The communication console suddenly emitted a sharp alert tone. Clicking on the message, Single Qiu Yu’s image appeared on the screen: "Voyager, we have received your report. We must admit the current situation is highly complex. A dedicated analysis team has been assembled and is conducting a comprehensive review. It will take some time to get results."
He paused briefly, then continued, "I personally agree with your assessment. Your proposed combat plan demonstrates extraordinary courage, and I have already submitted it. However, speaking for myself, this plan still has many areas that need refinement and supplementation. Here are a few points I’d like to briefly mention."
"First, besides Earth, Mars has the best environment among the planets. Therefore, we absolutely cannot allow the aliens to establish a foothold. No matter what, their base must be destroyed. This is the Voyager’s primary mission, and I must emphasize this point again."
"Second, we must strive with all our might to achieve ultimate victory. However, both directions of enemy threat are significant, so the possibility of the plan succeeding is very high. You must be mentally prepared."
"Third, we have never launched a Mars probe outside of a launch window. However, theoretically, there are no issues. I’ve roughly calculated that if everything goes smoothly, the spacecraft will reach Mars in seven months. It’s a long time, but this is the fastest speed achievable with all available means. I hope you can understand and find ways to resolve the various difficulties during your stay on Mars."
"Finally, like you, I am unwilling to face this outcome. However, the situation has escalated to this point, and no one's emotions can be allowed to affect the mission. In the face of humanity's survival, all other issues must take a back seat. I hope you can understand."
His words were euphemistic, but everyone understood. What he meant was that even if it was a path to certain death, they had to resolutely carry out the mission.
This point actually didn’t need emphasis. Every member of the warship was a professional soldier. From the moment they joined the expedition team, they had already prepared themselves for sacrifice.
However, some were better prepared than others. Ou Zhanpeng, for instance, had considered all possible scenarios.
Others were not as well-prepared. Xu Qing, for example, envisioned the expedition as a direct, head-on battle with the aliens, not a choice between staying or leaving when facing certain death.
Single Qiu Yu’s voice suddenly stopped, as if he were listening to something. After a moment, he said, "We have news. The plan has been approved in principle, but the details still require careful consideration… Yes, here is a revised implementation plan. I’ll send it over shortly for you to discuss thoroughly."
The communication ended. Although the plan had been approved, everyone’s hearts were in a turmoil, incredibly complicated.
Ou Zhanpeng, however, suddenly felt at ease. The plan was his proposal, so there was no reason to let others stay behind.
Luo Tu, reading at lightning speed, scanned the optimized plan. "Everyone, take a look. If there are no objections, we will proceed according to the plan."
The ground staff team’s efficiency was top-notch, and their considerations were thorough and meticulous. However, time was short, and they had only produced a general framework; details would need to be filled in gradually.
Several hours later, the Voyager received a more detailed plan, and the next day, a supplementary plan arrived. It not only formulated a rigorous combat strategy for the Mars direction but also took into account various situations concerning Jupiter.
There was nothing more to say; they would proceed according to the plan.
Luo Tu resumed command. His first order was to wake everyone up and completely adjust their training focus to simulate various scenarios upon reaching Jupiter.
While at the base, they had simulated the aliens heading towards Jupiter, but only a handful of times. Therefore, even if it was a last-minute rush, they had to seize the time to address this weakness.
Secondly, they would make preparations for their arrival at Mars.
The situation was urgent, and the base’s efficiency was astonishingly high. Just two days later, a rescue ship had already been launched.
Although time was tight, this ship was not randomly chosen. It was a proper Mars vessel prepared for landing, equipped with all necessary equipment. Once it reached its destination, it would be able to save Ou Zhanpeng’s life.
Concurrently, under Single Qiu Yu’s full supervision, the base established several special task forces in the shortest possible time. The first to be completed was the Survival Group, whose mission was to find ways to increase the survival time of stranded personnel, based on the Voyager's current situation, without compromising the mission.
Thus, they put their minds to work and devised many unexpected solutions.
According to Ou Zhanpeng’s original intention, he only planned to leave one fighter jet to meet the most basic requirements for flight and survival, and then think of nothing else, leaving his fate to chance upon completing the mission.
However, the Survival Group’s suggestion was to use solid smoke as raw material to craft an external storage bay for the fighter jet, significantly increasing the reserve of supplies.
In other words, the fighter jet would be treated as a habitat, with all non-essential supplies stored outside and retrieved when needed.
Even Ou Zhanpeng, who considered himself intelligent, felt a sense of oxygen deprivation when he saw this suggestion.
Fortunately, considering the issue of replacing the warship’s outer armor, they had brought a set of solid smoke forming equipment.
The method was found, and the raw material was not lacking, but they could not act yet. They had to wait for news from the base. The Survival Group was only responsible for making suggestions and devising methods; specific implementation still required professional personnel.
Therefore, the design team for the multi-functional fighter jet was assembled to refine the external bay’s shape according to the requirements, ensuring it met usability standards without affecting the fighter jet’s performance.
The second special task force focused on weaponry, tasked with finding a way to successfully launch missiles from the weapon modules and ensure they hit their targets.
After understanding the warship’s situation, the Weapons Group also offered a suitable opinion: since a fighter jet was being left behind, could they utilize the fighter jet’s fire control system to launch the missiles?
Theoretically, this method was highly feasible, but there were many practical issues.
A fighter jet was, after all, a light weapon platform. Compared to a warship, the fire control system on a fighter jet was minuscule, with very limited functions and less than ideal detection ranges. Using it to control a warship’s weapon modules was akin to a small horse pulling a large cart. It was impossible to fire all missiles at once like on a warship; they could only be fired one by one, resulting in incredibly inefficient operations.
Fortunately, the space fighter jet originally had an orbital bombardment function and was fully capable of locking onto ground targets. The designers changed their approach, rewrote the control programs, and added a few simple controllers to the weapon modules. After resolving a series of problems and difficulties, they finally achieved success.