Editing HEAVY OBJECT:Volume5 Chapter 2 (section)

===Part 5===

The Technopics were being held in Olympia Dome, a giant manmade island floating close to the center of the Atlantic Ocean. People wanted to enjoy swimming in the ocean, but it did not grow gradually deeper like with natural land. Not only was it too deep to stand, but the ocean stretched down into the depths enjoyed by deep sea fish.

That made it sound like suicide to swim there, but the management of the island paid attention to what the visitors wanted.

“Basically, they have created artificial land gradually sloping down for the swimming area. The ocean surface hides it, but the artificial island continues for a ways past the coastline. Right?”

“Yes, but if you get caught in a sudden current, you can get swept out to sea. Don’t think of it as a normal beach.”

After listening to her bodyguard’s warnings, Mariydi dove into the 2 meters deep ocean water. However, she had not changed into a swimsuit. She was still wearing her usual flight jacket. She normally wore it to withstand the Gs of piloting a fighter, but it was based on the special suits worn by Object Elites. It worked so perfectly as sportswear for the shootathlon because it was made to withstand every sort of environment.

As Mariydi easily treaded water with her heavy rifle on a sling belt, her bodyguard frowned.

“You would look a lot cuter with an inner tube.”

“Sorry, but I’m not an Information Alliance idol Elite. I don’t need cuteness for my business.”

Alicia then cut in while operating her handheld device

“The sponsor’s new rifle is semi-auto. It is primarily waterproof, but the next round is automatically loaded using the combustion gas from the previous round. If water gets in the passageway, it might jam.”

“If it comes to it, I can load the bullets one at a time through the empty cartridge ejection point.”

“What about doping?” asked Stacy the pharmacist with a popsicle in one hand. “Since you will be swimming, it would probably be better to increase the amount of oxygen you carry. And I bet something to work against muscle pain would have some effect at relieving your fatigue from yesterday.”

“…I tried the time-delayed transfusion yesterday, but the raised blood pressure threw me off towards the end. I think it would help my results if I don’t try to give myself any unneeded help.”

“So you’re just going to deny my entire reason for being here, are you, you damn brat?”

Then, a yellow toy submarine floated toward Mariydi.

No. It was being piloted toward her via remote control. It was an underwater camera for Catwalk TV.

“…Are you going to be following me around 24/7 with this kind of thing?”

“Swim the breaststroke. Filming you from behind will make some good fanservice,” commented the bodyguard.

“I’ve already been told I’m not even in the running as far as that is concerned,” replied Mariydi before beginning to swim away from the coast.

The seawater stung her eyes as she was not wearing goggles, but it was not enough to keep her from opening her eyes. Since this was in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and away from any industrial areas, the water was incredibly transparent for an area surrounded by manmade structures.

Olympia Dome’s swimming area had an artificial bottom, so it had no beach. It was all smoothly constructed. The area Mariydi was currently swimming in was about 2 meters deep, but it grew deeper at stepped intervals the further out one went.

And…

(Are those rectangular blocks sticking up from the bottom meant to keep suspicious ships from landing here? No, maybe they’re meant to control the current.)

These rectangular pillars were 80 cm square and about a meter tall. They were placed at the bottom at even intervals. They moved up and down irregularly to control the flow of the seawater in real time.

The bodyguard had said she could be swept out to sea by a sudden current. These were likely meant to prevent that.

(But that over there isn’t meant to regulate the current. Is it a moveable breakwater?)

The depth of the swimming area changed at stepped intervals, and a large notch ran along the line of each change. Mariydi guessed a breakwater made of reinforced polyurethane could be raised from below.

And as she had that thought, Mariydi heard Alicia’s voice from her piezoelectric receiver.

“You are about to reach the area for target practice.”

(Is she following my location using GPS?)

While thinking of the show it was providing for the VIPs or sex offenders, Mariydi stopped moving her legs for forward momentum and started treading water in place. The yellow submarine-shaped underwater camera circled around her, but she had no idea what would be best for the footage.

(Well, while underwater, I can’t respond even if I can hear them.)

She brought her head above water and looked around.

