Chapter 209: Power Outage

For any city, the power grid is critically important. When a large-scale blackout occurs, it introduces countless unpredictable variables and hazards.

Nine years ago, the United States experienced the largest power outage in its history, affecting eight northeastern and midwestern states and Ontario, Canada. Preliminary statistics indicated that nearly 50 million people in major North American cities such as New York, Detroit, Cleveland, Ottawa, and Toronto were impacted. The sectors most affected were manufacturing, dining, retail, and aviation, with most economic activities grinding to a halt. The total economic losses, both direct and indirect, amounted to a staggering $30 billion.

Tonight, major U.S. cities like California, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, Washington, Philadelphia, and New York were plunged into darkness again in a massive blackout.

Although this power outage was smaller in scale compared to the one years ago, the darkness engulfing these vital American cities gave rise to strange and unsettling events.

An hour into the blackout, residents of Fifth Avenue in New York were the first to hear gunfire. Before they could react, a sudden and unexpected explosion followed.

It wasn’t just New York. Residents of other cities experiencing the blackout also began hearing continuous gunfire and explosions.

On the major streets, large stores were forcibly broken into with heavy objects, ATM machines were violently smashed by gasping looters, and jewelry stores quickly became the favorite targets of greedy individuals. Some even resorted to ramming vehicles into store entrances to gain access.

No one could explain why people devolved into such chaos. Only a few residents near large malls or banks vaguely observed what had sparked the frenzy. Shortly after the blackout, intense explosions suddenly and inexplicably occurred in malls and ATMs. The mall entrances were blown open, and cash from the ATMs scattered like autumn leaves. Faced with piles of money and open malls, many people went mad.

They began frantically snatching the scattered cash or rushing into the malls to grab valuables.

As more malls, stores, and ATMs were destroyed, the frenzied atmosphere spread like an unknown virus among the masses. It wasn’t just the people already on the streets. Increasingly, ordinary citizens left their homes to join the looting. Some men, dissatisfied with their haul, began targeting stores that had yet to be damaged by the explosions.

Under the influence of a near-mad group mentality, more and more people took part in the destruction and looting.

Shrouded in darkness, looters felt as though their identities were concealed, justifying their actions under an imagined veil of anonymity. Humanity’s darkest instincts were laid bare.

Eventually, the greed-driven mobs turned into violent looters, wreaking havoc across stores and businesses.

If ordinary citizens were behaving like this, then it was no surprise that criminal gangs thrived in the chaos. Some even drove vehicles into gun shops, breaking down doors and seizing firearms and ammunition.

Armed men began targeting regular looters, committing their own form of robbery or efficiently breaking into more stores with guns or vehicles.

However, it wasn’t long before police vehicles began flooding the city to suppress the chaos.

The relentless wail of police sirens startled many of the looters, prompting them to scatter and flee.

Guided by helicopters, dozens of police cars managed to corner and surround hundreds of armed individuals in various parts of the city.

“You are surrounded. Drop your weapons and surrender immediately,” a police officer announced through a loudspeaker from the helicopter.

Faced with a wall of police cars flashing red lights, the armed men began to panic. Although many of them were gang members or societal outcasts, it didn’t mean they were unafraid of death.

“I repeat, you are surrounded. Drop your weapons and surrender, or we will open fire,” the voice from the helicopter warned again.

Finally, someone dropped their weapon and raised their hands. Seeing this, the others followed suit, reluctantly surrendering their firearms.

As more and more people disarmed, the surrounding officers finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Just when everyone thought the situation was under control, a small, fist-sized object with a tail spewing smoke silently sped toward the helicopter in the sky.

“Boom!” A deafening explosion rang out as the helicopter erupted in flames mid-air and disintegrated, crashing down onto two police cars below. This triggered an even more powerful blast.

The sudden, unexpected explosion left everyone stunned. Many officers nearby were thrown by the shockwave before they could react, while others were killed instantly by the flames and debris.

As people struggled to process the chaos, several black, semi-elliptical objects were hurled from the direction of the armed men toward the police vehicles.

A police officer, who had just staggered to his feet, turned pale upon spotting one of the peculiar objects land right in front of him.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!” A series of massive explosions erupted among the tightly clustered police vehicles.

The armed men at the front were in disbelief as they watched police cars being flipped or exploding in a chain reaction. Many officers were thrown into the air or reduced to shattered remains by the blasts.

The inferno and scorching shockwaves turned the area into a scene of hell.

After the explosions subsided, an even more shocking development unfolded—the remaining police officers began firing at the armed men.

As people nearby were shot and fell to the ground, others instinctively fled or returned fire.

No one understood why things had spiraled into such chaos. After the successive explosions, rational thinking had all but vanished. Driven by the instinct to survive, everyone began to treat those in front of them as enemies to be eliminated.

As the firefight escalated, both sides intensified their efforts. The armed men sought cover while firing, and the police, at a disadvantage in firepower, desperately called for reinforcements.

Due to the overwhelming number of incidents, looting continued unchecked in many areas. Meanwhile, street battles between armed groups and police became increasingly intense, drawing more officers into the fray.

Gunfire and explosions echoed everywhere, turning the city into a pitch-black battlefield. The chaos was palpable; the entire city seemed to have gone mad.

This was not an isolated case. Similar scenes of looting and street combat broke out in other cities experiencing power outages.

Aside from car headlights, flames, and occasional flashes of strange lights, the cities remained shrouded in darkness, yet they were anything but quiet.

Everywhere, the cities were battlefields.

