Chapter.7 Masquerade (24)
***
Kazak Kazak Kazak Kazak –
‘It’s convenient.’
[Right?]
From the outside to the Underdome, a full-out sprint, and the battle from the Underdome residential area to the central power plant. My stamina had been depleted for a long time. I clung to the wall in a hurry, but apart from the strength of my left arm, I had no strength left in my body, so I couldn’t climb up quickly.
Hyde, who couldn’t see me crawling up while groaning, took control of my left arm and
started climbing up the wall, fingering me alternately .
Large hands crawling up the wall, moving alternately as if playing a piano, and a body hanging there. It was comfortable because I didn’t have to put in any effort, but…
‘Well… doesn’t it look a bit different?’
[Specifically? I don’t think that’s the case?]
No, not really. The man from the inspection department who was watching from below rubbed his eyes as if he had just seen something in vain and said that he was now writing a lot of things in a notebook or something. It was the face of a person who had discovered something very surprising!
Well, there was the minor problem of not being treated like a human being, but anyway, this finger climbing equipment safely crossed the ceiling horizontally and took me to where the maintenance equipment was.
‘That’s what the inspector said.’
[There are a lot of things that seem important? Which one sends power towards the city?]
‘Is there a need to think about it? You can just turn it all on. ‘It’s not even my house’s power, so what if it’s a bit of a waste?’
Slam! Clap, clap, clap!
Kiuwooung –
Without even a second thought, the professor lifted all the visible levers and pressed all the buttons that were protected by something. I didn’t have time to look up and study the manual for such a complex facility, and honestly, in the current situation, it seemed unlikely that there would be a problem if I turned it on, even though there might be a problem if I turned it off.
Buzz,
buzz, buzz,
crackle!
“oh!”
“That’s it! There’s electricity! “It’s a success!!!”
Lights came on in the dark cavity, and the central generator, which had been blinking quietly, began to operate, emitting powerful sound and light.
Clunk-clap!
Coo coo coo coo-
“Uh…what keeps moving?”
[Because it was a panel for administrators. It seems like I’ve moved a lot of things that were necessary to manage this and that!]
Dust was falling from the ceiling and the cool night air was blowing into the cavity filled with a dull smell.
“Is the ceiling… opening?”
[It’s outside! That person said earlier that this tower is connected to the outside!]
“I heard that it is connected to the outside, but…”
I didn’t know it would be like this.
As the electricity emitted from the central power plant spread throughout the city, light began to return one by one to the dark streets without a single ray of light. And
– flash!
Directly above the open hole, power towers stretched endlessly into the sky. It was not connected to the ground, but everything from the power generation tower in this underground cavity to that tall building on the ground was all one building.
“Oh, wait a minute. That….”
[Department…or is it splitting?]
The top eight floors of the huge spire connecting the power tower and the building were splitting as if they were peeling off their skin.
“This is crazy… I’ve never seen the Dome’s main gun in use and I’ve never even heard a rumor about where it is, but I never thought it was in a place like this!”
If you think about it, it was natural. A main gun that fires by collecting all the power stored in the central power plant, which is equivalent to the city’s daily power generation. It was only natural that that crazy structure would be close to the central power plant.
Among the few modern buildings in the dome, the top 30% of the tallest building was open, creating a
huge futuristic design similar to something seen in a science fiction movie.
“That’s the reason the dome was placed here…”
Even during the Great War, if only a few units were built and the power was sufficient, in any defense battle between air and ground, 99.9% of the time, not an idiomatic expression, but a real mathematical calculation, a nuclear attack would occur. An insanely large weapon that can give you an unconditional upper hand unless you do something else. Now that the world has been destroyed by nuclear war, Area 47 is the only city that is free from the influence of nuclear weapons, so in fact, it is the only stationary strategic weapon left in the world.
“Mayor Zeus.”
Clang, Clap
!
“This is…”
[They tell me to come up?]
A ladder coming down at the right time and an elevator connected to the end.
If you think about it, this administrator’s panel had slightly tighter security than the power control device at the bottom of the power tower. First, I had to pass the security of the power control device, go inside, and call the elevator to come up here.
“If the management panel was the ‘Zeus’ management panel, it would be that much more difficult to access!”
The professor grabbed the ladder hovering in front of him as if tempting him and began to climb up.
“Let’s shoot this.”
[Let’s shoot this!]
