"...Shit, is everyone alright?"
"Looking at the life signs of the Dagger Team... it seems like no one is dead. The problem is that we got pinned under debris while falling from the rooftop. We’ll need to meet on the ground. I don’t even know where the hell we are."
"Alright. Oxidizer creation... no problems. Damn reinforced concrete, though."
Although her eyes were open, the world was dark.
It was a little past 2:30 AM, so that was partly why, but all the light sources around had been shattered by the explosion, and her body was being crushed by hundreds of kilograms of debris.
In short, she was pinned under the rubble of the collapsed front of the White House. The White House hadn’t completely collapsed, but there was no time to think. Getting out of here was the best option. The shield energy was quickly dissipating, like it was burning away.
In this situation, the most essential things were... the oxidizer and the field weapon delivered by DARPA. As soon as she activated it, the darkness glowed a bright blue.
There was nothing better for extracting arms and legs that were trapped somewhere.
As the rebar and concrete sliced through like butter at room temperature, she used her strength to free the limbs that were wedged in. Fortunately, it wasn’t completely impossible to move. It would take a while for the shield energy to recover, but thankfully, restoration wasn’t a problem.
After confirming the direction of gravity by observing the falling debris, she threw the oxidizer and nanite materials in the opposite direction. The smoke was thick, and the debris in front of her began to collapse.
With the mutant's strength, she stopped the collapse and continued to use the oxidizer.
It didn’t take long for cold air to begin seeping in through the gaps.
"Ha...!"
Her body and hair were a mess. Despite that, she struggled through the cracks and made her way to the surface to assess the situation. But the sight she encountered when she emerged silenced her.
Her body was covered in molten rock and dirt, but when compared to the current state of the White House... the latter was far worse.
The most accurate comparison would be... how should she put it? A slightly gruesome description, but it looked like the front part of someone's skull had been blown off. The jawbone, teeth, and eye sockets were slightly gone all at once.
The last thing she’d heard was that two cruise missiles had hit the place...
'...Considering that, it's surprisingly intact.'
It wasn’t as destroyed as she had expected, which was why she had been able to get out so easily.
As she thought this, the senior members began to emerge from the debris one by one. However, Olivia was a bit weak and required help from them.
But that wasn’t the real issue. They needed to check on the status of the infiltration team.
Just then, the shock-affected gear had finished rebooting. After some time had passed, they began to scan the front.
Meanwhile, communication was established, and the four buried deeper in the lobby and Secretary Janet, who was lying several meters behind in the debris, were visible.
Communication with Team Leader Owens was established.
"Shit, Black Eagles, those damn bastards... Is anyone able to move!?"
"This is Aurora. The entire assault team has been accounted for. Is there anything urgently that needs handling?"
"Goddammit, it's a stroke of luck. Head toward the connection tunnel. The West Wing tunnel seems to be the best option. Visibility is poor due to dust... Secretary Janet’s vitals are worsening. We need to treat her immediately."
"We’ll be there soon."
They couldn’t precisely assess how much damage their bodies had accumulated, but they had to move.
The aftermath of the impact hit her late. Her whole body ached as if it had been beaten with a hammer, and her joints were painful from the fall off the White House rooftop. But, logically, she was grateful to be alive.
Because of that, no one complained, and the four of them immediately headed toward the West Wing tunnel to the central office, but of course, it wasn’t an easy task.
After emitting pulses to check, they found that the tunnel itself had been heavily damaged as well. To explain it simply, it was like assuming a tunnel through a mountain had collapsed but wasn’t completely destroyed, leaving a space where someone could still survive.
Of course, they had to clear it.
"Prepare the oxidizer and polyurethane foam. We’ll rescue them as quickly as possible. Team Leader, can you move?"
"I’m crushed badly. There’s severe pressure on my legs. The gear hasn’t been damaged, so once the oxidizer is ready, I’ll be able to get out."
"I’ll go in. Rookie, prepare the medical nanomachines."
"Yes."
Click!
What had initially seemed like a weapon that would be used just a few times had already been reactivated several times. The eight cartridges were now down to three, but what could she do?
She sliced through the debris blocking the entire tunnel and temporarily fixed it with polyurethane foam. She needed to check on Secretary Janet’s condition, so she moved as quickly as possible.
Having already confirmed the relatively safe areas with pulses, it was possible.
The ones going inside were her and Logan, while Laurentina and Olivia would keep the tunnel open from the outside.
Of course, they weren’t going to carve out a massive tunnel for people to walk through. It was more like thinking back to basic combat training—crawling was the best option.