Reporters sent to cover the events could hardly believe their eyes as they witnessed scenes resembling a war zone.

“What is happening? Someone explain to me—now!” A furious colonel, veins bulging, hurled a stack of reports at a group of subordinates, including a lieutenant colonel and several officials. Their faces were ashen, and no one dared to speak.

Seeing their silence, the colonel grew even angrier, ready to lash out again when the phone on his desk rang.

“Who is this? Oh, I’m sorry—I didn’t realize it was you. My apologies for my tone; I was reprimanding my subordinates just now.”

“I understand. I will follow your instructions.”

After hanging up, the colonel coldly glared at the group and said, “Get out. Now.”

Once they left, the colonel immediately picked up the phone and made a call.

Around 2 AM, the chaos in the cities showed no sign of abating. Gunfire and explosions continued to echo sporadically. Every available police officer was already deployed, leaving no reinforcements at police stations. Despite their efforts, the police were vastly outnumbered by looters and armed individuals, making it impossible to control the situation.

The pervasive darkness only exacerbated the difficulties. Adding to their woes, helicopters were no longer deployed, as several had already been shot down by rocket launchers fired from unseen corners of the streets.

However, the tide began to turn when groups of camouflaged, fully armed soldiers entered these cities in batches.

With overwhelming firepower and coordinated, highly trained operations, the previously dominant armed groups quickly scattered in panic. Looters were also subdued effectively. Faced with the sight of soldiers in camouflage surrounding them, many dropped their stolen goods and raised their hands in surrender.

Not far from Philadelphia, in the city of Dover, there lies a vast stretch of bay and nature reserve spanning dozens of miles in the southern part of the city. To the north of this reserve, however, stands a relatively inconspicuous yet considerably large military base.

One-fifth of the soldiers dispatched to Philadelphia to suppress the riots were deployed from this base. Additionally, the Dover Air Force Base, located less than 100 kilometers from the military base, was tasked with transporting troops from other regions via transport aircraft to assist with the suppression efforts.

“What’s the current situation?” A man of lieutenant general rank seated in an office chair on the first underground level of the military base questioned the young adjutant standing before him. The young adjutant promptly replied, “Report, General. Just now, the captains of the first and third squads reported back that the central and urban areas of Philadelphia have been successfully brought under control. Most of the looters have also been arrested by the local police.”

“And what about Major General White and Lieutenant General Hans?”

“Major General White’s troops entered Districts 1 and 2 just five minutes ago and are currently carrying out suppression operations. As for Lieutenant General Hans’ troops, they are still en route aboard transport planes and are estimated to arrive in 15 minutes.”

The lieutenant general sneered. “I can’t believe those police officers. They needed us to step in to suppress the riots? The casualties, when all this is over, won’t be our concern.”

The adjutant remarked, “General, this riot is quite unusual. Since the 1992 Los Angeles riots, the United States has never experienced such a severe outbreak of violence.”

The lieutenant general nodded. “This might even be worse than the Los Angeles riots. I suspect someone is behind this, inciting the chaos.”

“Do you think it could be the work of terrorists, General?”

“Quite possibly. After all, the United States has no shortage of enemies. But that’s the intelligence department’s job. It’s none of our concern. We just follow orders.”

Noticing the general’s tired expression, the adjutant refrained from speaking further and excused himself. After all, they had all been roused from their beds in the middle of the night by urgent calls.

Once the adjutant left, the lieutenant general could no longer fight off his overwhelming fatigue and moved to a nearby sofa to lie down. He didn’t know how long he had been asleep when he was suddenly startled awake by the sound of frantic knocking. As he opened his eyes, he found himself surrounded by darkness.

“General! General Matt!” The adjutant was shouting urgently while pounding on the door. Fumbling in the darkness, the lieutenant general made his way to the door. When he opened it, the adjutant, visibly agitated, exclaimed, “General, our base is under attack!”

“What did you say?” The lieutenant general couldn’t believe his ears.

“General, our base is truly under attack! A group of mysterious individuals dressed in black infiltrated the base. We don’t know how they managed to get in, but they’ve destroyed our generators and backup power supplies. The entire base is now in a complete blackout.”

The lieutenant general collected himself and asked, “How many of them are there?”

“We’re not sure, but a conservative estimate puts their numbers at over 300. Each of them is heavily armed. They breached the gates of Zones 3 and 2 using rocket launchers. Judging by how smoothly they’re operating, it’s clear they are equipped with night vision devices.”

“How many combat personnel do we have left in the base?”

“Because most of our forces were deployed to Philadelphia, we have fewer than 200 combat personnel left in the base. The rest are support staff, numbering about 50. The attackers are now advancing toward the underground levels.”

The lieutenant general was alarmed. “Immediately order everyone to retreat to the underground levels and defend them at all costs. Under no circumstances should they be allowed to breach the third underground level. Also, send out a request for reinforcements from outside the base immediately.”

The adjutant looked despondent. “General, we can’t request reinforcements. The attackers have already taken control of the communications room on the second floor and the armory on the first floor. I attempted to send a distress signal earlier, but the external signal transmitters have been destroyed. They clearly know our communication methods and the locations of our facilities.”

The lieutenant general stiffened. If all this was true, their base had been completely isolated. This was undoubtedly a meticulously planned assault.

After a brief silence, the lieutenant general spoke in a grave tone, “No matter what happens, we must hold the third underground level. They must not be allowed to breach it. Since our communication systems are down, we need to create obvious explosions to draw outside attention. Now go.” With that, he and the adjutant exited the room.