“Bah, Professor Park!!!! It’s not allowed as the main gun! It’s something that could burn the entire city if you’re not careful. Outsiders shouldn’t touch it. …”
Bang, bang, bang,
the professor walks up the stairs with great force, ignoring the voice of the man from the inspection department coming from below.
“I’m sorry, but… we’ve come too far to worry about the procedures!”
Arriving at the elevator, the professor pressed the flashing lightning button above the top floor button.
Ding-!
Uuuuung!
The elevator carrying the professor began moving toward the highest sky in the dome.
***
Boom!
[KT- 05! I captured a tank!]
[There is no need to capture it, so aim for the track! If the track is not good, aim for the right side of the rear armor! The coolant tank is thin and easily explodes!]
Ralph Monclar, along with his men, dug into the enemy lines like a beast. He was running wild. He had long since given up on the idea of going back. He and his men were ignoring defense and focusing only on preventing enemy tanks from approaching the city.
[MJ-06! Report on the situation of your platoon!]
[…. .]
[MJ-06! Jackson! Are you fucking dead!]
[…..]
Ralph gritted his teeth as he looked at the ID on the communication panel that was turned off in black. There were not many names left now.
‘Completely defeated 5′ There are 14 tanks against half-wave… 9. There are still 9 intact tanks left…!’
If only the tanks are captured, it may be possible to stop the remaining infantry and combat vehicles. If applicants who did not belong to the 3rd division of the Executive and Supervision Administration but did not pass, or even police personnel in charge of city security are conscripted as reserve forces, there may still be a slight possibility. ….
‘There’s no point in stopping the tank. It’s over. The Area 47 dome is in Raptor’s hands.’
We must evacuate in time.
Ralph thought of his wife and children in the city. She is a strong woman, so she will raise the children well even without me. The youngest is only two years old. Will she remember my face? She won’t be able to. When I thought about the children who had to live without a father in this harsh world, I felt sorry for them like a wave.
So,
“I will die to gain even one more second.”
In other words,
the sound of the battery going off as it could not withstand the waves of large-diameter Gatlings was heard, but Ralph paid no heed
and ran forward. “If I don’t do that, I won’t even be able to come up to eat the ancestral rites!!!”
Behind the group holding Gatlings, a soldier holding an RPG was seen aiming precisely at him.
The
Raptor’s infantry tactics. If you can catch the enemy, especially enemy equipment that is difficult to reproduce, such as an exosuit, you can bombard your allies’ heads. Pouring is also allowed.
Seeing the RPG launcher following exactly where he was, Ralph threw himself into the middle of the Gatling-wielding infantrymen.
‘…Please, my life is valuable enough to stop their advance even for a moment. I hope there is…’
Ralph closed his eyes as he watched the infantry flowing out around him like an ebb and flow, as if he had sensed the situation.
-Pazzz!
Quaaaang!
Explosion.
Shock.
And in the meantime, there was a sound tickling his ears.
‘Shield’s… repulsion sound?’
The sound of the shield emitting friction with the atmosphere so loud that it made my ears ring.
Ralph swallowed his saliva and opened his eyes.
The shield of the exosuit was emitting a round blue light and protecting him without any gaps. All other parts of the exosuit. All the assistive devices indicated by the vision assist device that I turned on with a trembling hand were also turning back to green.
“No way… No way!”
Flash-blink!
At that moment, an intense light spewed out, cutting through the moonless night. The central tower of the city spewed out brilliance like a pillar of light, and from the tower to the outskirts of the city and from the outskirts to the electric pole! A lifeline made of electric current. I could see it continuing.
Crackling-
[RM-01! The electricity is back!]
[This… seems like the city’s central power plant has started up again!]
[We’re alive! Fuck, we’re alive!]
Full of noise from the emergency communication channel It’s not a sound, but a clear, joyful cheer from the surviving members.
And –
crackling –
[Ah, hello, everyone in the Inspection Department. Do you remember my voice now? You know me roughly, right?]
In a channel connected only to the Inspection Department’s exosuits, a sly smile is visible. The voice of a man in his mid-20s that can never be heard.
‘ZEUS-00?’
[That’s right, Professor Park, BDSM. Thank you for your hard work, chatting with reptile babies in a non-existent company. This is to inform you that the dome’s central power is fully operational as of this time….] ‘The
ID is not newly registered, but included in the original communication channel. It was supposed to be. Zeus… Wait a minute. Zeus?’
Kiki Yi Yi Ying- !!!