A metal rail stretched between two rubber boats, and a human-shaped target was sliding on top of it. It was about 300 meters away. That was relatively close range for sniping, but she could not brace herself while treading water and the waves were causing the boats to rock irregularly. It would not be a simple shot.

Mariydi used both hands to grab the rifle hanging from a sling belt.

“Practicing is all fine and good, but that monster basking in the sun out at sea isn’t going to make any mistake about this, is it?”

“You mean the Object acting as a guard? The one you can see from here is the Information Alliance’s Second Generation Henrietta…or Gatling 033 as they call it.”

“I’d rather not be shot by that ridiculously huge Gatling gun due to a misunderstanding.”

“We officially requested practice time, so they know what we are doing. And an anti-personnel sniper rifle is not enough to even scratch an Object. I do not think there is any room for a misunderstanding.”

(I’m more worried about them trying to crush a skilled athlete under the guise of a misunderstanding.)

But when she thought about it rationally, she had an Information Alliance TV camera watching her at all times. Even if the Information Alliance wanted to interfere, they would not let their own people see it.

“Okay, I’m about to begin.”

“We do not have permission to use live rounds here, so you will be firing blanks with a low-output laser. The target is covered with sensors to detect the laser, so it can detect whether you hit or not. The blanks allow you to feel the proper recoil and get a feel for shooting in the water.”

“It’s against the rules to put air in your sportswear, but how about I make you a protector made of a highly buoyant material?” suggested Stacy.

“That might make the swimming easier,” replied Mariydi, “but it would just throw off my balance when treading water and affect my aim. And that isn’t the job of a pharmacist.”

“Too bad. …Oh, right. If you maintain a good enough position today that a medal is still in reach, will you give me your autograph?”

“That isn’t the job of a pharmacist either.”

Mariydi remained still with her upper body sticking out of the ocean as she held up the sniper rifle in her small hands. She peered through the scope and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

She heard the explosive sound of the discharge and the recoil shake her shoulder. And then an electronic tone sounded from her piezoelectric receiver.

“Bull’s eye, hm? …It just doesn’t feel real with a toy.”

“Theoretically, everything should seem almost exactly the same as the real deal.”

“I can’t measure the effect of the wind with this. By the way, are none of the other athletes out practicing? I was sure the place was going to be as packed as the beach during swimming season,” said Mariydi.

Her bodyguard replied, “They thought this through. If more than one athlete is out here at a time, it raises the risk of attempted interference or fights. They give everyone their own short time to practice. Some had their chance as far back as around 2 weeks ago.”

“…Why did I end up not getting a chance until the very last second?”

“Miss Alicia messed up when the lots were drawn.”

Mariydi clicked her tongue and the bodyguard laughed before continuing.

“Well, wearing yourself out before the event isn’t good, but it’s still better than being attacked mid-practice, right?”

“…I think this camera hanging around me is hoping some ‘entertainment’ like that happens.”

“While we’re on the topic of what the viewers would want to see, why don’t you drink some milk and grow a sexier body? I’m sure they would love that.”

“If you like, I could give you some hormone drugs,” added Stacy.

“That is not how it works,” said Alicia. “The viewers would prefer to see the vain efforts of a flat-chested girl. It is a type of joke at her own expense.”

“I hope you all go blind,” said Mariydi before expressionlessly firing her laser gun toward the coast.

The bodyguard ignored her and said, “Your time is almost up. Once you have gained a feel for the rifle, come on back. Even if you don’t want any doping, you should at least see a masseuse. You need to relieve as much of your fatigue as possible before the event.”

“…I think I know two old hags that need a massage more than I do.”

Alicia and Stacy each grabbed a spare rifle and fired lasers toward her, but Mariydi ignored them, ducked her head underwater, and began swimming back toward the coast.

But then…

The yellow underwater camera running directly alongside her suddenly stopped moving. At first, Mariydi thought its battery had gone dead, but that did not seem to be the case. The propeller that provided thrust and the rudder used to steer were twitching like a dying fish.

At the same time, the voices from Alicia and the others stopped coming from the piezoelectric receiver.

The only explanation Mariydi could think of was…

(Electronic interference…Jamming!?)

Only a few seconds later, a bullet from an underwater firearm ripped through the sea water in her direction.