Steelling City is flowing mercury, with thousands of glass windows sparkling in the sun. The silver and black Mengsk Sky Tower stands in the center of the city, and the skyscrapers surrounding it are like stalagmites made of steel and glass.
.
When looking down from the Mengsk family's private luxury airship, the dotted streets are dotted with verdant green, the traffic flow is like black lines, and the business airships trail bright trails between the buildings and the clouds.
Augustus sat in his exclusive seat, looking down through a circular window at the streetscape of Stillling and the high-rise buildings that still looked majestic from high in the sky. Even the Terran Federation government was still trying its best.
Exploiting the people here and plundering the wealth of this beautiful planet, Korhal 4 is still so prosperous, and it has not been diminished by the battle of Kailian.
This is why Korhal 4 is known as a pearl of the Tyranid Federation.
But with the federal red and blue star flag still flying in Steele's mind and the federal military camp at the northern end of the city close to the mountains, Augustus clearly realized that the true controller of this planet was still the federal government.
The senators who stand at the pinnacle of power and fame in Korhal 4 and the plutocratic groups behind them all have the same master, which is the Federation Council and the powerful Creation Families that dominate the entire world on distant Tarsonis.
When the airship passed through the hemispherical energy shield that lowered like a curtain from the top of the Mengsk Sky Tower, and landed on the runway with green plants on the edge, a dozen people wearing black uniforms, flat-top hats and goggles of the same color
The security personnel immediately ran to the airship. Except for Augustus and the security captain Acton, all accompanying personnel must undergo the strictest inspection.
"This energy shield is the latest addition." Acton pointed to the light blue energy shield that looked as thin as a gauze from the tarmac and said: "The new technology of Lars Technology Company can withstand large-scale explosions.
It blocks some energy weapons and ballistic weapons, shields detectors and satellite cameras, and it can also block strong winds three thousand feet in the air."
"It's a very good design. I need its detailed information, including defense level, endurance limit and other upgrade options." Augustus nodded to the security personnel who bowed to him and then walked into the elevator on the tarmac.
.
"If it doesn't meet my requirements, I think we should change suppliers."
"Are you still not satisfied? This energy shield cost us a lot of money." Acton followed Augustus. He was older than Angus, but his body was still as strong as
It's a bull.
"Dear Field, if the Tyranid Federation's fleet holds giant swords and we only try to resist them with eggshells, no one will pay you soon." Augustus said half-jokingly.
"We will talk about this later. I have just returned from Meinhof and will return to the army in two days. Let me tell you how great changes have taken place in Korhal during the six months since I left."
"A lot." Acton said to Augustus as the elevator began to slowly descend: "Your father gave forty-six speeches about the Korhal independence movement in six months across Korhal.
, thirty-three of the speeches had audiences exceeding 50,000.”
“In October, workers in the Confederate city of Balik responded to Angus’s call and took to the streets to demand an explanation from the federal government for ever-longer working hours and corruption. The local government mobilized its entire police force, using
Tear gas and batons were used to disperse the crowd," he said.
"This resulted in a disaster. When someone ordered to shoot to suppress the situation, the laxly trained police officers were overwhelmed by tens of thousands of furious people before they could empty their magazines."
"The demonstrators occupied the police station, the municipal building and the unn studio building, tore down the federal flag and replaced it with Korhal's blue three-star flag. In that uncontrollable riot, thousands of demonstrators and police officers
Wounded, hundreds died in stampedes and gunfire."
"So, someone is going to be in bad luck." Augustus speculated on the reaction of the federal government. He had seen reports about this matter in the Unn Evening News, but there were only a few words from beginning to end. Obviously, the federal government
The government tried hard to downplay the impact of the incident.
"The newly arrived Governor Korhal removed several people who had little to do with this matter from their positions, and then announced that this was all due to Angus Mengsk's instigation." Acton was talking as the elevator opened.
An upper floor stopped.
"What he said is not wrong." Augustus shrugged noncommittally and walked through the open elevator door into the corridor lined with security personnel on both sides.
"Last month, an outpost north of Stillling was attacked by terrorists. More than a hundred federal soldiers were killed in the attack." Acton said as he walked.
"I know who did it without even thinking about it." Augustus looked at the smooth walls on both sides of the corridor and the cameras at the corners, but he didn't feel much sense of security.
"I guess you did a great job without missing a beat."
"Federal officials are frantic because all the evidence points to an accident - an explosion caused by a high-energy gas pipeline leak," Acton said.
"But it's not that clever." Augustus walked to the door of a room guarded by two armed security personnel and stopped. After the detector scanned his retina, a spacious office appeared in front of him.
in front of.
