Chapter 84: “Son of the Sun.”

Azul had a dream.

He was adventuring on the sun, his tail swinging high.

The sun was not always a solid surface that he could step on.

More often, it was a thin layer of gas.

Azul had nowhere to put his feet and could only return resentfully.

The next time he went to the same place, the gas layer had already condensed into crystals.

Azul asked his mother, when will all this gas become a place I can step on?

His mother said, that’s not a good thing.

Later, Azul learned in the military academy that when the dense gas layer on the outer layer of the sun completely crystallized, it meant that the sun had completely transformed from a white dwarf into a black dwarf.

It would not emit light, and it would not have any energy.

It was the ultimate product of stellar evolution, representing a complete end.

Azul had never thought that the sun would have an end.

Then what about the end of the Zerg?

What about his and his mother’s end?

The military school taught: the end of the Zerg is in the hands of humanity.

Azul didn't believe it.

Humans were very weak.

They could not breathe in the universe without equipment.

They would die if they fell from a high place, and they would easily die from injuries.

Azul hadn't seen many humans, but he had occasionally heard his classmates mention them.

It was said that the underground cities of Earth were densely packed with people.

A dozen people were squeezed into a very small space to breathe.

The food they were given every day was pitifully little.

Many people had died, but it still could not alleviate the population explosion.

He also thought that was a lie.

Procreation was a very important matter.

After the race grew strong, they would naturally be allocated appropriate resources to ensure that they could serve the race.

Humans had a government, and the commander-in-chief played a role like his mother.

How could it be that they would just let them die after procreating?

Lu Anji rarely answered this question: so they would force conscription and send them to space.

Azul still had no concept.

What was closer to him was still the Allied Military Academy.

Every year, the academy would publish a list, listing the names of the students who had died in the line of duty after graduating and enlisting, and it would be played on a loop.

Then, the classmates who had been indifferent to the underground cities would show a dull expression.

The academy trained elites to fight against the Zerg, but they were also very fragile.

Azul thought to himself, the end of the Zerg could not be in the hands of humanity, absolutely not.

And they did almost destroy the Zerg, using the sun, the sun that would eventually die.

Azul was running in his dream.

He didn't know where he was going.

He liked gravity very much.

Gravity brought direction, and with direction, he could determine his position.

But now he doesn't like running as much.

The farther he ran on the sun, the shorter the sun’s life would be.

Running became a terrible thing.

His body, mind, and memory were constantly sounding alarms, constantly declaring the terrifying future that was about to come.

Dead silence would eventually cover everything.

Humans would die, his mother would die, and the sun would also die.

But he couldn't imagine a situation without the sun.

Azul was not allowed to go to Earth.

Being able to stay at the military academy was also through Lu Anji's efforts.

The universe was big and empty.

The sun was the only place that unconditionally accepted Azul.

He didn't have to tuck away his tail, and he wouldn't be hungry or weak.

He could find his direction by gravity, and then run towards a certain place without a destination.

Then, Azul woke up from his dream.

He saw Lu Anji, who was close at hand.

Lu Anji should have had black hair and black eyes, but the human experiment had caused him to mutate.

Not only could he emit a biological signal that belonged to the Zerg, but it had also caused some slight changes in his appearance.

For example, the hair that had lost its pigment, a body that was stronger than an ordinary person’s, and a way of looking at things.

Also, this friend of Azul's was always sad.

Before, he had thought it was hate, because Lu Anji himself had summarized it that way.

Now Azul felt that his expression had a deviation.

It should be sadness.

At one point, Azul was tired of his emotions.

Lu Anji only showed his sad side to himself.

Those emotions were like a black hole that swallowed everything that came close.

Just like how the Zerg swallowed humans, chewing them up and spitting them out as broken bones and rotten flesh.

The difference was that the Zerg did not feed on humans, but Azul could clearly feel that Lu Anji was indeed obtaining some kind of energy that he did not understand by swallowing.

Coincidentally, Azul could also find something similar to gravity in Lu Anji, heavy, pressing down on him, so that he would not get lost in the void.

