A snowscape appears in front of me as I once again experience the strange feeling of going through the gates. Itās the first time I visit the Antarctic but I donāt have time to appreciate it. Machoās vehicle should be around here.
(Alice) Ugh, I feel so sick.
(Kouki) Really? Iāve gotten used to it. Actually, Mom said she also gets sick when going through the gates.
(Alice) How can you get used to this!? Itās awful!
Well, itās not like you have to use them every day. Just endure it for now.
Every Chernobog member is guarding us. I scout the place while looking for the 1st squad. There doesnāt seem to be any signs of battles. The squad probably set up the bridgehead and slowly moved on. We should be receiving our main reinforcements soon, so no need to hurry.
Just like Captain Yurya said, Macho is right there, standing next to his vehicle with a giant shield from his power suit while he stares at his unit advancing. His arms are folded, so heās probably in a bad mood. If he wasnāt wearing a suit he would be smoking a cigarette by now.
(Kouki) Dad.
(Shuichi) Hm? Oh, youāre here. Alice-chan and Kon are here too?
(Kouki) Of course. Well, whatās the situation?
(Shuichi) Everything is going smoothly. We havenāt received any considerable attacks. Although we did have to smash some torpedoes on the way here. And I took a Peacemaker attack to the head. But since you guys were coming here I sent the unit to do some recon.
Did the Peacemaker strike affect his brain or something? Iāll have Mom check him after this is over. Anyways, no serious battles yet?
(Kouki) Itāsā¦ weird.
(Shuichi) Itās weird alright. You said these people were capable of developing something that could cause a zombie outbreak, so itās not like they wouldnāt be capable of defending themselves. For now, make sure you keep checking your data link constantly.
(Kouki) Got it.
As we talk, Alice is constantly updating a map with the position of every squad member. The 1st power suit unit has already reached the entrance to the iced valley. The Ursna Volunteer Army is moving from the gate. Am I headed to the valley too? Weāve predicted the enemy base to be under the crevasse at the end of the valley. It took a lot to find it so Iām starting to doubt whether thatās the right direction.
(Kouki) Dad, Iām going to the valley too. Iāll go with the recon team.
(Shuichi) Understood. Please make sure to be careful.
(Kouki) Captain Yurya is with me so I donāt think that will be a problem. Come on, Captain, letās go.
(Yurya) Roger.
(Yurya) Listen up! The team with powersuits will head to the valley. The rest of you stay here and escort the Ursna and Merkava units.
Captain gave everyone instructions and made a formation consisting of the Chernbog members in the frontline and me in the backline. Aliceās face was lit up by the monitor she kept fiddling with.
(Kouki) Alice, what are you doing?
(Alice) Uhh, this place in the map right hereā¦
(Kouki) What about it?
(Alice) I canāt quite put my finger on it. Iām not reading any abnormalities coming from it, but that in itself is abnormal. Itās kind of making me uncomfortable.
Hmm, a feeling of uneasiness? I donāt think itās a coincidence. Iāll let the captain know, just in case. Hopefully itās nothing.
(Kouki) Captain, Alice says this location has a weird feeling to it. Data shows nothing strange, but Iāll forward it to you just in case.
(Yurya) This- What!? This does not look normal. Weāll stop here. Joseph! Your squad is the closest to point F-6! Go take a look.
With captainās order, 3 men in power suit break formation and walk to the signaled point. Iām pretty sure the one at the front is Joseph-san. He said he was part of the heavy guns squad, but I doubt carrying a gatling gun on your arm is a good idea.
(Alice) Waitā¦ These numbersā¦ Stop! Kouki-kun, stop them!
(Kouki) Captain!
(Yurya) Loud and clear. Joseph! Leave the area at once!
I was surprised. Aliceās angry voice was so loud even the captain could hear it. She immediately ordered Joseph and the others to retreat. But the moment the captain yelled at them, Josephās suit started fuming and wouldnāt move. What is going on?
While I was wondering how to deal with the situation, an alarm rang in Aliceās suit.
(Alice) This is Alice Alfordās speech from the Type-0 Suit. All units retreat at once. Thereās a high concentration of energy. The enemy must be using a Charged Particle Cannon.
(Yurya) What!? A beam that could destroy the current generation of powersuits? We canāt compete against that!
Captain is speechless, and I canāt blame her. How can the New World have technology like this? Even at Noah we havenāt been able to recreate something this powerful. In fact, we havenāt even come close.
New Worldās technology is not at Noahās level, itās many years superior. But this isnāt time to be surprised. Beams can only go in a straight line. We just have to make sure to dodge that line.