Except, back then, it had been mud-covered, but now they were pushing through rebar and concrete.
How much time had passed?
She saw Janet, lying nearly buried under the collapsed rubble of the lobby. But—
"Shit, the rebar pierced her abdomen. We need to get Chester out first."
"...Don’t pull her out yet. Her left leg is in bad condition. Do what you can. Start with the syringe and stop the abdominal infection, then cut the rebar."
"I’ll cut the rebar. Stay focused, Eugene."
"...Yes!"
Janet, pierced by rebar the size of an adult man’s thumb, was lying on top of the debris.
Thankfully, it wasn’t her liver—it was her abdomen. The Icarus gear was showing that her small intestine was injured, and there was no food inside.
Her hands were trembling. One life depended on her hands. Almost hyperventilating, but the Icarus gear was adjusting her nervous system to prevent unnecessary tension.
What she needed was the medical nanomachines. She injected the syringe directly over her heart. It had to spread as quickly as possible.
At the same time, she pulled out a candy from her pocket. It wasn’t just any candy. It was a fentanyl-laced lozenge. If used in the right amount, it was a powerful painkiller that would block even the most horrific pain.
While giving the lozenge to the semi-conscious Janet, Logan began applying the oxidizer beneath the rebar.
While taking a hemostatic agent from the first aid kit to stop the bleeding from the entry wound—there was nothing they could do about the internal bleeding in the abdomen for now—she heard a voice.
It was Janet, now regaining consciousness.
"...How long have I been out...?"
"I recommend you remain silent, Madam Secretary. You’ve suffered an abdominal penetrating wound."
"Ha, no one here will even let me speak. Truly like the Dagger Team... So, who are you?"
"Dagger assault team operator, codename Aurora. Logan Blemis."
"The name sounds familiar... You’re one of those mutants, then."
Snap!
At the same time, the lower rebar snapped clean off. Logan quickly added:
"The highest-level medical kits for internal recovery can only be used by medics. Eugene, after pulling Chester out, grab the cylinder from my bag."
"Yes!"
"Talking about people like they’re just things... Urgh!"
Thud!
After a brief exchange of glances, she grabbed Chester’s hand, pulling him out—at the same time, Chester, weak, was dragged out into the lobby. Unfortunately, he had sustained some serious injuries.
She took the crushed medic bag from Chester and pulled out a cylinder, inserting it into her launcher.
Meanwhile, Logan was placing a thick cloth into Janet’s mouth.
"We’re going to remove the rebar. Thanks to the lozenge, you won’t feel too much pain, but there will be some discomfort. Bear with it."
"We won’t pull it out too roughly... please be careful."
"Don’t worry."
How much time had passed?
As soon as she injected the cylinder’s contents into Janet’s heart, Logan quickly cleaned off the remaining oxidizer and, more swiftly than anyone, pulled out the rebar. He did it with minimal damage.
A muffled scream escaped through the cloth in Janet’s mouth. But Logan, holding her steady as her legs gave way from the pain, kept her balanced. The bleeding from her abdomen was slowly reducing.
In the meantime, she rescued Owens and Morrison from the debris and injected treatment into their bodies. It was a busy, nonstop process.
Just then, Janet spat out the cloth in her mouth and muttered.
Her words were broken, likely due to the pain.
"...Terrible... pain... Do you have another candy?"
"Unfortunately, if you take another one, you’ll be poisoned."
"Better to die from pain than... this damn, shitty world...!"
"The Pentagon is about 6 km away by vehicle. There are plenty of armored vehicles outside. You’ll get proper treatment once we arrive."
"Alright, let’s hurry up."
Even though speaking was painful, she was still holding strong.
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Sadly, the path they had come through was too narrow, and Janet, having never undergone individual combat, struggled to crawl out in her weakened state.
When they made it out, the situation wasn’t much better. The troops stationed near the White House began retreating north, and the enemy had started advancing on the White House.
The evidence? Laurentina and Olivia were shooting at the approaching enemies between the makeshift buildings. The only fortunate thing was that, as soon as they emerged, they saw two Humvees waiting nearby.
"You sure came out fast, you bastards!"
"You wouldn’t be saying that if you knew the hell we just went through, you son of a bitch!"
"Alright, get in quickly! We’re splitting into two vehicles. We’ll handle the fighting, you drive... damn, Dungbeetle Leader, you can actually drive, right? You’re a walking rag!"
"Don’t worry. Morrison and I will drive. Chester, stay by the Secretary and monitor her vitals. The assault team will handle the fighting."
