WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ The Little Prince in the Ossuary

Chapter 59

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#Trap (4), Camp Roberts

Gyeoul stared at the captive.

The Trickster was still. Through the whole process of being bound, it hung limp as a corpse. The only evidence of life was its breathing. Hiss. Hss. Air cutting sharply in and out.

No matter how badly injured, it should have had enough left to thrash around. Something was off. The suspicion that it had let itself be caught kept pressing down harder and harder. Nothing to contradict it. Just no proof.

Before going down, this one had emitted a powerful jamming signal. Same as the one from Atascadero. When that one died, heavy static had poured from the radios.

What if that wasn't simple interference, but some form of communication between them?

Then how far did that communication reach?

Spoken language and radio waves were different in kind. The information-sharing ability of these new special mutants might extend even to sight and sound.

That would explain their cunning. Every time one encountered something new, it inherited the experience of the others. The information the Atascadero Trickster had broadcast would still be drifting out there somewhere. Memories that outlasted death. Like ghosts, he thought.

So that's it. It smiled because it already knew his face.

It would have already known that America was eager to secure live specimens. Without that certainty, without knowing it wouldn't be killed, it never would have thought to let itself be caught.

If this theory was right, the Trickster was the most dangerous special mutant imaginable.

A cold clarity settled over him. Through twenty-six apocalypses, it had been a long time since he'd felt this way. Not a bad feeling. Like the very first time he'd caved in the skull of something that looked human. That same focus was within reach.

Gyeoul raised his rifle. Feeling the trigger pressure at his fingertips, he thought: Should I just shoot? Whatever its plan is, wouldn't a bullet right now tear all of it apart?

"What are you doing, Ensign-nim?"

Corporal Liberman grabbed the barrel and pushed it down.

"You worked so hard to catch it, and now you want to kill it?"

He looked like he couldn't make sense of it. A quick glance around: the soldiers who'd been standing guard were hovering a few steps back, uncertain. They must have called Liberman over because something in Gyeoul's bearing had alarmed them. Probably 「Threat Level」, running high.

Gyeoul let the rifle drop.

"Just a bit uneasy."

"Why? Too easy?"

Liberman shared the suspicion. He just hadn't followed it as far. True to form, he kept his voice easy, trying to settle things down.

"There are a few things that don't quite add up, but... it's done. The helicopter will be here soon to take it away, and then we go back, crack open a beer, and pass out."

He gestured toward the entrance.

"You look exhausted. Go outside, take a break. No clouds tonight, great sky for stargazing. Leave this to the men."

A thin smile crossed Gyeoul's face.

"I don't trust them."

Corporal Liberman gave a nod -- well, he couldn't argue with that -- and the soldiers pulled sulky faces. A moment later, everyone was laughing.

Gyeoul accepted the offer. Without proof, convincing them would be impossible. They'd nod along, maybe. But nodding and acting weren't the same thing. What could a trussed-up special mutant actually do? Besides, Jeffrey would have already reported the capture. Disposing of it on his own authority might earn him a reprimand.

The boy decided to forget everything else for a moment. Just as Liberman had said, the sky was cloudless and thick with stars. He sat on the hood of a Humvee and looked up. Not a sliver of moon anywhere, yet it didn't feel dark. Cold night, the scattered starlight startlingly clear.

In the darkened world of the Days after Apocalypse, if anything had gotten brighter, it was the night sky. The Milky Way, something he'd never seen in his past life, was visible here. It looked almost like a strangely luminous cloud.

Through his night vision, even brighter. So many stars, impossibly clear.

Footsteps. Jeffrey, who'd been wrestling with his radio. He vented briefly, exchanged a few words with the others, then came straight to Gyeoul. Didn't speak right away, not wanting to interrupt the rest. A welcome kind of respect.

They sat side by side on the hood and let some time pass before Jeffrey spoke.

"Good view?"

"Yeah. This sky must have existed back home too. It's a shame this is the first time I'm actually seeing it."

"Back home? Korea?"

"In a way."

"In a way? What does that mean?"

The young platoon leader looked baffled, but Gyeoul didn't explain. He asked something else instead.

"What's going on? Trouble with comms? The interference seems quiet."

The receiver in his ear was still silent. Proof that the Trickster was cooperating.

"It's not that... They can't send the helicopter."

"Why?"

"Turns out we're not the only camp dealing with this. A few others caught some too. Lots of helicopter requests went out, and then eight birds just vanished."

His wariness came back to life. Gyeoul asked again, his voice still calm.

"Were they attacked?"

"Don't know. They're not even sure if it was an attack. Contact just went dark. One of the units said they heard an explosion. Probably crashed, but they can't reach the site yet. Bottom line, no one knows what happened."

"Has to be an attack. Eight don't just break down at once, not without a word."

"Yeah, fair enough. Anyway, no more helicopter support until they figure it out or daybreak, whichever comes first."

"So what about that thing?"

Gyeoul pointed toward where the captive was. Just then the soldiers were moving it, a gag cinched tight over its mouth, four of them carrying it carefully. Several more stood a short distance back, weapons trained on it.

"Orders are to transport it to base," Jeffrey said. "Keep it there and they'll come collect it."

"Do they have a containment plan?"

"Chain it up and lock it in a cage."

"A cage?"

