Que Tang pushed open the floorboards and cautiously poked her head out. After confirming the coast was clear, she climbed out. She placed a light-sphere on the ground and then pulled Emily out from the hidden compartment beneath the floor.
"I didn't expect your V-Squad to have prepared a place like this in advance," Emily remarked, her tone as flat as ever, making it impossible to tell if she was offering praise or criticism.
"There are no permanent reinforcements, and no permanent heroes. You never know when someone might stab you in the back," Que Tang replied with a cynical glance. Having said her piece, she snatched a pair of scissors from the workbench and walked into the restroom. Standing before the mirror, she grabbed her long hair to measure the length. Once she had decided on the spot, she used the scissors to unhesitatingly shear her brown hair to ear-length.
Emily leaned against the doorframe, her eyebrow twitching slightly. She watched as Que Tang produced a bottle of hair dye from somewhere and turned her brown hair into a deep wine-red.
"I suppose I still look quite good like this." Que Tang ran her fingers through her hair. She turned back to Emily, sizing her up for a moment. "You should stay as you are. After all, we’re playing the roles of kidnapper and hostage. But at least change your clothes." She opened a locker, pulled out a set of ordinary athletic wear and a pair of shoes, and tossed them to her. "My great Excellency Vrataski, I truly apologize for forcing you to wear the clothes of a commoner."
Emily gave her a cool look. Without any hint of bashfulness, she stripped off her military uniform right in front of Que Tang and changed into the black training gear and jacket typically worn by base personnel. She swapped her expensive leather shoes for the combat boots Que Tang handed her, then took a lace from Que Tang’s hand to tie her hair up into a bun.
"It’s 2:55 AM. In five minutes, a two-man patrol will pass by. We’ll knock them out, move them into the maintenance shop, and take their place on patrol. We’ll hold the post until 3:30 AM, when we swap shifts with the external patrol. That’s how we’ll get outside the base," Que Tang explained the plan.
"Someone will be responsible for verifying identities," Emily pointed out the flaw.
To her surprise, Que Tang gave a mysterious smile, seemingly unconcerned.
When the patrol passed by the V-Squad maintenance shop, they were whispering among themselves. As they walked through the shadows, completely off-guard, they were deftly knocked unconscious and dragged into a blind spot where the cameras couldn't reach.
"I didn't expect your martial arts skills to be so sharp." Que Tang’s voice carried an unreadable quality. Although they had agreed to each take down one guard, she hadn't expected anything from Emily. She had intentionally struck with extra force to finish her target quickly so she could help Emily, only to find that the other woman’s speed was nearly equal to her own.
"Stop wasting time. Change," Emily said, picking up a weapon and slinging it over her shoulder while tossing another to Que Tang. Without a word, Que Tang caught it and put it on. The two of them mimicked the patrol's movements, reaching the designated checkpoints on time, and arrived at the gate at 3:30 AM.
"Reporting. 7133 here to swap patrol positions," Que Tang said, lowering her voice.
Emily remained silent, her hand shifting on her weapon, ready to strike. If there was even a hint of exposure, she would not hesitate to blow this checkpoint apart.
The man at the desk stopped his pen. "7133..." He looked up at the speaker, then nodded. "Identity confirmed." He pressed the gate release. "The external patrol sent word that they’ll be five minutes late returning from the south. You two head north to check things out. The alarm has been cleared."
"Yes, sir." Que Tang saluted and led Emily out the gate, heading north just as the man had suggested.
"One of yours?" In this base, supposedly the most secure in existence, the sentry’s clearance procedure was suspiciously lax. Not to mention, he had gone out of his way to inform them of the other patrol's location. The only possibility was that he was Que Tang’s subordinate.
"Not a member of my squad. I just saved his life on the battlefield once." Halfway there, Que Tang suddenly grabbed Emily and bolted toward a forest to the west.
"If you want to avoid an ambush in the north, you should head southeast. That leads to the nearest town where we might find transport," Emily said, running alongside her with ease while calculating escape possibilities. "And the west... this forest has always been cordoned off by the military for survival training. There’s nothing special about it, is there? According to the data, the terrain is a circle with a hundred-kilometer radius centered on the forest's heart. Combined with the outer desert and the inner mountains, the military designed it as a wilderness simulation for recruits."
"I didn't think there was anything the great Excellency Vrataski didn't know." Que Tang actually found the humor to joke in such a situation. "The reason this forest is cordoned off isn't because it's a training ground, as the rumors say. It's because biological entities not belonging to any species on Earth were discovered inside."
As the two stepped into the forest, an eerie atmosphere washed over them.
"To be more precise, enemies we thought only appeared in outer space have actually broken through the front lines and descended upon Earth." Que Tang stopped, pulled night-vision goggles from her emergency supplies, and put them on, gripping her pistol as she scanned the surroundings.
"You’re saying alien variants have appeared on Earth? The military overstepped its authority and suppressed this without reporting it to the government?" Emily stared at her questioningly.
