───KWA-ANG!
“...Huh?”
“Shit, what was that sound?”
“Wake up, wake up! What was that sound!?”
“Emergency deployment alert! The deployment point is... Columbus Circle?”
“Central Park is just ahead, this is a problem... Junior, catch!”
“Yes!”
3:30 AM, Central Park.
The dawn, dark and quiet, was literally covered in silence and shadows. The sound of a massive explosion, as though it were pounding on my heart, echoed from somewhere. As soon as it rang out, all the mutated people, including me, jumped out of bed like springs.
In a hurry, we dressed with whatever gear we could grab, barely managing to get our water-logged equipment together. While checking that the special features linked with our gear were functioning, the lights turned on.
The harsh light hurt my eyes, but in that moment, Logan opened the cabinet, grabbed my firearm, and tossed it over to me. No matter how much we treat our firearms as extensions of our body, in situations like this, there's no time to overthink.
While inserting rounds into the magazine, the reason for the deployment hit me.
“Did you say a Valkyrie crashed at Columbus Circle? What the hell happened?”
“When have we ever known the reason before deploying? We’ll find out when we get there.”
“Stop talking and catch the damn magazine!”
While loading eight magazines full of deadly rounds, I prepared four grenades in the grenade pouch on the multi-purpose pack on my right thigh.
Once I inserted the magazines into the chamber and pulled back the bolt to chamber a round, I set the safety on the control lever. In just 1 minute and 30 seconds, all four of us were ready.
Rapland had already dashed toward HQ wearing nothing but a short-sleeved shirt and shorts—wolves don’t feel the cold much—while we quickly rushed out from the Alpha-grade mutant dorm.
The other members of the Dagger Team, led by Owens, were stationed a little farther from the Alpha-grade mutant dorm, so a quick reunion was necessary.
Before even 10 seconds had passed since we gathered outside, Owens, the operations team leader, and the entire Eagle Team had already assembled.
But that was the end of the personnel check.
“...This is clearly an incident site. No need to go to HQ.”
“I’ve requested the gate to be opened. We can head out right now.”
Far to the south, at the far left of Columbus Circle, black smoke was rising.
As soon as I activated a separate filter, I could see the fire, and beyond that, a faint red-tinted darkness. The Valkyrie had exploded and was engulfed in flames.
At the same time, we received information about what had happened. As the Dagger Team read it, we quickly rushed toward the scene.
“They got hit by two surface-to-air missiles? These damn Alliance bastards...”
“They said it wasn’t a MANPADS. It was our Avengers missile.”
“What?”
“They suspect it was launched from New Jersey. HQ estimates that the surface-to-air missile platform near that area was captured by the enemy. It’s proof that those bastards are starting to keep an eye on our methods.”
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“...Let’s just pray the pilots are still alive.”
As per what was said.
Honestly, the likelihood was slim. Getting hit by two surface-to-air missiles... If the Dagger Team had been aboard the aircraft, the survival chances would have been dramatically higher, but sadly, it wasn’t the case.
When the gate to the lower section of Central Park near Columbus Circle opened, it revealed a mess. The statue at Columbus Circle had been shattered a long time ago, and the asphalt was torn apart.
Around it, thousands of fragments of large and small transports were scattered haphazardly. After scanning with pulses, no signs of life were detected inside. That was enough for us to feel regret.
The wall of Hearst Tower had been shredded, and considering the cockpit part of the aircraft remained undamaged, the two pilots most likely met an unfortunate end. From Central Park's perspective, it was a devastating loss.
However...
───KWA-ANG!
At that moment, something flew toward my head—a projectile, something similar to a shell, traveling at the speed of a bullet. But the overwhelming body sight and reflex speed of a mutated person combined with the Icarus gear allowed me to dodge it in an instant.
But dodging the shell wasn’t the end. As soon as it hit the wall just a few meters away, the world was engulfed in a flash.
I realized it was a high-explosive shell when my body was suspended in the air.
Of course, naturally.
This was only the beginning.
“Keh...!”
“Shit, Junior got hit! Chester!”
“Ah, no... I dodged it. I got thrown by the blast, but the gear withstood it...”
“...Okay, so you can move? We retreat to HQ. We need to check how many enemies are outside. The problem is the hole in the base’s outer wall...”
“Damn, stop talking! There are crazy bastards on the other side shooting grenade launchers!”
“Ugh...!”
The sight at that moment.
Olivia kept pulling the trigger—of course, that alone didn’t explain everything. She was shooting down 40mm grenades flying at a rate of three per second with bullets, intercepting each one.
It was quite an interesting sight to witness firsthand, but it was time to get inside. It didn’t take long for me and the Dagger Team to enter the base.
When I came to my senses, feeling the faint smell of gunpowder on me, the battle had already started. From the watchtowers on the thick outer walls, dozens of soldiers had started the fight first.
Centrifugal fire and grenades were pouring like rain on 8th Avenue. Hundreds of rounds and grenades crossed the open space in an instant, and someone launched a guided rocket far away.
A Tow missile with a copper wire attached followed it, and an explosion rocked the heart of Manhattan.
The city was beginning to burn.
“Damn, in this kind of fight, there’s not much an Icarus operator can do.”
“Those bastards have infantry fighting vehicles. I’ll bring in a Titan, so wait.”
“I don’t know the exact positioning of the reserve troops, so it’s risky to provide fire support, but other things are possible. We’ll focus on rescue operations until the orders come in.”
“Understood.”
