Chapter 323: Mid-air Scare
At 10:30 AM, Ye Xing, with Nan Guo de Xue, retrieved the car they had rented earlier.
"Phew~ It's actually settled just like that! No—it's not over yet, can't let my guard down."
He reset the navigation, setting the destination to Boston Logan Airport.
"Let's go, back home!"
The moment Ye Xing pressed the accelerator, he saw all the traffic lights on the road ahead turn green, providing a clear, unobstructed path that stretched into the unseen distance.
Meanwhile, the lights on both the left and right sides of the intersection turned red and remained that way until Ye Xing passed through.
Drivers were greatly puzzled by this sudden traffic control and honked their horns in protest.
"Alright—"
Ye Xing knew this was the Federal Government seeing them off, and it was not advisable to linger here.
Nan Guo de Xue leaned out, taking one last look at the familiar district.
Everything here could only end so hastily, in this manner.
On a land that felt more like home, a brand new life and a brand new research career awaited her!
Farewell, Boston!
The car drove out of Cambridge District, onto the historic 'Longfellow' Bridge, crossed the Charles River, and entered the underwater tunnel leading to the airport in the downtown area.
Along the way, Ye Xing's sense of déjà vu intensified.
"Sister Xue—I have a question."
"Hmm?"
"Why do I always feel like I've been to Boston before?"
The main building of MIT by the river, that bridge just now, the layout of the tall buildings in the downtown area, and the red brick building situated right above the tunnel entrance—everything felt too familiar.
"Then you might have really 'been here' and lived here for hundreds of hours."
"Ah?"
"Boston is the city from the game 'Fallout 4', and the map is scaled down proportionally to reality."
Sister Xue explained.
"Cambridge District is where you got your first Power Armor in the game, MIT is the location of the Institute faction, and as for Logan Airport where we're headed now—" As a loyal fan of the 'Fallout' series, Ye Xing nodded.
"I know that, it's the headquarters of the Brotherhood of Steel! So that's it, I knew this place felt so familiar, I barely needed navigation while driving, I just followed my instincts and knew where I was going! Are the headquarters of the Minutemen and the Railroad also real?"
"Yes, they are the Old North Church and Fort Independence, respectively."
"Alright! Then when I'm no longer expelled by the great Milligan, I'll come back for another tour!"
This feeling was particularly strange.
He accepted a difficult mission in the real world because of a game.
Then, in the real world, he entered the map of another game.
His experiences in 'Fallout 4' unknowingly improved his wayfinding efficiency for this mission.
People often say that players are always cooped up in front of screens, never leaving their homes, but in reality, they often visit more places and experience more different lives than those who don't play games.
"Please follow me, both of you."
Upon arriving at the airport terminal, a plainclothes FBI agent showed his identification and led Ye Xing and Sister Xue through the VIP channel, directly to the boarding area.
"While we are still on Milligan's soil, the people here will be responsible for our safety, to avoid international disputes."
Sister Xue whispered to Ye Xing in Chinese.
Ye Xing nodded.
The unspoken latter half of that sentence was, once they left the country's borders, that might not be the case anymore.
Before walking onto the jet bridge, Ye Xing saw the group of CIA operatives in suits in the nearby waiting area again.
"I wish you a smooth journey!"
The leader smiled slyly and waved goodbye.
The two boarded a flight from a domestic airline.
This was a special plane chartered by the higher-ups, with no other passengers on board.
The captain and first officer personally greeted them at the cabin door, wearing captain's uniforms that weren't their own, and gave an exceptionally standard salute: "Hello, Dr. Song, welcome aboard! It is my honor to take you on a 'tour' to China, please take your seats, we will take off immediately!"
The flight would follow the Arctic Circle route west, crossing the Pacific Ocean to return home.
Normally, it would make a stop at Tokyo Haneda Airport, but this time it would not, flying directly to Youzhou.
"Please put these on in advance."
After they sat down, the cabin crew brought life jackets and parachutes.
The sudden appearance of these items made Nan Guo de Xue realize that things might not end so simply.
"Both of you have mastered parachuting skills in 'Stellar Sea', so I'll just briefly introduce the equipment here. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me. This bag contains flare sticks and a Beidou positioning system—"
Inside the terminal, CIA operatives received communication from their superiors via walkie-talkie, quietly stood up, and gathered by the window.
