Colonial Suit

The storm howled, sweeping through the void, tearing apart any who dared to intrude.

At a certain coordinate within the first layer of the Abyss, human engineering machinery was working feverishly, assembling massive modules into a POS (Player Owned Structure). Once the force field activated, capable of withstanding the storm's pressure, the fleet service array became operational. Warships slowly docked, soon sparking with welding fires. Nearby, the energy recycling system hummed, replenishing the severely depleted shields of the warships. The process wasn't complex, but it required time.

The storms of the Abyss were too ferocious. Even with preparations, humanity had suffered significant losses. Not only was the vanguard fleet heavily damaged, but even the reconnaissance mothership was battered.

If not for the Jackson's selfless rescue, this advanced mothership, five years in the making, would have been reduced to cosmic debris.

Outside the POS, the massive Eden slowly moved, using its bulk to carve out temporary 'weak wind zones' to facilitate the assembly of more POS structures. In this migration phase, lacking a homeworld spaceport or permanent space station, these POS structures were the fleet's doctors, nurses, and lifeline.

Inside the POS's hospital, many wounded had already been admitted. The immigration zone was also filling up, with children running through the corridors, their laughter carefree.

"How is Jackson?"

In the Eden's garden, the Speaker asked softly.

"Confirmed KIA. I'm sorry, we couldn't recover the remains," Sal Jones said from the side, behind him stood a neatly dressed military officer, the captain of the Namsis, Henst, whom Jackson had rescued. In fact, the millions of crew members of the Namsis owed their lives to Jackson.

Faced with the Speaker's silence, he stepped forward. "I'm sorry, Speaker. I failed to safeguard the fleet."

"Don't apologize, my captain," the Speaker waved his hand, his face seeming to age further. "This is the fate of every soldier. You've done very well. Encountering an energy vortex is not your fault, nor can Jackson's death be attributed to you. It's as he himself said: if someone is destined to die, let it be the one whose life allows those of greater value to live."

"You, or rather, your warship, are more valuable than his."

The Speaker's voice lowered, and he finally closed his eyes. "Live well, taking his share too. And then…"

"Die with value."

Henst nodded, saluted silently, and then left the garden.

Watching his still-resolute back, Sal Jones said, "He's a good captain."

"All our captains are good," the Speaker replied, his tone somewhat bleak. "It's just that many of them are destined not to see victory."

"Humanity needs sacrifice," Sal Jones advised. "Everyone does."

"I know," the Speaker lowered his head, then focused his gaze on the report. After a while, he said, "I just want to remind myself not to take sacrifice for granted, not to see flesh and blood as cold numbers on this report."

"How is the POS cluster construction progressing?"

"45% complete. The remainder is estimated to be finished within an hour."

"Very well, this gives us a forward base. Once the fleet is repaired, send out reconnaissance squadrons to find the entrance to the next layer. Also, I want to know the whereabouts of the Sacha and Boca."

"Understood," Sal Jones replied, his expression becoming much more serious.

The journey has only just begun… Entering the Abyss is only the first step. How to survive and advance within the Abyss is the challenge humanity must overcome. In fact, this is true not only for them, but also for the Boca and Sacha. The only difference is that they have ample foundations and have already made sufficient sacrifices.

The sacrifices humanity is making now are probably not even a third of what they initially endured.

Humanity rested in the POS for a day, then resumed exploring the first layer of the Abyss. The storms were still dangerous, but as time passed, humanity gradually adapted to the environment. A wise man once said that life inherently possesses adaptability, and in this universe, if adaptability were ranked, humans would be among the best, if not the best.

Cold, hunger, heat, torment.

These were merely catalysts for human evolution. As long as they remained united and had heroes, this race would, like ants, continue to thrive tenaciously.

On the second day, the reconnaissance squadron, the Water-Based Star reconnaissance ship, encountered a spatial fault line. There were no survivors.

On the third day, the reconnaissance squadron, the Giles Nair light assault ship, encountered an energy vortex and was annihilated.

On the fourth day, the reconnaissance squadron, the Khanbok battlecruiser, the Stasso logistics ship, encountered a spatial 'void' and disappeared.

On the fifth day…

On the Speaker's desk lay a report.

"The entrance to the second layer has been found?"

"Yes, and we also found traces of the Boca and Sacha. They passed through there without any obstruction," Sal Jones replied, while also opening the intelligence network screen. "I believe they already know how to counter the environment here and know how to proceed."

"That's normal, after all, they've been exploring this place for much longer than we have," the Speaker nodded. "The question now is, can we catch up?"

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"We should be able to," Sal Jones said. "As long as we grab their tails."

"Then set off immediately!"

With the Speaker's command, the entire human POS cluster erupted with activity. A large number of modules were dismantled and returned, and the fleet entered cruising mode. As the POS force field shut down, the familiar cosmic storm battered against the warships' armor plates once more. But this time, humanity was no longer lost, but sailing towards a clear direction…

The massive Eden was at the forefront, using its immense size and sturdy shields to withstand the impact, forcibly carving out a path for humanity through the storm.

Time trickled by, and in just half a day, they reached the coordinate point. Looking at the funnel-like void, everyone revealed eager gazes.

Passing through here would lead to the second layer of the Abyss…

One step closer to the Gate of Eternal Farewell.

Once again, the vanguard fleet rushed into the entrance. After receiving the all-clear, the Eden led the follow-up fleet forward. The journey was smooth, but as they passed through the entrance and joined up with the vanguard fleet, many light spots suddenly appeared in the surrounding void.

Those light spots were like fireflies, but densely packed, boundless and endless.

"The Boca! Light-energy floating cannons!"

A crew member shouted, then saw the sky filled with beams of light shooting towards them, like a torrential downpour. The vanguard fleet's shields only wavered a few times before shattering, and then warships disintegrated in the beams of light, exploding into balls of fire. The Eden, under emergency shield deployment, managed to save the remaining ships.

But just as they breathed a sigh of relief, they were horrified to see that the entrance behind them was being attacked by the beams of light…

…slowly collapsing.

"It's a trap!"