Ark 74's Legacy
The fleet commander's office of Ark 74 was empty, just as expected.
"They really took everything, didn't they?"
It wasn't as if a thief had broken in, but aside from some scattered papers fluttering here and there, the place was practically hollow.
I hadn't expected anything grand, but I couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed.
"Tsk."
Clicking my tongue, I sat at what appeared to be the fleet commander's desk and opened the drawers.
"Helena."
I looked at Helena and pointed downward.
Most of the drawers were empty, but in the corner of the bottom drawer, I found an old file folder and a small leather diary.
It seemed to be the personal records of the fleet commander of Ark 74.
"...Hmm."
Curiosity got the better of me, and I flipped open the diary.
Month X, Day X, Year XX.
The 5th Surface Reclamation Force, centered around Ark 31, has failed.
Thirteen Arks struck five major strongholds of the Astral.
However, they were forced to retreat after suffering massive casualties due to a large-scale counterattack. Ark 31 fell, and the situation only reached a stalemate after Mjölnir was deployed.
Our Ark 74 also supported the operation with three mass-produced ECHO Squads; I received a report that all of them were destroyed.
Astral, huh...
That was the official name of the machine civilization, one of the three major threats to human survival in the game Echoes of Humanity — ECHO.
In the game, their existence was only hinted at through conversations with ECHOs, but they appeared in earnest starting from Chapter 20, becoming the primary obstacles for the protagonist.
There was so much debate about their name...
Looking at their appearance, quite a few users had complained, asking why they were called Astral instead of ProtXss. (EN: 프X토스 (Peu-X-to-seu)— This is Protoss (프로토스) from Blizzard’s legendary RTS game, StarCraft.)
The developers had teased the users, saying they would understand once they saw the later parts of the story...
But before I could find out, I was sucked directly into the world of the ECHOs.
Thinking about it again, it's just absurd.
"Sigh."
At my sigh, Helena slowly lifted her head and looked at me.
"...Is it... uncomfortable, Commander?"
"No. It feels good, so keep going."
"Understood."
Anyway, because the name didn't roll off the tongue, most users just called them the machine bastards or ProXss.
Month X, Day X, Year XX.
8th Platoon annihilated in an engagement with zombies.
With this, the number of survivors in the Ark has fallen below one hundred.
Month X, Day X, Year XX.
Rumors have begun to circulate that the Crawler Queen has started moving.
It was only last year that Arks 75 and 77 fell because of her...
Month X, Day X, Year XX.
Reports indicate that the Crawler Queen is heading toward Zhenlong City.
What could be there?
Regardless, I just hope she stays away from our Ark.
"Zhenlong City?"
Isn't that the place we almost went to before?
It seemed the Crawler Queen had passed by Ark 69, gone through Zhenlong City, and headed toward Ark 72.
Month X, Day X, Year XX.
The external scouting units are failing to do their jobs.
All resources, including the Ark's food supplies, are lacking.
It seems we will soon follow in the footsteps of Ark 69.
Month X, Day X, Year XX.
A Carapace Lord has appeared.
Four search parties annihilated.
Four commanders and two soldiers dead.
Ark survivors: 87.
Damn those ECHO bitches. If you're going to die, die in your own lands, you fucking mechanical whores. The reality of having to depend on the likes of ECHOs is disgusting.
"......"
A human supremacist who hates ECHOs?
In the game's lore, hatred of ECHOs among human supremacists was rampant in the upper Arks with larger populations.
They were the kind of people who claimed that humans could survive on their own and that the massive resources spent on creating ECHOs should be enjoyed by humans instead.
In the story, those guys were real cancerous assholes.
Aside from that, the diary was filled with self-pity and complaints about other humans within the Ark.
I thought he was a remarkably narrow-minded person for the fleet commander of an Ark.
Month X, Day X, Year XX.
Reinforcements from Ark 86 arrive tomorrow.
Damn that Lin Xiaolin.
How dare she act so superior in front of me?
One day, I will definitely make her crawl beneath me and cry.
And at the end of that hatred lay a deep sense of inferiority and twisted desire toward Lin Xiaolin.
Interestingly, someone had burned holes into those specific entries with a cigarette.
As if mocking those filthy desires.
"There really is nothing here."
I clicked my tongue and closed the diary.
And this was the fleet commander's diary.
There wasn't a single piece of useful or practical information for surviving in this world.
At most, I learned that Arks 72, 75, and 77 were destroyed.
And the fact that the 5th Allied Force created among numerous Arks in the past ended in a catastrophic failure, with one Ark being obliterated.
"I was hoping there'd be a secret vault for the commander, but I guess it was just a pipe dream... Ngh—!"
As I muttered to myself, my waist suddenly shuddered.
It was because the pressure from Helena, who was softly sucking me under the desk, had intensified.
When I looked down, Helena looked up at me with half-closed eyes and swallowed me even deeper.
I've achieved one of a man's dreams.
Even if it wasn't in the chairman's office of a skyscraper, it was still a blowjob in the fleet commander's office of a ruined Ark.
The situation was quite stimulating, nonetheless.
[There are high-concentration nutritional supplements here—!]
[What, by the box? I can't carry all of this at once.]
[Why didn't they take this?]
Every time I heard the voices of my fellow ECHOs outside, Helena's tongue would twitch, and she would begin sucking my cock even harder and deeper than before.
"Ngh, ugh... Fuuu..."
Each time, I let out a low moan and gently stroked Helena's head.
Was she excited by my touch?
Helena began to explore me with even more skillful movements of her tongue.
Every time her tongue strongly stimulated my shaft, a hot, wet pleasure surged up my spine and spread throughout my body.
