"Dagger Team always... continues to surprise me."
New York, Central Park HQ.
In the heart of Manhattan, still lacking infrastructure, people, and graves, but with an air conditioning system that works exceptionally well, the meeting room inside the fortified Central Park had a hologram projector from the assistant, showing slides that Henry Brayton was watching with a wry smile.
The projector was still running live, and the video being displayed showed two androids moving, and it was remarkably familiar. Especially the long, silvery tail extending from their backs...
He suppressed the headache and added:
"So, you’re telling me those are androids made from humans...? Have the casualties from Artemis been tallied?"
"The outlaws roaming the area... According to Brigadier General Aaron Delasovich, the ones referred to as 'Bandits' are mostly present, so it’s difficult to get an exact count, but it’s estimated to be over 550 people."
"Are they all Canadians?"
"No, more than half are Russians, and about 25% are presumed to be rogue PMC personnel."
Hah.
He scratched his head and sighed, letting out a bitter laugh, mainly due to the fact that more than half of them were Russian. They had betrayed the U.S., sold critical information to Russia, and now were using the remaining Russian soldiers in the U.S. as experimental subjects.
It was a bizarre, tragic situation, but he quickly shook it off and refocused on the main subject: the prototype Mecha Eugene.
The video then switched to a scene where the two androids were talking to someone, and the predictions about them were briefly noted beneath it. Type Gamma was clear-minded and had its own standards, likely able to understand and feel most human emotions, including likes and dislikes.
But it wasn’t comparable to Epsilon.
"That model could pass for a human if you only adjusted its exterior."
"That’s correct."
Type Epsilon, a strange entity, was somewhat ambiguous to call an AI.
After a long series of 'improper' experiments, Artemis created a human neural map, from which another life was reproduced. It was less an android and more of an artificial lifeform—composed of metal, artificial muscles, cables, and coolant, instead of flesh and bone made of calcium.
And yet, seeing that model stuck to a shadow of Eugene, it was enough to leave Henry and the senior military officials and high-ranking officials in the meeting room utterly dumbfounded.
"It seems that unit has a rather... dependent relationship with Operator Eugene."
"According to the operation records, Viper was the one who directly rescued it. There’s also a record of attempts to induce defection during about six engagements."
"Six times. That’s remarkable. I think I’ve seen something similar in a Chinese history book... Well, in any case, it’s an impressive effort. Surviving after six battles with such a monster."
And indeed.
The characteristic of Type Epsilon was its ability to fire a railgun capable of 35 MJ during operations, which was nearly twice as powerful as the electromagnetic cannon mounted on the unmanned tanks the U.S. currently used. According to the operation records, Eugene had solved this problem in a rather crude manner by disrupting its aim.
Of course, it wasn’t just that. To disrupt Epsilon’s aiming, an attack of equal magnitude was needed, and Eugene had the help of Gamma, which had been brought in a month earlier. This fact sparked significant interest in the people in the room.
The Advanced Plasma Cannon. Its power could change according to the user’s will, making it hard to calculate the average power, but one thing was certain: it was a collection of diverse technologies that would be hard to replicate unless developed deliberately.
Having such a weapon on your side, and even modifying it to help in battles against similar units, was truly impressive and almost dizzying.
However, those in the room had seen the Dagger Team’s actions before.
"So, how should we organize the two units?"
"Operator Eugene and Morrison are currently having difficulty in executing operations, so I believe we can substitute for them to some extent. The Shadow Operators are also assisting, so adding the two units shouldn’t be too much of a burden."
"Can you definitively rule out the possibility of hacking? Defection could be a deadly threat."
"If we can include Gamma and Epsilon in Icarus Gear’s firewall, there’s little chance of it escalating into a major issue."
When it came to troublesome or difficult problems, the solution was always simple: throw it to the Dagger Team, or have them deal with it.
And everyone in the room was committed to this approach, and the Dagger Team would likely give the suggestion some thought, but there was little chance of them rejecting or refusing it.
The discussion continued with more details and calculations.
Having dealt with less complicated matters, they began discussing something that required more deliberation: Artemis’s future handling.
Of course, with the President already declaring that Artemis would be erased from existence, there was little more to say, but discussions on managing the aftermath were still necessary.
And then:
"As long as it’s not related to artificial intelligence research, it’s fine to retrieve and use anything. However, artificial intelligence research will only be carried out through the two units that the Dagger Team has recovered. This is to be made clear here and now."
