From cannon fodder to sweeping across thousands of stars.

Chapter 376 The Male Lead Who Fell from the Sky

Single-plane entry into the atmosphere was nothing new to Amber.

Whether sitting in an orbital drop capsule as an 'orbital paratrooper', or riding an HCP and performing 'drop operations' in the package of a dedicated drop capsule, in the previous life's game it was like a 'daily routine' like eating and drinking.

Because the players, especially the pioneering group consisting of all "Jiji Kings", are a group that puts "efficiency first".

Therefore, many times, players will pass up transportation projects like orbital elevators or space routes, which are comfortable but require queuing and take a long time.

In most cases, these anxious players will choose to pay a small fee and take a "cheap interstellar flight route" set up by a certain player.

This type of transport spacecraft for player-built routes is generally converted from retired near-space assault ships or orbital attack ships through "harmless" modification.

They will make brief stops in the low or medium orbits of the planets they pass by on their route, and their methods of "getting on and off passengers" are also very simple and crude.

After entering orbit around a star, first avoid the planet's patrol fleet and find the planet's orbital management blind spot - this kind of "management blind spot" is very common on T2, T3 or border planets of the Federation and the Empire.

Then, after secretly descending to a low orbit, the passengers who need to disembark at this stop are placed in a drop capsule and thrown down like a hen laying eggs.

Depending on how much the player pays, they can choose a more comfortable and private single-person airdrop cabin, or they can squeeze into a standard airdrop cabin with other players.
After the mission is completed, the spacecraft will return to high orbit, then go to the airport or satellite city to "pick up passengers" and replenish the consumed airborne capsules at the "office" set up locally.

This set of skillful operations made the business of this "cheap interstellar flight route" extremely popular. Later, it was dug out by a curious player. This person is actually the boss of a traditional transportation giant.
Therefore, players of "Starry Sky OL" are not unfamiliar with the fact that a single soldier breaks into the atmosphere, and they will do it every now and then, because many people play this game just for these "exciting projects".

However, it was the first time for Amber to fly an HCP into the atmosphere without the assistance of additional airborne components.

Even this 'ATLAS' heavy space combat-specialized HCP, its test model was also tested in the atmosphere before it was put into formal production, but all of them were without people on board.

Before manned testing could be done, the conflict between Atlas and the Federation Army on Para IV had already begun to intensify, so Amber initially thought of conducting conventional combat first, and as for those functional projects that had not yet completed testing, they would not be touched for the time being.

But the battlefield situation changes rapidly, and in many cases you won't have time to prepare.
However, Amber would not give up on entering the atmosphere to put out the fire just because he had not completed the test. After all, he had been instilling an idea in Atlas' combat units:

"The Atlas Combat Force's job is to go to the battlefield when needed, not after it is ready."

Do not do to others what you do not want others to do to you. If you retreat at this time, don't expect your combat troops to carry out this fighting spirit in the future.
-
"Master, there is good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?"

"Tsk, let me tell you the bad news first."

Inside the cockpit of the 'ATLAS' heavy space combat specialized HCP, Amber, wearing a heavy hydraulic anti-gravity suit, was wrapped in an additional cushioning device that was usually hidden.

At the same time, the heavy hydraulic anti-G suit also activated the highest level of the 'pharmacological anti-G system', injecting drugs that help him withstand high G forces into his body through intramuscular injections.

"The bad news is that since we didn't have time to equip the egg-shaped airborne assembly, we can only use the 'lift-type reentry mode' that has not been tested in any way to enter the atmosphere.
Also because there was no data to refer to, during the process of entering the atmosphere, the flight control system could only be adjusted in real time by me after collecting data from various sensors~"

"Can't we use the data of other lift-type reentry spacecraft as a reference?"

"The aerodynamic shapes are all different. There's no way to refer to them, Master~"

Lilith's voice was sweet, but the words she said still made Amber's heart tighten.

