The American In Another World
Chapter 9: Operation Shock
Parpaldian Empire
“What is ASE? Transmission interrupted!” A man exclaims.
“Yeah, what's that sound in the background? I must have heard an explosion, but it was another sound as if the sky itself was torn apart!”.
"Mr Aeveron, should I try to re-establish contact with Varhal?"
“You may, but I don't think it's necessary. Judging from the sound of his conflict, I think it is safe to assume he has been killed or arrested. Let's start analyzing the messages.”
“Of course, Sir. The first message he sent was a description of the opponent's metal ship, when he first met. From a distance, he guessed that the ships were about 200 or 300 meters long, made entirely of metal or some sort of grey material, and it seems to be traveling at a speed greater than our fastest ship, even when equipped with Tears. Wind Gods.”
“Then, how do they travel?”
“The ships reportedly do not have screens. Based on the description, I think they match up to Mu's warship, although 300 meters seems to be quite excessive.”
“Ships and warships from Mu, then? How about the metal vessel armament?”
"They boast one big cannon in the bow."
Aeveron was pacing back and forth in the dark room, his shadow dancing in the background as he moved. He paused near the glowing, light-bulb-like sphere, in the center of the room, creating a huge shadow behind him. “Only one cannon? Can't they make more cannons?”
“Master, Varhal also described some small cannons around the ship. Apparently, a single cannon is their main weapon and is used in anti-ship battles.”
"Squeaky. How did the battle go?”
The subordinate scratched his head. "Well, right before you entered, Varhal said that the five ships were capable of destroying a hundred Louria ships in about a minute."
“So, the reason why they only have one cannon is because the shot is fast?”
“And accurate, Sir. A hundred Lourian ships were each sunk by a single shot from people who resembled Mu.”
“So what is this, you are waging a proxy war on us and testing their new weapons?”
The subordinate shrugged his shoulders. “I'm not sure, Sir. Varhal also reported the whereabouts of the plane. They don't have propellers like Mu's biplanes. Instead, they had some sort of light engine in the back, similar to the Mirishial.” Holy Kingdom fighter plane
Aeveron sighed. "Well fine then. Do we know where this vehicle came from?”
"United States."
"What do we know about them?"
“We only know the information from the traders rumors. Some who could actually visit their land, which was about several thousand kilometers from the easternmost part of Rodenius, described it as a land of steel and glass, with towers soaring into the sky. One of my friends, who was one of the lucky few, said that their land was about the size of Rodenius, if not bigger. Their population is over 340 million and they consist only of humans.”
Aeveron scoffed, “Hah, what? He must be crazy! I might believe if, perhaps, a series of small islands were not found. A nation as big as Rodenius?! We will find him and plunder his wealth long ago if that is true!”
“Well, believe it or not, sir, their product does exist,” said the subordinate as he took out a pen from his pocket. “'Pulpen' this is a stationery I bought from my merchant friend. Much better than quill pen and ink.”
Aeveron tested the pen on a piece of parchment. “Hmm,” he nodded in agreement, “This is of high quality. All right then, mark this 'United States' as a target of attention. Let us tell His Majesty about the new state that appeared near Rodenius, but let us also refrain from leaking the report given by Varhal. I think it's best if we don't send fantastic information that might get us fired for incompetence.
“I agree, Sir.”
——
Jin Hark, Kingdom of Louria
In his throne room, the 34th King of Hark Louria was boiling, boiling with anger and confusion. He gripped the handle of his throne so tightly that his knuckles turned white. An unease enveloped him as General Patagene continued his report.
"... we were stopped by forces identifying themselves as the United States Navy, warning them not to go any further."
“So... do they find themselves in conflict with the 'United States? The name sounds familiar..”.
"Your Majesty, I'm sure they asked to establish diplomatic relations with us not long ago, but we refused."
"I understand .. continue."
“Our ships ignored their warnings and went ahead, where enemy ships fired their cannons, destroying a hundred of our ships before stopping. At this point, our fleet requested wyvern support. After allegedly losing all the wyverns, our fleet engaged in a ten-minute battle, in which we lost over a thousand ships due to a group of five enemies, and several dozen of their aircraft. We received no further transmission after this report, apart from the last message saying that they surrendered to the enemy.” General Patagene then cleared his throat and read aloud from the transcript message. "'They asked for our surrender, and after witnessing the arrival of dozens of metal ships like the five ships toying with our fleet, I gave the order to surrender.'" He looked up to see the reaction of the king, though,
King Louria stared into the void, her eyes not focused on anything as her mind was overwhelmed by the information. He felt his heart fall and his blood turn cold after learning that his entire navy had now left. Decades of preparation, only a fleet of thousands of ships squashed like insects. Those moments of awkward silence passed, until he let go of everything he could mutter, "What ..."
General Patagene felt the sweat on his back pressing down on his body, causing an uncomfortable sensation. Still, it did not come close to the discomfort he was experiencing while trying to give a response that might appease his king. “Your Majesty. Surely something more believable happened, like a rebellion?”
King Louria pondered this consideration. He was familiar with cannons, since the Parpaldians were currently using them, but cannons that could sink ships with every shot? Cannon that never miss? A guided arrow of light that exploded upon impact? Unless they were up against someone who had obtained the secret magical power of the Ancient Sorcerous Kingdom, this story was simply too unbelievable. So, he allowed himself to find relief in the Patagene hypothesis. "Yes yes. Maybe it was rebellion. Dirty animal sympathizers. We will handle it later; for now, what do you propose for us to do?”
