Summoning America

Chapter 108: Know Your Enemy

August 5, 1640
Mykal, Mu

A middle-aged manager yawned as he opened the door to his Toyota Corolla. Finally, it was time to return home after a long day of cataloguing the American shipments. The setting sun shone brightly overhead, casting a long shadow behind him. He looked down, eyes glinting from the copious brightness that assaulted his irises. He lifted his hand to shield himself from the sun.

As he opened the door, he noticed a bright flash reflecting off his vehicle. The light didn't come from the sun; rather, it came from behind him.

He turned around, quickly discovering that the warehouse that he had just left was on fire. The blast sent debris flying in the air, roaring flames consuming what remained underneath. Seeing the carnage, he jumped into his vehicle and started the engine.

Falling shards of wood and metal pelted his car as he stomped on the pedal, desperately trying to flee the parking lot. Tired squealed, producing wisps of smoke as the man maneuvered his way out of the facility. His heart raced as fast as his car, pounding for every wooden shard that hit his vehicle.

After making some distance between himself and the warehouse, he calmed down enough to look back. Black smoke drifted into the air, scarring the beautiful Mykal skies and replacing the atmosphere of serenity with one of tragedy and terror. Blaring alarms encompassed every inch of the facility and extended out to the highway past the port warehouses, further dimming the mood. 

It couldn't get any worse than this, right?

As if to mock the man's wishful thinking, another explosion ravaged the port, laying waste to another warehouse. Then another followed, and another. It seemed like there was no end in sight to the terror, until the detonations unexpectedly ceased. Looking in the rear view mirror, he saw seven columns of smoke shrinking into the distant sky.

The scene was surreal and unimaginable, yet the truth remained. This was no dream; the unthinkable really had happened. For the first time in over a century, the mainland had come under attack.

——

Otaheit, Mu

"Thank you all for coming at such short notice, and so late in the evening," Prime Minister Sinclair announced to a small audience consisting of key Muan advisors including General Seneville and Minister Deville, as well as American personnel such as Ambassador Whitehall, Colonel Wilson, and CIA Officer Wileman.

The men gathered in the Prime Minister's office, faces sunken in light of recent events.

Sinclair gave a brief introduction, "I'm sure you all have heard by now, but four hours ago, seven warehouses in the port city of Mykal were destroyed. In particular, the destruction was confined to the warehouses which were used to store American weapon and equipment shipments."

Although they already understood the implication of this statement, hearing it aloud struck a deeper chord than simply coming to a realization in their own thoughts. For these specific warehouses to be targeted, it only meant one thing: the Gra Valkas Empire was at play. The Gra Valkans, above anyone else, had vested interests against Mu.

"We considered the possibility of Annonrial involvement," Deville answered the question that tickled their subconscious minds. "However, we detected no trace of magic signatures corresponding to a magic bomb. The only party with conventional weapons aside from ourselves is the Gra Valkas Empire, the military of which is currently preparing an incursion into our territory."

"I never thought they'd resort to such underhanded methods, but here we are," Seneville lamented, fearing the threat of terrorists rampaging through Mu.