I Was Thawed Out 1,000 Years in the Future. Men Were Extinct. ~Apparently, I’m Being Forced into Breeding Sex by Lewd Beautiful Girls in Skin-Tight Suits to Preserve the Human Race~ - 2

Chapter 2: Ground Drop Unit Alpha: In Search of Hope

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

The 250mm-thick high-durability space armor pierced through the debris drifting like clouds. Trailing a glowing red tail, the conical descent pod fell in a straight line. The three plasma jet engines operated without issue, succeeding in punching through the leaden black clouds that stood like a barrier guarding Mother Earth.

Three seconds before atmospheric entry. The engines, having exhausted their propellant, were jettisoned along with their tanks. These, too, would be caught by gravity and disappear into the scattered debris.

“Ground Drop Unit Alpha, cleared the black clouds. Commencing atmospheric entry.” 

『Roger. Monitor the airframe parameters closely and deploy wide-area radar.』

The descent pod shook violently as it collided with the wall of the atmosphere. Due to adiabatic compression, a reddish hue spread across the high-durability space armor like a stain. However, the crew members performed their respective duties calmly. There were no major deviations from the simulations they had repeated countless times.

“Alisa, I have a reaction on the radar.” 

“Roger. …We have to be careful not to get shot down!”

The radar emitted from the pod provided information about the surroundings, but it also risked exposing their position to the enemy. The pod itself was constructed with a stealth structure, but they could only rely on that as little more than a good luck charm. Upon receiving the report from the radar observer, Alpha Commander Alisa notified each member. Immediately after, a projectile approached sharply from the predicted direction, as if piercing through the darkness.

“It’s an old-model automated defense missile. It’s equipped with a Level III AI capable of autonomous action and deploys eight sub-missiles.” 

“Purge armor. Deploy high-altitude chaff. Drop Decoys A and B.” 

“Roger.” 

“Roger.”

Following Alisa’s instructions, the pod shifted its form. The dull-colored armor peeled off, blowing away to the rear left and right. In its place, a silver-white hull appeared. Two cylindrical decoys held in the “belly” were tossed out, followed by a scattering of countless chaff particles. The missile that appeared from the Earth’s horizon closed the distance to a certain point before splitting into fragments. Eight missiles, each one possessed enough power to blow the pod into smithereens. Using optical sensors, they automatically selected their target and launched a suicidal kamikaze attack.

“Decoy A, lost.”

One of the decoys, which had been asserting its presence by emitting strong electromagnetic waves, exploded. The impact reached the pod, causing it to shake heavily. Attitude control thrusters were immediately fired in short bursts to implement orbital corrections.

“Less than 250km until we break through the air defense layer.”

Earth’s atmosphere was approximately 500km deep. They were past the halfway point. The automated air defense systems of the old era were supported within the range from the upper atmosphere down to 100km above the surface. They had to survive those 400km.

“New automated defense missiles detected.” 

“Decoy B, lost.”

Countless predecessors had attempted to break through this thick atmospheric layer before now. The information stored within the pod they rode in was something paid for with lives as the price.

“Deploy the repulsion field!” 

“Commander!? Our velocity will decay!” 

“I don’t care, just do it!”

The girl shouted while enduring a pressure that felt as if she were being pinned down. The enemy attacks were more intense than in the preliminary simulations. There were more surviving interceptor facilities than had been previously observed. At this rate, their defensive measures would be exhausted. The Commander’s decision was absolute. 

After a moment of hesitation, a translucent membrane enveloped the pod. It was like opening a parachute during a freefall. Their speed dropped instantly, and a strong impact spread through the interior of the craft according to the force of inertia. The skinsuits protected the living bodies from all environments, but they were useless against physical impact. If the crew members hadn’t been wearing their seatbelts tightly, there surely would have been injuries. The slowed pod was a perfect target. Missiles separated from their mother units rushed in one after another. They were like a school of carnivorous fish pecking at carrion dropped into the water.

“The remaining power has dropped below 40%!” 

“The field durability won’t hold!”

Screams broke out. After a long journey of 1,000 light-years, their objective was right before their eyes. They didn’t want to die in a place like this. They screamed the same cries that the advance teams must have uttered. But..

“Lige, deactivate the field on my signal.” 

“C-Commander!? If you do that—”

With the armor stripped away, the pod was exposed. There was no way it could withstand a missile. Alisa gave her wide-eyed colleague a forced, daring smile.

“It’ll be fine. —Now!” 

“Ngh!”

There was no time to hesitate. Lige slammed the button on the console. In that instant, a command ran through the power system, and the energy supplied to the repulsion field was cut off. The pod exposed its thin armor. Immediately after, the hull—having “folded its parachute”—accelerated for a split second. That made all the difference. Two missiles that had been closing in from the left and right on a straight line collided behind the pod. A tremendous blast wave spread through the atmosphere.

“Deploy field!” 

“Yes, ma’am!”

