North American Detective: I am Proficient in All Kinds of Gun Quick Draws-Chapter 638 - 354 The Pitiful and Helpless Little Sow_1
This chaotic spectacle was a rare sight.
Soon, TV reporters in helicopters were broadcasting these scenes across the United States. In no time at all, the phones of Los Angeles's major government agencies were ringing off the hook.
The scale was too massive.
Online and offline across the country, information about the situation was being frantically passed around, obliterating any concern for what any celebrity might be doing or any scandal they were involved in.
Everyone's attention was now focused on Los Angeles, the city where countless American dreams had been realized.
And in Los Angeles itself, the stationed troops had already been deployed. Militias from various cities were also called up, flooding into the downtown area to impose armed suppression. Besides the TV stations' helicopters, every helicopter the government could muster took to the skies. They broadcast messages using forcibly commandeered broadcasting equipment, appealing for public calm.
After a one-two punch, and with the tide of steel crashing through obstructive vehicles to forcibly control every road intersection, the chaotic scenes finally began to come under control.
But this did not please the Los Angeles bigwigs who were watching.
These influential figures, who had either fled Los Angeles at the first sign of trouble or taken refuge in nuclear bunkers, were now discussing solutions via online video. This included political rivals and factions that were usually hostile to each other; for once, their opinions were unified.
This disaster must be stopped!
There was only one reason. Los Angeles, as one of the world's leading major economic complexes, would suffer incalculable economic losses if Peace Messenger were to arrive, regardless of the extent of the physical damage. Additionally, such an unprecedented event would trigger a series of unpredictable chain reactions, shaking the financial and political standing of the United States.
One could foresee that a financial crisis and a wave of unemployment would follow. This would further lead to instability and unrest in the Federation, a system comprised of immigrants and a union of states.
These people usually reveled in unrest. It meant they could use the United States Federation as a front to harvest wealth from around the world and further expand their own fortunes and influence. But when such chaos occurred on American soil, it signified the instability of wealth, power, and the established social hierarchy, meaning some were bound to fall.
The pie is only so large.
This land has too many ambitious individuals.
No one dared to bet that their family and supporting forces would not become prey in this turmoil, to be attacked by all.
The group of people already at the apex now just wanted stability. A stable society does not give opportunities to those emerging ambitious individuals.
Therefore, no matter the methods used or the price paid, this crisis must be suppressed!
Under this determination, even the family behind Saul completely lost their say in the matter.
...
BUZZ, BUZZ, BUZZ!
Several CH-47 Chinook helicopters hovered above City Hall. One by one, fully armed soldiers and men in suits rapidly descended on ropes, first securing the surrounding terrain. Then, the men in suits, led by a robust Black man, pushed past the door guards and strode inside.
If Dean were here, he'd recognize the man he hadn't seen in a long time—Amon.
Amon's expression was grim.
He had finally climbed to a high position in National Security and was seizing every moment to build his influence and win people over, full of drive.
Then, out of the blue, he received the news that Los Angeles was under threat from Peace Messenger.
He'd had a bad feeling about this from the start. First, National Security, as a newly established U.S. entity born from the decentralization of power, had responsibilities that included counterterrorism. This meant they bore undeniable responsibility for this incident. Second, within the higher echelons of National Security, his own foundations were the shallowest. This meant that regardless of the outcome, he, who had one foot in the upper echelons of American power, might find that foot slipping, plunging him into the ranks of scapegoats.
With no choice left, Amon made a decisive decision to stake everything on one last effort. He would lead the team himself to prevent this disaster!
If he succeeded, it wouldn't matter who became the scapegoat later; it wouldn't be him. And if he lost? Heh, if he lost his life, none of this would matter anyway.
Now, his top priority was to stabilize that lunatic, Qian Feng. Secondly, he had to see to the evacuation of the public and arrange for their shelter. Finally, he needed to find out the real situation in that university basement and see if a decapitation strike was feasible.
Evacuating the public and arranging shelters were tasks for the military. His responsibility was the latter.
Amon swiftly took command at the scene.
Afterwards, led by an employee, he arrived at the hall where Saul was. Ignoring Saul, who was still sprawled on the floor, Amon turned to a group of physicists who had been brought over. "What's the situation?" he asked.
A disheveled, bespectacled old man stood up, his expression grave. "It doesn't look promising," he stated. "After receiving the detailed data on Eye of Hell from Mr. Saul, we performed multiple calculations. We can essentially confirm that the yield of that rudimentary Peace Messenger could reach a radius of three kilometers. The resulting impact will affect an area extending more than ten kilometers around it. The radiation pollution will require further simulation combined with meteorological observations, but the outlook is likely grim."
He sighed before continuing, "The one thing we can be thankful for is that the device is in an underground space in the suburbs. They don't have the means to detonate it above downtown Los Angeles. Otherwise, we could be announcing a city-wide evacuation right now."