Chicjik- [If you don’t want to be caught, please send it from the
allied coordinates right now.
As they gathered around, a strange sound that he had never heard in his life began to echo.
***
Bang!
“Incompetent! Useless! Those rats of the dome who are trash that won’t take even if given to them! They were so unreliable that they even sent mechanized prosthetic hands, but they failed! “My hunt! The sacred raptor’s hunt!!!”
Sol Amar watched the battle unfold from the top of the armored vehicle of the Noisy Pack, the hardest of all the tanks here. The city suddenly brightened up. The exosuits that were dying became alive and began to run wild.
‘Power has returned to the city. ‘Those scum failed to protect the generator! They are utterly incompetent!’
In fact, the traitorous Executive Agents attempted to explode the power tower as soon as they captured the central generator, blowing up the Area 47 dome and blocking any possibility of an enemy counterattack, but Sol stopped them. That city’s enormous infrastructure and the only city left in the world were too much to just blow up. Zeus, a class giant weapon, was so coveted.
Of course, Sol had long since erased that fact from his mind as the enormous weapon was about to scream at them.
“….Aaaah! Damn it! “Retreat!”
“Now, please calm down for a moment, Pack Leader! It’s not like we don’t have a chance of winning yet! Although we have recovered our power, most of the enemy Exosuits have been suppressed and the electromagnetic net needs time to advance to the friendly area, so we must concentrate our firepower to kill the Exosuits. If you put all your suits in order, drive as fast as you can, and enter the empty dome with no troops…”
Taang!
“Why, why…”
Grumping.
“Hmph! Stupid bastard. Did I look like an idiot who didn’t even know that much? ! You look down on your superiors! What a scum! A scum of the highest order! There is a chance of success, just like you said! That crazy, super-large plasma cannon is targeting this way! “What if I get caught up and die?”
Sol, who had shot the soldier of Noisy Pack who had become his new lieutenant about ten minutes ago, was kicking his body and swearing wildly while kicking his body.
Except for Sol, the soldiers all became quiet as if cold water had been poured on them.
The fat superior is incompetent, violent, and a scum who knows the lives of soldiers like the lives of flies.
The soldiers’ faces became increasingly grim, and one of them jumped up and raised his gun.
“…You damn pig…. You have to do it in moderation ah-”
Taang!
“You idiot, George!!!”
Taang!
Unable to bear it anymore, the soldiers took out their guns at him, but surprisingly, he fell down with a hole in his head before they could point their guns at him.
“…I now have an answer as to why I lost this sacred hunt. “It was because traitors whose ideology was so polluted that they dared point guns at their dignified superiors swarmed around like maggots.”
Sol shot the two soldiers in the head without even looking back, just as he was kicking the fallen adjutant. He then slowly looked around with the smoking muzzle and said,
“Before I became the pack leader, everything else in the qualification test was pull-ups, but I always got perfect scores in the two categories of shooting and pistol shooting. The raptor’s pack leader. It’s something that ordinary soldiers like you can’t even imagine. Ah! Come out again! Anyone who is dissatisfied with my orders should come out immediately! I’ll follow Raptor’s rules! If you kill me, I will take my place! “Come out!”
Sol was sweating profusely and swinging around with sticky emotions mixed with anger and murder, but unlike his trembling body, his muzzle was observing his surroundings without a single tremor.
Crash.
“…If there are no complaints, carry out orders. Since our tanks are already isolated in the enemy’s sphere of influence, the central forces, including Noisy Pack, should retreat to the northern right side of the battlefield. Tank troops should defend their positions and engage in a delayed battle.”
“That kind of thing!” “They plan to use the tank unit and the entire central army as bait!”
Slam!
“sit down. Since you are the driver, please just look at it once. “The tank gunner is the central force, and while the central force acts as a decoy to induce their attack, we are going to the dome!”
“Are you talking about Dome?”
“okay. Noisy Pack’s command vehicle has a camouflage function, right?”
“There is, but you can’t avoid the dome’s radar, and even to use it, you have to take off all your armor…”
Slam!
“Then go out now and take it away! It will emit such a huge amount of power that the radar will work well! “We hide in the dome while everyone else acts as bait!”
Sol placed his cheek against the soldier who was talking back and searched through the box containing his personal belongings while listening to the sound of orders being delivered.
Civilian clothing that fits your body. Clothes similar to those worn by the citizens of the Dome that had been researched through spies in advance.