Looking down at the ECHOs moving busily outside the window, I surrendered my body to the pleasure Helena provided.
"The looting seems to be going smoothly. The Central AI doesn't seem to be responding, though..."
At my words, Helena pulled my cock out from deep in her throat and answered while cleaning the shaft with her tongue.
"I heard that the Cores and key components used to maintain the Central AI system are treated as precious even within the Ark."
"They probably took them then."
"That is highly likely. In that case... shall I serve you again, Commander?"
She looked up at me with eyes full of anticipation.
But the blowjob was enough for now. I wanted to start enjoying Helena's body in earnest.
"Hmm... rather than that, why don't you bend over?"
"Like... like this, you mean...! Hngh!!"
At my words, Helena grabbed the desk and pushed her hips out.
Because she had been filled several times already, Helena's wet pussy accepted my cock very easily.
"Hngh, C-Commander—!"
"You're soaking wet. Did you want to be fucked that badly?"
Helena nodded quickly at my words.
She had subtly volunteered to be my escort and followed me here for a reason.
"Yes, yes—! Anything the Commander wants...! Ha-ah! Th-There...! I-I love it!"
Helena writhed, her hips lifting slightly.
And then, instinctively, she tightened her pussy to please me.
"Hngh! Ngh—! Ah— haaa!"
Every time I ground my hips against her plump ass and thrust deep, Helena let out a ragged breath.
Every time her body, a combat weapon, was used by the Commander like a whore, like a precious human woman, her heart throbbed with a sense of overwhelming happiness.
Luna... she needs to receive the Commander's love soon too...!
At least Silva seemed to be called by the Commander occasionally.
But Luna, the youngest of the squad, seemed completely unaware of such acts.
However, they couldn't exactly step forward and bring Luna up to the Commander themselves.
Because of that, Helena hoped that Luna would receive the Commander's love as soon as possible.
We... we have to work harder.
If they could be helpful to the Ark and make the Commander happy, perhaps one day the youngest, Luna, would also receive the Commander's love.
"Haa! Ngh! Ng! Ahhh—!"
Plap! Plap! Plap!
I grabbed Helena's waist and thrust into her violently.
In the empty fleet commander's office, the wet sounds of friction and Helena's moans echoed rhythmically.
"Ah, ahh! C-Commander! Deeper— even deeper—! Please fill Helena's insides with your hot rod...!"
Her sweat-drenched back was trembling more and more violently.
As she did, I moved my hips more relentlessly, increasing the speed. Gradually, the sensation of ejaculation began to surge.
Where should I cum...
Inside, on her ass, or in her mouth.
Now, as the leader of the loyal ECHO Squad of our Ark 69, she was a slutty bitch who granted me everything I desired.
And today...
"Helena, I'm about to come. Take it in your mouth."
"Yes, yes!"
At my words, Helena, who had been enduring with whimpers, nodded.
I moved my hips even more violently, then pulled my cock out of her pussy just before ejaculating.
Simultaneously, Helena slid her body around and opened her mouth, and without hesitation, I shoved my cock inside.
"Ghuuup—!"
As my cock slid deep into her throat, the ejaculation followed in spurts.
Thick semen began to flow down her throat.
"Mmph, mmm—! Mmph!"
Helena smiled faintly, tasting and smelling the semen that filled her mouth.
This was the evidence and the medal showing that the Commander had enjoyed himself using her body.
The fact that an ECHO could be useful to the Commander not just as a combat weapon, but also as a female, made her heart burn.
Of course... our Commander is probably the only one who truly loves ECHOs this much.
With that thought, Helena closed her eyes and savored the Commander's thick fluids, rolling them with her tongue.
"Slurp, smack, slurp."
Then, to ensure not a single drop was missed, she carefully sucked the cock clean.
Seeing Helena's devoted appearance, I asked out of curiosity.
"How does it taste?"
"It's very... rich and thick. A bit fishy, but... because the Commander’s essence is in it, it's very delicious."
Helena spoke shyly, but she didn't forget to lick the semen from the corners of her mouth with her tongue.
I grinned at her seductive appearance.
I felt like I should feed her a lot more and very diligently next time.
"Commander—!"
"Commander! Look at this!!"
While I was spending a pleasant time with Helena in the fleet commander's office, the other ECHOs seemed to have searched Ark 74 thoroughly.
And among their finds were things that definitely surprised me to my core.
"This is... an Arc Reactor?! No, how was this left behind?"
I was shocked as I took the box Cordelia held out.
The box was filled with Arc Reactors emitting a blue light.
With this amount, it would cost a lot of cash to buy them.
For reference, Arc Reactors were essential materials for upgrading ECHOs.
In the original mobile game, they were items used for leveling up ECHOs and enhancing their equipment.
Since they were required for leveling and enhancing beyond a certain point, they were incredibly rare materials that were always in short supply.
“I found them after searching the quarters of the Ark's production ECHO.”
Cordelia reported calmly.
"...Really?"
"Yes. I heard from a comrade that they had secretly hidden Arc Reactors during their final operation. I checked just in case, and they were indeed there."
"......"
I expressed deep gratitude in my heart to the nameless production ECHO of Ark 74.
This single box made the trip here more than worth it.
"I'll have to come back once we get a transport vehicle."
And so, the exploration of Ark 74 came to an end.
There were quite a few useful things—enough to feel like we'd hit a goldmine—but there was a clear limit to what we could carry by hand.
Regretfully leaving the rest, we grabbed the Arc Reactors and a few immediate necessities before departing Ark 74.
The situation was truly over.
Now, it was time to return and reinforce the Ark's strength.