Long-term salvation

"Are you all right?" the first officer asked, wiping a speck of blood from his forehead while dodging the sparks from the nearby equipment. "The water flow hasn't subsided, but the noise has died down... The sound of the enemy's pumps is like an ocean black hole, a real black hole."

"...I understand. Count the casualties and losses."

Lieutenant Colonel Mancuso closed his eyes in pain. An unprecedented sense of frustration was tearing at his heart, making the dull pain in his chest seem insignificant.

But less than half a minute later, the sailor who had just been operating the submersible called out to him. He ignored the blood dripping from his brow, wiped it off briefly, and quickly turned the button on the console in front of him, saying without even looking up:

"Commander, you have to come and take a look at this brief video... The submersible has lost its signal, but before that, it captured something."

Lieutenant Colonel Mancuso looked at the screen, his eyes filled with confusion:

The light from the submarine's illumination system struggled to push through the water, bringing both light and fear—a black metallic behemoth. Though the image was blurry and the proportions somewhat distorted, it was undoubtedly longer and larger than an aircraft carrier! It arrogantly displayed its form, easily crushing the US nuclear submarine beneath it—that sonar confrontation just now? Just a little game to pass the time.

Even Atlas couldn't build a monster like this... What should we call it? Kraken or Titan?

"This isn't something that can appear on this planet, but if there's someone who can control it now..."

In Commander Mancuso's silence, the sailor looked at the screen and murmured in awe:

"Then it's just Jesus himself."

Chapter 488: Crossing the Indian Ocean

"It's a pity that there aren't many US nuclear submarines roaming around in the Indian Ocean. Otherwise, we could have some fun with them again."

Rhodes said with regret as he sat in the seat specially prepared for him in the bridge of the Alicorn - right next to the captain's seat, next to Nikki Helen.

On the nautical chart projected in front of Rhodes, the Alicorn had passed through the Philippine Sea and Indonesian waters, and entered the Indian Ocean under the cover of darkness and cargo ships, preparing to head to the interception location indicated by the intelligence.

There was still plenty of time, even enough for the Alicorn to wait another day on the seabed.

"You said before that we shouldn't provoke the United States too much, but is it inappropriate to send someone else's nuclear submarine back to the factory for overhaul?"

Helen said rather helplessly, her legs crossed and raised, the various colored lights from the surrounding screens fell on her fair skin, as if covering it with a layer of colorful gauze.

"It's an attack submarine, not a ballistic missile submarine on nuclear readiness duty. Besides, after the events in Africa are over, the Army Without Borders might be unable to hide... Giving those arrogant Yankees a little surprise beforehand wouldn't be a bad idea. Let them investigate! No matter how hard they try, they'll never guess the Alicorn is from another planet."

Rhode shrugged, stood up from his chair, and walked down while stretching. But when he reached the bottom of the command platform, he turned to look at Helen and raised his eyebrows:

"Don't tell me you don't have the confidence to keep the Alicorn sailing across the vast ocean?"

Hearing this, Helen put down her legs and stood up from the captain's seat. She looked down at Rhodes and said calmly:

"You alone are the master of the vast waves of this planet, and I will ensure that."

"Well... I'd have to ask Godzilla and the others about that, but I like your point, Helen." Rhodes smiled. He turned and walked out of the bridge. "I'm going to the hangar now to check on the mass-produced Nikkis. I'll also keep an eye on Makoto and the others to prevent them from causing trouble for me."

"Wait a minute, Commander. If I remember correctly... everyone at Hill Villa has already learned how to fly, right?" Helen asked. She tapped the data terminal with her finger and saw the message from Nikki, who was inspecting the mass-produced magnetohydrodynamic propulsion system. She looked at Rhode's back and raised her voice slightly. "Commander, do you need me to provide them with carrier-based aircraft?"

"That's not necessary. They haven't had enough training in carrier-based aircraft flight—except for Red Riding Hood, Marianne, and Shiroko. They can be given whatever they like."

Rhodes waved without looking back and walked into the dim corridor with brisk steps.

