The Spider Queen

(Unova Syndicate- Planet T'ramran)

(Unknown Location)

"Spread out and capture the target," a loud voice echoed through the clearing.

A military officer with several badges prominently displayed on his uniform stood in front of the mercenary teams that were assigned to this mission.

An anonymous report had been sent to command center with information that an Earth Federation scout was hiding on this planet.

While the information could not be verified, there was no harm in sending out a small group of hired warriors to double check.

Sophie wiped sweat off her brow as she stood quietly in the shadow of a large tree with purple leaves.

This planet was a nightmare.

It was barely developed and over ninety percent of its habitable zone was covered in lush green rainforests.

It was hot and humid with constant hissing noises filling the air from the uncountable insect-like creatures that crawled through the bushes.

Lily, the two survivors and a few mirror copies of Sophie were still onboard the spacecraft hovering above the planet's atmosphere.

After going over the details about this mission, Sophie had decided to go personally as the representative of their crew.

Now she was mixed in with a group of strange warriors and fighters while being stuck in the middle of a forest.

Sophie absentmindedly played with a stick in her hand as she listened to the military officer's speech.

"Although you should have already reviewed the relevant information about this mission, I will once again go over the details," Lt. Xerane explained in a firm tone.

"We have received news that a spy may be lurking on this planet and it is your mission to locate the enemy. Please remember to capture and do not kill."

"There is a time limit to this mission and if nothing is found in forty-eight hours then it will be declared a failure."

"You will then immediately return to your starships and head towards your next assignment."

Sophie glanced at the other warriors who were stretching lazily or just chatting quietly among themselves.

Truthfully, even the higher ups of the Unovan military did not expect the mercenary teams to find the scout.

Earth Federation scouts were equipped with devices that blocked life scans so the task of finding them had to be done manually.

Planet T'ramran was largely unexplored so there were numerous hiding places where the scout could safely wait until the search parties left.

Sophie only decided to go personally once she knew that it was a Federation scout that the Unovan military were targeting.

If she could make contact with the scout first then it would be possible to send a message directly to the Imperial Army.

Lt. Xerane coughed awkwardly as no one responded after his speech. He sighed heavily before signalling to the mercenaries to disperse.

Sophie decided to go first and immediately headed in a north-eastern direction.

Even if other teams wanted to follow her, she planned on losing them immediately.

She could hear the footsteps of the other warriors gradually soften as she walked further. Apparently the rest of the mercenary teams had decided to separate in different directions.

Slash! Slash!

It was incredibly convenient to have blade-like appendages attached to your back since Sophie was able to easily cut through the vines and plants blocking her path.

She casually pierced a worm-like monster that emerged from the ground with a sharp stab of her barbed tip.

Purple blood spurted out of the monster's wound and a screech of pain could be heard coming out of a hole on its belly.

Sophie promptly finished the job by ripping out its throat using her claws and a tantalising smell soon entered her nostrils.

The hybrid girl sniffed the air twice before approaching the warm corpse and reaching into its abdominal region.

She grabbed a bluish-white organ that was pulsating slightly and then shoved it into her mouth without hesitation.

Sophie chewed twice before swallowing the meat with a loud gulp. The texture of the flesh was quite rubbery and the taste could only be described as unpleasant.

But this poor tasting meat was not without benefit since Sophie could now sense a warm current of energy flow into her dantian.

"Not bad," Sophie whispered as she continued on her journey.

She had to admit that there was a special sense of beauty in places untouched by intelligent life.

The jungle was primal and fierce. Tall trees were present as far as the eye could see and small droplets of moisture could be seen on the leaves.

Sophie experienced several more attacks from the local wildlife but none posed any sort of threat to her.

It was just unfortunate that only the worm-like monster contained an inner organ that provided her with energy.

Sophie's pointed ears flickered back and forth as she constantly listened to the surrounding noises for any strange sounds.

Her golden eyes darkened as her vision was enhanced several times over. Sophie could now spot tiny thorns growing on a flower several hundred meters away.

Hunt.

Sophie felt a rush of bloodlust as the thrill of a hunt made goosebumps appear on her arm.

There was prey to be found…

"No.. no… calm down," Sophie growled as she dug her nails into the palm of her hand. This sudden sharp burst of pain allowed her to regain some control over her mental state.

Using her abilities to find the scout was not an option since Sophie's wasn't sure if she would be able to resist the urge to kill him.

The hybrid girl trekked forward while carefully observing the ground for any footsteps or signs of life.

Although that was assuming that the scout was a human or mendolesa since the other two races of the Federation could technically fly.

Quafes could shapeshift to give their bodies additional appendages in order to enable flight while Servies naturally had translucent wings.

Splash!

A loud noise caught Sophie's attention as it came from a location just beyond a grove of densely packed shrubbery.

The hybrid girl's figure flickered and then vanished from the spot as she activated her movement speed technique to close the distance.

There was a beautiful deep blue puddle of water hidden behind the bushes with a tiny humanoid figure splashing around inside.

Its body was strangely similar to Sophie's own and the humanoid even had the same blade-like appendages jutting out of its back.

"Help me!" the creature cried out desperately.

Sophie stepped forward in a daze and entered the water in order to rescue the mysterious figure.

Just as her hands were about to touch its skin….

Sophie suddenly stopped moving.

A conflicted expression surfaced on the hybrid girl's face as something didn't seem quite right about the situation.

There was a voice inside her mind telling her not to touch the helpless creature but… wasn't saving her the right thing to do?

She needed to save her!

Sophie was drowning and she needed help!

Wait… am I Sophie?

No… there no…are there two…. Sophie?

The hybrid girl grabbed her head in pain and swung her fist forward at the pool of water using all the strength that she could muster.

BOOM!

Sophie could hear the sound of what appeared to be glass shattering as the illusion was broken.

She looked up to see a handsome Servie wearing the Imperial Army uniform looking at her in complete shock.