Sasha shut down the tactical terminal, while Kiwi began collecting the signal data recorded during the jamming process.
Sasha's sensors continued to display anomalous spatiotemporal readings, while the still-burning robot debris on the battlefield seemed to silently attest to the anomaly of this world.
"Threat level: low," Maine concluded, his optical lens sweeping across the battlefield. "But the target's behavior pattern is abnormal, and no normal biological stress response has been observed."
Sasha looked at the data transmitted back by the sensors, her tone puzzled: "Something's not right... These creatures, their movements... seem to have a high degree of coordination, like a whole."
Moreover, my spacetime reading instrument has been showing abnormal fluctuations in the background spacetime curvature since just now; the amplitude is small but persistent.
"Record all the data," Maine commanded, his dark red body turning inland where the gunfire grew increasingly intense. "We need intelligence. Falco, find high ground and establish temporary observation posts."
The rest of you, remain vigilant and advance slowly towards the source of the sound. Report the current situation to the Magos.
The team members immediately sprang into action, their cold metal boots creaking dully as they stepped through the mud and wreckage.
They had just arrived in this unknown world, and an unexpected encounter demonstrated their formidable military prowess. However, Sasha's report of anomalous spacetime readings, along with the strangely behaving enemies, cast a shadow of uncertainty over this off-course exploration.
The burning, robot remains are still emitting high temperatures and a pungent odor.
Maine's squad maintained a standard circular defensive formation, with each member's sensors continuously scanning the surrounding environment.
The detectors deployed by Sasha have expanded the reconnaissance range, and the real-time data transmitted back flows across everyone's tactical interface.
"Multiple mechanical units detected approaching." Falco's voice crackled through the squad's communication channel, steady and clear. "Bearing 2-1-5, distance 800 meters. Identified as... local standard armored personnel carriers and infantry units. No energy weapon signatures detected."
Almost simultaneously, Lucy's quadruped also locked onto the target and shared its image to the main screen.
Five camouflaged wheeled armored vehicles were cautiously driving along the coastal highway, with the word "UDF" painted on their bodies.
Approximately thirty soldiers dressed in khaki combat uniforms followed the vehicle in skirmish lines, each carrying live ammunition propelled by gunpowder.
"Remain vigilant and avoid showing hostility unless absolutely necessary," Maine instructed.
His massive frame shifted to the direction of the attack, calmly assessing the local armed force.
Dorio silently moved to Maine's flank, her gaze sweeping over the soldiers' equipment and movements.
Rebecca pursed her lips, the muzzle of the plasma bombardment cannon drooping slightly, but the energy indicator still showed that it was in standby mode.
The UDF forces stopped about 150 meters from Maine's squad.
The soldiers quickly established defensive positions using armored vehicles and the terrain, their movements skillful but visibly tense.
Their gazes were invariably focused on the two silent, standing "Iron Guard" prototypes, and on the weapons and armor worn by the squad members that were clearly out of step with the times.
An officer with the rank of lieutenant on his shoulder boards emerged from behind the lead vehicle, raising his hands to indicate that he meant no harm, but his fingers trembled slightly.
He spoke in English through a handheld megaphone, his accent bearing a distinct mid-21st-century character.
"Language recognition: English variant. A basic template exists in the database," Falco reported immediately. "Matching grammatical structures and lexical differences."
"Establish a real-time translation protocol," Maine responded.
Pilar adjusted his equipment and began broadcasting a standard, basic English greeting, while mixing in specific frequency sound waves used to calibrate the audio characteristics.
This serves both to confirm the other party's language and to collect sufficient voice samples for the real-time translation program.
At the same time, Kiwi quickly switched to the other party's open communication frequency band.
"Unencrypted tactical communication network detected. Downloading publicly available voice data packets to accelerate language model adaptation." Her finger swiped rapidly across the virtual interface, retrieving historical English data from the squad's database for cross-comparison.
The UDF troops clearly noticed Pilar's English greeting over the radio, and Lieutenant White's expression visibly relaxed.
He spoke again, slowing his pace: "Repeat, who are you? Which unit do you belong to?"
After less than a minute of data processing and algorithm adjustments, a stable real-time translation overlay was established in the squad's communication channel.
Lieutenant White's voice, after being slightly noise-reduced and standardized, reached the team members' ears. Although it had a slightly electronic tone, it was clear enough.
"We are an independent exploration team." Maine's synthesized voice came through an external speaker, using calibrated modern English pronunciation. "We have no intention of engaging in conflict with local armed forces. We were just attacked by an unknown creature."
The officer's gaze swept over the battlefield, melted by plasma and ignited by explosive flames, and the robot remains still twisting and burning on the ground. His eye twitched slightly.
"Those… 'things'…are alien invaders, we call them 'mimics.'" He took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady. "Your equipment…I've never seen anything like it before. Where did you come from?"
"We cannot disclose the origin of our arrival," Maine said, directly avoiding the question. "We arrived here due to an unexpected deviation from our flight path. We need intelligence on this area."
At this moment, another soldier ran to the officer's side, quickly reported a few words in a low voice, and kept glancing at the huge plasma bombardment cannon behind Rebecca and the chilling cannon barrel on Iron Guard's shoulder.
The officer's expression grew even more serious.
Rebecca scoffed in the squad comms: "Look at the toys they're carrying, can they kill anyone?"
Dorio was carefully observing the mimic debris in the distance, which had been destroyed by UDF soldiers' firepower, and assessing its damage patterns.
"The target has some defensive capabilities against live-fire weapons," she analyzed in a low voice, "but the key structures are still vulnerable."
After a brief silence, the UDF officer spoke again, his tone tentative: "You... just wiped out an entire swarm of mimics, and very quickly. We observed your... fighting style." He seemed to be choosing the right words.
"The entire world is fighting these alien creatures right now. Any additional resources are invaluable. Could we... cooperate?"
Maine's optical lens flickered slightly as he quickly exchanged data with Valerie and Jackie in the Iron Guard cockpit behind him.
Osiris' instructions were to gather intelligence and understand this dimension.
Limited cooperation with local forces is currently the most efficient approach.