The time entered the New Year's Day of 4024 AD.

So much has happened in the past year that when I look back, I can shy away from it.

But in the face of the people who had just finished the countdown to the New Year and were still partying in the Civic Square of Europa, I couldn't mention it at all.

If you want to say that I have no interest in this person, I admit it, I think I will not relax, and I am willing to eat. Anyway, when my subordinates, colleagues, and generals were enjoying the madness of the countdown to the holidays, I was the only one in an inconspicuous corner, alone and worried.

It has been more than a month since the reform of the soldiers' justification exercise ended, and things are developing as if they were supposed to be like this, with order in the chaos, and a sense of rhythm can be detected in the chaos, but I have a sense of extreme crisis in this fulfilling experience of external peace and internal busyness.

It's hard to describe in words, the warnings from the realm of perception keep me awake. Especially when asked the other day about whether the bad premonition they generally have still exists, she replied: "Of course, as soon as we board the starship, each starship core will tell me that the threat is getting stronger and stronger, giving people the illusion that something bad will happen at any time." Ping, don't worry too much, it's not like nothing has happened in so many days. I've asked the technical department to focus on the problem of danger perception during the physical examination, maybe it's not a special thing, our starship core often feels threatened by solar storms or meteorites approaching, and you know that most of these feelings don't need special attention. ”

Seeing that Kiana no longer took the warnings to heart, I didn't want to irritate her anymore. After all, they are not really adults yet, and adults still have to bear the burden of things that are too heavy.

I wasn't convinced by Kiana's explanation. If it's just one person who is excusable, and all 17 of them feel the same way, there must be something special happening around us. In fact, just yesterday, while everyone was preparing for the holiday and the security was lax, I used to personally enter a renovated Lord-class destroyer to actually use the enhanced brain domain perception to reproduce the feelings of the girls.

What a sense of oppression it is, like a giant beast watching your every move.

Confirming the actual feeling of the girls, I am pretty sure that the danger is around us, but it is not clear why it has not been activated, or is it waiting for the moment when we are most relaxed?

To this end, I have specifically raised the alert level of my subordinate units, increased the number of people on duty amid the complaint, and arranged for all security units to increase the frequency of patrols on various space stations and important space facilities.

Until now, the silence was like mocking my allergic reaction, but the feeling of being stared at was so real, and as an old driver of brain perception, I didn't believe that such a strong illusion existed.

The threat should be real, it's just a matter of when, where, and how it happens.

"So you're here, I've been looking for you for a long time! What a misfit. ”

Strange words came from the side, and the petite and soft body leaned next to me. In a red dress, Teresa appeared in front of me in a rare casual posture.

"Seriously, you look like a boat...... What a child! ”

"You're going to die! Why drag it out, I thought you would compliment me on my pretty, huh! Ignore you. ”

I gently put my arms around her shoulders, and my thin figure was even more lightened during this time.

A strong desire for protection gripped my heart, and I couldn't help but caress her silky black hair.

"Don't be angry, I'm kidding. It's rare for you to wear regular clothes, but it really makes my eyes shine. Seriously, the mature way you dress when you work, although beautiful, has lost the beauty of the natural temperament that you give people now. In my opinion, it's better and cuter like this. ”

"Come less! One sentence, one sentence again, who knows if what you say is true or false. ”

While continuing to feign disgust, Teresa leaned closer. Smelling a woman's body fragrance so close gave me a sense of peace of mind that I had never felt before.

"Is this what home smells like?"

Teresa jumped suddenly. I noticed that her face was now flushed, her face was full of astonishment, and I could even see that her beautiful lips were trembling slightly.

It took a while for her to regain her composure.

"You...... You're not proposing to me in this way, are you? Zhao Ping, you scared me. ”

Only then did I realize that in a relaxed state, I unconsciously spoke out what was in my heart. But in the face of the startled little beauty, I was also worried, how to explain it to her?

I always felt that telling her the truth was just a slip of the tongue, and I would regret it for the rest of my life.

He smiled awkwardly and took her into his arms again.

"Frightened? I just felt it...... The relationship between the two of us can be taken slowly. When everything stabilizes in the future, you should know about it, and then you can decide? ”

I tried to speak to her in a gentle voice, inadvertently changing the context, as if I was really proposing to her.

Teresa turned around, looked up at me with her beautiful eyes for a moment, then turned her head sideways and hugged me firmly.

