“…Hah!”
Softly.
The sensation of floating came as they left the ground.
Having grasped an updraft, Amayori circled as she dashed into the sky.
The vast fields and forests; Rulid Village in their middle with a brand new roof gleaming at its core; Selka waving both hands as she earnestly ran; she burnt the sight of them all into her eyelids—
Alice had the flying dragon turn its head towards the eastern skies.
Chapter 16 – Attack on the Ocean Turtle
Part 1
Even the self-proclaimed super genius Higa Takeru was unable to predict all that had happened in the past two hours.
But, the current situation could be called extremely startling, and could only be described as dumbfounding.
Unexpectedly, a delicate young woman of roughly eighteen or nineteen used her thin right hand to seize and hoist up the collar of a man fifteen centimeters taller than herself. The tasteless Hawaiian shirt was gripped so tightly it was nearly torn apart; heels of sandals floated in the air.
With both eyes, brightly flashing as though they were ablaze, staring straight at Lieutenant-Colonel Kikuoka Seijirou, Yuuki Asuna let words sharp as swords out of her cute cherry red lips:
“If Kirito-kun can’t wake up like this, I will absolutely never forgive you.”
From Higa’s position, it was impossible to see Kikuoka’s expression under his black-rimmed glasses reflecting the ceiling light. But the Self-Defense Cadre who was supposed to be a black belt in both judo and kendo was seemingly crushed by Asuna’s words; he swallowed, and slowly raised both hands to his left and right, as though in a gesture of surrender.
“I understand. I will take responsibility: I will make sure Kirito-kun recovers.”
Solemn silence flooded the dark Auxiliary Control Room.
No matter if it was Higa, who was sitting in the chair in front of the console, or Koujiro Rinko, who was standing besides him, or the numerous «RATH» staff inside the room, no one dared to speak. It was clear how surprising the the youngest woman’s verve was. As it was, that young woman deserved the title of a «Survivor» of a true battlefield. Higa couldn’t help but think this aside.
Finally, Asuna wordlessly released her right hand. Kikuoka, having been freed, let out a long sigh with an almost dispirited expression. Asuna stepped back, swaying on the spot. Rinko immediately moved forward and supported Asuna’s back, her white coat flying.
The female physicist who was a senior to Higa in the research facility tightly hugged Asuna to her chest, whispered with determination:
“It’s all right, everything will be fine. He’ll definitely come back, back to your side.”
Her gentle voice instantly soothed Asuna’s extremely taut face:
“… Yes, you’re right. I’m sorry… for being so panicky.”
Asuna’s eyes leaked tears that had been absent even when enduring the attack. Rinko gently wiped them away with the tip of her finger.
The sound of the sliding door being opened tightened the slightly relaxed atmosphere again. Running into the room was Lieutenant Nakanishi.
Nakanishi, whose dusty white shirt was soaked with sweat and whose shoulder holster revealed a large pistol grip, glanced at Rinko and Asuna and said loudly to Kikuoka behind:
“Report! Complete sealing of blast doors one and two, plus completion of evacuating noncombatants are confirmed!”
Kikuoka adjusted the collar of his Hawaiian shirt as he stepped forward and nodded.
“Good work. How long can the blast doors hold?”
“Yes… That would depend on the attackers’ equipment, although small firearms are unable to penetrate it. Even using tip saws or similar tools to cut through it would take at least eight hours. If explosives are used, it might not hold… I assume, though, they would not, since near the central blast door…”
“There is the light cube cluster.”
Kikuoka finished his sentence, pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, and sank into deep thought.
But he immediately raised his head and surveyed the slightly small Auxiliary Control Room.
“Good, let’s straighten out the situation. Nakanishi, report of casualties.”
“Yes sir. Civilian research team, three lightly injured, in treatment at the bow infirmary. Our combatants, two heavily injured, two lightly injured, all in treatment with no risk of death. Ready for combat, six, including two lightly injured.”
“Under that kind of fierce attack, it’s a miracle that there have been no deaths… Then, report any hull damage.”
“There are rupture points all over the bottom dock control room. It’s impossible to shut them remotely now. The passageway from the dock to the Main Control Room is the same, but these are just negligible damages. The most severe is, because the main power line has been cut… although the auxiliary line can supply stable power, if we don’t restart the control system we can’t turn the propellers.”
“A sea turtle without fins. And its belly has been bitten by a shark.”
