Mercenary Black Mamba

Davis ardently appealed to Zimmer’s patriotism.

“Nuclear fusion would be the future of our country. If we pretend nuclear fusion is California’s forest fire, the fission would be just a campfire from the boycott. It would be ten times better if we weight only the mass ratio of the simple energy effect. The fourth energy that is infinite in resources and free of waste is the point of fusion. Superconductor, the item that will realize ultimate energy, is in Mambasa.”

“Davis, I prefer gray hair to a bald head. As a political science major, I don’t care about nuclear physics or particle physics. What the hell is a superconductor that makes everyone goes crazy? No, never mind. Don’t explain it to me. I don’t want to be discovered for my stupidness. Just explain the situation again.”

Zimmer cut off Davis’s explanation and pretended to pull his white hair humorously.

“Nuclear fusion energy, like fission, is the mass loss... The challenge of nuclear fusion is to withstand plasma maintenance and ultra-high pressure of more than 100 million degrees... To lift the ultra-high temperature plasma in the air... The superconductor coil... For cryogenic cooling... Cooling itself takes three months... The Oparts that Korean Researchers collected were room temperature conductors... Energy release... You will place the world under your feet.”

Davis finished his long explanation.

“It’s the sound of Exxon falling in surprise. Can you clone Oparts?”

“Opart is a thing that exists. Our technology level of science is not vulgar. We are just wandering in the dark, but we know what we need to look for. The oil and coal will finish their mission as energy within ten years.”

“According to your explanation, the oil will be used for chemical materials and asphalt packaging. Luckily, Herman didn’t object. You’ll soon have a guest, the king of oil, Herman. Hahaha!”

Zimmer chuckled. Ironically, the military and oil businesses that supported the U.S. had improved explosively after the internal combustion engines emerged. If the energy source of the internal combustion engine was changed to electricity and tritium, the oil industry would be over.

“He’s planning ahead. The great CEO is who can control the marketplace with their will.”

“You are right. Herman is not a guy who hangs onto the old and limited resources and looks down on the next-generation resources. Anyway, it’s ours, so we need to find it.”

Zimmer nodded. The directors who were not complacent like Herman created the United States of America today.

“Of course, all hyenas, including polar bears, were stuck. Don’t forget that the uncivilized polar bear robbed Germany, made unclear weapons, and became a science powerhouse. If Opart is lost to the Soviet Union, we will become a historical sinner.”

Davis ended his speech in a solemn tone.

“The common between NASA and the Commission is that they stimulated the Soviet Union and used them practically. The only difference is that one’s finger is itching for the media interview while the other’s is trembling with fear for the interview. Is he an armed fighter?”

Zimmer re-seated on the chair. It was a motion to get to the point.

“Yes, he is. KGB cooperated with Ntaganta, who came to steal Oparts from Moscow. It becomes annoying.”

“He is like a blowfly that sits on rotten meat. He’ll turn around right away if we smell of something.”

“Ntaganta and Mobutu are not in a good relationship. You can’t throw away a house rabbit to catch a wild rabbit. Of course, Mai-Mai is a problem, but Rwanda’s FDLR, whose eyes were turned upside down by gold mines, is also a problem. To shut down the hole to avoid the escape path and retrieve the stuff...”

“Of course, we’re going to smash the uncivilized. Two Marine Battalions, an Engineer Battalion, and a special forces Battalion will be stationed at the camp...”

Zimmer cut the word.

“But the jungle of Ituri is bigger than the size of three Hawaii combined. You need at least a brigade-level troops to block the escape route.”

“Humm, the brigades...”

Zimmer shook his head hard. Oparts was an Ace card. The presence of a solid local armed force was a great excuse in the case of operational failure. It was an excellent opportunity to become the Republican leader. It was worth trying, and it would be a success if it went well.

“We have to retrieve the Oparts at any cost. If it is handed to the polar bear, Pax Americana is over. Our blooded effort, capitalism, will disappear into the back of history and the world will fall into hell.”

Ian, who was listening silently, urged Zimmer to make a decision.

