- Chapter 10 - Retaliation -

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While waiting for further news regarding the salvaged starship, Ares took a quick snack. It was the usual combination of a glucose-laden drink, nutrient paste, and compressed biscuits. 

Ares had forgotten how many sets of identical rations he had consumed ever since he was reincarnated into "this world." He deeply missed "normal" food, especially pizza and hamburgers.

"Syntia, do you want some? I'll fetch a set if you do."

"I appreciate the consideration, Captain. But no. I, as a living core, do not require any nourishment."

That explained why Ares had never seen Syntia consume anything from the pantry. The physiology of a living core avatar was greatly different from human beings. Ares didn't mind, though; the traits brought more benefits than drawbacks.

"Photosynthesis, like in plants?"

"Close to that. Instead of light, it's about mana."

"Ah… Is that so…"

Fortunately, that didn't mean that Syntia couldn't ingest food and beverages. Ares was very sure that the catgirl could discern at least two of the five basic flavors. He didn't have to worry about a future where his partner could only watch him enjoying delicious cuisines.

"Captain, we've performed a remote inspection on the salvaged starship. Although the paintwork on the ship's hull suffered integrity loss, the tags remain visible."

"Let's see… Hmm, M-N-four-six-three-one… this combination of numbers and letters should be the ship ID. And then below it… A-T-L-A-S…"

Ares carefully inspected the pictures captured from the hangar's surveillance cameras and identified the words painted on the starship. He wasn't sure if the word 'Atlas' was the ship's name, but he figured that it would be better to make the assumption.

"Alright, we'll call this ship the [Atlas] from now on, until proven otherwise. Anything else to report on?"

"Yes, Captain. We've confirmed a signal from a lifeform present in [Atlas]'s cabin. Due to interference from greater mana sources, we couldn't pinpoint the location. The entity's mana signatures are currently stable. Advanced life support has been enabled in the compartment."

"That's good to hear. Oh, right. Is that even human? Why does it have a mana signature?"

"About mana signatures… Well, every intelligent being, more or less, contains a little manarium. Even the enemy pilots emit trace amounts of mana, but the signatures were ignored as it was below the threshold to register on the scanner. Instead, we target them based on the piece of manarium crystal installed in their vessel for unknown purposes."

"Ah, cool. So, with all these settled, I think I should pay the hangar a visit—"

Just when Ares was figuring out the next step, purple dots appeared on the scanner map accompanied by beeping alerts.

"Captain, we've detected reactions at 3 o'clock. Unable to confirm the number of targets, but we've identified six waveforms that we've previously encountered."

"Tch, those lowlifes dared to come back with reinforcements, huh. Mark them all as hostiles and bring our weapons online… Wait. How's [Cluster Missile Racks (Grim Hymn)] going?"

Ares buckled his seatbelts and firmly held the control sticks. Since [Synthesis] was slower than the opponents by a large margin, he steadily increased the output of the main propulsion drives to the bare minimum required to operate the directional thrusters.

"Loading status at 87%; approximately four and a half minutes until completion."

"Damn it; we won't make it in time! Any way to speed the process up?"

"Sorry, that's the fastest it can go— Contact in sixty seconds… No, forty-five!"

"This is bad. We're going for defensive maneuvers."

The poor performance of [Synthesis]'s turrets would be detrimental to the battle if mindlessly deployed. Ares refrained from brandishing the main guns even though there was a possibility where one of the cannon modes would help in the scenario.

At only nine out of sixteen reactors functioning, there was a severe power deficit. As the reloading of the missile racks required tremendous amounts of energy, the ship could barely keep the combat-related modules running while maintaining the critical internal systems, especially life support for both the bridge and the hangar compartment.

Figuring that the battle would result in a stalemate again, Ares increased the intensity of the energy shields and allocated more power towards the shield reserves.

[[Boss, that's the capital-class ship we've told you about!]]

[[For once, it wasn't just a lame excuse. I'll forgive y'all this time, but there is no second chance!]]

[[Roger that, boss!]]

Syntia identified the frequency band of the opponent's communications channel and intercepted some of the radio transmissions.

"Target analysis completed! There are four new targets! They have convoluted signatures… Captain, multiple mana sources on a single vessel detected!"

"Multiple reactors? Such technology exists in this galaxy too?"

