SWNOVELXO Chapter 193
Episode 193. Administrator Pixel
The firefight is intense.
Pixel’s headquarters has been located and is under attack by clockwork warships and Jörmungandr. They can’t easily approach due to ship-to-ship missiles and coastal artillery fire.
By the way, I finally understand why those clockwork guys are so obsessed with fragments of the machine god. They just combined a few fragments to make a clockwork warship.
“Horrifying.”
I don’t know what makes it so strong. The clockwork warship successfully annihilated an entire fleet within 10 minutes of being created.
All it took to make the clockwork warship was the machine god’s eye, the machine god’s heart, and Ganymede. Just three pieces.
I can’t even imagine what would happen if all the machine god’s parts were gathered. What’s inside that clockwork warship…?
We were still sitting on a rubber boat on the lake. I was looking at the island through binoculars.
“Miss Hasti.”
“Yes.”
“What if the building collapses from artillery fire while we’re inside? Should we wait a bit?”
“Good point.”
Hasti tilted her head.
Courage and recklessness are two different things. Entering a facility being hit by 14-inch artillery is closer to suicide than bravery.
I picked up the radio again.
“This is Director Kim. The target facility is collapsing now. Retreat.”
[This is Catfish-1. The administrator’s bunker won’t collapse that easily. It’s a facility that can withstand bunker busters.]
“Is that so?”
I pondered a bit. There are a few options. Convince Ganymede to stop the artillery fire, or take the risk and go in.
But there’s no guarantee Pixel will die if the building collapses. It might be better to just go into the facility.
Should I just send the Special Forces?
[This is Catfish-1. The radio is unstable due to the electronic warfare equipment of Special Forces Luddite and Blade. We’ll handle it.]
If that’s what they want, then fine.
I picked up the radio.
“Then. I’ll also enter the facility. Eliminate Administrator Pixel.”
But. How did our Special Forces get into the bunker? Now I have to enter the facility too. It shouldn’t be too dangerous, right?
Right.
The Catfish Special Forces had a request.
Every time Jörmungandr breathed or moved, massive waves rose, and waves taller than a person repeatedly crashed against the breakwater.
It’s going according to plan.
If this continues, the breakwater will collapse soon, and Pixel’s headquarters will flood. It’ll create a favorable environment for Catfish to fight.
I picked up the radio.
“Ganymede. Cease fire.”
[Uh, the Royal Guard is approaching.]
“Huh?”
[I think I’m about to die. Good luck, Dr. Kim. I hope we meet again someday.]
Ganymede’s radio ended like that. I’ve seen Ganymede die many times, but this time feels different… No response came from the radio.
I closed my eyes for a few seconds. A few seconds of silence was the least I could give Ganymede.
“Let’s go. We don’t know what’s left in Pixel’s headquarters, so be careful.”
We walked up the breakwater. The coastal defense line seemed already devastated by artillery fire and rising sea levels.
But complacency is always dangerous. Before getting off the rubber boat, Hasti fiddled with the staff the Foundation had made for her.
“Lightning Spirit.”
A few round orbs of light appeared near Hasti and moved into the facility.
We used the breakwater by the lake as cover and moved along the walls of the facility structure into the island. The overflowing waves had turned everything into a muddy mess.
Now… where could Administrator Pixel be?
Special Forces Luddite.
A Special Forces team created to fight robots.
They’re the perfect counter to Pixel, whose power relies on robots and computers. They weren’t specifically created to target Administrator Pixel, but…
Well. It’s hard to be sure what the administrators who created this team were thinking. But.
It wouldn’t be strange if they made it to keep certain elements of the Foundation in check or to eliminate them if necessary.
Even Batman keeps a Kryptonite bullet hidden in a warehouse corner. Administrators don’t trust each other.
“This is Luddite-8. Encountered enemy security robots. Taking cover, will commence firing soon.”
“This is Luddite-6. Cover fire ready.”
They use all the high-grade weapons a Special Forces team would use, but there are some unique aspects. EMP grenades to kill robots and computers.
A special suppressor that emits strong electromagnetic waves every time a bullet is fired. EMP grenades and other weapons. As the name suggests, it’s a selection filled with hatred for machines.
