Low Guruk

1424 Hours, July 31st, 3039.

"Did I mention how much I hate this plan of yours?"

"Several times, Queen. Several times."

Dayle chuckled as he watched Queen fiddle with her gauntlet. The proud scout's brows furrowed in an extremely unwilling frown. Queen did not want to go along with Dayle's plan. Unfortunately, due to her intelligence, she knew for a fact that Dayle's proposed plan was indeed the best.

"Damn it. That's 300,000 credits, you know," Queen complained through gritted teeth. She cursed and then brought up two holograms. The first hologram depicted a two-dimensional bird's eye view of the target compound. The second, however, was a three-dimensional model of the area around the compound. Currently, there was a massive void at the center of the model where the apartment complexes should've been.

"Hey, don't worry." Dayle glanced at the sky and then reassured with a smile. "If we're lucky, we might still find it." Dayle then looked at Raines. "How is it?"

"The sky's clear." Raines dropped her binoculars and then looked at Queen. "You can deploy anytime."

"Ah. Wait." Arthur raised his hand. "Holograms are created from light, right?"

"Yeah? Why?"

"In that case, assuming light can't pass through walls..."

"Then whatever's creating these holograms has to be in a place where it can send out light to all these corners without obstructions." Queen's eyes widened and regarded Arthur with interest. Arthur's observation was something simple which any grade-schooler should know. However, it was often simple observations like these that determined the success or failure of a mission.

Arthur, oblivious to Queen's thoughts, proposed, "We should keep a special eye out for either a device that can project to every location, which would most likely be high in the sky―"

"Or a set of devices that handle individual locations," Dayle finished.

Raines, with doubt in her eyes, asked, "What if the devices are also camouflaged?" She turned to look at Queen. "I read somewhere that Nexus bots can turn on reflective panels to be invisible, right?"

Queen nodded. "Yeah. That's something they can do. But do you think they'll go that far?" She looked at the 'apartments.' "They've already got security on lock."

"Maybe, but it doesn't hurt to be extra careful." Raines looked at the compound. "If we can take down the illusion, the main company will have a much easier time."

Queen sighed in regret. "I guess I have no choice." She reached into her right eye and then pulled out the scouter. "I'll have to use both." She summoned a drone, and then attached the scouter to one of its 'legs.'

Dayle wore a tight smile as he watched the drone take flight. FireRain's debt to Queen seemed to increase with every passing second. This mission, while still doable, would have been thousand times more difficult and dangerous without her intel. And now, without complaint, Queen sacrificed her expensive tech to further the mission. Dayle could see how she became the best spy in Kudan. Only someone with the resolve to use everything they possessed for the task could become a great spy.

A few minutes later, Queen tapped on her gauntlet. "The drones are in position. I've configured one scouter to capture video and audio, and the other will monitor wind movement."

Arthur raised a brow in confusion. "Wind?"

Queen nodded. "Residents in this world aren't stupid. When they realized the Nexus could turn invisible, they invented equipment that could monitor wind movement, and track any weird changes."

"Ah. I understand. Even if the Nexus are invisible and can reflect light, they can't stop the wind from bending around them." Arthur clapped, eyes wide in amazement and awe. "That is some impressive tech."

"Heh, it is, isn't it?" Queen smiled with pride. Suddenly, sacrificing the scouters didn't hurt as much. "Unfortunately, it's very processor-intensive, so we can't just leave it on forever."

Dayle looked at Queen with ridicule in his eyes. "Hold on; there are batteries that run out?"

Queen chuckled and then shook her head. "Even reality has Nesla Coils. No one would buy that we're still relying on batteries a thousand years in the future. Nah, it's the processor. Once you turn on the wind-tracker, the scouter literally can't do anything else. Also, if you leave it on too long, the scouter will overheat and get damaged. The only places that have wind-trackers permanently turned on are massive bases like Kudan."

Dayle realized Queen made sense. Only bases like Kudan could dedicate the kinds of resources needed to maintain such an intensive task. As such, they would have to rely on the brief scan from Queen's scouter. Still, it was much better than nothing.

"Ready when you are." Queen looked at Dayle. It was kind of strange. Logically, by virtue of her level, she should have led this expedition. At some point, however, it just felt natural to defer to Dayle. It was an intrinsic charm he possessed.

Dayle looked at Arthur and Raines. When they gave their consent, he nodded and said, "Drop 'em."

Queen revealed a bitter smile and then tapped her gauntlets. "Dropping..."

Dudududu

Meanwhile, in the sky above the 'apartment complexes,' a pair of drones let go of heir cargo.

Frrrr...

A pair of contact lenses fluttered in the wind as they fell to the ground. These lenses were the scouters Queen was so proud of. The plan to release the minuscule scouters was intended to obtain information on the compound with the smallest risk of exposure.

Whoosh!

Just as planned, the lenses eventually rippled through the holographic perimeter and thus disappeared from the drones' cameras.

In the building, Dayle, Raines, Arthur, and Queen tensed. This was the moment of truth. The following microseconds would determine success or failure.

Thankfully, their sacrifice was not in vain.

"YES!" Dayle pumped his fist into the air in excitement as the 'void' began to fill up with several structures. Alongside the structures, Dayle could see still figures of several humanoid and animal-like machines. These were the Nexus. Because of the contact lenses' quick drop, it could not provide continuous surveillance, so they were forced to settle for the momentary snapshot in time.

At this time, thin, squiggly blue lines appeared around the map, flowing toward the North-East.

Queen's gaze narrowed. "Isolate anomalies, and cross-reference against expected interference." The system commenced a rough calculation. The wind path was analyzed, and the obstacles found by the previous scan was compared to the 'anomalies' in the current wind pattern.

