章節 170: There is a Cost to Save the World
I heard a story once about a radio broadcaster who told an almost realistic story about aliens invading the United States of America at a time when radios have just been established and many people, believing that any information or story that can make it into the radio is definitely factual, packed up their belongings, drove as far away as possible and feared for their lives.
Ultimately, the radio broadcast was revealed to be nothing more but a story structured like a reporter's commentary and that none of it was true at all. Since then, it has become a courtesy and often times a law for broadcasters to give out a disclosure before they begin to narrate a non-factual story.
However, the fact that all kinds of people from all walks of life began to panic and unite in the thought of running away as soon as they heard that a danger that isn't human and therefore, comprehensible, was coming for them was something that for the rest of the old world's history, wouldn't happen again on the same extent.
The point is, when a danger that cannot be comprehended presents itself, many people would unite in either running away or confronting it… and that is the very thing that's happening right now in the borders of Mikia province.
"Fire mission incoming! Triangulate the coordinates and fire away!"
"Coordinates set!"
"All barrels prepped!"
"Shot out! Shot out!!!"
From several kilometers away, artillery and rocket trucks sent their ordnance to the frontlines with impunity.
"Captain! The marines are requesting naval gunfire!"
"Give 'em what they need! Double-time!"
From the sea, ships from the designation of Destroyers to Battleships all sent out whatever gunfire they can bear to their opponents. Several attack submarines even sent out conventional ballistic and cruise missiles.
"Open the bomb bays!"
"Gunny! Aim true!"
"Will do, captain! Nearing… nearing drop point… Drop! Drop! Drop!"
Minute by minute, swarms of bomber planes drop their bombs on the battlelines.
"Don't give in! Rout them!"
"Give me cover fire! I'm saving our lads on the other trench!"
"You heard the old man! Go get them!"
And even the simple infantry soldiers on the ground, holding back the almost unstoppable and innumerable wave of monsters are all struggling.
If back then, their fight against the Coalition was nothing but a cakewalk, the war against these supernatural monsters is a herculean task.
"Call in another artillery strike!"
"The howitzers are already overheating!"
"Then call the air force or something! We can't afford to lose even a meter of ground here!"
Unbeknownst to every other country in the world, the few million people fighting in this war was all that stood between the continued existence of this world or its collapse to the beings of beyond reality.
"Stand up, men! Another wave is coming!"
"Darn it!"
"When will these monsters stop coming over!?"
As Hiroshi already said before, this was nothing but a microscopic amount of an already miniscule number of monsters that the rebels of the old world fought against. An hour ago, the reports from the frontlines speak that the dead enemies have already numbered to over ten million… and yet, air reconnaissance reports say that many more are to come to the frontlines.
"Captain… was that…"
"…Right. Orders have been given to fuel up the plane and load the warheads."
"…"
"Marshall Leader Kusanagi is being briefed about it, but Chancellor Iwasawa has already given the order for us to prepare."
"Captain…"
"Yes?"
"Is this… really the only way for this to end?"
"…"
In Yamashiro airbase, one of the first Akatsuki bomber plane crew conversed about the orders they just received and one of the sergeants asked if this is truly the only way for this to end.
"Take note that this came from Iwasawa-sama…"
"That…"
"He has always looked for the best way to save everyone… but him choosing this must mean that this is truly the only way to save the many… even if it will cost the life of the few."
In Camp Shirou, Kusanagi Kyoko is sitting in a silent room, deliberating her decision properly before making the choice that would either prolong this war or cause death and destruction to be felt and remembered by generations to come.
"…What did Iwasawa speak about this?"
"The Chancellor said that this is the best way to end this now while we can still contain it. Unlike before, we aren't fighting against antagonistic yet sensible and reasonable people… the enemies we have now are senseless monsters that we can neither pragmatize nor reason with."
"…"
"From his own words "we can either make our people charge towards assured pain and danger… or we can drop the sun on the land where only the enemy is left alive."
"How can we be sure that there are no longer any living humans in there?"
"AWACS planes scoured the area for days using thermal cameras."
"And?"
"There were no longer human-like figures left behind enemy lines. Even animals were not spared by the monsters as neither livestock nor wild animals were seen on the same surveillance sweeps."
"I see…"
To Kyoko, this decision is ultimately hers as dictated by the articles and checks & balances set by the Alliance. As the Marshall Leader, every military decision is made according to her name, title and wish… not even Hiroshi has power over that.