“As soon as the orders come down, we gather and treat the wounded.”
Everyone in the room nodded, and I also began scanning the surroundings.
Fortunately, no one had been injured or killed yet, but hearing the explosions and seeing the endless flashes of gunfire from the HQ watchtower, it was obvious that casualties would be inevitable soon.
Then, it would be best to tank in the most intense areas of combat. That’s what I thought as I prepared to move in that direction.
No, to be precise, I was about to move—until my neck was grabbed.
───Grrk!
“Where do you think you’re going, Junior?”
“Huh? Why? Didn’t you just tell me to focus on the rescue operation?”
“You just got caught in a high-explosive blast! Where do you think you’re going? Get treated first.”
“Ah, yes.”
...Now that I think about it, that was true.
I nodded and sat back down, and Chester began checking me thoroughly.
If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.
What can I say? Most of the blast’s impact had been mitigated, but I wasn’t completely unharmed. When I came to my senses, my whole body ached.
Chester was equipped with support gear specialized for our forces, and thanks to the nanomachines in the gear, my body started healing almost instantly.
However...
“Ugh...!”
“Those bastards are firing rockets! We need ADS!”
“The unmanned turret has been disabled! The enemy infantry fighting vehicles are firing low-pressure cannons!”
...This was not going well.
The battle intensified.
It seemed like this day was going to be a long one.
"Governor's Island is entering the fight! The enemy is identified near Brooklyn!"
"An unmanned reconnaissance drone launched from Westchester Military Airport confirms the engagement in New Haven."
"Chinatown sensors are activated. The enemy is likely there as well."
"So, those bastards have # Nоvеlight # finally made their way into Manhattan."
HQ is now under direct attack.
Even those who had been trained for this situation were showing signs of tension and panic on their faces. Even the support operators, who had seen all kinds of battles and had real combat experience, couldn’t suppress the shaking of their hands.
Normally, the TOC staff wore simple outfits, but not now. No one was without their bulletproof vests, and everyone had a pistol holstered at their side.
But even that didn't alleviate the tension.
“Identification of 2S25 Sprut airborne anti-tank artillery. They’re continuing fire support at the end of 9th Avenue!”
"ADS operational rate?"
"Some of the interception devices installed at Columbus Circle were destroyed by the falling Valkyrie, but fortunately, most are still working fine. The only issue is..."
"We can't keep relying on luck."
Explosions echoed everywhere, and one by one, unmanned reconnaissance drones were being shot down.
The U.S. military drones were being shot down, but the anti-aircraft tanks that shot them down were obliterated by U.S. air-to-ground missiles. This cycle repeated several times. The exchange rate was similar, but the U.S. had the advantage of no casualties.
One thing was clear, though—the U.S. couldn’t rely on luck. They had to keep forcing one-sided exchanges on the enemy if they wanted to seize the opportunity for the next phase.
So, they decided to minimize the reliance on luck.
The operation staff set priorities and transmitted them to the Dagger Team.
"Yes."
There was no direct response, but the operations staff knew very well that this silence was the answer.
HQ had ranked the risks they needed to eliminate first: number one was dealing with the imminent danger, and number two was eliminating the enemy air defense systems starting to form near New York. As always, the Dagger Team would be tasked with carrying out HQ’s will.
Fortunately, this time, the Dagger Team wasn't alone.
Because of the newly formed task force Aricon – after Elysium's creation, which had only lasted a short while before dissipating in the northeastern U.S. – this was a welcome addition.
“Aricon will scout to the north. Dagger Team will strike the most dangerous areas first.”
“Three minutes... you say?”
What could that possibly mean? HQ would soon find out exactly what it meant.
Shortly after, data was received that an elevator in a skyscraper 472 meters tall, located less than 100 meters from Central Park’s southern boundary, had started moving. The Dagger Team was aboard that elevator.
Their destination was the roof, and Rapland connected the body cam to TOC, glancing around.
In that moment, the operation staff saw 13 operators wearing wingsuits.
“Dagger Team, are we really flying...?!”
Olivia’s low murmur filled the TOC, and Rapland averted her gaze, showing a reaction like a wolf becoming prey. Meanwhile, the Dagger Team climbed to the snow-covered rooftop.
The fierce wind roared in their ears, but the Dagger Team modified the Icarus gear interface and prepared to follow the set waypoint.
How long had passed?
The 13 of them split into three groups and leapt from the building.
Before them were thousands of skyscrapers.
Despite there being around a hundred skyscrapers south of Central Park, the Dagger Team weaved expertly between the buildings.
With the engine at the back of their wing suits, the Dagger Team accelerated, catching the winter winds and building winds. The results were to be expected.
The 13 of them cut through the city’s sky at an incredible speed.
Despite being able to accelerate even faster, the distance to Lower Manhattan’s Two Bridges was only about 6.3 km. Even if they tried to slow down from here, it was uncertain whether the timing would work out.
However, since the Icarus gear had control over the wing suit with precision far surpassing human capability, this wasn’t a problem.
In midair, one of the operators executed a perfect half turn and began reverse thrusting with the engine.
Only Olivia deactivated her boosters and crossed over to Brooklyn, naturally slowing down. Her owl-like form, which was her inspiration, was unmistakable.
How long had passed? Soon enough, the entire Dagger Team reached the target location.
“...Proceed.”
As always, there was something unreal about the Dagger Team’s operations.
The operations staff quickly realized, ‘In the future, when combat breaks out in New York, Dagger Team will be deployed like this every time.’