Chapter 56 – MetaCraft Cybernetics (3)

Even if an apocalypse-level disaster situation occurs and enters an emergency blockade, it is necessary to figure out how the outside is going.

It is because it is dangerous to completely cut off interest in the outside world just because it is a closed city.

In such a situation, it is not a good idea to rely on satellites from the state or other companies, so Shelter uses its own low-orbit satellites.

Since the purpose is not to provide nationwide service, it was manufactured with an emphasis on long life and reliability, and because it is a low-orbit satellite, the response speed is fast.

Instead, there is a limitation in the communication distance, and the satellite image function has the disadvantage that only large objects such as geography, buildings, and meteorological activities can be identified in a limited area. Although this part can be covered with the assistance of drone reconnaissance.

When we landed at the target point, a barren land without even a single blade of grass was spread out.

It is open and there is no vegetation blocking the view. The color of the ground is also yellowish brown.

“Enter the site.”

The uphill road in front of the main entrance of the institute is dotted with abandoned buses and trucks.

It is mostly a vehicle for civilian acceptance, but sometimes a military truck is also seen, a K-511, a junk vehicle commonly called a Doo Donban.

He retired from the active duty unit, but was transferred to the reserve unit and is still being rolled.

“Start the search.”

Wearing backpacks instead of spare rifles on their backs, the robot squad members scattered one by one to search the inside of the car.

It is to remove infected objects that may be hibernating, and to capture anything useful.

The most important thing in any operation is securing the retreat.

When you have to escape in a hurry, it is not acceptable to be caught by the infected that awakens from the rear.

Bang!

A gunshot was heard. It’s on the bus

The rule of engagement for this mission is to put one head at a time, unless it is completely rotten to white bone.

It was a tactic adopted because it was a remote location and a small research institute.

Another gunshot is heard. This time, two and a half years later.

Passing through the damaged pavement, we reached the main gate of the target facility.

An abandoned wilderness, a bare mountain standing tall in the middle, and a research institute built in the center.

The large iron gates common to the front gates of military bases were half open.

The lower half is made of iron plate, and the upper half is made of iron bars, and the lower iron plate has countless bullet holes.

Inside, you can see a messy lot.

Three piles of sand bags piled up to the height of an adult male’s stomach were visible, and one of them was full of dried bloodstains.

A severed arm lies on the sidewalk. It had already rotted away and only bones remained, but a seriously damaged K2 rifle was held in the grip of the end.

All over the place were the corpses of soldiers who appeared to have been killed during the fighting.

The decomposition has already ended, but thanks to the military uniforms, bulletproof helmets, and gas masks many of them are wearing, not many bones are visible, so it feels as if they have died some time ago.

[Jinsu, gas mask.]

Dried blood, crumbling bricks and concrete, abandoned vehicles, already decayed and weathered bones.

The smell of them mixed in one place.

The smell of the battlefield.

It’s an unpleasant smell any time you smell it.

[Jinsu, hurry up and write it.]

At Artemis’ urging, he took out a gas mask and put it on.

Breathe in while wearing it, and then again with the cartridge closed.

Suck.

Make sure you’re not breathing.

[Originally, you were supposed to write it as soon as you get out of the car, right? Don’t make me anxious.]

“Sorry.”

I apologized to Artemis and looked ahead.

The soldier who died leaning on the sand bag was headless.

One corpse was lying face down with its back cut vertically as if it had been attacked from behind while fleeing. It’s creepy to see fragments of the spine bones scattered around.

Several large and small buildings are visible, but they are only for managing the manpower and resources required for research. The real research facility is underground.

Using abandoned container boxes and vehicles as cover, we headed for the entrance to the underground lab.

[One on the handrail of the outdoor stairs on the 3rd floor, one at the end of the roof.]

Artemis, who integrates and analyzes everyone’s vision, sent observation information.

Weathered clothes and dry, cracked skin, probably from the wind for a long time, are standing in a daze at the location.

When I lightly send a hand signal, two gunshots rang out at the same time.

The guy on the roof collapsed in place with his head exploding.

The guy on the ledge moved just before and hit him in the shoulder.

The squad member who fired keeps aiming for a second shot.

The Infected fell off the railing, fell off the side, and the squad member’s muzzles went down in its trajectory.

Thud!

The infectious object that fell from the back of the head bent its neck backwards, and then folded its back.

After that, there is no movement like a doll with a thread cut off.

Even after that, corpses were strewn all over the road.

Mostly decomposed, but some are semi-mummified.

I’ve seen quite a few cases like this coming this far, but I don’t know why there is such a difference even though it’s the same environment.

As per the protocol, the robots started confirming kills on corpses, not white bones.

“Ah-!”

When the heads of the 2 bodies were smashed, an infestation rose from among them.

Bang!

Before he could properly control his body, he collapsed, spewing brain water out of the back of his head.

Finally, after passing the large bus, the entrance to the underground laboratory was revealed.

“Guweuuu-“
“Creak-“

At least 20 corpses were piled up in a state of disrepair, and a little more infected than that are roaming around.

They all tried to evacuate into the laboratory, but they died in despair without being able to enter.

