Reaper Marx (First Update) / Dear, Have a Safe Journey (Second Update)

P. S.: Three chapters completed on Saturday, three more to come on Sunday.

Chapter 271 The Reaper Marx (First Update) (Section 285)

At this moment, the Catalina Island was hit by its first formal attack. Thousands of flying fish leaped out of the water and plunged onto the beach, tearing apart and uprooting the neat rows of tents and stalls along the way.

The flying dust clung to the vegetation along the riverbank with a crackling sound, and even the nearby convenience store was affected, with its doors and windows covered in shards of glass.

After successfully landing on the beach, the fish marched in a mighty procession along the streets toward the island.

The silver hermit crab that everyone had seen in the darkness followed closely behind, crawling with a screeching sound, carving its way through the sandy floor.

The sheer number of them not only triggers trypophobia in those with itchy scalps, but even normal people can't help but feel a tingling sensation on their scalp.

Just as these mutated marine creatures charged forward, three police cars and more than a dozen fully loaded passenger buses drove to the beach, each drawing their guns and opening fire.

Some people trapped in convenience stores and other facilities picked up kitchen knives, fire axes, homemade Motolov cocktails, and other equipment, put on diving suits, and rushed out nervously.

Those marine creatures that were merely covered in special shells and were actually not very dangerous were instantly blown away in groups by the concentrated firepower.

The salty, fishy smell of grilled seafood, mixed with a strange metallic aroma, filled the air.

Standing on the cliff, Kevin looked at the tourists and residents on the street, whose fear had subsided and who were gathering there more and more, and felt a little relieved.

"Analysis has confirmed that they are all organisms infected by nanobots, now destroying human thought processes and controlling their actions..."

A2, with her right hand gripping a flying fish covered in metallic scales, gracefully approached Kevin, reported the results, and then released her grip.

Seeing an opportunity, the freed monster advanced instead of retreating, flapping its wings and biting at the humanoid creature's abdomen.

"Laugh!"

However, a sharp glint of light flashed through the air, and the ferocious little creature was instantly sliced into pieces of raw fish of varying sizes.

No way? A steamroller? The commander stared at the bustling street. The black policeman he had once beaten unconscious was now driving a small steamroller out of the warehouse and accelerating at full speed, crushing the swarms of strange fish.

Well, as long as we can maintain our formation, that's fine. These marine creatures are just the result of accidental infection after the nanobots were spread; they're not even worthy of being called shrimp soldiers or crab generals.

The real terror you see is coming!

"Can you feel it?"

Kevin's solemn gaze fell upon the towering waves that surged from the center of the sea fog toward the shore, and he murmured to A2 beside him.

"Yes, that's it, a super-large weapon!"

At this moment, A2 was equally vigilant, holding his sword horizontally in front of his chest, assuming an offensive stance.

In the blink of an eye, Kevin felt a sharp pain between his brows, and a warning sign suddenly arose in his mind.

"Get out of the way!"

The commander roared, his foot stomping as he ascended into the air, and A2 immediately leaped off the cliff.

At the same time, the sea fog suddenly collapsed, and Crimson Beam, seven or eight meters in diameter, tore the fog in two and slammed it directly onto the cliff.

"Boom!"

Amidst the deafening explosion, the cliff collapsed like a melting glacier, and dark red magma, formed under the intense heat, flowed outwards.

Amidst the muffled roar of surging waves, a mechanical giant, twenty or thirty meters tall, emerged from the water and, using Gravity Repulsor, began to trample towards Catalina Island.

"[Skynet] Colossal Machine Lifeforms - Reaper Mark!"

A2 stared at the monster's enormous size, his eyes flashing with intense anger.

During the first Pearl Harbor Airdrop Operation, half of the sixteen prototype YoRHa Squad 1 died under the electric plasma cannons of this thing.

No wonder the flying fish and hermit crabs on the ground looked so familiar; I've seen their sequels before: Fish Terminator HK-Silverfish and Spider Terminator T-7T!

[Skynet]'s base is actually in the deep sea, and their evolution speed is too fast. These developed models are all products of the later stages of the war.

We must take it down!

"Hey, that charged plasma cannon on its chest, while incredibly powerful, needs a three-minute cooldown. Now's your chance! Hold on tight! Let's find a way to break in!"