"So… with all of that said, Kusanagi-sama."
"…"
"What is your decision?"
With a signature of her name and the imprint of her seal, she can end all of this…
"…Give me the document."
And as the circumstances of the war have led to this moment, Kyoko held her breath and let the ink of her pen flow into the paper.
"May the heavens forgive us for this travesty."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
In Onigashima Naval base, the headquarters of Kiko's Submarine force, the encrypted orders to the admiral of the silent fleet reached its intended individual.
"Commander Fumikage… an order from the Marshall Leader."
"Lady Kusanagi? Why is she the one handing us orders? Our fleet is separate from the allied forces."
"There has been an exception… look at this, commander."
"…I see."
On the paper where his orders are detailed, it may have been Kyoko who signed it as an official operation, but beside it was another signature from no other than their lord and master, Iwasawa Hiroshi.
"What do you say, sir? Shall we commence with this?"
"Yes. With haste!"
A few minutes as soon as the orders were received and a plan was set into motion, the entire submarine base became abuzz with and only half an hour later, the entire fleet of 47 submarines, comprising mostly of ballistic submarines that are now carrying state-of-the-art nuclear-armed missiles, made their way to the frigid seawaters of Mikia province.
"Whenever I remember that day, I often wonder how things led to this point."
I'm supposed to only be a navy officer so that I can support my true passion of acquiring knowledge and show to the public that my clan will not be compromising on its ancient responsibility of protecting our homeland… but now, I am a man of war out to cause destruction once again.
"But peace is nigh… we just have to hold on for a bit more."
Consoling myself with the thought of an era of peace coming after all of this chaos, I closed my eyes and listened as the silence of the sea's depths took my mind off of all the death and destruction that has happened recently.
"Perhaps there is a better way… but as it is right now, this is what can be realistically done for the good of all."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Father, look! It's the navy submarines again!"
"…This is unnatural."
As they are passing through the waters of Mizuki province, the submarine fleet kept itself above the water's surface in order to continuously receive communications with the allied forces.
Because of this, a fleet of fishermen came across them within visual range, with a young child beckoning the attention of the other fishermen with his excited shout.
"Hush, child! Don't rock the boat!"
"Ah! Sorry, Father."
"Huh… this is unnatural."
"Captain?"
"Their numbers… this isn't the normal patrol or task force fleet."
The fishing fleet's captain spoke up as soon as he looked more closely to the exposed fleet from his telescope. From it, he saw that there is close to fifty vessels, a number that is a far cry from the normal six to eight vessels in a submarine flotilla or twelve to fifteen vessels in a task force.
Fielding that many submarines meant one thing… and after realizing that a bulk of the force were submarines larger than the ones he used to see on rotation patrols as they pass by south of Mizuki province, the captain of the fishing fleet realized something.
"The war… it may not be long until it ends."
"W-What do you mean, captain?"
"Those submarines… I am no navy man, but I know what a ship would have to contain for them to be made in a size that enormous."
"Y-You mean-"
"Right…"
As the submarines sped slow and steady through the waters, the words spoken by the elderly fisherman echoed in the minds of everyone who heard it.
"They are opening the gates of hell."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"All hands, respond and check your stations."
["Cockpit and controls all green."]
["Navigations and mission control stable and ready."]
["Fuel and Munitions, prepped and ready for use."]
["Hydraulics and electric system all green. Ready for take-off maneuvers."]
In Yamashiro airbase in Yamato province, three planes bearing a paint job and special decal unique to only one class of aircraft turned on their engines and slowly made its way from their hangars to their respective taxiways towards the runway where they will take off.
["Special package. Report your status, over."]
["Special package is safe and secure. Will await further orders for priming and arming."]
["Clear copy. Will inform Allied leadership as soon as possible. Akatsuki Command to Akatsuki 1 through 3 respond, over."]
One by one, the three pilots of the planes answered that they are ready to take off. With that, the mission commander in the air traffic control tower spoke the last lines of his protocol dialogue and bid the airmen one last statement before they took to the skies.
"Clear skies and Godspeed, men. May you return home to tell the tale."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
It has been twelve hours after the order was signed, five hours after the Kiko Silent Service left Onigashima naval base and one hour after the three Akatsuki Tactical Bombers left Yamashiro airbase.
In less than an hour, the sun will appear from the horizon and bathe the entirety of the nation in its glow and warmth… but this time, it will not be alone in that act.
"Commander Fumikage."