Patagene bent. “Your Highness, we must continue our operations in the field. Using Gim as the staging point, we can attack Ejei. I suggest using the vanguard forces under the command of Lieutenant General Adem to weaken the Ejei garrison while we gather our troops.”
“And in a very small possibility that this report is indeed true... then what will you do?”
King Louria was still not convinced and she shook her head. "Hmm, and what about the arrow of light?"
“We can assume that the arrow of light is artificial. Only the Ancient Sorcerous Kingdom is capable of possessing such weapons, and we know that the United States is completely unrelated to them. If we were to really fight against the feared empire, we would not accept diplomats, let alone the polite ones like them. For now, we are still reviewing the events that occurred in the Rodenius.” Sea
"All right then. I believe that you will carry out the will of Louria.”
"I'll do it with pride!"
——
The Fortress of Ejei, Principality of Qua Toyne
A thin man with a stiff face and a pointed beard stood on top of the Ejei wall, observing the wilderness ahead. Backed by the combined strength of nearly half of the entire standing army of Qua Toyne along with several wyvern squadrons, he felt confident in the defensive capabilities of his fortress. A proud general, Nou was a little disappointed when he heard about the United States defense agreement. Still, as an intelligent strategic thinker, he recognized the value of having them as allies, especially given the sheer number of Lourians possessed.
"General Nou" a bowed envoy.
"Hmm? What'sthat?"
“Master, Americans have arrived. They're waiting at the castle.”
He sighed. “Hmm, the famous soldiers who forced the entire Lourian navy to surrender. I wonder if they are everything as Commando said. General Nou returns to the castle to meet a mysterious American.
——
Upon entering the room, General Nou saw two different men. One wore a stylish blue uniform along with a matching hat, while the other wore a speckled green and brown uniform that spoiled the view of the General Nou. Despite their differences in appearance, the two men remained dignified, visible from their posture.
He observed their uniforms clearly, letting the two men see his admiration for the blue one and his dislike for the patterned one. “Then, good gentlemen from the United States, welcome to Ejei.”
The man in the blue uniform spoke with a different accent. “Thank you for the hospitality, General. I'm Major General Hammond with the United States Fifth Air Force.”
Other men have a more relaxed accent. "I'm Colonel Henson, U. S. Marine Corps."
“So, General Hammond and Colonel Henson, do I assume that I will soon see the United States military in action?”
General Hammond playing together. "If that's what you want to see, General, we're happy to put on a show."
“Maybe next time then. As you can see, Ejei is an impenetrable fortress city. Unless Louria brings their entire armed forces to eradicate us from Ejei, I don't expect to see much trouble. Therefore, I'd rather you, Good Gentlemen, stay at your camp. After all, putting our allies in danger would not be appropriate. You can provide support and help us, if necessary.”
“Well, if you say so, General. Let us know if you need an air strike, or some demons to release into Louria.
General Nou tilted his head, "Satan?"
“That's us, sir,” Colonel Henson replied. “I am a man of God, and so many people are under my command. However, we know how to fight like demons to kill our enemies.”
"Then, I hope to see her one day." Nou then said goodbye.
“Oh, and General Nou,” Hammond said before leaving, “We will send one of our men here as an observer. Will it be okay?”
“That's a reasonable request. You can put an observer here.”
——
The US Seventh Fleet
Richthofen played his thumb while waiting for Admiral Hawthorne's briefing to begin. Off the coast of Maihark, he witnessed dozens of transport ships unloading supplies and equipment, preparing for the invasion of the Lourian Kingdom. Overhead, he saw the flight of several B-52H Stratofortresses, flying low as a demonstration. They were escorted by wyverns as they passed through the Toynian Qua airspace, although the wyverns could barely keep up.
"I wonder where they're going .." he muttered to himself.
"Admiral on deck!" Someone shouted.
Everyone stood up and saluted.
"Quiet" said Admiral Hawthorne. “I'm sure you've all heard about the upcoming storm that we'll be bringing to Louria. The infrastructure has been well developed, and we have just completed an air base and a Marine base near Ejei. We also received word that the Lourians were beginning to move: a small army was heading towards Ejei. We expect them to arrive in a few days.” A map of the region around Ejei appeared on the screen. “Since the TNI AU is still in trouble with logistics and the construction of the airfield here, we will be needed to provide support. Commander Richthofen! You will lead the escort for our bombers when they perform Surprise Operation.”
Richthofen saluted. "Yes sir."
Admiral Hawthorne continued, “After we clear this army, we will retake Gim. Once we do, the fleet will proceed to Checkpoint Alpha, near the capital of Lourian, Jin Hark, and await further instructions from Central Command. Any question?"
An officer raised his hand. "Master, are we going to pass through the other Lourian regions?"
“True, Lieutenant. According to satellite imagery, Lourian forces consolidated along the Kingdom's borders, ready to break through to Gim. The Army and Air Force will be in charge of detaining them. Jin Hark is traveling a few weeks from the current position of the Lourian troops, so we don't have to worry about them coming back. Furthermore, the intel from the CIA showed that there were many internal disputes going on in Louria at the moment; the loss of the Lourian Navy had made many of their regional nobles uneasy, the report said, so we need to show that their fears are true. With the analysis done by some historians, the President judged it worthy to go straight to the crown. I will discuss the details of this operation later. Any further questions?”
Some shook their heads while others remained silent.
"alright. Let's start working, guys.
;)