Chapter Five: Malice Descending from the Heavens

Qin Yun jumped into the cockpit and found a backrest designed with perfect ergonomic precision, along with foot pedals tailored to her height. She tried leaning against the backrest; the cushion beneath supported her hips just right, making it feel as though she and the seat were one. Safety harnesses secured her waist and shoulders, ensuring the pilot would remain fixed no matter how much the machine rolled. As she placed her feet on the pedals, arm control sticks suddenly popped up beside her. Unlike any familiar vehicle controls, these sticks resembled sleeves—she slid her hands in, and her fingers seemed to touch a hemispherical surface.

The moment her hands met the hemisphere, something appeared to be triggered.

“Authentication successful. Pilot: Shakia. Please initiate neural connection system.”

The control system of the machine gradually powered up, and the cockpit’s panoramic screen lit up all around.

“Is this okay now?” Qin Yun asked after securing herself.

“Put on the neural connector on your head,” Ziyuan instructed over the comms. “Press your head firmly against the headrest.”

The voice during startup had mentioned this as well. Qin Yun complied. A hairpin-like device clamped onto the back of her head from behind the headrest, startling her. The sensation was strangely familiar.

“Neural connection initiated!” the system announced.

Suddenly, the scenery before Qin Yun’s eyes shifted dramatically, and it felt as though her sensory perception had expanded immensely.

“Neural synchronization achieved!” a staff member in the command room reported. “Synchronization rate is stable.”

The director nodded in approval—it was the expected outcome.

Qin Yun suddenly felt as if she were strapped onto a launch pad. She tried moving her gaze and realized what she saw was not the cockpit before her eyes but the launch shaft and hangar. A chill ran through her; her eyes were now the machine’s eyes. The reason she felt bound to the launch pad was because she and the machine had become one.

“Federation of Star Clusters, Talon Mobile Corps reminds all soldiers: Tactics are countless, survival is paramount. Non-compliance will bring tears to your instructors. Shakia, may you return victorious.” The system’s voice echoed in her ears.

What nonsense was that? This was the second time the name Shakia had appeared. Was she the previous pilot of this machine? As Qin Yun pondered this, a sudden dizziness swept over her mind. Images flooded her brain.

A colossal humanoid shadow heavily encircled her.

Many allied machines stood around her.

Before her lay fallen mechs—steel bodies shattered like dry twigs.

...

“Shakia, grab it quickly! Move out!” urgent commands crackled through the comms.

...

“Well then, Shakia, let us begin!”

Blinded by a radiant light, her surroundings dissolved into emptiness and void.

“Ugh... ha... ha...” Qin Yun gasped several times, slowly regaining her senses.

It was the strange nightmare that had been tormenting her before. For some reason, she remembered everything so vividly... Could this have something to do with her current predicament?

Her mind was muddled, but reality offered no respite.

“Traum, deploy!” With Ziyuan’s command, the launch elevator propelled the machine upward at breakneck speed.

Qin Yun expected to suffer intense G-forces, but the sensation was far less severe than anticipated—likely thanks to the protective pilot suit, the ergonomic cockpit supports fixing her firmly in place, and the neural sync with the machine.

Seconds later, an opening appeared on the streets of New Spring City, and Traum was launched from underground. The machine shook violently against the support frame; without it, she might have flown right off.

“Arrived at designated position. Visual contact with ‘Preta’ confirmed!” the command room staff reported methodically.

“Phew, that was a bit rough.”

Qin Yun lifted her head and saw the humanoid monster standing a few blocks away. Despite the continuous barrage of artillery fire bathing it, the creature seemed largely unfazed. Upon closer inspection, its regenerative abilities were extraordinary—the damage from explosive weapons barely slowed it, as it repaired itself faster than the attacks could inflict harm.

The support frame began folding and retracting as the machine disengaged.

“Qin Yun, support frame retracted. Prepare to operate the machine's movement—try to...” Ziyuan started guiding her through the comms, but it seemed unnecessary.

Traum took a steady step forward.

Qin Yun didn’t overthink it; she simply thought about walking and tried to move her leg.

“Haha, looks like you can’t match her there,” the director chuckled to Ziyuan.

“Yeah... training me was such a struggle,” Ziyuan replied wryly.

“Well... after all, this originally belonged to her, right?”

Indeed, controlling the machine felt as natural as moving one’s own body. Ziyuan was right—it was far simpler than driving a car. Rather than piloting a vehicle, it felt more like transforming into a towering iron giant. Moreover, the initial fear Qin Yun felt was gradually replaced by excitement once she boarded.

“Damn it... you’ve completely ruined my everyday life!”

Before closing in on the creature called Preta, Qin Yun decided to greet it properly. The army’s artillery seemed ineffective, so she hoped the machine’s weapons would prove useful. As she thought this, a weapon list appeared in her field of vision.

“She still remembers how to operate it,” Ziyuan observed, realizing any further instructions would be redundant. Originally, she had planned to teach Qin Yun how to disengage weapon safeties and such. Back then, when they considered having her pilot this machine, the procedures were complicated—bypassing the machine’s own authentication system to force external control.

“That was a tough time,” the director glanced at Ziyuan.

“No worries. Finding her to pilot it is the best outcome.”

The armed helicopter units tried to drive off the Preta monster, but it was surprisingly agile. One plane, unable to evade in time, was struck by the creature’s massive hand, crashed into a building, and exploded into a fireball.

Suddenly, beams of high-energy rays pierced the monster—Qin Yun had fired Traum’s weapon systems. The creature staggered and dropped to one knee. The power of the ray resembled the monster’s own previous attacks!

“The attack is effective!” the communications officer reported.

The director smiled knowingly. As expected, Traum’s weapons were far superior to Earth’s current gunpowder and chemical-based arms.

“This is strange... I seem to know exactly how to use these...” Qin Yun swiftly locked on and fired, discovering her innate talent. “And the power of these weapons... I should be able to win!”

Long-range weapons included tracking shockwaves and photon missiles; close combat weapons featured high-energy particle daggers. The arsenal was not as vast as expected, but the firepower was impressive. Qin Yun didn’t stand still to shoot; she instinctively began moving at high speed.

Ground and aerial units, alerted by Traum’s deployment, began providing support.

As Traum charged the monster, Qin Yun completed photon missile lock-on. The missiles launched from the rear of the machine, not rocket-propelled like current human missiles, but like tiny light particles trailing dazzling arcs—silent and deadly, attacking from multiple angles.

Preta stood half again as tall as Traum, its towering, slender frame making it a prime target. If it could previously shrug off gunpowder weapons, the power of these photon missiles was more than enough to challenge it.

Explosions and mushroom clouds engulfed the creature’s form.

Military officers watching the battle were stunned. This single machine’s combat capability equaled an entire division—no, perhaps the entire force. Were these strange weapons truly from Earth? If they could suppress the monster this decisively, ending the battle swiftly would be ideal.

Yet the creature still had strength to counterattack. From the lingering smoke emerged a surge of purple light.

“Qin Yun, watch out!!”

Ziyuan’s warning pierced her eardrums. Even without the alert, Qin Yun saw it clearly.

“!!”

The purple beam streaked across the city, leaving a dramatic burn mark along the street!