"No objections."
"Then, should we dispose of the data related to the human brain map?"
"Considering that about 550 people lost their lives to complete that map, if you’re not planning to take that into account, I suppose it’s fine to steal it."
This spoke volumes.
Henry firmly drew the line, declaring that there would be no tolerance for using controversial research data accumulated by Artemis, especially through human lives. And no one in the room would dare ignore his words.
Artemis would be erased, and the research data built on human blood would be burned.
Taking advantage of the brief silence, Henry scanned the room once again and continued.
"Let’s move on to the next topic. Two days ago, we received a report from CAF stating that a major assault on Artemis HQ, located approximately 160 km north of the base managed by Brigadier General Aaron Delasovich, failed. I need a detailed explanation about this."
"I’ll explain that part myself."
At the same time, a soldier wearing a three-star cap stood up and took control of the hologram projector.
Brigadier General Ernest Pendleton, Commander of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command. With a flick of his finger, the screen changed. A photo of Artemis HQ, taken from several kilometers away, appeared, and below it was a video.
He clicked the play button and began speaking:
"This video was taken by Task Force Vigil, part of the Information Support Activity (ISA)."
The screen showed Artemis HQ, captured from several kilometers away.
Artillery and airstrikes were intercepted in mid-air or blocked by an invisible energy shield. Amidst the tall grass, several movements were detected—soldiers aiming complex machinery at Artemis HQ, hurriedly manipulating something.
As the camera zoomed in, an outline emerged in the sky above Artemis HQ. It was Mecha Eugene.
But as it suddenly fired its railgun forward, the atmosphere in the meeting room changed dramatically.
"...Oh my god, you’ve got to be kidding me."
The size and power of the railgun on Mecha Eugene’s tail were on a completely different level compared to Epsilon's.
The reason was simple. Prototype Alpha was receiving all of Artemis’s remaining resources, which explained the disproportionately large tail for the size of the unit.
Then, in the next moment, the tail suddenly shrank, having created a massive railgun using some method. After the targeted strike, it either changed direction or deactivated—this was the case in the video.
The destructive power was enough to leave even ISA soldiers, who had been through countless battles, dumbfounded.
As the machinery they had been operating produced several more results, the conversation shifted in another direction.
"...Seems like the shield can’t be maintained all the time."
"Striking with a medium-range ballistic missile... I don’t think the Canadians would be too happy with that."
"They say if we have the Artemis code, we can infiltrate. So once again, it’s Icarus Operator. Forcing precious agents into that inferno and praying... It’s horrible."
"It's ironic that while we can block artillery and airstrikes, we can't stop people."
The placement of the two Mecha Eugenes into the Dagger Team's formation was, in fact, for this very reason. While depleting some of Prototype Alpha's remaining resources, highly skilled personnel would infiltrate to gather intelligence on the internal structure, and ultimately, both the Mecha Eugene and all facilities would be incinerated.
As each person came to realize this conclusion, Henry smiled faintly.
"The war ended not long ago, yet here we are, once again, driving America’s finest assets into a deadly mission. Truly, it’s horrific."
"..."
"Director Solomon."
"Yes."
The President and the Director of Icarus locked eyes.
"What is the energy limit currently fixed at for all operators wearing Icarus Gear?"
"Task Force Violet has the lowest, set to Delta, and Task Force Dagger is set to Eta, the highest."
"Release Task Force Dagger's energy limit up to Lambda."
At that moment, everyone fell silent, but Henry didn’t hesitate any longer.
Icarus Gear could deliver half of its maximum output, which could potentially cause severe damage to the user—though it could be healed later—but it allowed all operators to achieve physical capabilities close to those of the manifesters. A double-edged sword.
The slide finished, and Henry quietly added:
"I wonder how many more times I’ll have to wish this is the last."
The end was nearing.
But whether it would be the end, no one knew.
"All personnel deployed. The sniping and reconnaissance teams have reached their positions... As of now, the Lighthouse Destruction Operation has begun."
"To make the new recruits join the mission before completing their training? Brings back memories."
"Not much has changed, it seems, in terms of lacking personnel."
Meanwhile, regardless of the circumstances, the Dagger Team had fully committed to training Jin and Rain, refining their skills through what could be called a near-real mission—although this time, it was, indeed, a real mission.
The number of required operations always inversely correlated with the number of available troops.
