[No title provided]
[Damn, this guy's way too quiet... Did he get offended by that email I sent before? Even if he did, putting it out there like this?]
Renaissance's grumbling came over the comms, but I didn't say a word. I wasn't exactly overflowing with energy for chit-chat in the first place. Sure, linking up with the Nexus sharpened my mind, but that was separate from the exhaustion that hit when I spoke. My breath would catch, vision blurring to yellow any second now.
-[People, y'know, if you're too stubborn, you snap easy. In a world like this, what's wrong with chasing money? If you wanna do something, you need cash. Money makes life better. Hell, I've got dreams too...]
He went quiet for a bit, then started spilling his life story. I let it flow past like radio static, half-listening as I pushed forward blankly.
-[Hey, wait. Dude, doesn't it feel like the sensors have been glitching since earlier?]
After moving a while along the canyon ridge, I felt electronic interference ramping up on the frame. Tuning in, even the clean line to Renaissance picked up faint noise. Less than 100 meters away—what the hell kind of jamming wave was this? Had to be an ECM device nearby.
-[For smooth ops, better clear those jammers early. I'll scout. You check around here too. Share any data you find.]
Renaissance cut off one-sidedly and vanished over the ridge. He wasn't wrong, so I cranked the boosters and started sweeping the area. Shifting positions, I pinpointed the direction of the strongest interference. Checked the canyon floor just in case—nope. After about five minutes of circling, I spotted a large device cunningly hidden in the trees atop the high ground.
Getting close, the sensors drowned in noise—couldn't pull clean data. 'No registration number...' Scan came up empty; nothing publicly known. I fired up the hacking module and interfered.
Pssshht—
The blue glow from the device winked out, ECM neutralized.
-[Whoa, you found it already? Noise is gone clean! Feels like my head's clear again.]
With the static cleared, comms linked back to Renaissance in the distance. We neutralized ECMs along the path as we went, heading for the old reinforcement human lab.
And about 20 minutes later.
-[There it is.]
The endless mountains finally split, opening to a vast vista. From the cliff edge, we observed a basin-like depression not far off.
'Ground Zero Reinforcement Lab...'
Olivia Bio Group's "Ground Zero" facility, true to its explosive name—like a blast crater. Circular walls ringed the basin's edge. Inside, layers of walls stacked deep, topped with thorough defense systems. Impenetrable fortress vibes.
Breeding facilities were always high-priority, right? No wonder it was hard to grasp how contact cut off overnight, turning to ruins.
'Traitor from inside?'
Renaissance and I ignited boosters, descending slowly toward the lab. Only booster roar and howling wind filled the air.
-[Creepy as hell.]
No signs of anything nearby. Instead of probing the perimeter, we headed straight inside the walls. Hermann said no useful data left—Olivia Bio and other corps had swept it early, scrapping anything sensitive. True enough, sensors picked up zilch, screaming abandoned.
A database-looking device in the rubble... but up close, it was trashed beyond salvage.
-[Eerily quiet. Sure there's something here?]
But we weren't here just for data. Investigating anomalies near the site, remember? If nothing, why the ECM blanket? No corp that dumb wasting creds on a prank.
Surveying the rain-lashed ruins briefly.
-[H-Hey, dude. Something over there.]
Renaissance's voice snapped my gaze. And there—a familiar glow.
-[What the hell kinda frame is that? Never seen a design like it in corp prototypes.]
Kuuuung—
In the stormy dark, a bizarre machine hovered, emitting brilliant blue light. Reminded me of the "Watchdog" that blocked me during the Hive convoy escort.
"......"
Like then, the enemy floated motionless, watching us. That "aura farming" foreigners called it—like striking a pose. Renaissance's uneasy voice crackled over comms.
-[You're one tough bastard. See something like that and not even a word? Silent here too? You know something?]
No reply—I just sent him the engagement data from my last Watchdog fight. Comms went quiet as he checked it.
Then—
-[What the—?! What the hell are you?! You took down a freak like that?! Burst broke sound barrier? Bullshit!!]
Freaked by the specs, apparently. But we had to fight soon—panicking wouldn't help. Facing off, I waited for him to calm. Soon, a resigned voice.
-[Thought you were just some skilled prodigy. Turns out you're a psycho lunatic. Can I bail? No confidence against that thing.]
I stared silently. Feeling my Nexus's gaze on his cockpit, he deflated.
-[Sigh... yeah, gotta fight. With a monster like you who wrecked one on first contact, you'll handle it somehow...]
Meant he could go if he wanted, but he took it wrong. Even if I said I wasn't some anti-corp crusader, he wouldn't buy