CHAPTER 69: GODFATHER

In this game, the arrogance of the Pioneers was evident in every corner of the world. They treated all other lifeforms as nothing more than test subjects. They built towering laser cannons, created Warpers, and slaughtered without hesitation any creature infected by the disease, no matter how rare or powerful.

Even the stongest creature, ruler of this planet’s oceans, was captured and imprisoned, reduced to nothing more than a tool for their experiments.

And yet, it was precisely this arrogance that doomed them.

They ignored the Sea Emperor’s attempts to communicate and in doing so, sealed their own fate.

It was almost... poetic.

A kind of fatalism carved into the very bones of this tragedy.

On screen, PureWhite seemed shaken by her words. He froze for a moment before finally asking,"But even if your children hatch, how will they leave? You’re trapped in a volcanic zone over a thousand meters deep. How can they possibly escape...?"

"Do not worry about that," the Sea Emperor replied softly. "Come with me."

She turned and glided to the far end of the pond. Then, using her insect like mouthparts, she blew a powerful stream of water across the seabed.The sand and silt scattered, revealing a massive stone gate, faint green runes etched into its surface.

"This," the Sea Emperor said, "is a space portal built by the Pioneers. Passing through it will take you directly to the outside world."

PureWhite swam closer, scanning the gate with his wrist console. Cortana’s voice confirmed her words, this portal could connect directly to the surface of the planet. However, it required an ion crystal to activate.

The audience wasn’t surprised.

If the Pioneers could create portable space splitters, then constructing a fixed teleportation gate was child’s play for them. Their technology was second to none.

"Viewers," PureWhite’s voice over added, "this portal requires ion crystals to work. You can find them inside Pioneer defense towers. Don’t forget to grab them when you play."

In the footage, he pulled an ion crystal from his inventory and slotted it into the groove beside the gate. A hum of energy pulsed through the structure, and a trail of emerald light rippled within the doorway.

"You can pass through here to reach the shallows and gather the materials for the hatching enzymes," the Sea Emperor explained. "When the time comes, my children will also be able to leave through this portal.I... am very tired now. Please, do it quickly. If I still live by then... I wish to see my children hatch. Thank you."

With that, she sank back to the bottom of the pond, her colossal body still, her breathing slow and heavy.

"Understood," PureWhite replied, before stepping through the portal.

A burst of warped green light swallowed his vision.When it faded, he found himself in an entirely different place, a shallow coastal zone bathed in sunlight.

Clear water surrounded him, and the golden light from above danced gently across the sand.

He surfaced almost immediately... and froze.Not far from him, rising from the sea like a fortress of steel, stood an enormous Pioneer defense tower.

"Whoa... this portal leads directly beneath a Pioneer turret?!"

"Then this must be the same ocean region the Sea Emperor once ruled. The Pioneers must have captured her from here and built that fort above her prison!"

"The devs really thought of everything. Once the disease is cured, you won’t have to make endless trips, you can just clear this tower directly."

The chat was buzzing with excitement, but PureWhite had no time to linger.

The portal was far too small for the Sea Emperor Leviathan’s colossal frame, so freeing her would never be as simple as walking her through it.

For now, the priority was clear, create the hatching enzyme.

As predicted earlier, the required ingredients were all common plants from the shallows. PureWhite gathered them in no time, then used a fabricator to produce the enzyme.

With the finished vial in hand, he returned through the portal to the Sea Emperor’s incubation chamber.

"Sea Emperor, I’ve made the hatching enzyme," PureWhite announced.

At the bottom of the pond, the massive figure stirred. Slowly, with effort, she lifted herself using the thick tentacles behind her. Her once strong voice was now faint, almost trembling.

"Thank you... The incubator was built by the Pioneers. It should still function. You only need to inject the enzyme into the machine."

Even through the translator, her weakness was clear. It was as if the weight of centuries pressed down on every word.

