- Chapter 8 - Distress Signal -

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"Thirty seconds to contact."

<Synthesis> was traveling at several dozen times the speed of light towards the source of the mana signatures. The energy cost was high, but the ability to allocate the entire ship's power generation to the engines had significantly slowed down the consumption rate. Ares was glad that all of the energy tanks were already filled up to the brim beforehand.

In <EPO>'s lore, starships did not possess the ability to accelerate past light speed. Even the strongest ion propulsion engine could only accelerate to 90% of light speed before reaching a bottleneck. However, the invention of the "spatial drive," which was sometimes mispronounced as "special drive," changed space exploration forever.

The in-game spatial drive had two modes. The high-energy mode allows the ship to travel via hyperspace; the low-energy mode contracts space in front of the ship then expands it behind to propel the vessel forward at superluminal speeds. Such a mechanism was known as "supercruising."

Ares was delighted when he learned that <Synthesis> was equipped with such a faster-than-light drive as well. Perhaps the game was, in fact, a simulation of the actual world.

"Syntia, prepare to scan for targets after disengaging supercruise."

"Acknowledged. Disengaging supercruise in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1… Contact."

*Boom!*

[[<Spatial Drive System (Infernus)>, switch to standby mode.]]

[[Thrusters, online.]]

Shortly after the ship had decelerated to regular cruising speed, Ares turned on the thrusters and placed his hands on the control sticks. As he had been used to the throttle-and-stick layout, it took quite a while to familiarize himself with <Synthesis>'s dual-stick control scheme.

"Captain, we've detected eight additional mana signatures. Distance could not be determined, but judging from relative velocity, we will reach the target area in four hours."

On the scanner map displayed on the touch panel, seven moving purple dots were shown. One of them was larger than the others, presumably because the detected energy levels were higher.

<Synthesis> was not equipped with radars or heat-based scanners. The only method of detecting objects was by picking up mana waves emitted by the targets.

"That's too long. Are there any ways to go faster?"

"We can perform an 'instant shift' by utilizing <Spatial Drive System (Infernus)> in its standby mode."

"Interesting. That's another term that I've never heard before."

The instructions and details of the "instant shift" mechanic were displayed on Ares's monitor. The working principle was similar to supercruising, but the velocity was capped at half the speed of light.

"Here we go!"

Ares pressed the rear trigger on the left control stick then pushed it forwards while stepping on the foot pedals. With a loud boom, the ship was immediately propelled forward, rapidly closing in on the identified signals' coordinates.

The acceleration was instantaneous without any sign of preparations. The starship pilot felt that the mechanism was hard to control. Nevertheless, if skillfully utilized, it could work as a terrifyingly effective maneuver in combat. Of course, the engine's energy tanks rapidly depleted as an equivalent exchange for the top-notch performance.

Due to concerns of overshooting, Ares did not jam the accelerator pedal to the floor. He carefully monitored the scanner to determine the perfect timing to disengage the "boosters."

It took about ten seconds for <Synthesis> to reach the optimal position to return to normal space.

"Combat readings detected. Usage of directed-energy weapons and kinetic projectiles identified."

As the capital-class starship gradually approached its destination, it was made apparent that the area had turned into a battlefield. Flashing beams of myriad colors could be seen from afar.

"A Type-2 distress signal, it seems. Time to buckle up."

Ares remembered that in <EPO>, distress signals could be encountered while exploring in deep space. It was mainly NPCs asking for help as live players would just use the in-game chat system.

It could be a starship that just ran out of fuel, a ship under siege from pirates, a heavily damaged ship, military troops requesting for reinforcement, or heavily armed pirates that sent out a fake distress signal to attract their prey.

"We've got a visual on the targets. Please inspect the details, Captain."

"Thanks, Syntia. Let's see… Damn, it's really like what I've speculated. Pirates."

Ares skillfully operated on the touch monitor to check on the coordinates and captured images of the identified targets.

Six vessels of different sizes were participating in a fierce dogfight against a starship that looked like they were heavily damaged. An eighth starship that was associated with the larger mana signature seemed to have lost its propulsion and was drifting around. The ninth signal source was discovered to be a pile of space debris, which was possibly a destroyed starship.