Under their indifferent gaze, the plane received tower clearance, taxied, and took off.
Six hours later, Washington D.C., inside the White House.
A deep-state representative pushed open the door to the Oval Office and walked towards the blond old man who was already waiting for him behind the "Resolute Desk."
"Mr. President, we have reactivated our Cold War-era communication technology reserves, and now the entire military has re-established contact and is communicating using Morse code. You know, telegraph code, beep-beep! Beep-beep-beep—"
The other party made a pecking motion with his right hand, mimicking the action of sending a telegram.
"I know what Morse code is, don't treat me like an idiot! I understand information technology better than anyone!"
The President knew that this deep-state scoundrel was making fun of him again.
"My apologies, I meant no offense."
"So what now? What's the plan?"
"The flight is currently over the Bering Sea, about to cross the International Date Line, approaching Russian airspace, and moving away from the responsibility airspace of Milligan and our ally, Canada."
The deep-state official introduced.
"Our advanced combat units are in position, just waiting for your command, and can begin executing the mission immediately."
"My command?" The President looked at the other party, "So if something goes wrong, it's on me, and even if nothing goes wrong, I can't publicly claim credit to the media?"
"But this can increase your prestige within the deep state and ease relations between us," the official replied with a smile.
"And it will definitely not fail. After all, making an international flight that doesn't belong to us disappear over the high seas is not difficult for us at all."
The President stroked his chin, pondering for a moment.
"Good! Then let's proceed with the operation. We cannot let the Chinese feel they can ride roughshod over us; I will not set this precedent during my term as President! Bomb them mercilessly!"
Alaska, Eielson Air Force Base. A massive US Air Force E-3C "Sentry" AWACS aircraft took off, flying to the skies above the Bering Sea.
It activated its radar, and before long, it located the special flight, flying along its route 70 kilometers away.
Below the AWACS aircraft, the Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarine "New Jersey," which had previously been on combat patrol, surfaced urgently. It was equipped with an air-attack module that had not been, and would not be, publicly disclosed.
Since the submarine had no air-search radar, a data link communication was immediately established between the two, and the AWACS aircraft shared the target's coordinate parameters with the nuclear submarine in real-time.
Currently, on Earth, the number of countries capable of doing this can be counted on one hand.
"We are being illuminated by radar."
On the special flight, the pilot announced over the cabin intercom in a calm tone.
"Radar illumination?! It—as expected—"
Ye Xing instinctively gripped the armrest of his seat, but he didn't panic.
He found that even though he knew he couldn't revive this time, he wasn't very afraid.
'Stellar Sea' had greatly boosted his courage.
"But everyone, don't worry, the game operator reminded us beforehand!"
Sister Xue's face then broke into a confident smile, and she patted Ye Xing's shoulder.
"Calm down, the Executive Officer will protect us."
"Ah? Who did you just say?"
"Nothing."
At this moment, a new Chinese KJ-3000 AWACS aircraft, after an aerial refueling, had already been circling in the nearby airspace.
It was equipped with a gallium nitride AESA radar, a generation more advanced than its opponent's, and therefore spotted the opponent's AWACS aircraft and the surfaced submarine earlier.
The nuclear submarine, about to commit a crime, opened the hatches of its forward missile vertical launch system.
Virginia-class nuclear submarines can usually only launch "Tomahawk" cruise missiles for land attack, but the "New Jersey" was different; it carried special air-to-air missiles specifically for certain "special missions."
Bang bang bang!
Compressed air launched ten cold-launched "Standard 6" long-range air-to-air missiles from their launch tubes in quick succession. The missiles' rocket engines ignited in mid-air, quickly accelerating the warheads to Mach 4, and sending them high into the sky, gliding towards the target airliner.
Afterward, the offending nuclear submarine quickly submerged, fleeing the crime scene.
"This is 'Tiangang', calling 'Qingniao'."
The KJ-3000 AWACS aircraft hailed the flight.
"Ten missiles detected heading your way, please immediately turn to a 185-degree heading, and simultaneously accelerate to maximum altitude, trying to buy as much time as possible."
"'Qingniao' received."
The airliner immediately began a sharp-angle turning maneuver.
"It's started!"
Ye Xing looked out the window, only to see the pitch-black Bering Sea almost parallel to the glass; the airliner had completely tilted sideways.
