Chapter 13: Nelaus
23:51 PM (India Time), Wednesday July the 31st…
"… Soon! Soon enough… The "Black Knight" shall awaken!"
The Navi inside of the system was muttering to himself.
He was looking at a fish-eye lens camera footage.
The location was an armored room.
Terminals were lined up on the sides and southern side.
A large bulkhead was set on the northern side, tightly locked.
The main feature of the room was a cylinder set in its center.
It had thick metallic walls.
It was set between two bases on the floor and ceiling.
Wires and pipes extended across both surfaces, converging there.
It could be about two meters tall.
"… All graphs are stable…"
The Navi looked at a display with several graphs on it.
They were categorized as heartbeat, mind activity, blood flow and so on.
The vital activity was low, but constant.
The mind activity graph was dead.
Another screen displayed room temperature, humidity and pressure.
Yet another screen was a clock showing the current time.
It read "23:53 PM".
"Alright. "Wake up" will begin in another two minutes…"
He brought up a control panel.
The word "LOCKED" was overlapped over the controls.
There was a small note beneath it.
"LOCKED UNTIL 7/31/2013 23:55 PM".
"Training ended a month ago. It's now resting to process the data…"
He looked at a list of actions.
They were all marked as "COMPLETE".
"We skipped nothing. Has all knowledge necessary to operate…"
The clock changed to "23:54 PM".
"Almost there…!"
He looked at another graph.
"Minus 15 Celsius. A powerful blizzard and snow…"
He nodded in agreement.
"But our "wings" aren't stopped by that!"
He chuckled to himself.
The clock switched to "23:55 PM".
The controls unlocked.
"Good. Slowly raise awareness level and heat up the capsule…"
He pressed the "" keys next to the controls.
The graphs slowly began to increase.
"The corridors and elevator have been heating up, too…"
He checked another set of graphs.
"The "wings" are heating up as well…"
He formed another control panel.
"2 minutes and 30 seconds until full awakening. Ready transmissions…"
He checked the graphs again.
"All values are within estimated range…"
He went over all the data again.
"Once I confirm that the "Black Knight" reaches the "wings"…
He brought up a locked control panel.
"I'll turn on the data formatting timer and rush to rendezvous with him…"
He looked at the clock again.
"Will become fully conscious in another 75 seconds…"
He crossed his arms, satisfied.
"Radar shows that nothing has approached the base…"
He glanced at a radar screen.
"Maybe that possible interloper couldn't locate us in the end…"
He shrugged.
"Who would think of coming to search here, anyway?"
He chuckled under his breath.
"Nobody in their sane minds!"
He glanced at the clock.
"30 seconds left!"
He eagerly rubbed his hands together.
"Let's check everything again!"
He quickly checked all the data again.
"Perfect! 15 seconds left!"
He readied the transmission system.
"The path to the "wings" is ready. They are 80% ready…"
The timer began to count down.
"10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1…!"
The clock switched to "8/1/2013 00:00 AM".
"Now!"
He pressed a button that unlocked.
The mental activity graph increased.
"Happy birthday, "Black Knight"…!"
"… I am the "Black Knight"… I await orders…"
"Excellent. Stay still until your body finishes warming…"
"Understood…"
"You will be infused with a booster to awaken your muscles…"
He began to explain.
"Then you will make your way to the "wings"…"
"Roger…"
"It's very simple. Follow the marked path…"
"Yes. Follow the marked path…"
"I will end transmissions as I finish setting up things…"
"Roger…"
The Navi ended the transmissions.
"He will eventually show more emotions. It's a matter of time…"
He operated the controls.
"Drain the capsule fluid…"
He pressed the button "DRAIN".
The sound of liquid traveling through pipes echoed.
The message "DRAIN COMPLETE" was displayed.
"Good. Equalize pressure…"
A barometer was displayed.
"Pressure is equalized…"
He pressed the "OPEN" button.
A hiss echoed as the frontal cover extended forward along two arms.
The arms climbed upwards and held the cover higher in the air.
There was a person standing inside of the capsule.
They were about a meter and seventy tall.
A black, skintight diving suit covered the body.
A black aviator's helmet with shades covered the head.
An oxygen mask was attached to it.
They had thick leather gloves over their hands.
Black boots were used as footing.
Mechanical restraints were keeping him attached to the wall.
They unlocked, and the subject stepped forward.
The oxygen mask hissed and unlocked, retracting upwards.
The subject tried articulating the arms.
"Be at ease. You will soon be at full strength…"
Rails deployed from the ground and formed a path.
The subject slowly climbed down the steps.
They leant on the rails and tested their legs.
The doorway unlocked, revealing a corridor behind it.
"Go!"
00:11 AM (India Time), Thursday August the 1st…
"… One step at a time… One step at a time…"
The "Black Knight" muttered to himself.
He was slowly walking down the corridor.
It had LED lamps built on the walls.
An elevator platform could be seen at the end of it.
