Editing HEAVY OBJECT:Volume1 Chapter 1 (section)

===Part 9===

An explosion tore through snowy Alaska.

The giant invincible Object that had been fighting 10 kilometers away through the snowstorm started emitting black smoke and stopped moving. Through binoculars, the pilot’s seat could be seen being ejected and slowly floating down to the snowy ground with its parachute.

And….

“…”

An unpleasant noise that echoed in his gut reached Quenser’s ears over the wind. The symbol of their safety, the Object, had been blown away by the enemy Object.

Its main body was a giant sphere covered in thick armor. In four directions, long insect-like legs stretched out to the ground. Its main weapons were sets of two low-stability plasma cannons, each measuring 50 meters. After a special gas was loaded into the cannon, a massive amount of energy from the reactor artificially created superhot plasma which was then fired. The sets of two were located on the front, back, left, and right creating a horizontal cross of cannons that allowed it to fire in any direction. It had a total of 8 of those cannons. Its spherical main body and four legs had countless laser beams, railguns, and coilguns, giving it over 100 guns in total.

The main body alone was 50 meters and the cannons stretching in each direction gave it a size of over 140 meters. The mountain-sized mass was slowly pointing its mid-range steel bridge-sized cannons their way. The set of two low-stability plasma cannons could melt a nuclear shelter buried deep in the earth in a single shot.

“…Hey,” said Heivia suddenly as he stood dumbfounded next to Quenser. “Why is it aiming in our direction? If the Object loses, we just have to raise the white flag and it’s over, right? That’s what Froleytia said, right!? So why!? This isn’t something to be slow about. Hurry and raise the fucking white flaaaaaaaagggggggggg!!”

Quenser looked at the radio he had been issued.

He could hear an intermittent signal coming from it.

That was most likely the modern digitalized white flag.

Froleytia must have followed the convention she had spoken of in order to bring the battle to an end. She may have made up her mind quickly in order to keep the number of sacrificed subordinates as low as possible.

However, the enemy Object had not stopped.

The sound of the cannons making slight adjustments to their aim seemed to be implicitly saying it did not care about the convention.

“Run…” someone said.

It was possible it was Quenser himself who had said it.

“Ruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!”

Had the 800 soldiers in the area been able to react?

A great roar and flash of light pounded Quenser’s senses.

Something seemed to be trying to smash his skull, much less his eardrums. The Object was not firing metal shells. It was using brutal low-stability plasma cannons that made use of the excess energy it produced.

What temperature did it reach?

Before he could think that, his consciousness was sent flying.

A beam from one of the low-stability plasma cannons had struck some of the base vehicles a short distance from Quenser. The vehicles used to construct the Object maintenance area were the largest of the greater than 100 large base vehicles that made up the maintenance base zone and one of those became distorted like a sugar sculpture before exploding like an erupting volcano.

The blast blew Quenser onto the thick snow.

Even while buried in snow that had to be below zero degrees, Quenser’s body was wrapped in an unpleasant sweat.

“What…?”

He could not even hear his own voice.

He frantically tried to check on the situation despite having lost over half of his ability to see and somehow managed to determine that he was in one piece. The low-stability plasma cannon must have moved along a straight path as it fired because he noticed an empty trench cutting through the deep snow.

(Was the heat so great…it melted the snow…and then caused a phreatic explosion…?)

It was possible even the steel had evaporated and then stuck to the ground.

As Quenser lay dazed on the ground, someone grabbed his arm.

It was Heivia who had bloodshot eyes and was breathing erratically.

“Hey, we need to get out of here.”

“…What…?”

“We need to get the hell out of here!! Our Object was taken out and their Object is perfectly fine!! We wouldn’t be able to do a thing even if we had 100 tanks. If we don’t get out of here, we’ll be slaughtered like a line of ants!!”

Running away.

What that meant finally hit home with Quenser.

When he looked around, he saw the other soldiers beginning to take action. The base zone was made up of over 100 large base vehicles. The soldiers were climbing or jumping aboard the nearest base vehicle and the vehicles were breaking their normal formation and scattering in a panic.

Shouts could be heard from all directions.

None of the soldiers were saying a single thing about fighting.

“Dammit!! Send out all the UAVs! Draw the Object’s attention away from us!!”

“Do we have a set escape route!? Is there any narrow mountain path that 50 meter monster can’t get through!?”

