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Chapter 60: Cave
🕑 Added 2024-09-20 15:02:24 +0000 UTC"Sensor has detected a rank B Anathema in the distance!"
"Activate Agneya's frontal shield to fifty percent. The Anathema are getting stronger, and we need to prevent further damage." A translucent film in the shape of a hemisphere covered Agneya's front. Our Guardians could still enter from the back, and if they had curved shots, they could fire from there as well.
"Yes, sir."
"Too bad we can't shoot from inside the shield..." I muttered. "Pink Heart, do you think it's safe for the girls to land?"
"If we land, that means we'd have to follow Agneya by foot or truck. Do we have that kind of leeway? We still have about 100 kilometers to cover."
"So, where should we begin drilling?" I asked, looking at the map when the ship suddenly rattled. I quickly snapped my head to the monitor. Agneya's schematic, previously showing all blue, now had a yellow section at the bow. "We activated the shield, right? What was that rattle?"
"The shield was penetrated, sir."
"Increase the shield to maximum power. Pink Heart, I need you to hunt down the sniper."
"Okay. I'll depart with two Rank A and one Rank B fliers with me."
"Do that. It'd be nice if you didn't need to assist, but make it quick. Agneya doesn't have unlimited energy." The shield on Agneya was on par with the emergency barriers Zenith had given us, but it came with two major downsides: heat buildup on the generator and massive power consumption. Moreover, we couldn't retaliate if we activated it. Because of that, it couldn't be kept active indefinitely. Zenith had already analyzed Behemoth's attack; if we pushed the shield into overdrive, it could withstand its laser beam, but it would only last thirty minutes.
"Staff, keep a closer eye on the scanner. Watch for AA Anathema like this one."
"Yes, sir."
"Slow down a bit. We'll wait until Pink Heart clears the area."
"We should land," Issen said. "About 70% of the Guardians focus on melee attacks."
"The distance to the coordinates is still far. Do you think you can keep up?" I asked.
"You'll have to slow down anyway with so many Anathema swarming us. I can't even manage curved or homing shots. Do you really want to wait until those Anathema are right on our tails?"
"No. If worse comes to worst, we'll activate the full shield, march through the coordinates, use Agneya's cannon to disperse the Anathema, land, and then clear the area."
Issen frowned. "This ship is brand new. What if you scratch it?"
"The gate must be destroyed. As long as the arcoplasma cannon is intact, we can replace the armor," I replied.
"I see. You guys are ruthless. I like it. As long as you have a plan, I'll follow," Issen said, waving at me. "Call me in the cafeteria if you need me."
"Thank you," I replied.
"The Anti-Air Anathema has been vanquished. You can lower the shield now," Pink Heart reported. "The B-rank Guardian is returning to Agneya for recuperation. I'll continue to monitor the surroundings."
"Affirmative. Let's go."
After re-engaging the engine and lowering the shield, we moved forward. Soon, we floated above a black rock. The twilight cast an eerie glow on the dark marble-like surface. I felt a sense of unease. Did the Sierra Nevada have terrain like this? Moments later, Pink Heart's message confirmed my suspicion.
"The black stones are Anathema! They have mana stealth, so the radar can't detect them! Watch out!"
"Shield!" I screamed, but it was too late. The ship not only rattled but shook violently and tilted to one side. Some of the staff were thrown against the walls.
"Shield activated! Multiple breaches detected on the hull," Haneya reported. Through the screen, I saw that the belly of our airship had turned yellow, with some parts turning red. Thankfully, the attack hadn't hit the main engine or the arcoplasma cannon.
"Hey, what's that?"
"It's a new type of Anathema. These crab-like Anathema are no higher than D rank individually, but their concentrated attack has punctured Agneya's hull." Zenith's teddy bear explained.
"Attention! Guardians, ready to sortie! Haneya, Shish, prepare the cannon. We'll clear this area and land there," I said, pointing toward a clearing in the distance.
"Roger! Command to prepare the cannon accepted. The cannon will be ready in two minutes," Haneya confirmed as a humming sound began from the barrel of the cannon. It wasn't located on the deck but inside the ship, with a Magitech titanium door that would open when it fired—a design meant to protect the cannon from enemy attacks.
"The cannon won't harm Agneya, even at point-blank range, right?" I asked the Zenith officer again, just to be sure. I had read the specifications, but we hadn't tested it due to limited rounds.