Compared to the cramped Los Angeles-class nuclear submarine, the nearly 500-meter-long Alicorn was noticeably more spacious, yet the mass-produced Nikki required only about thirty people to maintain its operation and provide combat support. For these adorable, girlish combat machines, the ability to switch between combat and support personnel was straightforward.

The only problem is, there are too few of them.

So during this period, Rhodes arranged to retain the points for combat, emergency maintenance of the Alicorn, and unlocking the inner world pollution points of the battle group and individual units. He then used all the remaining points to exchange for the mass-produced Nikki to continue expanding the combat effectiveness of the Alicorn.

Regardless, Rhode still hoped to reduce some exchange points or reward more mass-produced Nikki after completing the [Base Construction Side Mission]. Otherwise, if he continued to wait, there was no telling when he could gather the full size of the "Ten Thousand Men Group."

After returning from Antarctica, Rhodes unlocked the equipment and vehicles of the Soviet 35th Guards Airborne Assault Brigade. Due to the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the points required for the Soviet Joint Battle Group dropped by 1000 points. Because of this, he also unlocked the exchange rights for the former Soviet Union (Russia) "Modern" class missile destroyers.

However, exchanging ships has always been expensive. A Perry-class frigate requires 4000 points, while a Sovremenny-class frigate is over 6000 points... In fact, Rhodes has been thinking about saving up points and trading four Sovremenny-class frigates to the Aurora Republic. That would increase the support even more.

Or maybe try harder next time and get the girl lying in the Black Sea Shipyard over there?

That probably requires some "harmony among people" both inside and outside the country...but Türkiye should not be an obstacle this time.

Thinking about these random things, Rhode walked along the central corridor to the hangar. This was the busiest place outside the living area.

F/A-18D Hornet fighters, M6S AS, and other aircraft and helicopters filled the hangar to the utmost. Mass-produced Nikkis, armed with testing equipment, shuttled between these folded-wing steel structures, dismantling radomes, inspecting internal wiring and radar arrays, and counting fuel and ammunition in preparation for the next attack.

Of course, the girls from Hill Villa were also here. Most of them were surrounding a certain Nikki, asking questions about carrier-based aircraft. Even the most boisterous Makoto was no exception - she was pestering a bewildered Nikki, hoping that she could paint a Hornet fighter jet black and red, and then embellish the tail with a big red dragon emblem.

"What are you doing?!"

Rhode went over and gave the noisy demon a slap, then took advantage of the moment when the young girl bent down to pick her up. After receiving Nikki's grateful gaze, he sighed and said helplessly:

"Look, if you can successfully pass carrier-based aircraft training and fight me, it's okay for you to change your paint job."

"Eh? Really?!" Makoto twisted his waist, crossed his arms over his chest, and had a confident smile on his face. "Hehehe, my master, apart from that golden flame, you are just a 'human' after all. You can't compete with the Demon King!"

"...How should I put it? I just like your silly arrogance."

"Hey hey hey."

"I'm not praising you!"

"But Sensei said she likes me, right?" Makoto stood up straight with a whoosh and broke free from Rhodes's grasp. She adjusted her military cap, patted him on the shoulder, and said with an expression that said, "I understand everything."

"Sensei is the one who wants to share the world with me. As for this little dwarf in front of you, let her push every day - Puga!"

Watching Hinai punch Makoto in the stomach, and seeing that idiot instantly bent like a shrimp yet still refusing to admit defeat, Rhode covered his face helplessly, sighed, and said:

"Be careful, Hinata. There are a lot of expensive things here. Don't break anything."

"Okay, Sensei," Hinata clenched her fists, her face, which had been slightly flushed by her words, darkened. "So this is what she says to you every day? I'll tear that shameless little mouth apart."

"Why are you watching, my master? Are you betraying me too?!"

“…I don’t want to see anything.”

"Stop playing memes, look at me—Puga! Damn it… look at me! Ignore it!"

Leaving the two girls' noisy voices behind, Rhodes walked deeper into the hangar. After greeting Little Red Riding Hood and New Jersey standing in front of the AS mecha, he watched for a while as Bai Zi and Abigail were playing chess with the black cat Pickman... The two girls had only won a few games combined, leaving their faces covered with white stripes.