"Is there any chance of establishing a connection to allow communication?"

"Affirmative. We have identified the general radio wave frequency band employed for communication between the vessels."

"Great. Tune in. I have some words for them. Hmm, where's the option to activate the mic…Ah, here it is."

"This is the independent and non-affiliated ship <Synthesis>. We're responding to the distress signals originating from this sector. Please immediately cease all unlawful operations and evacuate from this area."

The sudden intrusion of <Synthesis> startled the unidentified starships that had their weapons prepared and ready to fire. They stopped the pursuit and turned towards the new arrival.

[[Woah, where did that ship come from?]]

[[It didn't appear on the scanner earlier! Did it "silent run"?]]

[[God damn it, that bitch dared to call reinforcements?]]

[[That ship is ridiculously slow!]]

[[What's that weird-looking thing? I can't seem to scan it!]]

[[Told you that we should’ve just killed that sneaky bastard! Look at what happened now!]]

[[You do that yourself if you can find'em! Damn, we should've brought a full spectrum scanner!]]

[[One extra reinforcement doesn't matter, we'll blast them all to smithereens! Just like those two trashcans!]]

Unfortunately, Ares had intervened a tad too late. The starship that was heavily damaged by its assailants exploded and broke into several pieces. Weirdly, the mana signature associated with that ship persisted in <Synthesis>'s scanners.

"Captain, we've confirmed the destruction of Target 7."

[[Woah, the operator over there sounds mad cute!]]

[[Ooh, little girl! Is that even legal?]]

[[No, we need to change our goal! We'll capture that ship too and make that girl our toy! The more, the merrier!]]

[[All wings, charge at full speed! Weapons free!]]

Ares deactivated the mic, turned his body around, and smiled at the scared fidgeting Syntia. Those cold-blooded murderers spoke the same language as he did and had successfully earned his ire.

"Captain…"

The determined pilot grasped the control sticks and asserted his commands sternly.

"Bring <Plasma Bolt Cannons (Chorus)> online. Mark them all as hostiles."

"Acknowledged, Captain."

The hostiles were more than twice as fast compared to <Synthesis>'s cruising speed, even if the ships looked blocky and unappealing. Ares wondered if it was because of the higher technological level of the galaxy's civilization. Another cause might be the sheer weight of his ship, limiting the maximum velocity it can reach.

— What we have here is not just a pile, but a HUGE pile of "scrap metal."

Syntia's fingers danced on the virtual keyboard displayed on her monitor as if she was composing an elegy for the unfortunate souls that offended her.

"<Fire Control System (Prisma)>, online. <Plasma Bolt Cannons (Chorus)>, standby."

"Let's teach those thugs a 'lesson of a lifetime.'"

"Contact in ten seconds!"

"Got it. I'll throttle the thrusters down!"

Ares stepped on the braking pedal to rapidly reduce the thrusters' output as speed was no use in that case. <Synthesis> wasn't suited for high-speed dogfights. It would be a better option to slow down to improve the weapons' accuracy.

[[What the fuck is that! It's huge!]]

[[A capital ship! Impossible, who the fuck even uses capital ships in this day and age?]]

[[Holy shit! Did the Empire catch wind of our operation?]]

[[That doesn't look like an imperial ship at all!]]

[[Whatever, that shit's just a sitting duck! Attack!]]

[[I've got a lock on! Eat this!]]

"Captain, missiles."

"Let's see if our shields can withstand the beating."

The barrage of missiles splashed on <Synthesis>'s energy shield, creating a beautiful pattern of purple ripples.

"Captain, we've registered sixteen hits on our shields."

"Just 0.4% of the shield reserves, huh? I can't even call it an ant bite."

The thick force field's durability was restored almost immediately, completely neutralizing the attacks. That proved the energy shield's magnificent resistance against explosive damage.

[[Argh, how sturdy!]]

[[Crap, the color of the shields! That's bad; we have to report that!]]

[[A "whale"? Oh shit, we have to bail!]]

[[What about the mission? We'll be skinned alive if we went back empty-handed!]]

