The panicked miner's screams reached a fever pitch as his Reaper veered out of formation.
"Don't abandon me!"
The escort leader's face turned ashen. "Close ranks! Xize, attempt rescue—"
But it was too late. The moment the Reaper broke formation, a swarm of Spined Flutterers descended upon it like piranhas, cocooning the machine in a writhing mass of chitin and acid.
"Please! They're inside! AHHHH—"
The leader's fist clenched. With a snarl, he fired a shock grenade at the doomed machine. The explosion scattered dozens of Flutterers—only for hundreds more to take their place.
"Warning: Target lock detected."
Qianlong's breath hitched as his Reaper moved with uncanny precision. The left arm's clamp shot out, seizing a diving Flutterer by its skull.
Xize's Sentinel swooped in, alloy blade flashing. The bisected insect splattered acidic ichor across Qianlong's viewscreen.
"Nice reflexes!" Xize called before rejoining formation.
Phantom's assessment was less generous: "Movement deviation: 16%. Performance: Substandard."
The convoy pressed forward as a midsize frigate provided covering fire. Ahead loomed their objective—a floating iceberg listing dangerously at 47 degrees.
Scan Results:
- Volume: 1.098 million cubic meters
- Mass: 988,200 tons
- Purity: 100% uncontaminated
The escort leader's voice crackled: "We'll cover your approach. Complete these tasks:"
Mission 1:
- Recalibrate Chain #172's anchor point on Mushroom-class Reaver
Mission 2:
- Establish new Chain #211 along western flank
Chaos reigned on the iceberg. Dozens of Reapers scrambled to reinforce crumbling anchor points while others physically propped up the tilting monolith.
Qianlong located Chain #172's origin at the Mushroom's underbelly. As he detached the coupling, Phantom alerted:
"Breach detected. Hostile inbound: Type I Soldier-Class Otur. Threat: High-corrosion abdomen cannons."
The six-winged horror dove through defensive lines, spraying emerald acid that dissolved alloy chains like wet paper. Reapers fired wildly, but the Otur danced between shots—until Qianlong's auto-corrected cannons found their mark.
Thoom! Thoom! Thoom!
Precision strikes tore through wings and abdomen. The creature plummeted, its death throes spraying one last corrosive burst that missed Qianlong by meters.
With Chain #172 secured, Qianlong requested his next assignment.
A blue-haired officer's hologram appeared—Lieutenant Lanfu of the Mushroom.
"Chain #211 will deploy from Bay 32. Good luck out there."
"Thank you," Qianlong replied.
Lanfu's smile didn't reach her eyes. "No. Thank you."
As the feed cut, Qianlong guided his Reaper toward the glowing bay doors—and whatever fresh hell awaited beyond.