"Is she out of her mind?!" I exclaimed.
By mobilizing so many aircraft, there would be no chance for major cities to survive the attack. Even the smaller cities would be gone if they bombed those places too. Of course, the majority of the coup was fighting right then, and the sudden deployment of those enemy aircraft would catch them off guard.
"I need to inform them." With one gentle tap at my earpiece, I tried to communicate with Neary. There was no one on the other side. I tapped at it again and again, but nothing changed. The only sound that greeted me was the ominous crackling that gave the impression of a bad connection.
"Dammit!"
I turned around and walked towards Aya, who had shifted her attention to me. "We need to get out of here, right now. This bunker is safe, so we need to get the civilians back at the hideout to come here. There aren't too many of them, so it should work."
Aya nodded slowly, her eyes gleamed under the fluorescent light. She knew exactly what was on my mind.
After all, judging from the frequency of the explosions, a vast area of the Oulu had been reduced to rubble. It would be logical to assume that Amathelia gave up on Oulu since it was under the coup's control. She didn't care about what would happen to the unrelated civilians.
"Derrick!" shouted Aya.
She swiped her claw in my direction and I closed my eyes. A few seconds later, I opened it slowly to take a glance at my rear.
Aya's blood red claw had stabbed at General Autio, who was gripping a military knife. She pulled it out with one swift motion and the general fell to the ground.
"Derrick. You let your guard down too much in front of your enemies," said Aya. "I know you are worried about the civilians. But right now, we haven't reached the hideout yet, so focus on the things around you . . . Get a hold of yourself."
I bit my lip. What Aya said was indeed true. I got drowned under my own thoughts that I forgot the simplest things a soldier should be aware of. If she was not there with me, I could've died.
That was the hard cold truth.
Taking a deep breath, I walked over to the dark wall and slammed my forehead against it.
"Derrick!"
I looked back at Aya, blood trickling down my forehead. A narrow streak of it managed to get into my mouth and I wiped it off. "It's fine. Anyway, let's head back right now. We can still make it in time. When we get there, escorting the civilians here will be our top priority."
After we exited the bunker and went back to the surface, red flames started to flicker from far away. A few moments later, a screeching sound grew louder and louder before a five-story building exploded into rubble.
"We need assistance from Neo Africa, specifically the Lutalo Aegis squad," said Aya as she ran alongside me.
"Yeah. We don't have any other choice if we want to stop this madness."
"Hm?!"
Out of nowhere, a bunch of Teria soldiers popped into existence and surrounded both of us. With their black gears, it was hard to notice their silhouettes' outline in that dark night.
"Since when!" I gritted my teeth.
Fighting them was not the preferred option. After all, by the time we had finished dealing with these soldiers, everyone could've already been killed.
"You never change do you, Derrick," said a familiar male voice. "To think that you have been promoted to that rank and still keeping that naivete of yours . . . What a joke."
The Teria soldiers in front of us gave way to a man in a dark blue military uniform. He lowered his military head a bit as a gesture of respect.
"S-Sam? Sam, is that you?" I said with a shaky voice.
I remembered the times when Sam and I were in the same squad three years ago, led by Sergeant Campbell. Our squad was called Squad Four. Three years ago, we were involved in the invasion of Mansel Island, where the three of us first met the little girl who had changed our lives.
The little girl name was Ava.
After the failed invasion attempt, Sergeant Campbell died during duty, whereas I was appointed as the new leader of Squad Four. Sam, at that time, was promoted to Corporal.
I had broken many rules during the time I was a general of the C.U. And right then, outside of that bunker, I even double-crossed them as a temporary member of the military coup.
"I knew how soft you are," said Sam. He narrowed his eyes at me as he spoke, "You do realize that you are on the enemy's side, right? Hm?"
"Yes," I answered simply.
"Tsk. I guess fate brought us here together, for me to witness the fall of my trusted friend."
"That golden plate on your shoulder . . . You are a general now, huh," I said.
"Yup. I always wanted to be above you anyway. And with our meeting here, that is no longer necessary. It's hilarious, isn't it? After all, you will be under my feet . . . Literally."