‘My superiors blocked me from engaging in external activities because they thought my appearance would have a negative impact on Raptor’s public image. It’s very unpleasant, but thankfully my face is not yet known to the Dome. I’m going to park this armored vehicle at the entrance to the dome, and while the remnants of the dome deal with these guys in military uniforms, I’m going to pretend to be a citizen of the dome and get out and hide in the city!’
Sol let out a sinister smile as he took off his military uniform jacket, which was decorated with medals he had personally ordered. He will survive. I will definitely survive and see the Raptor’s glory spread across the world.
***
Kagagagak!
“Damn it! Shit! Why now!”
Ian jumped out of the armored vehicle, which refused to move forward no matter how much he pedaled, and fired the mini shooter, which succeeded in blowing off the outer armor and detonating the track.
Cough!
Cheol-keung!
A mini shooter that flies away with a hole in the chest accompanied by the sound of a leather bag bursting and thick bulletproof plates on the front and back.
“Keueumm! “Except for the fact that if I fire a few more shots, I will have to eat with my right hand for the rest of my life, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the taste of my hands is the best in my life.”
The hand cannon obtained from the Armory of the Inspection Department was a weapon that lived up to its name. This weapon, which was half gun barrel and half auxiliary part mounted on the arm, was a monster that used 24.1mm bullets that were only used on ships, but it had the major disadvantage that the wearer’s arms and joints had to endure the recoil.
Pazzu that is!
The war situation was not as bad as expected. While crushing infantry with armored vehicles and swinging around by hitting tank muzzles, I saw many fallen exosuits, and those who had been dying a while ago were flying around like Anpanman with a new head.
A city tower that emits eye-piercing light even from a distance without needing to see the cause.
“Hehehe, Professor Park is the man I recognized! “I finally did it!”
Cough!
After blowing away the two infantrymen that jumped out from the side with one blow, Ian decided to take it easy. It was a shame that he couldn’t take revenge, but he still killed enough people. Now all he has to do is wait and find out if it’s the main gun or something, and his old enemy…
“….Ah, lighter. Shit.”
Ian, who was rummaging through his pockets and reprimanding himself once again for not receiving a lighter from Anne, suddenly caught sight of the enemy’s troops moving strangely. When it comes to military strategy, I have experienced it countless times over the years.
“These guys… they’re throwing everything away and cutting it up? Tank···. It was abandoned first. Armored vehicles, combat vehicles, infantry… It’s all private, right? Are you crazy? “The Commander is in a panic-” Ian,
who was dumbfounded by the unimaginable mistake, remembered the existence of the Commander whom he had momentarily forgotten.
“…Sol that guy was the commander. I forgot about it because the image didn’t fit well. “If that pig throws bait and throws enough rice cakes to completely fill the pond…”
The principle of its action was very simple. Absolute self-reliance. The safest place even in normal times. In dangerous operations, the position closest to the escape route. And in a lost operation like now….
“It’s easy to just find the other side of the private stone.” Hehehe, there he goes!”
Ian could see dust flying across the empty wasteland. It looks like something is going to be gray or not.
‘There are no armored vehicles… All the combat vehicles are going up on the other side of that guy, and there’s nothing I can ride in to chase him-‘
Ta-ta-ta-ta-ta-ta!
Green onions! Pabababak!
“found! “He was driving a captured armored vehicle!”
“He is the one who killed so many of our soldiers! “If you catch it, it’s an achievement!”
‘What a hell, no matter how many people kill you, there’s no end to it…!’
Buaaaaang!
The moment he saw the motorcycle with the side car that the two soldiers were riding, a deep smile appeared on Ian’s face.
‘They say that heaven helps those who help themselves!
After a while, a motorcycle with Raptor’s distinctive black paint started running towards the dome.
***
Let’s dig!
Kkiiiiiiing-!!!!
[Off shell. Is it really okay to shoot this?]
“Hehehe why. Are you scared? “I thought you would like it the most?”
The professor was sitting in front of Zeus’s cockpit, high above the top floor of the tallest building in the dome.
[No, it’s good, it’s good….]
It’s so bad!
Jiing! Ji-ing!
[It’s because the condition… doesn’t look good.] Even
at this very moment, large sparks and electric arcs were flying in the cockpit located right next to Zeus, where a huge amount of power was gathered.
“of course···. It won’t be okay? Let’s see. The blue dots here are exosuits, and Monghyeong said he saw Ian leaving on a motorcycle, and Ezel said he was taking care of Bex…”
[Are you okay? Did you say you’re not okay now?]
