Chapter 46. New Beginning (18)
"Huff... huff..."
Nadia and I panted heavily without the luxury of lying down or leaning against a wall. Carry, who had barely managed to escort us here, was in a similar state, except instead of panting, it emitted puffs of black smoke from its thrusters.
【Warning. A fire has broken out on the repair platform. Fire extinguishing efforts are underway.】
Sure enough, a weak emergency broadcast from the control room faintly penetrated through the door, signaling the fire had indeed caught on. The acrid smell was starting to waft over too, suggesting the blaze was quite substantial.
Despite the fire, I wasn't overly worried since there weren't many flammable materials on the repair platform. The system would likely sever the ignited cables automatically, so the fire should be easily controlled.
What concerned me, however, was whether the ghouls were truly dead. I believed they were, and the likelihood was high. If they weren't, we would have heard the deafening sound of thrashing in the ventilation ducts by now.
Fatigue weighed down heavily on me. Even lifting an arm was strenuous. The prolonged tension had rapidly drained my muscles.
― You'd best keep moving even if it's tough. The commotion might have agitated the nearby ghouls."
"... I know,"
I replied, suppressing a sigh at the broker's message. Extending a hand to Nadia, who seemed on the verge of collapsing, she took it with a trembling grip, steadying herself before resting her forehead against mine. Her ears drooped, unable to even perk up.
"I thought I was going to die..."
"Thanks to you and Carry, I survived, truly."
I recalled the harrowing moments just past, propping Carry back up after it had tipped over, a shiver running down my arm.
Below, we were surrounded by swarms of ghouls and surging energy from all sides—a situation I hoped never to endure again.
― ... I'm sorry. I'll keep the line open from now on. I didn't want to intrude with void communication, thinking it might be bothersome..."
"We answered right away, right? That's what matters."
― Still...
Celestia sighed softly, seemingly regretting her decision to mute the line. Only after I thanked her did it seem like her emotions began to calm.
― Lee Hyun-woo, I'm the one who helped you, why didn't you thank me?"
"Thank you."
― This feels like forced gratitude.
"Shall I retract it?"
― No need! ... Anyway, I'm glad you survived.
The broker grumbled, then cleared her throat slightly, almost as if embarrassed—or perhaps trying to suppress her upbeat tone.
Perceiving her straightforward nature, I asked how she managed to hack into our communication.
― Hah. It's proof that Myosotis' security is nothing special. One click and it's all accessible.
― I lent my authority during the brief communication break. She was beside herself with concern, refusing to leave your side. I told her to take a rest since I'd be on standby, but the broker insisted on staying...
At Celestia's comment that the broker had jerked upright after dozing off and hearing my urgent cry, the broker exclaimed in shock.
― Why would you say that! You promised to keep it a secret!"
― Did I? I can't seem to recall..."
Nadia and I chuckled softly. Yet, the coldness of the metal brought our expressions to a sudden halt. Perhaps surviving a near-death experience had lowered our emotional threshold, rendering us extra sensitive to everything around us.
Steadying our turbulent emotions with deep breaths, we began making our way down the corridor.
Despite all circuit breakers on the repair platform being destroyed, the pathway leading to the warehouse remained remarkably intact, even the lights, once off, flickered back on.
Celestia explained that the system's forced reboot wiped the system logs, partially restoring facility functions, though likely only temporarily.
And it wasn't just the logs that were gone. The excessive energy buildup had also dissipated all at once, removing the overload factor from the system.
Even as time passed, neither system logs nor energy would accumulate any further, given the destroyed circuit breakers inhibiting any blocking.
The situation wasn't entirely favorable. Any detection of abnormal energy flows couldn't be stopped until the breakers were repaired; otherwise, rampant energy would continue to deteriorate the facilities.
"But not now."
For now, it was a relief to have light. Walking from darkness to a brightly lit area was almost refreshing, cathartic even.
― Things don't feel right. We've been played by them, after all.
"Played by whom?"
― You mentioned thinking those pureblood supremacists might still be alive. The concentrated energy in the maintenance area wasn't normal. Someone orchestrated it, and who else would it have been?
The broker's voice, somber while explaining her frustration with the pureblood supremacists preventing anyone from utilizing the repair platform, set a similar mood for me.
Pureblood supremacist—a terrorist group closely tied to the current crisis. What they truly wanted remained unknown. They wouldn't have gone to such lengths for mere terrorism.
The supremacists we'd encountered seemed to harbor a desire to kill everyone on this satellite. Claiming things like everyone needing to die, or implying they were ready to begin mass killing as soon as enough people had arrived.
Considering that the ghouls appeared before the supremacists' bombings as Carrot had said, it wasn't hard to imagine countless unseen happenings beneath the surface.
"Were they conducting some kind of immortality experiments?"
I couldn't tell. My mind refused to think any more, perhaps due to the throbbing headache, likely an effect of the Blue Crystal.
Nadia was also in worse condition than she let on. Her breathing was uneven, and asking her to ride on Carry wasn't an option. Carry was just as battered.
It had forcibly overextended its thrusters beyond their limit and now couldn't generate full output. Without repairs, it might never fly again.
― Just keep going forward. There are no ghouls detected in nearby ventilation ducts.
Receiving Celestia's guidance, we stood before the warehouse door, which opened upon scanning the bracelet. Despite being forcibly sealed internally, the door swung open under the guise of maintenance authority.
