Chapter 72. The rescue mission begins
Albergi was not as drunk as his friend. He was slightly taller, had reddish-brown hair, and looked like a male model from a perfume ad. He smiled too, but less enthusiastically.
"Oh, God," his friend said, slowly regaining his composure. He looked over at the girls again and said, very seriously, "I'm going to miss this place, Albergy. And those girls. You know, this will be the last we see for a long time." A pair of girls had protrusions."
Albergi just shook his head at his friend's way of thinking. He took a sip of his beer and said, "You knew what you were getting into when you signed up for this mission."
"I must have been convinced when I was happy. It was you who convinced me, by the way." He raised his index finger in a playful threat. "Actually, I thought we would be fine after extracting the technology from the ship. But the more I think about it, the less likely it is. We already have everything we need here." He pointed to the stripper . "What else do we need?"
"You signed up for this mission because you're the best pilot in the system, Jolio," Albergi reminded him. "They need you. We need you."
"I signed up for this mission because I don't have a job," Jolio retorted. "You said I am the best pilot? But why is no one willing to hire me?" His tone became increasingly provocative. It was his last night here and he wanted to enjoy it, not argue and debate with his friends.
"You don't have a job because you can't follow orders," Albergi replied angrily. "You don't follow the rules. You're always late."
Silence fell between them. The rhythm penetrated their souls, the air in the bar was thick with incense, and their minds became blurry. Then, Jorio grinned and said, "I'm not always late. If you don't believe me, ask Haruno Lin over there."
His friend laughed too. "I think we should go. Tomorrow is going to be rough and I don't want to throw up food from the past few days again during that attack."
"You're right," Jolio agreed, to Albergi's surprise. "Let's not drink or do drugs tonight." He drank the rest of his beer in one go and threw the bottle to the floor. "You can go home and I'm going to enjoy my last day because tomorrow we could be shot."
"What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to have a good time with the girls over there tonight." He smiled and looked at Albergi. "I want both. See you tomorrow." After saying that, he stood up and staggered away.
Albergi just shook his head. He drank the rest of his beer in one gulp and stood up. Although he also felt a little dizzy, at least he could still stand firm. He looked around the bar again. Jolio sat next to a sexy blonde and her friend. Apparently, they knew each other. If Albergi is not mistaken, these two dancers are the performers of this bar.
He shook his head and asked the bartender to call him a cab. But you have to drive slowly, the kind with air cushion suspension can slow down the vibration. He didn't want to throw up again tonight. He then waddled slightly toward the exit, while Jorio and the two girls headed toward another door that led to a private room.
Ingmar walked listlessly into the command room and began his work. He arrived two hours early, but he just couldn't sleep. Too many things were making him upset and turning over and over in his mind, making it impossible for him to find peace. So he preferred to sit here so that he could make an immediate decision if necessary. But now he can only wait. They remain the location where Noah's team was imprisoned. As long as they don't know, any action is useless. This is really frustrating. They can't move on. Although the teleporter is finally back to normal operation.
Ingmar sighed and sat down in the commander's chair. How he wished he could give up command and lie on the bed covered with quilts. For him, it's not just the situation that's frustrating. Somehow everything in his hands failed completely.
His thoughts returned to last night. Recalling his meeting with Shu Ran. They went to the bar together to talk. Ingemar had an ominous feeling when he went there. How could he possibly feel good? He meets a woman who captivates him and holds his heart, but she only wants to remain friends with him. Now she also knew how he felt about her. How can you act unconcerned in this situation?
The initial conversation was very difficult. They sat next to each other and could barely speak two sentences in a row. It was unbearable. And for a while, Ingmar even thought about leaving the room. But gradually, their conversation began to flow. He gradually relaxed around her. She seemed to be doing the same, as she was gradually becoming more relaxed as well. The evening ended up being a great time. Ingemar feels really good. And in some of those moments, he even forgot what was going on between them. They joked and laughed together. In fact, it was as if that fateful kiss had never happened.
It was even worse for him that night as he sat alone in his quarters. Is there no way to make her feel the same way? However, love cannot be forced, and he knows this very well. If she doesn't have feelings for him, he can't change it. He has to accept this and learn to deal with it. Even if it can be a long and difficult process.
That night, she also sent him a message. His monitor showed a new message. Since he was still awake, he immediately read the message. In the message, she thanked him for the lovely evening and told him she was happy to be with him again. As a friend. He will always hold a special place in her heart.
As if that wasn't enough pain, she wounds him again. He wanted a special place in her heart, but that place was nothing like he'd hoped for. Despite the pain inside, he did not shed tears.
In his distress, he even considered whether he should talk to the captain and ask to be transferred to another ship. But then he would never see her again. The thought terrified him, as it did being around her, but her opinion of him didn't change. Regardless, he may not be happy with any decision.
"Commander Ingmar, the computer intercepted a message," Paulner interrupted his thoughts excitedly. Paulner is on duty at Ops. "We now know where our outer team is being held captive."
"Finally," Ingmar said. This is the first good news in days. He immediately contacted security. "Lieutenant Gladys, lead your security team to the transport room immediately. We are leaving. We have found the captain's location."
