Your Name (Part 1)

Everything seemed to follow logical deduction and expectation, yet when they truly arrived, it felt just as abrupt and bewildering. It was like a boxing match: no matter how long the heavily outmatched fighter had prepared, no matter how much effort he had poured into it, when he finally stepped onto the canvas and faced his opponent's crushing punches... he was still underprepared and caught completely off guard. On the streets of Mangu. A vendor whose pushcart had overturned onto the pavement after bumping into pedestrians finally gave up on salvaging it. Calling out loved ones' names, the vendor bolted toward home. Fathers and mothers searched frantically for their children; children sat on the ground crying and screaming. The entire street was swallowed by panic and chaos. Against this backdrop, the figures of Ye Jian and Shu You standing amidst the rushing crowd with their heads tilted back appeared strikingly conspicuous. "Hey, what do you think they're after?" Ye Jian asked, looking up at the sky. "An invasion. Isn't that what's always been said? And your Snow Lotus seemed to be looking forward to their arrival all this time, too," Shu You answered, his eyes also fixed on the sky, before turning the question back. "Yeah." Ye Jian nodded. He didn't deny it, nor did he look pleased or excited. He calmly pointed up at the sky and continued, "Look at that one. Doesn't seem any smaller than the one on Xilang Peak." High above, the swarm of Great Spike flying craft resembled a flock of crows. From their designs to their hulls, every single one was a newly seen model that had only appeared in recent months. This likely proved that they were indeed the regular military forces that had set out from a distant star, finally arriving. The fleet hung over the city, arrayed much like a human carrier strike group: a colossal mothership at the center, surrounded by over a thousand small and medium craft of varying shapes and sizes. "I heard Azure has source energy aircraft now. Can they push back against this?" Shu You asked, gesturing toward the fleet. Ye Jian shook his head. "From what I know, probably not. The gap in both quantity and quality is too massive. It'd be hard enough just to get close." "Oh. So we're just in for a passive beating." "Depends on whether they come down... or not!" The moment Ye Jian finished speaking, his expression turned awkward. That was the second time today—the instant he finished saying something, it started happening. In the sky, the Great Spike mothership remained still, and the overall formation held, but a portion of the smaller craft began detaching like bees swarming out of a hive, descending, accelerating, and scattering outward toward every quarter of the city. The first wave numbered around fifty or sixty, likely a reconnaissance probe. Very quickly, this wave of small craft began touching down, crashing into various spots across the city. Then, Great Spikes bearing swords leapt out... *Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!* *Da-da-da-da...* The police and emergency response units opened fire, the gunshots echoing from afar. Yet when the bullets struck the iron-armored monsters, they produced nothing more than metallic clangs, completely ineffective. The despairing crowd screamed and died. The city began plunging into an apocalyptic mindset and terror. Ye Jian and Shu You didn't exchange a glance, nor did they speak. Each slipped off his backpack. Their gear was always worn under their clothes; they were reaching for their blades. "You weird guys?! Hey, what are you still standing here for? Run! Run!" The young couple who had been separated back at the movie theater ran past from behind, the girl shouting at the top of her lungs. Ye Jian and Shu You both turned their heads to glance at her. If they remembered correctly, the pair had clearly run west at the start... "There are monsters over that way! Run! Hurry, run!" The girl didn't slow her pace as she shouted, turning forward again, but her forward sprint was abruptly halted by the boy yanking her back. Facing that same direction, everyone had stopped dead in their tracks. The crowd jammed the center of the street, staring ahead in terror. There, a black shuttle craft appeared, crashing straight onto the road with a boom. Then, two black-armored Great Spikes holding swords ejected out and landed... *Thud! Thud!* Like terrifying demons descending upon the earth. "Ahhh!" The girl began screaming, and the crowd joined in. *Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!* Two gangsters interspersed within the mob stepped forward, drew their pistols, and opened fire. A flurry of bullets struck the monsters consecutively—*clang, clang, clang*—without even kicking up a spark. Yet they screamed and cursed hysterically, continuing to shoot: *bang, bang, bang, bang...* *Whoosh! Whoosh!* Amidst the gunfire came the distinct sound of two sets of devices activating. Two figures swept down the long street, soaring over the heads of the crowd and hurtling forward. In their frantic panic, unable to control their aim in time, the gangsters' pistol rounds struck their backs. The crowd gasped in horror, and the gangsters themselves panicked, but... The two seemed completely unharmed. Just as the people realized this— *Chua!* *Chua!* Two blades flashed ahead, and two monster heads separated from their bodies, flying into the air. Supermen? A movie? The street fell dead silent. ... "No self-destruction," Shu You said, pausing in surprise and relief. "Yeah," Ye Jian nodded. The reason this batch of Great Spikes hadn't self-destructed upon death was still unknown, but no self-destruction meant no shower of shrapnel—which was undeniably the best possible outcome for civilians. "Misters?! You..." The girl stood there dumbfounded, finally managing to speak. The entire street of people stood frozen, gazing at the two figures from behind. "Human super soldiers... like the ones in the movies." Ye Jian turned his head and offered a faint smile, pointing toward the roadside. "Everyone get inside the buildings. Hide." Under the current circumstances, the Great Spikes were primarily appearing on open ground like streets and parks; at least they hadn't entered the buildings yet. So compared to fleeing blindly, hiding was actually the safer option. Following Ye Jian's reminder, the vast majority of the crowd began rushing into the buildings on both sides of the street, ducking inside the tall structures. ... Not far away, another alien craft landed, then two more. A few bolder people poked their heads out of windows, watching Ye Jian and Shu You's figures charge toward them. "A slaughter! Our human super soldiers are slaughtering the monsters!" a man said, turning back from the window, his eyes shining with excitement. "No! More people are locked in bitter combat... just like in the movie." Another person tugged his arm, pulling him back around and pointing in a different direction. Over there, a squad of ordinary Azure soldiers was arrayed in formation, besieging two Great Spikes in a grueling struggle. Armed forces from the Azure Thailand Front Army had arrived on the scene. Their performance wasn't nearly as overwhelming as Ye Jian and Shu You's, but they were numerous. Before long, they began appearing on every street and in every park, fighting desperately to slay the monsters that even bullets couldn't pierce. "Who are they..." "I don't know, but I think they're definitely here to protect us." "Humanity's special forces." The crowd murmured, gradually regaining hope as they found something to anchor themselves to, waiting amidst the layers of the unknown for someone who could give them answers. Meanwhile, soldiers of the Thailand Front Army also noticed Shu You and Ye Jian. Experts! Allies? But without Azure uniforms or standard-issue weapons, and they weren't locals... "Unit designation?!" a squad leader called out loudly in English. Ye Jian and Shu You glanced at each other. One was Snow Lotus, the other from the City of Iniquity... Without conferring, they turned and answered, "Stream Vanguard." It was the most convenient cover name they could think of on the spot to fob them off. Tick, tock. "...Thank you!" The squad leader snapped a salute, then said, "Please stay safe! If you need anything, feel free to call on nearby squads at any time!" Shu You smirked quietly to himself, while Ye Jian gave a slightly awkward nod. "All right." "Whether you're still in Azure or not, The King... will always be our comrade in arms!" The squad leader grinned brightly, shouting at the top of his lungs, before waving a hand, turning around, and leading his squad dashing toward the adjacent street.