Chapter 234: Chapter 234: Suicidal Impact
The words had barely been spoken when the nearest Starship suddenly rammed into them.
Zoe Pierce was thrown aside by the impact, a sharp pain shooting up her spine.
The entire Starship was suddenly bathed in flashing red light as a constant alarm blared, "Warning, warning. Starship under attack. Starship under attack. Performance loss at 38%."
Inside the Starship, the collision caught everyone off guard, sending them crashing to the floor.
For a moment, Zoe Pierce’s head spun.
But this was only the beginning. After the first suicide attack, another Starship followed, and then another.
The communication channel, which had been open until now, was instantly cut off.
Director Quinn’s face was grim. His heart was a knot of anxiety and tension as his fingers flew to dial Miles Sherman and the others’ Intelligent Brains individually.
But no one answered.
He was so furious he almost smashed the Intelligent Brain.
The next second, he unhesitatingly opened a top-priority channel for The Military and dialed a number.
The call connected in under two seconds. The surroundings were instantly plunged into darkness as the encrypted projection engaged.
"Captain Jasper Quinn, you have reached the Federal Military’s expedited channel. What is your report?" The Alpha on the other end spoke with extreme speed and an icy detachment, his sharp eyes sweeping over Jasper Quinn.
Jasper Quinn wasted no time. "We are under an organized, premeditated, and targeted enemy attack. The target is Zoe Pierce’s squad. The attack began one minute ago. I am formally requesting military intervention. Estimated impact is catastrophic."
Upon hearing the name of Zoe Pierce’s squad, the Alpha’s brow furrowed slightly. "Are you saying Zoe Pierce’s squad was just attacked by terrorists?"
"Yes, a series of suicide attacks," Jasper Quinn said, quickly recounting his last contact with Miles Sherman. "Aside from their own efforts to survive, I am formally requesting a military rescue unit."
The Alpha’s tone became serious. "Understood. A specialist will be in contact. Keep this channel open."
The pitch-black encrypted space faded. A moment later, a new call came through for Jasper Quinn. "This is the Amalga System Military Command. We have received your dispatch request. Confirming the location of the attack: Amalga System, coordinates 14.832.872. Is this correct?"
Jasper Quinn was already getting dressed, the string of numbers burned into his memory. He answered without hesitation, "Correct."
"We are already mobilizing. Dispatching 60 Mechas, 10 ultrasonic battleships..."
Hearing the calm, methodical voice on the other end, Jasper Quinn couldn’t suppress his own panic, even though he knew this was the proper, professional response.
In the face of these Starship suicide attacks, he couldn’t guarantee what would become of the squad.
As long as they were alive, that was all that mattered.
What he feared most was...
He didn’t dare to let his thoughts go there.
Meanwhile, the captain of the civilian Starship, who had been warned there were terrorists aboard, was now staring at the unfolding scene as if he were seeing a ghost.
The shockwaves from the Starship collisions had become visible to the naked eye.
He watched, horrified, as a swarm of Starships that had appeared from nowhere savagely and relentlessly rammed the Starship that had been flying behind him.
In that moment, he had no doubt. This was absolutely the work of terrorists.
He immediately grabbed his communicator. "Passenger Police, attention! Apprehend the suspects immediately! Immediately!"
He didn’t know who was on that other Starship, but his nerves were stretched to the breaking point.
Amidst the explosions, he spotted two partially damaged Mechas get thrown clear. He hastily activated the assistance beacon, signaling that his Starship could provide rescue support.
But he watched as the two Mechas, as if they had gone mad, flew back toward the battered and shattered Starship.
The light and electrical interference from the friction were so intense that even his own Starship was having trouble locking onto a stable signal.
Those two Mechas were so close; even military-grade Mechas would be affected.
"Zoe Pierce! Zoe Pierce!" Aaron Xavier shouted frantically over the open channel.
It all happened too fast.
There had been no time to prepare. By the time Aaron Xavier recovered from the deafening ringing in his ears, he realized he couldn’t find Zoe Pierce.
Humans can’t survive direct exposure to the vacuum of space.
Just ten seconds would be enough to lose consciousness. Within minutes, catastrophic changes would occur inside the body: the blood would form bubbles, the brain would suffer irreversible damage. Death would follow in less than three minutes.
And that was without even considering the cosmic radiation.
This information, usually just a piece of common scientific knowledge, sprang to his mind, followed by an uncontrollable wave of panic and terror.
"Zoe Pierce... did you make it to your Mecha? Zoe Pierce..." He shouted her name several times with no response. In a frantic daze, Aaron Xavier aimed his Mecha at another incoming Starship and fired, blasting it and the two behind it to smithereens.
Miles Sherman’s face was deathly pale, but as the squad leader, he had to contact not only Zoe Pierce, but also Nathan Lockwood and Chase Shaw.
He spotted a Mecha with one arm torn off and both mechanical legs gone, a lifeless husk tumbling through space. He shot toward it, grabbing it and pulling it clear.
It was Nathan Lockwood’s Mecha.
Once he was close enough, their private comms connected. "Nathan Lockwood, are you alright?"
His position had taken the brunt of the impact, right at the Starship’s weakest point.
"I’m fine... Find Zoe Pierce!" Nathan Lockwood shook his head, his forehead covered in blood.
During the initial collision, he’d had the bad luck of being thrown against a sharp edge. He’d managed to shield himself with his arm, but he couldn’t avoid getting injured.
The Mecha was a total loss, unable to provide any more assistance.
That still left Chase Shaw and Zoe Pierce, who were both missing.
After confirming Nathan Lockwood was alive, Miles Sherman moved him to a safer spot on the periphery before plunging back into the wreckage.
’Not here. Not here either.’
Wreckage was everywhere. It was impossible to tell if a piece of debris came from their own Starship or one of the attackers.
He flew through the sea of debris, and with every passing moment he couldn’t find her, the panic in his heart grew.
Soon, his back was drenched in a cold sweat.
He had bitten his lip raw.
’Where could Zoe Pierce be?’
He didn’t dare to consider the alternative. ’Impossible. How could it be?’
’Zoe Pierce had her Mecha; how could anything have happened to her? Her spiritual power would definitely protect her, just like when she and Aaron Xavier were trapped at the bottom of that cliff.’
’Nothing could have happened to her.’
Miles Sherman’s throat was tight, his eyes meticulously scanning every detail of the wreckage.
"Miles, have you found Zoe Pierce?" Aaron Xavier called out, his attention divided between fighting off the endless stream of suicide Starships and his worry.
Miles Sherman couldn’t bring himself to answer.
’Nothing... He couldn’t find Zoe Pierce anywhere...’