"Good. Let’s go!"
It was like a perfectly coordinated move—everyone took their places naturally.
The Humvees, left outside, weren’t any warmer than the surroundings, but that didn’t matter.
Vroom!
It was time to get the hell out of this godforsaken place.
"To Dagger Team, K Street Northwest. We’ve successfully rescued Secretary Janet and are heading to the Pentagon. We’ll arrive in 10 minutes. Immediate surgery is needed for the penetrating wound!"
"Shit, I knew this would happen... behind! Laurentina, take them out!"
"Secretary, earplugs. I’ll help you put them on, please stay still."
Boom!
"Shit, I knew this would happen... behind! Laurentina, take them out!"
"Secretary, earplugs. I’ll help you put them on, please stay still."
Boom!
The missile-equipped Tow anti-tank missile on the vehicle’s roof veered off in the opposite direction, narrowly missing the Humvee it was trailing, and slammed directly into the enemy vehicle behind [N O V E L I G H T] them, flipping it over entirely.
However, due to the nature of the Tow missile, they had to reload the launcher, meaning someone had to lean out of the Humvee without the OGPK (operator protection kit) on it.
Of course, Olivia had more than enough power to make that work.
"Very reassuring. Loading the missile and taking out the enemy at the same time."
"Ugh, the reload’s done. Damn, the weather’s freezing...!"
"Everyone, throw tracking mines! We need to shake off those bastards!"
As expected, the vehicles chasing the Dagger Team were also Humvees.
As had been confirmed when the Dagger Team landed near the White House, there were plenty of Humvees scattered around the area. The current situation in Washington D.C. was a disaster, with everything well-maintained and fueled, ready for immediate use, despite the snow.
As a result, the enemy was following them in vehicles just like the Dagger Team.
The biggest threats were, naturally, other Tow missiles or Humvees equipped with 40mm high-speed grenade launchers.
These had to be neutralized first, and items like anti-tank missiles, Dagger Team’s sticky bombs, and tracking mines were particularly effective in this scenario.
However, that meant the Dagger Team would have to allow some damage from mini-guns or .50 caliber machine guns.
Rattatat!
"These fucking bastards...!"
"Shit, the Tow missile launcher’s been hit. It’s pretty much useless now."
"Then get rid of it! Everyone turn on the shields, I’m cutting them off!"
"What!? What are you talking about!?"
Screech!
Bullets rained down from behind, but the moment a bright blue flash erupted from within the vehicle, the Dagger Team quickly raised their shields with panicked expressions. Immediately after, Olivia stabbed the blade into the roof and sliced through the entire thing.
However, that wasn’t the end of it. When Olivia threw the incredibly heavy Tow missile launcher out of the vehicle, they realized what it was setting up.
As Titan emerged through the now-empty ceiling, Owens, who was driving, felt like the vehicle had suddenly accelerated.
That wasn’t exactly wrong.
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Having secured Titan to the Humvee, Olivia aimed at not just the Humvee but the armored vehicle behind it as well.
Thud!
"Shit. Slow down, Olivia. What if Secretary Janet gets startled and starts hiccupping?"
"That was a good joke...!"
The vehicle absorbed the recoil, and in an instant, around three enemy vehicles were reduced to thousands of pieces of shrapnel, rolling across the road. Meanwhile, the two Humvees were already preparing to cross the Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Potomac River.
After shredding the entire enemy force that had desperately tried to chase them, a profound silence fell.
The sound of the engine powering through the ground was the only noise heard, aside from the soft breathing sounds as the excitement began to subside.
Of course, no one thought this was the end.
And then—
"...Olivia?"
"Wait a minute."
Phew!
Before the words could even finish, she aimed at the darkness toward the Tidal Basin and pulled the trigger without any explanation. The recoil caused the Humvee to swerve sideways.
In a split second, the Dagger Team was left dumbfounded, but there was no need for explanation.
The bullet, traveling at 8 km per second, pierced through something just entering the airspace above the Tidal Basin, followed by an explosion.
"...What?"
"It’s not over yet."
Phew! Phew!
With two more shots following immediately after, the Dagger Team realized what had happened—Olivia had literally intercepted something.
Fortunately or unfortunately, nothing more happened after that, and the two Humvees managed to cross the Potomac River and approach the Pentagon in less than 5 minutes.
The Dagger Team had figured out that Olivia had intercepted and destroyed cruise missiles launched from a launcher that was in the process of being reloaded. This all happened about 30 minutes ago.