“Yes, sir. Zones One through Twelve of the Lower Shaft and the bottom dock have been completely taken.”
The extremely short-haired Nakanishi, whose face represented strong will itself, unwillingly knitted his brow. Comparatively, Kikuoka’s teacher-like long hairline twisted up, as he leaned onto the console while shuffling his clogs with his toes.
“The Main Control Room, STL Room One, and even the nuclear pile have also fallen into their hands… Most fortunately, their goal is not to destroy.”
“Is… is that so?”
“If they just wanted to destroy, they wouldn’t use submarines to carry out such an exaggerated surprise attack. Striking us with a cruise missile or torpedo would do. That begs the question: who are they… Higa-kun, what do you think?”
At the sudden question, Higa blinked several times, turning his brain that had not yet fully recovered from the impact.
“Uhh, yes, yeah.”
Mumbling meaninglessly as he turned towards the console, he manipulated the mouse with his right hand and brought up an in-ship camera recording on the big monitor.
Although the video window he opened was dark and indistinct, he paused at a random place and adjusted the brightness and contrast. What appeared were a number of figures in combat suits, sprinting forward in a passageway inside the ship. Their faces were half covered by helmets with multi-function visors, and they wielded serious-looking assault rifles.
“…So, as you can see, from head to toe, there are no markings whatsoever, such as flags, that can identify them. From the color and specifications of their equipment, they don’t seem to belong to any regular army. Their rifles appear to be Steyrs, but those are quite common… The only thing we can say is that, from their average physiques, they’re most likely not Asian.”
“Which means, at least they aren’t Japanese Special Forces. How pleasing.”
Kikuoka talked offhandedly about the frightening situation while scratching his chin. Emitting a sharp aura from his calm eyes usually squinted, he looked up to the monitor.
“We can confirm one more thing… These people know the existence of Project Alicization.”
Higa nodded.
“Yeah, that’s right. after their assault from the bottom dock, they immediately ran to the Main Control Room. Their goal is crystal clear: to seize the STL technology… No, the true bottom-up AI «A.L.I.C.E.».”
In other words, information had severely leaked in long-term work. But Higa did not directly say it; he resisted the urge to scan the face of every «RATH» worker in the room for any sudden motions, and said in an optimistic tone:
“What’s fortunate is, the Main Control Room lock caught up. It’s securer than physically damaging the console; I’ve made sure direct commands to the Underworld are no longer possible. Any intervention towards the simulated experiment, and the ejection of the Fluctlight of «A.L.I.C.E.» from the Light Cube Cluster is impossible.”
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“But, it’s the same for us, isn’t it?”
“Indeed. Using this auxiliary console, it is also impossible to execute administrator privilege commands. No matter if it’s from the opposite side – the Main Control Room – or this side – the Auxiliary Control Room – it is impossible to eject «A.L.I.C.E.»’s Fluctlight by way of external commands… But Kiku-san, doesn’t this equal our victory? Since they can’t access the Cluster by physical means or informational means, as long as we can call our escort Aegis destroyer to dispatch reinforcements for a counterattack, those guys are a piece of cake, a piece of cake.”
“I don’t know what kind of cake… but therein lies the problem.”
Kikuoka’s expression remained solemn as he inquired Nakanishi.
“How about it, has the Nagato moved?”
“Uh… about that…”
Nakanishi channeled power into his chin in an effort to steady his voice, and bowed his head slightly.
“The Nagato received orders from the Yokosuka Fleet Command to maintain its current distance and standby. It seems that Command has classified us as hostages.”
“Wh…”
Higa’s mouth dropped open.
“Hostages? But, all hands have retreated back here in an evacuation!”
The one who replied calmly was Kikuoka:
“That is to say, those people clad in black have connections with the higher-ups of the Self Defense Force. The Nagato pulled away from the Ocean Turtle at eight in the morning, about six hours before that bunch broke in. By the time Nagato receives an order to come to rescue, they would have seized «A.L.I.C.E.»’s Light Cube. Of course, there must be a time limit…”
“That means… those people aren’t just normal terrorists. This is bad… If there are experts on the other side as well, they might find out. The hidden way of collecting «A.L.I.C.E»…”
“Operating fromfrom within the Underworld, right?… Now that they have control over STL Room One, it’s possible to set the virtual console installed within the Underworld to complete the ejection command…”
“What will happen if that command is executed?”