“Do we have a proper stock of chaff and flares!? Even if we can’t fight, we might be able to make it lose its lock on-…!!”

Because they were real soldiers, they knew just how hopeless it was to attack the Object head on.

As he watched it all, Quenser blankly spoke to Heivia.

“Run away…but where to?”

“…!!”

Heivia’s expression grew distorted out of fear rather than anger.

It was as if hearing how hopeless the situation was from someone else had brought the full brunt of the shock back all over again.

Immediately afterwards, they heard an odd noise.

Looking over, they saw the Object that was over 10 kilometers away approaching as if it were sliding. It was not moving using tires like a car. By using repeated small accelerations like a water strider, it moved smoothly around on both level ground and the steep slopes of mountain surfaces. It seemed to completely ignore the terrain just like a spotlight moving along the ground.

A low sound like an approaching thundercloud remained in Quenser’s ears.

(Oh, shit. So it uses static electricity just like our princess’s one…!)

Even as the frantically fleeing base vehicles started leaving him behind, Quenser merely stood in a daze amid the snow.

That Object was floating just slightly above the ground using static electricity. It weighed over 20 tons, but the reactor within it was both clean and more powerful than a nuclear reactor. It used that ability to create enough electric energy to make itself float.

A faint but distinctive smell reached Quenser’s nose. Most likely, the Object was spraying out the material that repelled its giant electrified form. Generally, the repellant would break down naturally in a few days and it was made to be harmless to plants and animals, but it smelled even more repulsive than blood to Quenser.

Something that huge moving as if the surface below it were sliding was a very strange sight indeed.

The base vehicles were trying to escape through a valley between two mountains.

With a sound like a thundercloud, the Object moved as if to circle around the vehicles and passed right up the diagonal side of one of the mountains. It then moved down into the path inside the valley to block their escape.

Their escape route had been cut off in only 20 seconds.

What awaited them now was clear.

“Shit!! Get off of there!!” shouted Froleytia.

Immediately afterwards, the 50 meter Object opened fire with its cannons.

No, it was more than that.

The Object had more than just the low-stability plasma cannons. After all, the huge 50 meter mass had a reactor that was both clean and more powerful than a nuclear reactor. With its low-stability plasma cannons, laser beams, railguns, and coilguns, it had over 100 different weapons.

It opened fire with all of those.

Each of the high output weapons was so large that it would likely cause a normal battleship to tilt just by being installed and yet it had over 100 of them.

There was no point in trying to count how many times one heard a weapon fire.

Thousands and tens of thousands of roars piled atop each other and combined together creating a single giant explosive din.

As the base vehicles broke formation in an attempt to find anywhere they could flee to, countless shells and beams of light mercilessly assaulted them.

The block-shaped facility walls could withstand a direct hit from a normal shell, but they were blown away along with the beds of the vehicles like they were made of paper. Repeated explosions were heard as gasoline caught fire and soldiers’ bodies were thrown high into the air.

Heivia immediately grabbed Quenser’s head and dove down into the deep snow to hide. Even so, it was nothing short of a miracle that the Object’s bombardment did not tear their bodies in half.

(…No…)

Quenser’s head alone remained clear while the rest of him was in a state where he could not even tell what temperature the cold snow was.

(There aren’t any miracles or coincidences when it comes to Objects. An Object doesn’t leave enough of an opening for that kind of thing!! There has to be a reason. There has to be a logical reason we weren’t killed…!!)

[[Image:Heavy_Object_v01_070.jpg|thumb]]

Quenser looked over at a base vehicle being blown away by a railgun being used as crudely as a peashooter (even though it was powerful enough to be installed on a bomber). It had soldiers in its sights that were trying to flee, but the Object adjusted its aim toward a different base vehicle.

Seeing that, Quenser’s expression grew even more twisted.

“Dammit!! The maintenance facilities!!” Quenser shouted so loud he thought it would tear apart his throat in order to keep the explosions from drowning him out. “Get away from the vehicles used to service the Object!! They’re aiming for anything related to the Object! If you don’t get away from them, you’ll be hit dead on!!”

Just as the soldiers jumped from the large base vehicle in shock, the Object’s low-stability plasma cannon mercilessly blew the maintenance facility away.

Objects were synonymous with war.

No matter how many tanks or fighters were gathered, you could not stand up to an Object.