It was unclear where Mori had gone, probably still in the Alicorn's database, reading records of past events in the Otherworld. Nikki, who was by no means a kind person, had always been eccentric, her thoughts hidden behind that language converter.

Finally, Rod walked over to Marian, who was talking to a mass-produced Nikki.

Putting his arm around Nikki's waist, Rhode kissed her lightly on the cheek and said with a smile amid the oohs and ahhs of the mass-produced Nikkis around him:

"You look so happy, Marianne."

"After all, this is a long-awaited battle with you. Muji fought alongside you in dreams, so I can't fall behind in reality," Nikki smiled gently. She lowered her head to look at the carrier-based aircraft inspection report in her hand. After her eyes swept over the words "Inspection Completed", she slowly said, "It's just a feeling... No, it's nothing. Do you want to see your fighter plane now?"

"of course."

Chapter 489: The Heikemedia Fleet

It's not been a comfortable time for the Hekmatyar Group (from "Queen of Arms").

Whether it was the sudden suppression of capital forces, or the sudden refusal of Europe's Plessy Logistics to cooperate and launch competitive activities, etc., a series of reasons forced the Heikemedia Group to work hard to maintain its basic logistics fleet and... strengthen cooperation with its "new friends".

The new friends are very generous, whether in funding, logistics agreements, or arms trade.

Because of this, in addition to the long-term large orders in the past, the Hekmedia Group also established connections with Ukraine and other countries in Eastern Europe, and consistently transported former Soviet arms to Africa. Most of the arms were destined for Somalia. There were more than just the [Organization] who wanted to make things difficult for Atlas Company.

Thanks to a large amount of external funding and even the support of national forces, the Heikemedia Group was finally able to stick its head out and take a breath under heavy pressure.

In order to circumvent and reduce suppression, Floyd Hekmatyar, the founder of the Hekmatyar Group, immediately split the fleet, established shell companies with cross-holdings, set up a large number of small logistics companies and built a unified logistics command network to coordinate the transportation of goods and the use of ports.

Such decisive action has largely diluted some of the firepower from the capital market, but the branch heads always have some stupid ideas, such as betrayal, but for Freud, there is a "friend" called ATC who always has some suitable people to do this kind of small job of cleaning up the house.

The cyborg assassins have a clear price tag and have even squeezed out the market of old mercenary organizations like the ICA, causing Ms. Diana to madly exploit the bald killers under her.

Now, there is a new secret logistics network, a new collaborative research mechanism, a new military alliance treaty... money is slipping through fingers, blood is gushing from the chest, but most people are still unaware of the coming of darkness. After all, it has been less than two years since the red giant lay in the grave.

Human society is still immersed in the peaceful aftermath of the end of the Cold War, but the undercurrents that have been wantonly stirred have begun to surge.

The world needs to change faster.

The resolution was adopted at a meeting of the board of directors of the Cogito Foundation.

Director Irons began to accelerate the execution.

"Atlas's pursuit of 'absolute control' has already drawn covert suppression from many countries. After all, whether it's cooperation or confrontation, this is a political signal worthy of vigilance. Furthermore, Mr. Irons is still trying to maintain the support, acquiescence, and disregard of the United States... Can he truly succeed?"

"That depends on whether Sablin, Perseus, and the others can accomplish this around October of next year. If they succeed, we'll have several more years of development."

Rhodes turned to Hinai and said, after tidying up his clothes, he touched the girl's head and added:

"Not only that, there might be an opportunity down the road. It just requires a fair amount of public opinion manipulation, which can buy us some time... a year? It would be great if we can hold out until Sablin and the others start causing trouble. But by then, Nayako won't have time to spend her days drawing sertras at Hill Villa."

The girl laughed silently.

Looking at his remaining pollution points in the other world, Rhode took out an M9 pistol and handed it to Hinai. He also took out two magazines and instructed:

"Our primary focus this time is sinking specific ships and capturing targets alive. According to intelligence, Floyd Hekmedia himself is aboard one of the freighters in this convoy. Therefore, tearing people apart like cloth is obviously inappropriate."

