Dinosaur Extinction Simulation [Crustal Tsunami] part 2
「But weren’t massive kinetic weapons dropped from orbit banned by treaty?」
「Of course, I would never violate the treaty we signed with the Stones.」
「Ah! So that’s how it is!」
Aimer, unusually raised her voice in realization. The mystery behind Kou’s confident declaration that the battle would end immediately was now clear.
「We’ve never negotiated peace or signed war treaties with the Mercenary Association Headquarters. They weren’t even present at the talks. Naturally, none of the restrictions on the treaty apply to a conflict with them. Against them, there are no rules. I even confirmed this with Okeanos beforehand.」
Before their eyes, a horrifying scene unfolded.
The deck of the Gorgias glowed red-hot, melting away. The sheer kinetic energy of the impact had vaporized not only the atmosphere and surface armor but also the surrounding seawater, with various molecules still plasma-fused and exploding continuously. It was a vivid demonstration of the incredible heat generated by the collision.
A massive hole had been carved into the large deck where Star had struck.
「That’s some terrifying destructive power…」
The Gorgias, now adrift in a molten sea, was intermittently engulfed by waves of seawater that immediately vaporized upon contact, turning back into plasma. Though water continued to pour into the impact cavity, it wasn’t enough to submerge the Gorgias. The area surrounding the ship remained stained a deep red, and secondary explosions appeared to be erupting within its hull.
「Here’s another refinement we added to Star: the descent speed. By activating P-MAX, it exceeded 30 kilometers per second. The Star is protected by an armored exterior made of an alloy of space battleship armor and tungsten-rhenium. Unlike the Hanged Man, its explosive power is lower. Instead, it’s a mass weapon that fully exploits its potential energy.」
「So this is Mozu Drop, huh?」
Aimer thought to herself that Kou had been intent on obliterating the Mercenary Association Headquarters from the start, though she kept her thoughts to herself.
「That’s right. They made two fatal mistakes. First, they assumed the treaty applied to them. I would’ve been happy to clarify if they’d bothered to check.」
「Headquarters… they are truly hopeless.」
「I have no obligation to educate them, after all. And their second mistake—they over-relied on a treaty they never signed and underestimated Eirene and Marujin. There’s no way their space battleship radars wouldn’t have detected the Eirene in low orbit.」
Kou stared coldly at the sinking Gorgias. The notion of treaties applying to an Association that hadn’t even been present at the negotiations, let alone signed anything, was absurd. These fools had deluded themselves into thinking they’d already won.
Their biggest blunder, however, was their gross underestimation of Eirene and Marujin. Even without the Hanged Man, those two were bound to devise fearsome, unconventional weapons. If the enemy was the Argoforce, they would’ve scrambled to devise countermeasures and spread out their forces. Eirene and Marujin were the best when it came to pushing the limits of the unthinkable, anyone who knew them would never underestimate the danger they present.
「This is a recreation of the asteroid impact that wiped out Earth’s dinosaurs. I drew inspiration from the Dinosaur Extinction Simulation—the phenomenon of a crustal tsunami. To neutralize the entire space fleet in a single blow, something on this scale was necessary.」
The space vessels hovering above the ocean were slammed into it by the blast wave and subsequently swallowed by the ensuing tsunami.
Even with their advanced multidimensional protective armor, the internal equipment and personnel weren’t impervious to the impact. The damage to the fleet and its crew must have been catastrophic.
「When you think about it, there’s no way we could have won under normal circumstances, right?」
Outis had proceeded with the plan relying solely on their available forces and support from the Fortress Areas, without assuming participation from Ulysses or Metal Iris.
「Rules are important, even in war. From a moral standpoint, too. They help prevent pure malice from becoming action.」
Aimer murmured as if weighing the gravity of her words.