That was why the enemy Object was giving priority to destroying the spare parts storage and other facilities that could be used to repair the Object it had destroyed. In the off chance the Object could be reassembled, a true Object vs. Object battle where the winner was unknown would once more unfold.

That Object was not sparing the soldiers’ lives.

It was first utterly crushing all possibility of a counterattack. After that, it would use its greater than 50 meter form to chase after and slaughter each and every one of the flesh-and-blood humans who looked like ants compared to it.

The base vehicles were destroyed one by one.

Even though they knew it was not targeting them, Quenser and the other soldiers desperately hid. Just a slight misreading of the situation could get them crushed by one of the tatami-sized wall fragments that were flying from all directions.

“We need to get out of here while we can,” said Heivia as he grabbed Quenser’s arm with trembling hands.

Quenser ignored the tugging on his arm and simply remained motionless and listened.

“It doesn’t matter where to!! We just need to get as far away as possible from that monster! Just run!!”

He was not suggesting a strategic withdrawal; he was suggesting fleeing from something scary.

And…

“…”

(It…stopped?)

The Object that had blown up most of the major base vehicles had stopped moving amid the rubble and wreckage. Only the many giant gun turrets moved around slowly as if it were contemplating something.

Quenser thought his heart would stop.

Now that it was done destroying the Object-related facilities, was it going to start slaughtering the soldiers?

That horrible thought came to Quenser’s mind, but he still could not make his body move. The same thing seemed to have happened to Heivia next to him. They knew that their enemy was human with a mind of his own and was in fact a soldier just like them, but the presence was just so overwhelming that it felt like a giant dragon was staring down at them. It felt like the slightest provocation would get them torn to pieces by its vast maw.

They knew the Object was only moving based on systematic military orders, but Quenser and Heivia felt like herbivores that had run across the king of beasts and could only pray that it would spare them on a whim.

And…

The giant object that measured over 140 meters if its main cannons stretching out in four directions were included started to move. It changed directions with a motion similar to someone turning around because they were tapped on the shoulder from behind. With the sound like a dark thundercloud approaching, it headed in the direction it had originally come from. The soldiers on the path did everything they could to get out of the way, but the Object paid them no heed.

“What…?”

Quenser finally picked himself up off the ground and looked in the direction the Object had left in.

“Why are we alive…?”

What had been different between him and the human forms scattered about that lay unmoving on the ground? Quenser could come up with no answer to that question. Heivia spoke from nearby.

“I don’t know, but let’s go. I don’t know what’s going on, but we managed to survive. If we run as far away as we can now, it might make all the difference!!”

Heivia’s body was trembling terribly.

Quenser thought Heivia was right, but then he stopped.

He had noticed something at his feet.

It had likely been blown from one of the base vehicles used for their base zone. It was an LCD display. It was about the size an A4 piece of copy paper and it seemed to have wireless capability. It was emitting an electronic beeping noise.

The display showed a map of the area.

On a single point of that map, a red point was blinking.

(…A rescue signal…?)

All of a sudden it hit Quenser what it meant.

“The Elite princess!!”

The enemy Object was giving priority to eliminating all possibility of the destroyed Object being repaired. To do so, it had blown up the maintenance facilities and left the soldiers alone.

Didn’t that meant it would be only natural for the enemy to give top priority to killing the pilot girl who could possibly pilot a different Object?

“Hey, you noble and student over there!!” shouted Froleytia from a slight distance.

They looked over and saw the beautiful woman with her steel-like bluish-silver hair making large gestures toward the slope of a mountain.

“We need to use this chance to escape!! I’ll prepare an official reason for the withdrawal to report to the higher ups!! If we get over the mountain, there’s a large valley. A single suspension bridge is the only way across!! Once we get across, we can get away from that giant Object!! It might try to bombard us from this side of the valley, but we might make it if we scatter once we’re hidden within the conifer forest on the other side!!”

“But…”

Quenser’s gaze moved between Froleytia and the display at his feet.

In all honesty, he was overcome with so much relief he thought he would pass out upon having a clear goal he could escape to.

But…

What would happen to the Elite girl who was still alive…?

That thought stopped Quenser.

Froleytia then noticed the display at Quenser’s feet.

“You idiot! Why do you think she’s sending out the rescue signal!?”

“…?”

