Skyfire Avenue - Chapter 758

Chapter 758

Chapter 758: Live Fire Reconnaissance

When they saw the embattled planets, their hearts fell .

It had become purple, as everyone had expected . But the sick color extended well past the planet itself and had begun to infect space around it . Aliens far as the eye could see surrounded it like a plague of locusts .

If the number of beasts they’d faced no Monteux had been overwhelming, what they saw before them was mind-boggling . They filled space as numerous as asteroids in the Shattered Starfields – more than humans had ever imagines .

“This is the aliens’ main force?” The Driver asked . As the others began to wonder if he was scared, he added a sentence . “So manyvital crystals!”

“Is there any limit to your greed?” Lan Jue muttered . “Mika, pull us into orbit and keep your distance . Let’s take a look around, head for the nearest satellite planet then we’ll go from there . Xiuxiu, start recording . ”

“Aye, aye!” The two women replied in unison .

Most of the creatures they saw were of the sort they’d witnessed before, however they were a few that were new to Lan Jue . Beasts over a thousand meters long were a common sighting, three thousand meters or more were rarer .

According to Lan Jue’s estimations, the ones that were ten thousand meters long were equivalent to human Paragons . They likely possessed more energy than a typical Paragon did . The smaller they became the weaker they were . Of course, this didn’t include those that could alter their appearance, like the Violet Prince and Princess .

As they continued their distant trajectory, only one word could describe the scene: Shocking .

It was staggering to behold . At least three times the number of enemies they’d faced in the North, and monsters stronger than they’d ever seen . When did they become so numerous? Ten times as many humans wouldn’t be able to contend with an army this size . Some were smaller, meant to force the enemy to waste their fire on them, but even those came in such numbers as to be a real threat .

“Can we get through?” Lan Jue turned to Lin Guoguo . Of course, he meant could they get into the thick of it without being discovered .

She frowned . “No, there are too many in close proximity . I can’t emulate that many signals at once . We’d be discovered right away . ”

This was a problem . Lan Jue frowned at the horde before them . If he couldn’t get in closer, how were they to complete their mission?”

Lan Qing’s words ticked the back of his mind . There were so many aliens they couldn’t safely confirm the aliens’ condition . This was as good as confirmation – it meant they were probably undergoing their evolution .

Yet, they’d been wrong before . Being wrong this time could mean they lose everything . Had Jue Di and Jun’er not helped when they did, humanity was already have no means to fight back .

Failure was not an option . They had to confirm the planets’ condition or the next part of their plan could not be enacted .

He muttered to the others . “Continue on . I don’t think the creatures can have this much space quarantined . It doesn’t matter how many there are . ”

“Aye, aye!” Zeus-1 continued its forward journey .

Indeed it appeared the aliens could keep everything locked down . As they got closer to the planets things became more difficult, but the space between was more navigable . But things were worse than they expected . Interspersed throughout space were many of the umbrella-shaped, jellyfish-like aliens they’d encountered before . In Lan Jue’s experience they had the strongest psionic abilities, both very sensitive and wide-spread . They didn’t have much in the way of fighting ability but they carried a small army with them wherever they went .

The pulses from the umbrella aliens were as strange as they were complicated, too complicated for Lin Guoguo to mimic . In addition, they noticed that the signals from them seemed to change, whereas other aliens’ calls were static .

This was made even more troubling by the fact that they couldn’t tell how many aliens were contained inside one . For all they knew, one umbrella-alien could be transporting enough aliens to wipe out their little boat .

It took them a day to make a full circuit, observing every planet . The final analysis was the aliens were using overwhelming numbers and strategically placed umbrella-aliens to keep this section of space locked away . The seven outer planets were sentries, and Europa was safely nestled inside . Learning anything more was beginning to seem impossible .

“What do you think? “The Wine Master asked Lan Jue . By now the bastions were already in position . Middle Heaven, Poseidon, and Tyrannosaurus were making final preparations . Yet they still had no useful information to present .

In fact the only news they had was bad news . Even without the alien home worlds there seemed to be more normal aliens than the human forces could contend with . If the three planets did appear their deaths would be quick and decisive .

Their mission was more important than ever .

“Live-fire reconnaissance!” Lan Jue replied .

“Live fire reconnaissance?” The Wine Master seemed unsure . “No, too dangerous,” he replied . ”

Lan Jue turned to him . “Hear me out . We wouldn’t all go out and pick a fight . We separate into two teams; Zeus-1 provides support while the second team moves in and kicks the hornet’s nest . ”

“Explain,” the Wine Master said .

He did . “You, me, the Pharmacist, Qianlin . The four of us move into enemy territory and try to get a reaction, see how they respond from a small-scale attack . Without a way to protect ourselves being detected would be unavoidable . Meanwhile the others wait here on the ship and give us backup . Your job will be to transfer us out of harm’s way when the time is right . There is a danger, especially since it’s likely we’ll encounter stronger aliens, but it’s the only way to get a read on what’s happening deeper in . We don’t have to get to the center, we just need a clue . ”

The Wine Master considered his proposal . “I suppose it’s the best plan we’ve got, though I don’t like the risk . What do you hope to find? You say we don’t need to penetrate too deeply, but there’s a lot of space between the outer planets and Europa . If the alien home worlds can cloak themselves as we suspect, it seems likely we’d discover anything useful . ”

Lan Jue shook his head . “I don’t just intend to break past the line . I intend to get around the back side of these planets . You’ve seen that the aliens are most numerous around the planets . If a progenitor has already taken control of the planet, why would it need that much support? There must be something going on that we don’t know . We delve past their blockade and see what’s on the other side . Then, we swing around the backside of a planet and take a look at what they might be hiding . If we can do that, our mission will have been a success . ”

The Wine Master thought for another few moments . “If that’s the case I think we can assure a reasonable degree of safety . I can teleport everyone back . ”

Lan Jue smiled . “We might just be gauging reactions, but let’s hit them with a solid punch . If we can teleport out, then we can teleport in . ”

The Wine Master nodded . “It’s unsure whether there are any survivors . ”

When he said it everyone’s face grew solemn . The West was truly lost . Most of their population had been gathered here 1, so how many could have fled? Whatever the number, it was far, far too few .

As much as no one wanted to admit it, the Western Alliance was no more . Their planetary defenses couldn’t hold out against so many enemies . Just think, their president was forced to flee . The chaos and devastation must have been staggering .

One of humanity’s three great Alliance had collapsed .

The thought left a wound on every heart . They had witnessed the end of an entire nation . Which would be next? The North? The East? Once the aliens completed their evolution, their path of genocide would continue .

“Let’s get ready . We’ll launch from the first planet, it’s closest to our own forces . When our mission is complete we’ll head back directly . ” Lan Jue gave the final order .

Zeus-1 kept its course, heading back to where they they started .

“Boss, let me come with you, even just as Thor’s weapon . ” Xiuxiu requested .

His response was low and serious . “Denied . Stay here on Zeus-1 . ”

His decisive tone left no room for Xiuxiu to disagree . She glanced at him, at Qianlin by his side, then turned her pained eyes away . She would not be the girl who stood by him in conflict .

As Zeus-1 returned to the launching point Lan Jue woke his parents and told them the plan . The Driver and Mika would not be enough if the dispatch team needed help, so his father and mother would need to be on alert .

No more data was needed on their way back, so they moved quicker . They returned to the first planet in half the time .

Jue Di turned to his son . “Go . I will be watching over you with my Far Sight . The moment things get out of control I’ll move in to help, but be careful . We still have no idea where the alien planets are . ”