This should be fine, right?

Azul was not sure, but there was no other way.

Azul didn't understand that this was loneliness.

He just stubbornly wanted to take his friend back to the sun where he wouldn't have to be sad.

What a good home the sun was.

The gravity was several times that of the star ring.

There, they would not have to force each other.

Before agreeing to help Lu Anji, Azul had really thought so, sincerely.

Another quarter of an hour had passed on the wall.

Lu Anji didn't open his eyes and suddenly spoke: “How much longer are you going to look?”

Azul: “I’m sorry.”

Lu Anji turned over and got up.

He still had a lot of things to do.

Azul couldn't remember why he had come to his rest room again.

Perhaps the bed in his own room was really too hard.

Or maybe, he just wanted to find a chance to apologize.

Lin Xingyu had made Azul realize that apologizing was very necessary.

It would make people understand some things.

Could Lu Anji understand?

Actually, the one who was really helping was not Azul, but himself.

While waiting for Lu Anji to contact the pro-Zerg faction, Azul still helped his mother find the nebula she needed.

Apart from this, he had nothing to do.

The Officer of the Deck did not have to attend the various meetings with the ship's duty officer.

The people on the bridge were similar to his classmates at the academy and would usually not talk to him.

If someone came up with a complicated expression, they would be stopped by Lu Anji.

Azul actually wouldn't do anything to the people on the bridge.

He already understood humans very well now and wouldn't easily make a move.

He had to stay here.

But most of the time, it didn't matter.

As long as he didn't find out what he was doing, it was actually a good thing that Lu Anji kept him away from everyone.

Thinking of this, Azul wanted to apologize again.

The battleship was often short-staffed, for example, the very stoic navigation officer in the last battle.

Azul didn't know how he had died.

At that time, he was in a daze in his seat.

Suddenly, he received a message from his mother.

After hesitating for a moment, he chose his mother.

His mother asked him: who are you protecting?

Azul could not answer.

His mother said again: they will kill you.

Azul said, he is helping us.

When he came back to his senses, the bridge had been mostly destroyed.

The original transparent bulkhead had been patched up with composite adhesive.

The ground was covered in blood.

In Lu Anji's rapid breathing embrace, Azul heard the angry roar of others.

“He’s sleeping during combat? Captain? Does Azul even know where this is?”

That person threw his helmet on the ground.

Coincidentally, there was a corpse with wide-open eyes next to him.

It was the navigation officer.

Lu Anji then asked in his ear: “Are you contacting your mother?”

Azul shook his head.

“Is she looking for you?”

Azul answered: “She’s looking for you.”

Lu Anji’s embrace tightened a little: “You can’t go back to the sun.”

Azul seemed to have seen the black hole in him again, which was even more terrifying than before.

He comforted him and said: “I’m not going anywhere.”

Azul ignored the crew’s hostile gaze.

The sounds on the battleship became more and more unpleasant.

Before, the ship’s duty officer would look at him with a look of hating iron for not becoming steel.

Now, the ship’s duty officer basically didn’t make eye contact with him.

Even if they met, he would just politely ask him to go to Lu Anji to solve the problem.

“I just wanted to give you the list of losses on the bridge.”

Azul said.

“It’s not a loss.”

The ship’s duty officer clenched his fist and still smiled, “It’s a sacrifice.”

Azul asked Lu Anji, is there such a big difference between loss and sacrifice?

Lu Anji didn't answer.

After that, Azul never saw the ship’s duty officer on the ship again.

The atmosphere on the ship was tense, like a string, pulled tight, and then pulled tight again.

His mother’s contact also became more and more frequent, always asking, where is that person.

Lu Anji, on the other hand, spent a lot of time keeping a close eye on Azul.

As long as Azul looked in the direction of the sun, a heavy, gloomy aura would emanate from him.

Finally, after ending contact with his mother, Azul woke up.

Lu Anji was sitting by the bed, his expression strange.

