BLAZE

▲▼　Story　▲▼
"It can't be" — everyone thought the same. Contact with the Seventh Base "Ende" had been lost, and within minutes the entire communications grid went dark. The station staff, who had assumed it was nothing worse than a faulty transmitter, could only panic. 　Something had clearly happened — an event no one had foreseen. The superluminal communications network, which had operated flawlessly since the Federation was founded, based on the propagation of the ether, simply could not fail... or so they thought. 　The flowering of super-science had been born from the military needs of the last great war. The creatures of another world that humanity first openly encountered... against them, existing science had no hope. So humans turned to the fragments of magic and alchemy handed down as relics of the past, and to the technology of those otherworldly beings as well. 　The forbidden arts gave humanity both power and tragedy. The outsiders were driven off, yet far more lives were lost in the research itself than in the fighting. Stars fused with stars, space twisted in on itself, and many people degenerated into mutants and had to be hunted down. Only then did mankind understand why the ancient sages had kept such silence about magic. 　After the era of war ended and the Grand Cosmic Federation was formed, most of the supernatural sciences that had been researched during the war were locked away. Only those that had been thoroughly elucidated — at enormous cost — were permitted for use. Still, discoveries such as the subdimension known as Tau Space (indispensable for warp travel) and the ether force field, which allowed faster-than-light communication while also forming the substance of the soul, brought peace and prosperity to every corner of the Federation, with plenty to spare. 　The bad feeling, the prediction everyone had hoped was wrong, was proved correct one hour later. The silence of Planet Ged, and the presence of an unidentified fleet, was confirmed. Further still, all contact with the superluminal communications network and with Tau Space was completely severed... 　"An anti-extraterrestrial ultimate weapon — so such a thing really existed." 　In the rarely-used "Sealed Chamber" of the Federation Supreme Command conference room, the first to break the silence was an aging man seated at the far end of the table. 　Federation Supreme Commander Gil Arc. Once he had looked through the report, he turned his gaze to the young officer from the Science Bureau who had come to brief them. Because the Science Bureau was pouring all of its resources into containing the situation, the director had sent this young man in his place. 　Feeling the weight of the room, he nevertheless pressed on with his report in a clear voice. 　"Planet Ged, where the Seventh Base is located — as you know, this star system was badly contaminated during the last war, and only recently has development finally been possible. Records showed that remnants of a facility from that era still existed on Ged, so the Seventh Base had begun to investigate them. 　Given that this incident occurred at exactly that point, we believe that for some reason the system has reactivated itself and begun to attack." 　"A relic of the last war... something capable of warping all of space itself." 　The rumor of an ultimate weapon had always existed: a weapon, and the fleet that guarded it, created so that humanity could take its enemies down with it in a final act of mutual destruction... 　The young man continued, giving his report on the current situation. 　"Strong noise is being injected into the ether, and its output is approximately one hundred million Lévi." 　A stir went through the chamber... producing even ten thousand Lévi of output would require a full year's energium consumption of the entire Federation. At an output measured in hundreds of millions, there was no way to even predict the results. 　"Science itself has advanced since that age. But in terms of military and destructive power, the level reached back then was far higher." 　Arc muttered, as if restraining the committee chairs, and motioned for the officer to continue. 　"It's a peculiar waveform, so three-dimensional space isn't yet affected. However, interference has already begun in Tau Space. All space-time transport devices risk malfunction, and, as far as the notifications have reached, we have ordered their use suspended. 　Nevertheless... the output continues to rise. At this rate, anomalies may begin occurring even at the spirit-particle level. In roughly one week, the entire human population of the Elty star system will collapse at the spirit-particle level, by our calculations. Evacuation advisories have already been issued, but without subspace travel, even our fastest starships can manage only 0.7 parsecs per day. That buys us, at best, about one extra day." 　"So we don't just die — our souls themselves are destroyed. We can't even go to hell." 　The words came from Alek Flave, captain of the Federation Imperial Guard, who had been silent until now. 　Having reached his rank purely on ability at just twenty-eight, he was also well known as an eccentric. His outburst drew angry looks from the other committee members, but he didn't flinch. 　"Yeah, I sent a recon unit in. But it was no use at all. The enemy armor just shrugs off anything we throw at it. 'Tough' doesn't even begin to cover it." 　"We estimate that they possess four-dimensional armor stabilized by a central core. Based on data we've received from the Imperial Guard and Special Operations division, affecting one core from the Ged side would require a full squadron's worth of ammunition from our latest fighter." 　The young man from the Science Bureau flipped through his documents and arrived at a despairing conclusion. A sigh passed around the table. 　"However, it's not as though we have no hope at all. I can't claim it's a hundred percent certain, but..." 　All eyes suddenly turned on him, and the young man flinched slightly, but he continued his explanation. 　"The Federation Science Institute still has several craft equipped with general-purpose sockets. 　And in Thomas's laboratory, several willpower-manifestation devices and anti-extraterrestrial weapons have been preserved. 　If we combine them and are able to make use of a sampled enemy core, we should be able to build a craft strong enough to stand up to the facility itself." 　A willpower-manifestation device is a mechanism that converts human will — courage — into spiritual and physical energy. Because of the raw strength of that energy, even within the Federation its use is permitted only at a handful of classified locations. 　"Sampling?" 　"Heh, I wasn't planning to come home empty-handed." 　At someone's whispered question, Alek muttered — to no one in particular — as the back of his chair creaked. 　"How long will it take?" 　Quelling the renewed flare of resentment aimed at the captain, Arc asked calmly. 　"With every facility working on it, one unit should be ready by tomorrow morning. 　...In fact, the Science Bureau is already concentrating its full technology on the task as we speak. 　Still, it's our only hope. If the first unit cannot get the job done..." 　"It's settled. We'll notify every branch to select pilots suitable for the task, then test their actual aptitude... and deploy them." 　A day later, that craft swept easily through the region where the reconnaissance unit had been wiped out, and was closing in on its objective. Perhaps this will work. Every heart carried a sliver of hope. The craft's name is BLAZE... In the tongue of the Federation it means "raging flame" — the last beacon-fire left to humanity... Author: Oosama

