As the enormous doors to the Bridge opened, Worman led the way inside. The ship seemed to have undergone some modifications to suit the environment here.
Off to one side, beside the raised dais unique to Navigators, a strange little platform had been added.
A humanoid creature with a head like a Gecko stood on the platform.
It was nearly two meters tall, with six strange membranes arranged around its neck, faint silver spots shimmering across them. Thick hide covered its backward-bending legs, and its clawed hands and feet each had three digits. Yet it wore a peculiar hooded robe.
A snakelike tongue kept flicking out of its sharp-toothed mouth. Its four eyes had no eyelids, but three layers of strange membranes constantly slid across one another.
The moment Worman entered the Bridge, the strange Lizardmen jumped down from its platform.
"Master." Low Gothic, pronounced in an exceedingly strange manner, emerged from that mouth in a way that was difficult to imagine.
Thud, thud, bang!
With two dull thuds, the Servitor stepped forward. Its mechanical hand easily seized the Lizardmen, while a Laser Cutter glowing red swept swiftly toward its head from behind the Servitor.
"Creature of a Xenos civilization. Eliminate."
Iax had initially assumed it was just an ordinary alien animal. Perhaps it was somewhat unusual, but the Men of Iron did not slaughter wild animals. After all, the Creators might be interested in studying them or keeping them as pets.
Besides, wild animals could not hinder the Federation's development.
But the moment it spoke, Iax immediately classified it as an intelligent being from a Xenos civilization.
The Men of Iron's standard policy toward any alien civilization was essentially extermination. If Iax had not been unable to determine whether his definition of humanity was flawed, or why human genes