“I’ve contacted the pro-Zerg faction.”

Azul thought he was sneering.

“Your little friend is there.”

Contacting the pro-Zerg faction on a front-line cruiser was undoubtedly a fantasy, unless the captain of this important ship turned a blind eye.

Lu Anji didn't give Azul much time.

He said very directly that he would monitor all conversations.

Azul didn't care.

In the dead silent universe, Azul saw Lin Xingyu, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.

This was one of the few individuals who would make Azul have the desire to talk.

But she didn't look well, her expression haggard.

The noise generated by the communication was like the tinnitus Azul had after waking up from his contact with his mother.

Lin Xingyu’s face was pale, and she was also looking at Azul in the projection.

“They said it was the commander-in-chief who requested the call…”

Azul nodded: “I had Lu Anji help. I want to find someone in the pro-Zerg faction who has a say.”

Lin Xingyu forced a smile: “I should have a say… I beat that old thing up and sent him to the sickbed on the first day I came here. He didn’t hold it against me, and he was even… very nice to me.”

“I thought you were already dead on the medical ship.”

“…”

Lin Xingyu’s smile disappeared, “My parents… are also in the pro-Zerg faction. They recognized me.”

That explained it.

Parents would always protect their children.

“Then have you found the answer you were looking for, Linlin?”

Azul didn't understand why her face suddenly changed, and her whole body was tense.

Lu Anji didn't give Azul much time.

Silence was obviously inappropriate, but Azul didn't rush her.

No one knew his achievements in mechanical communication engineering.

After contacting once, it would not be difficult to contact in private again.

Lu Anji would find out, and he might even get angry, but that was all.

Azul secretly said sorry in his heart.

After a short while, Lin Xingyu seemed to have finally made a decision: “Azul, listen to me.”

Azul grunted.

“The pro-Zerg faction has a lot of things that the UIF wants, not just the weapons and technology left behind by Serrano, but more importantly the combat video data that Serrano preserved for studying the Zerg.”

“I’ve seen those images.”

Azul felt that Lin Xingyu was even weaker.

Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and she said: “The Zerg broke through the ship. They were after the nuclear reactor raw materials, but it wasn't just looting. They dragged every crew member on the ship out of the corners, chewed them up, and spat them out. So when the UIF came to the rescue later, they only saw a mess everywhere…”

“If the UIF gets these images, the roars of anger from Earth due to hatred will drown everything.”

Azul corrected her rigorously: “Earth won’t make a sound.”

Lin Xingyu smiled bitterly: “You’re not surprised at all, nor are you scared, Azul. Is it because you’re on the front lines?”

Azul didn't want to lie to a sincere friend and answered: “Because I understand the Zerg.”

“No, you don’t.”

Lin Xingyu showed a subtle expression.

She and the pro-Zerg faction were hiding somewhere in the underground city of Earth.

The light was dim, which cast a dark mist over her bright eyes.

“Under the research of scientists led by Serrano, at that time, people generally believed that the Zerg only had a collective consciousness led by the Zerg Queen. Because people ignited the sun and almost killed them all, the Queen survived and took revenge.”

“But Serrano always felt that something was not right.”

“After Lei Jingan sent a signal to the Zerg Queen, he finally figured it out.”

Azul: “Figured out what?”

“A lot of things. For example, why the Zerg's activities gradually decreased after Lei Jingan sent the signal. They no longer left the asteroid belt around the sun. In Serrano's words, 'they have changed from counter-attacking to resisting'.”

This was true.

Azul thought of his mother on the sun.

She didn't leave the sun, and she didn't want Azul to leave.

Now she was also having the Azul who was outside look for a nebula that could become a star.

She also wanted to kill Lu Anji and have Azul come home.

Lin Xingyu didn't notice that Azul was distracted, her voice was hoarse.

“Lei Jingan’s contribution to humanity is not just saving Earth. She was very cunning. She used that coordinate and the deaths of countless people to make the Zerg Queen have a wrong perception.”

“Remember, the characteristic of the Zerg is collective consciousness.”