Friends who frequently re-enter the atmosphere or are familiar with the 'EDL (Entry, Descent, Landing)' process know that compared with the 'ballistic' and 'semi-ballistic' re-entry methods, the lift re-entry has the advantages of low overload, large maneuvering range and high landing accuracy, but it is also much more technically advanced than the former two, especially in terms of the extremely high requirements for the flight control system.

After all, if an ordinary aircraft has a problem with its attitude during flight, there is usually still time to find a way to save it. However, in the case of high-speed friction with the atmosphere, as long as there is a slight problem, it is very likely to disintegrate in the next second.

Therefore, even with the strong artificial intelligence Lilith in charge, Amber still felt a little nervous. Although he was a psychic, he was not yet strong enough to "penetrate the atmosphere with his physical body".

"So what's the good news?"

"The good news is that the currently calculated landing trajectory will land just above the area where the 5th Combined Operations Battalion is located. We don't need to readjust the landing trajectory."

"Thank you very much"

"Just tell me if it's good news~"

While Amber and Lilith were communicating, 'ATLAS' also ended its 'braking phase' flight. With the help of the additional propulsion components, the relative speed between the aircraft and the planet had dropped from the previous combat speed and turned into a trajectory that flew into the planet's atmosphere.

At this time, 'ATLAS' is 110 kilometers above the surface, which is also the so-called upper boundary of the planet's atmosphere.

At this time, the main thrusters of the aircraft temporarily stopped working, and it was only controlled by occasional sprays from the attitude control nozzles in various parts of the fuselage to ensure that the aircraft could fly freely under the influence of the gravity of the celestial body.

At the same time, bulky external propulsion components, large weapon units on the fuselage, and equipment such as empty missile launch boxes were also discarded at this stage.

These things, especially the lance-like heavy particle cannons and long-range electromagnetic sniper cannons, definitely cannot be brought into the atmosphere.

Not only will they destroy the aerodynamic shape of the aircraft, which is almost non-existent, but they are also easily damaged by the high temperatures generated by the intense friction with the atmosphere.

Looking at the equipment being abandoned and moving farther and farther away on the rearview screen, Amber shook her head with some heartache.

"It's such a waste. The long-range sniper electromagnetic cannon only fired one round. We need Eugene and Owens to bring out the entire recovery module, otherwise we will have to throw it away like this every time."

While thinking about assigning assignments to the two heads of the Equipment R&D Center, Amber looked at the multi-function display on the lower left.

At this point, after discarding the weapons and additional components that had run out of ammunition, the body had returned to its normal 'human form', with the only armaments left being the close-in defense lasers on both sides of the main monitor on the head and the heavy shield mounted on the left shoulder armor.

"Lilith, where is the Ikaros? Its weapons have been depleted. We will need a weapon assembly airdrop soon."

"Follow us on the high track, Master~" Lilith's voice came again,
"The Federation fleet and the three cruisers behind us don't seem to have the time to deal with it, so it keeps following us. Master, what weapons do you need? I'll arrange for an airdrop now to ensure it can enter the atmosphere at the same time as us."

"Three pieces of land combat equipment, plus a set of plasma rocket launch nests and tactical missile launch bays."

Amber quickly stated her needs, and then, as if she had thought of something, she asked:
"By the way, have you loaded the newly-made plasma beam saber onto the Ikaros?"

"I got here just in time for loading."

"Very good, bring me two too!"

While Amber and Lilith were communicating, 'ATLAS' also began to move from the 'entry into orbit transition phase' to the real 'entry phase'.

Starting from the highest point of the dense atmosphere, the effects of aerodynamic forces on the body begin to become more and more obvious.

Amber also controlled the machine to erect the heavy shield in front of her body, and tried her best to hide the rest of the machine behind the shield.

