章節 62: Amidst Chaos and Evacuation
Sergeant Whitlock found himself standing in the midst of chaos, a witness to the brutality ordered by Dialla. The echoes of terrified screams reverberated in his mind, drowning out the world around him. His face, once steely and composed, now betrayed an unmistakable pallor.
As he sat in the corridor, hands clamped firmly over his ears, the internal torment played out on Sergeant Whitlock's face. Each scream from the residents echoed in his mind, causing a visible struggle within him. The weight of the situation bore down on him, and the conflict between his duty and his humanity etched itself onto his features.
A fellow soldier approached, concern etched on his face. "Sir! Sir! Sergeant! Sergeant Whitlock!"
Whitlock, lost in his own mental struggle, slowly registered the voice. "Who? Who's calling me…?"
"Sir, your face looks a little pale… Are you alright, Sir?"
"I don't know… What's the matter?"
"We just want to inform you we have cleared up this floor! Shall we proceed to another floor?"
A moment of hesitation gripped Whitlock, his inner turmoil evident. "If…"
"Sorry… I can't hear you clearly, Sir…"
"If I order all of you to stop right now… Would you guys stop it?"
"Sir… This is the order from Captain Dialla! We must strictly follow it!"
Whitlock nodded solemnly. "Alright… I got it… Let's move to the next floor then…"
The soldiers followed his lead, advancing to the next floor like a relentless tide of destruction. Each unit they invaded added to the weight on Whitlock's conscience. He entered a unit, finding a woman, vulnerable and terrified, kneeling before him. Her torn shirt bore witness to the brutality she had already endured.
Her wide-eyed gaze pleaded for mercy, and Whitlock, torn between duty and humanity, hesitated. Slowly, he withdrew his pistol, aiming it at her, and the room fell into an oppressive silence.
"Please… Please…" The woman's trembling voice broke the silence.
"Please… Please… Please…" Whitlock echoed her words.
The woman, gripped by fear, began to inch backward, using her hands for support. Whitlock stood stoically, his gun trained on her without uttering a word. In a sudden and startling move, he fired a few shots. The woman, anticipating the worst, closed her eyes and let out a fearful cry.
After a tense moment, the woman hesitantly reopened her eyes, realizing she remained unharmed. Whitlock, it turned out, had directed the shots towards the ceiling. A silent exchange passed between them, and he gestured toward a large wardrobe, signaling it as a place for her to hide.
Following his silent guidance, the woman quickly sought refuge inside the wardrobe. As she concealed herself, the approaching footsteps of other soldiers became audible. They arrived, forming a line outside the unit, ready to report to Whitlock.
Whitlock, despite the unease and inner turmoil, continued the unsettling task of clearing each floor. The soldiers, having heard the gunshots earlier, expressed concern for their sergeant.
"Sir! All units cleared! We heard you fired your gun just now… We thought you…"
"Just now there was someone inside there, but no more…"
"Roger that… Shall we proceed to the next floor…?"
"Yes…"
On the subsequent floor, the search continued, yet each unit yielded no sign of inhabitants. Confusion and frustration gripped the soldiers.
"This is weird… The water in the kettle is so hot… It is very obvious that somebody was still inside this house!" Exclaimed a soldier.
"You are right! They must be hiding somewhere! It's not possible for a human being to suddenly become invisible! What do you think, Sir?"
"I guess they could've escaped already…" Whitlock replied, his relief palpable at the absence of people.
"Escape…? How could they escape without alerting us?"
"Sir! The other team in another building also reported that there's no one inside there!"
As the soldiers puzzled over the mysterious disappearance, Whitlock's thoughts drifted. 'Could it be Ma'am who rescued them?'
"Sir?! Did you hear me?"
"Yes! Well… Like what he said just now, there's not possible for them to escape or vanish suddenly! Keep searching up and down this whole building! Tell the other team to do so! No survivors!"
"Yes Sir!"
