Chapter 288: The Papatte Squad

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Aw man! Exclaimed Old Chief Guo in his mind, as he seriously never thought he would have such a terrible day in his life before meeting these... these unknown beasts. There was a wide range of beasts lurking in the Calamitous Asteroid Belt, while they struck strong impression of being the most fearsome biological entities in the minds of the people outside. That might have been the case the whole time, but humanity had recorded most of these barbaric creatures - specifically those in the outer belt - in detail. With that in mind, Guo the Old Chief had been preparing himself ever since he was informed of his task venturing into the Calamitous Asteroid Belt, including careful inquiries on every single entry of the creatures habituated there. He thought he had been cautious enough, since this did not only concerned his survival, but also his brothers'.

And there he was, having bewilderment looking at the beasts, which none of them appeared to be in the entries he possessed. The beast was tedious at its appearance, with the two canines flashing at the corners of its mouth, and the long dripping salivation wetting the ground dark green, while at its abdomen 6 pieces of thin blades went on a fan-dancing. The entire body was fully coated with carapace, glowing in a metallic emerald, convincingly sturdy. The hexapod waved its feeble arthropod legs, the spikes over the legs were sending chills to the witness's spines.

By common sense, any unidentified creature would be far more dangerous than the known creatures, well since to get the creature identified, one must be able to first survive from it and head back to share the words, which meant... Guo and his gang were in a zone unfrequented by humanity.

These creatures were as entangling as they seemed to be. They were hunters and the preys - being the brothers of Guo - had been hunted a few. Guo the Old Chief, the one with a strong mind was also starting to surrender to the fact that this might be the last expedition of his. Such creature was fast, really fast, that their mechs failed to get rid of it by speed. The creatures were also intelligent, they were able to dodge most of the energy beams Guo had fired.

They also travelled in groups. One could imagine the drained face of Guo when thousands of them swarmed upon his mech - it felt like the darkest day of his life, filled with green monstrosity.

What have fate prepared for me in the end? Probably death... Flinched Guo the Chief. He did not shame the death, rather he shamed himself for his inability to protect his brothers. "I shouldn't have taken that request...," muttered the chief in regrets. He was requested to acquire a kind of plant namely the "Rippling Orchid". He was filled in with nothing else than the high definition hologramic visual of the said plant, while also given the estimated location of it. Guo the Chief would never ever take this stupid task in the first place if it was not for the handsome reward and the poverty of his group.

But sadly, I *am* a hobo, so is my group. Thought Guo, feeling bitter about how the Papatte Squad he ran was merely a group of eighty pitiful pilots being average they were as a free spirit who never desired to join the Aristocrats. The reason why they fluttered together was because they presumed it would be an easier hunt in groups. Unfortunately, their presumption, similar to their experience, was novice, as the squad did worse yearly. The best part was, most members were simple-minded, no one had the required leadership to keep the squad running. It was getting harder.

Pilot isn't an easy job alright? Sighed the chief. The market was too competitive, those major squads were naturally way better than tiny weeny squads like his, whether concerning reputation, service quality or capabilities. It was a little bit easier in the past for those major squads only would take on the requests befitting to their organization dimensions, but well, as much as abundance of human resources, those once-in-a-blue-moon major operations no longer sufficed the demand of their squad members. So they began reaching those simple requests from the folks, and of course the tiny weeny squads, like the Papatte, were given a strike again.

When was the last time Papatte Squad got an actual request? Guo the Chief could hardly remember with that atrocious memories of his, as his soulless eyes gazed upon the disorderly, to-be-disbanded squad. And there was this particular request untouched by the other squads, he thought it would be a great fortune to make as he seized support from everybody else in his squad, accepted that request with determination. Although they would be handsomely rewarded, the requests were often associated with alarming tasks, nobody sane would have taken those requests, which resulted them lingering on the billboard for years, since... rewards were priced and life was always priceless.

