Vol 2: Chapter 3-3.

Everyone looked toward Shuai in shock. This young man had a common face, average physical abilities, no specialty, simply put a good-for-nothing normal young man. If Xuan didn’t mention him, no one would had thought about him deliberately. He was just like air.

Shuai’s mind went blank for a moment, then he suddenly yelled, “Why me? Why should it be me? There are so many people here. Everyone wants to survive through this movie, so why do I have to die? You just want to kill me. If there’s one less person sharing the food, you can live for a little longer. That’s why you want to kill me right?”

Xuan looked at him in silence. “No, I don’t have the intention to kill you. Even though the risk for being the bait is high, you are the most suitable choice. Everyone else here is stronger than you. Jie, Lan, and Zheng are veterans. I can plan our next moves. Zero’s close combat and sniping skills are exceptional. Kampa is skilled at various guns, which may include those in the arsenal. Tell me, of what use can you be to us?”

Shuai lowered his head silently. His face got redder and redder and veins surfaced on his hand. Xuan continued in a calm voice. “If it’s under normal circumstance, everyone has something they’re talented at. I won’t judge anyone with numbers and abilities. I won’t be a utilitarian person like now. But you have to understand our current situation. We are fighting against death, any mistake can cause everyone to die here. You are the unnecessary one here, if you want our group to accept and treat you equally, you have to show us your worth. Otherwise how different are you from the seven that died outside?”

Zheng finally couldn’t stand it and yelled, “No, I don’t agree with your words. I was a normal person when I first got here. I got my current abilities through enhancements, so why is he unnecessary? If you give him the chance to live through a few more movies, he will become a dependable comrade!”

Xuan remained calm. “But... does he have that chance? To be accurate, do we have the chance to survive this movie? Even given the same amount of points to enhance, the six of us will still be much stronger than him. Also, don’t try to take his place. Everyone has their own responsibilities. You are our biggest asset in this movie. Or do you want to save one person and let the rest of us die?”

Zheng felt very angry. He was extremely scared of dying himself. Especially since he now had someone to take care of, he must live on no matter what. At the same time, he understood that feeling of going against death face to face. Even with his physical abilities he was still on the brink of death. Then is there even a slightest bit of hope for a normal person like Shuai?

Jie gave him a hug as Zheng got more emotional. “Let’s do it the old way. We will vote, that would be the fairest. Zheng! Don’t be emotional. Even if you don’t consider our lives, what about Lori? Once we die, our created humans will also disappear! What do you want to do?”

Zheng’s body trembled. He finally lowered his head and sat down in resignation. Xuan sighed. “Then we will start the vote. Those that accept my plan raise your hand.”

The result was five votes for and two against. That decided Shuai’s fate. Either conform with the plan to be a bait to gain the group’s acceptance, or leave the group without any food or water, and he also won’t get any protection.

Shuai looked extremely emotional. Zero and Kampa stood next to Xuan silently. When everyone thought Shuai was going to burst, he took a few deep breaths and calmed down. He looked at Xuan with hatred and said, “Okay, I will be the bait. Just like you all wish for, I will be the bait!”

They felt a shiver from the hatred in his eyes. Though Zheng didn’t see it. He kept his head down the whole time. After the voting, Zheng walked over to a corner and sat there in silence.

Lan walked over to Zheng after a while. She didn’t really know what to say. On the contrary, he spoke first, “Lan, are you also afraid of dying?”

“Uhm... Yes, I am afraid of dying.”

“I am also afraid of dying, everyone is afraid. No one is really safe in this place, so why do we have to push the dangers over to someone else? The rest of us will only be safe for a little longer. Whoever can best accomplish this mission should go instead...”

Lan interrupted him with a serious face. “I think Xuan is right. If this was under normal circumstances, then you’d be correct. But we are not facing normal circumstances. We are going against death... How can we afford to protect a useless person without anything in return?”

Zheng remained silent again. He muttered after a while, “... I can’t refute that. Yes, perhaps you and Xuan are right. But I still wish everyone could bond together. Everyone can do our best to survive, and not the strong oppressing the weak. If we encountered the same situation in our first movie, how would we feel? Wouldn’t we hate everyone and this world?”

Lan sighed and didn’t speak again. She sat next to Zheng silently. A few minutes later, they heard a cry. They looked at each other then ran to where the group was at.

When the two arrived, everyone was focused on the monitor. There were four people walking as they were shivering. It was the two middle aged men and the young man and woman. After the four walked past, they saw a stage three Alien following behind.

Zheng asked immediately, “What happened? Why didn’t the Alien attack them?”

𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Xuan was pondering and didn’t answer. Though Lan touched her forehead and said, “Is it because of... breeding?”

The only Alien species with reproductive ability was the Queen. In order to let the larvae grow, they would need hosts. That’s probably why the Alien didn’t kill these four people on the monitor.

Xuan nodded. “Yes. It must be for breeding. We have to execute our plan as soon as possible. Otherwise, in a few days... we will have to face against nine Aliens!”