I Am The Swarm

“Hurry up!”

Under the commander’s constant urging, the two mecha warriors stepped in front of the missiles. Using specialized clamps, they locked their mechas securely onto the missiles’ bodies. The precise fit made it clear that this setup was no improvised plan.

“Rooney, I still have a bad feeling about this. If I throw up in the cockpit, do I have to clean it up myself?” Despite the commander’s reprimands, Zeki couldn’t stop chattering.

“I’m sure you will,” Rooney replied flatly.

“Fine, I’ll try to hold it in.”

The preparation process proceeded briskly. Shortly after securing the mechas, the parameter recalibrations were completed. As the commander counted down, the missiles ignited, spewing thick clouds of smoke as they carried the mechas skyward.

“Let’s hope everything goes smoothly,” the commander murmured, silently praying.

—

“What’s going on? The wormhole is opening again?”

“Yes, Dr. Benba,” an officer confirmed.

“This is impossible! The wormhole just opened two weeks ago!” exclaimed Dr. Benba, the first person to calculate the wormhole activation patterns. His algorithm had been flawless, consistently giving the Botians a decisive edge—until now.

“Nothing’s impossible, Doctor. The instruments have confirmed the activation signals,” the commander replied, unfazed by Benba’s agitation. He understood how the doctor felt; after all, no wormhole had ever reopened just two weeks after its last activation.

“This can’t be happening. My algorithm can’t be wrong! There must be some mistake,” Benba muttered, clearly shaken.

His calculations had saved the Botians countless resources and earned him widespread acclaim. If proven incorrect, those accolades might vanish overnight.

The commander ignored Benba’s muttering and fixed his gaze on the central monitor, which displayed a live feed from the departing mechas.

The two mechas, assisted by the missiles, were now traveling at over 15 times the speed of sound. The immense pressure pushed the mechas to their structural limits, with small sparks flickering at some connection points. At this rate, they wouldn’t even need combat—the mechas would disintegrate after 20 minutes of flight.

Fortunately, the base was constructed on a coastline near the wormhole, and at their current speed, they would reach the designated location in just three minutes.

In fact, there were reaction bases even closer to the wormhole, stationed on platforms over the sea. However, two weeks earlier, these bases had repelled a monster attack. Based on Dr. Benba’s predictions that the next attack was more than a year away, only a skeleton crew had remained, while the rest were on leave.

The commander glanced at the visibly distraught Benba and sighed inwardly. If today’s events went south, Benba would undoubtedly be made the scapegoat.

“$#%&#!” Zeki’s voice continued over the comms, but the turbulence and pressure made his words incomprehensible even to himself.

On the other side, Rooney listened to the static-filled channel and couldn’t help but admire Zeki. The mecha’s life-support and protection systems were never designed to handle such extreme conditions. By now, Rooney was drenched in sweat, every muscle tense, his teeth clenched tightly. Forget speaking—he couldn’t even make a sound.

Three minutes felt like an eternity for the two mecha pilots until finally…

“Commander, ten seconds to the designated drop zone!”

“Release bindings and activate auxiliary systems!”

The clamps securing the mechas to the missiles were remotely disengaged, and the missiles veered upward. After expending their fuel, the missiles would fall to a predetermined recovery location.

The mechas, meanwhile, plunged toward the sea below. Despite losing the missiles’ thrust, their inertia kept them hurtling at an incredible speed. At this velocity, hitting the water would be akin to smashing into a mountain, and even the mechas’ sturdy defenses wouldn’t be enough to prevent catastrophic damage.

In the split second where their minds went blank from the intense g-forces, the pilots couldn’t react. Thankfully, the auxiliary systems were remotely activated. Additional thrusters around the mechas ignited, stabilizing their descent and slowing their speed.

“You okay, brother? Did you throw up yet?” Zeki’s voice suddenly crackled through the comms. Rooney, still recovering, decided not to respond.

“Get yourselves together! Ten seconds to water impact!” the commander’s voice echoed through their headsets. Despite the extreme discomfort, the two pilots gathered their strength and regained control of their mechas.

With two resounding splashes, the mechas plunged into the water, sending massive waves cascading outward. Their onboard lighting, sonar, and propulsion systems all activated instantly.

“Take it easy, brother. I don’t want to be stuck finding a new partner,” Zeki continued to chatter.

“Shut up!” Rooney barked, for the first time that day. Zeki immediately clammed up, understanding the gravity of the situation.

Rooney rarely raised his voice, and when he did, it was a sign of imminent danger. Although Zeki was brash, he wasn’t oblivious to the importance of the moment.

“Be cautious. The wormhole is just ahead. Let’s move in closer,” Rooney directed.

The base, relying only on the mechas’ onboard observation systems, wouldn’t be able to provide real-time combat directives. Once they entered combat, the pilots had to make their own decisions, and in their duo, the mature and composed Rooney naturally took the lead.

“Understood!” Zeki focused, knowing the importance of teamwork. While his reflexes were sharp, he wasn’t invincible, and he owed it to his partner to cooperate.

“Deploy warning sensors and watch your footing.”

“Roger that!”

Panels on the backs of both mechas opened, ejecting several small reconnaissance drones. The drones shifted into underwater mode and darted outward, leaving rippling trails in their wake.

Inside the mechas, additional display feeds appeared, linking to the drones and giving the pilots a clearer view of their surroundings, allowing them to detect potential threats in advance.

Minutes passed with no sign of anything unusual. This was highly irregular.

While the reaction base staff might have been on leave, the automated warning systems certainly weren’t. Otherwise, the main base wouldn’t have received any alerts. In addition to the large amount of energy detectors, this area was also equipped with video capture devices, sonar, and other instruments.

Given the open sea, it should have been nearly impossible for a monster to hide its movements after emerging from the wormhole.

The intel Zeki and Rooney had received indicated that no monitoring equipment had detected the monster leaving the area.

“Zeki, I need to map the terrain. Cover me.”

“Got it!”

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