Chapter.7 Masquerade (17)
***
Kuuuung-
Cuuuung-
“How do you think you got in?”
“I don’t know. You have to be able to see where it has gone. I was keeping an eye on the car after it exploded…”
As the Vex dug into the Raptor formation, the Professor and Ian, who had stopped the combat vehicle at a narrow distance and joined them, were observing the situation from a distance.
The rail gun beyond the border of the dome began to operate in earnest, and a heavy impact sound along with the sound of the air being torn apart was constantly echoing in the air.
A one-sided attack by the city’s defense facilities. For a war zone, it is almost peaceful.
Even if it was a time when the city had no reserve power, in just 5 more minutes, this battle would end in victory. But why? Why on earth am I so anxious?
‘The retreat has stopped. Because of its weight, the T-7 tank cannot overcome obstacles even though it is a tracked vehicle, so even if the Raptor’s infantry force takes the damage and comes forward with a minigun, the power repeater has already advanced far enough, so the exosuit’s shield will not go out. ‘There won’t be any.’
“What are you worrying about so much again? “You won everything, right?”
“okay. We won everything. After a few minutes like this, the main gun that looks like something out of a science fiction movie will cleanly blow them away. But… something feels uncomfortable.”
From a distant perspective, war has some similarities to chess, but the current situation was as if the opponent had moved a piece in the blink of an eye and it was my turn. There was clearly something going on, but I couldn’t confirm it.
Old Picture blocked the opponent’s numbers,
prevented the retreat of the Raptor Army, and narrowed the distance with the electromagnetic net, thereby neutralizing the tank bombardment falling on the exosuit unit and forcing them to inflict damage. In addition to being free from the bombardment, they were able to exert endless power from the city. It even led to a situation where the virtually invincible exosuit units that were being replenished faced each other with the enemy’s infantry.
I won everything. If you play chess, you are in a situation where you have captured all of the enemy’s rooks and knights and are about to call checkmate.
But the other person is laughing heartily. One thing is that the purpose of the first move leading to checkmate was not confirmed.
‘Hyde. Are you still sleeping? Hyde?’
[…..]
‘I don’t have it when I really need it.’
Being anxious means feeling anxious about something you know. What is it? What is this fact that I just overlooked?
“Retreat… wasn’t that too fast?”
“huh?”
“After they declared war, they immediately began retreating. Even before the electromagnetic net came into operation. “It means that the fact that that amount of equipment was moving so densely and that it was moving so quickly was something that had been discussed in advance.”
Raptor loses if he takes his time. Because the main gun will be charged.
Retreating is an act of wasting time. They planned to bide their time even before the battle began.
conclusion. Raptors don’t care about main guns?
“….No way.”
“why. Do you understand anything?”
“Eeeee…. No way. I would have done that. Nonsense. That’s ridiculous. cancer!”
As the professor continued speaking, Ian’s face also became anxious. Contrary to what he said, the professor’s face was changing from embarrassment to astonishment, from astonishment to fear.
No matter how much I tried to deny it, when I thought about it from the Raptors’ perspective, there was only one way to change this unreasonable battlefield to their advantage. There was only one situation in which retreat would be an advantageous tactic for the Raptor Army.
If this assumption were correct, something unusual would have occurred before the main gun was charged.
***
The changes in the battlefield came to my ears before my eyes.
Noise is rampant in one way or another on the battlefield. A barrage of gunfire, explosions, screaming, and screaming…
However, if the battle takes place around the city of the dome, the noise is drastically reduced.
Paaang –
The sound of railgun bullets breaking the speed of sound using acceleration through electric current rather than gunpowder.
Pabababak! Faba Park! Pabababak!
The destructive yet gentle sound of an electromagnetic rifle mounted on an exosuit.
Whoop whoop whoop!
And the sound of the Raptor’s tank bullet stopping in midair after being blocked by the speed bump’s electromagnetic net.
At some point, the ear-piercing sounds of artillery fire began to increase one by one in the battlefield, which was filled with only the noise produced by the Dome’s latest weapons.
Kwaaaaang!
A large explosion visible at a glance from afar, flying debris, and an exosuit that was hit directly by the explosion and was blown to pieces.
Crash!
The professor gritted his teeth at his own stupidity. If I had thought about it a little more, I would have thought of it. You just pass it over because you’re busy and out of your mind!
