*Clack. Thud.*
The mechanical structures locked into place, the buffer layers compressed to exchange air, and the unmanned deployment pod was fully sealed.
However, this was merely a test required for adaptation and calibration. The exterior of the target location for this mission was a vacuum environment, and the mission type was semi-stealth, semi-assault. Furthermore, they were equipped with a small spacecraft. The executors were not meant to perform a "stratospheric joy-dive" but rather to fight their way from the bow to the stern of a ship; they had no need for such things as deployment pods.
Lei Ting took his black box and his teammates, bypassed the modular deployment bay, and walked toward the mission craft that was ready to detach from the carrier at any moment.
Upon entering the buffer zone, the inner doors closed. The ventilation and disinfection procedures for the buffer zone executed automatically, and the shipboard AI began to automatically scan their armament integrity as they walked.
Once they passed through the outer door of the buffer zone, the group settled firmly into their respective pilot seats. Lei Ting took the command seat. After re-confirming the mission directives through his external optical computer—which had temporarily disconnected from the Star Net and interfaced with the ship’s AI system—he issued the order to his teammates: "Prepare to detach from the primary vessel."
"Yes, sir!" four muffled voices replied in unison.
Lei Ting nodded slightly and activated the small craft via commands from his optical computer.
Most spacecraft technology within the Galactic Sector was closely linked to the Ring World technical system. Consequently, pilotable combat tools such as shuttles, starships, and planetary weapons were generally controlled by five major systems.
These were the 'Main Control System' responsible for overall command, the 'Fire Control System' for combat operations, the 'Navigation System' for warp jumps and piloting, the 'Logistics System' for internal life support and artificial gravity, and the 'Defense System' for maintaining protective shielding.
As the commander of this mission, Lei Ting was naturally responsible for the Main Control System, while the other four served his commands.
After he confirmed the detachment command and received the 'Application Approved' receipt from the shipboard AI, ten seconds of preparation and self-diagnostic time passed. The curved viewport at the front of the craft lit up, and several coupling clamps connecting them to the main carrier ship rotated and released with faint, dull thuds.
Within the fleet silently advancing through the darkness, a small "speck" quietly peeled away from the edge of a ship positioned toward the middle-rear. Following the route provided by the AI, it maneuvered through the gaps between the escort ships and slipped silently into deep space.
Truth be told, while the carriers and starships had ample power, they were certainly not as handy as a nimble, swift mission craft when it came to multi-environment operations.
Lei Ting pulled up a star map projection in front of him. After locking onto the target coordinates, he entered the commands directly and steadily pushed the throttle lever.
The four people seated around the viewport ahead coordinated in sync, each performing system checks, information gathering, and data statistics.
Finally, after the craft brushed past an asteroid belt and entered full-speed cruise, they transferred secondary control of all systems to the AI. They collectively reclined, entering a state of rest while naturally releasing their mental power to maintain basic vigilance.
Lei Ting did the same. He would not choose to be overconfident and forgo rest just because his stamina was greater than most could imagine. History proved that every person who believed they were invincible regardless of the circumstances had died, and died miserably.
Looking at the external starry sky displayed on the overhead viewport and the scattered fragments of meteorites drifting in space, he let his gaze go blank in a slight daze.
His mental power naturally unfurled in the deep void, scanning aimlessly with himself as the center.
Among those stones drifting in space, he was somewhat surprised to find rare radioactive metallic resources. The degree of their decay allowed Lei Ting to understand that their age was greater than the entire history of the Orion civilization.
This was truly... a wondrous sensation.
Lei Ting gazed at the stars. For a fleeting moment, a pair of blue eyes flashed through his mind. A pair of hauntingly persistent blue eyes.
One day in the future, would it be possible for him... to travel through these vast stars with that person?
If such a day truly came...
...No, he couldn't keep thinking about that. Focusing on the mission at hand was what he should be doing.
Lei Ting took a deep breath, pushing the unnecessary, warm fantasies out of his mind. He didn't even need to trigger the power of 'Solaris' to remain steadfast in the face of those warm illusions. Because he knew that even warmer scenes existed in this world, and what he had to consider now was how to maintain them. To maintain them for a long, long time.
He did not know that in the far reaches of the starry sky, a figure cautiously bypassed the range of his potential perception, vanishing in a flash across the void.
...
...
In a certain chaotic patch of space some distance away from the mission objective, the simple shipboard AI ceased automatic navigation and actively reduced flight speed.
The five super-powered warriors opened their eyes in unison, standing up silently to gaze into the distance.
Lei Ting did not launch any probes that might be detected by the enemy's shipboard AI. Instead, he directly adjusted the forward view, gradually zooming the image to an appropriate level.
After observing for a moment, he spoke: "Ten to fifty ships. The flagship is a medium-sized vessel with extensive illegal modifications. It's a small-scale pirate group."
"Where on earth do they get the courage to block us?" Number Three was stunned. "Is their captain's brain alright?"
"It's possible something is indeed wrong..." Lei Ting replied casually, then instructed Number Two, who was currently in charge of navigation: "Reduce power. Engage camouflage mode. Advance in a drifting state."
He didn't explain the reason for doing so, but none of the four asked. They simply executed the order calmly.