A man with gray hair but still tall and tall was facing Augustus with his back to a huge glass wall. Angus Mengsk was wearing a black square-collared coat and loose trousers, staring at
The UNN building opposite Mengsk Sky Tower.
This scene made Augustus feel like he had seen it before.
Angus Mengsk, as a very famous and responsive Senator of the Korhal Council, he always does things that are contrary to his class. He makes remarks criticizing the corruption of the federal government in speeches and parade speeches.
, leading the raging independence movement in Kehal. In other words, Angus is a staunch revolutionary and an instigator in the news who threatens the people to confront the federal government.
In the federal unn holographic news program, which has been corrupted and controlled by money and power, the host will call his many public speeches against the federal government on Keha as inflammatory and false remarks. In some more radical columns,
The writers unabashedly attacked Angus as a rebel and a rioter.
To Augustus' surprise, Augustus also saw many photos of his family in the office, including a promotional poster of him in military uniform. As far as he understood, it was from a certain issue of Universe Fashion Magazine.
cover.
As one of the battle heroes jointly promoted by the Tarsonis federal government, the military and the unn universe news network, Augustus was chosen for his aristocratic education, model version of the founding family identity and handsome appearance.
one.
Among them, unn editor-in-chief Handy Anderson's relentless praise always made Augustus feel embarrassed, because most of the achievements were fabricated and untenable upon closer inspection.
However, the founding families behind UNN's board of directors and the Federal Parliament are the driving forces behind the scenes. They package some combat heroes as invincible "military gods" to increase people's confidence in the war, so that they can safely and safely
The money was spent to stimulate the increasingly sluggish economy and the near-collapse of the stock market.
Augustus had never been here before, and he didn't expect that his father, who always seemed to be against him, was actually paying attention to him.
This suddenly reminded him of what his sister Dorothy often mentioned in her letters: Brother, we watch the news every day and look for your name on it, but we are worried that it is on the list of victims.
They said that you killed many Camorians, down to every number in every battle. Brother, we will not be happy about how many battles you have achieved, we are only worried that you will die in the next battle.
That letter is the link that conveys family affection and strength.
"You are back, Augustus. My son." Angus did not turn around to hug Augustus, and the gap between father and son still existed.
"Yes. I'm back, father." Augustus was not afraid of his father. In the past, they often had quarrels because of their very different ideas.
"Catherine just told me." When Angus turned around, Augustus was surprised to find that his father was much older than before, but his eyes that were so similar to his were bright.
"I support your idea of sending them to Umoyan. The minions of the Federation are watching us from the dark, and they will not give up any opportunity to threaten me."
"Currently, Umo Yang is indeed the safest place." Augustus nodded: "The ghost agents of the Tyranid Federation will arrive at any time, and the security measures here must be raised to another level."
"Don't you think this is enough?" Angus frowned and said: "At the beginning, I did not want to turn our family's residence into a heavily guarded fortress, or hire ten times more people than before to maintain it.
Because this is extremely unfavorable to me in terms of public opinion, and people generally believe that only big chaebols will spend a lot of money to purchase weapons to protect their property."
"And I should be a fighter for freedom, a leader who guides the people to the light, not Cromwell with an army around him. In this way, the federal-controlled news media will describe me as a usurper and tyrant."
"No matter how they smear it, I think Korhal must have an army that can compete with the Federation." Augustus said to his father.
"I don't care about fame. But they'd better call me the Washington of Korhal, the Napoleon of a Terran Empire."
"You and I have never thought the same way, child." Angus was not angry at Augustus' words. He showed great joy: "I am very happy that you finally stood by my side."
"I never tell others that I am physically and mentally exhausted. I am surrounded by enemies and onlookers. The allies of the Mengsk family are swaying like weeds in the wind. Augustus, I am very happy that you can come back to me.
around."
"Is this a dream? Augustus, since you grew up, you no longer call me father."
"Angus, it is more real than any wall or city you have ever seen," said Augustus.
"Oh, come on, sit down and have a drink, and let's talk." Angus smiled and took out a bottle of red wine worth thousands of gold from the wine cabinet in the office.
Angus hadn't had a good conversation with Augustus since his coming-of-age ceremony. In this way, the last conversation he had with his eldest son Arcturus ended up being an unpleasant one.
The quarrel broke up.
Arcturus has never been able to agree with his father's revolution, which is Angus's biggest regret in his life. Angus originally thought that his second son would follow the same path as his elder brother and stay away from this arbitrary and overbearing father, but Angus
Stu not only returned to him, but also agreed with Korhal's revolutionary cause, which made the old Mengsk, who was already feeling increasingly old, overjoyed.