▲▼　Story　▲▼

　"It can't be" — everyone thought the same. Contact with the Seventh Base "Ende" had been lost, and within minutes the entire communications grid went dark. The station staff, who had assumed it was nothing worse than a faulty transmitter, could only panic.
　Something had clearly happened — an event no one had foreseen. The superluminal communications network, which had operated flawlessly since the Federation was founded, based on the propagation of the ether, simply could not fail... or so they thought.

　The flowering of super-science had been born from the military needs of the last great war.
The creatures of another world that humanity first openly encountered... against them, existing science had no hope. So humans turned to the fragments of magic and alchemy handed down as relics of the past, and to the technology of those otherworldly beings as well.
　The forbidden arts gave humanity both power and tragedy.
The outsiders were driven off, yet far more lives were lost in the research itself than in the fighting. Stars fused with stars, space twisted in on itself, and many people degenerated into mutants and had to be hunted down. Only then did mankind understand why the ancient sages had kept such silence about magic.
　After the era of war ended and the Grand Cosmic Federation was formed, most of the supernatural sciences that had been researched during the war were locked away. Only those that had been thoroughly elucidated — at enormous cost — were permitted for use. Still, discoveries such as the subdimension known as Tau Space (indispensable for warp travel) and the ether force field, which allowed faster-than-light communication while also forming the substance of the soul, brought peace and prosperity to every corner of the Federation, with plenty to spare.

　The bad feeling, the prediction everyone had hoped was wrong, was proved correct one hour later.
The silence of Planet Ged, and the presence of an unidentified fleet, was confirmed.
Further still, all contact with the superluminal communications network and with Tau Space was completely severed...

　"An anti-extraterrestrial ultimate weapon — so such a thing really existed."

　In the rarely-used "Sealed Chamber" of the Federation Supreme Command conference room, the first to break the silence was an aging man seated at the far end of the table.
　Federation Supreme Commander Gil Arc. Once he had looked through the report, he turned his gaze to the young officer from the Science Bureau who had come to brief them. Because the Science Bureau was pouring all of its resources into containing the situation, the director had sent this young man in his place.
　Feeling the weight of the room, he nevertheless pressed on with his report in a clear voice.