A fleeting thought of whether Celestia would question this method—and inadvertently pausing—passed my mind. Opening through circuit manipulation and proper authorization felt slightly different.
However, Celestia said nothing, and the broker just cleared her throat slightly, signaling we'd discuss it later, so I held my tongue.
Silently, we advanced into the warehouse. It was not dimly lit, removing the need for additional lighting.
However, the flickering corner lights suggested finding the data board for storage recognition might not be too challenging.
The warehouse smelled dusty, filled with leftover materials and machinery parts seemingly abandoned for quite a while. Whether it had always been disorganized or was a result of the recent tremors was unclear.
The warehouse was smaller than expected, more like a supply room. Compared to the cargo sector warehouse, it seemed modest, though it could still be considered big in its own right.
Blinking my tired, dry eyes, I asked, "What does the data board look like? There's quite a lot here."
― Find a dark-colored circuit board about the size of your palm."
"A palm-sized, dark board..."
Seeing no signs of ghouls after sweeping the warehouse, we dispersed to search for the data board and collected all likely circuit boards in one place.
However, no circuit board matched Celestia's description of a dark hue. The closest option bore a gray shade.
"There's a gray one, but no dark ones,"
I said.
― Is that so... Then please collect it anyway."
Her visibly disappointed tone prompted my question. "So this is also a data board? What's the difference?"
― The granted authority differs. The black one allows up to level 3 clearance, while the gray is only level 1."
"... Even store data boards have clearance levels."
According to the broker, gray is level 1, blue is level 2, and black is level 3. She explained that Level 1 primarily grants access to basic supplies suited for low to mid-rank workers.
The higher the clearance level, the more the store system assesses the area as a core zone, significantly broadening the range of sold goods and products.
"Is stealing data boards from another store possible..."
― Once recognized, data boards lose their value. They're essentially one-time keys.
"...."
I figured as much but asked anyway. Had it been possible, there would've been no reason for all this hassle. It wouldn't matter what: security regulations allowed a storage of recognition data boards up to only level 2.
It seemed that any data board granting level 3 access was securely stored somewhere within the nexus of the central base. However, in our current state, exploring other areas was impossible due to the lack of stamina.
Though taking short breaks was possible, they didn't really help when I couldn't let my guard down. Having secured the store recognition data board meant the mission was a success.
After returning, I planned to investigate whether the broker could hack into it.
"Hoo... We'll head back. Just checking, but have you found a means of transportation? It'd really be nice, as I feel like I'm about to pass out."
― There was, but it's gone now.
"... What do you mean?"
― The repair platform had a barely functional orbital vehicle. It got caught in the energy surge and blasted to pieces. You'll have to retrace your steps today.
Celestia and the broker took turns explaining almost in tandem.
"... It sounds like we'll have to come back again."
― We'll see. Next time, I'll make sure to locate and notify you of transportation.
Nadia and I placed our hands to our foreheads in resignation. Already exhausted, the thought of navigating that treacherous terrain again brought us to despair. Nadia was already whimpering; her tail drooped.
I pondered, 'Should we take another look at the gallery's tracked vehicles?'
If I find a functioning vehicle, it'd make things much easier. But if not, we'd just wear ourselves out for nothing.
Besides, there were a lot of ghouls wandering outside the engineering area, right? I wasn't sure what it was like now, but the risk was too high to pin my hopes on chance.
'I need to rest quickly, and repairing Carry is also urgent. The orbital vehicle can wait.'
The way back seemed daunting. I felt like collapsing right there, sprawled on the ground. But dithering about wouldn't grant us the rest we desperately needed and earned.
We secured the store authorization data board and gathered some repair tools stored within the warehouse, loading them onto Carry's transport box.
While there were many things we wished we could take, lacking a means of transport made it unfeasible. Swallowing our disappointment, we departed from the warehouse.
Following the entry route, we opened the door to the repair platform in the engineering area where ghouls lay charred and strewn across the floor.
During fire suppression, ceiling coolers activated, leaving the floor soaked while the lights remained shattered and the premises shadowed in energy surges. More than that, the facilities seemed severely damaged, especially the pitch-black control room.
Despite the wreckage, the only intact thing amidst the charred ghouls was the Blue Crystal, retaining its form. On the platform, it stood alone, unmoved despite the severe damage elsewhere.
The sight of the crystal's blue pulses made dizziness resurface, propelling us back onto our steps.
We navigated past the engineering area control room and into the communication area, crossed the server room in the communications domain, slid through the server cooling vent duct, traversed the cargo sector shuttle station, and bypassed the security checkpoint.
From there, until we exited the mining base, not a single ghoul made an appearance. Could the intense energic fluctuations have temporarily driven them off?
Whhooossssh....
The instant we stepped outside, the bitterly cold wind dulled the scent of blood soaked into our suits. The frigid air, far colder than indoors, cleared my foggy mind somewhat.
Conserving energy, we silently set course back to the First Generation Colony Town, avoiding verbal exchanges.
We traversed the perilous zone of colossal reverse icicles and clung precariously to a swaying cable.
Our eyes, bloodshot from fatigue, shielded against the white snow, steeled us as we trudged over the endlessly engulfing snowfields in Titan's shadow. It was as though our footprints were swallowed whole.
To traverse the bitter cold, we relied on the warmth from the thermal devices Celestia provided and, should that not suffice, we leaned on each other's warmth.
And in that way, we forged ahead.