At this time, the surface temperature of the fuselage and shield began to rise rapidly. Although the thermal insulation material on the external armor surface began to burn and melt, and took away the huge heat generated by friction with the atmosphere, 'ATLAS' was not a professional re-entry spacecraft after all, so the temperature in the cockpit also began to rise rapidly and finally stabilized at around 39 degrees.

"If I survive this time, I'm going to have them fix the temperature control in the cockpit! It's too hot."

"Received Master, the previous request has been recorded~"
-
As the battle progressed, most of the viewers watching the 'Eye of Truth' live broadcast were shouting in excitement, because it was the first time they saw a live broadcast on a warship that was being pursued.

There is always a small screen in the upper right corner of the live broadcast screen, which displays the distance and relative speed between the Atlas Fleet and the Federal Fleet in real time.

Everyone is beginning to be curious at this moment. When the federal fleet catches up, what kind of battle will break out between the two fleets, and how long will this live broadcast last?
When 'ATLAS' turned into a meteor and fell towards the surface of the planet, both the pursuing Federation Fleet and the pursued Atlas Fleet captured this conspicuous 'heat source' flying quickly under them.

Inside the Hermes's broadcast center, the 'Eye of Truth' director asked Isabel uncertainly, "Should we also inform you about the boss entering the atmosphere? What if..."

"Nothing unexpected."

Isabel's words were full of unquestionable confidence. She turned to look at the director of the Eye of Truth and said in a firm tone:

"Boss can definitely do it. And as an Atlas employee, you should also believe that he can do it. Go ahead. Let the anchor report the truth."

"Yes, supervisor."

Soon, the audience in the "Eye of Truth" live broadcast room heard news that made them even more shocked. The boss of Atlas - the guy who had just attacked alone, was now starting to work on the "single-machine breakthrough into the atmosphere" again.

At this moment, not only the ordinary audience, including President Brandon and his party in the conference room of the Federal Ministry of Defense building, but also the Regent of the Star Dragon Empire, Princess Agnes, and Ellenita who was far away in the Thousand Star Empire were all standing in front of the screen, paying attention to the situation of Atlas and Amber.

Some people hope that he will burn to ashes in the atmosphere, some hope that he will fall to the ground and cause trouble, and some just hope that he can return safely.
On the surface of Pyla IV, many refugees and troops from both sides who were in the right position saw the ball of light passing through the sky.

In Atlas' ten refugee camps, the refugees were almost all gathered in front of the many screens set up in the camps, watching the images synchronized from the camps' air-to-air optical tracking sensors.

When this fiery red 'meteor' with a long tail and constantly scattered fragments appeared in the center of the screen.

The old men who were accommodated in various camps and shouted "Battlefield Angels" when the Atlas troops arrived, shook off the hands of others who were supporting them, knelt on the ground trembling, and worshiped in the direction of Amber's fall in the sky.

Other kind-hearted refugees stepped forward and tried to pull the old men up from the ground, but they heard them muttering in an excited voice:
"It is the Holy See that has come. The prophecy of the ancients has come true!"
-
"80 km altitude"

"65 km altitude"

"40 km altitude"

"Altitude 35 kilometers Master, we have successfully left the black barrier area, the current descent speed is 7.5 Mach, the EDL process has entered the 'descent phase'!"

"Shit! It worked?!"

This was the first sentence Amber blurted out after she came to her senses.

After leaving the black barrier area and the re-entry speed begins to gradually decrease, the most dangerous part of the entire process has passed.

Although it is still more than 30 kilometers above the ground, as long as nothing goes wrong, the aircraft can easily complete the final deceleration with its own propulsion device.

After calming down her excitement, Amber first removed the extra restraints on the pilot in the cockpit and returned to normal driving posture, while beginning to check the condition of the aircraft.

Thanks to the fact that no corners were cut when the aircraft was built, and Lilith's continuous revisions to the flight control, there were no problems with the aircraft. However, the shield that served as the "bottom" in front was on the verge of being scrapped.

