Furthermore, due to the exponential growth of technology, the technological gap between five years ago and now is considerable. This has led to only now having the confidence to deliver the outdated generation of launch and transport systems into the projected orbit.
And even then, it is not with complete certainty. Ross would still have to ask his daughter for information about the vicinity of Mercury to avoid being shot down by the weaponry of Mercury Base.
As such, the military became the pioneers of human exploration of the Solar System. However, it would be inaccurate to call them "pioneers", they went first but with not much success.
Investing in growth and divestment has always been human nature. For the military, this launch was a necessity. At least, by doing so now, they could garner support from those who otherwise opposed the mutants in the bid to construct the Solar System schematics, gaining their favor for additional assistance down the line.
As Ross looked at the image of the transporter on the screen, he had to admit that it looked quite outdated compared to the array of slightly futuristic equipment now available to the human race. Were it to be launched and discovered by other countries, they might suspect that Russia has begun archaeological activities once again.
However, it's too late for regrets. At least with the launch, there would be another bargaining chip to negotiate with the mutants and perhaps recover some losses.
Ross thought angrily that when he negotiates with the annoying mutants, he would ensure that they bleed heavy funds. Otherwise, how could he recover the military's losses?
On the day of the launch, New York was cloudless, and all the generals were waiting at the launch center. Standing behind the high-rise glass curtain wall, they watched the large screen monitoring the launch. A researcher walked over and said:
"We have already launched satellites in advance to monitor the device's status near the flight orbit. Once the rocket has successfully ascended, all generals can see the trajectory of the equipment..."
The leading old general nodded and turned his gaze back to the screen. The countdown was completed and the rocket roared into the sky.
Although it is not considered cutting-edge technology at this time, it is considerably different from traditional rockets. The ignition process is shorter, but the speed is faster; the rocket's image disappeared from the screen almost instantaneously.
The screen then switched to a view of Earth from space with the rocket zooming in the distance. It was an exhilarating sight for the younger generals, but those standing at the front row, the older and wiser generals, furrowed their eyebrows, asking:
"What's that object in the upper right corner of the screen? Is the screen dirty?... Doesn't seem like it, as it's moving?"
"That...looks like a ball, doesn't it? Am I seeing it wrong? Is it glowing?"
"The rocket! The rocket is flying towards that ball! No, it seems more like the ball is blocking the rocket's path. Get it out of there now!"
With the last angry cry, the screen momentarily brightened, and as it gradually faded, an explosion flared up, and rocket fragments scattered.
In a split second, the explosion illuminated the pitch-dark sky. At this moment, the cosmos was filled with shining stars.
"What happened?!"
The leading old general bellowed: "What did the rocket hit?! Why did it disintegrate?! Why didn't the equipment detach itself beforehand?!"
Suddenly, a pale researcher ran over and said: "I... I'm sorry, General! There was a space debris we failed to detect, likely left behind from the previous rocket launches by various countries..."
"This space debris is compressed from some special equipment, exhibiting abnormal gravity, which prevented our equipment from safely detaching. Thus... Thus..."
The old general, with wide-open furious eyes, stared at him,"Are you trying to say we lost the core we've invested so much in?!"
The researcher nearly collapsed, but eventually managed to mutter with gritted teeth: "Yes... But thankfully, we initially planned to launch a preliminary version of the core. So the losses are incomplete... The most crucial core has not yet been launched..."
The face of the old general lightened up ever so slightly, but he still responded firmly: "If this happens again, you should be well aware of the consequences. The Red Lan Project must not fail. Continue with the launch preparations!"
Approximately another week of preparations, the rocket was again launched. This time, it successfully approached Mercury along the planned orbit and then moved towards the Sun.
Upon encountering this scene, the generals finally breathed a sigh of relief. Ross heard a colleague whispering beside him, "Since it has reached this position, there shouldn't be any issues, right?"
"Is the equipment ready to deploy? I think this distance should be just right. Look, that's the Mercury Base..."
"The equipment is out of the warehouse. Hurry up and deploy! As long as the base can anchor, half of the plan should be considered successful..."
In the midst of the hushed whispers, the last piece of the launch compartment fell off, and the equipment prepared to unfold on the spot.
Just as everything was going smoothly, a jarring laser abruptly appeared, as if slicing the screen in half.
The generals instinctively shielded their eyes with their arms. When they reopened them, the equipment, which had started to unfold, was gone.
Everyone froze on the spot. After a while, a researcher shouted, "We have been attacked by an unidentified weapon!!! Someone has destroyed our research equipment!! This is an attack! This is an attack!"
"What's going on?!" The old general roared angrily: "Who attacked our equipment?! Was it Stark?! Contact him now!!"
After a while, a researcher ran up and said, "General, our equipment was attacked by an unidentified weapon. The defenses at Mercury Base didn't initiate any actions according to our data..."
Ross gingerly stepped forward and said, "It couldn't have been the defense weapons in orbit around Mercury Base. We already got the authorization code in advance and avoided the main weapon's output range. It couldn't have been silently taken down like this..."
"Then explain what happened?!!" The old general was panting heavily; he had even begun to lose his sanity.
After all, as the supporter and executor of this mission, he knew better than anyone the amount of funds they lost in those few seconds.
"Find out who fired on us!!!" The old general's voice nearly shattered the glass curtain wall. He demanded: "We must make them pay for it. They need to know how stupid the thing they did was!!!"
"Yes, they must pay for this manifold!!" Someone echoed.
"Go find them now! Find out who did this!!"
"We declare war on them!!!"
Just then, another researcher ran over, saying:
"According to signals from the black box, the energy fluctuation of the weapon that destroyed the equipment bears a striking resemblance to the Rainbow Bridge that appeared on Earth earlier. Suspected to be a weapon from the Asgard Fleet..."
The generals who were just full of righteous indignation silenced immediately.