Once again, the repulsion field expanded. The thing that had gripped the pod like a parachute now became a sail catching a fair wind, inviting the pod nestled inside toward the ground. By inducing the missiles to detonate and catching that wind, they re-accelerated. The pod pierced through the thick wall of the atmosphere and tore through the natural white clouds.

“We’ve broken through the air defense layer!”

Cheers erupted inside the ship. However, Alisa, facing the bow, kept her lips pressed thin.

“Transition to intra-atmospheric cruise mode. Begin radar analysis and select a landing point.”

“R-Roger that.”

Spreading out beyond the clouds was a vast wasteland. It seemed it would still take some time before plants would grow in the contaminated soil. The remains of decayed war machines brought to mind the despair of days gone by. Faced with the eerie sight, the lighthearted air that had begun to float through the ship vanished. Lige, in charge of defense systems, turned an anxious gaze toward Alisa.

“Commander… is he really there?” 

“During the war of invasion, the male-to-female ratio was still male-dominated. Besides, these coordinates ahead are where the medical city used to be. We’ll find at least one person… No, we have to find him.”

With a strong sense of mission in her eyes, Alisa clenched her fist tightly. The fate of humanity was currently tipping heavily toward ruin. To halt that rapid shift of the scales, Alisa and her team had to achieve their goal. In the wasteland, several fresh wreckage pieces lay fallen. Those were the gravestones of the old-human search teams who had attempted atmospheric entry before Alisa’s group. Alisa and her crew stood at the summit of the foothold those women had built with their lives.

『Ground Drop Unit Alpha, report status.』

A dignified voice echoed from the speaker, cutting through the heavy silence. Alisa snapped back to her senses and answered hurriedly.

“This is Ground Drop Unit Alpha. We have successfully broken through the air defense layer. Currently navigating toward Search Point One.”

Through the high-precision speaker, the sense of relief from the headquarters operators came through.

『Roger. Well done. But do not let your guard down. Regardless of the air defense system, the ground defense system is an unknown variable. Most likely won’t move due to age-related degradation, but…』

“I know. We will proceed while remaining vigilant in all directions.”

Nothing moved in the wasteland of scrap metal. However, the observer stared at the monitors with eyes like saucers. The machines from 1,000 years ago had long since exceeded their service life. Yet, the air defense system had been functional. The possibility that other weapons, sitting still inside the thick atmosphere, had been wiped out was low.

“Ngh! Heat source detected at 11 o’clock!” 

“Activate intra-atmospheric defense interceptors. We’re going to outrun them!”

Sure enough, weapons that knew neither sleep nor boredom began to move. They rose up, shouting with joy at their first prey in 1,000 years. Moving rusted wheels and chipped gears, they projected the shells they had loaded. The countless short-range defense turrets deployed from the pod instantly shot down the projectiles falling like rain.

“Defense interception capability at 2% utilization. This is easy.” 

“Of course it is. It would be pathetic to lose to 1,000-year-old outdated junk.”

Alisa felt a bit relieved seeing the crew members find the room to crack jokes. The air defense system, which had been the greatest hurdle, was not of human make. As long as they could break through that, the scrap on the ground could be handled. The pod, having extended its wings for stability, flew smoothly over the surface. Visible in the direction they were heading was a former metropolis where rubble was piled high.

“—Search Point One located. We will conduct a ground search upon landing.” 

『Roger. The real challenge starts now. Stay sharp.』 

“Roger.”

Encouraged by the command center, Alisa and the Alpha Unit crew regained their sense of tension. Using wide-area radar to find stable ground among the rubble, the pod smoothly extended its three legs and achieved landing. It was the return of humanity for the first time in exactly 1,000 years.

“Everyone, put on your ground exploration equipment.”

Following Alisa’s instructions, the crew members began to move. The equipment lined up on the racks consisted of imposing protective gear developed specifically for this day. The sturdy full-face helmets had built-in purification systems to block the contaminated atmosphere and circulate breath. The protective equipment worn over the skinsuits provided bulletproof and blade-resistant performance, in addition to withstanding high radiation. 

Furthermore, they carried heavy firearms. They slotted extra magazines into their belts, and the rucksacks on their backs contained survival kits. Even if they were unable to return to the pod, they could survive for three days without resupply. Leaving two crew members to look after the pod, Alisa and the others opened the airlock. They descended the ramp and finally set foot on the ground. The top of the pod opened, and a small exploration drone took flight.

“The 1G environment really sinks into the body.” 

“You’ve had the training. Let’s head out without letting our guard down.”

To those who were accustomed to skinsuits, the thick and heavy ground exploration equipment felt like uncomfortable restraints. Moreover, just standing on the ground resulted in a strong pressure bearing down on them. Rebuking and encouraging her subordinates who were groaning in pain, Alisa began to move.

“That abandoned hospital should have a cryogenic sleep device. There, our hope lies sleeping.”

The destination was the former sanctuary that had been shattered to pieces 1,000 years ago.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー