The late autumn of Western Europe is often shrouded in gloom, with cold winds and constant drizzle, leading to damp and muddy soil.
At this moment...
Ratatatat! Boom! Boom!
Gunfire and explosions resounded both inside and outside a city, sending soil and debris flying.
"Soldiers! Charge! The alien scum are retreating!"
"Hahaha! We actually won?!"
"Follow our full-metal bitch!!"
On the battlefield, victorious shouts echoed, representing triumph.
From a bird's-eye view, soldiers clad in black combat uniforms and exoskeletons, relying on visual and shooting aids provided by their equipment, slowly advanced westward towards the city center.
The buildings lining the main road were riddled with bullet holes, some reduced to rubble. The road itself was littered with dismembered limbs, torsos, and even entrails, torn apart by brute force and blades.
It was a victory, but a pyrrhic one.
Amidst the devastation, a sign reading "Cathédrale de Verdun: 3 kilomètres" indicated that the war-torn city was Verdun, located in northeastern France.
As for the retreating "enemy"...
"Hiss!!"
They emitted high-pitched, ear-piercing shrieks.
They moved swiftly, appearing to roll, but were actually using multiple tentacles to grip the ground. Their heads resembled the gaping mouths of fish begging for food.
However, the gaps between their mouths, eyes, and tentacles glowed with an evident orange light, indicating some core organ within.
Facing incoming bullets, these creatures either tried to evade with agile movements or used their tentacles to form makeshift "bone shields" to withstand the attacks.
When bullets hit their bodies or bone shields, instead of bleeding, they shattered and splintered.
When bullets pierced their core organs, they would convulse violently before stiffening and dying.
Given these characteristics, it would be more accurate to describe these "enemies" as living weapons rather than biological creatures.
As the enemies retreated, the human soldiers pressed their advantage, seemingly securing victory.
As the view rose higher into the sky, the image became "blurry," revealing that it was composed of neatly arranged, tiny "glowing squares."
Pulling back further, it became clear that this was a display screen.
The screen continued to show the battle in Verdun, with information in the top left corner indicating "Falcon-1" and "1993/06/05/17:42."
Pulling back even further...
One could see a simple tent with three ATLAS mercenaries sitting behind a control panel filled with monitors and various military instruments, observing, recording, or controlling something.
Two hours earlier, a reconnaissance team equipped with fully enclosed breathing gear had begun exploring the world behind the first space gate. They established a wired base station to "link" the two worlds and ensure real-time communication.
With communication secured, the reconnaissance team pressed on.
Their investigation, supplemented by extensive drone footage, revealed that the world beyond the gate was also Earth. However, the technology, particularly the soldiers' equipment, was significantly more advanced than their own.
The location behind the space gate was an abandoned village, thirty kilometers south of Verdun.
Shifting focus away from the tent and around the surroundings, the previously empty underground space was now filled with equipment boxes bearing the red "Λ" logo.
Despite the ever-burning golden flames around the stone pillars providing light, ATLAS had set up complete lighting and power systems, even erecting numerous tents and air-conditioned mobile homes for accommodation, research, and leisure activities.
It seemed ATLAS intended to gradually develop this area into a permanent base.
At this moment, Samuel Young, now dressed in black tactical clothing, was heading towards the first space gate, accompanied by several fully armed ATLAS mercenaries and Lieutenant Jack Krauser along with a group of American soldiers.
"Lieutenant Krauser," Samuel said as they walked, "As I mentioned earlier, what you know is an illusion. Superheroes and supervillains don't truly exist; most of them are just addicts injected with a substance called Compound V."
"You and your men are commendable soldiers, and I need talented individuals like you to assist me, ATLAS, and even humanity in addressing threats like Vought."
"Of course, just talking about ideals feels a bit like playing tricks. Rest assured, you will receive higher salaries and benefits, and your families will also benefit. I look forward to our future cooperation."
Meanwhile, Jack Krauser and the American soldiers still seemed somewhat bewildered and confused.
Understandably so—receiving so much paradigm-shifting information in a short period would make anyone question reality.
For instance, the superheroes they admired and envied turned out to be self-centered monsters with tendencies for violence, drug abuse, and other heinous acts.
Then there was the existence of a gate leading to other universes and worlds, and the sudden shift from being military personnel to private mercenaries—all of this nearly overloaded their minds.
Samuel Young's interest in Jack Krauser stemmed from the fact that his appearance, background, and age matched those of Major Krauserr from "Resident Evil 4 Remake," a character who becomes a boss due to betrayal by American high command.
Samuel had gathered related information through military contacts, which led him to the idea of recruiting Krauser and his unit.
Given sufficient benefits, the American high command was naturally willing to hand over personnel, especially since ATLAS was one of their main business partners.
Samuel had grown accustomed to seeing characters from games and movies come to life, and among the many orphans he had adopted and trained as agents, spies, or investigators, there was even a Chinese girl who loved wearing red clothes.
The reason for recruiting Krauser and his men was simple: beyond carrying out combat missions, they were also needed to assist in training new recruits at ATLAS. Perhaps in the future, a blond, short-haired guy might even become one of Krauser's trainees.
As for the situation on the other side of the space gate, Samuel was quite familiar with it. The so-called "enemies" were actually alien creatures known as Mimics.
Judging by the equipment used by the human soldiers and the significant victory at Verdun, the world beyond the gate was most likely the setting of the film "Edge of Tomorrow."
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