"Who is 'Doctor'?"
Natasha didn't react for a moment, after all, the title "Doctor" could refer to a medical doctor, a PhD, or a codename for some special scientific researcher. Its use in modern times was too wide-ranging, even in a place like S.H.I.E.L.D., there were quite a handful of people who could be called a doctor.
Seeing Nick's face grow increasingly grim, she was a bit puzzled. So, she sat opposite Nick, ready to listen to his story from the past.
"Do you remember the Honshu Island sinking incident?" Nick's expression was now beyond grim, it was almost matching Batman's scowl.
"That was quite the spectacle," Natasha also showed a hint of reminiscence. "It's been almost 60 years now... But didn't you say that even S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't have the secret files from back then? I'm still curious about what kind of nuclear bomb could sink such a big island, but that's not related to us... is it?"
Nick pressed his lips together and didn't speak.
Natasha's eyes widened slowly.
Nick let out a long sigh, as if he had been holding it in for a long time, and said, "We have to go back to a few months before Berlin was liberated..."
Nick slowly recounted the story, and Natasha listened intently. When he mentioned that it was he who had urged Congress to use the super nuclear bomb from Hydra, the agent almost choked in shock.
"Cough, cough, cough, so you're saying you caused the biggest extinction disaster in human history?!"
"Not entirely," Nick tried to argue. "It was that Doctor who made me believe he would constantly threaten me with the bomb, so I wanted to use it as soon as possible."
"Besides, Congress didn't want to bear the blame at the time either. They figured if there was a reckoning later, they could use the evidence that the bomb was made by Hydra to absolve themselves."
"And China cannot be said to be completely innocent either. They must have heard something early on. Otherwise, how could it be that the moment Honshu Island sank, the King of the Masses opened up the barrier? Not only was there no impact on China's cities, but even their maritime territories were unscathed?"
"I always feel like you're not guilty about the death of those tens of millions." Natasha cut to the chase, "You're just angry at being played by Shiller."
"Don't be joking, tens of millions? How many could actually be considered people?" Nick said scornfully. "And don't tell me you're unaware of Project One Hundred Million Pieces. That island was full of lunatics. If they had been a bit more sane, none of this would have happened."
Natasha also revealed a cold smile, clearly, as a Soviet, she had no fond feelings for that island nation either.
"I once heard someone say that Japan always seemed to be betting that the entire world would follow their logic. I don't know where they got that confidence from."
The two of them reflected for a moment before returning to the main point. Natasha said, "If all of this was orchestrated by Shiller, then it's not surprising that China got the message ahead of time, but about the mutants..."
Nick sighed again, "It was a necessary evil at the time. Supporting mutants to establish their own nation is better than bearing the stigma of the most tragic extinction event in human history, right? Don't forget, votes come above all else!"
Natasha propped her chin with her hand, gradually sinking into her own memories of those tumultuous years.
After Honshu Island sank, the whole world was in shock.
To tell the truth, America dropping the nuclear bomb was tacitly approved by most of the global powers. Not to mention China, already bitterly hating; the Soviet Union had also been displeased with this tiny island nation making trouble behind its back; and the Allied Forces like Britain, America, and France could not accept their casualties from land invasion. It could be said that their interests aligned perfectly.
The so-called Project One Hundred Million Pieces was actually the arch-culprit behind this attitude in international public opinion. To put it briefly, the "one hundred million" referred to the entire Japanese populace at the time, and the idea of "Pieces" meant mutual destruction.
In other words, the dominant sentiment on the island was that the entire population and the invading troops would be annihilated together.
Under such a fanatic atmosphere, those who could join the military did, and those who could not helped the military effort in any way they could. The rational faction had long since died out, and there were even incidents where wives committed suicide to let their husbands go to war with peace of mind, actions that were highly publicized by the media as commendable. It was as if the rest of the world had already written off everyone on the island as madmen.
Under these conditions, a land invasion really didn't seem worth it. No one wanted to trade sane lives for those of madmen. So, with some unspoken agreement, they figured it would be best to scare them sufficiently all at once.
Before that, America also carried out a series of bombings, you could say that there wasn't a single good place left on the entire Four Islands, but none of it was enough to deter them. On the contrary, the more they were cornered, the more frantic the enemy became. By the end, they were not only refusing unconditional surrender but not contemplating surrender at all.
What else could be done? Drop the nuclear bomb.
So the actual purpose of dropping the atomic bomb was to deter, to force the surrender of the other side, essentially to splash a bucket of cold water on their overheated, malfunctioning brains to stop their daily delirium.
Everyone knew America was proud and ruthless, but no one had thought America would dare to resort to physical extermination. When Honshu Island sank, people around the world felt threatened.
