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Corpo Age - Chapter 266: Final Hunt Pt.2
🕑 Added 2025-02-08 21:15:12 +0000 UTCDoran - SocialCorp
In the area between Earth and Mars, two fleets were currently in the midst of battle. There were over a thousand ships participating if the smaller vessels were counted. In the heart of all this fighting, a constant blue shimmering field could be seen as energy shields constantly soaked up attacks.
Inside the flagship of the attackers, the bridge was as chaotic as it could be, with constant chatter as the crew conveyed new orders to the rest of their fleet. Only one man was idle, sitting next to the captain. With a physical book in hand, he read leisurely. Anyone could tell he was out of place, but no one dared to look his way, even the captain. He was decked in bright red power armor, with his helmet on his lap. As he flipped a page, he ran his hand over his bald head.
“CCG-12 is requesting to retreat. Their shields are down to twenty-four percent!”
“Enemy destroyers are diverting around our flanks. Should we respond in kind, sir?”
“Scout 5 has lost connection to our network. We’ve received an inbound laser comms request from their heading. Do we accept?”
The captain glanced at his aides for a split second before barking out his commands. He didn’t make his decision on a whim, though. In that brief amount of time, his cybernetics allowed him to confer with his confidants in an accelerated virtual reality space, where they made numerous calculations. It was the reason why the AI-controlled ships of the Halls Corporation weren’t as dominant as they could be.
Despite large corporations like SocialCorp dabbling in AI tech as well, their plentiful resources gave them the leeway to develop alternative solutions that retained full human control.
Of course, these alternatives required the users to heavily modify their bodies and use state-of-the-art cybernetics. That was why the bridge crew grimaced when the main power to their ship suddenly shut down. They had many systems connected to the ship, and these disruptions typically indicated sabotage.
For these specialized commanders, boarding action was their nemesis. Their frontal combat abilities were almost nil. Dealing with the abrupt disconnections, they quickly scanned the entirety of their hull to assess the situation.
“Damage report, now!” the captain bellowed.
“Sir, all our systems are down. There’s no power! Even the backup generations are barely working. Only internal comms are operational!”
“Have the security teams secure our power reactor as quickly as possible! Switch to laser comms to contact the rest of the fleet. Tell them to have BG-2 take over our command duty and request help from our escort fleet!”
Despite their panic, the crew worked without any hindrance. They were well trained and knew their next action would determine their life and death. The responsibility of commanding the fleet was swiftly handed over to another vessel, while they prepared to deal with enemy boarding action.
Once the captain did all he could to prepare, he finally turned to the bald man beside him, who was still leisurely sitting there, reading his book.
“Executor Doran, I humbly request for your assistance.”
“Don’t worry, it’s why I’m stationed here. I’ll head out once your security team assesses the enemy's composition. After all, there’s only one of me, so I can only put out fires one area at a time.”
“Understood, sir. I’ll let you know where you’re needed as soon as possible.”
Boarding actions weren’t uncommon throughout this war. Both sides had numerous means to wage war, and they weren’t shy about employing all of them. They constantly tested each other, trying to catch their foe off guard or just threaten them about the possibility of certain attacks. It was a never-ending shuffle of maneuvers.
The most dizzying part was how the generals on each side had to take politics into consideration. A civil war among the most powerful companies meant there were plenty of hyenas lying around. Either side could tempt their allies to join the battle anytime, so a new piece could be added to the strategy board at any time. That was why Doran had been stationed at the flagship of this fleet.
Nothing could go wrong with their mega fleet. It was worth deploying one of the elites to oversee the situation.
After assuring the captain that he would help, Doran directed his attention back to his book. Silence took hold of the entire bridge, as there was nothing left for the crew to do. There wasn’t enough power to use their terminals, which in turn meant they couldn’t even observe the situation through the cameras. They could only sit and listen in on the communication channels of their security team.
“Reactor bay, clear! No signs of enemies, and all the engineers are dead. The entire generation seems operational, but we can’t get it to restart!”
A few moments later, the other security team reported similar situations in other critical areas of the ship. Their engineering bay was also sabotaged, but they found no traces of the enemy.
“Divert as much power as you can to our scanners! Deploy anti-camouflage measures now!” the captain shouted upon hearing the reports.
It was clear to them now that their enemies were well-hidden. Despite their efforts, they hadn’t caught a trace of them yet.
Realizing this, Doran finally put down his book. He stood up and began activating his power armor’s sensors as well. As one of the four Executors of SocialCorp, the equipment he had access to was considered the best his company could offer.
He pointed a hand in one direction, then changed to another one. Each time, he would send out a high-powered scan.
“Sir, have you found anything?” the captain asked, seeing Doran’s actions.
The bald man didn’t answer. Instead, he put on his helmet and repeated his actions.