"…Set coordinates for each missile. Make sure there won't be an overlap and we keep the five-kilometer buffer zone with our own forces."
"Roger!"
In the still dark sea north and west of Mikia province, the submarine force has begun to set where their armament will be fired.
"How many ballistic subs do we have again?"
"Twenty-six. The other twenty-one subs are attack submarines for the protection of our fleet."
"I see… considering that we are now using the same class of ballistic subs… each carrying six missiles…"
"One hundred and thirty missiles…"
130 missiles… that was the capacity of this submarine fleet and the number of weapons that they are about to unleash against the otherworldly monstrosities scouring the land right now and barely being held back by the allied army.
"You talkative jackasses! Quit just casually speaking while we're in silent running!"
""S-Sorry, Captain!""
Although there was no enemy around them, rules are rules, and the two young submariners faced the scolding of the command submarine's captain and apologized for their mistake.
"Commander, we are in place."
"Got it, Captain… Rise to the surface! Engage all pumps and bring us up!"
"Affirmative, commander! All hands! Prepare for rapid surfacing!"
One by one, following the order given by Ryuusui, the submarines rose to the sea surface and opened the missile bay of their vessels. Exposing the weapons that are destined to hit their targets and end this war.
"Awaiting final confirmation from Marshall Leader Kusanagi."
"…"
For a few moments, the final light bulb that will indicate the last step of consent and probably the decision that can either set into motion or completely cancel the mission became the main focus of every person in the submarines.
"Green! Green! All armaments! Shot out!"
As soon as the lightbulb glowed bright, signifying a positive response from the last person to consent to the order, the missiles left their silos in the submarines and moments later, their rocket engines burst into life and brought their payload past the horizon and towards the targeted area.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
As scary as it may seem, given the number of the nuclear weapons that was just brandished into the last stronghold of the enemy, there were much consideration done to make sure that even if destructive ability was the main focus of the weapons, it was also something that was done that erred to the side of post-detonation safety.
"Neutron bomb?"
"Yeah. It was something that I made after I realized that we can't simply use fission bombs given the residual radiation that it will leave not only in the area but also to whomever would survive."
A neutron bomb. Unlike a normal nuclear weapon whose main destructive power lies on its raw detonation power and leaves an undesirable impact on the area through radiation, soot and other abnormalities, a neutron bomb has a limited blast site and leaves no long-lasting radioactive byproduct in its vicinity. Instead, its greatest destructive capability is the sheer amount of neutrons that it sends out, bathing whomever alive in the vicinity of its detonation in bristling heat and oftentimes destroying their biological components, killing them inside out.
"Then the numbers that was deployed in the submarines…"
"It's for the sake of spreading the destruction and making sure that our forces wouldn't face an apocalyptic number of them ever again.
"I see…"
In the command room of Camp Shirou, Kyoko and Hiroshi conversed about the attack as it went on. There, Hiroshi disclosed that the bombs aren't as destructive as she may think and that in no longer than a week, they can proceed to head to the mountain bunker where their great enemy is in his last stand.
"Wait… you said that the submarines are carrying these neutron bombs that are enough to wipe out the monsters we are fighting against."
"Yeah?"
"Then why was it necessary to have three Akatsuki bombers fly to the same place?"
"…"
As soon as he was asked that question, Hiroshi looked down to the table and seemed to be unwilling to give her an answer.
"H-Hiroshi… you can't be-"
"This man… no, this monster held onto his life so strongly that even "that person" was unable to fully finish him off."
"-!"
"I intend to whittle him down to the point that we can finally bring him to his end… and I will use all means available to me."
After saying that, the telephone in front of him rang and he picked it up with a staunch expression on his face.
"…I see. Proceed with caution and make sure that it will hit the mountain with impunity. Yes… I meant what I said. Decimate him."
After he put down the phone, Hiroshi closed his eyes and when he opened it, he stared straight to Kyoko who understood immediately what he was about to do and why.
"Hiroshi… just how much-"
"It's my turn, Kyoko."
"-!"
"Back then, I was powerless to stop them, and they almost came to rule the world…"
A cold tone and an even colder glare… that all came from the man in front of her.
"However, things have changed now. He is now alone, actively losing his mind and soon enough, he will be vulnerable… just like how I was back then. And now that I have all of these means to stop him and bring every single person that he killed and tormented back then and even in this world, I must not stop… I will not stop."
Hiroshi stood up and while Kyoko and the five generals in the room watched him walk towards the door, they all knew that Hiroshi can no longer be stopped.