"I don't know the details, but apparently they're lining the walls and ceiling with something like cooking foil. Supposed to block its signals. Makes sense if you're keeping it on-base."

A Faraday cage. Gyeoul had heard of it.

But would that be enough?

The helicopter would come at daybreak. Get through this one night and nothing would happen. Put another way, something was going to happen before sunrise.

Should he bring this to the battalion commander? His direct superior, after all. Or try the operations officer. But both seemed unlikely. The battalion commander was a broken man drowning himself in drink to forget reality, and the last thing he'd want was his rest disturbed. Whether the operations officer would agree to tighten security on nothing more than unconfirmed suspicion was anyone's guess.

Still, worth trying.

"Hey, get in. Let's head back." Jeffrey patted his shoulder.

The convoy set off. The Trickster had been laid across the back of the third vehicle's turret, lashed down flat. Perhaps it was the raised center of gravity, but the vehicle looked anything but stable. The machine gunner had his barrel locked on the mutant. His posture said everything.

At the base, reinforced checkpoint soldiers were waiting for Jeffrey's platoon. The mutant was already bound, but they chained it again like they'd been waiting for the chance. Even with insulated gloves on, they didn't drop their guard from start to finish.

Throughout all of it, the radio static spiked hard several more times.

If the mutant's goal had been reconnaissance, it had already accomplished at least part of it the moment it was brought inside and began transmitting.

Gyeoul waited until the special mutant was finally locked in its cage, then headed for the camp operations center. Given the circumstances, the operations officer was pulling the duty watch himself. He returned Gyeoul's salute and asked why he'd come.

"What is it? You completed the mission brilliantly. Go get some rest."

"I have a recommendation about tonight's mission."

"A recommendation?"

"Yes, sir. I'd like to suggest we raise the camp's alert level as high as possible until daybreak."

Among the battalion staff, the operations officer was one of the more receptive to Gyeoul. Not personal warmth -- more like respect for competence. The unlucky HQ company soldiers stuck on Christmas Eve duty watched the two of them. The major scratched his chin, then straightened up to face the young officer.

"Let's hear the reason."

"I believe the Trickster infiltrated intentionally."

"Oh?"

He listened with genuine interest as Gyeoul walked him through it.

"Goes further than the report you submitted before. You're saying the jamming signals and their communications may be indistinguishable. Hmm. Command has actually been considering that possibility too. Apparently there are plans to run ECM soon and observe the response."

"You mean our side would attempt to jam them?"

"That's right. If it really is some form of communication, they'd react when jammed. There's a good chance you'll get a mission tied to it. No one on the western side of the containment line has a record like yours."

"I see."

"The 390th is also running regular recon flights to analyze the signal patterns. Given everything, I can't say your concern has no basis. Multiple camps hit with the same thing, all at the same time -- that's suspicious. I'll give you that."

"Then you'll approve it?"

"No."

The major shook his head with a smile.

"It makes sense, but it's too much. What can it do, locked in a cage? Even if it did infiltrate with a plan, would it have anticipated a containment facility that blocks radio waves? We don't know them, but they don't know us. No matter how clever they've gotten, they haven't surpassed human ingenuity."

Then he laughed and added a joke.

"We'd be in trouble if they started building libraries and schools."

"But..."

"Enough. You're overthinking this. That's an order. Go get some rest. It's Christmas."

He waved Gyeoul out. His expression made it clear that further attempts would get nowhere. Gyeoul saluted and withdrew.

So what now.

The sense of danger hadn't left. He couldn't pretend he didn't feel it.

The only option left was to move soldiers directly, going around the chain of command. Ask sincerely enough, and there were people who would respond. But it was a heavy thing to do. Effectively insubordination. If he became the central figure and had to answer for it, his position would take a serious blow. He had enough goodwill built up that it wouldn't crumble all at once.

The more people he brought in, the greater the risk. Someone might refuse to be convinced and report him to command.

Above all, it was only an uncertain possibility. He wasn't sure it was worth going this far. If he was wrong, the fallout might cost more than caution ever saved him.

He considered investing in 「Survival Instinct」. It warned against all possibilities that led to death. Its range was so broad that without integration, the warnings were often vague. He hadn't spent resources since Atascadero, so he had room. The 「Insight」 that came when Survival Instinct reached the genius threshold would be more specific and accurate than anything before.

He made up his mind and pushed the experience points in.

The warning from Rank 11 「Survival Instinct」 rose through him, a faint electric buzz.

But that was all. System-corrected intuition wasn't always right. Either way, it wasn't what he'd hoped for.

「Crisis Detection」 might have served him better. No way to know without trying, though.

After turning it over in his mind, Gyeoul went to find Captain Capston.

The captain listened to everything and nodded.

"Makes sense to me. I compared the combat data from Atascadero and a few other places, and the Trickster's intelligence is genuinely remarkable. Too easy to catch, like you said. Showing up alone was suspiciously sloppy. And that smile bothers me too. Caution never hurts. Still, this is a tricky situation..."

"I've thought about it. We just need to not get caught."

Capston raised an eyebrow. "Is that possible?"

"Think about it. Even if we put the company on standby, that's all it is -- standby. If nothing happens, we never need to act. But if something does happen..."

"Then a minor reprimand would be the least of our worries. I understand." Captain Capston smiled.

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