"I'm sorry, it's not that I don't want to, but I'm too busy right now to think about personal matters. I promise you, when you are free in two days, you will definitely think about it. ”

For this beautiful misunderstanding, I think it's better to go with the flow.

Feeling Teresa hugging me tighter and tighter, I gently turned her around so that we could enjoy the beautiful fireworks display in the square together.

Without words, I quietly hid the fear and uneasiness in my heart.

The atmosphere is rare, so it's better not to spoil it.

I'd love to talk to someone about my troubles, but ...... Let's put it for later.

......

......

It happened at noon on the first day of the new year. The non-commissioned officer in charge of dispatching patrols told me that a five-man squad at the Jupiter Fortress Spaceport did not respond to regular contact.

I didn't pay much attention to this news, and after the number of troops under my control increased, the most intuitive feeling for me was that the number of accidents also increased. Whether it's the breakdown of the mobility vehicle, or the patrolmen lazily abandoning the live broadcast of watching the parade of floats, it is not a big deal to delay a regular reply once or twice anyway. After learning that the non-commissioned officer on duty had sent someone to confirm on the spot, I did not pay any further attention to the matter.

To be honest, as the burden on my shoulders increased, I became less and less fond of the position of Vice-Minister of the Military Department. The responsibility is heavy, not to mention the busy work, in fact, the status is not high in the military system. There are as many as five vice-ministers like me, and every time I want to make a decision, or express my own opinion, I must take into account both the rank and whether it will affect the plans of my colleagues. It's a real annoyance to think about it for days every step you take.

While everyone else was still on vacation, I had to work overtime at the military headquarters in order to prepare for the next year's Marine Corps training and recruit new recruits. Although I asked Teresa to have dinner with me, I felt a little better, but seeing that the huge training framework was still just beginning, and looking at the recruitment outline, I had the urge to hit my desk with my head.

I lamented for a while before I realized that time was slipping away quietly around me. I quickly pulled myself together and refocused my mind on the computer terminal. It would be too bad to have to push off Teresa's date because she couldn't keep up with the schedule.

"Report sir, emergency!"

"What's the matter? Unless it's a war, there's nothing you need to be so anxious about. ”

I scolded the dispatch non-commissioned officer on the other end of the communication as I checked the briefing that had been sent to the terminal.

The results of the investigation into the failure of the spaceport patrol to respond to the scheduled contact have not been reported, and new contact terminals have reappeared. Europa XII was an important weapons testing base for the Provisional Government, where three of the four patrol units had lost contact with headquarters. Noncommissioned officers were being dispatched to urgently urge the remaining patrols to find out what was going on, and the guards had reported touching by an unknown creature, where Europa, the government and the military headquarters were located.

Looking at the series of events that took place one after the other, almost in ten minutes, I immediately overturned my original comfortable state and stood up.

"How can there be so many accidents, it must not be viewed in isolation. The guards were immediately put on alert at three levels, and the patrolmen returned to the barracks after their leave, giving urgent orders from the marines to ...... them as well."

My order had not yet been issued, and the whistling air currents, and the terrifying sound of explosions disrupted everything. The glassware in the room shattered at the same time, and the extremely uncomfortable high, medium, and low frequency shocks instantly overturned the black teacup in front of me.

I didn't bother to wipe the wet placket, but quickly half-crouched down and quickly ran to the place where the combat uniform and weapons were stored in a bowed position.

Switching communication terminals, using the ability of brain domain perception to help the terminal obtain communication permissions, I switched the network in less than 10 seconds.

"Sir, I've finally got in touch with you! The intrusion of the sub-humans of Bailand was found to be destroying vital facilities and killing the people they encountered indiscriminately. ”

I was contacted by a mid-ranking Marine officer under my command, whose words were accompanied by explosions, gunshots, and beast-like roars. Even if I didn't need him to explain it, I knew that the source of the roar must have been a combat subhuman.

I didn't need any more evidence, so I put on a light infantry combat uniform, and I used my brain domain perception to connect to the center, and asked the center to send emergency notifications to the whole territory, and all marines were put into a state of first-level combat readiness, and the guards and patrols could fire at the threatening targets at will before the marines arrived. In addition, requests for the expansion of emergencies are automatically sent, and all branches of the armed forces are required to cooperate with the army units in implementing the state of emergency according to the actual situation.

I know that when this order is sent, there will be thousands of officers and soldiers who are having fun scolding their mothers in their hearts. But it's better than being raided.

The attack on the Branders was either a premeditated raid or just a harassment by a few infiltrated units. Whether it is a highly purposeful tactical operation, or a small reconnaissance force discharged for the sole purpose of reconnaissance.