「They tried to snatch away what we fought tooth and nail to protect. If they want to play without rules, we’ll eliminate them by any means necessary.」
Aimer realized anew the intensity of Kou’s anger. Normally, Astraea would have stepped in with a stern rebuke, but this time she smiled with satisfaction. Even Rick, usually quick to offer counterarguments, remained silent. Their anger wasn’t the result of the latest events, and the Headquarters’ collusion with the Stones, it was the explosion of long-simmering resentment toward those supposed allies who had stood by and done nothing for years.
「The legendary Kofels Impact, huh? A weapon mirroring a celestial collision, a fitting divine punishment.」
Blue watched the space fleet with a hint of pity.
The original Kofels Impact referred to an ancient catastrophe that happened on Earth, estimated to have occurred around 4000 BCE. It was linked to legends of destruction, such as the annihilation of Sodom and Gomorrah, and flood myths like Noah’s Ark and Deucalion’s boat. It was one of Earth’s earliest recorded celestial collisions.
It was obvious that Okeanos had supported them. A weapon so powerful it could destabilize an entire planetary environment would have normally been stopped by him beforehand.
「Okeanos specified limits for the descent angle and velocity. I made sure to include a safety margin so we wouldn’t get scolded—planetary stability won’t be compromised.」
Hearing this, a chill ran down the spines of the ship captains. The fact that such a devastating attack had been sanctioned by Okeanos was staggering. On the other hand, this might well represent the most powerful attack currently permissible in the Nemesis Theater.
「This isn’t the end. We have the support of our allies. I’m counting on all of you.」
「The management towers in each Fortress Area have been informed—they’re already in motion.」
「Thank you, Asia. Be sure to convey our gratitude again.」
「Got it!」
The cataclysm persisted. To call it a ‘storm’ would have been a gross understatement—this was a vortex of plasma, magma, and seawater. The shockwave from the collision continued to ripple around planet Asia, triggering a magnitude nine-plus earthquake at the impact site.
The remnants of the enemy space fleet were unable to withstand the blast. Many vessels, destabilized by the shockwave, succumbed to the tsunamis that followed, sinking into the ocean. Only a few of the forward vessels, stationed far enough ahead, managed to escape the tsunamis by maintaining attitude control and retreating at full speed, putting as much distance as possible between themselves and the Gorgias.
「Enemy remaining fleet retreating to higher altitude. Orbital predictions complete. Ballistic missile strikes are on target.」
Astraea’s cold, unyielding voice reported.
「This is the engineering corps. We’ve begun firing.」
「Thank you, Fuyuki-san.」
Thanks to Fuyuki’s message, it became clear that both the construction engineers and combat engineers had mobilized.
From the P336 Fortress Area, the R001 Orbital Elevator, and the defensive systems of the Silhouette Base, massive ballistic missiles were launched one after another. Without mercy, they struck the enemy ships, overwhelming them. Even plasma barriers couldn’t hold up under the barrage, and the ships took direct hits, eventually crashing into the ocean and sinking.
「The space cruiser Euitos has been sunk!」
「We won’t last much longer either… whoa!」
A violent shudder rocked the ship. The realization struck—this was a fatal direct hit.
「We’re under attack! It’s a massive railgun!」
「But the enemy fleet is entirely underwater! Where is it coming from?」
「From the land… it’s a massive railway gun!」
「A train? A railgun? Against space battleships? Why would they even have something like that?!」
The colossal armored train Meicoon and the gargantuan railway gun Russian Blue, originally designed to fight colossal Murders, had been mass-produced as defensive weapons. The construction engineers had extended rail lines overnight, deploying the railway guns to elevated positions. Despite the long-range nature of the bombardment, the massive size of the targets made them easy to hit.
Space battleships? What of them? The railway artillery corps, made up of men who had dedicated their lives to maintaining Earth’s railways, was now unleashing the greatest indirect firepower against the space fleet.
The space assault landing ship Stasandros, having narrowly escaped the tsunami, came under concentrated artillery fire, crash-landing on the ocean’s surface. It then submerged, effectively half-sunk.
It had been less than ten minutes since the battle began.
This conflict, between factions of humanity, would later come to be known as the ‘Blitz War’ or the ‘War of Dignity’.
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