Chapter 737: Exterminatus Weapons
On the edge of the dense rainforests of planet Pandora, Asuka had just finished a joint patrol with the cooperative faction of the local Na'vi.
She took off her heavy environmental adaptation gear, feeling as if the smell of plant sap and damp earth still lingered on her body.
Returning to the crude temporary camp, she wiped her cheeks with a cleaning cloth while whispering complaints into her communicator: "How much longer do we have to live this primitive life? There isn't even a decent shower, just mushroom houses and glowing bugs all day long... Shinji! Stop playing with those herbs, aren't you sick of it?"
Just then, the encrypted communicator she carried sounded a notification tone on a specific frequency.
This was a direct connection from the high command.
Asuka stopped complaining and pressed the receive button. The Second Avatar's voice came through, concise and direct: "Asuka Langley Shikinami, immediately terminate your current mission on Pandora. A new cross-dimensional combat mission has been issued, and you are required to return to the squad. A detailed briefing will be provided upon your arrival."
Asuka's bright blue eyes instantly lit up, and she almost shouted into the communicator, "I can finally leave this hellhole?!"
She quickly suppressed her overly exposed emotions, but her tone still carried obvious joy: "Understood! Preparing to return immediately!"
She paused, then quickly followed up with another question: "Wait, what about Ayanami and Shinji? Are they pulling out together with me?"
"Rei Ayanami and Shinji will remain stationed on Pandora to maintain the current mission line; only you are participating in this mission," the Second Avatar explained patiently.
"Oh. Got it." Asuka curled her lips, her excitement cooling slightly, but the prospect of ending this boring primitive experience still left her highly motivated.
She turned and began rapidly packing her personal belongings, while simultaneously shouting to Shinji, who was still helping sort Na'vi hunting tools not far away: "Hey, Shinji! I'm heading back first! You and Rei just enjoy your jungle life!"
The base's Skitarii barracks also received mobilization orders.
A fully manned thousand-strong Titan Guard regiment stationed there was selected.
The commander was a veteran Centurion who had experienced numerous combat missions.
Upon receiving the order, he immediately commanded the entire regiment to enter Condition One readiness, inspecting all weapons, equipment, power armor systems, vehicles, and individual supplies.
They were informed that they would be undertaking an expedition where the time, location, and mission objectives were highly classified, and they needed to be prepared to handle various extreme environments and high-intensity confrontations.
The entire base accelerated its operations like a precise machine due to the new directives.
Ryo's main body, meanwhile, focused on the Eternal Seeker's final combat readiness.
He first arrived at the warship's weapon core control room.
The area was filled with rows of control terminals and data screens flickering with a ghostly light, and the air was permeated with the unique ozone smell of energy capacitors.
Several Tech-Priests assigned to the warship's weapon arrays were on duty here.
"Report the status of the Exterminatus weapons," Ryo ordered directly.
The Tech-Priests immediately began operating. Holographic screens lit up, displaying a series of complex data and three-dimensional models.
"Nova Cannon system, status: standby. Currently equipped with three Nova Cannon warheads, type: standard crust-shattering," one priest reported.
"Cyclonic Torpedo launch tubes, status: ready. A total of twelve launch units across the ship; torpedo navigation systems passed self-check, counter-interference modules operating normally. Cyclonic Torpedo inventory: twenty-four," another priest reported.
"Virus Bomb reserves, located in the specialized biochemical armory. Inventory count: six. The carrier virus is Harvester-7, targeting standard carbon-based biological circulatory systems with extremely high atmospheric transmission efficiency, and a surface residual time of approximately seventy standard days. All bombs are in a stable storage state, detonators pending activation." The priest in charge of biochemical weapons spoke in a rigid tone, as if reporting on ordinary ammunition.
"Atmospheric Incinerator Torpedoes, inventory: four. Status: ready to launch. This model of torpedo utilizes a melta core and catalytic plasma charge; upon detonation, it can trigger a global atmospheric chain combustion reaction, lasting for forty-eight to ninety-six standard hours, depending on the planetary atmospheric composition and density." The final priest completed the report.
The optical lenses of Ryo's main body swept over every piece of data.
These Exterminatus weapons were taboo powers within the arsenals of the Adeptus Mechanicus and the Imperial Navy, typically only considered for use when executing an Exterminatus order or combating specific xenos threats.
This trip to the Koprulu Sector, and the planets controlled by the Swarm, undoubtedly provided an ideal shooting range to test the true efficacy of these weapons.
"Initiate a final joint system check of all Exterminatus weapons, including energy pathways, launch sequences, safety locks, and remote detonation command receiving systems. I want to ensure they will work reliably when needed," Ryo ordered. "Simultaneously, prepare a detailed draft of a weapon testing plan, covering expected effect models and data collection key points under different planetary types and delivery methods."
"By your command, Magos," the Tech-Priests replied in unison, immediately commencing their busy operations.
Leaving the weapon control room, Ryo's main body arrived at the ship's power and dimensional navigation center.
This was the core area for the Eternal Seeker's cross-dimensional voyages.
A massive cogitator array occupied the center of the room, with countless conduits and energy pipes connecting to the central navigation core—a complex device composed of psychic crystals and precision machinery, which was currently maintaining a stable harmonic connection with the Dimensional Gateway framework in Pandora's orbit far away.
"Report the current status of the Dimensional Gateway framework and the Eternal Seeker's transit readiness," Ryo asked the Navigation Priest in charge.
"Reporting to the Magos, the Gate of Hope framework in Pandora's orbit is operating stably. The resonance field strength of the main ring is maintained at 94.5 percent, with steady energy output. The harmonic link with our ship's navigation core is stable, and data synchronization has no latency." The Navigation Priest pulled up the real-time data stream. "This ship's dimensional transit module has finished preheating, and the Warp engines have undergone adaptive adjustments, ready to switch to dimensional tear mode at any time."
"According to calculations, based on this ship's mass and the current framework's power, opening a stable gateway to the coordinates of Candidate World-Y will require continuous power supply for eighteen minutes. The gateway maintenance time window is approximately forty-seven minutes, which is sufficient to ensure this ship's safe passage."
"Excellent." Ryo's main body evaluated the data. A forty-seven-minute window was plenty. "Based on the target world's coordinates, pre-calculate the potential exit locations after transit. Try to select an area far from major celestial bodies with low background radiation interference, in order to reduce the probability of premature detection by local factions."
"Calculating... The projected exit coordinates are in the Kuiper Belt equivalent region on the outskirts of that star system, far from all known planetary orbits, with low background radiation and dust density, meeting the requirements for concealment." The Navigation Priest quickly provided the results.
"Incorporate this into the navigation plan," Ryo confirmed, then asked, "What is the status of the ship's production facilities and resource reserves?"