BXBX NOVEL Chapter 157 The Real First Contact
Chapter 157 The Real First Contact
"You are not from the government," said the man in a gruff voice, amplified with a megaphone.
"Can you repeat your last?" Graves repeated, his voice booming from the long-range acoustic device fitted at the nose of the helicopter.
"I said, you are not from the government, because the government has ceased to exist, that\'s why we opened fire the moment you introduced yourself as such," the man explained.
Hearing the exchange from the command center, Richard couldn\'t help but chuckle subtly.
"So they fired just because they think the government\'s gone? That\'s reckless," Richard mused.
Sara glanced at him, her expression serious. "It\'s more than recklessness. They are impetuous. They could have killed our men out there."
Why is Sara so being hot-headed today? That\'s so unusual of her.
"Hey…are you okay?" Richard asked, concerned. "You\'ve been acting so… I don\'t know, so different today."
Sara forced a smile, trying to appear composed. "I\'m fine, just a bit stressed, that\'s all."
Richard wasn\'t convinced. Sara\'s tone was sharper than usual, her reactions more intense. "If there\'s something bothering you, you can talk to me," he encouraged gently.
Sara looked away, her gaze fixed on the monitors. "Really, I\'m fine. Let\'s just focus on the mission."
Richard watched her for a moment, perplexed. Her reassurance didn\'t align with her body language or tone. He knew her well enough to sense that something was off, but he also understood the importance of respecting her space. He decided to keep an eye on her, and when they are free, that\'s where he\'ll talk to her.
"Specter-1, why don\'t you request permission from them to land so that you and the other party can talk normally?"
"Copy that, Eagle," Graves responded, adjusting the controls. "To the survivors, this is Specter-1 requesting permission to land for a face-to-face discussion. Do we have your clearance?"
There was a brief silence before the gruff voice answered. "Alright, land your bird. But no tricks."
Graves relayed the confirmation. "Eagle, we have the green light to land. Moving in."
As the helicopter began its descent, everyone\'s eyes were glued to the live feed, watching as the helicopter carefully approached the landing zone.
Richard leaned forward, his gaze intense. "Keep sharp, everyone. We need this to go smoothly."
The helicopter touched down gently, its rotors throwing up a cloud of dust. Graves and his team prepared to disembark, ready for what might be a tricky negotiation.
Richard turned to Sara, about to speak, but she was already on her feet. "I need to step out for a moment," she said quickly, and without waiting for a response, she left the room.
Richard and Mark watched as Sara made her way out of the command center.
"Seems that Sara is not in the mood, did something happen between you two?" Mark whispered.
"I don\'t know…yesterday we just had sex and she was very satisfied with it…I don\'t know what happened after."
"I think it may be that she is on her period," Mark guessed.
"Wait? Really? Do women, while in their period, act so…" Richard trailed off, unsure about continuing the conversation.
Mark shrugged. "It varies. But, sir, it\'s not just about that. People can have off days for all sorts of reasons. Maybe it\'s just stress."
Richard nodded, recognizing the truth in Mark\'s words. "You\'re right. I\'ll talk to her later, privately. For now, let\'s focus on the task at hand."
Their attention returned to the screens, where Graves and his team were carefully approaching the survivors. They can see it from Graves\'s camera fitted in front of its tactical helmet. Looking at the survivors, are wearing what appears to be a military green shirts with a text written on it read: "Army". Are they from the Philippine Armed Forces? No wonder when they explained to them why they opened fire, it was because they were from the government.
The survivors were also armed with M16 rifles, aimed at Graves and his men, which is a standard-issue weapon for the military. This raised more questions in Richard\'s mind. Were these actual military survivors?
Graves, always calm under pressure, raised his hands in a non-threatening gesture.?"Okay, why don\'t we begin first by lowering your weapons? Look, I\'m signaling my men to lower their weapons as well."
"You are an American," the man in the middle said, who seemed to be their leader. He appeared to be in his mid-fifties, with a sturdy build and a stern face that bore the marks of a seasoned soldier. His hair was peppered with gray, and his eyes, though wary, held a certain strategic intelligence. He wore a well-worn uniform that, despite its rugged condition, still displayed the crispness of military discipline.
Graves nodded, his own weapon lowered in a gesture of peace. "Yes, I\'m American."
The leader observed Graves and his team carefully, then gave a slight nod to his own men, signaling them to lower their weapons as well.
"I\'m Lieutenant General Arthur Peralta, commander of Camp General Servillano S. Aquino of the Northern Luzon Command. We\'ve been holding out here since the collapse."
Graves was taken aback. "So you are indeed from the government huh? Well, my name is Graves, and I work at a private military called Blackwatch."
"Blackwatch? I have never heard of that."
"Well that\'s the thing, our organization is discreet. It just so happened that we were here when things started to go crazy…if you know what I mean…"
"Let me ask you this…there is a drone flying overhead right now, is it yours?" Arthur asked.
"Yeah, it\'s a Reaper drone, American-made," Graves answered, maintaining his composure. "We use it for reconnaissance and support. It\'s not going to fire unless the thing we don\'t like happens."
"Okay…Graves…what do you want from us? Why are you here?"
"It\'s simple really. We are scouting this place and I must say, our boss admired it. So we are planning on moving to this place. It just shocked us a little that there are still survivors who made it this long."
"But this New Clark City is ours, we are the first here," Arthur said firmly.
"I know, which is why we want to cooperate with you. The space is really big and I doubt that you will have the capability to defend it if a mutated zombie were to come here."
"Mutated zombie?" Arthur tilted his head to the side.
"Yes, the strong variants of zombies, enough to take you all out. But don\'t worry, we have all the military hardware to make this place fortified. But before diving into that conversation, are you the leader of this place?"
Arthus shook his head. "I am the head of the military but there is one on the civilian side…she is a former Vice President of the Philippines."
"Oh…" Graves mused.