by Yoo Seong
The Rama warrior and medic left the room. He was about to say something to the medic when he looked at the jail and turned off the translation system. It was a behaviour to guard against Ark but Ark was proficient in the foreign language.
–He was in hibernation mode so there might still be others in the area. Troops are exploring the area . The troops moving from the other direction will join us tomorrow. We will wait until the troops accompany us before returning to the base. Don’t forget to inject the SMT-518 every 30 minutes.
–I understand Captain-nim.
He heard all of their words through the grate. Ark’s eyes shone while he rolled across the floor suffering.
‘Ohit! Return to the base? Hihihi! That means this isn’t the Rama’s central base!’
Ark had been in hibernation mode so he thought he had been brought back to the Rama base. And escaping from the central base himself was impossible. With the medic there, he couldn’t refuse to eat and starve to death.
‘Even if the Beltana war is finished, I would still be a prisoner. Ohhhh! The Carrier MR-II contained information about the Rama central base but how the federation will handle it is still unknown. Hak hak hak! It might take a few days depending on the federation’s response! I’m going crazy! I might even rot a few months in jail.’
Ark was anxious about that fact. SMT-518 was really difficult to withstand. He was in a state where he was being tickled and he couldn’t scratch it. This wasn’t something he could withstand with patience. In other words, the SMT-518 was more painful for users than torture. However, this was a game so the user had a way to escape any type of pain. It was to end the connection. He could enter hibernation mode and then exit the unit. The more fearful part was that he was stuck in jail
He couldn’t do anything. Level up, items…..he would just have to wait around even if connected to the game. Ark started Galaxian with a clear goal so this was the most dreadful penalty.
‘Stupid…..’
Ark bit his lip. He should’ve thought that someone would’ve chased him after setting fire to the Carack’s food and fleeing with the bike. But he couldn’t consider it. He was so busy trying not to die of starvation every day that he couldn’t think about anything else. He dug holes to catch the bugs and the Rama scouting troops eventually found him. The light signal that the Rama warrior saw was the second problem. His prisoner status was a result of Ark’s carelessness. But it was too late to regret it.
‘However, it is still too early to give up if this isn’t the central base.’
Ark bit his lip against the maddening itch and organized his thoughts. If this was the central base then it was impossible for him to escape by himself. Base on the dialogue he heard, Ark was certain that he wasn’t far from the mountain where he entered hibernation. They weren’t convinced yet that Ark was the criminal behind the event at the base. They thought his colleagues might be around and wouldn’t return to the base until the searched the area.
‘But they will return to the base after the search ends. Pant pant pant! According to the Rama warrior, that will be tomorrow. Kikiki! Once the unit scouting the circumference returns then we will head to the base. In the end I only have one day. If I fail to escape before that happens then I’ll rot in the Rama’s jail. I have to escape before then. Hek hek hek! That’s not…..I have to look for a way to die!’
He was impatient thinking about it. But both his arms were handcuffed behind his back. He couldn’t even pull out an item let alone escape.
‘First I need to deal with these handcuffs……’
Ark looked around desperately but there was nothing inside the jail. He was surrounded by thick steel walls. Yet he still had to find something. If he didn’t then it was over. Ark twisted his body despite the itch and checked every corner of the jail. He finally saw a bent iron plate in a corner of the room. The iron plate’s edges bent outwards.
‘Hopefully this…..’
Ark approached it quickly. He place the handcuffs on the edge of the iron plate and started scraping away. He was going to use the sharp edge as a hacksaw to cut off the handcuffs. However…..
Kkaduk! Kkaduk! Kkaduk! Jik! Jik! Jik!
He had only been enduring the itching and scraping at the handcuffs for 3 minutes. At first it seemed like the iron edge was working. Then despair appeared on Ark’s face as he turned his edge.
‘Damn! Why are the prison walls so weak?’
Iron powder was piling up on the ground underneath where he was scraping away at the handcuffs. However, the iron powder wasn’t coming from the handcuffs. The iron powder was coming from the iron wall. The iron piece was being scratched away by the handcuffs. On the other hand, not one mark could be seen on the cuffs. This meant the material of the handcuffs was several times firmer than the iron wall.
‘I made a mistake! I can’t escape the handcuffs like this!’
Ark leaned against the wall with a blank expression and sighed.
‘It would’ve been better to starve to death……’
Ark thought as he absent-mindedly stared at the ground. Then an ‘!’ popped in his head.
‘Wait? The handcuffs are stronger than the iron wall?’
Ark looked at the small window where he could see thick snow and strong blasts of wind
Of course, the window had an iron grille across it. It was red and rusty but there was no way to cut it without any equipment. But now Ark had an incredibly strong metal. The metal was strong enough to even grind down the iron wall.
‘I can do it! It is possible with these handcuffs!’
Ark approached the window and placed his back to it. Then he started moving the handcuffs across the grille with as much strength as possible. Ark was using the handcuffs to scratch away at the window.
Kkaduk! Kkaduk! Kkaduk! Kkaduk!
