that it was destroyed during the war. But here it is, unscathed even after centuries of staying here. Patiently waiting for me to use its maximum potential. Come, Captain, we are going to take his ship as well."

The left hand of the old man with a disfigured face started to make a weird sound again.

"What is it, Captain?" Asked the giant head.

"There seems to be a problem Colonel, a Sentient ship was seen approaching our ship."

"No! No-no-no! This can't be happening. Captain, I want you to secure the cryo-pod, I'll handle this pest."

"Understood."

The two of them split up. The man with a disfigured face went back to the place where the giant door is located, while the giant head went to straight to the portal. He ran as fast as he could to reach the portal. After going out of the portal he looks up in the sky looking for the approaching sentient ship. He then orders his soldiers: "Bring me our fortress ammo!"

The soldiers run toward the ship and brought out some a huge ammo. The giant head grabs a huge bullet using his giant claw and placed it in front of his tail. The tail transformed itself and swallowed the bullet. He then pierced his feet to the ground the same thing that he did when he blasted the door. Once again the tail transformed into a canon.

The giant head scans the whole area for the sign of an approaching ship. After seeing the approaching ship. He locks on target and began charging its weapon. The canon started gathering a yellow light toward its barrel. Even after reaching the maximum power, he continues to gather some more power. A yellow orb started to form at the end of the of his barrel.

The giant head patiently waits for the ship to approach its firing range. When the ship entered his firing range. He shot it down. The bullet pierced the approaching ship, causing it to crash in a nearby tree and explode.

The blast of his canon is much powerful than the previous shot that he made when he forcefully opens the giant door. The soldiers nearby were blown away by the blast, almost damaging the rift reactor. The giant head was also pushed back 9 meters away from where he was standing earlier.

The giant head smiles after seeing the results of what he did. He was happy to see that a sentient ship was shot down in one shot. He called his Captain to boast his achievement.

"Captain, what is your status there? I already shot down the enemy ship."

His smiles turn to sour when he heard the other side. The Captain did not respond to him, all he heard was scream and gunfire.