—–
[good. The 3rd platoon leaves that behind and goes straight into the dome. No matter what happens, we must protect the central generator! If the Executive Department is at the center of this, they may already be on the move!]
[Let’s go!]
—–
What I heard through a communication from the head of the Inspection Department before sending the old picture. One platoon armed with an exosuit was deployed. I thought there was no way an exosuit unit full of batteries could be attacked, not from the outside but from inside the dome, and Brother Ralph also thought so, so he may have sent in the 3rd platoon and forgotten about it…
‘What if… they weren’t enough? What if the enforcement officers who finally succeeded in infiltrating the central generator cut off the city’s main power source…!’
It is no exaggeration to say that the center of the Dome’s powerful combat power is the power that is infinitely supplied in the vicinity of the city. As such, the central generator is blocked by all kinds of defense systems and encrypted blocking devices, and even the Exosuit Unit of the Inspection Department has joined in the defense. Unless there is something truly absurd, the dome’s central generator will not be harmed.
However, if that ridiculous surprise happened,
“I lost… I lost…”
“What? Say it out loud, Professor Park! I can’t hear you! Suddenly, their artillery fire became more intense…”
“It’s not that the bombardment got stronger, but that the defense system was turned off, so the number of effective hits increased sharply! Damn it! “The main battlefield wasn’t here in the first place!”
The professor turned his head towards the dome located behind them, screaming loudly amidst the strong sound of the gunfire.
The sun was already setting over the horizon, but the city of domes was sleeping quietly without a single light.
“It’s a generator! Is it the executive branch or the raptors? I don’t know if it’s both! Someone has managed to penetrate the dome’s defenses and take down the main power plant! “The railgun, electromagnetic net, and exosuit power supply are all turned off!”
Quaaaaang-
Quaaaaang!
Before I knew it, no sound could be heard from the railgun tearing the air, and only the sound of the raptor’s artillery fire tearing open the open ground was filling the battlefield.
A dome that simultaneously lost its means of attack and defense.
The exosuit unit advanced deep into the battlefield, relying on speed bumps.
And the T-7 tank begins to advance forward from both left and right ends as if to surround them.
A wall of steel began to surround the exosuit troops, who had lost their invincible defenses.
“Hey, wait a minute. If the rail gun fire stopped….”
“There would be no need to replace the tank driver. “No matter how neatly the Vex guy sneaks in, if he stays there, he’ll eventually get caught.”
“If everything goes according to plan, he should have driven out as soon as he was replaced as the driver… but if this happens, he’s stuck there!”
Slam!
As if those words were a signal, Ian immediately gathered his weapons and turned around.
“I’m coming to the rescue! “You go to the generator!”
“Would you like to be alone? In that shelling?”
“….Tsk!”
Instead of answering the professor’s question, Ian took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth.
“If it doesn’t work, I’ll have to give it up. I’ll do my best, so you too, move as quickly as possible. “As soon as the generator is turned on, the situation is reversed.”
It means that you have already prepared yourself for death.
‘It’s my fault. ‘My lapse in judgment caused the Vex to kill the three of us!’
At that sight, the professor clenched his fists so tightly that his hands turned white.
“Don’t blame yourself. you are not god In the first place, we are just irregulars in this war. The current situation is that the raptor’s sword, which has been sharpened for a long time, is stuck in the nape of the lazy Dom’s neck. “It was natural for this to happen.”
Ian said to the professor, handing him a bunch of various grenades he had taken out of his bag.
“Because life is not a trivial game where you just win. And you’re not completely defeated, right? yet.”
Tap tap.
Ian grinned, showing his half-white, half-silver teeth as he held out his hand to his guilt-ridden friend.
“Like every time, if you struggle, you’ll never know again? Right? ‘Miracle Man’. “I want you to show me something this time too.”
Even the words that normally came out so well could not be said in front of that smile. Just hold the outstretched hand.
“I told you last time where the will is, so you’ll remember.”
“….”
“See you later, above or below.”
With those words, Ian ran towards the battlefield where artillery fire was raining down on him.
***
Meanwhile, the Vex, who had succeeded in infiltrating the Raptor formation 5 minutes before the dome’s power was cut off, were having an extremely uncomfortable time.
“Are you an old soldier?”
An armored car located at the back of a T-7 tank led by an officer. A place where unconscious drivers are periodically brought in and taken out.
A short soldier in one corner spoke to Vex, who was quietly waiting for his turn as planned. An old voice and thin wrists. It wasn’t a child. He was an old man with a bent back.