"Message to all Dagger Team members. We’ve confirmed Owens and the two new recruits near the helicopter camp. Sharing the footage now for observation. As of now, Rapier and Marcus will be in charge of the area."
"Confirmed."
In the pitch-black darkness where even the front wasn’t visible, three personnel and multiple UAVs glided through the night sky.
It was reminiscent of the last bunker operation, but this time was different, especially since Rain had joined, and the mission wasn’t a total destruction operation, but rather a stealth infiltration one. Still, Artemis forces were present all around.
Despite the prolonged destruction, if anyone were to ask if there were any enemy forces left outside HQ, there wouldn’t be much to say. But upon reflection, there was a connection—through the nearby train station adjacent to the Artemis camp.
The lighthouse, coastline, customs, and bunkers all had railways in common. Naturally, these tracks connected to the research facility they’d briefly visited, although it had long been destroyed. Word was that the troops stranded at the lighthouse were dreaming of returning to HQ through these tracks.
Of course, that was an impossible dream, and the reason they had arrived here today was clear.
"We’ll have to send all these delusional dreamers to dreamland."
"Of course."
At the same time, it served as an opportunity to let Jin and Rain gain some real infiltration experience.
This was why, just before entering the Prototype Alpha raid, they were given their last chance for real combat. The proof of this was that the personnel leading the mission today was one of Dagger Team’s irreplaceable assets: Anthony Owens, the operations team leader. To prevent any emergencies, a reconnaissance team had been assigned to the entire lighthouse.
The plan was set, and after today, the two recruits would have gained most of their theoretical knowledge about infiltration missions and put it into practice.
That was the surface reason.
'...And if Rain hesitates for even a second to kill Artemis infantry or other personnel in a critical moment, that would be problematic too.'
And that was the second reason.
Today, Rain would, by her own choice, rebel against Artemis, and she had no choice but to do so.
So, in silence, the observation began. UAVs with propellers moved gracefully in the sky while three green markers signaling allies moved across the mountains and fields toward the villa. Unfortunately, they had to climb a winding path, but that was the least of the concerns.
After a while, some guards were seen at various spots. The villa itself, contrary to memory, had been heavily fortified.
The reconnaissance data from the UAV combined with Owens' detailed briefing began.
"The enemy at this position might seem easy to take out at first glance, but if you fire recklessly, it could cause noise by falling off the cliff, and there are other enemy forces observing the cliffside near the top."
"So, we shouldn’t take them out right away?"
"Exactly. And there’s one more thing we need to check."
At the same time, Owens moved closer to the guards. He was wearing optical camouflage equipped with heat-blocking features, so there was no risk of detection through thermal sensors.
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After waiting for a short while, Icarus Gear updated with new data on the UI. Stripping away the jargon, the conclusion was simple: The exoskeleton embedded in the body also functioned as a heartbeat sensor, meaning the enemy would know when a target was killed.
In other words, as long as no one died, the Icarus Gear could still infiltrate.
"Marcus, Rapier. On my signal, stun the enemies hidden by the cliffs... The two of you probably only know how to kill, not how to control your strength, so you’ll need to learn that today. Use whatever method works."
"This is hard."
"I'll do it."
Naturally, there was no refusal or objection.
Thus, movements began on both sides of the cliff—Rapier expertly evaded several layers of claymores and vibration-detection mines, while hacking the exoskeleton of the cliffside guards remotely. Jin and Rain carefully moved through the shadows.
Then, it was simple. Rapier didn’t bother stunning the two guards, but instead reset several commands in the database of the cyborgs set to guard mode.
In the next moment, Jin and Rain appeared before the guards, who, despite recognizing them, just stared blankly.
And a few seconds later:
"Ugh, choke..."
"Snap..."
The two guards, barely able to hold their breath, collapsed where they stood.
Of course, nothing happened. The signal modified by Icarus Gear was transmitted to the villa’s CCTV room and displayed that there were no abnormalities detected in the bodies of the guards in real-time.
When nothing happened after a few seconds, Owens nodded once and quickened his pace. Meanwhile, Rain, who had been repeatedly clenching and unclenching her fists, turned her head.
Through the communication network, a quiet voice echoed.
"It was this simple."
No one could help but smile at that.
"I’m looking forward to bringing you both on the Prototype strike mission."
Laurenatina's voice rang out brightly.
I nodded without a word.
The mental conditioning was done, and now only experience would shape them.