"Alright, since we have chosen our weapons and arsenal... What equipments should we bring with us..."
Mark asked the group and they brainstormed together. He wanted to know everyone's insights
"Of course, monitoring equipments"
Elaine stated the obvious
"What else?"
"Well... They said that we will be gathering samples everywhere, what about foraging and gathering equipments?"
Sheena suggested
"Alright, anything else? Repair tools, first aid kits?"
"Yeah sure, why not?"
Elaine agreed at Mark's suggestions. They then began to talk more about equipments that can be useful in the mission and how they'll use it at the unstable Mana Hotspot. They took several minutes and Philip only kept quiet the entire time
"So, that's all what we're going to bring?"
Mark confirmed with everyone
"Yup!"
"Alright, we're good to go then! We're going to pit everything in the osprey or the Tenshi's truck"
The squadron members nodded and prepared to move, but Philip stopped then
"Wait"
Everyone else stopped what they were doing and turned towards Philip
"Yes, Philip?"
"It's fine if we bring these equipments, but we wouldn't be able to use it. So, this is a waste of time"
"What are you saying?! Are you saying that we shouldn't follow the tasks given to us and abandon them?"
Elaine tried to antagonize Philip
"Remember what I told you about my abilities? Future Vision. I'm just telling you what I know and what I see"
"Huh? Who knows if your Future Vision is even accurate? We can't afford to leave these equipments and just dive in there"
"I'm just giving a tip and the best course of action. I never said that we shouldn't bring it or leave it behind"
"You practically said it earlier and your opinion doesn't matter! We have to bring these equipment to complete the mission"
"Yeah, okay fine"
Philip didn't say anymore and let Elaine take over the conversation
"That's what I thought"
Elaine suddenly had an attitude towards Philip and everyone noticed it, though they couldn't do anything about it. On the other hand, Mark paused and took Philip's tip in consideration since Philip won't gain anything by telling them that they don't need their equipments
"Well then, let's go!"
Elaine lead everyone while carrying the equipments that they needed. She, Tenshi, and Sheena carried the lighter ones, Mark and Philip carried the heavy one, Celine carried multiple heavy and bulk ones, and Justine practically carried the rest of the equipment by manipulating their weight
Justine can manipulate weight because the formula of weight is mass time gravity. Since Justine can manipulate gravity, she could manipulate weight
They then loaded the equipments on the back of the Heaven's Truck's trailer, after boarding the Heaven's Trike in place
After checking everything else, they then went to their respective vehicles and rode it. Elaine boarded the front of the Heaven's Truck, next to the advanced autopilot feature of the truck. She will be acting as the radar for the convoy
Tenshi boarded in the trailer of the Heaven's Truck and sat on the expensive gaming chair, after saying goodbye to Philip. Sheena ran towards the HK-22 Eagle outside of the hangar and immediately boarded it. She flew it into the air since everyone is ready to leave
Mark then drifted the Blaze-7 HK supercar in front of the Heaven's Truck in a 360° spin and aimed his nose at the exit. He was smiling ear to ear because he was able to drive this fantastic supercar. E-1 slowly drove the CrawlerHK-S Plus sedan, next to Mark. Her driving was awkward and she swerved before reaching in her spot
Justine also came blazing in the air and into the sky after she activated the engine and manipulated the vector and energy around the F-35 hover jet, which is named as HK-Starship. Instead of sitting inside the cockpit, she was casually sitting on top of the jet like a badass that she is
Philip then boarded the HK-Demon and Celine baorded the HK-Speed next to him. They revved up the engine and it roared across the hangar
"You ready?"
Philip asked
"..."
Celine nodded. It's apparent in her eyes that she's quite excited, not at the trip or the motorcycle, but the fact that she will be riding with Philip along the way
"Let's go"
Philip has a smirk on his face. He was very excited to drive a motorcycle because this was his dream for years. He imagine back then how he would look cool cruising through the wind at high speeds
"Helmets first"
Of course, safety first. Even though Philip has a tough body due to his reformed body due to Mana and Celine has cultivated her body to be strong and durable, they have to wear helmets to be a role model, especially since they will be driving through the highway. Some civilians might report them and that will be an inconvenience
Thus, they then drove out of the hangar and the Heaven's Truck automatically started its engines. The truck started to accelerate and drive out of the hangar, Mark drove in the front and E-1 was left behind. She was told that she will follow behind the Heaven's Truck after seeing her driving. Philip and Celine drove along next to Mark
As they slowly drive forward, all the soldiers arranged themselves accordingly and gave a salute. Sheena flew the HK-22 Eagle forwards and Justine was strafing along the area as she tried to maintain speed with the truck
They drove through the road that leads to the exit and once they left the gates, a convoy converged unto them and escorted them towards the highway. Two modified military jeeps at the back, six modified motorcycles on the sides, two modified quad bikes in the front, two helicopters, a circling jet way above the sky, a drone monitoring above the clouds, and a satellite that watches them
As they passed through houses, police are already stationed to divert traffic and let the convoy pass. Eventually, the convoy accelerated faster and faster until they reached the highway. The military escort diverted from the squadron and let them pass through
Mark sped up his Blaze-7 HK, followed by Philip and Celine, the Heaven's Truck, and E-1. The HK-22 Eagle maintains speed close to the truck and Justine is just hovering behind them, occasionally jetting through and coming back once in a while