*beep*

Queen's mouth opened wide. She looked at Raines and Arthur with appreciation and awe. "You guys were right. They were using camouflaged holo-projectors. The scan picked up 'five' problematic locations. They're all the same size, so I presume it's the same machine duplicated to cover all angles."

"Excellent!" Dayle clapped, exposing a proud grin. He then looked at Queen worriedly, "Were you discovered?"

"Doesn't seem to be the case." Queen looked at the 2-D screen. "There's a constant feed from the scouter. The holo-projector in the sky doesn't seem to be changing position."

"Oh? The scouter landed face-up?" Dayle sneered at Raines and Arthur. "Hey, and you guys say I have bad luck."

Raines rolled her eyes. "Queen dropped it, not you. If it were up to you, Lord knows some bird would've swallowed it mid-air."

"Guys." Arthur's gently reprimanded his teammates before they could begin another spat. He sent Queen an apologetic glance and then looked at the 3-D map. "So... now we know what's inside. What's the plan?"

"Hmm..." Dayle hummed as he studied the map.

The map depicted a U-shaped three-story structure, whose walls stopped just a few meters shy of the hologram's perimeter. This structure occupied most of the compound. Vehicles and guards stood at the center of the structure. Judging by the audio feedback from Queen's scouter, there was a lot of activity in the area.

As a scouting force, it would be suicide to go in through the front. But, it was equally risky to sneak in through the sides as there were also Nexus bots patrolling that area. While the flanks carried less risk, there was still a lot considering the scouting party's small number. No matter what, the party could not afford to go in blind.

Dayle looked at Raines. "I'll need you to shoot down the projectors."

Raines, without missing a beat, looked at Queen and asked, "Can you give me accurate coordinates?"

"Uh... yes?" Queen stared at Raines in shock. Did this woman want to shoot blind, using only coordinates as a reference? By this point, however, Queen knew better than to question this abnormal party. Instead, she looked at Dayle and asked, "What's the plan?"

Dayle's brows furrowed in thought. "You and I will infiltrate from the east wing." He pointed at the east and then said, "Raines will take down the projector at the entrance, and the west wing. She'll wait thirty seconds, and if they don't turn off the holo-projectors, she'll take down the projector at the east wing too. If they do turn them off, then Raines will hit a few bots and then retreat. Art will stay in case she needs help. Whatever happens, the two of them will retreat in a wide arc, and then infiltrate the west wing." Dayle tapped his ears. "We'll stay on comms the whole time, but keep information sharing to a minimum in case the bots hack our comm line."

"That's ballsy." Queen understood Dayle's plan. If Raines took out multiple holo-projectors, then the Nexus would know they were under attack. At this point, the Nexus bots should turn off the remaining projectors to ensure they were not being flanked and then converge on the attacker. It was a good plan that should laxen the defenses on their flanks. Queen thought about it, and then said, "Hold out your gauntlets."

FireRain obediently did as she asked.

Impressed by their trust, Queen smiled and sent a program to them.

Dayle opened the program, which was titled SecureChat V.8. His gauntlet requested permission to install the program, which Dayle readily gave. Moments later, the installation completed, and Dayle quickly read through the prompt that followed. SecureChat was an encryption program for messages and calls. The 'V' stood for version, and each version number stood for the recommended level (in the tens). So, this V.8 was useful for level 80 adventurers.

This meant that most Level 80 bots were incapable of hacking communication channels. Furthermore, Level 90 bots would require some time before they could hack in - usually enough time to switch off the connection.

"Oh? Wow, thanks!" Dayle looked at Queen in shock. This was no joke. They could use this program for a long time, and it must've been expensive! They did not know why she would casually give it away like this.

Queen waved her hand when she saw the party's intense gaze. "Don't overthink it. I was awarded a couple of copies after a recent job. I usually give them to any teammate I need to chat with on the field. As a spy, there's nothing more embarrassing than the enemy hearing everything you're saying."

"Yeah?" Dayle looked at the map. "Doesn't change the fact that we owe you one." He chuckled, and then added with a wink. "You can add that our tab."

"Oh, sod off," Queen jokingly chided and then turned to Raines. She transmitted the holo-projectors' coordinates and then asked with a worried glance at her rifle, "You got this?"

Raines smiled. She defragged the rifle, and then with the push of a button...

Thud!

"What the hell!?" Queen shouted in shock as she stared at the anti-material burst rifle that crashed to the ground. The gun was so large, it was impossible to carry and thus required a sturdy support stand.

Raines smirked and then pulled out a couple of rounds from a satchel. She slid the bullets into a chamber by the side, cocked, and then mounted the rifle against the window.

Raines promised Queen with a proud smile. "Don't worry about me. I don't miss."

"Raines is the best damn sniper I've ever met," Dayle assured Queen. "If she says she can do it, then she certainly can." The young man chuckled and then gestured to the door. "Come on. We should get into position. We need to be done before the main party gets here."

Queen looked at Dayle, and Arthur, both of whom wore matter-of-fact expressions like this was only expected. Where did their confidence come from? They were unlike any level 10's she had ever met.

"Coming." Queen pushed her doubts to the back of her mind. This was not the time to search for answers, and more importantly, every team had its secrets. FireRain was no different. Having made up her mind, she checked her assault rifle and then followed behind Dayle.

A few minutes later, Queen and Dayle hid inside an abandoned shop east of the Nexus base. Dayle glared at the hologram with a tense expression. Thankfully, it was a double-edged sword that prevented those inside from seeing out, or they might have been exposed.

"We're in position, Raines. Fire at will."

"Roger. Lining target coordinates. Target locked. Firing in 3..."

Queen swallowed hard.

"2"

Arthur clenched his fists.

"1"

Dayle smiled.

"Bang."