"Alright," PureWhite murmured. Under the game’s prompt, he carefully injected the hatching enzyme into the incubator.

Only seconds later, a miracle unfolded before his eyes.

The six Sea Emperor eggs resting above the machine, eggs that had lain dormant for who knows how many years, suddenly began to tremble. Dust that had settled thick on their shells shook loose, drifting away in the water.

The chat erupted with excitement.

"Whoa! PureWhite just injected the enzyme and they’re already hatching?!"

"Perfect timing!"

"Pure White’s basically their godfather now!"

"Look! They’re breaking out!"

As the audience chattered, a sharp cracking sound filled the water. One by one, the shells split apart, and six round heads emerged.

Of course, small was relative. Compared to their colossal mother, their heads seemed tiny, but each was still much larger than a human’s. Soon, the shells fully shattered, and the newborns wriggled free.

Each baby was roughly the size of an adult human. Their forms resembled their mother’s, but their heads were oversized, their round black eyes wide and shining like polished gems. Short, stubby forelimbs waved through the water as they darted around, radiating both cuteness and a hint of wildness.

"They’re adorable!"

"Look at those eyes! Like black pearls!"

"Baby animals are always cute... except maybe human ones."

"I’m tearing up. After this, I have to play Subnautica. I’m ready to be a godfather!"

The six little ones whirled through the water, spinning and rolling in pure joy. Their tiny tentacles swayed as they darted up and down, endlessly curious about the new world they’d just entered.

They had been trapped in those eggs for countless years. Now, finally free, they brimmed with restless energy.

Their mother lowered her immense body toward them, her eyes warm and gentle as she watched them play. The newborns, exhausted from their frenzy, quickly swam to her side, pressing their heads against hers in affection.

Then, the Sea Emperor raised her head and let out a soft cry, a sound so pure and melodic that the audience fell silent for a heartbeat.

"That’s... beautiful. Like a song."

"It’s almost sweet enough to hurt."

"This scene... this warmth... I don’t care how hard Subnautica is, I have to finish it now!"

In the game, PureWhite remained at a respectful distance. Even knowing it was just pixels and code, the moment felt too sacred to interrupt.

Then, something caught his eye. From each baby’s tentacles, a white, shimmering bubble floated upward into the water. It was a clear in game prompt.

PureWhite swam forward and activated Cortana’s scan. "This is Enzyme No. 31, sought after by the Pioneers. This substance can completely cure the Kharaa infection. Please touch it to be healed."

Without hesitation, he reached out. The moment his hands brushed the bubble, a cool, soothing sensation spread through his body. The infection, something the Pioneers had struggled for so long to overcome, was gone.

"Finally cured!"

"One player solved what the Pioneers couldn’t!"

"Alright, now it’s time to shut down that alien cannon!"

But before the audience’s cheers could continue, the Sea Emperor suddenly collapsed. Her massive body sank to the pond’s floor, stirring clouds of silt.

Her six children circled her anxiously, their large eyes filled with confusion and fear.

PureWhite swam over, already fearing the truth.

"Thank you," the Sea Emperor’s voice echoed faintly in his mind. "Thank you for letting me meet my children. I have no regrets. Before I go... what is your name?"

"...PureWhite," he answered softly, his voice trembling.

"Pure White... Thank you. I will take this beautiful memory with me. I have often wondered... what is death? Is it darkness? Or is it nothing at all, so empty you can’t even sense the dark?

"Perhaps, when next we meet, I will be no more than the soil of this world... or a grain of dust... or a tiny microbe drifting free in the currents. No longer so large, no longer bound. That, too, might be a wonderful life.

"All in all, my only friend... goodbye. I am glad I met you in my final days."

With those last words, the green light in her twin compound eyes dimmed completely.

"...The Sea Emperor is gone."

"She really was... a great mother."

"Damn it... my eyes are sweating."

"The devs just stabbed us right in the heart at the end."

"There’s no love greater than a parent’s..."

1496 Words.