He continued scratching against the grille for a while. At this point, Ark had been doing this for 10 minutes and managed to destroy one of the crosspieces. However that wasn’t enough.
‘I need to destroy at least 3 bars in order to escape through the window.’
He continued scratching at the grille with the handcuffs behind his back. His handcuffed wrists weren’t perfect. The handcuffs tore the skin and caused blood to flow. However, Ark couldn’t feel the pain thanks to the control device of the unit. The itch caused by SMT-518 transcended imagination. So it was difficult for him to sit still. However, the pain from scratching the skin actually reduced the itching. Now he could withstand it to some degree.
‘I will escape!”
Kkaduk! Kkaduk! Kkaduk! Kkaduk!
Ark bit his lips and continued moving without any breaks. And he had finally separated the 2nd iron bar from the 3rd……
-Eh? It is already this time. His spirit should’ve dropped by now.
‘Dammit! Has it already been 30 minutes?’
Ark thought frantically as he heard a voice outside the door. The itching from SMT-518 was really intolerable. The duration of SMT-518 is 30 minutes. It was time to be re-inoculated.
‘If the medic comes in then he will see the cut crosspieces! Dammit! Just one! Just one more……’
Ark rocked his arm like crazy and scraped his flesh on the window. However, the crosspiece just wriggled side by side and didn’t break easily. And……
–I have to enter the injection even if he is in hibernation mode.
Cheolkeok.
The door was opened
——————————————————————————————-
“The reply has come from the central government.”
Inside the headquarters of the federation’s base. A middle aged man with silver hair spoke in a low voice.
“Are they sending reinforcements?”
“No, the central government can’t afford to send any more regular troops.
Beltana’s garrison commander called Haman shook his head and explained.
“There are internal conflicts with the Aschulat whil
e the federation is struggling against the Rama. Beltana is one of the most important and strategic planets left in the Bellin constellation. The federation is also being damaged by the Rama warrior nicknamed the Red Slaughterer. It is difficult for the federation to send more troops.”
“But this is an opportunity.”
“Of course. I’ve been waiting for this moment.”
“Then……”
“Yes, I visited Marquis Martin who is a councillor of the central government through the Star Gate and explained the circumstances. It is hard for Sir Martin to send regular troops but offered to send some mercenaries to act on behalf of Istana. They will send 200 mercenaries by tomorrow.”
A bold smile appeared on Haman’s face.
“We will get 200 reinforcements tomorrow. The storm hasn’t completely cleared but we know the exact location of the Rama base so it won’t be a problem. We will march as soon as reinforcements arrive tomorrow. And before the storm clears up, all the Rama on Beltana will be exterminated.”
Haman looked at a young man with a satisfied look.
“This is all thanks to you. How did you get this information when there is a snow storm?”
“That……”
“No, that’s okay. The results matter not the process. You brought the information to the strategy team so how you got it doesn’t matter. The most important part of fighting on a disputed planet is to find the main base. Over the past year, numerous scouting units had been sacrificed and they couldn’t figure out this information. This achievement will award you a silver medal of valour.”
-You have earned 5,000 achievements for figuring out the location of the Rama base.
In addition, the Beltana garrison commander Haman has recommended you be awarded a silver medal of valour.
‘Silver medal of valour!’
The young man’s heart beat wildly. The silver medal of valour was the second highest medal!
If he received that then he could get ahead of other people! It would guarantee him success. The young man couldn’t hide his thrilled expression. Haman smiled and raised his hand to his shoulder.
“You shouldn’t be satisfied with this much. Like I said, we’ll be able to drive those dirt aliens from Beltana once reinforcements arrive tomorrow. I will leave the 200 elite troops to you. You will have a large role in the battle and I have no doubt that you will win. Then you will be awarded a gold medal. Do you understand?”
“Please leave it to me!”
“You are reliable. Then please go. You also need to make some preparations.”
“Yes, Commander-nim. Thank you!”
The young man saluted and went outside.
“The silver medal of valour, I never thought he would help me this way.”
The young man muttering was Valencia, the leader of the 1st armoured platoon. It was an accident that Valencia discovered it. Ever since Ark went missing a fortnight ago, the soldiers couldn’t move due to the snow storm so Valencia’s greatest pleasure was watching the Royal Guards waiting for Ark. On that day, he had been happily watching the Royal Guards sobbing near the Fairy. He discovered a flying object heading towards headquarters. Valencia realized it was the Carrier MR-II and intercepted it along the way. If something like that was sent to the defense base then it was highly likely to be sensitive information. Valencia just thought he would see a scouting report when intercepting the Carrier MR-II. It wasn’t much but he could raise his achievements like this. However, the Carrier MR-II had more information than he expected. It contained the GPS information of the Rama main base! And the person who sent the GPS information……
‘Ark! That bastard, he’s still alive?’
Thoughts started turning over in Valencia’s head. If he took the Carrier MR-II to headquarters then Ark would receive the huge achievements even if he wasn’t here. And Valencia would be left with nothing. But now the Carrier MR-II was in Valencia’s hands. Ark was also missing for a fortnight so he was treated as a deserter.