Numerous infections roam among the corpses.

There are scientists in white coats, workers in overalls, soldiers presumed to be reservists, and even infectious agents wearing rubber boots and aprons. It’s probably the lady who ran away while cooking or cleaning.

Most of them seem to be in a state of bewilderment when they hear gunshots and have just woken up from hibernation.

I’d rather be thankful for getting up like this in advance than crawling out of somewhere in an emergency.

When the hand signal is sent, the rest of the squad, except for a small number of guards, disperse widely and prepare for a volley, as they had trained in advance.

Those who take cover in a car, those who crawl under the car, those who take cover in a sand bag, those who take cover in a building wall, and those who take cover next to a trash can take their own positions.

Upon checking the PDA, you can see that one target has been set for each Infected in the squad member’s field of view.

“Shoot.”

Nearly 30 guns fired at the same time, but only one or two shots were heard.

Thump!

Infectious entities fell from all sides, dripping their brains, and the few who survived were killed by secondary shots.

“Take away the body.”

Robots are quick-witted and efficient in their movements.

Throwing away any respect for the lion, he grabbed the corpses’ limbs, even their necks, and threw them into the corner.

Among them, there was something that caught my attention, and that was a woman’s white bone.

She only had bones, so if you ask how can you tell she was a woman, it’s because she had one more tiny bone in her womb area.

“Damn it.”

[I’m sorry.]

Since it hadn’t formed properly yet, the remains could be mistaken for a small animal rather than a human.

When I finally came to the remains of a pregnant woman in front of me.

“Sleep…”

The robot stopped extending its hand and looked at me.

“No, go ahead.”

For a moment, I don’t know why I tried to stop it.

Are the bones of pregnant women special? Unlike other ashes, shouldn’t it be thrown away? Do I have to politely move that one myself while keeping the confirmation kill calm?

Knock knock.

I came to my senses by lightly hitting honey chestnut on my forehead.

This is a battlefield, and useless sentimental behavior can lead to a crisis.

There is a sturdy iron door in front of the corpses, a security reader on the left, and a surveillance camera on the top right.

On the automatic door, I could see dried blood and bits of nail glued to it.

As I stand in front of the entrance, the camera reacts and moves.

Electricity is proof that it is alive, but it does not guarantee that there will be survivors.

This is because state-managed research facilities of high importance are designed to have their own means of power generation.

As long as it is not touched by human hands, it will eventually stop working due to maintenance problems, but it can last for quite a long time.

[Verification completed. Welcome to the new post, Commander Seo Jin-soo.]

Security was released and the door opened with a woman’s voice recorded as a guide.

Bullet marks and shell casings were found everywhere in the straight aisle leading from the entrance, as if the interior also failed to avoid a cataclysm.

The underground research center has a structure reminiscent of a department store hall.

The large space in the middle we are entering.

There are corridors on the 1st and 2nd floors on both sides, and there are research labs at regular intervals. The wall in the direction of the corridor is made of transparent glass, so you can look inside the laboratory.

There are stairs at each end of the hallway, so you can go up and down between the second floor hallway and the hall.

This was a structure that continued to be repeated as one research building. Each area leads to a dark tunnel about 40 meters long.

“It is too dark.”

The power was alive, but only the emergency guidance lights, which were turned on in case of fire, were on, perhaps in a power-saving mode to keep only essential devices alive.

Half the squad stood guard, the other half scattered and captured the soldiers’ equipment.

[5.56mm Bullet Sheath * 3]
[5.56mm bullet case]
[5.56mm Bullet Sheath * 3]
[KMARK-1*2]
[5.56mm bullet case]
[Military first aid kit]
[Military first aid kit]

With the PDA attached to my arm, information about the loot came to mind like a notification window.

Anyway, since it is a facility defense force made up of reservists, there doesn’t seem to be anything particularly exciting about it.

Only items that have been taken out of active service and handed over to the reserve because they are too old, or those that can already produce replacements in shelters.

Still better than nothing.

Even if it is spherical, it is valuable enough as a research sample for Artemis.

[Jinsu, look at the body 3 meters to the right.]

The body of a missing soldier lay lying somewhere below her waist, she said.

A military PDA is attached to the arm.

When I took the cable out of my PDA and connected it, the power came on temporarily and I was able to get the last received voice log.

『Defense commander spreads from the command and control room! The outer perimeter has been breached! All troops, immediately retreat to the underground laboratory! I’ll block the outer entrance in 2 minutes! Repeat! Abandon the ground! The entrance to the underground lab will be sealed in 2 minutes! All troops retreat immediately! Rescuing isolated civilians is prohibited! Take the maximum amount of weapons and retreat!』

“The entrance to the underground laboratory was blocked, but the defense failed?”

[The door was closed after the infected arrived, or the infection had already spread inside.]

I listened to Artemis and watched the front.

[Search complete.]

A squad leader reported to the representative after searching the hall and each laboratory on the second floor.

Unfortunately, there was nothing useful.

This is only the first research wing of the underground laboratory, and many places waiting to be searched are locked in darkness beyond.

“Keep moving forward.”

The fearless steel soldiers formed ranks and entered the darkness.