Chapter 36 No Survivors
The Marines boarded the New Pharos after it continued to slide in the void for half an hour.
General Sola broadcast bad news to them. According to Captain Copelos, there was a problem with the energy system of the flight deck and the landing guidance system could not work, which meant a land battle. The small landing ship the team members were on had to adjust its angle to enter the flight deck.
This is a technical job. If they are not careful, they will hit the outer shell of the transport ship and become a pile of scattered garbage in the void.
“It might get a little bumpy later.”
The young officer spoke over the communication channel, and moved his shoulder armor to a more comfortable position while cursing the sweat that ran into his eyes behind his goggles.
Other marines gathered around, four in front and the rest behind. They were all wearing protective armor produced by local foundries. These things were no worse than those of the Astra Militarum.
The two leading non-commissioned officers have raised their heavy ceramic shields. Since the rioters have at most some live weapons, this kind of protection is obviously more than enough or even beyond.
The interior of the landing ship is bathed in an ugly red light, and two hundred fully armed marines are ready for battle.
Soon, a piercing alarm bell sounded.
"Get ready!"
The young officer ordered, and he could only hold on to the handrails along the top of the compartment as a shock knocked his back against the armor of the soldier behind him.
For a moment, he thought they had successfully penetrated the outer hull of the New Pharos, and then he realized that the backward thrust was the landing ship's shock-absorbing drive activating.
The real invasion took a while.
This time the inertia of the lander allowed him to stand still as he leaned forward. When the lander instantly penetrated the side of the bridge mast of the New Pharos, the surrounding metal trembled and groaned.
When the alarm bell went off, all the young officer heard was his own rapid breathing.
“Thirty seconds!”
The pilot’s voice sounded in the cabin. The officer saw the plastic steel and ceramic steel protective layer of the balancer advancing with the automatic hinge lock and heard the compressed sound. A heavy blow, feeling the tremor of friction between the deck and the bottom of the landing craft.
The shotgun in his hand suddenly seemed to be unbearably heavy.
“Ten seconds!!”
The driver continued to roar.
"Get ready, soldiers."
The sound of reloading weapons was loud in the enclosed, hot space, and the officer let go of the handrail above his head and cocked his sliding shotgun , the body felt like it had just received a shot of adrenaline.
The alarm bell rings again, just once.
The red light washed the landing platform's flash of amber, then green.
There was a clang sound when the cabin door was clamped, and then a hissing sound came from a cloud of steam, and the air in the cabin began to depressurize.
"Forward! Forward!"
The Marines shouted, and they rushed forward. The young officer was among them, half advancing and half being carried away by them from time to time.
But their war cries only fell in the empty corridor.
The officer wanted to see the situation clearly, but found himself in a huddle of soldiers, with the row in front holding their shields and those behind holding shotguns.
According to previous unit briefings, they would enter the bridge via one of the many service corridors surrounding the aft bridge mast.
As an integral part of the transport ship's outer hull, those narrow passages serve as a network for repair crews and maintenance servitors to quickly reach more important areas.
They are narrow, tidal places, inaccessible, and like the exterior veins of most starships, they are completely ignored, with only a smattering of dim lights, heat, and maintenance functions.
Now the Marines discovered that it was just a dark, closed world of rusty pipes and grid decks blocked by fungus.
More importantly, there are no signs of life.
"Quiet."
The young officer finally squeezed out of the crowd. He is the highest commander in this place.
"Reorganize the formation."
According to the structural diagram he obtained, there should be a gravity elevator fifty meters ahead.
“Proceed with caution.”
Soon, the Marines were forming a tight line, weapons still at the ready.
Following the arc of the bridge mast, the passage continued to turn left, echoing with the clang of the soldiers' steel-nailed boots and the rattling and screeching of their shells. The young officer tried to concentrate, scanning the wall of pipes as they passed, probing with his shotgun the shadows between the flickering orbs of light.
Before setting off, General Sora told them not to stay in the outer shell for too long. According to the captain's description, the small number of escaped slaves on the ship may still be scattered in most areas. , especially the outer hull.
The young officers did not think those poor guys were a threat. As long as the transport ship arrived in orbit, they would have plenty of time to pull those guys out of the corners and send them to the ground to transform into servitors.
This was simply easier than hunting small animals in his family manor. He often used slaves as hunting targets, driving them into dark canyons, and watching them wail in agony in the traps was really a great pleasure.
Thinking of this, he felt much better.
"Occupy the gravity elevator."
Soon, a voice came from the communicator. That was the vanguard of the team. They had arrived at the intended target.
This is a large repair ramp, big enough to carry replacement circulation pipes or adamantine planks for the outer hull when the Marines enter.
The officer was the last to pull the switch.
With a trembling and whirring friction sound, the platform began to rise.
As the elevator rose to the tower's central mast, the officers realized that so far they had encountered no resistance.
In fact, there are no signs of life at all.
The auspicious readings are uneven and give weird feedback. The tactical display in front is always black.
Even when messages are received, calls are short and choppy, cut into segments by static.
"Something is interfering with our systems."
A noncommissioned officer said on the short-range intercom.
"Our communication with orbit has also been interrupted."
Suddenly, the gravity ladder shuddered to a stop, and the soldiers gathered in front of the door and locked their shields together, forming an indestructible pottery Steel barrier.
A drop of sweat formed on the young officer's forehead. He clearly remembered that he had clearly set it to rise to the highest point, so why did the elevator stop midway?
Unless, something is preparing to enter the elevator from the outside.
Then, the door of the gravity ladder flew open...
Nothing.
An empty corridor opened up ahead, the only noise being the throbbing of the still-functioning ion drives in the distance.
"How-"
The young officer pressed the switch hard, but the elevator just couldn't operate. In desperation, he could only lead the team out of the elevator and entered an unfamiliar territory.
This place is far less shabby than the outer hull, but the illumination sphere still seems to be on the verge of collapse. It is as if they have sneaked into a ghost ship that was abandoned centuries ago, traveling through the void forever. Listed here.
However the fact is that it was only supposed to have left port for a week.
Suddenly, the orb of illumination went out completely, and the darkness seemed to resist them, as thick and dark as their shields.
"Tie a light on the bayonet position!"
The officer ordered in panic, and then the light flashed, illuminating the corroded metal stairs and mottled steam black rust.
"Go forward, get out of here!"
The Marines began to climb, and the sound of boots hitting plastic steel spread up the ladder shaft.
For the first time since boarding the ship, the young officer felt something other than adrenaline and the mixed tension of battle - surrounded by a dark, eerie feeling.
Something is wrong.
This feeling only intensified when he realized that something was missing. While the sound of boots was still loud in the narrow space, he noticed that these noises were no longer there in the back.
A cold shiver ran up his spine.
The young officer ran up, raised his shotgun, turned around and shined his bayonet flashlight into the dark interior of the gravity elevator where they had been.
A thick smell of blood gushed out from inside. The young officer's eyes widened and he wanted to shout.
But it was too late.
(End of this chapter)