“The reason they killed humans without mercy might not have been because of cruelty and hatred. The Zerg Queen had always thought that humans were no different from them, and that the death of humans was no different from the death of the Zerg. It was like cutting hair, or cutting nails. Because humans were so unafraid of death, it did not see fear in humans. It understood the courage of humans to go to their deaths as.”

Azul gently continued: “the same duty as a worker Zerg.”

“Yes.”

Lin Xingyu said, “But Lei Jingan made it realize that in the term ‘human,’ each individual is an independent existence with independent thinking consciousness, which is why a betrayal that it could not understand occurred.”

She asked, “Azul, in the Zerg, what does an individual with independent consciousness mean?”

Azul blurted out: “It means that this can be called a new species.”

“Then what does the Zerg Queen’s previous massacre mean?”

“It means she would think that she had destroyed countless species in ignorance.”

Lin Xingyu closed her eyes.

“The Zerg had sent a signal after detecting humanity’s investigation of the sun, but humans could not decipher it. Invaders might give a mobilization speech before an invasion, but they would not declare anything to the enemy.”

“Lei Jingan thus deduced that they did not have malicious intent at first.”

“She also gambled that a race that valued continuation very much would feel guilty for destroying several species in ignorance; she seemed to have won the gamble.”

Perhaps it was really like that.

Azul was persuaded by Lin Xingyu.

This was not a very good story.

It lacked evidence.

The pro-Zerg faction could not tell it to the humans on Earth.

But Azul had asked his mother, what are humans?

His mother had answered, humans are creatures like you and me.

At that time, his mother had already regarded humans as a proper noun for a single species, so the worker Zerg were not "humans."

He and his mother were.

Humans were still constantly providing evidence.

The Zerg believed that members of the same species would not kill each other for their own interests, and would not give orders to harm countless lives for a little bit of interest in a short life.

This would not be good for the species, and would even bring destruction to the species itself.

Ensuring continuation was an unbreakable rule that the Zerg had evolved to this day.

Then, Azul realized that Lin Xingyu was right.

He really didn’t understand his mother.

It was only now that he realized that his mother had never regarded herself as a Zerg.

They were just a family, a family composed of the only individuals of two different species.

Azul thought about a lot of things at this time.

For example, why Lu Anji was so sure that they were not family.

For example, why the Zerg didn’t kill all humans, but humans would do everything they could to destroy them.

For example, why his mother was unwilling to mention Lei Jingan.

In such a short time, Lin Xingyu was already very pale.

She was a person who liked to find answers, just like Serrano.

Even though she could live by remaining ignorant, she still chose the path that would torment her heart.

“Serrano could have escaped long before the military tribunal. The pro-Zerg faction would have done everything they could to help him. Earth is very big. It’s very simple to hide a person.”

Lin Xingyu said, “But he was crushed by his complicated emotions.”

“Serrano wrote a total of fourteen letters, but only dared to mail thirteen. The last letter was left to the pro-Zerg faction, and in his last words, he wrote.”

“If you want to escape from pain, don’t open it. You need to hide in the future.”

Azul thought for a moment and asked again: “So Linlin, have you found your answer?”

He said, “Serrano is dead. I don’t want you to be the same, but if that is your own choice, I think I will support you.”

Lin Xingyu’s gray eyes glanced at the screen.

She didn't answer, perhaps she couldn't.

Then she asked about the reason why Azul had sought out the pro-Zerg faction.

“I want to ignite the sun.”

Azul said flatly, “I want to ignite the sun for Lu Anji and end all of this.”

He said sorry again in his heart.

But the pro-Zerg faction probably wouldn't refuse.

There was really no reason to refuse.

Humans needed a burning sun, and they needed the Zerg on the sun to be burned to a crisp, right?

After the communication ended, Lu Anji walked directly into the small room.

Azul couldn't tell if the aura emanating from him was anger or something else.

In short, he was in disbelief.

The force with which he squeezed Azul’s shoulders was very heavy, almost crushing the solid bones.

