Mei stares sternly at Feng. She spoke gently to him with venomous persuasion and ironclad assertiveness for erratic reasons was making him uncomfortable.

  “Better don't forget even the new world is also actively hostile against us. I'm aware, you're suffering from moral crisis at this point. Do you think those big bad wolves will spare us if we get caught in the spot? We've nothing but a lab rats for them, a relic from the old world they despise. In sense, a scientific curiosity to defile on.”

  Takeshi intervene in Mei's petty arguments to ease the tension between the as the noise echoed inside the cave while he focused in cooking the boar meat.

  “Better be silent and don't pout irrelevance too much. You're simply wasting energy on nonsensical things. Don't also forget your reverence is watching over us and we can't defy their will”

  Mei and Feng look away from him and only answered with silence as they never bothered before on Takeshi's honest rebuke send chills in their spine. They are should remain silent, obedient and don't ever disrespect the unnamed overlord.

  Feng look at Maibelle but she cowering in fear and ask her a question.

  “Do you say, you're a previous US Airforce pilot right? How many flight hours and deployment missions you conducted?”

  Maibelle answered with no hesitation and fearing might she receive another beatings from Mei for being insolent.

  “I completed 2112 flight hours in 11 years and conduct missions in Iraq, Afghanistan and Alaska.” Feng chuckles and respond with sarcastic cruel remarks.

  “Oh, we had a war crime relic here. But let us straight to the point, what does it feel to be a prostitute for military-industrial complex or a murderous state while flying that toy plane of yours?”

  Maibelle is remain unflinched on childish and unapologetic remark of Feng. Mei was smiling predatorily and pat her shoulder, she whispers contemptuous mockery on her ear.

  “What does it feel if you dropped a multi-million dollar bombs in tent or perhaps a children? Opsie, I got slipped my tongue, hehe.”

  Maibelle was sheepishly answers the blunt question with indifference and pondering for a moment, finding a compatible reason to fit the narrative in a one picture.

  “It is only matter of professionalism and nothing else. I know evil but the power only can define the sympathetic narrative of tragedy and what is good to serve the dish of empathy under pretense of the greater good”.

  Takeshi seems was surprised about her articulate and honest response but his arduous cynicism does tell don't buy into her narrative.

  “Do you admit that bombing the children is morally good while bombing the tent is morally evil. Where is the distinction of the rationale between the two under category of professionalism?”

  Maibelle is sweating cold and went pale at Takeshi's moral proposition. When she feel get about to be cornered by his scrutinizing trap and only respond angrily.

  “I don't know! And what the hell you implying for? Takeshi, I'm not here to play that fucking mind games of yours”.

  Takeshi's expression is unnaturally serene amid to her profane and uncivilized outburst. He sarcastically retort her with venomous tirade follow by stern threats.

  “Your worldview is truly praiseworthy. Astonishingly banal and compelling sacrosanct of hypocrisy. Don't ever dare do anything funny on us or else, I will don't hesitate to skin you alive while begging for forgiveness. This is not the Earth anymore, were does you able to stab everyone in back to justify your own moral gymnastics. Remember, your reverence is watching over us.”

  Maibelle unable to resist the interrogative humiliation for any longer, suddenly she burst out in tears and screams like feral animal. She lies in the ground and curling in fetal position while sobbing loudly in shame, as she watches her own ego being battered mercilessly by cruel insults. Takeshi doesn't tolerate duplicity, he may appear as husk but its stern astuteness is inexplicable and foolhardy to be underestimated. It proves that he fully submitted itself to Obliteration of the Self.

  “I'm going to discuss the plan now. We don't waste time just dwelling in this place. Feng you found anything important related to their societal structures?”

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Feng was grimacing on Nikolai's question, he answered politely and divert the focus on different matters.

  “Unfortunately the information is strictly disclosed to the public network and my understanding about quantum systems is still premature.”

  Nikolai interject as he worried about the remaining resources that greatly affects the feasibility of the mission.

  “Feng, we running out supply of ammunitions and also same as remaining power of our railguns. Do you found any readings regarding of hostile camps surrounding this area?”

  He nodded to Nikolai but Feng only smiled and he wear off the armor suit, morph its shape into cube, and light up to project visual information directly at cave wall, it shows the map with marked coordination of unknown military installation only within 27 km from cave they dwelling in. Mei violently slaps Maibelle in the face and drag her unceremoniously to regain her attention. Takeshi immediately put the boar meat in leaf wraps and they gathered altogether in one spot to listen in Feng's announcement.

