"Pixie, the others are fighting strangers..."
"Wuu…"
"But those strangers seem to be friends of 'Wangcai'..."
"Wuu…"
"I don't want to see my brothers and sisters get hurt, but I don't want Wangcai and his friends to get hurt either. Am I being contradictory?"
"Wuu…"
"Separate them!"
Perched atop the antenna, the child gave a decisive command. A glimmer of metallic light flickered beside her.
The screen in the office broadcasting the battle abruptly turned to static.
"What's going on?" Chen Bian asked in alarm.
"Someone's jamming the signal..." Anne said gravely.
A thunderous boom rocked the rooftop. The six combatants froze. In the center of the helipad, a circular crater two meters wide had appeared. Satan reacted first. He didn't waste time wondering what had happened—his mission was to eliminate the target before him.
With a swift pivot, his combat blade stabbed toward One's throat—but halted two centimeters short, frozen mid-air. Everyone's gaze converged on Satan and One.
"Fallen for me? Why won't you finish the job?" One smirked awkwardly, eyes on the suspended blade.
Satan gritted his teeth and tried to thrust again, but his arm wouldn't budge—not even a millimeter, as if held fast by an invisible force. Then realization dawned. He roared in rage, "Baby! What are you doing?!"
One ignored the mech's struggle. Reaching behind, he pulled out his assault rifle. But just as he was about to fire, the bolt was violently ripped from the gun and clattered to the ground.
Stunned, One instinctively discarded the weapon and switched to his combat knife—only for his arm to freeze mid-swing once again.
"Everyone stay alert! There's another entity here!" One warned sternly.
"Pixie! I don't know what Baby's orders are, but if you sabotage our mission again, Mother will dismantle you..." Satan strained to move—but to no avail.
"Wuu..." a non-human snarl echoed beside One.
24 and 36 no longer cared about their immediate opponents. They raised their guns toward the source of the sound.
"This is the Taipei Meteorological Center with your forecast. Due to incoming warm, humid currents, expect heavy rain in the coming days. Please remember your umbrellas..."
The once-sunny skies abruptly unleashed a torrential downpour, pelting every combatant—including...
"The mech!" 24 cried out in surprise.
"Damn it—it's cloaked! 24, take 13 and fall back!" 36, uncharacteristically serious, ordered. "If it's an enemy, survival isn't guaranteed. But 13 must not die…"
"Baby! What are you doing?!" Angel spotted the little girl on the rooftop antenna.
"Tell Pixie to stop!" Dove shouted as she embraced the rain-soaked child. "It's dangerous to be up here. There's no lightning now, but what if you got hurt?"
Baby said nothing. Once on the ground, she approached 13 and gently caressed his face.
"Don't touch him!" 24 aimed her weapon at Baby. In that instant, the cloaked mech released Satan and One and surged toward 24, slicing through the rain like a bullet.
"Pixie, stand down!" Baby commanded.
Had 24 turned around, she would have seen the razor-thin hand blade halted just shy of her carotid artery, suspended mid-strike.
"Are you friends with my brother?" Baby asked 24.
"You mean 13? We're his teammates. If you harm him, I'll kill you—no matter what it costs me," 24 replied, unwavering.
"Good. He's badly wounded. Take him home…" Baby smiled softly.
"What?" 24 couldn't believe her ears.
"Well, this just got interesting. Looks like we gained a new teammate?" 36 remarked dryly, still aiming at the cloaked figure behind 24.
"My brother is a good person," Baby said as she stood tall. "I don't want to see him die. Take him. I'll handle things here."
"Who are you really?" 24 asked in confusion.
"Baby, I'm truly furious now," Satan growled as he got to his feet. "It's one thing when you fool around. But interfering with our mission? If Mother finds out…"
"I have no time to argue. Are you leaving or not?" Baby demanded, eyes fixed on 24.
"24, evacuate with 13!" One barked.