“It isn’t for us to see! The princess is transmitting the rescue signal so the enemy will intercept it and have their attention drawn toward her!! She’s making sure we won’t be slaughtered!! Do you want waste all the effort she’s going to!?”

Quenser’s eyes opened wide.

Froleytia’s words had stabbed deeply into his heart.

(Is that true…?)

Quenser looked around the area at the soldiers who were supposed to have tough muscular bodies from constant training but had neglected their training due to the benefits of the Object. They all averted their gaze whenever Quenser looked at them.

They looked awkward.

They looked as if they did not want to let go of their chance to escape.

(Whatever you say, she’s our ally and a girl of about 14 to boot. She’s the kind of person who is using herself as a decoy to save us. Can you seriously think of abandoning her…?)

“We’re leaving,” muttered Heivia. “We have no other choice!! Whatever we do, that princess will be killed, so we need to escape before that Object returns!!”

“Fuck that! Do you really understand what you’re saying!? Have you thought about what will happen to an Elite girl if she’s captured by the enemy army that has clearly said to hell with morals!?”

“What!? Are you saying you’re going to fight that Object!?”

Having those words shouted straight back at him silenced Quenser.

Heivia’s expression was filled with fear and disgrace.

“Anyone can just sit back and do nothing while they say what they think is wrong or right!! And if you ''can'' face that giant Object on your own and save the princess, that’s great!! But in reality, you can’t do shit!! The instant that thing catches you on its radar, it’ll blow you away so utterly not even dust is left!!”

Quenser thought as Heivia grabbed his shoulders.

(…Dammit.)

The gradual tightening in his chest was the natural response as a human.

He was feeling overwhelming fear.

(Of course I’m afraid. No matter what anyone says or how much wishful thinking they bring up, I can’t work up any courage. An Object is a monster. Trying to take on something like that is just wrong. I want to be as far away from it as possible. Heivia is right. No matter what I say, this sickening feeling isn’t going to go away…)

However, Quenser’s feet did not begin taking him to safety.

He merely stood in place and looked at Heivia once more.

“…But wasn’t that princess fighting that monster?”

“…”

“That monster makes grown men tremble in fear and makes us feel like we’ll die of shock every time it slightly adjusts its aim!! And yet she was piloting an Object all on her own to protect us from it!!”

Even if she was piloting a ridiculous weapon like an Object, she had to have been afraid. There was no way she wasn’t when facing a monster like that.

The day before, she had said she did not know if she could win.

She had not seemed especially serious, so Quenser had not read any deep meaning into it. However, he had been wrong. What if she had been holding so much unease below the surface that it had spewed forth even while she had such an unconcerned expression on her face? What if she had just wanted to say something about it to someone – anyone – to try to get rid of even a small piece of that unease?

Quenser thought about what he should do.

“…Give me that.”

Quenser held his hand out toward Heivia.

Heivia merely looked puzzled, so he repeated himself.

“Give me that rifle!!”

Quenser snatched the military rifle from Heivia. The high-tech weapon had an infrared camera, a microphone for searching for enemies, and other gadgets in addition to its optical scope.

However, Heivia’s face stiffened upon seeing that.

“…Are you really going?” Heivia shook his head back and forth like a small child. “What good will that thing do!? Didn’t you see that Object!? That monster is basically a giant reactor with the thick walls of a nuclear shelter around it!! It can still move after a direct hit or two from nuclear missiles!! Surely a future scholar like you can understand that!!”

“I know,” replied Quenser.

Heivia’s primary job was as an analyst who searched for the characteristics and weaknesses of Objects, but Quenser was learning about Objects from a design point of view. From his knowledge, he knew quite well that there was no way he could win.

But…

“I have no choice…”

“What?”

“Do you really believe that the Object won’t catch up to us if we cross the mountain and the valley on the other side?”

“Well…”

“If they truly want to kill the princess, it’ll just need a single shot. And if they want to capture her and take her back to their base, the Object is free to come after us once the normal soldiers restrain her. It’ll be turning back before long to slaughter us as we climb the mountain. …You saw how maneuverable it was, right?”

Quenser could feel his body tremble at the weight of the rifle because he had never seriously used one. He suppressed the trembling and continued on.

“It seems the princess is trying to buy some time, but she probably can’t buy enough on her own.”

The words he spoke did not seem real to him.

He wanted to get moving before he was too overcome by fear.

“Someone has to do something. Not out of responsibility, but in order to survive.”