  “I intercept a faint signal yesterday during midnight and decode the message, it tells the military issuance of the manhunt against us. The bad news is, their forces around in this area is mobilizing to find us and their captain is truly cunning to deduce we are still alive. Good news is, this is the opportunity to steal their supply and secure some vehicle where is the security of main camp is moderate.”

  Nikolai stand in front of them and amplified the volume of digital voice to issue orders. They stand straight upon him and stares with resolute sternness as a soldier.

  “Standby, since the distance to cover is 27 km, our current time is 4:00. We should reach the destination at sharp 13:00 because there's several considerations why need to slow down. First, the hostiles are within the triangulation radius spans from riverbank where we are currently located, the plain and a town. That's why we will stop first in 25 km to observe the area and enemy movements within 2 km to formulate the operation plan and strike the camp at 23:00.

  Follow my order, you may live. If not, die alone and I bear no responsibility. If the mission get compromise, retreat and don't push further. Your only objective is limited to supply and nothing else. This is clear everyone?”

  They salute him and shout loudly together in unison to express affirmation.

  “Yes, sir!”.

  Robert arrived in Sector 217, a gargantuan subterranean city fortress spanning 3 km in circumference with a depth of 5 km, featuring thousands of compartment for soldiers, researchers, agriculture, manufacturing, and arsenal storage. The whole underground city was powered by geothermal energy and fusion reactors.

  Sector 217 boasts underground tunnels of hyperloop network spanning thousands of kilometer, globally connected to other subterranean military sectors. The underground sector is guarded by hundred thousands strong elite personnels of Legio CCXVII, network entrances are well protected by hydraulic blast doors, the whole infrastructure is also reinforced by self-healing concrete, and other lethal high-tech defense perimeters.

  The military convoy scanned throughly by superconducting quantum interference sensors to identify everyone inside to profile the brain waves, detect the faint electromagnetic interference of possible illegal explosives, and ensure there's no unauthorized entrance will infiltrate or sabotage the fortress.

  After the routine check, the guards let them enter as identification was verified. Robert stepped outside of armored vehicle and line of soldiers saluted him. There's one soldier quickly approach to him and his name is Private Ganzorig a stocky man with Eastern features share the same height of him, urgently to report the findings.

  “Sir, there's lifeform detected within 27 km at cave in riverside. This is the decoded result of their speech expression”.

  He taken the result paper from Ganzorig and chuckles softly. He don't truly believe the absurdity of their persistence.

  “Interesting, no doubt. Those Interlopers are truly a very unique case and they believe we're not seeing everything through their nilly-willy naivety. Ganzorig, give the games they want and inform Corporal Wang Ziyan to lower the defense perimeters and lockdown the aircraft cockpits as my dear Soror request to us, gather battle data on asymmetric warfare for incoming war.”

  He calls all the soldiers to form line and get their attention.

  “This is not a drill, the Interlopers will come sooner here and prepare at sharp 23:00. Here's my following orders: first, killing and capturing any one of them is not allowed but you are allowed to injure with minimal severity. Also, ancient assault rifles is only allowed weapon in this battle simulation as their body does not design to withstand sonic shockwave from railgun fire. This is shame, if we gone overboard and mishandle the fragile specimens which enough to turn them useless as static target practice. Remember, this is practicum to show the skills and apply what you are learned from previous battle data between my Soror and these specimens. Now move!”

  The soldiers are suddenly dispersed together to resume their training routine, prepare the bait, and operation will lead under by Ganzorig. Ziyan smiling creepily toward Ganzorig and she ask for a gift.

  “Don't forget to bring souvenir. I mean any valuable part of those Interloper's body or organ that worth to be study or analyze in laboratory.”

  Ganzorig firmly saluted on her and she dismissed him to resume the training.

  “Sir, what do you think about them?

  Ziyan ask Robert about his opinion and he respond with fastidious excitement.

  “Based on Ganzorig's report, they're truly amusing and awkwardly have nerve to discuss such philosophical gymnastics while squabbling like who anyone of them can selling fast in wet market. Those poor beings, such a valuable philosophical anthology for imbeciles like them.”

  Ziyan chuckles dryly on his pompous remark. She salute him firmly and immediately return in her own respective duty. He looking indifferently at radar display were the prey are eventually accept the invitation from the hunters.