THE ART OF Desire

Chapter 7: Mission: Extract Pure Spores

"Damn it, slow down, Sinta! my legs aren’t made of iron!" Je shouted while leaping over a pile of burning files in the underground corridor of Fort Vredeburg.

Sinta glanced back briefly, her black hair fluttering in the wind from the broken ventilation system, "Stop complaining, Thief! If you want Sekar to stay stable, we need that specimen now!"

"What specimen are you even talking about? We’re supposed to be escaping, not heading deeper into a monster's nest!"

"Pure Spores from the 'Hive Queen'!" Sinta stopped right in front of a busted steel door, "The spores in Sekar’s body are corrosive. They’re eating her brain cells. The only way to neutralize them is to inject Pure Spores from a Queen type that hasn't been contaminated by Surya’s frequencies!"

Suddenly, from the opposite direction, the deafening roar of a motorcycle exhaust and the pungent sting of 'ciu' (moonshine) filled the air.

VROOOOMMM! DAK-DAK-DAK!

"OI! MOVE IT! HANDSOME DRIVER COMING THROUGH!"

A modified N-Max motorcycle sped into the narrow hallway, its rear tire drifting and sending sparks flying across the concrete floor. Guntur slammed on the brakes right in front of Je, his helmet visor flipped up halfway.

"Je! You bastard, you’re still alive?!" Guntur grinned widely. His 'ojol' (delivery) jacket was covered in green slime stains, "I was looking for you all the way to the canteen, and here you are running around with a goth girl. Your taste is consistent, I'll give you that—hitting everything from zombies to ghost girls!"

"Shut up, Guntur! Where the hell did you get another bike?!" Je asked, panting.

"I 'borrowed' it from the VIP parking lot, Je. The keys were still in it, so I gunned it! Oh, and I managed to bomb their supply warehouse too. This fort is having a fireworks party right now!" Guntur laughed triumphantly.

Sinta rolled her eyes, "Good, the idiot might actually be useful. Guntur, head to 'D’Oasis Spa' across from the fort. We have to go there!"

"A spa? Damn, you want a body scrub in the middle of the apocalypse, girl?" Guntur stared, open-mouthed, "I mean, I'm down if you're the one doing the massage,"

"Shut up or I'll inject a rabies virus into your neck!" Sinta threatened coldly, "D’Oasis Spa is now the mutation hub for the 'Hive Queen.' We need to extract her spores!"

"We can't take the front road, Sinta. The Purifier squads are in a shootout with thousands of Ratusan out there," Je added.

[System Notification: New Skill Detected!]

[Skill Name: Invisibility via Arousal (Tier 1).]

[Description: The Host can emit specific pheromones that manipulate zombie sensory nerves. As long as the Host maintains a certain level of 'arousal,' zombies will perceive the Host as one of them or remain invisible to them.]

Je read the floating screen in front of him and nearly choked, "Shitty System! So I have to be... turned on just to stay hidden?"

"Why is your face so red, Je?" Sinta asked suspiciously.

"No... nothing. Look, I have a way for us to get in undetected. But you guys have to cover your noses and don't ask questions," Je took a deep breath. He began visualizing his most erotic memories—the image of Sinta in the library earlier helped quite a bit.

Instantly, a thin pink aura enveloped Je’s body, creeping toward Sinta and Guntur.

"Eh? Why does the air smell like... a honeymoon hotel suite?" Guntur sniffed the air, "Damn, Je! What perfume are you wearing? I suddenly feel like hugging a lamp post!"

"Shut up and just walk, bastard! Don't make me lose my concentration!" Je barked.

The three of them exited the fort through a hole in the side wall. Outside, the scene was pure chaos. Thousands of zombies crawled up the walls, shrieking at the reddened sky. However, as they passed through the crowd, the zombies just stood still. They merely sniffed the air and went back to ignoring Je and his group.

"This is insane... they really aren't attacking?" Guntur whispered in awe, "Je, are you seriously some kind of perverted shaman?"

"Just keep moving, Guntur! Toward the spa!"

They arrived at the front of 'D’Oasis Spa.' The luxury building was now covered in pulsating white organic webs. A powerful scent of jasmine—the signature of Pure Spores—wafted from within.

"I'll wait here, okay? I want to scavenge some supplies in the pharmacy next door," Guntur said, pointing to the shop beside the spa.

"Don't go too far, Guntur! We need a fast pickup later!" Je warned.

"Relax, Je! I'm just gonna look around!" Guntur disappeared into the dark shop.

Je and Sinta entered the spa building. The once-glamorous interior was now drenched in slime. In the lobby, several female zombies in torn therapist uniforms stood frozen.