There are so many questions to be answered, but what I need to do now is not to investigate and study, but to get the Provisional Government's war machine up and running as soon as possible. In the event of a real enemy raid, the quicker you react, the less damage you will suffer.

Five minutes after the emergency warning was issued, even in my office deep in the military building, I could hear the trademark roar of the Combat Subhuman.

In any case, the fire near the headquarters must be extinguished first.

I maintained my connection to the tactical communications network as I ran through the corridors in a fighting stance. From the direction of the constant movement of the gunshots and explosions, as well as the chaotic state of questions and answers in the communication circuit, it can be seen that the guard units of the military headquarters are facing tremendous pressure, and the number of fighters may not be many, but when they adopt the guerrilla warfare method of basic strategy, the kind of attack method that comes and goes like the wind and is extremely terrifying, even the professional marines will be overwhelmed, and it is estimated that the guard troops, which are mainly security and guards, will suffer a great loss when they see the terrifying combat subhumans.

Now that it has been confirmed that the presence of subhumans has also been found in the government building, I understand that in order to organize the situation to deteriorate, the first thing to do is to deal with the enemy infiltrating the military headquarters and the government building, otherwise without a consoling headquarters, it will only be a good opportunity to sit back and counterattack with a large army outside.

Rushing to the area where the battle took place, I gathered a squad of urgent reinforcements on the way, and I didn't bother to confirm their formation, I wanted to bring a shaped gun and rush into the battlefield.

Through wide-area perception, it can clearly sense that three powerful bioelectric wave aggregates that are different from ordinary people are moving at high speed in the complex passages of the military headquarters building. Whenever a signal from a friendly unit approaches them, it quickly catches up and eventually leads to a signal message. I don't need to make a special confirmation, I understand that every disappearing signal must be accompanied by the sacrifice of a warrior.

I am also extremely angry at these murderous beasts who are unscrupulous in the military headquarters. How many good men were easily wiped out by them one by one, followed by poor survivors and groups of grieving family members. Watching these three guys kill people everywhere with impunity, I feel as if I am constantly being beaten up, but I can't fight back.

Maxim and others have been telling me that as a senior officer, when something happens, the first thing to do is to protect yourself and establish communications, and then to mobilize troops and assign tasks. As for the commander personally taking action, it is better not to do it, because the high-ranking officers directly fight with guns, which also means that their own side is about to be defeated on the modern battlefield.

At the beginning, I did follow the advice of the crowd and did the work of self-protection, mobilization of troops, and assignments. But when he heard that the battle was approaching, and saw that the enemy was so unscrupulous, the blood in his chest could not be suppressed.

"Today, I will teach you how to behave!"

While talking to myself to boost my morale, I quickly approached the first goal. This is a guy with blood and flesh on his paws, and he must have killed and injured many soldiers and civilians before this, and I will not let it continue to be arrogant.

Then I rushed into battle. Sensing the approaching threat, the subhuman quickly jumped sideways, trying to get out of the way. But how could I possibly let it succeed?

......

......

After trampling the corpse of the last subhuman under my feet, just as I was about to kick a few times to vent my anger, I received a contact from Zack. He had ordered the Marines to be dispatched urgently, first to protect the government's vital departments and to seek the support of the fleet.

Immediately, Maxim's contact from the Kings told me even worse news.

After entering the emergency, the fleet discovered that the three squads of the reconnaissance detachment had lost contact with each other in the asteroid belt, the Saturn system, and the Kuiper belt near Neptune Fortress. Due to the approaching holiday, the situation of the loss of contact with the reconnaissance detachment was not even reached to the headquarters, and now 12 hours have passed since the earliest loss of contact, and if there is really an enemy invasion, our army will be in an extremely disadvantageous state.

The news of the immediate call for help came from the government office building. I didn't have time to reply to Maxim, but I told him to do it cheaply, so I gathered the surviving guards and rushed to the government building two blocks away.

The festive atmosphere in the streets has been blown away by the explosion of air, debris and corpses everywhere, and in the chaos you can hear the terrifying howls mixed with the desperate screams of the people, it is simply a scene of the end of the world.

I let out a long sigh on the scooter, and the worst happened. The starship cores are rightly feeling, there is indeed a huge threat around them. This raid by the Branders doesn't look like a small-scale fire reconnaissance at all, and if I'm not mistaken, the real killer move of the biochemical fleet is still to come.