“The sun will bring about the end of everything, the end of humanity, the end of the Zerg. It is fairer than the universe and never refuses the begging and demands of any life.”

Azul looked at Lu Anji, his tail gently resting on his wrist.

“You want life to be annihilated in the universe, then destroy the sun.”

In Lu Anji’s dark eyes, Azul saw himself, just like the reflection he saw when he gazed at the universe for countless days and nights through the transparent outer wall.

The creature named “Azul” was very calm.

He always carried an air of detachment that disgusted the crew.

He was not human, not Zerg.

Matter converged in the vast universe and fell into his transformed body, and finally, it was mixed into something that was difficult to understand.

Since the sun’s mutation, all life has been drawn into the disaster.

The disaster did not change with a single will.

It always existed.

The Zerg and countless humans had tried to turn the situation around, but all their efforts were just a drop in the bucket.

But Azul said to Lu Anji:

“Humans cannot use the simplest method to destroy the Zerg, because they cannot get close to the sun, but I can.”

“I can get all the data that humans need, but you want to destroy more than just the Zerg.”

“You just need to change the data, add more, and then more, and launch a hydrogen bomb that far exceeds the sun’s capacity.”

“You want to destroy that star with human hands. The end of the sun will also be the end of humanity.”

Azul’s tail tightened, and he forcefully pulled Lu Anji’s hand away.

He took a step forward, placed his palm on his friend’s neck, and his fingertips rested on the black crystal.

He continued to move forward.

Lu Anji was pulled back by the force of his tail, and then back again, until he was against the door.

Behind the door were the footsteps of the crew.

Inside the door, Azul held Lu Anji’s neck and pulled him towards him.

His expression was still very quiet, or rather, it could be considered a simple persistence.

His scarlet eyes were like a vast ocean of death, soaking the struggling person in it.

Lu Anji squeezed out a sound from his throat: “Is it to help me, or did you want to do this long ago?”

His hoarse voice was filled with a heavy sarcasm, just like the feeling he gave Azul.

“Azul, when did you learn to go crazy?”

“I don't know.”

Azul answered.

“After you talk to your little friend every time?”

Azul shook his head: “I think it’s still because of you.”

Lu Anji smiled and his eyes curved.

The laughter that came from his compressed throat was very hoarse, and his black eyes were more like the dark and deep universe.

When Lu Anji finally finished laughing, at the moment they looked at each other, the sun appeared outside the porthole of the room.

It was still emitting a faint light that could illuminate the universe.

The white light was tinged with blue.

The light could not illuminate Azul, who had his back to the porthole, but it fell on Lu Anji’s face.

Lu Anji looked past Azul’s face and at the star that was being fought over.

With a slight shift of his gaze, his eyes would fall back on Azul, who was from the star.

The child from the sun said to his friend, you want to destroy the sun.

Destroy the place he had always wanted to go back to.

“Azul.”

Lu Anji had never said his name so lightly before.

It fell from his lips, fluttered to the ground, and floated in the room.

“The Zerg know better than humans how to create a crazy monster. How did you do it?”

Azul continued to apologize in his heart.

Every word he said to Lu Anji needed an apology.

“You want a long and grand death. The universe doesn’t agree, but I will give it to you.”

“I won’t leave the solar system with you.”

Lu Anji said.

Azul nodded: “I know. I won’t take you away, and I won’t leave either.”

This was the only sentence that didn’t need an apology.

Azul said it with a clear conscience.

On this day, Azul took the initiative to contact his mother.

In his consciousness, he was curled up in his mother’s completely necrotic limbs.

The temperature of the sun was no longer as high as before, and the light was getting dimmer and dimmer.

Azul asked: “Is your cocoon still there?”

The cocoon was underground, relying on the few remaining un-crystallized nuclear fusion radiation gas to maintain its life.

Azul said: “Don’t worry about the sun. It has existed for a long time. It was born quietly, and it will die quietly. This is the end of all life.”

Azul had seen many small human stories from his mother.

