Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: The Phoenix in the Depths
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Gavin had calculated every possibility, but he never imagined Aaron would just make a brief appearance in the hall and then step out—right to the edge of the lawn to stand and smoke!
In that moment, Gavin's emotions were a whirlwind of fury and despair: *Edna, couldn't you at least notify me that Aaron was gone? Claire, did you and your little girlfriend *have* to sneak off for a date behind the bathroom? General Aaron, why aren't you staying inside the hall basking in everyone's flattery—instead running out here to what, catch the breeze and puff on your cigarette?!*
They weren't just a bunch of useless teammates—they were a whole herd of swine!
"Aar—" Claire snapped to attention with a crisp salute. "General Aaron!"
But Aaron didn't even notice him. His eyes were locked on Gavin. "...Have I seen you somewhere before..." His voice trailed off into a murmur. "No, you're a Beta."
Instinctively, he leaned in close to Gavin's nape and sniffed—the classic way Alphas identified Omegas, and a textbook case of sexual harassment. Gavin's hairs stood on end; even Claire's face drained of color.
"You look a bit like two people I know..." Aaron studied Gavin thoughtfully, his voice dropping as if talking to himself. "Strange, how do you resemble *two* people at once?"
Gavin tilted his head up to meet his gaze, his expression calm and innocent.
Aaron's face flickered with uncertainty. For a split second, he'd almost thought this cadet was Celia reborn—but then he realized the kid reminded him of that Omega who'd stolen his mech on Crimson Soil Star. Strangely, that Omega and Celia looked nothing alike, yet this cadet somehow blended features from both, creating a disorienting, chaotic overlap.
Celia was dead. Could it possibly be that Omega?
No, no—impossible. Aaron dismissed the thought outright.
He wasn't worried about Gryphon going missing. 3S-grade mechs shared a special mental link with their pilots; whenever Gryphon deployed its full combat form, its mental system left a signal in his brain. Signal analysis showed Gryphon's last appearance was near the Ophiuchus System—just six days ago.
The situation in Ophiuchus was delicate right now—it was occupied by the Exile Army, and they'd recently set up a reactionary regime called the "Post-Alliance Exile Government."
Heinrich was intensely focused on that regime. Spy satellite surveillance had even picked up traces of that Omega youth lurking near Ophiuchus too.
It confirmed Heinrich and Aaron's suspicions: the Omega youth had joined forces with the Exile Army, and Gryphon was likely in their hands. Their goal might be developing S-grade mechs or genetic experiments—but either way, there was no way it connected to some Beta cadet at the Royal Military Academy on White Swan Star.
"What's your name?" Aaron asked, frowning.
"..." Gavin stuck to his cover—mute.
Though medical tech had cured most disabilities, a subset of acquired aphasia, influenced by both physical and psychological factors, still defied modern medicine.
Besides, his voice hadn't changed much. One word, and Aaron would recognize him.
"Can't speak?" Aaron watched as he pointed to his mouth and shook his head, genuinely surprised. "The Institute is recruiting mutes now?!"
Gavin nodded solemnly.
"..." Claire was utterly baffled, his mind swirling with question marks.
Aaron was speechless for a moment. Subconsciously unwilling to hassle a boy who bore such an uncanny resemblance to Celia, he helped him up and patted him off. "Come on, enough horsing around. Be careful."
Gavin nodded humbly and turned to leave.
Aaron watched his retreating back, taking a couple drags from his cigarette. In the night shadows, the boy's silhouette felt oddly familiar. Nerves honed from countless crises twitched in his brain, leaving him inexplicably irritated.
*Am I being too sensitive?*
No, better safe than sorry.
But he's clearly a Beta...
Marshal Celia was a Beta too. Honestly, he even smelled like Celia just now.
Aaron stubbed out his cigarette and took a couple steps forward, testing the waters. "Hey—"
Gavin pretended not to hear, quickening his pace.
But Aaron had a predator's instincts baked in—like prey frozen in place, he might ignore it, but the moment it bolted, the chase instinct kicked in. Gavin's speed-up piqued his suspicion; he hurried forward a few more steps. "Hey, wait up—"
Gavin reached the hall's edge and twisted onto a side path.
The move was like pulling a trigger—suddenly, both Gavin and Aaron broke into a sprint!
"Hey, wait... Stop right there!" Aaron bolted like lightning down the path, only to see Gavin dart toward the school's back gate. No time for second thoughts—he veered sharply upward, and the two raced one after the other through the narrow trail under night's cover!
"Stop! Guards! Guards!"
Aaron's gene surgery was recent; his physique was at its peak, twenties prime—like a sprinting cheetah. Gavin had no chance of shaking him. Amid the frantic run, he couldn't even scan surroundings, but luckily Gryphon calmly directed from his pocket: "Left!" "Right!" "See that bend ahead?" "Fire escape door behind the research building—get in and hide!"
Gavin vaulted the railing and spotted the concealed black door nearby. No time to hesitate—he slipped inside, slamming it shut from within. Moments later, footsteps thundered past; Aaron barked, "He's around here!" Others chimed in: "Search now!" "Check that way!"
Gavin bolted the door and glanced back: a narrow, low-ceilinged passage led into darkness, lights flickering erratically—long neglected.
"Target vanished once we hit here—they'll sweep back and forth. Head deeper." Gryphon shifted to light computer form, floating from his pocket and scanning. "Stairs below, looks like."
