Reach.
This Earth-like planet, with a diameter exceeding 15,000 kilometers, has a gravity of approximately 1.08g, a 27-hour rotational period, and an orbital period of 390 Earth days. The UEG (United Earth Government) first landed on Reach in 2362, and within just thirty years, transformed its atmosphere to be fully breathable for humans.
By the early 26th century, Reach's population had grown from the initial few thousand to over 700 million. When considering all of the colonies in the Epsilon Eridani system, the total population exceeds 1.8 billion, making it one of the largest colonial systems outside of Earth.
Reach became a major military stronghold and naval headquarters for the UNSC (United Nations Space Command) due to its abundant titanium mines. It also became the second-largest shipyard after Mars.
Zooming in for a closer look reveals a semi-mobile defensive array of 20 orbital magnetic accelerator cannons (MACs) stationed in low orbit around Reach. These cannons could be flexibly positioned depending on the direction of an enemy attack. Additionally, a fleet of more than 100 warships, including carriers, gathered near the equatorial orbital station, undergoing routine maintenance and resupply.
The most prominent vessel in this fleet was the flagship, a Carthage-class supercarrier known as Trafalgar. At 4,000 meters long and 800 meters high, its hangar could hold up to four Paris-class frigates or two destroyers, making the Carthage-class one of the UNSC Navy's prized assets and one of the greatest creations of the Zero-Eight humans.
With such formidable orbital defenses and naval fleets, most rebel factions considered Reach and the Epsilon Eridani system a no-go zone. Nevertheless, many elite rebel forces still managed to infiltrate various parts of the system by using civilian vessels like freighters and cruise ships. These infiltrators bided their time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike, carrying out surprise attacks on UNSC military bases, outposts, and communication stations.
Adding to the challenges, 40% of Reach remained unexplored and covered in wilderness, providing the rebels with freedom to operate undetected. Even ONI (Office of Naval Intelligence) operatives, as skilled as they were, couldn't completely root out all rebel hideouts lurking in the shadows.
However, while the rebels lacked the means to stealthily bring warships into low orbit, Atlas, with its mastery of optical camouflage, could do so relatively easily.
At this moment, one of Atlas's Diana-class stealth vessels was hovering over a desert region on Reach, staying out of sight of UNSC and ONI satellites. The engineering division had also built a small ground base hidden within the desert canyons, providing the investigation and special operations teams with a convenient forward post for their mission.
Currently, the base was lightly manned, as most of the elite personnel were located 700 kilometers east, in the city of New Alexandria.
——
From a bird's-eye view, the first sight that greeted the team in New Alexandria, a city of ten million people, was the space elevator reaching toward the heavens. Next came the towering skyscrapers, office buildings, and residential apartments, many of which exceeded 400 meters in height, as well as floating malls and sky gardens—a true urban jungle of steel.
In the commercial district near the city center, the blazing afternoon sun forced pedestrians walking along the streets and skywalks to squint and shield their eyes from the harsh glare. Many tourists, drenched in sweat, rushed into nearby cafés, teahouses, and shopping malls, heaving sighs of relief as they entered the air-conditioned interiors.
Amidst the crowd was a young "couple."
The "husband" wore a loose-fitting black casual shirt and olive-green cargo pants with multiple pockets. The "wife" was dressed in a red athletic T-shirt that accentuated her figure and tight black jeans.
Once inside the shopping mall's main lobby, the wife thoughtfully pulled out a handkerchief and gently wiped the sweat from her husband's forehead and cheeks. In a soft voice, she said, "Slow down a bit. Don't let the air conditioning get to you, or you'll catch a cold again."
"Got it," the husband replied, standing still as his wife fussed over him. His well-groomed middle-parted blonde hair and striking features revealed his true identity—Leon S. Kennedy, one of Atlas's elite investigators.
And the woman with short black hair and delicate features, dressed in red, was none other than Leon's superior, Ada Wong.
Following real-time intelligence provided by their informants, their target, Catherine Elizabeth Halsey, was currently shopping for clothes and daily necessities inside the mall.
Thus, Leon and Ada, disguised as a married couple, maintained a comfortable distance from Halsey, waiting for Chris and the special operations team to give the signal to initiate the capture.
When asked why she, a department head, had to personally participate in the mission, Ada explained to Leon and the others, "Maggie, though you're also a female investigator, you lack the field experience I have. Couples displaying intimate behavior often make others feel awkward, causing them to avert their gaze. Given that Leon has worked under my command long before I became department head, we have enough understanding and chemistry to pull this off. So, we'll handle the tailing."
Ada's explanation was logical, but Leon couldn't shake the feeling that Ada just didn't want him paired with Maggie. Could it be... jealousy?
No way.
Ada couldn't possibly have feelings for him beyond their superior-subordinate relationship.
Especially after he caught her giving him that "warning" look, Leon was more convinced than ever.
Never mind.
I'll ask Mike, that unreliable friend of mine, about it when I get back.
After wiping off the sweat, Ada put away the handkerchief, took Leon's left hand, and led him up the escalator, suggesting, "Let's check out the clothing section."
"Whatever you say," Leon responded, without any objections.
Soon, they arrived at the women's clothing section on the third floor, and there, they spotted their target just emerging from a lingerie store.
Dressed in a figure-hugging white dress, Halsey exuded an air of sophistication that surprised Leon, who hadn't expected someone with such a brilliant mind to also have an impressive sense of style.
Through his disposable holographic contact lenses, Leon confirmed that the woman not far ahead was indeed Halsey. Chris and the other team members, who were sharing Leon and Ada's visual feed, also saw her through the shared optics.
As Leon and Ada casually approached the lingerie store, closing the distance between them and Halsey…
Boom!
Chris and his team detonated a plastic explosive device in an unmanned area at the top of the mall.
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