By this stage in the war, the situation had generally become clear, and most were simply gathering their remnants, preparing to recuperate. However, America's launch of the nuclear missile made it seem like the Fourth World War might be hot on the heels of the third.
But after the gathering of remnants, everyone realized they were truly unable to continue fighting. The Soviet Union had already been heavily damaged as the main force in World War II, England and America originally had a weak manpower base, and America wanted to play a balancing act offshore—putting up money without manpower. Where would they find the additional manpower for another world war?
Moreover, the other nations thought, now that America had suffered the least, with the war not reaching its homeland, could this action be an intentional provocation to worsen the global situation, forcing others to dive even more desperately into the fray, so that America could reap the benefits?
Thinking of this, those who had initially planned to take extreme measures moderated their intentions a bit, reasoning that there were only four islands in total. Honshu Island, with the largest population and most development, had sunk, which meant that the remaining three islands were hardly worrisome, and the country could be considered as having been swept into the dustbin of history.
The country might be gone, but the remaining islands still existed, and the location of these three islands was very advantageous; they could be considered the pearls of the Pacific Ocean. Without those annoying madmen, the neighboring countries found the islands much more appealing.
So, the urgent task at hand was not to condemn America's appalling exterminatory conduct, but to quickly find a way to occupy these three islands.
As the biggest victim, China had to step forward and say a few words. The assertion was that, by all means historical and rational, these islands were to be claimed by them.
Of course, the Soviet Union wanted to contend for them too, considering their significant contributions during World War II and the future Asia-Pacific geopolitical situation; these three islands were indispensable.
America's original plan included leveraging Japan for dominance in the Asia-Pacific. Even though the nation was gone, the islands remained, which could now be even more conveniently developed into naval bases and missile outposts. As for these three islands, America was resolute in securing them.
Although China's national power was slightly weaker, they had the advantage of proximity, and given that the political and military centers of the Soviet Union were all in Europe, making them reach too far to exert control in this region, China held a geographic advantage and could stand on equal footing with the other two giants.
Setting other considerations aside, the mere short distance meant that a massive migration from Northeast China could secure the islands before America could possibly consider launching a second nuclear strike. As long as there was a physical occupation, subsequent arguments would be of little consequence.
Therefore, in the matter of the three islands' sovereignty, the situation could be described as a tripodal balance of power. Although some had suggested one island per power, everyone's desire for the islands wasn't about natural resources, but about strategic position—hence the all-or-nothing approach.
With celestial beings clashing, mere mortals suffer, and the small neighboring nations trembled as they watched these three behemoths refusing to yield.
In the end, as friction escalated and a cold war threatened to turn hot, it was China that stepped in to mediate, proposing a compromise solution that was somewhat palatable to all—let's establish a new nation.
Indeed, there were protests from some original inhabitants of the remaining three islands, but considering they were from a defeated nation, and now over 90% of the population was gone, the few remaining couldn't stir up much trouble, and everyone else chose to ignore their pleas, deciding their fate for them.
But supporting which group to establish a nation was an issue. The US and Soviet Union both felt China's geographical advantage was too great and that China would surely bring the new nation into its cultural sphere of influence, so they adamantly opposed relocating populations from Asia.
However, suggesting the relocation of Caucasians raised another problem. The islands had just suffered a nuclear attack; even Superman would cough there—who would rashly move to the center of radiation?
So, the remaining options were few, and the criteria changed from who was willing to go to who could go. Thus, there weren't many choices left—only one, in fact.
Apart from the Mutants who most nations cast aside, who else theoretically could withstand the radiation?
The truth was, even the majority of Mutants in most countries couldn't bear it, but the US and Soviet Union didn't intend to make it easy for these Mutants. More deaths from radiation would be welcomed, as it would weaken their strength and prevent them from causing trouble.
With the US and Soviet Union taking the lead, other nations followed suit, and so the most brutal persecution laws against Mutants in history were enacted.
All Mutants with the X-gene were required to move to the remaining three islands as swiftly as possible and establish their own nation there.
Theoretically, such harsh treatment would provoke a strong backlash, but for some reason, many Mutant leaders who were troublemakers in their regions merely protested symbolically a few times before leaving with their people.
And more astonishingly, they didn't just take the Alpha or Omega-Level Mutants who were assured to withstand the radiation; they also took the Epsilon Class, aligning perfectly with the wishes of certain countries.
By this time, many countries started to sense something amiss, but it was too late.
For some unknown reason, the anticipated tragedy of Mutants succumbing to radiation and dying in droves did not occur. Almost as soon as they set foot on the islands, the Mutants quickly gained a solid foothold.