He remembered a children’s story called The Miracle of the Fire Rain.

A long, long time ago, there was a place called the "Valley of Fire," where many cute little animals lived.

One day, the sky suddenly turned red.

The clouds were no longer as soft as cotton candy, but became scorching hot flames.

Soon, a strange "fire rain" began to fall from the sky, every drop of rain shimmered with a fiery red light.

The little animals in the valley were very scared.

They had never seen such a scene before.

Lily the rabbit burrowed into a hole, Luca the deer hid behind a big tree, and even Ferdinand the little fox, who was usually the bravest, hid in a crack in the rocks.

They were all worried that this fire rain would burn down their homes.

But at this moment, a little bird named "Sparkle" flew to the center of the valley.

Sparkle was a very special little bird.

Its feathers were golden, like a small sun.

Sparkle flapped its wings and told everyone: “Don’t be afraid! This fire rain is not here to harm us, but to bring us a miracle!”

Hearing Sparkle’s words, the animals all came out from their hiding places and looked at the sky curiously.

At this time, drops of fire rain fell to the ground, but they did not cause a fire.

Instead, they instantly turned into beautiful red flowers, and each flower emitted a warm light.

Sparkle continued: “This fire rain is a gift from the fire spirits in the sky. They hope to keep this valley warm and bright in the cold winter.”

The little animals looked at the beautiful fire flowers on the ground and felt a warmth.

These flowers not only would not burn, but they could also drive away the cold.

Everyone gathered happily and began to cheer and celebrate the miracle brought by this strange fire rain.

From then on, the winter in the Valley of Fire was no longer cold.

Whenever night fell, the little animals would gather around the fire flowers, tell stories, sing songs, and share each other’s warmth.

And Sparkle the little bird also became a hero in everyone’s hearts.

Because it taught everyone not to be scared by what they saw on the surface.

Sometimes, miracles are hidden in the places we are most afraid of.

“The sun will rain fire.”

Azul said to his mother, “It will burn, but it can also give you warmth and light. Don’t be afraid. Stay in the cocoon and absorb all the energy you can. That is the bouquet I am giving you.”

The universe was vast.

Azul didn't know if it had an end.

But in the vast universe of stars, under the shells of more than a hundred billion giant male Zerg, only his mother was watching him.

He didn't know what kind of creature he could be considered, but like Lin Xingyu, he was always full of questions.

He was also like Lin Xingyu.

He would look for answers to his questions.

Lin Xingyu could go and see for herself, and look for them.

Azul didn't have that many opportunities.

He could only ask, and he rarely got an answer.

Nor was there any life that could answer his doubts.

Azul could still learn.

The first thing he learned from Lu Anji was lies.

Lu Anji had never intended to go back to the sun with him.

Azul learned well.

Even if he felt sad, an apology would suffice.

Lu Anji wouldn't be sad.

He was a master of this art.

He was always tricking him, using him, but he was right about one thing.

They were not family, but friends.

Friends can hate each other, but they can also trust each other, as long as they still need each other.

As long as Azul still needed Lu Anji to persuade the UIF and cooperate with the pro-Zerg faction, and finally throw all of Earth’s resources at the sun in batches, then he was still Azul’s friend.

So the answer was no longer important.

Azul didn't need to know what kind of creature he was.

He was not human, not Zerg, but he had a family.

The death of the Zerg was just cutting off hair, cutting off nails.

The mother in the cocoon was safe and sound.

As long as his mother was decisive enough, the sun would die, but she would not.

That old and huge cocoon would help her do what she had to do, at the cost of all resources and life, so that she could leave this cage-like solar system alone.

The loom of fate had woven two ends at the beginning of life.

After a bewildered and staggered encounter, a twisted arc was woven.

In a daze, Azul remembered the words he had said during the interrogation.

“I think I have an obligation to repay my mother, who has sustained my life, with the same.”

Mhm, I am this kind of creature.

Azul could finally be sure.

Fifty Billion Years of Solitude: Son of the Sun

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