Chronicles of Two Powers

Chapter 14 - Broken Truces

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The Sollan Bay, once a quiet, quaint, and empty bay, was now riddled with machinery of all types, cranes now towering over the port like titans of old Alveronian folklore, lifting supplies from the few docked cargo ships, and dozers clearing out spaces; modern buildings to support everything ranging from embassy setup, housing for local civilians, and company regional headquarters, all being constructed under Turner Construction, while the port and its facilities themselves were done by AECOM, which the American Government, jointly with the Japanese and Alveronian government themselves, had both contracted, each costing millions respectively, to begin large-scale construction on the Bay.

The bay echoed with the clang of metal against metal, the high-pitched beeping of reversing vehicles, and the distant hum of engines that never seemed to pause

The native locals observed the scene with a swirl of emotions-wonder and awe etched on some faces, while others reacted irritably. An old woman slammed her shutters closed with a sharp clatter, muttering under her breath with annoyance as the ground trembled beneath the rumble of bulldozers, their relentless noise drowning out the once-familiar melody of morning birdsong. Along the bay's edge, villagers gathered, their eyes tracking one of the massive ships as it glided by. They exchanged whispered words, "Impossible," murmured repeatedly in tones of disbelief.

The port was busier than ever before in the history of Alveron, let alone housing such large ships. Very few of the locals had ever been to the first civilisation, let alone seen modern cargo vessels.

The likes of the Japanese cargo ship with the words "ONE Minato" painted on the pink hull of the ship as it bore the flag of Japan, and the two American vessels "Missouri Express" and "Maersk Sentosa" all started to prepare for their subsequent docking, carrying a multitude of different payloads, from consumer goods for both overseas workers and locals, along with construction supplies.

For the American and Japanese governments, the extensive construction was more than just military expansion-it was an effort to reclaim lost economic frontiers and reinforce their spheres of influence. Every new ship launched, every supply line secured, and every piece of infrastructure constructed was another step toward re-establishing dominance in a rapidly shifting world.

Elderly fishermen, used to small wooden boats, stood at the shore, their jaws slightly agape as they traced the outlines of the gargantuan hulls gliding into port, muttering about the days when the waters were calm and when the only noise was the creak of wooden boats and calls of seagulls, not the roar of engines or the clatter of construction. In their eyes, with their sizes being hundreds of meters long, the ships were large enough to be floating cities, far larger than any ship their nation had.

There was even a lone cargo ship from the State of Bastan anchored at the port-all the ships together brought a sense of awe and wonder. Children, even after this type of thing had become common over the past weeks, sprinted down the dirt paths, their eyes wide as they pointed at the towering cranes and massive cargo ships, always asking questions about them to their parents, among themselves, or even any on-break workers who may have gone for a walk.

Though smaller than the average size of the other cargo ships, it was still far larger than what most Alveronians had witnessed. Trailing not far behind the column of merchant ships was a small group of warships, three most reminiscent of a Second World War-era destroyer.