"… But, say…"
He stopped, puzzled.
"What was I doing here? Wasn't I training?"
"You will be briefed later. Head to the surface…"
"Roger. Unit I…"
"Calm down. All is going as scheduled. This is a mission, too…"
"Roger. Resuming the mission…"
He stepped onto the platform.
It climbed upwards and reached another corridor.
"You're progressing. Climb that other elevator, too…"
"Roger. Proceeding with the mission…"
He crossed his corridor and stepped onto the next elevator.
A hatch overhead opened.
He exited inside of a hangar.
A black combat jet was parked there.
Several devices were linked to it.
The engines were already humming.
"These will be our "wings"…"
"I see. The flight simulator missions were for this purpose…"
"Exactly. But I will help you, too, at first…"
"Roger…"
"Climb inside…"
The canopy opened.
Ladder rungs deployed on the side of the cockpit.
A small, wheeled platform moved and stopped beneath them.
He stepped on it, and it extended upwards.
He gripped the rung and made it inside of the cockpit.
He buckled the seatbelts and connected the oxygen mask.
He pressed some buttons and flipped some switches.
The radar and navigation system turned on.
The canopy lowered and locked.
The rungs retreated inside of the frame.
The platform retracted and returned to its original location.
"Sorry for the wait. Here I am!"
He appeared on the screen.
He cast away the cloak.
"I'm Isaac. Your Navigator… Nelaus!"
"… Nelaus…?"
"Yes. That's your given name. "Black Knight" is your codename…"
"… Yes. I remember. I am a special agent of the "Secret Empire"…"
"Indeed… And I am your Net Navi partner…"
"Well then. Let's work together to fulfill the missions…"
The Navi was about a meter and seventy tall.
His irises were purple.
His helmet had a cross-shaped ruby on the forehead.
Eight lines radiated from there.
The helmet was navy blue.
A purple "I" was drawn inside of the red earpads.
Black armor protected the neck.
His shoulders were silver.
His chest was blue, and a purple line stretched across it.
His arms were blue and had purple DNA strings drawn over them.
The forearms were blue, with magenta patterns drawn there.
The palms had jade-colored squares on them.
A black belt surrounded his waist, and it had a sapphire on its center.
His blue legs had the same design as the arms.
The black boots had red patterns drawn on them.
"We have a set of coordinates where we'll receive further orders…"
"Understood…"
"This is a stealth aircraft. Radar can't detect it…"
"The weapons are real, I take it…"
"Yes. But they are a last resource…"
"It matches with the missions in the simulator…"
"Naturally. Those were training for this day…"
"Roger. Disconnecting fuel lines…"
The hoses disconnected and dropped to the ground.
They were reeled in to the fuel tanks.
Shutters lowered, isolating them.
The elevator hatch closed as well.
A thick plate descended from the ceiling behind the plane.
"Alright. The plane is ready to take off…" Nelaus announced.
"Good. Wait a moment as I equal pressure…"
"Roger…"
A few seconds of waiting ensued.
"Done. I deployed the energy field to prevent snow from entering…"
"I see. Since it's a raging blizzard outside…"
"As laid out in the mission, this is Gondwana Base in Antarctica…"
"Gondwana Base… Gondwana a super-continent..."
"And India was once part of it. Hence why we use India time-zone…"
"Understood…"
The shutter opened, revealing a blue energy field.
A blizzard was raging outside of it.
The lights of the runway were barely visible.
"Engines are heated up. Ignition!"
"Roger!"
The engines vomited energy, and the plane roared.
It shot forward and quickly gained speed.
"The wings act as heaters to cut off the snow, too!"
"Roger!"
"Now! Takeoff!"
Nelaus pulled down the controls, and the plane lifted into the air.
It cut through the fierce blizzard, headed for the clouds.
The cockpit canopy darkened.
"It'll be a sudden shift of environment!"
"Roger!"
The plane cut through the thick clouds and made it past them.
The blue skies and the Sun took up most of the view.
"Stabilize the plane!"
"Roger!"
The plane stabilized and began to cruise over the sea of clouds.
"Get ready to transition to Mach 1!"
"Roger!"
The plane formed a shockwave as it transitioned to the speed of sound.
"We will head to Point Alpha and take a break there…"
"Where is that?"
"An airfield at some kilometers SE of Northcliffe, Australia…"
"Roger. Increasing speed to Mach 1.6. 1600 km/h!"
The plane's configuration changed and pushed forward.
"Good. Take it easy, it's still about 3 hours to the destination…"
"Roger that…"
"I will handle piloting. You rest!"
"Understood…"
"I'll wake you up 25 minutes before we reach the destination…"
"Counting on you, Isaac…"
07:25 AM (Australia Time)…
"… Wake up, Nelaus. We'll soon be there…"
"… Affirmative…"
Nelaus awoke from his nap and focused on the task.
The Australian continent was visible in the horizon.
