Chapter 1806 - 1377: The Price of Victory

The evening when Tetric City fell, the sky was stained a sickly orange-red.

This was not a gift from the setting sun, but the result of a mixed toxic cloud spreading at low altitude.

Song Heping stood on the top observation deck of the mobile command center, the city that had just been taken reflected in the lenses of the military binoculars in his hands.

Or rather, this city that had just been destroyed.

"Seventeenth and Twenty-first Infantry Battalions reporting, we have secured the city hall and central square area, encountered weak resistance."

The voice of the frontline Commander came through the communication channel, yet there was no joy of victory in his tone.

"But… high concentrations of chemical agents have been detected in the air."

Song Heping lowered the binoculars, his face devoid of any expression.

As the Boss of the Defense Company, he had seen too many battlefields, but the scene before him still went beyond the scope of conventional warfare.

The chemical weapon release system pre-buried beneath Titrick by the 1515 Armed had been activated at the final moment of the city's fall.

"Casualty report."

Song Heping's voice was as steady as if he were asking about the weather.

"Preliminary count, soldiers directly killed by the gas attack are about more than eight hundred and seventy, in addition, over nine hundred show obvious symptoms of poisoning. We don't have a final figure yet; it's expected to continue to rise…"

Jiang Feng handed over a datapad, the flickering numbers on the screen appearing especially harsh in the evening light.

"Civilian casualties cannot be counted, but according to UAV thermal imaging, there are still a large number of life-sign Signals in the urban core. They may survive longer in enclosed spaces, but it's only a matter of time."

Song Heping took the datapad, his fingertips sliding across the cold screen.

The 1515 Armed had initiated their final suicide plan; now Titrick, in a certain sense, could be said to have been taken, but the price seemed a bit too high.

Just the losses from the gas attack alone were that many; adding battle injuries and KIA, the number was likely over three thousand.

Suddenly, his gaze stopped on the name "Abu You".

This pawn he had spent a year and countless resources to cultivate was also one of the joint Commanders in this assault on Titrick.

His armored convoy had run into a pre-planted chemical weapon storage tank explosion when pushing into the city center; that was one of three carefully arranged release points.

Technical officers' analysis showed that these storage tanks were connected through the underground pipeline network, with the order of explosions meticulously calculated to maximize the use of the city streets' "canyon effect" to disperse the gas.

"Where is Abu You's convoy?" Song Heping asked subconsciously.

Jiang Feng replied, "CBRN teams have already been dispatched, but there's no new information yet…"

Everyone's eyes were drawn over.

Everyone knew Abu You's value to Song Heping.

This Kurd people man was one of the key fulcrums in Song Heping's entire layout in Northern Illiguo.

If Abu You died in Titrick, all previous investment would be heavily discounted.

"Command center, this is the northern medical post! We have received Commander Abu You's convoy! Repeat, Commander Abu You survived! He is currently undergoing emergency treatment!"

The communications officer, who had been sitting at the radio set, suddenly turned around and reported a piece of immensely good news.

Song Heping quickly grabbed the communicator: "What's Abu You's condition?"

On the other end of the channel came rapid breathing and the beeping of medical instruments:

"He inhaled the gas, there are signs of burns in his lungs, his consciousness is in and out… We're injecting him with atropine and pralidoxime, but we need more specialized CBRN medical equipment. Sir, his condition… is not very good."

"Treat him with everything you've got."

Song Heping ordered immediately: "Whatever equipment you need, draw it from emergency reserves. If he needs to be flown to the Green Zone for treatment by helicopter, I can arrange that right away. Listen, you must keep him alive for me."

"Understood!"

Song Heping put down the communicator, the heart that had been hanging finally easing a little.

Abu You was still alive.

That was good news.

"Commander Samir requests a video call." the communications officer reported again.

"Put him through."

The screen switched, and Samir's dust-covered face appeared in the frame.

In the background, soldiers in crude protective suits could be seen carrying the wounded on stretchers.

The exposed skin of those wounded was already covered with horrific blisters, some of which had burst, oozing yellow-white pus.

"Samir, what's the situation on your side?"

"Boss, my troops lost two hundred and sixty-seven men in the gas attack, and several hundred more have been affected. They're under observation and treatment, but the resources at the medical point are probably not enough to cope with this kind of situation."

Samir got straight to the point, the suppressed fury in his voice almost bursting through the screen.

"I need medical support, professional CBRN medical support, and I need it now."

"Don't worry, the medical teams are already on their way," Song Heping said. "But I have to be honest, our capacity to handle large-scale chemical casualties is limited. We can deal with mild cases, but severe cases…"

"I know."

Samir cut him off, his bloodshot eyes locked on the camera.

"Those severely injured soldiers… if they don't receive antidotes within three hours, even if they survive, they'll be left with permanent neurological damage. We don't have that much antidote, and we don't have that many specialist CBRN Doctors."

A heavy silence settled between them.

In the command center, everyone was waiting for Song Heping's response.

On the screen, the UAVs were still transmitting real-time footage of Tetric City.

The yellow smoke had already covered nearly twenty percent of the central urban area and was still spreading.