Chapter 25 Chapter Twenty-Four

Yueshi teleported directly to the government building, leading Lee Hunter and six or seven other assistants on duty into the tactical command center.The room was bustling: Mopur Court, Singer, Van Hitter, and a large group of army representatives crammed inside.However, Yueshi noticed that the young naval hero Commander Lee was not there; most of the cabinet ministers were there, including Alan Ibn from the Ministry of Defense, Galian Pesov from the Foreign Ministry, and Babi from the Ministry of Economy. Dan Kidis; even after Pleasant Stone arrived, there was an influx of MPs, some of whom looked like they had just been woken up.The "power curve" of the elliptical conference table is seated in turn, including Korsev from Luthers, Li Xiu from Fuxing Arrow, Ron Quest from Beidao, Kakinuma from Fuji, and Seven from Draco. Sabine Storafin of the No. 1, and Peters of Tianjin Sibing; the bottom seat sat President Protein Denzil-Hiat-Amin, with a perplexed look on his face. His bald scalp gleamed under the spotlights overhead, while his young colleague, Global Spokesman Gibbons, sat on the edge of his seat with his hands on his knees in a posture that seemed to be Study how to gather energy with poise.The projection of Advisor Alberto sat directly opposite Yue Shikong's chair.When Yue Shi hurriedly walked through the corridor, everyone stood up. After she sat down and motioned for everyone to take their seats, everyone took their seats.

"Speak." She said. General Moboge stood up and nodded to one of his subordinates, then the lights dimmed and a hologram emerged. "Forget about the image!" Yue Shi yelled sharply, "Say it directly." The hologram faded, and the lights came back on.Mo Boge looked quite frightened, and slightly lost his mind.He lowered his head, stared at his laser pointer, frowned at it, and dropped it in his pocket. "Madam Executive, Members, Ministers, Presidents, Spokespersons, Honorable Ones..." Mopurgo cleared his throat, "The Ousters have successfully launched a devastating surprise attack. Their battle group is heading towards the six , The seven ring-net planets are approaching."

There was a commotion in the conference room, which quickly drowned out his voice. "Planet Ring!" Many people shouted.Those who have issued these cries have been politicians, ministers, and officials of executive agencies. "Quiet," Yue Shi ordered, and everyone fell silent. "General, you assured us earlier that any hostile forces are at least five years away from the ring network. How is it possible, and how can there be such a big change?" The general looked directly at the CEO. "My lord executive, as far as we know so far, all the Hawking drive wakes are just traps. You Qun had already withdrawn the drive decades ago, and was driving towards the target at sub-light speed..."

Excited whispers drowned his voice again. "Continue. General." Yue Shi said, and the clamor subsided again. "Based on sublight speeds... some of the swarms should have been sailing in this state for fifty standard years, maybe more... There is no way to detect them. This is not due to a mistake at all—" "Which planets are at risk, General?" Yueshi asked.Her voice was low and calm. Moboge glanced at the empty air, as if looking for some image there, and then turned his gaze back to the conference table.Clenched hands into fists. "Right now, our intelligence is based on the results of the fusion-driven visual observer, and what we found when they switched to the Hawking drive. These data show that within the next fifteen to seventy-two hours, the first wave of attacks It will reach the Gate of Heaven, Sacred Forest, Infinity Sea, Asquith, Ixion, Qingdao Yixishuangbanna, Ecoteen, Bana's Domain, and more."

This time, no one stopped the commotion.Yue Shi let the people's yelling and sighing last for a few minutes, and then she raised her hand to control the whole situation. Senator Korschef stood up. "How could this damn thing happen? General, didn't you absolutely promise us?!" Mo?Bai Ge stood firm, without any anger directed at him in his voice. "I did promise, MP, but the guarantee was based on wrong data. We were wrong. We were wrong in our inferences. I resign now and immediately to my lord executive...along with all the other Coalition chiefs." "Resign your mother!" yelled Korschef. "If we don't fix this, we might as well hang ourselves on the teleporter beams. The question is—what did you do to deal with this?" aggression?"

"Gabriel," Yueshi said softly, "please sit down. That's my next question. General, Marshal, I think you have issued orders to defend the planets?" Marshal Singer got up and stood beside Mopoge. "My lord executive, we have done everything we can. Unfortunately, of the planets threatened by the first wave of invasion, only Asquith has a military task force stationed. Although the rest can also be protected by the fleet - they all have Long-distance transmission capability - but the fleet can't be too dispersed, because the strength is weakened and it can't take care of everything. And, unfortunately..." Singer paused, and then raised his voice to drown out the growing noise Voice. "And, unfortunately, the strategic reserve team has been transferred to Hyperion for reinforcements, and a strategic shift has begun. Of the 200 ships we have invested in this redeployment, about 60% are They have either been teleported to the Hyperion system, or teleported to a staging area, away from the actively defended positions on the outer perimeter of the Ring."