"I will end him… for the sake of everyone."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
In the frontlines, the unending horde of monstrosities continued to pour out from beyond the horizon and try to smash their way into the allied army. Though the soldiers are armed with the latest weapons and using the most efficient and effective defensive formation and fortification techniques, that meant nothing against their enemy that is both unable to feel pain or forced to retreat.
"Fire the mortars!"
"Give em hell!!!"
Ever since they emerged weeks ago, the battle has never ceased even for just a second. The first defenders and their armaments were heavily fatigued in the span of a single day and it was only because of the quick thinking made by the five allied generals to send all available forces to reinforce the frontlines that an ad hoc rotational shifting system was set, comprising of a single combined arms group that will hold the line for 8 hours until the next group can slowly replace them in their positions.
Even if they have managed to solve the manpower problem by setting a shifting system, that didn't offset the fact that their equipment and ammunition are also being stressed beyond their practical and logistical limits.
"Darn! The machinegun is acting up again!"
"Pour water on it already!"
"We've been pouring water on it too much! The barrel may crack at this point!"
The guns, brought to a point beyond their limits by their unceasing use in the battle, wore out its components quickly, causing it to lose accuracy and dropping its fire rate… and at worst…
*Tyak-!*
"GYAAAA-!!!"
"Drat! Medic! Medic!"
"Darn it! Our guns are blowing up already!"
…being overstrained, the weapons oftentimes turn on their users and blow up in their own hands. However, the infantrymen aren't the ones in the greatest danger in this phenomenon.
"Darn it! The howitzer is heating up too much!"
"Hey! Carry on the slack for us a bit!"
"We're on the same boat, doofus! Our cannon barrels had their rifled threads grinded off!"
The heavy artillery of the allied army were either overheating due to overuse, or has lost its stabilizing rifling, causing to be unable to be fired because of safety concerns about its accuracy.
"Here they come!"
"Get going already!"
In Shizue airfield of Yoshitsu province, where the Coalition used to launch their airships back then before it was captured and refurbished for use by Allied airplanes, fighter planes landed and was immediately tended to their respective crews.
"Get the lieutenant out of the cockpit!"
"Damn! He needs some water! Someone get a bottle with a drinking straw here!"
With them being the newest and most short-staffed branch of the armed forces, the allied air force pilots can do nothing but fly as soon as they have landed, and their planes have been tended to by their aircrews.
"Hey, hey! Don't lose consciousness now!"
"H-Hwa dwa…"
"Drat… there's no helping it. I have to ground you."
"What?! N-no! You can't-"
"You've pulled too many maneuvers that drained the blood from your head! You're on the ground already but you're still losing consciousness and slurring your words! You're grounded! Recover first!"
However, the number of the planes providing air support have been declining as more and more of them have been deemed unfit to fly due to the complications caused by their flying.
Overall, the forces that stood between peace and utter destruction have been on the decline… and unfortunately, there was nothing that could be done about it normally…
Right… Normally.
"C-Commander! Commander!!!"
"What the hell? What are you shouting about, private!?"
"A direct line from Camp Shirou! It's from allied high command!"
"The generals? What is it about? What are they calling for?"
Maybe due to utter nervousness or the fact that what he is about to say is beyond his rank, the soldier spoke out the answer with anxiety on his face.
"We've been ordered to set the entire frontlines on fire and make our retreat several kilometers from here."
"S-Set the frontlines on fire?!"
"Yes! They say that we have to get clear from the blast zone."
"Blast zone… wait, don't tell me that-"
News about the bombardment spread down the frontlines in mere minutes. With the dawn being set as the deadline for the action, the men continued to fire back on their enemies whilst forming wooden barricades and bathing them in any fuel they have at hand.
"The trucks and tanks are ready to leave!"
"Light it up!"
"Light the barricades up!"
As the first sunrays peered from beyond the mountains, the soldiers threw their firebombs to set the barricades alight and ran towards the waiting vehicles that would take them as far away from that place as possible.
"W-What are those!?"
"Rockets? No! Missiles! Those are missiles from the navy!"
"There's… there's so many of them!"
The trail of missiles flew through the sky and out of the clouds, at first there was only a few until they left the cover of the clouds and now numbered about a hundred.
"W-Whoa!"
"That's a lot of missiles! Is that the reason why they made us to leave the frontlines behind?!"
"You fools! Pull down the lead-lined cover if you want to stay alive!"