"You can thank the bitter infighting between your lot and the old farts in the military high command for that," Que Tang sneered. "Both sides want dominance and political leverage. Does anyone care about the people on the ground? I encountered the alien variants while leading new recruits through training. If that particular variant hadn't been unusually weak, allowing us to kill it with conventional thermal weapons, every soldier in this base would be dead today."
"..." Emily followed behind Que Tang in silence, also wearing night-vision goggles and gripping her pistol, staying alert.
After walking for a long time and venturing deeper into the woods, Que Tang suddenly spoke. "You’re following me so trustingly. Aren't you afraid this is a trap?"
"The Que Tang I know isn't that kind of person," Emily said flatly, without a hint of hesitation. "Besides, I’m the one who orchestrated your current predicament." In the next moment, she shoved Que Tang hard against a nearby tree.
"Exactly! Why did it have to be me?" Que Tang glared at her fiercely. "Didn't we agree never to meet again?"
Emily looked at her quietly. Seeing her indignant expression, she smiled. She pulled her into an embrace, turning her body to lock Que Tang within her arms. "I never said we wouldn't meet again. It was you who refused to see me."
"You!" Que Tang’s eyes reddened as she glared. "Let me go."
"Shh." Emily’s teasing expression vanished instantly. "There’s movement."
Que Tang also calmed down, listening to the surroundings.
The sound of conversation drifted from a distance.
Que Tang and Emily exchanged a look. With practiced chemistry, they nodded, gripped their guns, and hid behind a tree.
"It seems the higher-ups want to temporarily halt the other research. They’re only keeping the Colony Project."
"Why? Is it because of today’s news?"
"The Valkyrie who just survived a certain-death battlefield turned from a hero into a traitor in an instant. The transition is too suspicious. So, they’ve decided to lay low for a while to avoid the spotlight."
"True. Even though we’ve sent many people into the military and political systems, no one has managed to break into the Roundtable Council yet. So..."
"Alright, that’s enough," a voice interrupted sharply.
"You—"
"Don't forget: guard against spies and maintain secrecy."
The two figures hurried away.
"These... are the moles you mentioned?"
Emily frowned, remaining silent for a long moment. "You still haven't said why you’re heading this way. This is a good place for a brief hideout, but our ultimate goal is the north."
Que Tang stepped out from hiding. "After the alien variant incident, I used this place as a training ground. I stashed a fair amount of supplies at a certain coordinate."
"And those people just now..."
"I’ve never seen them." She took out a canister of powder and sprinkled it on the ground; footprints immediately became visible. "If the moles have truly infiltrated the entire military district and can come and go freely right next to the base..." Que Tang gripped her gun. "Then I’m officially joining you."
Following the footprints, they came to a vast meadow. They were submerged in grass nearly as tall as a person, listening to eerie roars coming from the distance.
They crept forward. Once they reached a certain distance, Que Tang’s expression turned grim as she adjusted her night-vision goggles to the telescope function and turned toward the source of the sound. Under the moonlight, she clearly saw the creature letting out the roars... or rather, a humanoid creature. She said in disbelief, "What... is that?"
Facing this creature that was neither man nor ghost, she recalled the rumors she had overheard. "Is someone actually performing genetic experiments?"
Que Tang saw two humanoid creatures that were originally being controlled. They seemed trapped within some kind of force field, attacking and mauling each other. Both fought as if they were immune to pain, bleeding and suffering injuries, repeating the cycle until one collapsed. The survivor was immediately bound. In mid-air, a transport plane appeared out of nowhere and landed on the grass. A group of people stepped out of the cabin and used an unknown method to control the surviving monster and bring it aboard. They watched as the transport plane departed. From start to finish, the nearby military camp showed no reaction whatsoever.
"How is this possible? An unidentified aircraft appears right next to a military base, and the defense mechanisms don't react at all?" Que Tang’s brow furrowed deeply. "There’s only one possibility. This was a flight with pre-approved clearance to approach the base..." Realizing the implications, her face grew increasingly pale as she looked at Emily.
"According to the intelligence I have, there is indeed a group of people engaged in such research. The individuals involved include high-ranking officials from both the military and political systems," Emily answered, her expression unchanged. "That’s why I needed you to assist the investigation by 'defecting.' Firstly, to divert attention, and secondly, to draw these people out. Because the intelligence also shows that they 'value' you very much."
"Value me?"
"The multiple crises you faced on the battlefield seem to be linked to this organization. As for the nature of that link, it’s currently unknown." Emily paused. "In any case, the primary objective now is to get to the Colony. Perhaps we can obtain more information there."
Que Tang took a deep breath. "I understand." She composed herself and gave Emily a crisp military salute. "Major Que Tang of V-Squad, awaiting your orders."
Emily’s violet eyes reflected Que Tang’s expression for a long moment before she turned away. "Let’s go. We need to reach the North Lost Lands quickly. Their next smuggling ship leaves in four days."