Whitlock, suspecting that Rosseaulyn had successfully evacuated the residents before their arrival, made a strategic decision. He ordered the soldiers to continue searching the seemingly empty units, buying more time for the evacuation efforts led by Rosseaulyn and the Chief.
Meanwhile, Rosseaulyn and the Chief, along with the police, utilized every resource to save as many people as possible. Some officers displayed exceptional skill in rope climbing, complemented by advanced rope guns, allowing them to swiftly carry out their evacuation missions.
"Thank God that Dialla has deployed his major forces to assault the street and only a few to clean the buildings up!" Rosseaulyn exclaimed.
"Seems like things are going smoothly, Lieutenant Winton." the Chief remarked.
"Not quite… We won't be able to make it in time for those who lived on the lower floors."
"You already said we are not able to save everyone; I guess this is something we're supposed to expect. Aren't we?"
"Chief, you sound cold…"
"Hoho! I'm quite surprised a military officer actually cares about lives…"
"I've told you I'm different from the others."
"Interesting... I'll remember what you've said…"
"Chief! We need to get your men to hurry up! Otherwise, we won't be able to save the rest!"
"Don't be too harsh on my men! They are doing well and fast enough already."
"Alright, alright."
"Chief! We've almost used up seventy percent of the capacity of those transports for the people!" A policeman came to report.
"That's bad! We are just only started our action for a while! That scary attacker has blown up our transports earlier on as well… We only have limited options… What's your plan, Lieutenant?"
"We need a bigger transport… The bus… Oh right! The bus!"
"Public bus?"
"Could you order the public bus service to spare some of their buses to us right now?! I guess that's not enough… Ask them to stop the buses that are operating near the slum and wait at the east entrance!"
"Seriously!? This will greatly disrupt the users… But I guess we really have no choice… But I'm not sure will they listen to me…"
"I believe you have the power and right to make the order! You can just say it is for the sake of security purposes!"
"What a challenging demand… I will just give it a try then. If it's not working, you better think of another way quickly!"
"Thanks! Please ask them to wait at the east entrance of the slum!"
"I got this."
"Or you could just tell them I'm the one who forced you to do so."
"I'm not that nasty as the military, Lieutenant… So… I won't."
"Whatever…"
"Let me make a call to the bus service operator…"
"Thanks in advance."
"Hello? Luthernza Bus Service? This is Police Chief of Luthernza speaking, please direct your call to Mr Dave, please! This is an urgent security matter, please hurry up!" The Chief spoke over the phone.
"Okay! A moment please!" The operator transferred the line.
"Hello Chief! It's been a long time since we had a talk with each other! I heard it's an urgent matter, what is it?!"
"Well, Dave! I need you to send the empty buses you have to the east entrance of the slum right now! Besides, I also need those buses that are operating near the slum area to stop their operations and gather at the east entrance too! Got it?"
"Right now!?"
"Yes!"
"Ma'am… It's a bit difficult... And why is it?"
"We need those buses as lifesaving tools… I bet you heard our city gets assaulted earlier, we need it to escort a bunch of people to other places."
"In this case, I guess I can't say no… Am I? Is this a request or order?"
"An order..."
"Well… Rest assured… I will just do it right now! But I'm not liable for anything that happens afterward! I will just say it's your order."
"Yeah, just go ahead!"
"Where are you going to send the people to?"
"Umm… Wait a second… Lieutenant! Where is the destination for those people once they boarded the buses?"
"A small town at the east side of this city! It's very near, we will settle them down there first! Just make sure they leave this city!" Rosseaulyn instructed.
"Dave! We are going to send them to the town outside of this city!"
"Alright… I believe half a tank of fuel should be enough then. Your buses order will arrive in an hour!"
"Thanks a lot, Dave!"
"No worry, you just need to come over to my house tonight…"
The chief immediately cut off the line. "What an idiot…"
"Chief, it sounds like you were talking to an old friend…" Rosseaulyn remarked.
