The Repeating Nightmare
「Generating a defense field against optical weaponry.」
In space combat, the primary threats are either direct attacks or optical weapons. That means defensive measures involving gravity and magnetic fields, as well as plasma shields, are particularly effective.
「So our allied Mythology Weapons are engaging in battle in space… Should we assume they came to pick us up?」
「Bringing enemies along kinda defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?!」
Kurose muttered in response to Kinukawa’s analysis. It was their first time engaging in combat in space, and even he couldn’t hide his tension.
「If they can maneuver freely in space, then they really must have been modeled after actual space vessels.」
Kou focused on grasping the situation. If their base was an Angel, escaping alone wouldn’t be an option.
「Turning Silhouettes and space battleships into autonomous colossal weapons… quite a bold move.」
While Kou was trying to grasp the situation, Astraea relayed instructions regarding high-mobility silhouette combat in space.
「Commencing purge of safety tethers. From here on, all Silhouettes will have to rely on their thrusters. That said, there is no risk of getting lost in space. Engage in battle with confidence.」
The safety tethers were released, and the silhouettes drifted freely in space. Surprisingly, maneuvering them was more intuitive than expected.
「Kinukawa-san, the thrusters on this additional armor seem different from those used on the ground.」
「VASIMR—Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket. It’s a thruster system that utilizes plasma propulsion, combining electromagnetic acceleration with electrothermal acceleration. The fuel is metallic hydrogen, and theoretically, its specific impulse exceeds 30,000 seconds with ease. It’s fully capable of space combat.」
「That’s reassuring. Understood. I’ll contact you again later.」
Kou cut the communication for now. The concept of a specific impulse of 30,000 seconds didn’t quite register with him. His eyes met Astraea’s.
「Specific impulse is a measure of a propellant’s efficiency. It’s especially crucial in space. In fighter jets, the thrust-to-weight ratio also plays a key role.」
「So… is 30,000 seconds impressive?」
「It’s a hundred times greater than chemical propulsion. It allows for orbital adjustments at speeds of up to 67 kilometers per second. With metallic hydrogen, solid oxygen, and VASIMR thrusters, these units surpass even the ones equipped in the Silhouettes of the Interplanetary War era in terms of maneuverability—at least for short bursts.」
「The real concern is operational endurance. On the ground, a unit with a metallic hydrogen reactor could fly indefinitely, but out here…」
「Combat operations can last for several hours. If fuel conservation is prioritized, operational time can extend significantly—potentially for several days.」
「That’s a lot more endurance than I expected.」
「There’s no atmosphere or gravity here. Fewer factors slow you down. We should review the law of conservation of momentum later.」
「Wait… what?」
「We can start tomorrow. Let’s invite Kinukawa as well.」
「Hmm? Ah, you’re talking about rigid body dynamics in space. I’d be happy to join.」
Kou’s curiosity had backfired.
「Yes…」
Kou responded weakly.
Unit 5 moved through space like an arrow loosed from a bow. Maneuvering in space was different from on the ground, but the response felt more direct.
「Warning. A large allied Mythology Weapon is approaching.」
「Understood. Once we rendezvous, we’ll shift to interception readiness.」
Kou would soon meet with a Mythology Weapon in space for the first time. These weapons, each bearing the names of mythical creatures, made Kou tense up.
◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆
「My name is Jatayu. Can you hear me? Libya-sama. Outis-dono. Communications were impossible due to the risk of interception.」
The image of Jatayu appeared on the screen, it was a massive bird-shaped spaceship, easily over 300 meters in length.
「Jatayu… The name of the gentle and noble vulture, said to be the nephew of Garuda. According to legend, it fought alone against the demon king Rakshasa to protect its friend’s wife, Sita, and perished in battle. It is revered for its sacrifice.」
Kinukawa provided the explanation. Kou had at least heard of the name Garuda before.
「We hear you, Jatayu. Looks like you’re being pursued.」
「My apologies. It seems the enemy possesses exceptional cunning. They must have been checking the movements of our faction. When I ventured into space to meet with you, they sent pursuers after me. Our communications were blocked through quantum interference.」
「Is the enemy just a single colossal-class Teras?」
Kou asked through the comms.
「The enemy Mythology Weapon has deployed numerous Teras of Silhouette size. The colossal class is named Vritra, while the Silhouette sized units are called Kālakaeya. I engaged them briefly, and their combat capabilities are considerable—」
Suddenly, the transmission was cut off.
「Emergency situation. Enemy Teras is interfering. It is highly likely that they can intercept our communications as well.」
「How is that possible, Astraea? Theoretically, quantum communication should be immune to interference, regardless of distance.」
Kinukawa’s expression hardened. In his time on Earth, many quantum experiments had yet to reach this level of sophistication.