‘Can I download the data from this Carrier MR-II to my Nymphe?’
He could intercept the achievement! But there was a problem. If Ark returned then all that would be gone. If Ark returned alive then an investigation would be launched and the information was registered on Ark’s Nymphe so Valencia wouldn’t be able to hide the fact that he intercepted it.
‘But that is only if Ark comes back alive.’
If he died then all the information registered on the Nymphe would be erased. If that happened then there was no way to prove it even if Ark protested.
‘According to the message, Ark is currently stranded 290 km away from the base. He entered hibernation state to await rescue after sending the Carrier MR-II. If a rescue party isn’t sent then it will be difficult for him to return. But that isn’t enough. That guy definitely has to die. There is a Rama outpost near that mountain area. If that guy is hiding there then the solution is simple.’
Valencia inputted a new coordinate into the Carrier MR-II that Ark sent.
* Current Stranded Location: X-#@### Y-#!#$
The message was encrypted and the Carrier MR-II was sent to Ark’s location. Of course he didn’t just send it. He added one additional gift.
Flash, flash, flash, flash!
It started emitting light once it reached the destination. That was why the sleeping Ark was caught by the Rama. It was the light signal the Rama warrior was talking about.
‘If he is in hibernation mode then the Rama will 100% take him. If he hasn’t resurrected yet then he must’ve been captured alive. No, I won’t let him return alive.’
Valencia smiled meanly as he continued walking.
——————————————————————————————-
-The galactic federation has sent an emergency message.
Hired mercenary troops shall be dispatched to the disputed planet Beltana
All mercenaries who want to enter this war shall register with the federation branch in each city by 18:00.
The message appeared on the Nymphe’s of all the mercenaries on Istana. The central government was hiring mercenaries after the request by Beltana’s garrison commander. The mercenaries…..
“Beltana?”
“Yes, that is where Ark is located.”
……They received it as well.
Space 5
Waking Up! (Part: 2)
Bang!
Just as the door was about to open. A roaring sound suddenly came from within the prison.
–Hik! What is that? That…..eh? Eh eh?
The Rama medic surveyed the jail with confusion. One person was collapsed in a dusty corner of the jail. At first he thought the prisoner couldn’t withstand the itch and committed suicide. But he soon realized something was wrong. The man collapsed in the jail was surprisingly……
–Is he the same species? He is from the Rama clan.
The person from the federation had escaped from the prison and the Rama collapsed. The medic hurriedly rushed towards his colleague and asked.
-Hey! What the? Why are you here? Where is the one in jail? Where is he? Hey!
“Ohh! Who….you….Relief? The Relief?”
The Rama warrior moaned as he lifted his head.
–Yes, that’s me. What is going on?
“……I-I was struck.”
–Struck? By who? How?
The Rama warrior looked at the opposite wall after hearing the Relief’s question. The Relief looked in that direction and stuttered.
–Heok! I-iron window? Don’t tell me?
“Ugh…..I was searching around for the federation soldiers and fou
nd traces of some of them. And I tried to chase them but met the squad commander. It would take some time to track them so I was told to return and watch the prisoner. While I was returning, I noticed the iron grille on the window and found the guy escaping. So a battle begun. Dammit, that guy used some strange technology and locked me in here before escaping……”
–Oh my god! That guy ran away?
“Yes, we have to hurry. He couldn’t have ran very far yet.”
-Dammit!
The Relief jumped up. Then the Rama warrior shouted.
“You idiot! You’re a medic so how are you going to chase after him alone?”
–Then follow quickly! We have to catch up before he runs far away.
“Shouldn’t you release me then?”
The Rama warrior exclaimed angrily and turned his body. The arms handcuffed behind the back caught his eye. The Relief saw the handcuffs and asked.
-Eh? Why are you handcuffed?
“I don’t know! I woke up after being hit and was handcuffed.”
–Damn! This brat, now I have to release your handcuffs?
The Relief started swearing as he took out a key. He looked at the Rama warrior and murmured.
-Wait? You, what squad are you in? I’ve never seen a squad with a battle suit like yours.
“…..Sheesh!”
The lips of the Rama warrior twisted. He ran up and crashed into the Relief’s chest with his shoulder.
Tong-!
The Relief was pushed back several metres into the wall. The Relief couldn’t grasp the sudden situation. The feet of the Rama warrior struck the Relief’s wrist. It was a kick from the battle suit clad Rama warrior! There was a sharp pain in the wrist and the key flew away.
–Heok! T-the key!
The Relief exclaimed and stretched out his hand. However, the movement of the Rama warrior was many times faster. The pleasantly smiling warrior kicked the Relief in the stomach. The Relief couldn’t even scream as it felt like he had been hit by a truck and fell against the wall. Meanwhile the Rama warrior rotated his body and grabbed the key.
–Ugh! T-that…..you…..who are you…..?
“Me?”
The Rama warrior started laughing. The handcuffs fell from behind the Rama warrior at the same time.