Now, that one insane person, that one snapped leader called Guo the Old Chief had taken the request. He was in a hobo squad after all, assuming he would survive this time, the money could last for few years in his squad. Damn you these filthy wealthy men! Cursed Guo. Why must we gamble our life for a pot of plant to be viewed by them on a fancy tea party?!

"Sir, what do you think these pests want from us?" muttered Francis Jr. through the communication channel, as he gulped, in his shaking voice.

"Yeah, Francis Jr. has a point, these pests have been only surrounding us, do you think they want to have a dance with us?" Huang the Balloon Head had been exposed to the dead-or-alives countless times, he made a joke, a poor one though, that exposed his bit of restlessness in him.

"I have no idea. Be calm, watch," said the chief.

The mechs they piloted were looking obsolete but one would be convinced the fact that they had been taken great care by their owners, a loving care in fact, the maintenance was well-done and they moved with immense rapports too.

Well, still a little shabby compared to the Sangs though, those were the real extreme. Commented Ye Chong in his thoughts.

There scattered numerous remnants of mechs, which some of them were raging in sparks. And one could see the pool of blood tainting the body. Obviously they had a conflict, a really bad one. I had seen such beast back in Archipelago. The Sangs called them the Seraphods*. Though I never expected that I would see them in action, at a place like this...

Swarm, surround but no strike. The Seraphods seemed to favor the more sadistic approach in hunting their preys. Ye Chong was surprised over the happening but he was not really the spectating kind, as he began planning, making sure that he had seized all factors under control. "Go." He launched his command of attacking these emerald monsters.

Hsssssk!

Sang Pu did not hesitate and made his move along with the other pumped Sangs upon receiving the command.

Hssssssssssssssssssssssssk!!!

The ear-piercing hush was becoming ear-rupturing. A flawless collaboration of the Sangs this time, as 500 of them broke into 50 teams and accelerated themselves to the maximum, the afterimages impaled the animating ball in hideous green.

The beasts had noticed them, but failed to react in time. Boom! They were done.

All beasts were helpless under the mighty Collisions.

Funny thing was the Sangs did not even bother to take on any of the beasts particularly. The movement they made was merely a fling over the sky, forming a deadly net of their afterimages intersecting, as the 4 blades on each Collision sliced through the armors of Seraphods.

Hnnnnnnnnnnnngggggg! Aiiiiiiikkksssss!

The beasts cried painfully, in grief they begged for mercy. The Sangs did not intend to give the beasts the mercy they begged, as the Sangs launched themselves into the deadly web again, crossing over the greenish weak beasts. It was a dense crossing but none of the Sangs was having issue of crashing into each other. Clearly they were well-trained, they were pretty good at piloting.

A rain of blood tinted the area, with inner fleshes flying over the broken limbs.

...

...?

The men of the Papatte Squad were having a short-circuit in their mind. The sudden massive strike of the unknown happened so fast that It felt like a sudden slam on the keys during a concerto.

Hnnng....

Two waves of attack by the Sangs and none of those beasts could stand up. Most of them lay on the ground, half-dead with pathetic cries. Nobody would sympathize them. In front of the law of nature, the sympathy of humanity was so foolish to be conducted. The third wave happened and the cries softened, soon silence raided the place.

"The heck had just happened?" Balloon Head was confused.

Blarrghh! Blargh! Ugh!

There was a sound coming from the channel. Francis Jr. was throwing up as the brutality of the scene was too intense for his comprehension. It was too impulsive... a second ago those beasts were still swarming over their mechs and now the beasts were dead on the ground, so dead they could bleed a river. Okay I don't know who launched the attack but this is kind of cruel. Thought Francis Jr.

Practically speaking, the Sangs were not as cruel as Francis Jr. thought. This was an act of their habit, the result of their lesson over the generations fighting with the beasts as on a few painful occasions the Sangs learned how the beasts would turn more ferocious as they were harmed, so the last blow to take their life was always necessary .

The remaining 4000 Sangs were grumbling in curses at the back. "When we finally got an operation!"

"Then it's done, in 4 seconds!" They had been so eager to have an actual fight but the only opportunity had vanished right before them. If the Collisions were supplied with communicative facility, one could already imagine the waves of angry commentaries flooding the channel.