“Not in the mood to talk? Well… it wasn’t enough that I dedicated my youth to being a raptor, but because I was injured, I was abandoned and ended up doing odd jobs to make a living. This is the final destination I arrived at.”
‘Not only children, but also old people who had become useless were being used as consumables.’
Vex just listened to the old man in silence. It was noticeable that he had a different voice than his appearance, but if you had a hasty conversation in a situation where you had infiltrated without much information, you could have been exposed as an intruder.
The old man, who was staring at the silent Bex, walked over to the side of the child who had just been carried in and brushed his sweaty head.
“I used to be a tank soldier like them. He participated in World War III as a volunteer soldier. I thought like them back then. Since the world has changed, laws, people, and moral standards must also change. Thinking that the world had become too heavy for him to carry everything properly like in the past, he killed people, and after the war ended, he joined the Raptors as if it was a given. “I believed they were right.”
The old man’s hand, which was stroking the child’s head with a hand full of wrinkles, slowly moved down and closed the child’s eyes. It’s been quite a while since I haven’t heard a gasping sound.
“This kid… came in a little while ago after finishing his fifth shift. The impact of that rail gun is too terrible for the children’s fragile bodies to bear…. My ability to go out on behalf of the children is now at its limit… My legs can’t move and I can’t see well. Next time will be the last time. I’m fine. Because all of these things are the karma of what I did when I was young. But these children…. What on earth are these young children guilty of?”
Vex hoped his turn would come quickly. It was difficult to listen any further. No, we have to act according to the plan. I can’t ruin Hepburn’s plan. Hepburn’s strategy will be 100 times better than acting according to my thoughts because she is 100 times smarter than me… I closed my
eyes tightly and turned my head, but for some reason, inside my closed eyes, I saw an old and decrepit body. The image of an old man wrapping his arms around terrified children was depicted. The sound of dry skin brushing against each other, the sound of whining, the sound of trembling hands being comforted.
Shake!
“next! “Come out quickly!”
At the sound of the tank’s hatch opening, Vex stood up without even thinking twice. The irritated face of the Raptor soldier looked like an angel.
‘Operation for the sake of the operation…’
Vex ignored the old man and the young drivers and immediately followed the soldier into the driver’s seat of the tank located right in front of the armored vehicle. A small hole like a luggage compartment located on the lower left side of the large front vertical armor. I thought I knew why they were looking for such a small person.
Crackling-
[If you come in, move quickly! You slug-like bastard!]
Pow!
“Ugh!”
As I was looking around the unfamiliar interior of the cockpit, a kick came from behind the seat.
‘This is where the tank commander, gunner, and ammunition commander are riding.’
According to the brief explanation I heard before infiltrating, the person behind the driver’s seat was a gunner, but from what he was saying, it seemed like he had switched places with the tank commander.
‘I said I was deaf from shock.’
He probably came down inside to give orders with his feet in case a deaf child came as the driver.
From the corner of my eye, I saw that unlike him, who was wearing a simple military uniform, he was wearing what looked like quite thick protective clothing.
Pow!
[You got stuck out of the ranks because you were procrastinating! Do what you learn! There’s no need to touch anything, so step on the accelerator slowly! We are going to increase our speed and line up with our allies!]
Military boots on my back again and the tank commander’s instructions coming through the headset on my head.
The professor’s strategy was to enter the tank cockpit, then move forward and force the T-7 tank out of formation. Now all you have to do is kill them and escape –
Wow!
[It’s fast! The line has stopped! Damn you, Jeong Jeong, how can you go to war with these children!]
Crack!
‘These are the bruises on the children’s bodies and faces.’
There is no need to be angry. Because they were going to kill everyone anyway. A few hits is cheap compared to the price of life.
But Vex was very, very angry.
I can’t do it. Now all you have to do is kill them all and move forward. When changing clothes, I made a white flag using a soldier’s sweaty shirt.
[You bastards of trash! What could be better than serving as a Raptor soldier at an early age? Isn’t it a drag! Don’t make a whining sound-]
Push!
“….no.”
The tank commander, who was sitting behind the driver’s seat, freeing himself from the suffocating heat of his shock protection suit and the stress of the tension of battle, suddenly felt his legs feel cool as he heard a voice for the first time. The wind came into the protective clothing that tightly wrapped my legs, and my sweaty calves felt cool, but I cried out,
“Uh-uh… Uh-uh! my feet! “My feet!!”