Even from already a kilometer away from the frontlines, safety precautions still needed to be done. Neutron bombs may not leave long-lasting aftereffects in the area, but the damage incurred on any living flesh at the moment of the explosion are its greatest deadly force.
And so, as the one-hundred and thirty missiles reached their respective target areas, the rocket engines ceased to function and by gravity alone, aided by the stabilizing fins that corrected the orientation of the bomb second after second, the missiles were set to be armed by the internal computer and several meters above the ground, the proximity fuse detonated the bomb.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
In a fraction of a millisecond after the proximity fuse sent the electric current that activated the bomb trigger, the conventional explosive blows up and compresses the radioactive metals in the core which sets off the nuclear chain. However, instead of being contained by a casing that does not allow neutrons to escape the core and increase the explosive power of the bomb, the neutrons pass through a casing that makes them emit more neutrons and spread out in the vicinity of the explosion.
All of that happens in a single second… and in the next movement of the clock's hand, if one would be there at the same spot where it is dropped, there will be nothing in sight other than a blast of bright white light and a searing wave of heat that will evaporate not only your body but probably even our consciousness.
In 250 meters from the blast site, the same thing would be happening, albeit the heat wave would come for you after the flash of light. Unlike the ones immediately next to the detonation though, you'd be leaving a smudge where you were standing. A "shadow" from where those who would see it later would know that there used to be a someone standing there during the detonation.
In 500 meters or half a kilometer from the blast site, the neutrons have more or less reached a velocity enough to hit anything they pass through with ease. From here, any material that isn't neutron-absorbent would be breached by the particles and any flesh will either be burned instantly or have its biological components scrambled to the point that it cannot function anymore after some extent of time.
In a kilometer away from the blast site, the destructive effects of the weapon has neither been neutered nor weakened. Freely emitted neutrons still fly around, bristling with enough energy to cook you alive or cause your bodily functions to be destroyed that you'll lose your life in a single moment.
In two kilometers, the destructive capabilities of the weapon have reached their end. Both the heat and the neutron radiation can no longer propagate out and they begin to dissipate.
With all of this said, it can be easy to say that the neutron bomb is not something to be feared since it is far too small and limited in its blast range… but what it cannot do in its destructive quality, its creators make up for it in quantity.
"Hit, hit, hit! All warheads have been confirmed to hit the targets and detonate successfully!"
All along the total area of the condemned province of Mikia, the missiles hit and brought destruction to all that its explosion touched.
The trees were either uprooted by the blast, burned into fragile husks or had its parts negatively impacted by the radiation.
The birds who managed to escape the grabby hands of the monsters wasn't able to escape the bomb that bathed them in broiling heat that robbed them of their life in a single second. Some that managed to fly away was still subjected to the neutron radiation. After being exposed to that, the phenomenon of birds falling out of the sky for no apparent reason filled the headlines of newspapers.
Ghost towns and deserted cities was also among the places where these weapons were dropped. There, the aforementioned "shadows" left behind by the monsters on both the walls and the stone-lined streets became the subject of many scientists studies on the effects of nuclear weapons.
However, the true target of this attack, the otherworldly monsters let loose by Miyazono Keiji, was the ones who truly suffered from the attack. The horde that can barely be contained by the Allied Army, in the face of over a hundred missiles carrying 2-kiloton neutron bomb warheads, can do nothing but evaporate from the face of the earth like a drop of water in a searing hot pan.
A week after the missile attacks, the first scout groups were sent to study the place and there, they saw the charred, ashen and almost molten bodies of the monsters they once feared.
"This one had its skin and flesh meld and turn into stone… I believe it's the variant that had calcified skin."
"This one's upper half just turned into ash. It must've been smothered in petrol and the heat ignited it."
"…Just bury this one. Its bones became liquified. It's too disturbing to look at."
As they neared the mountains, the scout leaders decided to turn back. Hearing the rising garbled tone of their Geiger sensors, they knew that the land ahead isn't a place they can step onto… however, this isn't because there was a malfunction on the sensors nor an accidental mix-up on the allegedly "clean bomb" that is the neutron bomb.
"I heard the Akatsuki bombers' crews almost died after dropping their payload."
"…"
"The mountains… why is our last enemy still holding onto such a hopeless situation?"
As the final chapters of this story begin to unfold, one last enemy, an opponent deemed dangerous enough to receive this much opposition, began to sense his impending doom.
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票