The Marines boarded the New Faloth after sliding in the void for half an hour.
General Sola gave them bad news. According to the Captain Koperos, there was a problem with the energy system of the flight deck and the landing guidance system could not work, which meant that the Marines were on a small landing. Ship, you must adjust the angle yourself to enter the flight deck.
This is a technical job. If they are not careful, they will crash into the hull of the transport ship and become a pile of scattered garbage in the void.
"There may be some bumps later."
The young officer said in the communication channel, and moved his shoulder armor to adjust to a more comfortable posture, cursing the sweat in his eyes behind his goggles by the way.
The other Marines surrounded them, four in front and the rest behind. They all wore protective carapace produced by the local foundry. These things were not inferior to those of the Astral Army.
The two leading non-commissioned officers have already raised their heavy ceramic steel shields. Between those insurgents who have at most some live ammunition weapons, this kind of protection is obviously more than enough or even beyond.
The interior of the landing ship was bathed in ugly red light, and two hundred heavily armed marines were ready to go into battle at any time.
Soon, a harsh alarm bell rang.
"Ready!"
The young officer ordered that when a shock hit his back against the armor of the soldier behind, he could only grab the handrail along the top of the compartment.
For a moment, he thought that they had successfully invaded the outer hull of the New Faros, and then he realized that the backward thrust was the start of the shock-absorbing drive of the landing ship.
The real invasion took a while.
This time the inertia of the lander made him stand still when he leaned forward. When the lander instantly got into the side of the mast of the New Falos bridge, the surrounding metal trembled and groaned.
When the alarm bell turned off, all the young officer heard was his rapid breathing.
"Thirty seconds!"
The driver's voice sounded in the cabin. The officer saw the plastic and ceramic steel protective layer of the balancer move forward with the automatic hinge lock, heard the heavy blow of compression, and felt the tremor of the friction between the deck and the bottom of the landing craft.
The shotgun in his hand suddenly seemed to be unbearably heavy.
"Ten seconds!!"
The driver continued to roar.
"Get ready, soldiers."
Closed, the sound of weapons being filled in the hot space is loud. The officer puts on the armrest at the beginning and sets up the sliding shotgun, his body seems to have just been given an adrenaline shot.
The alarm bell rang again, only once.
The red light washed the amber that flashed from the landing platform, and then green.
When the cabin door was clamped, there was a croak, followed by a hissing sound of steam, and the air in the cabin began to drop in pressure.
"Go ahead! Go ahead!"
The Marines yelled. They rushed forward. The young officer was among them, half of them advancing, and half of them taken away from time to time.
But their battle cry only fell in the empty corridor.
The officer wanted to see the situation clearly, but found himself in a group of soldiers, holding their shields in the front row and shotguns in the back.
According to the previous unit briefing, they would enter the bridge via one of the many service corridors surrounding the mast of the rear bridge.
As an integral part of the outer hull of a transport ship, those narrow passages are used to repair the crew and maintain the network of servants to quickly reach more important areas.
They are narrow, damp places, inaccessible, just like the external veins of most starships, they are completely ignored, only a little dim light, heat and maintenance function.
Now the Marines discovered that it was just a dark, closed world made up of a rusty pipe and a grid deck blocked by fungi.
More importantly, there is no sign of life.
"be quiet."
The young officer finally squeezed out of the crowd. He is the highest commander in this place.
"Reorganize the formation."
According to the structure drawing he got, there should be a gravity elevator fifty meters ahead.
"Go forward cautiously."
Soon, the Marines lined up in a tight line, still preparing their weapons.
Along the curved curve of the bridge mast, the passage continued to turn to the left, and the clanging sound of the soldiers' steel spiked boots and the grating and harsh friction of their shells echoed.
The young officer tried to concentrate, scanning the pipeline wall as they passed, using a shotgun to detect the shadows between the flare-up and flickering balls.
Before departure, General Sola told them not to stay in the outer hull for too long. According to the captain's description, the small number of slaves who escaped on the ship may be scattered in most areas, especially the outer hull.
The young officers didn't think the poor bugs were a threat. As long as the transport ship reached the track, they had time to pull those guys out of the corner and send them to the ground to transform them into pilots.
It was easier than hunting small animals on the family manor. He often used slaves as hunting objects and drove them to the gloomy canyon. It was really a lot of fun to watch them wailing in the trap.
Thinking of this, his mood improved a lot.
"Occupy the gravity elevator."
Soon, there was a voice from the communicator, that is the vanguard of the team, they have reached the predetermined goal.
This is a large maintenance ramp, large enough to carry the replacement circulation pipes or fine gold slats of the outer hull, when the Marines enter.
The officer pulled the switch last.
With a trembling and whirring friction, the platform began to rise.
When the elevator reached the center mast of the tower, the officers realized that they had not encountered resistance so far.
Actually, there are no signs of life at all.
The readings of the bird divination are uneven and all are weird feedback. The front tactical display is always black.
Even if the message is received, the call is short and jumpy, and it is interrupted by static electricity into several segments.
"Something is interfering with our system."
A non-commissioned officer said on the short-distance communicator.
"Our communication with the track was also interrupted."
Suddenly, the gravity ladder trembled and stopped. The soldiers gathered in front of the door and locked their shields together, forming an indestructible ceramic steel barrier.
A drop of sweat was drawn across the forehead of the young officer. He clearly remembered that he was clearly set to ascend to the highest point. Why did the elevator stop in the middle?
Unless, something is going to enter the elevator from outside.
Then, the door of the gravity ladder suddenly opened...
An empty corridor appeared in front of me. The only noise was the throbbing of the ion drive that was still operating in the distance.
"How-"
The young officer pressed the switch forcibly, but the elevator just couldn't work. In desperation, he could only lead the team out of the elevator and into an unfamiliar area.
It's not as dilapidated as the outer hull, but the lighting ball seems to be on the verge of collapse. They seem to have sneaked into a ghost ship, abandoned centuries ago, and will be listed here forever through the void.
However, the fact is that it should have only left the port for a week.
Suddenly, the lighting ball was completely extinguished, and the darkness seemed to resist them, as thick and dark as their shield.
"The bayonet position is tied to the lamp!"
The officer panicked the order, and then the lights flashed, illuminating the corroded metal stairs and mottled steam black rust.
"Go ahead, get out of here!"
The Marines began to climb, and the sound of their boots hitting the plastic steel went up the ladder well.
For the first time since boarding this ship, the young officer felt something other than the adrenaline and the mixed battle tension—surrounded by a dark, crippling feeling.
Something is wrong.
This feeling is worse only when he finds out something is missing. When the sound of boots is still loud in the narrow space, he notices that there are no more noises behind.
A cold tremor climbed up his back.
The young officer ran up, holding a shotgun, and turning around and shining a bayonet flashlight on the dark interior of the gravity elevator where they had been before.
A thick bloody smell came out of it, and the young officer's eyes widened, and he wanted to call out.
But everything is too late.