Chapter Four: Higher and Faster

“Take the meteorite for analysis!” Dr. Kenmura gazed deeply at Tetsuya, ignoring what others might be thinking. He gave instructions to his assistant, then nodded slightly to Captain Mikage Juian and said, “If you'll excuse me.”

The analysis did not take long. Tetsuya, from who knows where, produced a Rubik’s cube and devoted himself to turning it in his hands. Meanwhile, in the command room, the others took another crash course on the changes in Earth's strata over its long history. Lina quietly approached Tetsuya and asked in a low voice, “Why?”

Tetsuya stopped manipulating the cube, looked up at Lina and countered, “Why what?”

Daigo heard the exchange and glanced back at Lina, but said nothing. Still, he refused to look away, awkwardly watching Tetsuya and Lina as they spoke.

“Why is Captain Hayate’s fighter jet... so formidable?” Lina hesitated for a moment, then gathered her courage and voiced her question.

Tetsuya looked at her and smiled. Lina was GUTS’s ace pilot; in the story of Ultraman Tiga, she could easily control GUTS’s ultimate battleship, the Atlantis. She was an incredibly gifted pilot. Yet, it seemed she had not yet experienced a series of events that would mature her; her mindset was still like that of a young girl, and she worshipped and sought advice from him as a young girl would.

Lina's talent for flying was not inferior—in fact, it surpassed Tetsuya’s—but she lacked one crucial thing.

So Tetsuya smiled and said quietly, “Because you are content and timid.”

Lina pouted in dissatisfaction, her beautiful eyes glaring at Tetsuya. Beside her, Daigo also glared at him.

Their gazes made Tetsuya feel enormous pressure, causing him to touch his nose awkwardly. “Perhaps it's because of peace. With technological advancement and improved fighter performance, personal skill is less demanded of pilots. Pilots lack opportunities for combat, so they are satisfied with their achievements and refuse to attempt maneuvers with high difficulty. Your flying talent is high, but your thinking is bound by these constraints.”

Lina was still confused, so Tetsuya asked directly, “Have you ever tried pushing the Victory Swallow to speeds of Mach 5 or higher?”

Lina's mouth opened in surprise. She thought for a moment and replied, “TPC generally doesn't allow fighter jets to fly at such high speeds. A pilot’s eyes may not adjust to the rapidly receding scenery, making it difficult to control the jet and increasing the risk of accidents.” She paused. “The highest I’ve ever tried was Mach 4.7.”

Tetsuya laughed. “Exactly. You know, those are just a series of possibilities. I believe we shouldn't let one or two possible factors stop us, as pilots, from pursuing higher and faster states of flight. How can we expect our fighters, which fight alongside us, to perform brilliantly otherwise?”

Hearing this, Lina hesitated and muttered, “But... TPC regulations...”

Tetsuya smiled. His gaze seemed to pierce the command room and see the future, and he spoke with unwavering conviction. “TPC’s rules will soon change, because... a time of great upheaval is beginning!”

At last, the doors to the command room opened again. Eguchi cradled a chunk cut from the meteorite, while Dr. Kenmura looked grim, her beautiful face shadowed with gloom.

“I analyzed the radioactive elements covering the exterior of the time machine's meteorite. They formed in strata dating back to between the twenty-fifth and thirty-eighth millennia BCE.”

Eguchi looked up at everyone. “That’s about thirty million years ago, the Tertiary Period of the Cenozoic era...” He sighed.

“In short, it’s from long, long before humans appeared on Earth.”

Lina’s attention was already captured by Eguchi’s words. She exclaimed, “Oh my God...”

Judging by her expression, it was unclear whether Tetsuya’s words had any effect on her.

Eguchi's explanation was blunt; now everyone understood—this was direct evidence laid before them. Dr. Kenmura glared fiercely at Tetsuya but remained silent. What angered her even more was that since her arrival, Tetsuya had been fiddling with his Rubik’s cube, never once looking up, as if he had known the answer all along and thus showed no interest.

The command room gave them no time to digest the information. The global detection map on the big screen quickly locked onto a location in the Americas, and the alarm sounded.

“A monster has appeared on Istán Island. Satellite images are incoming.”

With Yano’s operation, the image of the head of the American branch appeared on the big screen. The head spoke hurriedly, then switched the feed.

A colossal monster appeared on screen, struggling out from a mountain wall. Its neck was as long as a giraffe’s, its huge body streamlined, and two long wings rose from its back. Its sharp beak pointed at the moon, letting out a resonant cry.

“That’s Melba—the monster that shatters the sky!” While everyone was still stunned, Daigo instinctively identified it and spoke first.

“Why would a monster appear now?” Vice Captain Munakata pondered in silence, sounding puzzled.

“The Earth is undergoing mutation!” Daigo’s gaze swept over everyone, his tone indignant. “Yurei was right. Golza has appeared, Melba too, so only the giant inside the pyramid remains!”

“The giant inside the pyramid,” Captain Mikage Juian echoed, flustered. She looked at Daigo and asked, “But where is it?”

Under Captain Mikage Juian’s expectant gaze, Daigo could only shake his head regretfully. He too didn’t know where the pyramid’s giant was. Yet, a voice within him constantly affirmed that all of this was real. He trusted his intuition, which was why he believed Yurei so deeply.

“If we can find the pyramid, we can find it soon enough!”

At this moment, Yano’s confident voice sounded. As he spoke, he rapidly manipulated the computer.

The global satellite map on the big screen zoomed in with his operations, narrowing the location until it locked onto a specific area.

“By deciphering ancient languages, we can infer the pyramid’s approximate location—right here.”

The map locked onto the mountainous region in northeastern RB, but nothing more specific could be determined. Vice Captain Munakata was the first to eagerly ask, “Is it in RB!?”

“Victory Team, move out!” Captain Mikage Juian nodded and stood, her voice solemn.

“Understood!” The entire Victory Team snapped to attention, then rushed out at once.