Chapter 43: The Wandering Terror

It slowly surfaced from its domain, a being rarely sighted and passed down only in legends—a massive beast known as the Wandering Terror. Without clear intent, it roams, driven solely by hunger and the instinct to survive.

Far as the eye could see stretched the vast ocean. Across this expanse of water, something floated.

Carved into the prow of a ship was a wooden goddess, her serene gaze fixed on the horizon as she swayed gently with the waves.

A waterbird descended from the sky, landing cautiously atop her head. After scanning its surroundings, it began preening its feathers.

Moments later, a low growl broke the stillness as a colossal shadow approached.

The prow of a ship sliced through the waves, sending ripples outward and rocking the wooden goddess. Startled, the bird flapped away in a flurry of wings.

A ship with a pristine white hull approached, its name etched along the side:

"QUEBEC 017 THE TREE"

“Commander Ma’am, we’ve located a large artificial drifting object.”

“A large one?”

Called over by Ringo, the commander arrived to find the monitor displaying an image of a ship’s prow being lifted by a crane.

“Uh… still in progress?”

“This image was taken during recovery operations. The object has already been retrieved, and we’re en route back to base.”

“Got it.”

The displayed item was the prow of a wooden ship, seemingly snapped cleanly off. It measured roughly 10 meters in length, the break so sharp it might as well have made a snap sound.

“This is what you found?”

“Yes, ma’am. We discovered it while surveying ocean currents. If it had been older, we would have marked it as a drifting beacon, but analysis revealed it to be a relatively recent object, so we decided to recover it for further investigation.”

Ringo often acted independently on minor issues like this, which the commander tolerated—it would be a hassle if she were consulted about every trivial matter.

“Recent, huh? Could it be related to that ghost ship?”

“That possibility is under consideration, but initial assessments suggest otherwise. The prow lacks the distinctive features of the previous vessel and appears to belong to a different civilization.”

“Oh? This? Hmm, a goddess figurehead?”

The recovered prow featured a finely carved figure of what appeared to be a goddess. The craftsmanship was notably intricate. By contrast, the ghost ship’s prow had a dragon-like creature carved beneath its forward structure, differing in both design and placement. This indicated a high likelihood that the ships originated from different locations.

“Interesting. So, you recovered it partly for that investigation.”

“Yes, ma’am. Additionally, we discovered it in this region, suggesting a nearby ocean current. However, it’s approximately 200 kilometers away—not exactly close, but not too far either.”

A drifting ship was one thing, but a crewed vessel arriving posed a more complex issue. <The Tree> had yet to establish clear protocols for such situations. Allowing their location to become known could be dangerous, but indiscriminately sinking such ships wasn’t ideal either.

“We need to determine what caused that ship’s condition. If it ran aground, identifying the location would be valuable.”

The surrounding waters were still largely unexplored. Ocean currents and reef locations remained unknown, and the limited equipment available slowed progress.

“Given <The Tree>’s subtropical climate, we can assume we’re on the northern side of the equator. There’s a known continent to the north, and while the south is uncharted, a continent likely exists there as well. The distances appear to exceed 1,000 kilometers in each direction. As for east and west, it seems the ocean stretches indefinitely.”

“Maybe we should attempt circumnavigation…”

Their surveyed territory accounted for less than 10% of the planet’s expected surface. Though deploying the solar-powered reconnaissance drones, Swift, was an option, their signals couldn’t penetrate the horizon, risking loss if the drones crashed or their data leaked to other factions.

To mitigate these risks, they maintained operations within communication range, steadily expanding Swift’s network. Most resources had been allocated toward establishing a communications web on the northern continent, leaving little for exploration south, east, or west.

“Circumnavigation is risky. We wouldn’t be able to provide support if something went wrong.”

“You’re right. I guess we’ll have to proceed steadily.”

Each Swift drone had limited coverage. Adding communication equipment reduced its capacity for observation, requiring separate drones for each function. Although mass production was possible, the reliance on rare metals for motors, batteries, and electronics meant overproduction would impact other essential manufacturing. Expanding rare metal production facilities was a prerequisite, but until then, resource shortages would hinder surveillance network growth.

Balancing priorities wasn’t Ringo’s forte, so these decisions were left to Commander Eve. As a central AI, Ringo’s nature leaned toward perfectionism and risk aversion, resisting postponement, downsizing, or abandonment of tasks.

“Hmm… Let’s reduce the northern continent’s lines to a single system. Reallocate the next batch of manufactured drones for backup. The freed-up resources can go toward ocean exploration. Sound good?”

“Yes, ma’am. However, if equipment on the northern continent malfunctions, repairs could take at least two hours. Are you sure this is acceptable?”

“It’s within acceptable risk. Even in standalone mode, two hours shouldn’t be an issue. Besides, the failure rate is… 0.001%? Negligible.”

The northern continent’s infrastructure and autonomous machines operated under Ringo’s direct control. While communication relied on radio signals, the Swift drones acted as relays to connect points beyond <The Tree’s> direct line of sight.

In the event of a communication failure, destroyers equipped with onboard computing units could temporarily handle operations, aligning with the commander’s risk assessment.

“Understood, ma’am. I’ll consolidate the backup and main Swift systems and redirect excess units to ocean current exploration.”

“Thanks~!”

In this satellite-less world, Swift drones were an invaluable low-cost solution. However, alternatives needed to be considered. Flying at altitudes of 20 kilometers, they weren’t entirely undetectable from the ground or sea. Anomalies could eventually attract unwanted attention if the drones became too numerous.

“…Should we consider laying cables?”

Stretching submarine cables to the northern continent wasn’t impossible. Materials were abundant, though the process would be time-consuming, and unknown oceanic conditions could pose challenges. Still, wired connections between key bases offered significant advantages.

Solar flares, though yet unobserved, could disrupt communications. In severe cases, such events might even incapacitate the entire Swift fleet.

“Ringo, can we begin investigating submarine cables? It doesn’t need to be a high priority, but I’d like Telek Harbor connected sooner rather than later. Even if we start with a single line, we should eventually establish multiple routes.”

“Yes, ma’am. We can repurpose the Alpha-Class Destroyer No. 17 Quebec for survey missions and begin seabed mapping for cable deployment.”