They smoothly retrieved the black cases from their backs, each nearly as long as their waists, and opened them with practiced ease.
Inside, cushioned by shock-absorbent foam, lay not tools, but disassembled short-barreled laser assault rifles, high-energy magazines, nuclear bombs, and various pieces of special equipment.
With deft fingers, the weapons were swiftly assembled, emitting a few almost imperceptible clicks as latch locks engaged.
Kane gave his gear a final check, then pulled a device the size of his palm from his chest pocket. It resembled a thick patch.
He pressed it firmly against the metal wall inside the storage room.
A faint ring of blue flowing light glimmered along its edges before vanishing.
This was the directional pulse jammer, specifically designed for the Empire's outdated internal surveillance systems.
Almost simultaneously, several hundred meters away in another sector, within the security monitoring center...
Two Empire soldiers on duty were yawning in front of the massive monitor screen array that dominated the entire wall.
The screens displayed real-time footage from various zones.
Suddenly, an entire section of the array—roughly corresponding to the dozen or so surveillance cameras inside and around the Prairie Fire control hub—flickered violently several times before settling into a steady, signal-less static screen.
"Tch!"
One soldier impatiently thumped the control console with his fist.
"Again! This damn system. Must be the old wiring in Zone B shorting out from dampness again, or maybe another filter module needs replacing?"
The other soldier shrugged, picked up the internal communicator with practiced nonchalance, and reported lazily, "Monitoring center reporting. Partial camera signal loss in Zone B defense control unit. Suspected aging circuit fault. Logged. Recommend scheduling maintenance for... tomorrow morning shift? No, make it the day after."
They didn't even spare more than a glance at the static screens, let alone consider raising the alert level. In such a vast, antiquated facility plagued by constant minor glitches, technical failures like this occurred almost daily.
Back in the storage room, the miniature receiver on Kane's wrist vibrated once.
It indicated successful jamming coverage of the designated area, with no high-level alert triggered.
He gave his team the final hand signal.
Operation begin.
Two groups of figures, like diverging streams, slipped silently out of the storage room.
They melted into the dim shadows of the corridors surrounding the main control hall, each heading towards the energy sector and the command room respectively.
Prairie Fire Control Hub, Main Corridor Intersection.
The assault team led by Lieutenant Kane was moving swiftly along the pre-planned shadow route.
Suddenly, the rhythmic sound of boot soles scraping against the metal floor echoed from around the corner ahead.
Two fully armed Imperial patrol soldiers rounded the bend, coming face-to-face with Kane's group.
Both sides froze for an instant.
The Imperial soldiers' eyes quickly scanned the dark gray work uniforms worn by Kane and his men, their faces showing clear surprise and confusion.
One soldier's brow furrowed, his hand already moving instinctively towards the holster at his waist.
"Halt!" the corporal barked, his voice echoing in the empty corridor. "Which department are you from? There's no maintenance work scheduled for today!"
"Where are your guards?"
His companion also turned sideways warily, his finger flicking open the rifle safety.
Loopholes in regulations and procedures became a fatal trigger in that moment.
Their questioning was entirely reasonable, but it was already too late.
Kane's reaction showed not a hint of hesitation.
Before the trailing sound of the other's words had fully faded, his hand moved up as fast as a blurry shadow.
The short laser assault rifle in his hand emitted almost none of the usual energy weapon charging hum; the muzzle merely lit up with a blinding red dot for an extremely brief moment.
Whoosh—!
A faint yet sharp sound of something cutting through the air.
A slender, straight scarlet beam shot out at the speed of light, instantly crossing over a dozen meters to precisely pierce the exact center of the chest of the soldier who had spoken.
There was no scene of blood spraying.
The moment the beam struck, the composite fiber military uniform around the impact point and the lightweight armor plate beneath it looked as if they had been touched by an invisible, high-temperature branding iron.
Instantly carbonizing and vaporizing, they formed a neat, small hole with charred edges.
The fabric and skin around the hole took on an eerie molten state.
Even more lethal was the extreme thermal energy carried by the beam.
It did not stop after penetrating the surface layer but continued to invade the body.
Tissues, bones, and internal organs along its path were vaporized or carbonized within a billionth of a second, forming a terrifying, penetrating cavity.
The immense energy even caused the gases within the chest cavity to expand instantly.
The corporal's body stiffened violently, his eyes widening in disbelief, his mouth open but unable to utter any sound.
As if struck in the chest by an invisible giant hammer, his feet left the ground, and he was flung backward, landing heavily on the metal floor with a dull thud.
From the charred hole in his chest, only a wisp of nearly invisible bluish smoke, carrying the charred smell of roasted meat, drifted upward.
The other Empire soldier's pupils contracted with extreme shock.
But he was, after all, a trained warrior; the instinct for survival and his duty drove him to roar and attempt to raise his rail rifle as his companion fell.
His movements were fast enough; his finger moved toward the trigger.
However, Phantom Squad did not consist of Kane alone.
Almost at the exact same moment Kane fired, the precision marksman codenamed Eagle Eye in the squad had already made fine adjustments to his muzzle.
Whoosh!
A second scarlet beam shot out, its target not the man, but the rifle body the other had just raised.
The beam struck the middle section of the rifle near the energy magazine.
The high-energy laser beam melted through the sturdy alloy casing as effortlessly as a hot knife through butter, directly hitting the internal, intricate energy conduits and activator.
Pfft!
A not-so-loud sound of energy leak and short circuit occurred.
Sparks and a small plume of black smoke emerged from the breached rifle; the gun body instantly deformed and became useless due to localized overheating.
But the power of this beam was not yet exhausted.
After melting through the rifle, the residual energy and the high-speed splattering molten metal fragments shot straight backward.
They poured fiercely into the soldier's exposed chest and belly due to his firing stance.
"Ugh—ah!"
A short, sharp scream.
The soldier staggered backward, the useless, scorching-hot rifle slipping from his hands and clattering to the floor.
He looked down at his belly, where a similarly horrific burn hole had appeared.
The edges of his clothing and skin were charred and curled back; the internal injuries were undoubtedly even worse.
He slid down against the wall, losing consciousness.
From encounter and questioning to exchange of fire and resolution, the entire process took no more than three seconds.
Silence returned to the corridor, leaving only the faint, spreading scent of scorched flesh beside the Empire soldier's corpse and the occasional crackle of electricity from the disabled rifle.
Lieutenant Kane didn't even spare a glance at the body on the ground, quickly signaling "Clear, proceed forward."
Two team members swiftly moved up, dragging the corpse into the shadow of nearby equipment for simple concealment.
The team didn't linger, passing through the engagement point like a deadly breeze and continuing their stealthy advance toward the core command room of the Wildfire Giant Cannon.