It was a peaceful roadtrip until E-1 came accelerating while swerving and wobbling side to side. Mark had to dodge to the right after E-1 almost bumped him. They then just watched E-1 driving faster than them while the NOS is still boosting on her exhaust and purging on the sides of her hood. They have reached at least 180mph, even with the motorcycles
They maintained their speed and their expected time of arrival is three hours. Philip relaxed for a little bit as he cruised through the wind. The peripheral of his eyes are pulsating and glowing, but his eyes hasn't turned gold yet
===
Time till catastrophe:
>_ 10:02:31
===
~~~
As they were driving across the highway, they took the right side and turned to the right junction. A few minutes more, they will be entering a large field and a wall that was temporarily built by the military
This is the perimeter around the ground zero, several kilometers away from the bizarre changes inside that can't be captured by any cameras or surveillance equipments. Also, apparently, just a few hundred meters inside the perimeter, the amount of Mana is so extreme and dense that it will suffocate any normal person, except for people who can harness Mana and properly control it inside their bodies
Though, even with some soldiers who are cpaable of doing such a thing, they still suffered from the Mana density and suffocation. They became sick and they are being treated at the nearby building. This is where Mana Sickness originates from
Symptoms shows muscles pains, headaches, weakening of bones, faster blood circulation, enhanced smell, watery eyes, ringing ears, bitter taste, increase of heat around the genitals, and molting skin
The perimeter had tall walls and a large gate. Next to the walls are countless tanks that are aiming at the sky and on the ground. In front of the tanks are burrows with metal spikes and a barricade. Around the field, there are mines planted under the ground, except near or on the main road
The convoy slowed down and Mark was in the lead. The soldiers that were stationed here recognized the design of the vehicles, especially the Heaven's Truck. A commanding officer sent word to everyone in the perimeter and let the squadron come inside
They then waited for the gate to open slowly as Justine and Sheena are hovering at the back. The tanks initially aimed at them, but they rotated back after receiving orders
Eventually, the gate fully opened and the convoy resumed moving forwards. Justine and Sheena flew over the walls. Everyone in the perimeter saluted at the squadron as they passed by
Philip then looked back at the perimeter wall after they went for several meters. His peripheral kept flashing and he shook his head
"Tsk..."
Philip clicked his tongue. Future Vision was telling him that all of those soldiers will die a few minutes later, even before that actual event that will happen
He then accelerated forwards and left Celine behind. She was confused but she stayed. Philip drove faster than Mark and then he swerved in front of him. Mark became confused and questioned his actions. Though, they still continued driving through the barren road that is devoid of trees and shrubbery, but there's lush greenery in the distance
===
Time till catastrophe:
>_ 7:23:45
===
~~~
A few minutes later, the sky darkened around the unstable Mana Hotspot until the perimeter walls, even though there are little to no less clouds present. The atmosphere cried and became heavy. The soldiers dismissed this as a normal occurence and didn't mind it
But it was then that a very faint blue mist spread around the inside of the perimeter walls, coming frkm the ground zero. The mist penetrated the walls and flooded further for several hundred meters past the walls
After a few seconds, all the soldiers dropped dead one by one across the perimeter walls. The soldiers that were in the tanks died quietly. All of them had the same symptoms where their eyes were profusely tearing, their noses bled, and all of their skins were turning red due to their bloodstream flowing rapidly and caused extremely high blood pressure
The trees rustled violently and the wind blew around the perimeter walls. The perimeter gate quickly became a ghost town
It was then that a blue figure in the sky slowly hovered above the perimeter gate
~~
At the same time as the sky darkened, Philip skid across the road and stopped just a few meters away from Mark while facing them. Of course, Mark drifted slightly and stopped in front of Philip, Celine stopped next to him. The Heaven's Truck also stopped, followed by E-1 sloppy driving. Sheena also stopped and hovered around them while Justine had a bad feeling as she stood up on top of the HK-Starship. In the front of the Heaven's Truck, Elaine abruptly opened her eyes
Mark got out of his car and called on to Philip
"Why are we stopping?!"
"..."
Philip didn't reply and just stared at Mark's eyes. Mark received his message without saying anything and kept staring back
Philip then turned around and faced the empty fields in which where they were going to. He extended his right hand forwards and gripped the air. The air around him became turbulent and this is where clouds began to form in the sky
The squadron members then began to feel as if their bodies became heavy, almost to where they needed something to hold on to. Only Justine was the only one unaffected
Philip's peripheral is still flickering, but his eyes now became golden. He could feel that his body is strengthening as the Pure Mana inside of him is being agitated. The Pureblood also started to move as if it was feeding the Mana that is touching his skin
Even so, the odd feeling still stayed harboring and feeding his stored negative energy. He fell on his knees while still extending his hand and gripping the air
Justine became concerned and worried, but she trusted that Philip is fine and he has it under control. Lightning crackled and thunder roared in the sky while rain hasn't fallen yet
It was then that blue and violet light emerged in between Philip's fingers. The light became brighter and grew larger until a bright flash of light enveloped everyone. The others covered their eyes with their arms, but Justine and Elaine looked straight at the source of light
The blinding light stayed for at least several seconds before dimming down