[[Tch, we don't have a choice, uh?]]

There seemed to be a little misunderstanding, but Ares had no plans for clarification.

The six assailant ships fired their weapons on <Synthesis> wave by wave. Machine cannons, pulse lasers, and missiles pelted on the gigantic ship's energy shields. Only the directed energy weapons worked, although it didn't make too much of a dent on the energy shield reserves.

— Dear pirates, thanks for giving me an idea about the technological level of this galaxy. Now, off to your graves.

"Syntia, let the counterattack begin."

"Roger that. All turrets, deploy!"

Within seconds, eight twin-mounted turrets concealed in the ship's central hull were deployed and ready to fire. Four were mounted on the deck while another four were installed on the keel, contributing to an enormous coverage.

[[What the fuck! It's really a capital ship, and it's even a battleship!]]

[[Shit, we're doomed!]]

[[Oh, Lord, have mercy on us…]]

[[Damn it, those are some huge guns! Class 3… No, those are Class 4 at least!]]

The enemies encircling the ship seemed to panic and started moving haphazardly. Despite possessing menacing firepower, Ares was not confident regarding the battle outcome.

The <Plasma Bolt Cannons (Chorus)> were not point-defense turrets. Instead, they were registered as <Synthesis>'s secondary armaments.

"Target distribution completed. 'Final safety lock' removed. All turrets, commence fire!"

Shortly after Syntia had finished the configuration of the FCS, she grabbed the control sticks that extended out from her seat and established a neural link with the systems. Her wide-open eyes glowed pale blue and gazed straight forward as if she had fallen into a trance.

Streaks of blue light swept towards the enemies relentlessly. Those were superheated blobs of plasma filled with pure dread. If any of the shots could land a strike on an unshielded starship fair and square, it would melt through its armor then turn its internal modules into mush.

Unfortunately, all of the projectiles fired missed their intended target. The enemies weaved through the gaps effortlessly due to the low fire rate. Mocking waves of laughter were heard over the radio.

[[Woah, that's surprisingly easy to dodge!]]

[[I know, right? That's why I did not worry at all!]]

[[Is the gunner drunk or high on pixie dust?]]

[[Who cares! Just dump all your lasers and strip its shield off!]]

Ares clicked his tongue upon witnessing the pitiful sight. Earlier, he learned that the capital-class starship was fully outfitted to fight against space monsters larger than itself. As a result, there was no suitable weapon to counter against small and agile targets on which heavy artillery was ineffective.

That was worsened by the ship's faulty rangefinder, preventing the turrets from being fully automated. In addition, the lack of a working gunsight made Syntia struggle to aim with all eight turrets that she was operating with her mind.

The frustrated catgirl bit her lips hard to the point a little blood seeped out from the wound. Tears filled her bloodshot eyes and rolled down when she blinked.

"Syntia, enough. Stop firing."

Ares judged that the battle has turned into a stalemate after a mere twenty seconds. They couldn't land a single hit on the enemies, while the enemies couldn't do anything significant to their immense energy shields.

It was indeed a huge letdown, but there was no meaning to carry on with the mindless strafing. Furthermore, the "thermal overload" indicators on the monitor were flashing red. The turrets were starting to overheat and scorch the ship's hull. The state could also be identified from Syntia's painful expression.

"But, Captain… I've not accomplished…"

"This is an order. Abort the battle; we're retreating."

"Yes, Captain…"

Syntia let go of her grips weakly. The control sticks retracted back into the seat, while the catgirl's eyes stopped glowing.

[[Huh, it went out of ammo?]]

[[Great, let's continue the att—]]

[[Idiot! Didn't you notice? It didn't even budge no matter how much damage we've dished out!]]

[[Shit, you're right! It's really "that kind" of shields!]]

[[Then that's not just a normal capital ship! It's a monster!]]

[[To hell with that god damned mission! Let's get the fuck out of here!]]

[[Retreat, retreat!]]

The six enemy starships grouped up and activated their superluminal drives. They disappeared in the blink of an eye after the ships were wrapped and encapsulated by blue bubbles.

Ares breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that the hostile signatures had disappeared from the scanner.

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