"I don't know why, but thank you!" 24 hoisted the unconscious 13 and his COOL-FIRE rifle, running for cover beneath the roof.
"Game's over for now—see you next time, Big Bird. Bye-bye…" 36 picked up 13's helmet and dashed after her.
"Use the suspension system!" One called out, following close behind.
"No one escapes!" Satan bellowed, electromagnetic arcs dancing between his hands.
"Satan," Baby warned, her voice like frozen steel. "I will get angry…"
And so, they all watched as Special Task Force Unit Seven escaped from the rooftop.
Satan clenched his fists, conjuring ionized orbs the size of basketballs. He threw his head back and howled in fury.
"You're driving me insane!" he roared, then launched the charged orb at the 60-meter antenna's base.
The colossal antenna was blasted open—a ten-meter-wide hole gaping in its structure.
"Let's see how you explain that to Mother!"
"Look! What is that?" a young soldier in the perimeter pointed skyward.
Everyone turned.
"Looks like we've got an audience," 36 said with a smirk as she landed.
"No time. Let's head 'home'!" One swiftly drew a cyan hoverboard from his back.
"Identify yourselves! You are surrounded. Lay down your weapons and surrender!" came the chorus of cocked rifles.
"You're not even qualified to demand our surrender. 36—punch through!" 24 shouted, carrying 13.
"Out of the way. I'm done playing!" 36 launched forward on her green hoverboard.
"Fire!"
The 5.56mm rounds rained like a storm.
36 raised her right hand, and with a sweeping motion, unleashed a horizontal burst—screams and explosions replaced the gunfire.
"Commander! They're breaking out from the rear of the building!"
"How many?!" the once-confident general cried out.
"Just four! One of them is the target, though he appears unconscious."
"Is that so?" the general smiled, relieved. "He's lost his combat edge—what's there to fear? Tell the troops: not one escapes!"
"Commander…" the soldier's face turned grim. "I came to report... they've already escaped."
"Bastard!" the general struck the soldier to the ground. "There are nearly two thousand men and officers stationed out back! How could four people break through?!"
"Sir, you should see for yourself…" The soldier, sitting on the ground, cradled his face with trembling hands.
A foreboding chill spread through the general's chest...
"This…" The sight before him resembled the aftermath of an assault by a full division. Wounded men writhed in agony. Armored vehicles and bulletproof cruisers were shredded.
"What kind of monsters are they…?" the general muttered, slumping to the ground, his mind adrift.
Back at base, the mechs stood before their emotionless superior. Baby's heart trembled with fear.
"I need an explanation. Who's going to give it to me?"
"Pixie intervened," Satan said through clenched teeth. "Everything was going smoothly—then Unit Seven showed up. They're strong, but not strong enough to take one of us from right under our noses. But then Baby's Pixie interfered... That's what happened."
Anne stepped in front of Baby, looking down at her.
"Is that true?"
Baby, tears at the corners of her eyes, nodded silently.
"Then you must accept the consequences..." Anne raised her right hand. Baby closed her eyes, bracing for the slap.
Smack!
The hand struck Satan across the face.
"What kind of brothers are you supposed to be?!" Anne scolded. "I told you—Baby must not be involved in direct combat. She's still a child. Don't you understand that? What Pixie? What interference? All excuses to cover for failure! This time I'll let it slide. But if it happens again—don't come back."
"It's always like this…" Satan muttered bitterly, lowering his head. "Every time she screws up, it's our fault."
"Why shouldn't it be?" Anne's tone darkened.
Satan clenched his trembling fists. "Un-der-stood…"
"Don't forget who you are. If the government hadn't pulled you from starving orphanages across the world, you wouldn't even be standing here." She picked Baby up in her arms. "You are not like her. Your duty is to protect her. Engrave this in your mind: Your lives are not as precious as hers. If Baby is endangered again, be prepared for the consequences."
Anne ignored the three and walked toward her room.