Such professionalism made Lei Ting feel genuinely pleased. If he had been with some of the arrogant types from school who didn't pay attention in class, he would have had to explain that they were about to enter the enemy's radar range, and moving too fast at such a time made it easy to be picked up and locked as a target.
Oh, wait—those kinds of people couldn't serve as 'Vanguards' in official missions anyway. Never mind then.
Once the craft was stabilized at a suitable position, it was set to a 'relatively static stealth' state. In this mode, it would continue its flight and movement autonomously, avoiding detection by non-friendly targets while maintaining internal team communications.
This was a basic function of mission crafts. If it were one of the larger, newer models, it could even automatically respond to calls and deploy support such as temporary medical systems or area-of-effect fire cover.
Subsequently, Lei Ting and the others deactivated the artificial gravity and other systems. After formally donning their super-powered mecha suits and various weapons, they drifted out of the craft and flew toward the pirate fleet.
Next, they needed to temporarily retract their diffused mental power and make as little sound as possible. They would use mental power to operate their optical computers to display text in the communication system or trigger simple commands, preventing their voices from being overheard in complex situations.
...
Inside the main control room of the pirate flagship, a slender figure in pitch-black combat armor with gold-inlaid modular edges floated off the ground.
It was a mysterious super-powered mecha pilot who had arrived abruptly, now staring across the room at several stiff-bodied individuals around the command seat.
The group consisted of men and women, all dressed as pirates. The leader had a whistle hanging around his neck and was looking at the mysterious pilot with a face full of vigilance and wariness. This person had suddenly appeared beside them and, in the blink of an eye, had taken down almost everyone in the control room without even triggering the AI alarms... Truth be told, it was quite terrifying.
But in the next second, the opponent raised a hand and displayed a projected emblem in mid-air.
It was a symbol formed by two overlapping stars, one hollow and one solid, bisected by a diagonal, blade-like shuttle line. It flashed for a moment before vanishing.
"..." The pirate captain in the command seat stood up abruptly. "You are..."
"Do not pry into my identity. For a better future, friend," they heard the other person say. "Falin Valentine's identity has been exposed. Everything he held has fallen into the hands of Apton Onye. There is no new plan here; you have received false intelligence. Now, leave this place immediately, or all your achievements will turn to ash."
This person certainly spoke with a pedantic flair... The pirate captain's eyes flickered, his brow furrowing deeply. "We cannot simply abandon the efforts we've made all this time..."
"This is an order." The mecha pilot's voice was cold and emotionless. "Your communications have been cut. Every message you send out now is likely receiving a disguised, automatic receipt template."
The pirate captain and those around him were startled and began to check and verify.
A moment later, their faces turned grim as they lowered their hands and began preparing the escape pods. Even so, the pirate captain did not drop his guard. "If that's the case, the Federation could simply deploy a long-range strike. Based on our current position, we would be dead within 72 hours..."
"Regarding that—report this up: the Federation wants the deaths of 'Resistance' members to become part of a certain safety evaluation system," the pilot said. "Now, leave immediately. Do not waste any more time."
"Evaluation system? Is there more intel?" the pirate captain asked in a heavy voice as he walked toward the door.
This mecha pilot was a very powerful individual... He had never seen a super-powered being so strong. Before this person, this group of them—whose abilities were fully developed and whose highest rank was B—felt like grains of dust. Grains of dust the opponent didn't even need to bother brushing away.
Yet such a powerful person had crossed the stars to come here.
"That is not for you to know," the mecha pilot said calmly. "Farewell."
With that, he abruptly vanished from the spot, just as he had arrived, without disturbing any living being or shipboard system.
The pirate captain and the others were left dazed. Then, they all turned to look toward the rear, where the small figure of a young girl stood.
During the preceding conversation, she had been hiding behind the others, watching the mysterious mecha pilot. Her eyes, which had been replaced with prosthetic optics, glowed with a strange light.
Facing her comrades' silent questions, she shook her head and gave a disheartening answer: "Nothing... That person was too powerful; he has already exceeded the limits of my built-in analysis system. This kind of person is rare even among A-ranks..."
As she spoke, she entered the side escape hatch with the others. While walking, she opened an external information terminal eyepiece. "Let me see the scans from the other ships...
"...Huh?!"
"What is it? What's wrong?!" The others were startled by her look of utter terror. "Tita, what happened to you?"
"This..." The girl called Tita murmured, suddenly grabbing the person next to her and lunging toward a nearby escape pod. "Run, damn it!" Her voice even carried a hint of a breakdown. "That guy before definitely wasn't lying to us! We aren't worth two monsters who can nearly crash my analysis system teaming up to trick us!!!"
***
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
--- | --- | ---
法林·瓦伦汀 | Falin Valentine | A character mentioned by the mysterious figure as being exposed.
阿普顿·昂耶 | Apton Onye | A character mentioned as having seized Falin's assets.
反抗者 | The Resistance | A group mentioned by the mysterious figure.
缇塔 | Tita | A pirate girl with an integrated analysis system.
阳星 | Solaris | The name of Lei Ting's specific superpower/ability.
先行者 | Vanguard | The term for the elite strike teams (Pathfinders/Forerunners).
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