While the counterterrorism exercise codenamed "Mission" was underway, it was the dead of night across Hua Nation.
Meanwhile, in North America on the other side of the globe, it was noon.
Normally, at this most sleep-inducing hour, Pentagon employees would likely grab a cup of coffee, sit in air-conditioned offices, and chat with colleagues about international headlines or the results of yesterday's game...
But today seemed to be different.
Since eight that morning, the entire Pentagon had resembled a wound-up music box. Everyone's pace had unconsciously quickened, and every gear was spinning at high speed.
The reason for all this was none other than the "counterterrorism exercise" taking place more than ten thousand kilometers away—or at least, that was what it was called.
Inside a conference room in the Pentagon's core area, footage from satellites over Okinawa Base filled a wall-sized screen. The several airdrop capsules streaking across the sky were merely distant flashes, but the devastation across the landing zone was crystal clear...
The room was utterly silent as everyone stared at the screen, holding their breath.
After the footage ended, nearly five minutes passed before the President spoke in a somewhat hoarse voice.
"Play it again..."
Only after glancing at the Secretary of Defense and seeing him nod did the staff member in charge of the video take a deep breath and press the button.
The footage began again.
From the airdrop capsules breaking through the atmosphere, to the clouds of smoke erupting as they neared the ground, to the devastation left behind after the smoke cleared, everything was once again laid bare before those gathered in the conference room.
Even from so far away, even through a screen, many of them could still smell the faint, threatening scent of gunpowder...
NASA Director Carson's mouth opened and closed