"Yes. The arcoplasma cannon only targets Anathema. While direct exposure to living beings may cause substantial harm, the ship's armor and shield have been specifically modified to counter Agneya's radiation. It's impossible for Agneya to be destroyed by its own gun, even with some breaches in the hull."
"Good. Then clear the area with the cannon."
"Yes, sir. Switching to wide-area explosion mode."
"Good. Fire when ready."
"Countdown: 10…" As the countdown began, the whirling noise grew louder. At 2, the door in the hull opened. When it was fully open, the cannon fired. A brilliant light shot out from the silver cannon, bathing the Anathema in its glow. The power of a god struck true at the demons. I stood in awe as the golden light enveloped the mountain range, turning night into day.
"Millions of points gone..." I overheard one of my staff whisper about the eradication of Anathema by Agneya's gun. He was a 35-year-old non-combatant Guardian, currently specializing in intel collection. He had been traumatized by Anathema after witnessing his teammates get eaten right in front of him. Ever since, he had refused to fight.
Honestly, I had no idea how to properly utilize traumatized and retired Guardians. But with the information Black Lily had provided us, a glimmer of hope finally dawned on me.
"There are billions of points down there. We might die if we hold back," I scolded him. "The area is clear. Land the ship and deploy our Guardians."
"Yes, sir."
The ship made an emergency descent onto the rocky clearings atop the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Before we even landed, the hatches and ladders began to open. Six pressurized skids extended as the airship made a rough landing. After a few jolts and shakes, I announced that we had landed and instructed the Guardians to secure the perimeter. Through the monitor, I saw several Anathema repopulating the area, and our Magical Girls and Guardians quickly engaged them.
"Pink Heart."
"Sorry for failing to detect the stealth units!"
"Our scanner couldn't detect them either. It's not your fault. Deploy the drill core. We're not exactly at the center, but this spot must do. In the meantime, make as many repairs to Agneya as possible. Its belly took some damage." I met Pink Heart on the ground beside Agneya, and as I looked up at our prized airship, a sense of awe washed over me.
"Yes, sir."
Using the Guardian's gate, Guardians sacrificed mana to open a hole through space and teleport materials from a designated location to here. That's why we could travel light. I don't know the specifics of how the math works, but the mana cost increases when the material quality is higher. Sapphire Priest took charge of the teleportation. A huge black box, about 3x3 meters in size, dropped to the ground in front of me. Inside were the panels for Agneya's armor.
"So, do we need to replace one panel or two? How many layers?" I asked our engineer. Haneya and Shish inspected the damage alongside me. The armor had holes and dents, but according to the damage report on the screen inside the command center, it hadn't penetrated all the way through. Otherwise, we wouldn't still be alive.
"Hm… I think the entire panel needs to be replaced. It took quite a beating; the armor integrity is down to about 20% on this one," Shish said as he inspected the damage.
"Ugh... that means over ten panels. I thought these panels were supposed to withstand Anathema attacks up to rank C," I groaned. The surface area of this massive airship was over 1 km², and the damaged sections were displayed in red.
"Well, the damage may be minimal on the other panels. We might only need to replace the first two layers, but doing that will take time," Shish replied.
"No. Time is something we don't have. Just replace them. This is still within our expectations. Who's preparing the drill core?"
"I can handle repairing Agneya if you give me 50 personnel and 5 rank C Guardians. Haneya can handle the drill core," Shish said.
"Four rank B Guardians," Haneya added. Pink Heart immediately called the Guardians and summoned the drill core. It looked like an old tunnel boring machine, except it had a cockpit and was only two meters in diameter. Zenith said that this TBM could create tunnels at a speed of 10 meters per hour or a lot faster if we put it in overdrive. If everything goes smoothly, we should reach the coordinates within a week or two.
"Drill core ready. Let's begin!" Pink Heart volunteered to be one of the operators. The drill core, which resembled a golden egg, expanded into a two-meter diameter boring machine with four segments, like a centipede. The front of the TBM began rotating, and like an earthworm, it burrowed into the ground at an angle.
"Now, we simply need to guard it," I muttered. However, as I surveyed the surroundings, I had a feeling it might be easier said than done. The place we landed lacked any defensive terrain we could use to our advantage.
I just hope our boys and girls can hold out for a week.