A2 loudly proclaims the weaknesses of Reaper Mark while running and leaping, killing flying fish and hermit crabs along the way, and makes demands on Kevin, the only aerial combat unit.

The commander looked up and saw that the Reaper's open chest cavity was closing, and the protruding cannon barrel had a distinct dark red tinge.

"We'll lure these things away. Hold the line no matter what. If you get infected by the nanobots on these monstrous things, you're finished!"

Kevin folded his wings and swooped down, his shout causing his Mental Field to spread out, jolting the tourists out of their daze like a thunderclap.

Fear mixed with the will to survive surged within them, and finally, the religiously symbolic "angel" in the sunlight drove the hysterical people into a self-deceptive worship and blind madness.

"Behold, I am coming soon. My reward is with me, and I will repay each person according to what they have done!"

"God will bring judgment upon all the works of man, including all hidden things, whether good or evil."

"Whether we receive glorious rewards or suffer righteous judgment in the eternal kingdom in the future is closely related to our lives today."

Many Christians began kissing the cross on their chests or reciting passages from the Book of Revelation and hymns to bolster their courage.

Even though they knew that this so-called "messenger" was not sacred, most people still needed a source of solace and a belief to fight against it.

However, Kevin no longer had time to concern himself with the self-indulgence of the survivors on the island.

When he and A2 closed to within ten meters, the Reaper Marx made his move.

Each of its two arms launches a spinning gear-shaped chainsaw, sweeping across the air vertically and horizontally, the air whistling as it is cut.

Kevin deftly folded his wings, hugged A2's waist, and slipped through the gap.

At the same time, A2 gripped the knife with both hands, the high-frequency vibrating blades inserting into the thick gears, cutting through a trail of sparks and lightning as Kevin lunged forward.

"Roar!"

The Reaper's crimson eyes stared at the gear that had been cut in half, and it emitted a roar-like sound as it spewed out hot gas.

At the same time, the mechanical monster opened its shoulder blades, revealing the Hive- like missile bay, from which countless tiny missiles were released one after another.

Kevin gripped the Skyfire Greatsword in his right hand, and with a thought, a thin layer of ice spread from his palm all the way to his shoulder blade.

Ice and Snow Gene unlocked, give me increased output power!

Instantly, the flames on the sword surged seven or eight meters, dancing in an arc, and nearly half of the missiles in its path were detonated in mid-air.

Electromagnetic pulse barrier! Mental Field!

Immediately, Kevin folded his wings and plummeted downwards, and the two of them simultaneously raised their shields to withstand the shockwave.

"Three minutes!"

As they descended to the surface, A2, who was in charge of timing, immediately shouted a warning in Kevin's ear.

At the same time, the Reaper Marx's closed chest cavity opened again, and the menacing muzzle locked onto the two of them.

P. S.: This story incorporates elements from the NieR: Automata and the plot of Terminator 4.

The colossal mechanical being in the prologue, named Mark... sensed the malice emanating from Western capitalist society.

Chapter 272, Section 286: My Dear, May You Have a Farewell (Second Update)

"Laugh!"

A bewitching Crimson Beam, like the scythe of Grim Reaper, swept across the sky, its vast area naturally enveloping Kevin and A2.

At the critical moment, the commander unleashed his Mental Power, clung tightly to A2, and pulled it straight up at a near 90-degree angle to the sea surface.

"Boom!"

The two narrowly avoided the bombardment. The beam of light that struck the sea almost split the seawater by tens of meters, and the surging waves and rising steam began to sweep outwards.

With that kind of power, even if he and A2 combined their shields to the limit, if they were to hit him directly, they probably wouldn't even need to be cremated; their ashes would truly be scattered to the sea!

Kevin's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed. Taking advantage of the moment when the colossal Machine Lifeforms retracted its cannon, he swooped down fiercely, preparing to seize the opportunity to destroy it.

"Bang! Bang!"

The Skyfire Greatsword and the Type 40 Sword danced in alternating motions, directly disarming the Reaper Marx's horizontally swung gears. After breaking through the defenses of his arms, they advanced towards the monster's chest.

"One and a half minutes left!" Kevin thought to himself, while dodging the close-range defensive machine guns protruding from the Reaper Marx's joints and targeting blind spots in the firing arc.

Meanwhile, some A2s that couldn't use their full strength jumped off Kevin's arms and onto the back of Reaper Marx.

Immediately, the Silver-haired Valkyrie, having firmly planted her footing, inserted her Type 40 Sword into its armor, gripped the hilt with both hands, and ran towards its waist and abdomen, slicing her way through.

Under this double attack, the enormous monster emitted thick smoke everywhere, and more and more metal parts peeled off its body and crashed into the deep sea.

I'll take your head!

The commander stepped onto the half-mechanical arm in front of him, his feet stomping as he leaped into the air. He unleashed the full power of his Skyfire Greatsword, sweeping it across the neck of Reaper Marx.

But at that moment, the fog behind the reaper surged violently, and the rushing sound of water echoed all around.

Kevin, who was charging forward, suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and immediately flapped his wings in the opposite direction, creating distance from the slope.

"Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!"

The moment the commander reacted, a large and two small, whale-like black object burst through the fog, revealing its menacing cannon muzzle to Kevin.

Skynet's airborne tactical unit, the HK-Mothership! Also includes two small transport aircraft capable of delivering "Aerial Hunter" and "Amphibious Terminator" combat units!

There's at least one full fleet of Skynet deep underwater! How on earth did they manage to transport all of this wretched stuff here?!

A2's pupils contracted rapidly, and without hesitation, he leaped into the sea, while anger and resentment welled up within him.

However, just as she hit the water, Kevin, who was also evacuating, swooped down and managed to pull her out.

At this moment, under the sweep of seven or eight laser beams, the previously intact Reaper Marx was almost shaved into a human stick and sank backwards into the sea.

Just as Kevin breathed a sigh of relief, the Reaper Marx from beneath the sea suddenly shot out a scarlet beam of light towards them.

The commander's expression changed drastically as he tried his best to pull himself up, but the beam of light that pierced the sky still grazed past him.

Instantly, the Electromagnetic Shield, the Mental Field, and even the thin layer of ice that had solidified around Kevin shattered. Fortunately, both of them escaped death unharmed.

Even so, after this exertion, Kevin was pale and his Mental Power was almost depleted.

"If you calculate the time, there should still be one minute left, right? How could this happen?"

"Seawater accelerated the cooling process of the cannon barrel, but this method was also fatal to the harvester itself, bringing it close to being unusable..."

Kevin's doubts were finally dispelled by A2's answer. He took a deep breath and focused his attention on the three Floating Battleship.

The Terminator forces that infiltrated Los Angeles were just the tip of the iceberg; such a massive mechanical horde was lurking in the sea—it was terrifying!

If he still had control of the White Blood Cell satellite and the World Tree System, he could at least put up a fight against this fleet.

Now, what do we have to fight with?

The commander had a splitting headache, and the scene before him was even more dire; his heart sank to the bottom.

As expected, the Terminator fleet was drawn by the special signals from the YoRHa Unit, awoke from its lurking state, and began to wreak havoc ashore.

But if you act rashly without proper preparation, wouldn't that be a recipe for disaster?

With a sigh, Kevin felt a bitter taste in his mouth, but his eyes grew even sharper; waiting to die was never his habit.

At worst, I'll just take the Skyfire Greatsword and fight this thing to the death!

However, the skin the commander touched with his right hand was gradually heating up. He turned his head in astonishment to look at A2, whose body was surrounded by dark red light patterns, and then slapped her on the head with his free left hand.

"Self-destruct my ass! Hold it back! You and idiot are the same, resorting to this when you can't win, huh?"

"I'll set a fire and burn a path through. You prepare to break out from the foggy area head-on! Once the signal is restored, immediately send a distress signal to Scanner Unit 21. She should know what to do!"

Kevin grumbled and stopped A2's outburst, then hurled her at the Reaper's wreckage.

Immediately, Kevin gripped the Skyfire Greatsword tightly in his right hand and unleashed the full power of the Flame Stream, disregarding the dense, purplish-red Honkai energy eroding his arm.

He had already killed one of them with his own hands; he couldn't let that tragedy repeat itself!

Just consider it some kind of bullshit compensatory psychology, something I owe you!

At this moment, A2 was slightly stunned, looking up at the "Creator" surrounded by flames, and couldn't help but bite her lower lip, feeling an urge to pull him back.

Time passed slowly, Kevin gathered his strength for a thunderous strike.

One second, two seconds, three seconds... a full... minute?