The roar of the Kree ship entering the atmosphere was a metallic lament, foreshadowing a new layer of terror. Li Wei watched it, a dark, sleek silhouette descending relentlessly, spitting fire from its underbelly. The remaining survivors huddled together, their screams drowned out by the sound of Kree artillery impacting the ground.
"Helldivers, concentrated fire on the ship's engines! Don't let it land!" Li Wei shouted, his voice hoarse but firm, as he ran toward the front line, his Helldiver rifle already firing energy bursts that left incandescent streaks in the polluted air.
The Helldivers responded with chilling discipline. Portable missile launchers deployed, sending guided projectiles toward the ship's hull. Energy rounds struck the armor, opening small luminous fissures. The Kree ship, however, was robust. It barely wavered.
A deafening hum filled the valley. From the ship's hull, a bright blue light began to emanate, concentrating into a single point. "Aegis, what is that?!"
"Energy signature analysis: Kree Phase Vacuum Bomb. Designed to destabilize the molecular structure of the terrain, creating a vacuum of matter. Estimated effect radius: 3 kilometers. Primary target: the civilian settlement. The explosion will create an unstable quantum hole in this sector," the AI's voice was calm, almost monotonous, before the imminent annihilation.
Li Wei's heart froze. Three kilometers. The settlement. And him. "We have to stop it! Now!"
"Ship defenses are too robust for a short-term direct attack. The probability of successful interception of the vacuum bomb is... 12%."
"Give me that 12%!" Li Wei roared. He knew what that number meant. It meant it was almost impossible. But the image of the family being sacrificed, Tony Stark's words, the helplessness that had consumed him his entire life... No more. Not again.
A Helldiver, his serial number flickering on Li Wei's HUD as 'Helldiver-74', ran to his side. "Commander! We need a plan!"
Li Wei scanned the surroundings, his mind working at lightning speed, forced by desperation. He saw the entrance to the quantum portal that Aegis had indicated as vital to the mission: a bright, pulsating fissure in the ruins of an old train station, its light casting dancing shadows. If that portal collapsed, the mission would fail completely. But the settlement...
Then he understood. The only option. The horrible, impossible, only option.
"Helldiver-74, you have a demolition team with you, right?" Li Wei asked.
"Yes, sir!"
"I want your team and you to head directly to the settlement. There are some old collapsed energy turbines in the center. I want you to overload them, creating a massive energy discharge into the ground."
"Sir? I don't understand, that could—"
"The Kree vacuum bomb will absorb the energy you generate instead of organic matter! It's a long shot, but it's the only way to divert the bomb's impact from the settlement!" Li Wei explained, his voice tinged with feverish urgency.
"But sir... the discharge... the Helldiver who activates it... the overload is lethal."
"I know," Li Wei's voice was barely a whisper. The horrible reality of the choice. To save a small settlement, the few who remained, or to protect the quantum portal entrance that was vital to his overall mission. The choice was already made. He couldn't sacrifice innocents, not this time. "This is a Red Level World, Helldiver. Sometimes, the lowest probability is the only hope."
Helldiver-74 hesitated for an instant, then nodded with steely resolve. "Understood, Commander! For Super-Earth!" It was an oath, a silent acceptance of sacrifice. With a gesture, his team diverted, running towards the ruins of the settlement.
The Kree ship continued its charge, the light of the phase vacuum bomb growing, making it look like an artificial sun descending to Earth. Li Wei remained at the quantum portal control point with the rest of his troops, his heart pounding painfully. He had to trust his Helldiver. He had to witness the sacrifice.
A massive explosion shook the air from the settlement. It wasn't the Kree bomb, but the overload of the turbines. The ground trembled, a column of bright blue energy rose into the sky, a beacon of light in the desolation.
At that very instant, the Kree ship's light intensified, and then, with a deafening roar, the vacuum bomb fired. It didn't hit the ground; instead, it was drawn by the energy column. The blue beam and the vacuum beam met halfway, colliding in a burst of light that blinded Li Wei for a moment.
When his sight recovered, the energy column from the settlement had dissipated. A huge, smoking crater occupied the spot where the vacuum bomb had impacted, but it was a crater of dissipated pure energy, not absent matter. The settlement, though hit by the shockwave, remained, weak but intact.
"Impact analysis: 98% of the Kree vacuum bomb's force was absorbed by the energy overload. Civilian settlement integrity: 87%. Helldiver-74: Vital signature nonexistent," Aegis reported, its voice emotionless.
The reality struck Li Wei like lightning. Helldiver-74. He had sacrificed himself. He had given his life to save those he didn't even know, following an order from someone he had just met. A wave of something that felt like guilt and respect, both at once, washed over him.
"Commander! The Kree ship is changing course! It's retreating!" A nearby Helldiver exclaimed.
"Evaluation: The vacuum bomb attack was a test. The unexpected resistance has prompted a tactical reevaluation. The immediate threat has diminished. The quantum portal remains stable," Aegis concluded.
The tension dissipated like smoke. The Helldivers, still in formation, showed their exhaustion in their postures. Li Wei looked at the rubble where the settlement had almost vanished. He saw the survivors, small dots in the distance, beginning to emerge from their hiding places, incredulous, some crying. The settlement had been saved. But at a cost.
Tony Stark's face, the family being sacrificed, and now Helldiver-74's sacrifice. In just a few hours, Li Wei had seen desperation, self-destruction, and silent heroism.
"Mission completed: 2,748 lives saved. 11,421 lives lost. Overall success probability: 12%… Increasing," Aegis projected the numbers on his visor.
The numbers didn't comfort him. The lives saved felt insignificant compared to those lost. But Aegis's "Increasing" resonated in his mind. It was a sign. A sign that, despite everything, there was a possibility. Small, but existing.
Li Wei turned, his gaze fixed on the sky where the Kree ship had dissipated. He was not the child who had hidden from his father's wrath. He was not Lin Jian's scapegoat. He was Commander Li Wei, and the weight of life-or-death decisions was already forging him.
In my first world… I watched a god die.In the second, I let a child die.And in all of them, I left pieces of myself.