Meina Gladstone rubbed her face, realizing that she was still wearing the shawl, only the neckline had been let down.So she unbuttoned it and threw it over the back of the chair. "Marshal, you are saying that those planets are defenseless, and there is no way to turn our fleet back in time. Is that so?" Singer stood at attention, his body as straight and stiff as a person facing the death penalty. "That's right, my lord executive." "Is there any remedy?" The voice was so loud that she had to shout. Mo Boge took a step forward. "We're using civilian teleportation matrices to teleport as many military, military, and naval forces as possible to these threatened planets, while equipping them with light artillery and surface-to-air defenses."

Defense Secretary Eben cleared his throat. "It's almost the same as having no fleet defense." Yue Shi glanced at Mobo Pavilion. "That's right," the general said, "Our military strength can at most provide rear guard support during the implementation of the evacuation plan..." Councilor Li Xiu stood up. "Evacuation plan! General, you said yesterday that it would be impractical to evacuate two or three million people from Hyperion. Now, do you mean that we can successfully evacuate before the Ouster invading forces intervene— —" She paused, checked the comlog implant—"Seven billion people?"

"Not really," Mopurgo said, "but we can sacrifice some of the fleet to save some... some special officials. First families, leaders of society and industry, etc., who are essential to the military logistics." "General," Yue Shi said, "yesterday we granted the privilege of instant teleportation to the headquarters of the reinforcement fleet dispatched to Hyperion. Will this conflict with today's redeployment?" Admiral Van Hitter of the Navy rose to his feet. "Indeed, Ms. Executor. Within an hour after the decision was made, the troops were immediately sent to the corresponding teleportation point for standby. Of the tens of thousands of dispatched troops, nearly two-thirds had already been-" He glanced at the ancient The timer, "-5:30 standard time, about twenty minutes ago, was transmitted to the Hyperion system. Now, they must return to the Hyperion system rendezvous before they can return to the ring network, which is at least It takes eight to fifteen hours."

"How many troops are there for the military to call in the entire network?" Yue Shi asked.She sticks out a knuckle just next to her lower lip. Mo Boge took a breath. "About thirty thousand, Madam Executor." Senator Korsev slapped the table. "In other words, the ring network mobile force has run out of ammunition and food, there is no combat airship left, and even the army and the army have consumed more than half of it." This is not a question, and Mo Boge didn't answer it. Senator Feldstein from Barna's Domain stood up. "Madam Executor, the planet I'm on...all the planets just mentioned...must be warned. If you're not ready for emergency notification, I'll do it."