"Yes, sir," Gladys confirmed briefly before breaking the connection and leading her team to immediately run to the teleportation room. Since the disappearance of the outer team, the various teams have been taking turns preparing to launch the rescue mission as soon as the signal is received. These are tense days for those in the security services. Waiting in particular can be very unnerving. However, Gladys did a great job of keeping the team in top form. Now, with Ted in the infirmary and Io Murakami trapped, she takes charge of security. She performed brilliantly.
Ingemar left the commander's chair and walked over to Paulner, who was standing next to Ops. "Where are our people?" he wondered. The current situation required his full attention, and luckily he really didn't think about Shu Ran again for a while.
"From what we intercepted, they were apparently being held captive in a building on the San Francisco Bay," Paulner reported. "That used to be Starfleet headquarters. Our scans showed there was a large underground facility there. They were supposed to be imprisoned there."
"Can we identify them through signs of life?"
"No. I can't pick up any signs of life in that area. There must be some kind of energy shielding device there. That's why we can't teleport the rescue team in directly. We have to get them to the surface. To be teleported again come out."
"Bloody adventure," Ingmar muttered. "So we don't know what's waiting for us out there? There could be a whole army hiding out there."
"Possibly," Paulner replied, then frowned. "But why is that? Judging by the construction of the facility, I'd say they wanted to hide something down there. I can't imagine there would be too many people there. If this underground facility is secret, then neither will the people guarding it. too much."
"I hope so. No matter what, we must go in. This may be our only chance." He walked back to the commander's chair and made contact with the teleportation room. Gladys and her team are already there. Ingmar quickly informed them of what he had learned.
"We'll bring them back," Gladys replied firmly, before walking over to where her team stood on the teleportation platform. There are a total of 12 well-equipped male and female soldiers. They formed a circle to prevent anyone from attacking them from behind after materializing again. "Set laser pistol to narcotic mode," she ordered. Now about to take action, the previous excitement gradually faded away. This is Gladys's first commanding mission, and it also means that she has to bear the ultimate responsibility. There was no way she was screwing up.
Each man checked his weapons one last time. All but Gladys and another officer were armed with laser rifles. This weapon has a larger energy source and therefore can clear larger obstacles. In addition, this weapon lasts longer until the energy is exhausted.
The other two only carried ordinary handheld laser guns. This is easier to maneuver as they also carry their tri-band scanners which they can use to scan their surroundings. This way they can locate and find the person they are looking for.
When everyone signaled her to be ready, Gladys nodded to Tiny, who had recovered and continued to work as a teleporter.
Energy beams covered the entire team and began to break people down into individual molecules. These molecules are then transported via transport leads to the launch area on the outer wall of the hull and sent to the target coordinates at subspace speeds. Seconds later, the rescue team found themselves in a long corridor. The ceilings are high and decorated with bright wooden panels. The floors have bright parquet floors, giving it a friendly feel. The wall on the right is connected by doors every few meters. The large window on the left looks out onto a row of trees and the parking lot in front of the building. They are on the first floor of the building.
Gladys quickly assessed the situation. They are very visible in this corridor. Whenever someone walks through the door into the hallway, they are exposed. But she definitely wanted to remain as undetected as possible. A melee will only delay time and jeopardize the success of the mission.
"There is a hidden passage on the wall in front of us," Lieutenant Chu Yuhao said while studying the data from the tri-frequency scanner. "It's an elevator shaft. It's well hidden." There wasn't any conspicuous sign on the wall. Apparently, the builders wanted to keep these elevators a secret. "There was no sign of a staircase either," he continued. "There's a kind of emergency exit right next to the elevator shaft, though. It's very narrow, but probably the only option if we don't want to use the elevator. I think there will be a ladder there."
Gladys sends a signal to her team, who then use their weapons to blast a hole in the spot Gladys marked. It wasn't completely silent, however, so she quickly rushed her team into the shaft to avoid detection. As she guessed, there was indeed a ladder leading down. This may be an emergency escape route installed to still be able to move between floors in the event of an elevator failure.
After the first person enters the shaft, others continue to defend the corridor. Gladys prayed their commotion went undetected. But even so, if someone enters the corridor, the fact of damaging the wall will be discovered. Then their secrecy will end. But she couldn't think about that now.
Finally, everyone entered the shaft, with Gladys following as the last person. She stuck her position until the last person in her group was down there.
They climbed down step by step. Lieutenant Chu Yuhao led the large group of people. His tri-frequency scanner should be looking for a suitable place for them to exit the shaft. Luckily, there are regular doors down here that allow them access to the various levels. Apparently, down here, there's no need to hide anymore. Anyone who has seen this area is an insider. So, they continued to descend until Chu Yuhao thought it was time to leave the shaft. According to his display, there was no one nearby either. So, they entered the hallway and secured the position until everyone was safely inside.
Gladys was the last person to walk out of the shaft. She asked Chu Yuhao, "Where are we going now?" Her voice was low.
But Chu Yuhao looked a little desperate. "I don't know," he shrugged. "They all look the same here. I can't even tell if we're on the right floor. They look exactly the same."
Gladys looked at the map displayed. From the ship, they couldn't see the details of the corridor, so now they had to deal with it themselves. Within the shielded area, there appears to be no obstacle to scanning. The only limitation is the range of small devices. But it's enough to show that this part of the facility seems to be made up of many corridors. But the three floors above and below look exactly the same.
