Chapter 273: Ch

“Okay, we stop here now. Everyone, it is time for us to make our move. Everything will be in place in less than 25 seconds, so move quick!”

“Emma, Sophia, both of you, hurry up! Same for others, quick!”

In an instant, as if they were already prepared, about 200 of the 295 Marines made their move. Splitting into teams, they began phasing through the metal walls of the corridors—half on the right, half on the left—making their way toward their assigned targets.

In an instant, as if they were already prepared, about 200 of the 295 Marines made their move. Splitting into teams, they began phasing through the metal walls of the corridors—half on the right, half on the left—making their way toward their assigned targets.

Kaelen was left with 95 Marines. He quickly unblocked Ananya’s comms, turned toward her, and asked, “Ananya, are you done with the job that I asked you off?”

She quickly replied: “Yes, it is done. All those turrets and any kind of trap should now be ineffective or unworkable.” (She desperately wanted to add that she could have made the turrets obey their commands if she’d had a few more tens of seconds, internally cursing: “Darn it, you idiot, can’t you have told us about it sooner?” as she glared at Kaelen.)

This time, Kaelen successfully suppressed the urge to daydream. He quickly looked toward Aarav, Kabir, Adam (who had pushed his dread to the back of his mind), Daniel, Michael, and Liam.

“The six of you should move now in 5 seconds. GO! GO!” he ordered.

The six Marines nodded and quickly moved toward the first intersection, while the remaining team waited, ready to increase their pace when needed.

Just like that, the mission had officially begun for the Delta Squad.

Aarav and the five others were now just a turn away from the first intersection’s massive hatch door. They looked toward each other. Though their faces were covered by their combat suits, they could still read one another’s minds.

This wasn’t the first time they had operated together; their shared training—a hellish regimen in the Universal Domain, the endless forests, and the mountains of the origin planet—had forged an absolute synergy. A mere gaze from any one of them was enough for the others to instantly understand the command.

Despite the advantage of their superior technology, they understood their precarious position: deep within the enemy’s main line, surrounded by thousands of ships and a giant Star Fortress. Nodding collectively, they braced themselves.

In their empty hands, six rifles materialized. These were the D Plasma Rifles, or for simplicity, the DPR-Reaper—weapons of futuristic and aesthetically pleasing design.

Holding the weapons firmly, they made the turn. Before them stood a gigantic, silver door—about six to eight meters tall and just as wide, made of some unknown matter (a fusion of lower-grade Tier 2 alloys the Minotaurs called ’M-Metal’).

In front of the colossal steel structure stood six Minotaurs, roughly 2.8 to 3.2 meters tall, covered head-to-toe in heavy armor. Five of the guards carried visible cold weapons—mostly axes and heavy swords—and were standing casually, chatting. They were discussing the same old rumors Adam and the others had monitored: survival chances, the relocated engineers, and the traitors in their midst.

The six Void Marines stopped four to five meters from the unaware Minotaurs and, in the same instant, raised their DPR-Reapers.

A chilling sensation did cause the Minotaurs to look in the direction of Adam and the others, but they saw only the wall and the empty corridor behind it. This was the luxury provided by the combat system’s advanced stealth.

Adam and the rest wasted no more time. They fired the first shot.

They briefly materialized in front of the Minotaurs as the highly destructive plasma shots raged forward. The Minotaurs were momentarily stunned by Adam’s sudden presence, but that was all they felt—and it became their last moment.

Holding the weapons firmly, they made the turn. Before them stood a gigantic, silver door—about six to eight meters tall and just as wide, made of some unknown matter (a fusion of lower-grade Tier 2 alloys the Minotaurs called ’M-Metal’).

In front of the colossal steel structure stood six Minotaurs, roughly 2.8 to 3.2 meters tall, covered head-to-toe in heavy armor. Five of the guards carried visible cold weapons—mostly axes and heavy swords—and were standing casually, chatting. They were discussing the same old rumors Adam and the others had monitored: survival chances, the relocated engineers, and the traitors in their midst.