Yue Shi nodded. "As soon as the meeting is over, I declare the invasion, Dorothy. We will provide all media liaison assistance to your constituency." "Return the media, damn it," said the short black-haired woman, "I'll teleport home as soon as the meeting ends here. No matter what kind of fate befalls Bana's domain, I should go back and bear it together. Ladies Gentlemen, if the news is true, we should all be hanged from a beam." Feldstein sat down amidst a murmur. Spokesman Gibbons stood up and waited for everyone to quiet down before speaking.When he spoke, it sounded like a taut rope. "General, the first wave you mentioned...is it a military term for the sake of prudence, or is it that you have intelligence, and there will be several waves of invasion in the future? If so, which ring networks will be involved in the next few waves And the Protector Planet?" Mo Boge clenched his hands tightly, and now he let go.He glanced again at the empty air, then turned to Pleasant Stone. "My lord, I only use one chart, is that okay?" Yue Shi nodded in agreement. The holograms are the same as the ones used by the military in the Olympus briefing - overlords are represented in gold, protective planets are green, Ouster swarm routes are red lines with blue offset trails, overlord fleet deployments are orange Yellow—totally unmistakable, the red lines deviated far from their original course, stabbing into Hyperion's space like blood-tipped spears.The orange fire points are now all concentrated in the Hyperion galaxy, densely overlapping, and some are arranged in long rows along the long-distance transmission route, like beads on a chain. Seeing this, those congressmen with military experience gasped. "The dozen or so roaming groups we know," said Mopurge, his voice still lacking strength, "seems to have been transferred to the Ring Network to launch an invasion. Several of them have split into several attack groups. The second wave The aggressors are scheduled to arrive within one hundred to two hundred and fifty hours of the completion of the first wave, and we have marked their course here." There was no sound in the conference room.Yue Shi wondered if these people were holding their breath. "The targets of the second wave of attacks include--Hebron, 100 hours from now; the arrow of revival, 110 hours; the second of revival, 112 hours; North Island, 127 hours; Maui, 130 hours; , 143 hours; Tianjin Sibing and Tianjin Siding, 150 hours; Dragon Star 7, 169 hours; Liberty Island, 170 Ten hours; Xindi, 193 hours; Fuji Star, 204 hours; New Mecca, 205 hours; Payson, Armaghast, Liberty Star, 221 hours; Luthers, two hundred and thirty hours; and finally, Whale Center, two hundred and fifty hours." The hologram gradually faded away.Silence spread.General Morpurgo said: "We estimate that the first wave of hordes will have secondary targets after the first invasion, but the teleportation time using the Hawking drive navigation should be equivalent to the standard time debt of the Ring Network, ranging from nine weeks to three years ’” He took a step back, standing in a relaxed parade pose. "God." The people sitting a few rows behind Yueshi sighed. The CEO rubbed his lower lip.In order to save humanity from what she sees as eternal slavery...or, worse yet, eternal annihilation...she is ready to open the front door to face the wolf while keeping most of the common people's homes hidden. Upstairs, safely behind locked doors.But now, the end has come, and wolves are pouring through every door and window.She almost laughed out loud in front of the trial, the folly of thinking she could release Chaos from its cage and control it. "First of all," she said, "no blame is allowed, no resignation is allowed unless authorized by me. Indeed, the collapse of this administration is very likely... indeed, members of this cabinet, including myself... as Gabriel They should be hanged on a beam. But at the same time, we are the government of the overlord, and we should play our part. "Secondly, in one hour, I will summon all the people present, as well as representatives of other committees of the parliament, to discuss the speech I will give to the World Wide Web at 8 o'clock sharp. We welcome your valuable opinions at that time. "Again, I hereby order the military leaders assembled here to do all they can to protect the lives and property of the citizens of the Ring and Protectorate throughout the Hegemony, and authorize them to use unconventional Means. General, Marshal, I want all troops to teleport back to the threatened Ring planet within ten hours. Whatever method is used, this must be done. "Fourth, after finishing my speech, I will convene a meeting of the council and all members of the whole world. At that time, I will announce that there is a state of war between the human overlord and the Destroyer nations. Gabriel, Dorothy, Ton, Eiko... ...you all... will be quite busy in the next few hours. Please prepare your speeches to your old stars, but don't forget to vote. I hope to have the unanimous support of the entire parliament. Spokesperson Gibbons , I just ask you to guide us favorably in the global debate. At twelve o'clock today, we must receive the affirmative votes of all members of the global community. Don't expect any surprises. "Fifth, we will evacuate the citizens of the planet threatened by the first wave." Yue Shi raised a hand, suppressing the objections and justifications of the experts. "For the rest of the time, we will evacuate everyone as much as possible. Minister Pesov, Ibn, Minister Dan Kidis, and Minister of Transport for the Ring Network, Kronron, please establish an evacuation coordination committee and lay a good job." First, before 13:00 today, be sure to submit the detailed report and action time arrangement to me. The military department and the Ring Network Security Bureau are responsible for supervising and coordinating the crowd and ensuring long-distance transmission capabilities. "Finally, I would like Adviser Alberto, MP Korschef and Speaker Gibbons to meet me in my private conference room in three minutes. Anyone else have any questions?" Shocked faces looked at each other. Yue Shi got up. "Good luck to you all," she said, "act quickly. Don't spread unnecessary panic. May God bless my Overlord." She turned and strode out of the room. Yue Shi sat down behind the desk.Korschef, Gibbons, and Albert sat across from her.One can vaguely feel the busyness outside the door, the air is full of tension, and the long silence before Yue Shi speaks makes people