“Of course. While all the city’s power was being collected to shoot this, the power from the power plant to the city was cut off. The enormous amount of power gathered during that uninterrupted time must have been pushed up at once through the pre-entered charging path. “You’re probably a little more overcharged than usual.”
[If you shoot that thing…]
“It will sting, right?”
The professor was doing his best to put the coordinates sent by Ralph and the enemy’s movement path into Zeus’s crosshairs. It was almost the world’s best ultimate weapon, so everything else was automatic, but because of the enormous amount of discharge, the radar was disabled, so aiming was manual.
‘Sometimes I think about it, but scientists are like the smartest idiots in the world. ‘After making such an ignorant weapon, you can only aim it manually.’
Chijik-
[Zeus is ready. RM-01 Let’s count.]
[Hey! Park…. ZEUS-00! Why are you there! I know how big of a deal this is!]
[I know. Right now, the side of my head feels hot as if the sun has fallen.]
[Not like that! Zeus is the most important weapon in the city! Even if you are from the alliance, this is something you should not touch! If we go back to the old days, a communication was suddenly received from an American nuclear submarine, and an Ally major-level person said, ‘They’re ready to launch a nuclear weapon, so please give us a countdown!’ The nuclear security key that was supposed to be in the US President’s pocket has been taken over by another country!]
Kkeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee of-!
[If you don’t do it, I will do it? If the timing isn’t right and you sneak a glance at your friend, you won’t know?]
[Damn it! A child who doesn’t know moderation! Just count to five and grind! We will be lying down at the coordinates sent in advance!]
[Lazor-]
Crackling!
Everything is ready. A nagging voice rang through the professor’s head as he placed his hand on the steering wheel of Zeus’s cockpit and his eyes glued to the observation equipment.
[I heard you won anyway! Even if you don’t shoot this, you can win on your own, right?]
“I won, but… the movements over there are a bit weird.”
I don’t know what the change of heart was, but the enemy seemed to have chosen to turn around a bit from the initial battlefield and fight again.
“Everyone will surely die, but the fact that they moved like that means there was some kind of order. Put your life in prison, something like that. And the Raptor soldiers are well-brainwashed, so when you tell them to kill you at the risk of their lives, there are a lot of them that rush at you without even looking back.”
Victory is confirmed, but quite a lot of damage is expected regardless of the victory.
“When we talk about damage in war, it mostly just looks like numbers, but in the end, each and every one of them is a human life. Like you and me. “When you die, there might be someone who will bury you and come to pray every day.”
The professor moved his right hand to the fire button, then switched hands and raised his left hand.
“What is this material?”
[Uh… I don’t know. Strength refers to the structure of your body, and hardness refers to the mother of my genes, Edeorna. I don’t even know how the mutant virus recognized it.]
“Hmm, really?”
Knock, crack, crack!
A hard friction sound that can be heard when you gently rub your fingertips. It doesn’t feel like metal.
The moment I thought, “I don’t know,” and was about to press the button, I suddenly heard my mother’s hallucination in my ears. My mother’s voice shouted at me to survive at all costs.
“…is that you?”
[Oh no! Not really! Just by looking at it, it looks like suicide! You really came up with it!]
“Is that so?”
Crackling.
I was a little worried. To survive. survival. There was only one thing he could do to repay the two people who gave everything for him.
The professor looked down at his left hand. Arms no different from the sharp and bumpy variant. A nag in my head. Friends like brothers. People from the chat room in District 47, the countless people I met who survived the Inspection Department Dome.
Eat.
“Yes, I have to live. “No matter what it takes.”
The professor’s left arm slowly fell away from the fire button.
While Hyde sighed in relief, the professor continued speaking.
“But when I lived my mother’s life, I realized that people don’t just live. “Live well!”
And then he powerfully hit the fire button.
phut.
phut.
Papan.
The city is immersed in the darkness of blackout, starting from the tower where Zeus is located in the center of the city.
The brightly burning electric current that seemed to have gathered all of it dispersed, and a
thin
solid line of light fell toward the ground. A tiny light that is shabby compared to that enormous energy.
Crackling-
Crackling-
As if breaking the silence, a blue electric current began to run wild along the solid line. The current gradually became thicker and fiercer, and began to take on substance, and then it started to crackle,
crackle, crackle-!!
Kuaaaaaaaa!!
Soon it became a tornado of huge electric current and swept across the ground.
***