“I’ll try for now. I think The 17th Marine Brigade in Palawan would be good for this position because they are killing the tax for now.”

“I appreciate.”

Davis was delighted. If Zimmer was working for them, the congressional approval would be easygoing. Davis also thought about the 17th Marine Brigade, which had a mechanized battalion. They were about to be ready in the battle if they could get a few supply ships and destroyers from the 7th battalion in Subic.

“We also need ATACMS batteries.”

“We can secure the supply from the supplies under discussion with Korea. The problem is polar bears...”

“There is no concern about the Cuban situation. The polar hid his head after the Hind incident. The idiot Rubanka promised not to pick any quarrels.”

“You mean there’s no stumbling block? Honestly, it doesn’t feel real, but I trust you and will invest. If it is a good investment, I won’t save a few bucks.”

Zimmer readily agreed. It was the starting point for Black Mamba to be hit by the steel rainstorm.

Davis’s face lit up. The minimum usage cost of ATACMS was $1.5 million, and the maximum of $2.5 million would disappear in flames at the moment of banging if it were not for the great United States of America. Who could use this much money just for them? The reason why Freemasons settled in the U.S. was because of infinite power and infinite wealth.

******

The 17th Marine Brigade was suddenly alerted while enjoying the Sunten in Palawan. 4,200 men boarded the Ohau and Tarawa, the Tarawa-class USS Denver armed with military commandos. Ohau and Tarawa had loaded displacement of 39,000 tons, which could deliver 3,000 fully armed troops each. Two powerful gas turbines with 35,000 horsepower pushed the giant at 27 knots.

It took only 72 hours for the two assault landing ships to depart for Darjeh Salaam, escorted by destroyers. Humans decorate the future based on past experiences, but foul existence makes experience useless. The commission’s choice which they thought was the best to avoid the collision became the worst choice to stimulate a nuclear bomb.

******

A mole cricket popped out from the muddy ground. The heat and acrid smell greeted the mole cricket—the area with ten soccer fields overturned by thousands of ATACMS bomblets. A great forest turned to ashes and a vast rock turned to gravel.

The jungle was as silent as death. All kinds of monkeys squealing and miscellaneous birds crying disappeared. Only a heavy silence weighed heavily on the ashes.

“Spit! Spit! I almost died.”

Black Mamba spat out the dirt in his mouth and brushed his clothes aside. If he hadn’t dug into the ground with Gongjinpa, he would have crossed the Jordan River. It was not a dangerous operation, but it was such an absurd situation. It was the biggest crisis since the bombing of the Berkut missiles in Caparuza.

“You’re going to burn the house to catch the mice? It was such a U.S. style.”

He made just a blind guess. They inspected the content of the combat through wiretappers and transmitted the battle video through the cameras installed somewhere. The U.S. only needed Oparts, and the survival of No. 10 was not a consideration. The camp decided to wipe out Ubiksa and its dregs. It was an efficient operation. It was even extremely ignorant.

What was scarier than missiles was the rocket system. The MLRS, a multi-extension rocket operated by the U.S. military, had 12 rockets of 227mm projectile tubes. The MLRS battalion consisted of 24 launchers, firing 288 shotgun shells within a minute.

One MLRS warhead spreads 10,000 fragments 500 to 1,000 meters at 1,500/sec speeds. With simple math, one battalion overpowers 5 Km around. A rocket is a surprise weapon. There is no countermeasure if a steel rainstorm is attacking in an instant. He felt something heavy in his heart.

“It’s not a Black Mamba if you get beaten and put up with it.”

Black Mamba flashed his eyes. An eye for an eye and a foul for a foul. The headset rang.

“Wakil, Wakil, is everything okay?” Woo-Hyun hurriedly sang as if calling a drowning man.

“Nothing much. What about there?”

“Nothing much here. Something will be there, Wakil.”

There was no chance of many happenings. Rocket or field artillery was hundreds of meters away from the spot, and there was no reason that they missed the missile’s site if they calculated the spot accurately. It was why Black Mamba was more annoying with rockets than missiles.

“Something happened on Ubiksa. Check my location with GPS track.”

