Chapter 7: Riko's Old Friend

A hand silently settled on Loy's shoulder.

Loy spun around abruptly, goosebumps prickling across his entire body, but when he saw who it was, he froze completely.

"Riko?!"

The blonde woman with elven ears withdrew her hand, then lazily leaned against the shipping container. Behind her, Keiko was carefully supporting herself against the wall, her blue hair somewhat disheveled, but her eyes had regained their clarity.

"I thought I heard someone calling me a 'bastard' just now? And saying they were 'schemed' by me?" Riko deliberately drew out her tone, "How heartbreaking~ Here I worked so hard to rush here and save you all."

Loy's anger erupted instantly: "You still have the nerve to say that? Stealing the necklace, getting us surrounded, you..."

"Shh." Riko pressed a finger to her lips, while her other hand drew from her chest that necklace emanating a ghostly blue glow, "You mean this?"

The moment she saw the Tear of the First Dragon, hope rekindled in Ling's eyes. But Loy remained wary: "What are you planning?"

"What am I planning?" Riko chuckled softly, "I want to save you all. Including saving myself and Keiko."

She tossed the necklace to Ling: "You're right, I did have selfish motives. The energy contained in that necklace... has important significance for my research. But now isn't the time to discuss this. Saving lives comes first. As for everything else, we can talk slowly later."

Ling caught the necklace and put it back around her neck. Instantly, her pale complexion began to regain color, and her body's trembling gradually subsided.

"Thank you..." she responded tremblingly.

Loy noticed Keiko's condition: "How is she? The parasite's influence..."

"It's already been metabolized," Riko looked at her sister tenderly, "That control was only temporary. Keiko, how do you feel?"

Keiko replied softly: "Sister... I'm fine. Just now... I'm sorry, I..."

"No need to apologize," Riko gently stroked her sister's hair, "You did wonderfully. If it weren't for the chaos you created, none of us could have escaped."

The footsteps outside grew closer as armed personnel searched each room systematically.

"Alright, enough reminiscing." Riko put away her gentle expression and drew from her chest that bottle containing silver liquid, "Now it's time to show my real trump card."

She carefully opened the bottle cap. The silver liquid writhed slowly within, emanating a metallic luster.

"What is that?" Loy asked.

"Just watch." Riko's tone became serious, "A rare creature from the Symbiote Cosmos. I only have this one bottle, originally prepared for the most urgent situations."

She poured the liquid onto the ground. The silver substance immediately began to twist, as if it had come to life.

"It can devour metal and reshape forms, controlled by me through mental connection. But..." she paused, "it has a very short lifespan. After consuming large amounts, it dies within half a day. This is the last companion I brought from the Symbiote Cosmos."

The silver symbiotic beast began crawling toward the surrounding metal containers. Wherever it passed, steel melted like chocolate being devoured.

Loy watched in stunned amazement: "What... what's the principle behind this?"

"They're tiny insects," Riko explained while mentally controlling the symbiotic beast, "They can completely decompose metal structures, then recombine them according to my will."

Though Keiko had just recovered from the control, seeing her sister's ability, her eyes flashed with admiration: "Sister... it's amazing."

"Yes," Riko responded, "it's been with me for a long time."

Though Ling had recovered some strength, she remained weak: "How are we going to escape?"

Riko pointed toward the ceiling: "The freight elevator shaft, direct access to the top floor."

"And then?" Loy asked.

"Then..." Riko revealed a mysterious smile, "we fly out."

The silver symbiotic beast had already devoured large amounts of metal, its volume expanding several times over. Under Riko's mental control, it began moving toward the elevator shaft.

"Follow me." Riko helped Keiko up, while Loy supported Ling. The elevator doors were also consumed by the symbiotic beast, with the cargo box on the lower floors.

Shouts from armed personnel echoed in the dark shaft, but they hadn't thought to search here yet.

"Do we have to climb up?" Loy looked at the towering shaft.

"No need to climb too high," Riko said, "reaching the top floor is enough. Keiko, can you manage on your own?"

"I can, sister." Keiko nodded. Though still somewhat weak, her will was firm.

The symbiotic beast split into two masses—one pulling the group upward, the other dissolving the elevator shaft walls below them.

Both Ling and Keiko hadn't fully recovered their strength yet, forcing Loy and Riko to hold them tight.

"What's it doing?" Loy noticed the symbiotic beast's unusual behavior.

"Feeding." Riko answered curtly, with a hint of reluctance, "The steel structure of the elevator shaft, ventilation ducts, all the metal it can find."

As the symbiotic beast devoured, the elevator shaft began emitting slight tremor sounds. The building's structure was being silently altered.

Finally, the four reached the top floor. Riko pushed open the rooftop door, and strong winds immediately rushed in.

"Now what?" Loy asked breathlessly.

Riko didn't answer but closed her eyes, sweat beading on her forehead. She was using all her strength to control the silver symbiotic beast.

Suddenly, the entire building began shaking violently.

"What's happening?" Ling gripped Loy's arm tightly, while Keiko instinctively moved closer to her sister.

"It's begun." Riko opened her eyes, complex emotions flickering within, "Old friend, help me one last time."

Massive sounds of tearing metal came from below. The silver symbiotic beast was consuming the building's steel framework on a large scale. The entire floor's metal structure—beams, columns, pipes, equipment—was being decomposed and absorbed.

The building began swaying unstably, and the armed personnel's shouts carried panic.

"You're insane!" Loy shouted, "The entire building is going to collapse!"

"It won't collapse," Riko said calmly, "I'm only devouring non-load-bearing metal components. The main structure can still support for a while. And besides..."

She extended her hand. The silver symbiotic beast surged up from deep within the building, converging into a massive metal mass on the rooftop.

"What we need isn't the building, but an aircraft."

Under Riko's mental control, the metal mass began transforming. Steel flowed like liquid, recombining and gradually forming a streamlined aircraft shell.

Loy watched this process, his heart shaken beyond words.

"What about the propulsion system?" he asked.

Riko pointed to the thrusters taking shape at the aircraft's bottom: "The symbiotic beast can generate thrust by forming engines and rotating them. Though crude, it's sufficient."

The aircraft took basic shape. Though the exterior was rough, it possessed fundamental aerodynamic structure. The silver surface reflected eerie light under the city's nighttime illumination.

"Get in quickly!" Riko jumped into the cabin first, then carefully helped Keiko inside.

Loy lifted Ling and followed them in. The aircraft's interior was also composed of silver metal, with no seats or control panels, but spacious enough for four people.

Riko controlled the entire aircraft through mental connection.

"Prepare for takeoff!"

The silver aircraft slowly lifted off, leaving the precarious building behind. Armed personnel below fired into the sky, but to no effect—bullets dissolved instantly upon contact with the hull's exterior. The group could only watch helplessly as they vanished into the night sky.

But just as the aircraft had stabilized its flight, Riko glanced at her watch:

"The six-hour countdown has begun. Old friend, I hope we can find a safe place for you to rest..."

Cold wind howled outside the aircraft, and ahead in the sky, NSRU pursuit aircraft were rapidly approaching.