Through optical imagery, Ares found that the enemy reinforcements were less blocky and looked more like high-class military-grade corvettes. Based on the canopy size, he estimated that the ship was at least three times bigger than the goons.

The pitifully low acceleration of [Synthesis]'s propulsion drives made it impossible to outrun the enemies no matter how hard it tried. Even so, Ares entered inputs for the directional thrusters, hoping to minimize damage received.

Kinetic projectiles and laser beams pelted on the battleship's shield, triggering the neutralization effect. But that only lasted for a short while before the enemies stopped firing.

— Huh? Is it over?

Ares and Syntia looked at each other with puzzled expressions.

[[Woah, it's really a 'whale!' Never thought that it's possible to catch one out of the 'ocean!']]

[[Listen, it's not just a normal 'whale!' It's crewed; one of them is a girl with a super cute voice!]]

[[Hoh, that makes me even more excited!]]

[[Deploy the 'harpoons!']]

[[Volley one, fire!]]

The large enemy ships deployed their underside hardpoints, which revealed suspicious tubes. The next second, rapid beeping noises assaulted Ares's mind. On the scanner map, eight purple dots closed into the center at an alarming speed.

"Captain! The mana sources have separated from the target vessels and are heading towards us!"

"Shit, what are those… Torpedoes? Fuck, evasive maneuvers!“

If it were just an ordinary torpedo, Ares would've just brushed it off. But the threats he was facing exhibited properties of mana. The readings were even higher than the starships carrying these little demons.

Ares cursed again at the lack of effective point-defense turrets to reverse the overwhelming disadvantage. He jerked the control sticks and attempted to outmaneuver the huge raging missiles, but it was all for naught.

The "harpoons" struck [Synthesis]'s bottom-left flank and violently exploded one by one. Owing to the seatbelts, Ares was not thrown onto the ground. The impulsive force breached the energy shields and struck the ship's hull.

"Aaaaaaah— Uwaaah, aah…"

The catgirl screamed then dry heaved while holding her left abdomen. She burst out crying, probably due to the acute pain she received from the passive neural link to the systems.

[[Warning. [Energy Shield System (Ignis)], exception occurred.]]

[[Warning. [Ignis], shield generators 5 to 7 offline.]]

[[Warning. [Ignis], first layer breached at Sector 8-D.]]

[[[Ignis], second layer deployed.]]

Countless warning messages were displayed on the HUD, as well as the touch monitor. The torpedoes overwhelmed the shield and caused damage to three of the shield generators, resulting in a hole in the force field that covered the ship.

A "second layer" shield was deployed immediately, which successfully prevented further damage to the internal parts. The energy consumption was several magnitudes higher than the first layer and even drained the capacitors over time.

"S-Syntia!"

"It hurts, it hurts… Aaaaah!"

The poor catgirl bent down and curled herself into a ball. The seatbelts prevented her from rolling on the floor and instead made her writhe in pain.

[[Holy shit, it's still 'swimming' even after all these 'harpoons'?]]

[[We've punched a hole on its 'skin'! Shoot there!]]

[[Argh, it's hard to aim!]]

[[Fuck, stop wobbling and accept your demise!]]

The enemies tried to attack their prey's exposed hull, where the force fields had been thinned down. [Synthesis] performed erratic evasive maneuvers to prevent the "wound" from worsening under enemy fire. The enemies managed to land a hit or two on the weak-point, but the same purple ripple effects bewildered them.

[[What the fuck, it restored? I've never seen such bullshit before!]]

[[Arm your 'harpoons!' We're going for another volley!]]

— I won't let you!

Ares glanced at the monitor. The loading of the two [Grim Hymn] cluster missiles was near completion. If he could buy another fifty seconds, it would be his victory. That was under the assumption that the munitions were not duds.

"Syntia… I will definitely win this battle and avenge you!"

With all five fingers of his left hand, Ares tapped on the monitor as if he was conducting an orchestra. He adjusted the energy allocation and rerouted some of the energy tanks towards the spatial drives.

— Not enough. It's not enough at all.

Ares couldn't withdraw power from the missile racks to not hamper the progress. He has stopped all automatic repairing processes and reduced the energy shield's intensity, but there was still not enough power to achieve his goal.

— I have no choice… Let's do this!

