On Davis, the few defenders were preparing for the attack they knew was coming. "So, have you understand everything?" Eema asked.

The rest of the group nodded. "It's a risky plan" Jamie said. "But it's the only one we have available"

"I hate to admit it, but it is" Liam confirmed. Latest content published on NoveI-Fire.ɴet

"Good" Blue said. "Remember, we have to make sure the colony isn't harmed. I don't know what is currently happening on Eden, but we have to assume that the worst-case scenario occurs. In that case, the colony will be the only hope for humans and animals to survive"

The scientists and dinosaurs present nodded. As bad as it was to think so, they had to assume that all the countermeasures the dinosaurs were taking on Eden would fail and the planet would be destroyed. If that had happened, the colony would have been the lifeline for all of them. It couldn't house all of the human and animal population, but if it kept going some of them could escape there via [Teleportation] and wait for Eden to become habitable again and then repopulate it using cloning and genetic engineering, just as the Empire wanted to do. It was a really sad and bad prospect, but if the Empire's plan succeeded, it would be the only one available. Blue knew that even Sobek had considered that possibility, or he would not have allowed her to personally participate in the terraforming of Davis.

Davis was supposed to be the second choice, a place to escape in case things on Eden got too dangerous, just as they were. That's why Sobek had sent her there: he had faith in her abilities and counted that the terraforming process would be accelerated with her. But Sobek had overestimated it: the terraforming process had sped up, but not enough. Davis was still too inhospitable a planet to permit a mass migration.

Therefore, the colony cannot be harmed at all. If the disaster had been inevitable, at least with it someone could have been saved and their species would have had a future.

Were it not for that impediment, both Blue and Eema would have simply destroyed the dome and air system and then escaped via [Teleportation] along with the human scientists. In this way the imperial soldiers would die of asphyxiation as soon as they arrived. The colony could have been repaired at a later date.

But now the situation was too delicate to take such a risk. If they damaged the colony, he might not have had the time to repair it. They had only a few hours left.

Therefore, they had no choice but to play smart.

"All right. Let's do it. Everyone in their seats! And remember, plug your ears!" Eema ordered. The dinosaurs and scientists scattered and hid and then the dinosaurs activated [Ambush], lying on top of the scientists to cover them with their bodies. While the Imperials probably would have had some method of seeing through the ability, as they had with Rambo, it was still best to try and disguise as much as possible. While hiding, the humans took plugs with which they plugged both their ears and those of the dinosaurs.

It took an hour for the imperial troops to arrive. They were also protected by [Ambush] and were therefore undetectable. Their arrival would have been without warning… except that dinosaurs had one advantage: [Supreme instinct].

Thanks to them, all of them sensed their arrival in advance. Which was convenient: while in fact the imperials could have seen them through the same method as Rambo, the dinosaurs could not have noticed the imperials. This way, however, the dinosaurs still had the tactical advantage.

"I'm here" Blue whispered to Jamie. "It is the moment. Just do it!"

The expedition captain nodded and pressed a remote.

In an instant, an ultrasound sound spread throughout the colony. Despite the ear plugs, the dinosaurs and humans still felt a little nauseous. But it was nothing compared to what the imperial soldiers heard.

Just five seconds after the sound started, colored blobs began appearing in the colony, until the soldiers' camouflage was completely gone. The Imperials fell on all fours gasping and vomiting, holding their hands over their ears while expressions of pain painted on their faces. Many were screaming.

That sound was none other than the product of one of the colony's digging devices. Being equipped with the best scientific instruments, these machines were equipped with an ultrasound system that allowed them to know with millimeter precision what the soil was made up of and what minerals were found inside it. But those ultrasounds could also be amplified up to terribly painful frequencies for the human ear.

Once struck by the sound, the human soldiers' sensory systems had gone completely out of order. Nausea, dizziness, vomiting, confusion and pain in the eardrums were just a few of the terrible effects that ultrasound had on the human brain. The Imperials had completely lost the ability to control their movements, and as a result the camouflage due to the artificial imitation of [Ambush] had also gone out of use.

If they had wanted, Jamie, Liam and the other scientists could have amplified the sound up to a frequency so intense that it would make the Imperials' ears explode and send their brains into complete shock. However, they could not afford to take that risk. Since the colony was completely surrounded by a glass dome, sound was constantly bouncing off it; if they created too loud a sound, the glass of the dome could crack and then break, which was just what they wanted to avoid.

"Phase one… completed" Blue growled trying to ignore the annoying sound, which despite the earplugs was still able to reach her eardrums. He hoped to complete the plan before the next six minutes, otherwise Old Li would have an epileptic fit when he reappeared.

"Should we warn Liam?" Jamie whispered, in turn gritting his teeth in pain.

"He isn't needed. I think he already figured it out by himself" Blue said, and in fact shortly after all the lights in the surroundings went out while a slight electric discharge spread everywhere, making the feathers and hair of those present stand on end.

That was nothing but the result of a strong electromagnetic pulse. Liam had activated one of the electrical devices that the group had modified in the limited time available. It was normally used to sense electrical discharges and electromagnetic fields, but it had been easy for scientists to convert it into an EMP pulse emitter.

The impulse had fried all the technological devices within a radius of a hundred meters, but the air exchange devices were outside of this area anyway, so the colony did not run any risk. In contrast, the Imperial troops were all within the electromagnetic pulse and unable to react due to the terrible ultrasound. In an instant all their electronic devices stopped working: radios, infrared goggles, sensing devices… and even the oxygen supplies that the soldiers had brought along as a safety measure.

Seeing that the soldiers were in pain and their electronic devices had stopped working, Eema knew it was her time. "Now! Let's start phase three!"

There was a small 'beep', then the area within two hundred meters collapsed in on itself with a roar. The imperial troops fell into the void for at least three meters.

Since humans needed oxygen to survive, the first mining operations had taken place directly inside the colony, thus avoiding having to run the risk of running out of air in the wrong place at the wrong time. If a collapse had occurred inside the dome, there would still be breathable air left in the mines. Therefore, under the colony there were several tunnels within which all the materials necessary for the constructions that were part of the colony had been extracted.

These tunnels were very solid and unlikely to ever collapse, but the colony had a large supply of explosives. After all, they were essential to carrying out mining operations on the red planet. With them, it had been easy to bring down the walls of the tunnel. Without their support, the ground under the feet of the Imperial soldiers had sunk as if it were made of paper.

However, despite the fall, very few soldiers had died. Even though many were badly injured, they still remained elite soldiers. Their bodies were used to much greater shocks. Furthermore, their weapons were not subject to the effects of the electromagnetic pulse. Despite the situation, the imperial soldiers could still represent a real threat.

But now it was time for the final phase of the plan.