206: Damn it! Attack!

So, what did that officer say?

He had just received a report that the group of slaves on the left seemed a bit restless, apparently discussing a riot before their Shock Collars had even been installed.

He decided to make an example of them.

So, he spoke to one of the Autocannon crews—

"Aim the barrel to the left and fire a full magazine first,"

"Let these new slaves know that they are only alive because of our mercy."

"Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang..."

The slowly rotating base of the Autocannon made a crisp metallic clashing sound, but as soon as it rang out, it was drowned in the surrounding noise.

"Ready!"

The slowly turning Autocannon and the officer's raised right hand caught the attention of some people.

Immediately, those being targeted seemed to guess their fate.

But the begging for mercy, the chaos, or the frantic scattering that the officer expected...

None of it happened.

Those targeted simply stood together in silence, those nearby instinctively locking arms with those beside them, forming a human wall.

They stared intently at the officer and the Autocannon crew, their eyes wide and filled with defiance—

Facing death in silence was their strength of character and their pride.

Stared down by hundreds of pairs of eyes filled with rage, the crew momentarily felt an inexplicable sense of guilt, and their movements unconsciously slowed down.

"What are you doing!"

"Aim!"

Seeing the men hesitate, the officer bellowed fiercely, snapping the crew back to their senses. They hurriedly cranked the wheels, aiming the twin barrels at the crowd on the left.

"Ready!"

"Fire—!!!"

Bang!

Boom!!!!

Boom boom boom boom boom!!!!!

Just as the 'F' of "Fire" left his lips, a deafening roar erupted by the officer's ear.

Several Anti-materiel Rounds carrying immense kinetic energy tore through, shearing away half of the gunner's body.

Then the loader, the gun captain, and the assistant gunner followed.

Hearing the noise, the officer instinctively raised his hands to cover his ears,

But in the next second—

Bang!!!

He could no longer find his head.

The headless corpse swayed twice before falling off the vehicle with a wet thud. Landing alongside it were Suicide Drones with flashing indicator lights.

They landed precisely on the ammunition boxes of the Autocannons aimed at the crowd, then emitted a violent red light—

To minimize casualties, these small drones were equipped with Thermobaric Bombs and no shrapnel.

As for the communications officer in the top basket?

Two Suicide Drones had already charged over at the very start of the engagement.

By now, that area should have been reduced to mincemeat.

"Secure the entrance! Do not use grenades indoors!"

The sounds of combat inside quickly reached the outside.

Dozens of figures in red powered armor descended from above, placing themselves directly between the hostages and The Consortium soldiers.

At the head of them was Lang Ming, holding a heavy Boarding Shield and shouting:

"Everyone! Attack!"

"Push those Consortium scum out!"

An adjutant beside him patted Lang Ming's shoulder and questioned over the comms channel:

"Are you crazy? It's the enemy who is attacking!"

Lang Ming pulled out his pistol and blew away the last Consortium soldier still inside with a single shot.

"I'm not crazy!"

"The combat zone must be pushed outside!"

"Prepare to deploy Folding Cover! Boarding Shields ready!"

"Drones, clear the way! Charge out!"

"We'll establish a makeshift position at the entrance!"

"Medics! Quickly organize the crowd to enter the Airlock we were just in!"

As he spoke, he raised his great shield and charged forward, leading by example.

The gunners behind him raised their Electromagnetic Machine Guns, unleashing a burst of suppressive fire toward the exit.

Several drones, trailing faint blue arcs of light, banked and flew outward—

Their mission was to clear the unmanned armored units outside.

"Small Autocannon position at eleven o'clock! It's loaded and ready to fire!"

"Enemy infantry on standby at three and nine o'clock!"

"Enemy armored units at thirteen meters, one o'clock! Three of them driving abreast and advancing!"

The team responsible for operating the Scout Drones frantically reported positions in the squad channel.

The suppressive fire continued, and suddenly, a member of the attack drone team let out a celebratory shout—

"Suicide Drone strike report! One scrapped, two disabled!"

"Electromagnetic pulse ineffective! Enemy unmanned armored units are unaffected!"

Between their exchanges, several more drones trailing blue light flew out.

"Those things aren't manned, are they?"

"Damn it! Why don't we have any Unmanned Autonomous Weapons!"

"Here's a dark joke: as long as you're not human, your powered armor is an Unmanned Autonomous Weapon!"

"What kind of hellish joke is that!"

"Everyone, get ready!"

As the command was issued, the assault troops who were joking just a second ago immediately disengaged their powered armor's joint locks and raised their Boarding Shields. The suppressive fire ended simultaneously.

"Assault! Quickly deploy portable cover at the entrance!"

"Continue the assault outward!"

"The Warship coming to pick us up won't arrive for another fifty minutes!"

"We must establish enough defensive depth!"

"Yes, sir!"

...