The thermal insulation layer on its surface has been completely burned away, and more than half of the armor layer underneath has also been burned. The internal coolant has also been consumed in the process of breaking through the "black barrier zone", which is basically equivalent to losing its defensive capabilities.

The radars and sensors that were temporarily shut down after entering the "black barrier zone" also resumed working order. The downward-looking radar and terrain scanning radar dedicated to operations within the atmosphere also quickly updated important information.

But before Amber had time to check her current position, a series of rapid "beeping" sounds were heard in the cockpit, and then turned into a sharp buzzing sound.

"Master, we've been targeted by the fire control radar! It's the Federation Army's ground-based air defense force!"

"Understood, I'll start evasive maneuvers, help me with threat guidance."

Amber glanced directly below the Omni-Area cockpit, where several radar signal sources on the surface were marked, and he began to adjust his descent trajectory through the attitude control nozzle.

"Lilith, where is the weapon support component?"

"Just got out of the black barrier area, right above your head, Master!"

After hearing Lilith's answer, Amber looked up and saw a black dot marked with a green frame above her.

At the same time, the buzzing sound in the cockpit became more and more shrill, and finally turned directly into Lilith's voice warning.

"Master, anti-aircraft missiles have been detected taking off! According to the Federation Army's usual air defense combat procedures, the next step should be high-energy laser irradiation!"

"Don't panic, help me get the weapon first."

Amber's voice had become very calm at this moment, and the plasma propulsion array on the back of his dedicated machine 'Giant' also erupted with a surge of blue light.

The aircraft's descent speed began to slow down sharply, and the distance to the weapons drop pod above its head became closer and closer.

When it entered a certain range, this huge airborne capsule suddenly exploded, throwing away the external insulation pneumatic components and revealing the internal parallel weapon containers.

"Lilith, execute the docking procedure."

Amber spoke, and at the same time, the close-in defense lasers on both sides of the main monitor on her head began to flash at a high frequency.

Soon, two fireballs exploded at the lower right side of the aircraft, but there were still a large number of dangerous targets marked in red approaching at high speed.

But Amber did not panic. He continued to lower the height difference between himself and the weapon container, while maintaining evasive maneuvers and using two close-in defense lasers to target these missiles one by one.

The thin atmosphere at high altitudes would actually maximize the combat effectiveness of the close-in defense laser. With the help of the advanced radar group and sensors installed on the "Giant", all the air defense missiles that were trying to climb were shot down.

However, Amber knew that these anti-aircraft missiles were just appetizers, and the real threat came from the subsequent directed energy weapon attacks.

But the good news is that the high-altitude docking of the fuselage and the weapons container is about to be completed.

As several dull 'click' sounds were transmitted along the body of the machine into Amber's ears, the body armament information on the multi-function display screen was also rapidly updated.

"Fire control unit adaptation completed, energy circuits begin to redistribute."

"Heavy particle cannons, charged particle cannons, and electromagnetic reconnection cannons are online. The plasma rocket launcher nest begins to move to the leg rack."

As the icons representing the corresponding weapons turned green on the screen, Amber's mouth corners continued to rise, eventually turning into a slightly perverted smile.

When a beam of charged particles from the surface hit the heavy shield in front of it, the "hero" who accompanied Amber in completing the atmospheric breakthrough also completed its final mission.

The huge shield shattered into several pieces and flew away, and the long-range weapon set originally stored in the weapon container was also deployed in the process.

Under Amber's control, the fire control unit quickly locked onto the location where the charged particle beam had just irradiated. It was an air defense position temporarily reorganized by the HCP and high-energy laser air defense vehicles.

"You're the only ones with directed energy weapons, right?"

As Amber muttered to herself, she switched the heavy particle cannon to 'irradiation' mode, blasting out a blue-white jet of heavy metal ions.

While destroying most of the targets on the position during the strafing, it also marked the beginning of the 'famous scene' that cast a shadow over the Pala IV Federation ground forces.

(End of this chapter)