　"Planet Ged, where the Seventh Base is located — as you know, this star system was badly contaminated during the last war, and only recently has development finally been possible. Records showed that remnants of a facility from that era still existed on Ged, so the Seventh Base had begun to investigate them.
　Given that this incident occurred at exactly that point, we believe that for some reason the system has reactivated itself and begun to attack."

　"A relic of the last war... something capable of warping all of space itself."

　The rumor of an ultimate weapon had always existed: a weapon, and the fleet that guarded it, created so that humanity could take its enemies down with it in a final act of mutual destruction...
　The young man continued, giving his report on the current situation.

　"Strong noise is being injected into the ether, and its output is approximately one hundred million Lévi."

　A stir went through the chamber... producing even ten thousand Lévi of output would require a full year's energium consumption of the entire Federation. At an output measured in hundreds of millions, there was no way to even predict the results.

　"Science itself has advanced since that age. But in terms of military and destructive power, the level reached back then was far higher."
　Arc muttered, as if restraining the committee chairs, and motioned for the officer to continue.

　"It's a peculiar waveform, so three-dimensional space isn't yet affected. However, interference has already begun in Tau Space. All space-time transport devices risk malfunction, and, as far as the notifications have reached, we have ordered their use suspended.
　Nevertheless... the output continues to rise. At this rate, anomalies may begin occurring even at the spirit-particle level. In roughly one week, the entire human population of the Elty star system will collapse at the spirit-particle level, by our calculations. Evacuation advisories have already been issued, but without subspace travel, even our fastest starships can manage only 0.7 parsecs per day. That buys us, at best, about one extra day."

　"So we don't just die — our souls themselves are destroyed. We can't even go to hell."

　The words came from Alek Flave, captain of the Federation Imperial Guard, who had been silent until now.
　Having reached his rank purely on ability at just twenty-eight, he was also well known as an eccentric. His outburst drew angry looks from the other committee members, but he didn't flinch.

　"Yeah, I sent a recon unit in. But it was no use at all. The enemy armor just shrugs off anything we throw at it. 'Tough' doesn't even begin to cover it."

　"We estimate that they possess four-dimensional armor stabilized by a central core. Based on data we've received from the Imperial Guard and Special Operations division, affecting one core from the Ged side would require a full squadron's worth of ammunition from our latest fighter."
　The young man from the Science Bureau flipped through his documents and arrived at a despairing conclusion. A sigh passed around the table.

　"However, it's not as though we have no hope at all. I can't claim it's a hundred percent certain, but..."

　All eyes suddenly turned on him, and the young man flinched slightly, but he continued his explanation.

　"The Federation Science Institute still has several craft equipped with general-purpose sockets.
　And in Thomas's laboratory, several willpower-manifestation devices and anti-extraterrestrial weapons have been preserved.
　If we combine them and are able to make use of a sampled enemy core, we should be able to build a craft strong enough to stand up to the facility itself."

　A willpower-manifestation device is a mechanism that converts human will — courage — into spiritual and physical energy. Because of the raw strength of that energy, even within the Federation its use is permitted only at a handful of classified locations.

　"Sampling?"

　"Heh, I wasn't planning to come home empty-handed."
　At someone's whispered question, Alek muttered — to no one in particular — as the back of his chair creaked.

　"How long will it take?"
　Quelling the renewed flare of resentment aimed at the captain, Arc asked calmly.

　"With every facility working on it, one unit should be ready by tomorrow morning.
　...In fact, the Science Bureau is already concentrating its full technology on the task as we speak.
　Still, it's our only hope. If the first unit cannot get the job done..."

　"It's settled. We'll notify every branch to select pilots suitable for the task, then test their actual aptitude... and deploy them."

　A day later, that craft swept easily through the region where the reconnaissance unit had been wiped out, and was closing in on its objective. Perhaps this will work. Every heart carried a sliver of hope.
The craft's name is BLAZE...

In the tongue of the Federation it means "raging flame" — the last beacon-fire left to humanity...

Author: Oosama

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