Tian Xingjian looked at the two Federation female soldiers glaring hard at him and felt a wave of melancholy. If they'd been ugly, he could have shamelessly tossed out something like: "The guards holding you? I already dealt with them. Hurry and run for your lives." But the problem was, these were two stunning women in uniform, radiating an allure that made the words choke in his throat.
If he left them behind, they'd never make it out. Chances were high they'd be killed during the escape or captured and executed. And execution by the Empire's troops often meant something far more brutal—repeated "punishment" before death. Looking at the forward base around them, it was obvious why these two beauties had been brought here. The Empire hadn't even built a prisoner camp—two captured Federation women sent to such a place… he didn't need to think long to know their fate.
The soldiers escorting them had been killed. Whether or not these women had done it, they'd share the blame. Gacharin's cruelty toward prisoners was infamous: if even one prisoner escaped, the entire group might be massacred. Live burials, burnings, chemical experiments, cramming captives into decrepit civilian ships for target practice—the methods were endless.
Just imagining these two delicate flowers trampled by Imperial soldiers filled Tian with guilt, anger… and even jealousy. It was a common flaw among men: if it wasn't something they could have themselves, they didn't want others to have it either. Still, escaping the forest alone was easy. Evading patrols and defenses while leading two women across miles of open plain? That was harder than climbing to the heavens.
"You two… uh, I mean, how did you get captured?" Tian asked awkwardly, noticing their unfriendly looks. He glanced down at himself, finding nothing odd, blissfully unashamed of having stripped naked in front of them earlier.
"The airport northeast of the city was overrun. That's where I was caught." The beautiful pilot had already shaken off her fluster from his earlier antics. She pointed at the other woman. "She too—she's a medic from the Aviation Brigade."
"And the city? How far have they advanced?" Tian scanned the surroundings, cautious of running into Imperial patrols.
"The first defensive line fell last night. Nearly two hundred heavy mechs and five hundred medium mechs stormed the junction between our two divisions. By the time reserves counterattacked, it was too late. If their paratroopers hadn't seized the airport, it would've taken them at least a week to break through." The pilot sat down casually, more concerned with tidying her disheveled hair than her safety. She bit a pink band between her teeth, gathering her locks with her slender hands.
Her movements were alluring, and Tian had to force his gaze away from her pale, delicate fingers.
"But it wasn't all bad. Though the Sixth Marine Division and Ninth Reserve Division failed to hold the breakthrough, they stalled the Imperial Armored Division for over three hours. That bought time for most of the first-line troops to withdraw. The losses weren't too heavy." With her hair tied into a high ponytail, the pilot radiated vitality once again.
"Then between the first and second lines…?" Tian felt a flicker of hope.
"It's grim. Gacharin forces already control most of it. When we came through, only scattered pockets were resisting. Most of the Federation army has pulled south of the Supeng River. The enemy is consolidating, preparing to assault our second defensive line." The pilot propped her chin in her hands, her eyes dim.
"Damn it, exactly what I feared." Tian cursed inwardly. He'd already guessed much from the enemy's movements, but had still clung to hope. Now, surrounded by Imperial troops, the choices were clear: hide in the forest till the war ended, or somehow break through to the second line.
His mind turned in circles. He was barely surviving himself—how could he drag two burdens along? Just as his thoughts darkened, he felt a tug on his sleeve. Looking up, he found the medic quietly holding on, her expression half-smile, half-accusation, as though she'd seen straight through him. Her eyes, still carrying a trace of earlier embarrassment, were clear and full of trust. At that moment, Tian surrendered.
"To hell with it. If I die, I die. At least with more people, we've got a chance." Still, the question lingered: Where to run?
New Rome was impossible—heavily occupied. Surrounding cities and bases were also in enemy hands. Only one place seemed viable: the capital, Galiparan City.
Nestled in the Three Lakes Basin of Mirok II, the capital was ringed by towering mountains and shielded by its terrain. Without destroying its six air bases and over three hundred missile sites in the mountains, the Empire's transports couldn't land. And without ground troops, the capital was untouchable.
Even if the enemy attacked the highways leading in, they were heavily fortified, riddled with bridges and tunnels—perfect choke points for defense. Federation broadcasts still rang out from the city, calling citizens to resist, proof the capital still stood.
And even if it fell, the endless mountain ranges around it would be a perfect hiding place. To Tian, trained in recon, the idea of building a treehouse or settling in a cave with two beautiful women, living off wild game and vegetables, sounded almost… heavenly.