A Special Forces team that doesn’t even use radios.
After all, the radio interference and EMP would make radios useless. But this team’s real weapon is something else.
When Dr. Kim was destroying data centers, he considered using a method but didn’t. It’s not suitable for civilian facilities, but this isn’t a civilian facility.
“Luddite-1. Arrived at the ventilation facility.”
“Luddite-3. Double-check everyone’s gas masks. We’re using Agent Green.”
“Luddite-4. Agent Green.”
A gas mixture containing uranium dust and radon gas. The electromagnetic waves from the radioactive material render electronics useless.
The weakness of data centers is the endless ventilation needed for heat management.
Even if they can handle fire to some extent and physically destroy servers, this will be tough.
Special Forces Catfish.
Pixel’s headquarters in the middle of the island was the optimal environment for Catfish to fight.
Catfish entered the facility through the coolant passage, then breached a large pipe with a monomolecular cutter to enter the facility interior.
The other Special Forces teams probably found their own ways in. The next step is the problem.
Dr. Kim’s logic was this: ground facilities are likely to collapse from artillery fire, so underground facilities are important. But underground facilities on an island in a lake are at risk of flooding.
So flood it.
That was the conclusion Dr. Kim presented to Catfish. Not impossible, but not an easy goal. Who knows how long it’ll take.
Of course, the enemy isn’t stupid, and Pixel must have prepared to prevent this. There’s a breakwater around the island, but…
One fortunate thing is that Jörmungandr is raising the water level around the fortress. Flooding isn’t impossible.
Of course, there’s a lot to do for that. Destroy the water pumps inside the facility, break the internal bulkheads. It’s not impossible.
Catfish’s entry point was already becoming a mess. Coolant was gushing out, turning the room into a waterlogged mess.
“Enemy approaching. To your positions.”
Catfish dispersed. The team leader looked in the direction of the footsteps. Robots? There’s not enough water to dive.
The team leader took out a grenade and threw it into the water. Water splashed up, and behind the white water column, a humanoid robot appeared.
“Commence firing.”
Shell casings fell one by one into the water.
In a normal environment, the firepower would be enough, but the robots guarding the facility quickly broke down from the moisture and gunfire.
Precise sensors and circuits quickly stopped functioning due to radon gas, water, and gunfire.
The team leader took cover at a corridor corner, then threw another grenade forward.
“Enemy function confirmed stopped.”
“Catfish-8. If the robots use lithium-ion batteries, a metal fire explosion could occur. Even fallen robots are dangerous.”
“Got it? Everyone, be careful.”
The Special Forces cautiously advanced into the facility. The facility was flooding, and the air was filled with toxic radioactive material.
A battlefield where even standing would be difficult if you weren’t part of the Foundation’s Special Forces. Beneath the team members’ feet, the muddy water level was slowly but surely rising.
Pixel watched the screens in the command center flicker one by one. Error, error, error.
Surveillance camera screens blinked. Prediction programs, security robots, all started malfunctioning.
Hacking? What could cause this?
It was just one shock and horror after another.
Pixel has fought countless supernatural phenomena over the decades. Mages, enemies within the Foundation, defeated countless times.
But this time was different. A black dragon rose over Beijing, a warship built 100 years ago annihilated the US fleet in 7 minutes.
Every operation they executed bypassed the Foundation’s precognition network. Whether it’s the power of the seven deities or Project Blue Rose.
Ah. I remember.
Radiation. Releasing radon gas indoors could cause all electronics in the facility to malfunction at once. Crazy bastards.
Pixel stood up.
The facility is flooding. Multiple hostile Special Forces teams have infiltrated. The robots aren’t in a condition to fight properly.
Defeat is imminent.
I should start thinking about escaping, but it doesn’t look easy. Should I take a submarine and head out to sea? Can I launch a plane?
As Pixel was racking his brain, a radio transmission connected to the now almost useless command platform. It was Dr. Kim’s voice.
A living nightmare.
[Just wait.]
Pixel closed his eyes. Finally found Dr. Kim, who had been so elusive. He must have tracked Pixel down.
“Security team! Prepare for evacuation!”
At least the people in the facility are still functioning properly. Pixel hid behind the security team’s bulletproof shields and left the command center.