"The airfield is operated by the organization…"
"Nobody will ask questions, then…"
"No. They are ready for your arrival…"
"Excellent!"
An alarm blared.
"What!? A heat signature!?"
"A hostile force!?"
"But how did they know that we'd be here…!?"
Isaac analyzed the data.
"This profile… The Lockheed SR-71, the "Blackbird"!?"
"But wasn't it retired over 10 years ago?"
"Maybe they kept one or two in mothball state!"
A man's voice chuckled.
"A radio transmission!"
"They know our frequency, too!?"
"Maybe they were monitoring transmissions to the base!"
"You're the "Black Knight"… And I am the "Blackbird"!"
"Voice pattern matches those in database…"
"Who's that!?"
"A scientist, Dr. Regal…"
"Why is a scientist piloting a fighter jet!?"
"… Correction. There's no human pilot. A Navi must be driving it!"
"But doesn't answer what he's doing with that!"
"Guess that he wants to hinder the organization!"
"Why didn't they warn us about it!?"
"I was told about a possible interference, but…"
"… Good point. Nobody could expect them to do this!"
"This is Point Alpha. Why did you veer off-course, Black Knight?"
"That man, Regal, is chasing me with a Blackbird plane!"
"REEEGAAALLLL!"
"I guess that they must have some feud…" Isaac sighed.
"Our plane can only reach Mach 2. We can't outrun it!"
"And if it goes full speed, our weapons won't be able to reach it, either!"
"Deploy the energy shield! I'll send help!"
"Roger!"
Nelaus lifted a cover and pressed a button.
An energy shield formed around his plane.
"A piece of outdated junk can't rival my speed!"
"Or my zapping attacks!"
Swallow Man and Cloud Man flew towards the "Blackbird".
A machine gun formed underneath the nose and opened fire.
"How did a machinegun form out of nowhere!?"
"Data materialization tech…"
"That wasn't in the missions, though?"
"The missions were designed 6 years ago. Tech has progressed…"
"What? But I was on a mission a month ago…"
"We'll explain once we make it safely to Point Alpha…"
"Wait. Maybe that man's goal is not us but Point Alpha itself?"
"Good point…! Point Alpha! This is Black Knight!"
"What's the issue?"
"We suspect that Regal means to attack you rather than us!"
"Don't worry. We readied dummies…"
"Roger, sir…"
"Ignore Regal and get here! You only have 30 minutes of fuel left!"
"Understood!"
Nelaus gripped the controls and began a descent course.
"The Blackbird has become supersonic!" Swallow Man reported.
"It's headed to the west!" Cloud Man added.
"I set up a fake "Point Beta" in Madagascar!"
"Brilliant, sir!"
"Ground team! Cosmo Man, Yamato Man!"
"Nothing is approaching the airfield, sir…"
"Seismographs don't report unusual vibrations, either…"
"Fine. But don't take anything for granted…"
The plane slowly approached the Australian coast.
The cities and the national parks were becoming visible.
He corrected his course again.
A long runway, part of an airfield, became visible.
"I'm receiving the ILS beacon… It'll help veer the aircraft…"
"OK!"
He corrected the course again as he cut height.
He aimed the aircraft towards the runway.
"Deploying landing gear!"
"I confirm deployment of landing gear!"
The rear wheels contacted the ground.
He quickly lowered the nose, and the front wheels touched down, too.
"Reducing speed!"
He began to apply the brakes, and the plane slowly braked.
It eventually reduced the speed to taxiing speed.
"Wonderful landing, Nelaus!"
"Thanks. I did undergo a heap of flight missions, after all…"
"Yes. But one thing is a simulation, the other is the real deal…"
"Head to Hanger #4!"
"Roger!"
The plane headed for the hangar.
The ground crew was already waiting for them.
"Take the chance to climb down and eat something…"
"Roger, sir…"
"The next coordinates will be given in hand…"
"Understood. I must show them to Isaac, then…"
"Correct. To avoid someone from overhearing them…"
"I must keep the helmet on, I take it?"
"Yes. To protect your identity…"
"Understood, sir…"
"I will properly introduce myself when you make it to the destination…"
"Yes, sir. Looking forward to it, sir…"
"I know that it'll be a long trip, but it's to throw off any chasers…"
"It can't be helped…"
"Exactly…"
The plane stopped, and the engines stopped.
He removed the oxygen and mask.
The canopy opened, and he climbed down the ladder.
The crew began to work on the maintenance and refueling of the plane.
One of them handed him an envelope and a dark blue Link PET.
"Thanks…"
He walked through a door and entered a dorm with bulk beds.
He sat on a bed and interacted with the PET.
"This must be the latest PET…"
"Sure. It can do this!"
Isaac's hologram formed over his right shoulder.
"Impressive!"
"Show me the coordinates…"
He opened the envelope and drew a piece of paper with coordinates.
"… Next stop is Chichijima, Ogasawara, Japan…"
"It's going to be a long trip, indeed…!"