The six Void Marines stopped four to five meters from the unaware Minotaurs and, in the same instant, raised their DPR-Reapers.

A chilling sensation did cause the Minotaurs to look in the direction of Adam and the others, but they saw only the wall and the empty corridor behind it. This was the luxury provided by the combat system’s advanced stealth.

Adam and the rest wasted no more time. They fired the first shot.

The high-density, destructive plasma shots impacted all six targets simultaneously. They didn’t even have time to scream. Their bodies, along with their heavy armor, disintegrated particle by particle in an instant, leaving nothing behind—not even dust.

Just as the six Marines completed the first takedown, the door ahead opened, and they moved forward. Turning back, they saw the silhouettes of Kaelen and the others following him, combining into a force of 95. Adam and the group joined Kaelen, exchanging nods without breaking pace.

They passed the neutralized turrets and traps effortlessly. Though they were still in stealth, which prevented detection, Ananya’s disarming had ensured there would be no electronic resistance.

Coming to a turn in the corridor, Kaelen raised his hand, opening and closing his fingers twice—the signal that the Minotaurs were just around the corner, and preparation was needed.

Those in the front materialized their energy weapons (still inactive) into their hands. Kaelen, holding a sword hilt, and the six point-Marines increased their pace. Behind them, rifles appeared in the hands of the other support Marines.

The instant they rounded the turn, they saw the Minotaurs—two groups chatting casually in the curve. Without hesitation, Kaelen and twelve others (Adam, Aarav, Kabir, Daniel, Michael, Liam, and five others) took a massive leap, while the riflemen behind took aim at the oblivious Minotaurs.

Kaelen’s group landed silently in the middle of the Minotaur formation. Half of them turned to face the back, and the other half focused on the front.

Simultaneously, Emma and Sophia, using the Phase Shifter Module, appeared on the other side of the Minotaur formation, effectively trapping them.

Emma and her group of 19 Marines stood on the right side of the corridor, facing the Minotaurs.

Sophia and her team stood in a line on the left side, with a few others in the back, perfectly surrounding the enemy.

Many of the Phase Shifter teams held inactive cold energy weapons, while a few carried rifles. Their goal was simple: ensure no Minotaur, even a missed target, had a millisecond to make a sound.

As if on a synchronized clock, the three groups—Kaelen’s assault team, Emma’s flank, and Sophia’s flank—moved at the same instant.

In the middle, Kaelen and his forward half briefly uncloaked as they slashed at the Minotaurs with their energy swords. The enemies had no idea how ten people had suddenly arrived before they were instantly cut in half without a chance to defend or scream. The same brutal efficiency was demonstrated by Adam and the others moving backward from the middle.

Meanwhile, at the rear, Ananya and the support Marines began firing their plasma rifles with perfect efficiency, missing not a single target.

Way in front, Emma, Sophia, and their teams executed the same calculated attack, moving like a well-oiled machine.

In just four to five seconds, they had cleared out almost 100 Minotaurs with brutal efficiency. The Minotaurs were annihilated—some cut down in half, others disintegrated by plasma fire—their last fleeting thought being confusion about where these silent assailants had come from.

Kaelen’s combat suit was lightly coated in the blood that had splattered onto him and the other Marines who had engaged in close combat with energy weapons.

Ignoring the mess they had created for the moment, Kaelen turned to Noel and Jay and spoke to the entire assembled group through the comms in a quick, sharp manner:

“What are you waiting for, huh? Hurry up! Take the others with you. Leave me, Ananya, Kabir, and Aarav. Take the rest! And Emma, you and Sophia, join them as per we discussed a few moments ago!”

(Hearing the phrase “as per we discussed,” many of the Marines had an urge to roll their eyes, thinking: “What ’discuss’? You made the whole plan alone, hmph!”)

“Yes, sir!” Noel and Jay responded simultaneously, their voices echoing through the comms.

They quickly used hand gestures to issue orders. One gesture was for the groups to split in two; another was for those who had blood on their suits to immediately activate the cleaning system. They instantly split into two teams of 46 Marines each.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep