As the Adaptive Combat Core moved, eerie black shadows kept appearing and disappearing. Iax soon analyzed their movements from the circumstances of their appearances.
There was a probability of over 80% that they were trying to guide him to several locations.
Whenever some of the Adaptive Combat Cores tried to leave an area, these peculiar shadows would appear on nearby walls.
From their movements, Iax could tell that they seemed to be trying very hard to attract attention.
But the Men of Iron could not decipher the strange shrieks that accompanied their movements.
The soulless machines were utterly unaffected by them.
Even so, their indistinct movements still betrayed what seemed to be great anxiety.
The shadows seemed to understand how the Men of Iron operated. Rather than trying to guide every machine body, they singled out one or two Adaptive Combat Cores and repeatedly appeared nearby.
Perhaps realizing that the Men of Iron could not understand their shrieks, the shadows soon found another way.
Conspicuous letters formed from frost suddenly crystallized on the walls of the towering buildings around them.
"Are you a Federation rescue team?! Help us!"
Below the words, an entire row of shadows raised both hands as though holding up a sign.
Iax did not know what these shadows were, nor could he confirm whether they could recognize sounds.
But he could be certain of one thing: these shadows should at least be able to see.
A holographic projection sprang from the side of the machine, displaying clearly legible text.
"Please identify yourselves and provide your identification codes. The Federation's Men of Iron forces will provide all possible assistance to any Federation citizen."
The shadows immediately recognized the words in the projection.
Dense strings of numbers formed from psychic power kept appearing on the walls.
Each string