With a lewd grin, he made up his mind.
"North, then east to Galiparan!" he declared, voice full of forced resolve.
"Galiparan? That's thousands of kilometers away!" the pilot gasped.
"How are we supposed to get there?" the medic blinked her wide eyes, confused. "The enemy is everywhere."
"Gacharin landed in over forty cities. Aside from traffic choke points and encircled cities, they can't control every gap. Their forces aren't enough. They only care about cities and bases. Outside of that, empty land poses no threat." Tian spoke with growing confidence.
"They've already stretched themselves thin. Controlling six colonized worlds takes time. Here, their landing was selective—forty out of sixty cities. That means they lacked troops, or reinforcements hadn't arrived."
As he pieced it together, a chilling thought struck him: This precision—destroying hidden bases and shattering fleets so quickly—it reeks of betrayal. Someone high in the Federation must've leaked the defenses.
He shook his head. Thinking like a general was too exhausting for a repairman.
"The commanders must have thought of it too," he muttered, trying to comfort himself.
"But… you still haven't said how we escape from here," the pilot pressed.
Tian pointed at the wrecked mechs scattered across the battlefield. "From those. I can cobble together a transport. Once the enemy shifts their forward base north, defenses will thin out. If we make it past the plains and into those mountains, we'll be free."
The medic asked softly, "So what do we do now?"
"Wait till night. Rest up. Then dig. I'll need help." He grinned slyly. "So… who's sleeping with me? It's warm."
Both women ignored him. Together, the three dug a burrow on the far side of the forest, covering it with traps and branches. Huddled in the cramped space, Tian—for all his vulgar jokes—found himself uncharacteristically nervous at the closeness of two women, pressing himself against the dirt wall and pretending to sleep.
For the women, fear had been worse than death before. They'd known their fate in the base: assault and execution. Now, this crude, reckless fat man had become their pillar of hope.
As night fell, the enemy searched for the missing guards half-heartedly, their soldiers exchanging knowing smirks. No one cared much—the women were their officers' playthings anyway.
Still, even the sloppy search had Tian shaking in the burrow, straining his ears for every sound. A soldier approached the thicket, then turned away, deterred by thorns and finding no tracks.
Tian finally exhaled—only to realize the two women were pressed against him, their bare arms brushing his skin, sending a tingling thrill through his body.
"Hey… we don't even know your name yet," the medic whispered.
"Me? I'm Tian Xingjian, Corporal, Logistics Squad, 3rd Armored Battalion, 5th Division," he stammered, his voice trembling from the electrifying contact.
"I'm Meiduo. She's Nia."
The pilot, half-asleep, gave a faint murmur at her name.
By midnight, darkness blanketed the world. On this moonless planet, only starlight remained. Tian crept to a mech wreck and began stripping parts with swift precision. His training made the work as smooth as butchering a cow. Meanwhile, the women dug a larger chamber beneath their hideout—three meters deep, five by five, to house Tian's project.
For two days, Tian dragged in parts like a scavenger, even finding rations. The women proved adept diggers, carefully disposing of dirt until the cavern was perfect. With armor plates for soundproofing, Tian began assembling.
Piece by piece, a mech took shape. He gutted an Imperial Saint Armor-22 suit, fitting three seats, installing Federation Honor-15 engines, and even rigging auxiliary jets from missile launchers. He added retractable legs, modified the controls to manual, and fashioned a hidden "tail" for the shield generator probe. Grinning, he placed another between the legs, laughing lewdly at the women's glares.
When the machine was done, looking outwardly unchanged, both women were stunned. His ideas, speed, and mastery of mech systems defied belief. He wasn't just a mechanic—he was a genius.
Tian basked in their awed looks, his vanity swelling.
Now, only power and timing remained.
He retrieved a cache of compressed energy blocks he'd buried earlier, near a charred tree at the old Federation base. Along with them, he dug out a cannon. With careful stealth, he set it up overlooking the enemy camp, loading it with shattered energy blocks. He rigged a crude remote trigger using Imperial mech sensors.
Excitement bubbled in him as he finished. "I hate killing, but I hate dying more. Better you than me."
By the time he slipped back, dawn was near. The three squeezed into the modified mech, fueled and ready. As Tian hit the remote, an explosion thundered across the enemy base.
At the same time, their mech burst from the ground, carrying them toward freedom.