On the contrary, his ankle felt like it was on fire.
[Whoop!]
[That enemy attack – whoop!]
Even before the shock of the severed ankle has subsided, a fatal message is heard through the headset. When he turned his head, drenched in sweat, Vex, who had already killed the gunner and ammunition operator, was holding a knife to his neck.
“Save me-”
“No.”
“Uh…huh?”
“Children have a much better future than being kicked around in a small space like this by guys like you.”
“What is that-”
Squeak!
Vex, who cut off the tank commander’s prayer without delay, sighed in guilt. It wasn’t a feeling of guilt for killing these scum, but rather a feeling of guilt towards the professor who would be tying his head and moaning if things went wrong.
—–
‘Remember, Vex! It’s definitely a battle of speed! Once inside, sneak into the driver’s seat, get into the cockpit as quickly as possible, and then take the car and break out of formation! ‘If your escape is delayed by 1 second, think that your lifespan will be reduced by 1%!’
—–
“If you do something that wasn’t in the plan… there will be problems.”
But contrary to what Bex said, he turned to the other side of where the pilot’s seat was, towards where the frightened children were waiting.
“hmm? Hey pilot! Go back to your seat! “If I can walk on my own feet, I’m still good enough to do shift work- wow!”
I was happy with the new knife I received because it had a sharp edge. So much so that the people guarding the armored vehicle containing only children and the elderly were instantly killed.
Shake!
As the hatch of the armored vehicle opened and Vex showed his face, a child jumped out in front of him. It was one of the children who was crying next to the old man. The child, who was inside a dark armored vehicle and covered his face as if dazzled by the sudden backlight, spoke to Vex in a trembling voice.
“me! I’m going! “Grandpa, if you go any further there… you’ll die!”
“Ronny! Come here! “I’ll go…!”
“No one needs to go.”
Sssssha!
Bex, who came in through the hatch, had tears in his eyes and smiled brightly as he stroked the head of the child who stepped forward on behalf of the old man.
“Because you still have a lot of life left. “There are many things that are much more enjoyable than waiting for death in a dark, narrow armored vehicle like this.”
“Now you… that one from earlier…”
“Grandpa. “You said you were a tank soldier, right?”
“That’s right…”
“I can’t see well and I can’t move my legs, but could you please drive one more time?”
“You mean the tank?”
“This armored vehicle.”
“It’s impossible… There are soldiers waiting nearby, and even if that’s not the case, other raptors nearby won’t just be watching-”
“I’ll take care of that.”
“An armored car… I can’t believe you…!”
The old man, who was examining Vex with bleary eyes, finally noticed the blood on Vex’s uniform.
“yes. “I’m going to take my grandfather and these kids and get out of here.”
The professor said that all I had to do was drive that big-headed tank. So wouldn’t adding one more armored vehicle behind it be within the margin of error?
‘I’m sorry Hepburn! I failed to sneak out with the car, but it will take more time to escape! I couldn’t pass this up!’
Although Bex was a little immature and seemed young for his age, he also had a belief that could never be broken.
‘Just like the man from Unit 14 did. At least as much as I received back then!’
Good adults had to protect their children. Even if it means being in the middle of a battlefield and your life is at stake.
Chijiik-
[Notify all front tank crews. The enemy’s power has been cut off. The enemy’s power has been cut off. To all troop positions. Now that the railgun has stopped, the expendable driver will not be used from now on. Slaughter the enemy with all your might.]
The Raptor’s command flowed through the old man and the Vex children, who were trembling with their eyes as if they could not believe this situation.
Vex’s sensitive ears heard the roaring sounds of the slowly moving engines of nearby tanks.
“I guess things have changed.”
“Something like that.”
“grandfather. “You can do it, right?”
“of course. Of course not…!”
The veteran, who managed to raise his fallen body with his arms and legs shaking like an aspen, stood in front of Bex with his wrinkled eyes filled with tears.
“For the last time in my life… I have to do it somehow…!”
“I’ll ask you a favor then.”
Vex came out of the hatch of the armored vehicle, leaving behind the old man who was heading to the driver’s seat, supported by the children. I saw children being carried out one by one from the nearby tanks, taking turns with the real Raptor driver.
“You guys are bad adults.”
After a while, blood spurted out one after another from around the armored vehicle.
***