"Friend?! No way! Definitely not!" The chief denied angrily.
"Anyway, we have secured the transports."
"Luckily…"
"Did you notice the opposite street is brighter than here?"
"Not really until you mentioned it. Strange… What happened over there?"
"Is any of your men over there?!"
"I've sent only five there… What's wrong?!"
"Ask them to retreat immediately! I've got a bad feeling…"
BANG! The huge sounds of the firing shells of the tanks echoed through the ears of everyone. The sounds didn't stop and continued for around three minutes. After it stopped, the dark sky of the opposite street turned into a flaming red.
"Oh my… Are they planning to tear down all the buildings too?!" The chief asked shockingly.
"Chief! The status of your men over there!"
"You're right! Let me check…"
"Everyone! We have to retreat from this area and to the north! The madman Captain is burning down the places!" Rosseaulyn ordered.
"This is bad, no response… I guess… They have been…"
"Chief! Don't give up so early and make the conclusion! Just bring the rest of your men to the north slum and continue evacuating the people!"
"Wait! Where the hell are you going?!"
"I just go take a look and see whether if I can find your men!"
"But…"
"Just go! Hurry!"
"Okay, meet you in the north then…"
"Sure."
Rosseaulyn and the chief separated their ways. She alone crossed the tiny passages and avoided the soldiers until she reached the burning scene. All the buildings had been destroyed, and some bodies could be seen under the rubble. The thick smoke made visibility low, hindering her search for the policemen.
She looked around and suddenly heard some moaning voices. Following the source of those sounds, she managed to find some survivors. Her search continued for a little while, and she ended up finding only four survivors, including a little girl with her, and none of them were wearing a police uniform.
"Have any of you seen someone wearing a police uniform around here? Around five of them…" Rosseaulyn asked.
The survivors shook their heads.
"Well…"
"Excuse me…" One of the survivors interrupted.
"What's the matter, lady?"
"Your uniform… although not the same color as those soldiers… But you are one of them… Am I right?"
"It's complicated… But just keep in mind that me and the police are here to help you guys!"
"Alright…" The lady responded but still maintained a distance from Rosseaulyn, while the rest seemed unable to trust her completely.
"The visibility is bad… I guess we should retreat right now. Just follow me."
Everyone nodded.
"Hmm…? Hm! UHMMM!!!" The little girl voiced.
"What's wrong?"
The little girl seemed to hear something and quickly covered her ears with her hands. She started to panic and hid behind Rosseaulyn. Everyone looked at her curiously as they couldn't hear anything besides the sound of the burning fire around them.
"Sweetheart, what's wrong? What did you hear?" Rosseaulyn whispered, her voice gentle but laden with concern.
"UHMMM!! UHMMM!!"
The little girl didn't say anything, and her eyes widened in terror as she clutched Rosseaulyn's stocking, her small fingers trembling, while pointing at a hideout. Her face expression became more nervous and filled with fear. Sensing the urgency, Rosseaulyn didn't hesitate. Urging the survivors to follow, she led them to the hideout the little girl had indicated.
As they huddled together in the darkness, the ominous symphony of moving tanks and the footsteps of the soldiers got closer to them. Dialla and his troops arrived at the scene shortly, the glow of the fires reflecting in Rosseaulyn's angry eyes as she observed the perpetrators of this nightmarish assault.
"Hahahahaha! This is the consequence of playing childish hide and seek with me!" Dialla exclaimed.
"Very smart move, Sir! I bet they won't dare to hide in the alleys again!" Victor added.
"We should not be wasting our time on such little things! Division two!"
"Yes Sir!" The division leader responded.
"What a disgrace! Shame on all of you!!"
"Our apologies, Sir…"
"If they try to hide from us again, then we just tear everything down and let them bury themselves underneath! Got it?!"
"Yes Sir!"
"Want to play tricks? Well, I am good at exposing the tricks. Let's see who will be the winner. Hahahahaha!"
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