Higa turned around and answered Koujiro Rinko’s question:
“The target Light Cube will be retrieved from the Light Cube Cluster within the Main Shaft and transported by vacuum tube to any control room. It’ll exit there.”
He pointed at a square hatch on the side of the console, and turned his eyes towards the door on the wall inside.
There was a small metal plaque set on the aluminum door, with the words [STL Room Two].
On the other side of that door there were two STLs – that is, «Soul Translators». In one of the machines laid a youth currently under the care of Nurse and Sergeant First Class Aki Natsuki. He, Kirigaya Kazuto, had been playing an important role since the beginning of Project Alicization, and drove the direction of the project even more so today.
Kikuoka turned away and crossed his arms, speaking in a sincere and solemn tone:
“Our last hope will have to rest on his shoulders again. Higa-kun… How is Kirito’s condition?”
Hearing the weak breathing, Higa raised his head and directly met eyes with the intense glare of Asuna, who was being hugged by Rinko.
He sank into a hesitation over how to convey the current situation to her, who was Kirito’s, that is, Kirigaya Kazuto’s lover. Immediately, however, a hoarse but determined voice reached Higa’s ears.
“Don’t worry, I will be fine. Please say it, the true situation.”
Taking a deep breath, Higa nodded.
“To summarize in one sentence… It’s gonna be… It would be a condition just shy of the worst possible.”
Higa said in a newly serious tone, manipulating the mouse again.
The image of the attackers disappeared and another window was opened. What appeared was an irregularly flashing colorful stereoscopic image.
“This, is an imaging of Kirito-kun’s Fluctlight.”
Everyone in the room silently stared at the screen.
“A week ago, since he was injected with succinylcholine in Tokyo, his heart and lungs ceased normal function. Fortunately, he’s managed to stay alive, but a portion of his brain… Specifically, his Fluctlight network, has been damaged. Although treatment would be difficult with current medical methods, there might be a chance of recovery if STL technology is used . Therefore, to foster the synthesis of new networks, we attempt to grant new dynamism to Kirito-kun’s Fluctlight through unrestricted STL.”
Higa sighed, picked up the bottle of water on the console and took a sip. He was not used at all to this kind of long explanation.
“To proceed with this treatment, it would be necessary for him to dive into the Underworld. If we don’t allow his Fluctlight to move around as though it were in the real world, the treatment would have no results. Therefore, same as his Dive at the Roppongi branch: we concealed Kirito-kun’s memories and let him land at the border of the Underworld… This is what we originally planned. But, even today we don’t know why… I’m afraid that the reason is the Fluctlight damage; his memories hadn’t been concealed at all. Kirito-kun has been placed into the Underworld under his current real-world condition of Kirigaya Kazuto. We just found out from his contact with his from inside…”
“Wait… wait a minute.”
Koujiro Rinko interjected.
“Then, has he, in the time-accelerated Underworld, spent those days as Kirigaya-kun? How many months… inside….”
“…About two years.”
Hearing Higa’s reply, Asuna’s body that was being hugged by Rinko trembled slightly. Even though his words were likely to be extremely shocking to her, Higa continued, trusting in her earlier promise:
“In that time, Kirito-kun has contacted the artificial Fluctlights in that world. I’m afraid, he also knows that the Fluctlights will eventually, due to the end of this current virtual experiment, all be destroyed… So, his target is installed in the center of the Underworld, and was once the contact console connecting the starting village with the real world. Kiku-san, he’s planning to request you to protect all of the Fluctlights.”
Higa glanced to the side; Kikuoka, whose glasses reflected the light of the monitor, was still gazing at the stereoscoping image. He turned back to Rinko and Asuna:
“…This is not something simple, since the contact device is buried in the stronghold of the ruling power, now called the «Axiom Church». Because the Fluctlights belonging to the Church possess absolute status value, Kirito-kun, who was set as a common person, had no way to fight them. Originally, shortly after he breaks into the Church, he would [Die], and log out of the Underworld… But he did it. Being attacked, we could not confirm detailed information in the logs, but we assume that he recruited some people, who of course are artificial Fluctlights… that is, the help of partners. In the fight against the Church, those partners nearly all died, and as a result, when he successfully opened a connection to here, he felt deep guilt. It can be said that he attacked his own Fluctlight. In that instant, those black-clothed people cut the power line, creating a short-circuit that instantly spiked the STL output. As a result, Kirito-kun’s impulse of self-destruction has become reality… His [inner self] has lost activity…”
“Inner self… Lost activity? What do you mean?”