“This—I’m not picking up anything. How is this possible?! Captain, deploy your blast doors now! Our opponents must be the best of the best. An elite squad that focuses entirely on stealth. They won’t have much firepower if they’ve specialized in stealth so much. That’s the only possible explanation. ”
“Understood. You heard the orders. Carry it out double-time, men!”
Having identified the nature of the enemy, the atmosphere on the bridge relaxed once a set of heavy metal doors shut tight. To them, the danger had passed, at least in regard to their personal safety. All they had to do was wait for their security team to flush out the rats.
Time passed by quickly, but each minute felt like an hour to the crew.
“They still haven’t found them yet?”
“No, captain. They’ve scoured the ship three times, but still nothing.”
“Are you sure the sprinklers are working properly in every area? It should be impossible for them to hide when stained with the special dye we infused into the system.”
“Umm, no issues have been reported.”
“God damn it!”
“Captain, have your men deployed drones in the various vents and crawlspaces?” Doran asked.
Instead of responding, the captain directed the question with his liaison, using his gaze.
“Umm, yes. As with protocol, the security team deployed them immediately. The drones should still be patrolling any hard-to-reach spaces, but haven’t found anything.”
This left both the commander and Doran completely speechless. They used every means they could and didn’t find a trace of the enemy. They both began to have wild thoughts about this war.
If the enemy could achieve this level of stealth, then they would likely remain on the defensive for a long time to come. This war was heading in a direction that they didn’t like in the slightest. The only thing they could do was pray that this infiltration team had limited numbers and their equipment wasn’t easy to produce. Otherwise, if there were a few other teams capable of the same feat, they couldn’t fathom how their fleet could possibly win.
Just as they were shaking their heads at the bleak future, a thick gas began filling the room.
Doran stared vents in horror as he stood there frozen still. His brain raced to find a solution, but nothing seemed to come to mind. The panic of the nearby crew members didn’t help. They only knew how to complain and call their security team for help.
Doran exchanged glances with the captain, only for both of them to frown when they realized neither party had any suggestions.
The bleak future they seemed to fear had come much sooner than they had thought.
-----
I took a break on the ceiling of a hallway. The ship was large, and the ink-infused water sprinklers were annoying to dodge. It forced me to move the fastest I ever had, climbing up the walls.
Then, I had to deal with the army of drones flying around me. Thankfully, I had my Suri with electronic intrusion rounds ready, allowing me to hack into their systems. That way, even if they bumped into me, they wouldn’t expose my presence.
After a quick break, I resumed my mission. I was able to use the time to assess their response and formulate a plan to capture their control center, which was the bridge.
It wasn’t going to be easy considering it was locked up tight, with the only entrance sealed up. It was impossible to slip in without anyone noticing—or so they thought.
I wanted until their patrols were too far around to hear anything before beginning my assault. With their power down, they shouldn’t be able to react in time.
The only challenge should be capturing this Executor or whatever they’re called. Capturing was a lot more difficult than killing. Against an opponent that was supposed to be the strongest force of SocialCorp, it wasn’t going to be possible if they had any backup. I had to eliminate everyone who could get in the way fast. To do that, I must have the jump on them.
Walking up to the entrance of the bridge, I began looking for the vents that fed air into the command center. I hijacked the controls to their air conditioning and turned up the fan. Releasing my smokescreen into these vents, their room should be completely engulfed soon.
I took this opportunity to open the blast door with the authority I had in their systems. An army of Nyes was prepared to rush in the moment they could squeeze through. They immediately deployed a holographic projection to hide my entrance. If I didn’t have these handy tools, the gas trying to break free would give it away.
Once everything was ready, I slipped inside and had the door closed behind me. I saw the outline of dozens of people around me, each panicking in their own way. Some huddled to the ground while others remained frozen still.
Seeing how none of them reacted to me, I couldn’t help but grin.
Let’s get this over with. That guy over there in the power armor should be my target. Time to get rid of everyone else!
The scene before me reminded me how reliant humans were on technology. With their power out, and electronics disabled, they suddenly all became useless.
I didn’t even use any firearms. I opted for a sword I bought from Ferrumus Corporation. There was nothing fancy about it, just a metal blade, but it could cut through anything that stood in its way.
With the latest round of upgrades I received, I found that there was no need to be mindful of my actions at all. I didn’t have to hold back on my movements and still remain in stealth. Moving at my top speed, I steeled my heart and cut down everyone in the room.
I could then fire an EI round at my target and slowly hack into his system while I remained hidden, but plans never went planned.
Just as I swung down on the last person, who was standing closest to my target, I found myself flung back until I hit a large console behind me. Before I could process what had happened, a large figure suddenly appeared right next to me.
Shit! This guy can detect me, after all? But how? Shit, shit ,shit. There’s no time to think!