“What happened?”

“They attacked with ATACMS ground-to-ground missile. There are interceptors all around. Stop using the headset and just come here.”

“Yes, sir!”

Black Mamba turned off the headset altogether. There was a chance of being attacked by a cannonball if intercepts caught them. He trudged through the thicket of ashes five minutes ago to find Ubiksa base. The stationmaster that fell under space wrap flew away without any trace. The base turned into a mud tomb.

Rakshasa eddied. A strong wind blew away soil, rock fragments, and charcoal instantly. A horrible scene that was hard to see correctly with their eyes was revealed.

“Oh, wow. Of course, this is Ubiksa. Should I say this is useless death? Or loyalty?”

He could recognize at a glance. They protected No. 10 with their body buns, just as army ants safeguarding the queen ant. What caused them to risk their only lives in this remote region of Africa?

Were they the victim of Oecophylla Smaragdina? Were the patriots armed with vocation? If it was their will, it would be a dignified death, and if they were brainwashed, it was a useless death. Should their actions be called dramatic? Or was it meaningless shoveling?

He didn’t feel good. Everyone wants to live like the drama’s main character because they suffer from physical and mental hunger—no wonder the term “dramatic life” was popular among the population.

The reality was harsh. People dream of a three-star Michelin dinner but fill their physical hunger with cheap delivery foods. They desire a penthouse overlooking the river but comfort their hungry souls by watching a travel program in a rooftop room. Perhaps a dramatic life would be a life that lives silently, enduring each other’s reality.

Suddenly, he remembered Jaitun, a CIA consultant he met in Caparuza. They were patriots willing to sacrifice their lives for their country either of their will or brainwashing. Rakshasa dug up the ground. He placed eight dead bodies into the pit and several large rocks upon them to prevent animals from digging.

The body returns to atoms when one dies and the existence lives in memory. The memorial board is only 3.3㎡. The president’s memorial occupies 260 square meters with phoenix-shaped. Decent death is as important as decent life. Decent’s memories are a hundred times more precious than spacious and colorful mausoleums.

“Wakil, this is ridiculous! How did you survive?”

Woo-Hyun opened his eyes wide as if he had seen a ghost in daylight.

“This damn bitch, how could you say like that?” said Black Mamba in his mind.

Black Mamba looked at Woo-Hyun with surprised eyes. This man was hard to give affection to.

“If I was going to die from a few missiles, I’m already dead.”

“Whoa! Such immortal!”

Woo-Hyun alternately looked at the burned ground and the Black Mamba with an incredible expression.

“Stop talking ridiculous. Just track the sound.”

“Ubiksa ran away?”

Woo-Hyun stayed at the stone tomb.

“A woman and two guys ran away and the rest died. What’s about Olonge?”

“He went to pick up some fruit because he was thirsty.”

“Let’s go!”

Black Mamba left the ruins behind and began tracking.

******

“No. 1, take a minute off.”

Helen gasped and whined. They madly crossed the jungle for two hours. The joints were about to be dismantled and the lung was about to burst. The body’s pain filled the place where the fear of death disappeared.

The No. 1 glanced around without stopping. The people’s hero wasn’t looking bad. Her face was tanned and her bare skin was exposed, but she didn’t have any damage except for scratches. This was thanks to Comrade eight’s blocking of debris and shock waves with an energy shield. No. 10 was the life of eight Comrades.

“No, we can’t.”

No. 1 cut the word and turned his head.

“We’ve got plenty of distance.”

Helen’s breathless words snapped.

“The U.S. released predators. They are more sensitive and stronger than us. We can’t make it through the night if we can’t meet the boss Milovic.”

No. 1 was firm. At night, the jungle would present death, not predators. Of course, they couldn’t feel safe even now when Dawn had gone. No. 1 stepped back quickly because of those things in front.

Roar! The forest shook by the scream. Monsters with red-eyed popped out from under the bushes and rushed at Helen like a tank. The Beast recognized the weak like a ghost. They had wings and ran on two legs like a giant bird, but they were bigger than an ostrich and were overshadowed by the ax. They were a nightmare.