SPACE: I Can Summon Players From Earth!

Chapter 10: Fight!

The steel-plated corridor of Sector 4 stretched out like a map straight from a sci‑fi survival game.

Dim red emergency lights flickered along the walls, the cornerswere dark and look like it hid something waiting to jump out.

Five players, three men and two women, walked down the hall, their energy rifles resting casually on their shoulders.

They kept glancing left and right, but their movements lacked any real discipline. Some room doors slid open with a soft mechanical hiss, while others flashed bright red, indicating they were locked tight.

Within minutes, the initial tension and fear of monsters completely vanished.

From the very beginning, Luis had made them believe this was just a new, highly advanced Virtual Reality game.

It felt real, looked real, and even had a proper game‑like system, character status panels and a log‑out function they could use at any time.

Who would ever guess it was actually real life?

Naturally, they treated it like any other game.

They were nervous because of the darkness and the eerie atmosphere, but being in a group of five, chatting non‑stop and throwing jokes, quickly turned their caution into excitement.

Instead of hunting for bugs, they started looting.

"Hey look at this! Real silk fabric, feels way better than the stuff back home!" Key laughed, picking up a soft pillow from an open room.

"Nice find! Grab everything that looks useful!" Texas shouted, already stuffing folded blankets under his arm.

"What's the use of this anyway?" Maria asked.

"Don't know, don't care, but it could be taken so it is a prop not a background details." Key said.

The rest joined in without hesitation.

They went from cabin to cabin, grabbing anything that wasn't bolted down, sheets, technical manuals, spare tools, small ornaments, and even decorative trinkets.

Soon their arms were full of useless bedroom junk before they had even caught sight of a single enemy.

"Devs! Where's our inventory system?!" Viper called out loudly. "Every game has one! Why didn't you think of this basic thing?"

"Right! My hands are full already and we haven't even started fighting!" Maria added, struggling to hold onto a stack of documents.

"Can we contact support? Ask them to add storage bags or something?" Tea asked, shifting her load from one hand to the other.

"They must be watching us right now, right?!" Key yelled toward the ceiling. "DEVS! I love this game! Can I get a power armor suit? Just one, please!"

They laughed and joked, completely forgetting the mission.

"Guys, seriously, focus," Tea muttered, though she was also carrying a handful of items.

She was a well‑known pro gamer back on Earth, and her instincts told her they were being far too careless. Even in a game, being unprepared usually led to trouble.

She stepped ahead of the group, approaching a cabin door that was left slightly ajar. The interior was pitch black, no lights turned on.

Tea leaned forward and peeked inside.

Suddenly, something large and fast exploded out of the darkness.

It was a Void Beetle, nearly one meter long, its metallic shell glinting faintly in the red light.

Its six legs clicked rapidly against the steel floor, and its massive, jagged mandibles opened wide as it charged straight for her face.

"Crap!" Tea gasped in shock.

Though surprised, her reflexes were sharp from years of gaming. Instead of turning to run, she crossed her forearms in front of her face, bracing for impact.

THUD!

The heavy armored body slammed violently into her arms, knocking her off balance and sending her crashing backward onto the hard floor.

"Argh!" Tea cried out in pain.

She clutched her arms, where deep gashes had torn through the suit and into her skin. Bright red blood began to seep out quickly, dripping onto the metal beneath her.

"It hurts so much!"

"Tea!"

The other four instantly snapped out of their relaxed mood. Panic surged through them. They dropped all the items they were carrying, raised their rifles, and pulled the triggers.

ZAP! ZAP!

Bright blue plasma bolts lit up the dim corridor. But this was nothing like the games they played at home.

There was no auto‑aim, no crosshair locking onto targets, even though it hs no recoil, the weapon vibrated strongly when fired, making it hard to keep steady.

Sparks flew from the ceiling and walls, but none of the shots hit the beetle. At least the continuous fire made it stop its attack and retreat slightly.

"Stay still, you bastard!" Viper shouted, trying to aim properly.

But the beetle was incredibly fast. It skittered sideways, zig‑zagged, and even jumped up onto the wall or ceiling, moving in unpredictable patterns.

"I can't track it! It's moving too randomly!" Maria yelled, her eyes wide as she followed its movement with her rifle.

Trying to hit a fast‑moving target while fighting the weapon's vibration was far harder than any shooting challenge they had faced before.

"This is way too realistic!"

"Damn it, I missed again!"

Bullets kept flying, but most bounced off the walls or grazed the creature's thick shell.

Then the beetle dodged a volley of shots and suddenly lunged toward Viper, who was fumbling to reload his weapon.

"Watch out!" Texas was closest.

He didn't think, he just threw himself forward and shoved Viper aside hard.

UGH!

Viper crashed into the wall, but Texas took the full force of the attack. The beetle's sharp mandibles pierced right through his chest armor and sank deep into his flesh.

"Get away from him!" Maria screamed.

She raised her rifle and fired rapidly, sending bolt after bolt toward the beetle. In her panic, she didn't have time to aim carefully, she just wanted to drive it off.

But this was reality, not a game with friendly‑fire turned off.

The plasma bolts struck both the beetle and Texas.

He let out a gurgling cry, his body jerking, before going completely still. He fell backward, blood spreading across his chest and pooling on the floor.