The virtual canopy and supporting lights in the bridge were powered down, returning the room into darkness. The brightness of the monitors and informational panels slightly irritated Ares. He squinted his eyes and continued the operation.

Ares briefly brought the bridge's environment control system offline, causing the temperature to decline rapidly. He held his breath and resisted the urge to throw up from the sudden weightlessness.

— Twenty seconds.

The beeping madness struck again. It signaled the arrival of the second wave of anti-shield torpedoes. Staring straight at the scanner map, Ares turned [Synthesis] towards the same direction the demonic missiles were cruising.

It might seem absurd as in theory, [Synthesis] couldn't outrun the missiles at all. Ares could imagine the sneers and mocking laughter of the damned enemies.

However, with enough mana energy, miracles could be conjured. [Synthesis] could be seen as a colossal magic tool in the form of a starship. Ares was well aware of the fact and would utilize its strengths to the fullest.

Moments before the torpedoes come into contact, Ares stepped on the foot pedals and pulled the control sticks with all his might.

*BOOM!*

With a loud bang, the ship's position translated a considerable distance to the back. Ares had activated the "spatial shift" feature of [Synthesis] as a trump card.

The systems that were temporarily disabled were immediately brought back online. The environment in the bridge was gradually restored, making Ares able to breathe again.

Ares smirked when the virtual canopy showed eight bright explosions followed by the disappearance of the mana signatures on the scanner map. The pursuing torpedoes couldn't make a 180-degree turn before they ran out of fuel and self-destructed.

[[Did it just… teleport?]]

[[Shit, we're out of "harpoons!"]]

[[That's not your normal whale! It's a fucking megalodon!]]

[[We need to get the fuck out of here! Abort mission, abort!]]

[[Low wake! No, high wake! High wake out of here!]]

But Ares was out for blood.

[[[Cluster Missile Racks (Grim Hymn)] 1 and 2, reload complete.]]

— Finally, it's time.

The vengeful starship pilot would not let the perpetrators that dared to harm his ship, no, his partner, emerge out of this sector alive.

[[[Fire Control System (Prisma)], override. Context transferred to Seat 1.]]

[[[Grim Hymn] 1 and 2, hardpoints deployed.]]

[[Target lock-on and distribution complete.]]

Two of the four missile racks mounted in [Synthesis]'s side hulls showed themselves. They each contained one of the dread-filled missiles that Ares hoped to reduce his enemies to fine particles.

Before the hostile starships were able to activate their superluminal drives, Ares pulled the trigger.

Two gigantic missiles, the height of a fifteen-story building, propelled themselves out from the containers. Seconds after the launch, the outer shell separated and disintegrated, which revealed six smaller missiles that accelerated towards their respective targets.

The missiles were a little faster compared to the torpedoes fired at [Synthesis]. They contained manarium warheads, as seen from the purple dots shown on the scanner map.

The enemies frantically attempted to evade and counter the "arrows of death.” Panicked screams could be heard all over the radio.

[[What the fuck! No, no, no, please, no!]]

[[Chaff! Chaff! Flare! Flare! Holy shit, why didn't it…Aaaaaah!]]

[[I don't want to die! I don't want to die! I don't want to die! Nooooo!]]

[[Fuuuuuuuuuck!]]

[[Point defense, I count on you! Please work, please!]]

Purple spherical explosions were seen where the enemies had been shot down. Ares was not sure about the detonation mechanism, but it seemed to completely obliterate everything within the blast radius, not even leaving a scrap.

Several missiles did not reach their target. They were shot down and destroyed by the point defense system of an enemy. Ares learned about that only because the opposing pilot was overjoyed and bragged about the feat over the radio.

Their glee turned into gloom very soon.

[[Wh… What is this… Ugh, what happened… to my body… Aaaaargh!]]

Moments later, the ship self-destructed violently and turned itself into pieces. It was probably rigged with explosives that were triggered on its pilot's death. Not even the manarium crystal embedded in the ship was left. The explosion tripped the detonation of the broken [Grim Hymn] submunitions nearby, further reducing the loot to zero.

Ares clicked his tongue in disappointment. He had witnessed the ultimate strength and weakness of [Synthesis]'s missiles — It would not leave any traces of the enemy.

After ordering the retraction of the missile racks and allocating all energy to the repairs, Ares unbuckled and hopped off his seat.

To comfort his partner, of course.

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