feel restless and almost crazy.She never took her eyes off Advisor Alberto. "You," she said at last, "betrayed us." The elegant smile of the projected portrait did not waver in the slightest. "Never, Mr Executor." "Then I will give you a minute to explain to me why the technical core, especially the AI ​​Advisory Council, did not foresee this invasion." "It will be explained in one word, Madam Executor," said Alberto, "Hyperion." "Fuck you Hyperion!" Yueshi shouted, slapping the ancient desk, Yueshi had never been so angry. "I'm tired of hearing these so-called indecomposable variables, Hyperion is an unpredictable black hole, Alberto. Is it the core that can help us understand all possibilities, or are they already Deceived us for five centuries? Which statement is true?" "The Advisory Council predicted war, Your Excellency," said the gray-haired image, "We have advised you in secret, and the 'Important Information' working group has also explained that once Hyperion is involved, the situation will change .” "Bullshit," Kershev snapped. "Under normal circumstances, your prophecies should be invulnerable. But this attack must have been planned decades ago. Perhaps centuries ago." Albert shrugged. "That's right, Senator, but it's also possible that this government's decision to go to war in the Hyperion system caused the Ousters to carry out this plan. We have raised objections to actions involving Hyperion." Speaker Gibbons leaned over. "The names of those who participated in the so-called Shrike pilgrimage were provided by you." This time, Albert didn't even shrug his shoulders, and the posture of the projected image relaxed, full of confidence. "It was you who asked us to select those who could change the outcome of the prophesied war from among those who requested to participate in the Shrike's pilgrimage. We made the list according to your request." Yue Shi raised his index finger and tapped his chin lightly. "Are you sure that these supplicants will change the outcome of that war . . . the present war?" "No," said Albert. "Mr. Advisor," said CEO Meina Gladstone, "please listen clearly, from now on, the human overlord government will consider declaring war on the so-called technological core entities based on the results of the next few days. And you As the entity's executive ambassador, we entrust you with conveying this claim." Albert laughed.He spread his hands. "Ms. Executive, you must have been shocked by the horrific news to make you make such a poor joke. Declaring war on the inner core...that's like...like a fish declaring war on water, like a driver declaring war on something else When there are annoying car accident reports, just attack your electromagnetic car." Yue Shi didn't smile. "When I lived in Pataufa, my grandfather was still alive," she said slowly, her dialect getting heavier. "One morning, because he couldn't start the electromagnetic car at home, he shot it six times with a pulse rifle. Fire the bullet. The meeting is adjourned, Mr. Advisor." Albert blinked and disappeared.His sudden departure was either a deliberate violation of convention—usually, the projection would walk out of the room, or the image would not dissolve until the others had left—or it was a sign that the intellect of the inner management was overwhelmed by the sudden role reversal. light. Pleasant Stone nodded to Kershev and Gibbons. "I don't want to waste your time," she said. "Please bear in mind that when war is declared five hours from now, I hope to have full support." "No problem," Gibbons said.The two left in a hurry. All the assistants walked in through the door and the secret door, and the questions were fired like a cannonball, and they all checked the information from the communication log.Yue Shi held up a finger. "Where's Seven?" she asked.Seeing the dazed face in front of her, she added, "I mean, the poet... the artist. The one who gave me my portrait?" Several assistants looked at each other, as if they felt that the head of state was insane. "He's still asleep," Lee Hunter said. "He took some sleeping pills last night, and it didn't occur to us to wake him up for a meeting." "I want him to be here in twenty minutes," Yue Shi said, "inform him quickly. Where is Commander Li?" The young woman in charge of military liaison, Nikki Cadon, said, "Li was sent by Mopur Court and the Navy Minister of the Military Department to patrol the defensive belt last night. In the next twenty years of ring network time, he will The ocean planets are busy. At present, he... has just been transmitted to the Navy Communications Center of the Military Department in Brescia, waiting to be transmitted out of the ring network." "Bring him back," Yueshi said, "promote him to major general, or whatever, whatever the hell it is, as long as he's qualified to work directly for the government, and then send him here, to me, not to Government building or executive branch. If that doesn't work, say he's a nuclear weapons salesman." Yue Shi looked at the blank wall for a while.She thought of the planets she had been to the night before; the realm of Bana, the lights of the foliage, the old masonry of the Academy; Avenue...they all became the targets of the first wave.She shook her head. "Lee, you and Tara and Brindnancy give me two first drafts in forty-five minutes - a public address and a declaration of operations. Keep it short and sharp. Take a page from Churchill and Strudensky Dossier. Be realistic but defiant, optimistic but combined with unyielding determination. Nikki, I need real-time monitoring of every move of the Joint Chiefs. Also, need my own command map report - relayed through my implant Exclusively for the CEO. Bobby, from now on you will represent me in dealing with foreign affairs in the parliament. Participate in the parliament, organize notes, operate in the dark, intimidate and lure them gradually, and gradually make them realize that they will immediately go out and fight the Ousters. , much safer than voting against me for the next three or four votes." "Do you have any questions?" Yue Shi waited for three seconds, then clapped his hands together, "Okay, guys, let's get to work!" Soon, the next wave of parliamentarians, ministers and assistants will come in. During this brief gap, Yue Shi turned her chair and faced the blank wall above her head. She raised her index finger and pointed at the ceiling, shaking her head. She turned around just in time for the next wave of dignitaries to rush in.

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