Angus is a typical patriarch of a large autocratic family. He believes that his decades of experience can help his sons avoid detours and prevent them from being hurt or regretting one day in the future. In Angus, for his son
In the planned future route, Arcturus will definitely inherit his position as senator, while Augustus will manage the family's huge industry.
But Augustus didn't want to. He was tired of and even hated having his life controlled by others, even if that person was his father.
"How do you think we should achieve the final victory of this revolution?" Angus, Augustus and Acton filled their wine glasses at a set of rattan tables and chairs in the office.
"Only war." Augustus replied: "Angus, I believe you are already ready for a full-scale war. In the history of the earth, people have relied on shouting slogans, relying on begging, and relying on kneeling.
Any peace that comes is short-lived.”
"We need an army, a fleet, and a commander who can win."
"Of course, we have a revolutionary army." At this time, Acton said: "We have recruited 120,000 people and sent some of them to the military academy in Umoyan. They will graduate next year.
We will then have a group of reliable officers and generals."
"Not enough, far from enough." Augustus looked at Acton with his cold gray eyes without blinking: "We need at least one million people to seize this planet, and we need several times or even more people to seize this planet.
More people to defend it.”
Explosive troops.
"This is what we want to do, but 150,000 people is already the limit. All of these people are willing to fight for the revolutionary cause. They are usually contacted through underground organizations and receive training in secret," Acton said.
.
"Then abolish the government and the senators, form a new parliament, introduce new laws, and change the system of recruiting soldiers. Once we control Stillling, we will recruit troops from this city. Once we control the industrial cities in the south, we will
Let all the young men of the right age there wear steel helmets and hold spears." Augustus said loudly.
"I have joined the Federation Marine Corps and personally killed many Camorians in a brutal war. I know the horrors of the Federation Army better than you."
"When the riots and terrorist attacks on Korhal intensify, the Federation Marine Corps will definitely intervene. Therefore, we urgently need a strong revolutionary army. Politically, we should win over other planets and even some of the Tarsonis creation families.
Support to get more aid and distract from the federal government.”
"I don't know if you don't understand or are unwilling to admit that in the war launched by the nobles and those in power, this generation must be tied to the rumbling wheels of war until they die."
A long silence.
"If we have to fight a war, Korhal is going to win," Angus said. "But at the end of the day, I still want it to be a peaceful evolution, giving power away from the statists and back to the people."
Handover ceremony."
"I know what you are trying to say. Expecting the dragon to hand over his treasure and gold willingly is, of course, a daydream."
Augustus was not surprised to hear such words from Angus. Angus was more like a pure revolutionary party leader than a careerist who controlled power through revolution. He wanted to establish an honest government.
The new government will rebuild Korhal 4 into a free and peaceful world.
Just like it used to be.
Angus was a great and selfless revolutionary, and he was even willing to die as a warning to all the Tyranids.
"We all know that war is inevitable." Acton also spoke at this time: "I have talked with your father many times, and I no longer have any hope for peaceful evolution. Where there is an uprising, suppression will follow.
To. Countless people will die in the coming war."
"Even so, we will fight to the end!" Angus said firmly: "In the past, I always had a little illusion about the federal government, but now I understand that it is hopeless."
"The giant body of the Tyranid Federation is full of ugly pustules. It must be cut open with a sharp sword before the wound can heal again."
"Compared to Kemerian and Umoyan, the Terran Federation's territories and planets are already too large and too large. Their bloated and corrupt government can only use force to oppress the people in the colonies, and all the oppressed people are
I have long been dissatisfied with it," he said.
"Now, as long as the first planet that blows the horn of rebellion appears, those who are watching will rise up. Korhal will not be the only planet to resist Federation rule, and it will never be the last."
"Father, how many years do you think we will fight this war?" Augustus asked in a low voice.
"Ten years or more." Angus said: "When I am gone, you will inherit my business, as well as your son and Valerian."
"Augustus, although I don't want to admit it, most of the Korhal Revolutionary Army are young people without military training. Qualified officers can only be recruited from retired federal veterans, but I can't guarantee that they are
Loyal. We also lack generals, for the Korhal are not always good at fighting."
"This revolutionary army has no rationality and ambition. In essence, it is just a group of hastily assembled sons of farmers, workers and company employees. They are willing to die for Korhal's independence, but they have not yet become a well-disciplined and forbidden army.
soldier."
"Augustus, you are a hero, and you are the person I trust most. You will be the leader of the Korhal Revolutionary Army, because you are the most suitable candidate I can think of."
"Perhaps, it's up to you to lead this ragtag group of people."