Chapter 295: The Rift
Alexander held the fine-fabric suit in his hands, his brow furrowed. "Shouldn’t I have a helmet? Or is the air over there breathable?"
Marcus stepped closer, taking the fabric between his fingers to examine it. "I’ve seen this structure before..." he muttered. Looking around, he walked over to a corner of the hangar and grabbed a mop with a reinforced aluminum handle.
Without warning, Marcus swung a heavy blow straight at Alexander’s ribs.
Alexander reacted on instinct, leaping backward with blinding speed, but Marcus adjusted his trajectory and completed the swing, connecting with Alexander’s abdomen.
CLANG!
The aluminum tube bent in half from the impact. Alexander didn’t even flinch.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Marcus?" Alexander exclaimed, covering the spot where he’d been hit.
"Did it hurt?" asked Marcus, tossing the bent mop onto the floor.
"No... but... wait, why the hell didn’t I feel a thing?" Alexander asked, staring at his undamaged suit.
"Just what I thought," Marcus said with a somber grin. "When I came here that time, I saw several high-ranking officers wearing these suits. I thought I might be able to snag one, but I never imagined they’d just gift one to you."
"So it’s basically high-density body armor..." Alexander mused.
"Master, it’s time," Elena interrupted from the desk, checking the clock. "You need to report to the central offices."
"Right. Let’s go. How do we get there?" Alexander asked.
The five of them looked at each other. None of the officers had given them clear instructions on how to reach the central building on foot.
"Relax, it should say right here," Alexander said, pulling out his executive terminal.
A high-priority summons notification was flashing on the screen with a series of assigned numbers:
[DEPLOYMENT COORDINATES: 42.8812 - 09.4311 - SECTOR 01]
"Do I have to use the spatial transport to get to the meeting?" Alexander asked.
Elena stepped over to the portal console. "What numbers did they give you, Master?" she asked.
Alexander dictated the sequence. Elena typed them into the interface, but before confirming, she noted the default coordinates loaded into the system:
[DEFAULT COORDINATES: 42.8812 - 09.4311 - SECTOR 02]
"Master, look at this," Elena said, pointing at the screen. "The coordinates are identical. They only differ by a single number in the sector index. The location where they summoned you is in the other world."
Alexander let out a long sigh. "Well... looks like there’s no way to avoid going to the other world today. I’ll go alone. At the end of the day, I was the one who dragged you all into this mess."
He walked over to the gun rack Ben had opened, took three high-intensity laser rifles, slung two over his back with the straps, and held the third in his hands. In an unfamiliar place, the more suppressive firepower he had, the better.
"Take care of yourself, my friend," Marcus said, giving his shoulder a firm grip.
"I don’t have the luxury of failing," Alexander replied, his eyes fixed on the platform.
"We trust in you, Master," Ben and Leo said in unison.
"We will see you very soon, Master. Please be careful," Elena added.
With the farewells over, Elena pressed the command on the terminal. The air above the metal platform began to hum and warp, tearing open a portal of pure light—the exact same blinding scene Alexander had witnessed back on that mountain when the extraterrestrial entities hid their refuge.
Alexander took a deep breath, tightened his grip on his rifle, and stepped through the threshold.
The glare was blinding and deafening. He came through in a combat stance, planting one leg firmly on the ground and bringing his weapon up in a defensive guard. He knew he couldn’t stay static; he had to move and identify threats. He spun to cover 360 degrees... and heard bursts of laughter.
The blinding white light began to clear.
In front of him, a dozen men dressed in elegant executive suits were staring at him, bursting into mocking laughter.
"What the hell is wrong with this idiot?" one of them sneered, pointing at him. "Does he think he’s Rambo, or why the hell did he enter like that?"
Alexander slowly lowered the laser rifle, keeping a cold gaze as he listened to the group’s laughter.
"Look at this rookie," said one of the executives, stepping forward as he adjusted his shirt cuffs. "Rolling in loaded with three weapons like he’s going to fight a one-man war."
"Calm down, everyone," said a mature man walking from the back of the room with a digital folder under his arm. The laughter ceased . The man looked Alexander up and down and continued, "So you’re the new Captain Alexander. My name is Harrison, Logistics Supervisor for Sector 01. I see you brought a nice toy. but I’m sorry to break it to you: those weapons won’t do you any good in the first phase."
"Why wouldn’t they work?" Alexander asked, adjusting the rifle straps on his back.
"Because the beasts on this side of the portal have dense hides that deflect standard laser fire," Harrison said. "To hunt out there, you need high-frequency dispersion weapons or real physical capabilities. Either way, your worth isn’t in those guns—it’s in the suit you’re wearing."
The other executives stopped laughing and eyed Alexander’s suit with restrained envy.
"That fine-fabric suit is a blessing from high command," Harrison noted. "It proves you either have a powerful sponsor or that they consider you a very valuable asset. Follow me. The orientation meeting is about to start, and the other squadron captains are already waiting."
"Tch... there goes the last captain slot," someone muttered bitterly from the crowd.
"Drop it," another whispered back. "It was never meant for you anyway."
Harrison turned back, his gaze cutting through them like glass. "Shut up, you idiots! Do you want to die?"
The room went dead silent. No one said another word as they all fell into line, following the supervisor.