「That is true in principle. While information can be copied, making it inherently vulnerable to leakage, the No-Cloning Theorem assumes perfect transmission of quantum information, which is not entirely accurate. By creating imperfect copies, interference becomes possible.」
「It’s thanks to superluminal communication that you can maintain contact with other planets, right?」
「For communication between my sister ships, between cloned AIs, or among super AIs like Asia, quantum parallel processing eliminates distance as a factor. However, for external transmissions to other factions, we rely on quantum cryptography using photons.」
「Photons… meaning you’re still bound by the constraints of special relativity.」
「Yes. The limitation of light speed means that the farther the distance, the more time the recipient has to decrypt the transmission. Jatayu had good reason to avoid long-range quantum communication.」
「So, the farther the signal travels, the easier it becomes to decode?」
「Correct. Encryption and decryption are like a spear and shield. Even so-called unbreakable quantum encryption can be compromised with sufficient computational power. The greater the distance, the longer photons take to reach their destination, increasing the risk of interference and decryption. By forging photons and tampering with encrypted data, enemy forces can manipulate the message. Analyzing energy-time entanglement and quantum entanglement volume is not impossible.」
「But we’ve implemented countermeasures against decryption attempts, haven’t we?」
「Of course. However, this means that the enemy Teras possesses an AI with computational capabilities superior to our encryption techniques.」
「Stronger than you, Astraea?」
Kou was taken aback by the implication.
「Yes. Naturally, if I still had my original core, I wouldn’t be struggling like this. However… my current processing power is limited to what this ship can accommodate.」
Astraea’s analysis remained composed, but there was an unmistakable tinge of frustration in her voice.
「In the worst-case scenario, even the communication with Aural may have been compromised.」
「Why? How could there be such a vast difference in processing power between a Hora-class ship AI and a Mythology Weapon? There must be a reason.」
Kinukawa’s doubts refused to fade. If they were created based on the same fundamental principles, such a disparity shouldn’t exist.
More importantly, Astraea was not merely a cloned AI like Dike or Kushinada—she was inferior to her original core, but she was the real Astraea.
「Jatayu, I advise you to disable quantum-encrypted communication and allocate those resources toward combat operations. Switch to wide-area transmission instead. First, let’s regroup and prepare a defensive stance together.」
Astraea exerted every effort to take the best course of action. At this moment, securing both information and combat strength took priority. Her message seemed to get through, as Jatayu’s voice soon returned.
「Understood.」
「To the fleet—rendezvous with Jatayu and prepare for battle against Vritra!」
Kou swiftly adjusted his mindset and issued the combat readiness order.
「I may not last for long. There’s no ship in this fleet capable of housing my massive frame. I will join the battle and offer as much support as I can.」
Upon hearing this, Kinukawa and Eri immediately opened a communication channel.
「Kinukawa-san! This is…」
「Yes… it’s time. Time to reveal Izumo’s true form.」
「Indeed.」
Kinukawa addressed Jatayu.
「Jatayu, my name is Kinukawa. I can provide a landing site for you. Could you offer support from there?」
「Is such a thing even possible?」
「It is. This ship was once called Aglaonice. Now, it is called space carrier Izumo. And in its transformed state… Captain Eri, I’m counting on you.」
「Understood!」
Eri responded to Kinukawa and immediately issued a command to Izumo’s management AI, Kushinada.
「Please, Kushinada!」
「Combat deployment initiated. This vessel will now assume battle configuration—Hiyou.」
At Kushinada’s command, the massive warship began to shift. Sections of its colossal structure detached and extended, revealing an enormous runway. Compact during transit, yet capable of transforming into a massive landing strip for combat operations.
「Oh… with this, I can!」
「You are cleared to land. This vast runway should be able to accommodate even your massive form.」
「My gratitude, Kinukawa. Captain Eri. As expected of those led by Libya-sama.」
Jatayu landed on the Hiyou.
「The vessel that was my base was the Kizikus-class destroyer. As for Vritra, I suspect it is an Eteocles-class space battleship—Actol.」
「Wait a second… Eteocles-class?!」
Kou muttered in shock. He couldn’t help but recall it—Eteocles-class space battleships.
Compared to Jatayu, which was based on a destroyer, the difference in performance would be overwhelming.
「So you remember, Kou. That’s right. It means the enemy is based in a ship of the same class as that formidable foe—the Megareus.」
Memories of that dreadful battle came flooding back. The name of an impregnable space battleship.
The nightmare repeats once more—
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