Gavin felt a strange twinge and glanced at Gryphon.
"What?"
"...Nothing." Gavin advanced a few steps; his footsteps echoed hollowly. Soon, he spotted a movable trapdoor underfoot.
He wrenched it open, and a damp yet fresh breeze wafted up.
Another world below.
Gryphon, brimming with stored marrow fluid, glowed brilliantly and floated ahead as a light source. Gavin descended the stairs for a solid ten minutes, plunging over a hundred meters underground. The monotonous stairwell finally widened.
At the end, a corner—Gavin turned, and his eyes widened at a massive, pitch-black hemispherical metal door.
"Tungsten alloy," Gryphon scanned. "Over six hundred tons."
"What's this, an underground fortress?"
"Probably the Institute's secret lab. Elevators to the surface inside—we took the emergency passage. Though slapping a tungsten door on an emergency route is some serious overkill." Gryphon wobbled to the electronic lock, feigning effort. "Hmm, password's complex, but for a cosmic-grade 3S light computer like me, a little flattery and—"
Gavin turned to leave.
"Whoa, whoa—fine, I'll crack it!" Gryphon snapped, flustered. "Stingy human!"
The stingy human thus sat on the steps, leisurely watching the 3S cosmic-grade light computer work for twenty minutes—drawing equations and diagrams in the air—before delicately inputting a 40-digit code. The lock chimed:
"Command authorized. Access granted."
A deep rumble echoed from below; the tungsten door cracked open, spilling soft white light.
A vast underground laboratory unfolded before Gavin.
Walls and floors gleamed snow-white; a ring-shaped metal wall lined with countless silver instruments stretched beyond sight. Gavin craned his neck but could barely make out the distant ceiling, aglow with artificial lights.
And dead center: a battered silver mech.
Gavin approached as if entranced. The tungsten door boomed shut behind him.
The mech was in half-complete form, over a hundred meters tall, titanium-silver, etched with phoenix motifs—wings poised to soar.
Scars from half a century of war and smoke lingered: side wing shattered, half the body in ruins. Yet its surviving contours evoked the wild, sharp, grand, majestic full form—even dormant, it radiated overwhelming menace.
"...Phoenix," Gavin murmured. "Phoenix..."
He reached to touch the silver-white shell—but before contact, a muffled thud sounded behind, followed by the mechanical voice: "—Command authorized. Access granted."
Someone was coming in!
Gavin whipped around. The tungsten door was cracking open.
No time to think—he arrowed to the wall, ducking behind electronic instruments into a crevice between two massive computer terminals.
Scarce moments later, the door boomed to a halt, and footsteps entered.
Gavin held his breath, huddling deeper into the corner. At least seven or eight people—at least. They strode straight to the Phoenix mech. A voice asked: "Extract the cockpit directly, Your Majesty?"
—*Your Majesty!*
It was Heinrich!
Gavin's pupils contracted; moments later, he peeked out. There stood Emperor Set Heinrich before the Phoenix, flanked by armed researchers. The lead one knelt, rapidly assembling a mech cutter.
In a flash, Gavin understood Aaron's uninvited arrival—to cover for Heinrich. With all eyes on the general, no one would notice the emperor sneaking into the Royal Military Academy's underground lab!
But why? To dismantle the mech?
"Damaging the main program is fine—just extract the cockpit and leave." Heinrich stood under the lights, his face shadowed. "Remember, the cockpit is sealed. Do *not* let it breach."
They nodded and rushed to wall instruments, operating with practiced precision.
These guys had rehearsed this endlessly—no chit-chat needed. First, they activated the lab-wide soundproofing field, then erected an absolute defense shield centered on the mech—to prevent a high-IQ machine from rampaging mid-dismantle.
The cutter assembled; hundreds of razor gears rose, targeting the Phoenix's heart from all angles.
The lead researcher atop the cutter swallowed hard before starting. "Your Majesty, what if the emergency protocols—"
"Won't happen," Heinrich said coolly. "It's out of marrow fluid. An accidental startup days ago drained the last of its energy—it's fully offline now."
The researcher nodded and eased the lever forward.
A "buzz" erupted as interlocking bright gears whirred to life, lunging at the Phoenix's cracked chest plating. The five-dimensional alloy, already fractured, soon gave way—"kree—" a piercing screech as the first gash split the metal!
In that instant, Gavin felt his chest hammered. Lightning-fast, he nearly screamed!
He clutched his chest, fingers digging in till they nearly snapped!
It didn't feel like cutting the mech—like vivisecting *him*. Every nerve shredded by serrated teeth, as if those hundreds of gears gouged into his flesh!
Only pilots with deep neural links shared senses—but why was *he* linked to the powered-down Phoenix?! Agony drowned thought; he jammed a fist in his mouth to stifle the scream, but in delirium, his knee slammed the wall—*thunk!*
"Who's there?"
Heinrich's hearing was hawk-sharp. He strode straight toward the instruments—toward Gavin's hiding spot.
His shadow loomed on the wall; Gavin's eyes widened in terror. Next instant, the emperor's wrist device morphed into a short blade, slashing down viciously!
—*Clang!*
The metal instrument cleaved in two. Gavin rolled out from the gap; blade-light kissed his face as it plunged!
In a blink, Heinrich twisted the blade horizontal, pinning the tip to Gavin's brow before he could rise. "You—"
The emperor's expression froze.
"...What *are* you?" After suffocating silence, the emperor asked from on high, slowly.