"Be careful, Je. They’re 'The Siren' types. If they scream, your head could burst," Sinta whispered, pulling a scalpel from her pocket.

"Wait, look at that!" Je pointed toward the main soaking pool in the center of the building.

There, in a large pool filled with thick purple liquid, sat a giant woman whose body was fused with fungal roots hanging from the ceiling. This was the Hive Queen. Her skin glowed a pristine white, radiating an eerie, lethal beauty.

"The pure spores are in a sac behind her neck," Sinta prepared an extraction tube, "You have to distract her, Je. Put her in a 'trance' so I can take the sample!"

"Distract her? How?!"

"Use your aura, idiot! She’s a hormone-based creature. Get close to her, touch her, make her feel... loved,"

"Damn it, I have to seduce a ten-foot monster?!" Je’s jaw dropped.

Suddenly, a loud commotion broke out from outside.

"JE! HEEEELP! I ENTERED THE WRONG ROOM!"

Guntur came sprinting into the spa lobby, his face pale as a ghost. In his hands, he clutched a large plastic bag filled with... boxes of condoms and various types of lube. Behind him, a dozen 'Runner'-type zombies were chasing him wildly.

"Guntur, you idiot! Why did you run in here?!" Je shouted in a panic.

"I was planning to look for antibiotics, Je! But I found a stash of imported condoms instead! Thought they'd be useful assets for our future! I don't know why the zombie 'Manager' back there got so pissed off!" Guntur ran in circles around the lobby, crashing into a large flower vase.

PRANK!

The sound of shattering glass woke the entire building. The 'Sirens' in the lobby began to unhinge their jaws, preparing a sonic shriek.

"Shit! The cover is blown!" Je snatched a laser pistol from Sinta’s waist, "Guntur, throw those useless things away!"

"No way, Je! This is high-quality stuff, man!"

A deafening shriek exploded from the Sirens. Je felt his ears ring violently. His vision spun. Sinta was thrown against the wall.

"Je! The Hive Queen is waking up!" Sinta screamed.

From the soaking pool, the Queen rose. The tentacles on her back lashed the air, pulverizing the marble pillars around her. Her golden eyes fixed sharply on Je.

"Small... intruder..." the Queen’s voice echoed telepathically in Je’s head.

"Guntur, Sinta, take cover!" Je sprinted toward the soaking pool. He had no other choice, "System! Activate 'Forced Dominance'! I don't care how many points I have to spend!"

[Warning: Host Energy Insufficient!]

[Suggestion: Combine 'Lust Aura' with direct physical contact for forced synchronization!]

"Damn it, it’s always like this!!!"

Je dived into the thick pool, swimming against the current of slime toward the Queen. A giant tentacle slammed into the water beside him, nearly crushing his ribs.

"Come here, Beautiful!" Je yelled, then leaped and wrapped his arms around the Queen’s slick neck.

Instantly, the pink aura from Je’s body exploded, enveloping both of them within the pool. The Hive Queen, who had been rampaging, suddenly froze. Her body trembled, and her tentacles began to wrap around Je gently—not to kill, but like a lover’s embrace.

"Ah... this feeling..." the Queen hissed.

"Sinta! Now! Take the sample!" Je shouted while struggling to hold back the nausea of hugging a slimy monster.

Sinta ran along the edge of the pool, jumped onto the Queen’s back, and plunged her extraction needle into the creature's neck. A glowing gold liquid flowed into the tube.

"Got it!" Sinta cheered.

"Great! Now let’s get the hell out of here!"

But Je realized something was wrong. The Hive Queen’s tentacles wouldn't let him go. Instead, Je’s body began to be pulled deeper, into the purple liquid of the pool.

"Master... don't leave..." the Queen’s voice became incredibly seductive, "Let us merge... forever..."

"Je! You’re drowning!" Sinta tried to reach for Je’s hand, but the liquid was too slippery.

"Guntur! Help me, you bastard!" Je screamed before his head was completely submerged into the soaking pool.

"HANG ON, JE! I'M THROWING A CONDOM ROPE!" Guntur shouted as he began tying the boxes of looted condoms together into an emergency rope.

In the dark, thick pool, Je saw the Hive Queen’s face transform into Sekar’s smiling face. Je knew it was a mental trap, but his System detected something else.

[Synchronization with Hive Queen: 75%...]

[Chance to Tame the Queen: High.]

"Damn it... do I really have to do 'that' with this monster underwater?" Je muttered to himself as he felt the Queen’s organic hands begin to strip away his clothes.

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