Capture (3)
Thudududududud-! The thunderous roar of rotors tickled the infantry's ears. As the soldiers looked up, they saw forty gunships advancing beyond the wall in groups of ten. "They're scouting. Letting us know when and how the monsters are coming." "I-I see." A veteran explained to a fresh recruit why the gunships weren't staying with them. The gunships that had swept over the ground forces crossed the wall in an instant and headed into the unknown lands beyond.
The capture force on the ground continued marching west. The new recruits pulled from the 5th and 6th Regiments shuddered every time they passed through napalm-scorched city blocks and the scars of fierce battles. Craters left by mortar shells, charred monster corpses. Bullet holes riddling every wall were enough to make the untrained soldiers' legs tremble.
Krrrrrung...! The massive gates slid open to either side. When constructing the wall to protect the Ark, the most attention had been paid to the gate mechanism. Originally, they had considered a vertical guillotine-style system that could bisect incoming monsters, but such a design would be nearly impossible for humans to lift manually if the automated systems failed, given its enormous weight. Therefore, sacrificing some durability, they had installed a horizontal sliding gate that required far less power and manpower to operate, allowing it to be opened and closed even in emergencies.
"Steel yourselves! From here on, it's uncharted territory!" Gulp...! The soldiers swallowed hard at the commander's words. In the past, "uncharted" might have made explorers' mouths water with ambition, but in this age of extinction, it simply meant a demon's realm where they couldn't even gauge how many powerful monsters lurked.
Clang! Once the heavy gates were fully open, the infantry stepped out first. From behind, the sight of thousands of soldiers advancing looked majestic, but from the front, all one could feel was the trembling of fragile lives gripped by fear.
"Spread the formation wider. We need to be ready for when the monsters fall." "2nd Platoon! Don't fall behind!" Once the infantry had fully deployed beyond the wall, it was the walkers' turn. The four-meter-tall giants rumbled through the gate and immediately raised their autocannons, scanning the surroundings alongside the infantry.
"It's quiet..." "Keep moving! The heavy trucks still need to get through! Check your gas mask filters, and company commanders, report to me!" Even though it was natural to be overwhelmed by fear, the fact that they followed orders and maintained flawless vigilance proved that the 1st and 2nd Regiments truly deserved to be called Ark No. 17's elite.
In contrast, the new recruits from the 5th and 6th Regiments moved a beat slower, flinching and hunching whenever monster roars echoed in the distance. It was only natural—they were green troops who had rarely even set foot outside the Ark. To their eyes, the veterans of the 1st and 2nd Regiments looked like indomitable warriors itching for battle rather than fearing it. In a way, they were right. The soldiers of the 1st and 2nd Regiments were also hoping the monsters would appear soon. Not out of bloodlust, but from a desperate desire to confront the source of their unbearable anxiety and pressure.
"Battalion Commander! Message from the gunship unit! Approximately four hundred monsters spotted two kilometers south of our current position! They're heading straight this way!" "Time to contact?!" "Forty minutes!" "All units, prepare for combat!"
At that moment, after the communications officer relayed the information, the battalion commander ordered all guns turned south and stepped into the command vehicle. Clack! Clunk! Cold rounds were chambered, and the finely honed firing pins waited to strike. Heavy machine guns were mounted, and behind them, the walkers finished preparing to turn monsters into Swiss cheese with their autocannons. However, since the operation's objective was capture rather than extermination, anxiety hung heavy on the soldiers' faces.
"Hey, newbies! What are you doing?! Open the heavy truck doors and get ready to load the monsters!" "Uh... y-yes!" "Move it, move it!" At the veterans' shouts, the recruits scrambled to open the cargo doors of the heavy trucks. The reinforced compartments, originally designed to transport explosives and chemicals, were sturdy enough that even monsters wouldn't escape easily.
While the cargo doors opened and defensive positions were established, time continued to pass. Soon the communications officer reported again. "Contact in five minutes!" "Everyone to battle positions! Remember—we have to capture them alive! We'll need to separate small-types, medium-types, and large-types, so stay sharp!" "Fuck, seriously... can't we just shoot them all?" "If we could, we wouldn't be doing this shit right now."
Even the soldiers' crude jokes were soon drowned out by the approaching monster roars.
* -Kyaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!- "There they are!" "Open fire!"
Tudududududud-! Since capture was the goal, the heavy machine guns remained silent while only the infantry fired their rifles at the monsters. Rifles couldn't deal decisive damage, but they could slow the creatures down, making it easier for the walkers' net guns to catch more of them.
-Kieeeehhhhh!!!!- "Now!" "Fire the net guns!"
Thump! Thump! At the commander's shout as the monsters closed in, the walkers launched their nets. Small-types and medium-types were caught in groups of five or six, but the large-types were so massive that only one could be snared per net.
"Kill the rest, damn it! Leave only the ones in the nets!" "Hell yeah!"
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-! When the heavy machine guns and autocannons opened fire, the monsters that hadn't been caught were torn to pieces and scattered across the ground. Once again, humanity had triumphed over the monsters. Fortunately, the nets had disrupted the monsters' advance, allowing concentrated fire, so there were no casualties.
Now it was time to transport the monsters. Thankfully, they were unconscious, foaming at the mouth from repeated electric shocks. Still, monsters were monsters. The walkers carefully dragged the nets and began stuffing the creatures into the heavy trucks' cargo holds, starting with the large-types.
-Kiek? Kiyaaaah...- Crack! "Quiet." A few monsters stirred from the jolting movement, but a single hydraulic punch to the solar plexus sent them back to sleep.
"Careful! Careful!" Clunk! Clang! Once all the large-types were loaded, it was the medium- and small-types' turn. Tangled together in groups, they were still dangerous as the shocks hadn't fully taken effect, but they too fell silent after receiving hydraulic "love taps."
"That'd kill a person, right?" "You can't tell?" While the infantry traded jokes, all thirty-five heavy trucks were filled. The communications officer then contacted the gunship unit.
"Gunship unit, this is the capture team. Monster capture complete. I repeat, monster capture complete." -This is the gunship unit. Understood. Beginning monster transport.-
After the exchange, thirty-five gunships broke formation and descended. They secured the heavy trucks—already disconnected from their vehicles—to their lifting harnesses and hauled them skyward. They flew directly toward the Ark's outer wall, where preparations for receiving the monsters were already complete.
There were several reasons for transporting via helicopter rather than leaving the trucks on the ground: if the monsters escaped in midair, gravity would handle them, and even if they rampaged, only a single gunship would fall at worst—far less collateral damage than if they were among walkers and infantry on the ground.
-This is Defense Bureau Command. Capture force, return immediately. I repeat, return immediately.- "Understood. Beginning return.-
Approximately six hours after the operation began, the capture mission concluded successfully. They returned to the Ark without a single human or material loss. The monsters secured that day were as follows:
Large-type: 12. Medium-type: 23. Small-type: 53. A total of 88 monsters were finally transported to the Ark's research wing.
Inside cages protected by plasma barriers, the monsters glared at the researchers, roaring and threatening them. The researchers merely smiled.
"Well then... shall we begin the experiments?"