"Well, as always," Hinata smiled, the silver-haired girl's eyes lowered slightly, her gaze sweeping over the red bullet in the magazine, "but using your fists will work the same, right?"

"Ordinary humans can't take a beating like Makoto can."

The big devil mentioned by Rhodes was still reading the training manual for carrier-based aircraft. It seemed that he really wanted to study hard and didn't even plan to participate in this operation.

"Wait! Sensei, give me some more Frigga bullets too," Baizi appeared out of nowhere, shook her wolf ears, and stretched out her hand to Rhodes, "Give me some, give me some."

Before Rhodes could take anything out of the storage space, Bai Zi came over and touched him with malicious intent. He only calmed down after being hit on the head.

"Why did you use so much?"

"Work requires it. Investing in bicycle companies and factories is very expensive. Occasionally, I also need to buy some Egyptian artifacts. This is the most expensive because you can't steal them... That would cause trouble for Director Adams."

The wolf girl spoke calmly, without any sense of guilt for causing trouble for the police and the FBI. Even when she recalled her deeds, the corners of her mouth curled up slightly:

"So, I didn't ask Yang to help. She was too busy."

"...Then you should expand your scope of work," Rhodes took a deep breath, "at least stop robbing banks in the northeastern United States."

"I'm going to Canada."

"Let these unlucky guys go!"

Rhode angrily grabbed Baizi by the back of her collar and slid her into the helicopter cabin. He then turned around and reached out to pull the petite Hina into his arms. Looking inside, he could see Nikki, who had finally taken off her coat.

"Even Nikki hates the heat, instructor," said the serious criminal who instigated others with words.

"I'm well aware of that, Mori," Rod replied nonchalantly, taking his position and patting Hinata's head, "and you guys will sweat."

Nikki, wearing a speech converter, seemed to be smiling as she stood up and closed the hatch.

Before the helicopter's door was closed, Rhodes saw Marian boarding the helicopter with the mass-produced Nikkis, preparing to take them to board Umbrella's ship, while Little Red Riding Hood would provide long-range fire support.

As for himself, he took Hina and Baizi to deal with the management of the Hekmedia Group and arrest - it was a bit rough to say this, but Rhodes preferred to "invite" - Floyd Hekmedia to a suitable place for a detailed talk.

New Jersey… She would go there on her own.

The large battleship had no interest in this kind of mission, but according to her words, "Battleships are not for pirates!", Rhode was a little curious about what Bismarck or Tirpitz would think if they heard about this.

After the hatch was closed, Rhodes felt a vibration, which was the feedback from the mechanical force of the elevator. The hum of the servo motor penetrated into the noisy hangar, prompting the mass-produced Nikkis who had completed the logistics work to leave quickly.

rise.

The only lights left in the entire helicopter cabin were the indicator lights in the elevator. After waiting for more than ten seconds, Rhodes felt a slight lateral vibration, and the SH-60 Seahawk helicopter began to be transported to the deck of the Alicorn.

In a few minutes, three transport helicopters and one armed helicopter will take off one after another - reconnaissance drones and an EA-6B "Prowler" electronic warfare fighter have already been launched, and four Hornet carrier-based aircraft are forming a formation in the air.

It was approaching dusk, the sun had already slid towards the junction of the sea and the sky, the waves were shining, and the breeze was just right.

With their backs to the sun, the group of helicopters moved in a V-formation and spread out, heading towards their intended target.

The shadow of the metal rotor fell into the surging waves and merged with the gradually darkening sea surface.

"The weather is really nice today, perfect for work," Rhode said with emotion. After stretching, he looked at Bai Zi sitting across from him. The jackal was intrigued by the impending destruction, and a blush appeared on his lovely face. After admiring the girl's face in the afterglow of the sunset, Rhode asked with interest:

"Great Anubis, please tell me which way your scales will tilt?"

"If you are the one asking the question, then," Bai Zi's wolf ears twitched slightly, and her face was full of matter-of-factness, "the direction of the scales will move according to your wishes, no matter when and where."

Rhode chuckled and stood up. Before opening the cabin door, he said on the communication channel:

"Intercept the fleet's communications—action begins!"

Chapter 490: Koko's Bad Day (3K)