"When do we have the chance again? HUH!" Poor Hai Lian, as the voice of Sang Tie slammed right onto his ears. Hai Lian could almost hear the echoes right inside himself.

Are they... the pirates? Or the Aristocrats? Speculated Guo but he could not tell.

Pirates? No way. The pirates never wielded such capabilities, if they ever did, the entire He Yue galaxy would have been plunged! The secret team of the Aristocrats? This would be more likely... but they don't seem to have a fixed color code. These greens and reds are reminding me of a circus rather than a group of trained military force of a particular aristocratic family. Sorry to say but these people look really like a bunch of scrappy troops, even scrappier than my own squad too... I don't think those Aristocrats would fancy such mischievous approach in training their men. The Aristocrats are too busy being condescending to people, they do not have time for this.

And I must say, the flying objects were really weird. Thought Guo the chief. He was right as he immediately recognized the pros of the Collision, though he was getting shocked after one aftershock and another, not because of the mech but because of the required skills to pilot it.

"All of you have been our captives." A young voice rang. The squad was stupefied.

Captives? I could not think of any other group that would use such terminology than the pirates. Are they really pirates?! Deduced Guo in disbelief. Pirates don't serve for the people! They serve for the money! Are these pirates blind? Can't they tell we can't even spare a penny to their cruise?

Well, we don't have anything to offer, take whatever you want - if there's whatever that is. Thought Guo, getting calm.

The Collisions were exerting pressure to their security, as the squad hopped off their cabin obediently.

"Hmm," muttered Ye Chong.

The leader of the pirates was surprisingly younger than I thought. This is literally a child! But wait, I am not going to take it lightly. He is a child yet he's already leading a giant group of pirates. That is convincing enough that he is something. The other members are mainly teenagers and young adults too... Sighs... even child labor got common among the pirates. Thought Guo the Chief, getting sentimental.

Guo was showing full cooperation in his conversation with Ye Chong, knowing his fate of being captured.

Ye Chong, upon seeing these men, were merely having an idea of needing a local who was extremely familiar with He Yue and Papatte happened to be there. Hai Lian and Ye Chong had gone to Foundation city and probably they had been exposed. That was unfavored. It would be hard to even run the routine tasks in the galaxy given that they lacked the locals to help them.

Ye Chong did not have tremendous experience with society but he was thinking thoroughly, all thanks to Mu's education. One would use one's thinking assuming experience could not help.

"We are Papatte, merely a tiny group of pilots, sir."

Upon mentioning "group of pilots", Ye Chong's eyes lustered.

That would be a way.

"Hai Lian...," whispered Ye Chong, "would it be too eye-catching if there was a pilot squad of 5000?"

"Not exactly, sir. It would be a medium-sized group. A squad of 5000 isn't something given that we are in an age where hundred thousands of pilots travelled together in a squad," replied Hai Lian. "There are tons of major squads out there, like Chaniat, that group is expanded, so greatly that they have their own office at almost all planets in He Yue. Not even the Aristocrats would want to mess with them, they are one of the major forces here."

"Very well." And in one order, the Papatte Squad got their first new 5000 members, with Guo remained on his throne, although he was very much aware that the throne was no longer his.

"Yes sir, thank you sir," replied Guo, as threatened by the cold gaze of the blades.

It was not that bad though, he knew what he was there for. He was an adornment, a cover for the pirates. Well it would be easier in that case. "Here you go, sir," he said as he handed over the last few pennies in their box. His hands were shaking, not because of a heavy heart parting with them, rather it. was because he finally got to pass this accursed economy of Papatte to someone else. Of course he would have handed this puzzling, tiring and pointless errand to lead the team! He would be too dumb if he still seized that broken flag of Papatte! Finally, he got a chance to slack off. He did not have any ambition, he just wanted to live in leisure.

Let the big men do their big job...

Thought Guo, his expression looking sentimental, while his heart being overjoyed.

And Ye Chong could already feel his headache.