"Based on the speed and range of the US air-to-air missiles, we only have about 180 seconds," Sister Xue murmured.
"Then what?"
"Then we either get hit or witness a miracle."
While the KJ-3000 AWACS aircraft initiated communication, it also established a data link with allied forces, sending over the target parameters.
Only, its allies were not under the sea, but beyond the atmosphere above!
"Received!"
At this moment, five first-generation space fighters, following a low-Earth orbit, arrived 100 kilometers above the target airspace.
Piloting them were the pioneers of the Space Force, the nation's top-tier pilots.
"Commence operation!"
The squadron leader pushed the control stick, leading the other four fighters in a dive at Mach 20!
The surface of the fuselage rubbed violently against the air, releasing dazzling light. Soon, the blackout was broken, communication and radar systems returned to normal operation, and the squadron's flight speed also dropped to Mach 9.
Below was the gloomy, heavy, lead-gray cloud layer over the Bering Sea.
"Tiangang, Qingniao, our radar has found the target. M's beasts are truly ruthless, launching 10 missiles to hit one airliner! How many years has it been, and they're still playing these tricks!"
The space fighter squadron sent a communication.
"Alright, Qingniao received. Next, we'll trouble you brothers."
"No trouble! Altitude: 65 kilometers, 60 kilometers, 55 kilometers, entering effective range! Each aircraft, according to your assigned targets, begin interception!"
"Fire!"
Driven by superconducting capacitors, five powerful infrared lasers shot out from beneath the fighters' noses.
Due to complex meteorological conditions below, causing unpredictable irregular optical refraction, these lasers took half a second to a full second to fine-tune their firing angles, after which they precisely illuminated the bodies of the "Standard 6" missiles.
Subsequently, they quickly burned through the missile casings.
Five missiles disintegrated and exploded in mid-air; five seconds later, the remaining five suffered the same fate.
Even though meteorological conditions were not ideal for laser weapons, the interception operation was successfully completed in less than 10 seconds.
And the opponent had no idea where the intercepting fire came from.
"Oh my God! Look! What is that? So beautiful!"
The co-pilot of the E-3C "Sentry" excitedly pointed to the front-side, still delighted.
The laser beams scattered into visible light within the clouds, painting the entire sky crimson.
"That is—"
The main pilot stretched his neck and rubbed his eyes.
First he was confused, then suddenly startled.
"Shit! That's the color of the commie devils!" His voice trembled, "Return to base! We need to return immediately!!"
"What?! Calm down!"
"Shut up! We're going to die!!"
The main pilot pulled the stick at a sharp angle, and at the same time, the red light outside seemed to be getting brighter and brighter.
Buzz!
Whether it was due to pilot error caused by panic, or some other reason, the "Sentry" suddenly entered a stall-spin, its altitude rapidly dropping, and various alarms blared simultaneously.
"Calling base!! MAYDAY! MAYDAY! MAYDAY!"
【Terrain! Pull up! Terrain! Pull up!】
...
"Hmm?"
Ye Xing seemed to hear something falling into the sea.
Perhaps it was an illusion; after all, the airplane engines outside were so loud, it shouldn't be possible to hear any movement on the sea surface.
"It's not over yet!"
The space fighter squadron leader gritted his teeth and operated the holographic touchscreen in front of him a few times, and the main bomb bay doors beneath the fuselage opened accordingly.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
All five fighters simultaneously launched five new rocket-boosted torpedoes, plunging into the icy Bering Sea.
"We just monitored the sound of debris entering the water, confirming the target has been destroyed."
In the combat command center of the "New Jersey," the Executive Officer reported to the captain.
He didn't know the debris all came from friendly forces.
"Hmm—"
The captain, holding his coffee cup, nodded leisurely.
"Everyone did an excellent job! Let's head back, a beautiful vacation awaits us!"
"Yay!"
A chorus of cheers erupted around them.
"Wait a moment!"
Suddenly, the sonar operator's voice abruptly interrupted the cheering.
"What's wrong?"
"More sounds of entry into the water, five of them, very dense! They sound very much like—torpedoes!?"
Ding!
Before the captain could speak, the sound of active sonar underwater came from all directions, reaching deep into their souls, making the hearts of all crew members tremble along with the hull itself.
The death knell sounded.
"Fuck—"
The captain's coffee cup slipped from his hand, smashing into pieces on the deck.