Interstellar Beast Master-Chapter 21: A Moment II

The Rust Mother leaned back against the belly of her silver-winged mastiff, her fingers tracing the glowing lines on the tablet like she was stroking a spine.

Damian's image blinked in and out with the broken resolution of the arena feed, but she could still make out the sharp line of his jaw and the cold set of his eyes.

"Mmm..." she purred, lips curving. "You move like a predator pretending to be prey, pretty boy."

She stood, bare feet pressing into the smooth bio-metal floor. Her mastiff rose behind her like a mountain of fur and wrath, following silently.

She whispered to the beast, her voice sharp.

"Watch all establishments nearby and find him, but don't spook him if you do. People like us are rarities—we have to act cautiously."

She gave the command, but it wasn't just to the mastiff.

The beast growled once, then bounded off, disappearing into the darkness of a maintenance corridor that twisted toward another corner of the Arena and the Hollow Stacks.

And then...

"HAO understands, Rust Mother!"

The sharp voice of the Hostile Arena Operator rang out as a few drones activated and flew out.

The Rust Mother turned back to the monitors, her silhouette bathed in the flickering blue light of the screen.

"A fledgling Beast Master with instincts and power that sharp... he's either going to burn bright and fast," she murmured, "or become something very dangerous."

...!

Her eyes flickered with radiance as they focused on the blinking image of a man who'd skewered an Enforcer without even a second thought.

And when that thought bloomed...

"Oh, HAO, suppress the news of the Little Enforcer's death as much as possible. I don't want other Enforcers or Beast Masters from the Skyglass Heights taking an interest in our friend before I've had a chance to meet him."

...!

She gave another command to HAO, who replied in a somewhat sullen tone—as if reluctant to carry it out.

But regardless...

"Understood, Rust Mother..."

An affirmative response. And slowly, the world began to move.

—

The Krusty Squid lived up to its name.

Hanging off the edge of a derelict catwalk in the Hollow Stacks, the restaurant's sign flickered in burnt-orange neon. The "Y" in "Krusty Squid" was long gone, leaving it to flash "Krust Squid"—a fitting metaphor for the people who dined there.

Inside, the air was thick with spice, ozone, and grease. Tables were repurposed parts from abandoned escape pods, and chairs groaned like dying machines with every shift of weight.

In Private Room #8, Anastasia had taken command of the booth.

She lounged in the corner like a warlord in heels, her hair curled just right, lips stained dark crimson as she plucked a skewer of fried eel off a sizzling tray.

Beside her, a platter of gelatinous synth-seaweed shimmered under a heat lamp, and an octo-burger the size of her head oozed neon-orange sauce at its center.

Alongside it sat something called Lobster Mountain—a literal rising tower of fish and meat stacked together.

The feast would've bankrupted a Stackborn several times over.

But she had a few credits now from the bets she'd taken, and she wanted to give a feast to the man who had just risked his life.

Her eyes flashed with deadly light as she remembered everything he had done.

To be capable of taking down the monstrous Big Mom and the Enforcer... the power he wielded was more than just turning invisible to scans or sight.

It made her even more emboldened when she thought of the murderer who'd danced with his Interstellar Beast while ripping her entire family to shreds.

The man who looked at their spilled blood as if it were a celebration.

She remembered him gulping from his bottle—wildly, carelessly—right after crushing her parents and shredding her sister.

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

He had done it with glee, and Anastasia would never forget that.

She would be lying if she claimed not to blame Damian—at least a little. Even though he had nothing to do with it. Even though he had lost the love of his life.

But her mind still wandered to dark places, especially in the loneliness that had followed that time.

And now...

Her eyes glared red as she pushed up her glasses, grabbing another eel skewer.

She wanted the Drunken Butcher dead!

Dead more than anything.

And after what she had seen today, Damian might truly be—...!

The door to the private room opened, revealing... no one.

It closed a second later.

And then...

Damian, cloaked in the faint shimmer of an unknown brilliance, appeared with a little silver fox on his right shoulder.

"Kitsuuuul!"

The little fox chirped excitedly at the sight of the food-laden table, bouncing on Damian's shoulder as if asking for permission.

He gave a small nod, and she vanished straight into the Lobster Mountain.

Anastasia licked sauce from her thumb, her eyes shifting from the happy little beast to Damian.

"You're late."

Damian caught the faint redness in her eyes—worry, unspoken—and pulled out his phone. It displayed over 2 million credits as he sat down and looked at the feast laid before him.

Only now did he realize how hungry he was.

His muscles were tight with fatigue from the recent battles.

Anastasia pointed to all the food, taking his phone with gleaming eyes.

"A feast for the Wild Beast who didn't die. Eat before your little fox finishes it all."

Kitsuul, halfway through demolishing the Lobster Mountain twice her size glanced back with glee. Damian let the tension drain from his body as he picked up a skewer.

Silently.

For a few precious moments, they didn't speak.

They just ate—burnt-edge beef coils, glowing green noodles, lobsters, fried synth-fish stuffed with mushroom spores.

A rare moment of peace in the chaos of the Hollow Stacks.

Kitsuul loved the meal so much, she eventually licked sauce from Damian's hand without shame.

Anastasia ate while fiddling with his phone, until finally, she tilted her head toward him with a gleam in her eye and said.

"You risked your life to get what we need today. So... thank you."

It was barely more than a whisper, but Damian heard it clearly and nodded with a sigh.

This was only the first step.

He would risk his life for much more in the future to come. He glanced up and asked.

"I only did what I needed to do. Were you able to order the equipment we need to infiltrate ZENTHRA?"

She had been idly playing with the phone that held the credits, but now she handed it back and nodded.

"Everything I need to breach ZENTHRA's servers undetected. It'll be delivered to you by tonight. After that... it's your turn again. You'll need to go to the Skyglass Heights and infiltrate one of their main buildings."

...!

The Skyglass Heights.

Where more and more Interstellar Beast Masters roamed!

Where Entropic Rifts...were also present as within, terrifying Interstellar Beasts roamed!