The Plane War Begins from Wandering Earth

Chapter 263 262. Pandora's Box

Who could have thought that an "uncivilized" Zerg could cause such serious damage to the Earth Federation Army?
More than 100,000 mobile infantrymen were killed in the first hour of the landing battle.

This is even under the premise that many casualties have not been fully counted.

It is hard to imagine how many of the 300 million mobile infantry corps would fall on the planet Clandaf.

The losses on the ground are still being counted, and the scale of losses of the starship forces is even more exaggerated and serious than that of the ground forces.

Just as the Federation Army looked down upon the Arazi Zerg before the war, no one thought that these bugs, which relied on limbs, body fluids, and numbers to fight, could cause damage to interstellar battleships in outer space.

By the time hundreds of thousands of blue-white plasma energy balls rose into the sky, it was too late for the Federation starship forces to dodge.

The John A. Walton-type starships, the main force of the Federation Air Force, lost thirty-four ships.

In addition, more than 300 fast attack ships, which were the escort ships of the main starships, were destroyed.

More than half of the Athena-class heavy transport ships and light escort transport ships were also killed or wounded.

In total, nearly five hundred ships and their crews were completely destroyed.

More than 300 ships were still worth rescuing, and some of the remaining light starships survived because of their stationing locations.

Nearly one million soldiers and logistics personnel from various starship forces were killed or injured. The main force of the Federal Air Force starship force suffered unprecedented damage after this battle.

Since the founding of the Earth Federation, the Federation Army has been roaming the universe for nearly three centuries.

It has colonized hundreds of star systems and is almost unrivaled.

The long period of peace has led many people to question whether it is necessary for the federal government to retain a large federal army.

Is it possible to use the huge military expenditure to improve and protect the welfare of the people?

The federal government has never responded positively to this, and the Arachi Zerg attack has greatly suppressed the internal conflicts of the Earth Federation.

Everyone was looking forward to the victory of the brave federal army.

But the performance of the expeditionary force shocked everyone, including the federal marshal.

Even the coalition government, which had been paying close attention, was shocked.

“Before the war, even the most basic reconnaissance work was not done.

That is an important planet of the Arazi Zerg. Can we so arbitrarily order a large force to land just based on some captured war Zerg corpses?
The deployment of the starship forces was also a mess, and the starship forces were actually anchored together with the transport ships.

With such a dense formation, they wouldn’t even have time to escape after being attacked…”

After the Clandaff rout, although the official government of the Earth Federation issued strict information confidentiality regulations, intelligence about the front line was still spread to all sectors of society through various channels.

After learning the details, the coalition government also found it somewhat unbelievable.

Judging from the information collected from various channels, the Earth Federation is undoubtedly a regime with centralized military power and powerful military and technological capabilities.

Its mobilization capabilities, military armaments, and the militarist education its people have received for a long time would not have led to such a poor performance on the battlefield.

“Maybe it’s because we haven’t experienced war for too long?

You know, the last time the Earth Federation launched a full-scale war mobilization order was more than a hundred years ago.

These indigenous people are not like the citizens of our coalition government who can enjoy the blessings of democratic elections and have such a long physiological life expectancy.

The average life expectancy of the Earth Federation's indigenous people is only 85 years old, and this is for 'citizens' with a relatively high social status.

Many of them have forgotten what the last major war was like.

The relaxation of military preparations brought about by long-term peace is often more terrible for the federal army than a powerful opponent. "

The military and political think tank of the coalition government urgently analyzed the situation for a long time, but could only barely come up with this relatively plausible excuse.

Prior to this, the Earth Federation was considered an "equally matched" opponent in the eyes of the United Government.

Such performance is indeed hard to accept.

The United Government is in such a state of agitation, and public opinion within the Earth Federation is even more boiling.

Militaristic government has always been a double-edged sword.

If the military force is strong enough to crush all enemies and always win foreign wars.

Then even if there are various problems and frictions inside, they can be easily suppressed.

The distribution of the fruits of victory can satisfy the desires of people from all walks of life.

On the contrary, if the war goes badly, or even if there is a setback like the "Clandaff Rout", the noisy public opinion will be infinitely amplified and backfire on the government in power.

This is the dilemma that the Earth Federation is facing now.

The deaths and injuries of millions of frontline soldiers and logistics personnel, and the heavy losses suffered by the starship forces, have angered countless people who were waiting in front of their TVs to enjoy the victory.

Just one hour after the "Great Rout" occurred, a demonstration involving hundreds of thousands of people took place in the capital city of the Earth Federation.

Similar actions have been taken in jurisdictions around the world.

Various non-official media ignored the official ban of the government in power and reported extensively, exaggerating the failures on the front line.

These series of "combination punches" almost made the government in power think that there was a premeditated plan behind it.

Before the powerful interstellar marshal Deans could take any effective measures to ease public opinion, even larger-scale bad news came again.

Many remote colonial galaxies facing the threat of attack by the Arachnid Zerg began to experience large-scale protests.

Representatives of the various colonial galaxies angrily questioned whether the Earth Federation Army could truly protect its own colonies.

If the Earth Federation does not give a reasonable explanation for the "Clandaff Defeat", some colonial galaxies will threaten to break away from the jurisdiction of the Earth Federation and establish independent autonomy.

This is definitely the biggest crisis of trust the Earth Federation has encountered since its establishment.

Before this, even if the Earth Federation imposed higher taxes on these colonized galaxies and the military ban had a wider scope, everyone would be able to accept it.

Because the Earth Federation has the strongest military strength recognized by all colonized galaxies.

Strong military power is a reliable guarantee for the federal government to maintain rule of law.

But now, the "Cranduff debacle" has torn off the federal government's fig leaf.

Even those colonial galaxies that do not openly advocate independence and autonomy have expressed their intention to strengthen their armaments and build up their military strength so that they can at least have the ability to protect themselves when facing possible Zerg attacks.

Within the federal government, the opposition party is also impeaching the interstellar marshal in power, demanding that the other party must come up with a solution as soon as possible.

Monopoly companies, chaebol organizations, and representatives of various colonial galaxies all watched with indifference and cut ties with the government in power. The Earth Federation government in power was overwhelmed by the sudden internal and external troubles.

I persisted for a week until I was sure that there was no way out.

Marshal Deans, then the supreme commander of the Federation, resigned and declared himself responsible for the failure on the front line.

Subsequently, a large number of military and political officials who were affiliated with Marshal Deans' faction were also purged.

The opposition parties supported by various monopoly companies and chaebol organizations officially took over the Earth Federal Government.

The new interstellar marshal, Tyhart Meru, came to power, and a large number of military and political positions within the federal government were replaced.

The regime change was quite rapid, but the core contradictions brought about by the "Crandaff Debacle" still existed.

Replacing an interstellar marshal cannot change the Earth Federation's current predicament in the field of military warfare.

People are waiting for new policies to be brought by the new government.

Although both are militaristic and centralized governments, compared to the former Star Marshal Deans, the newly appointed Tyhart Meru is seen by many as more of a "compromiser".

After taking office, he immediately announced that he would use tougher military means to deal with the Arazi Zerg.

This is the current "political correctness" within the Earth Federation, and the people are eager to see the Arachi Zerg pay the price.

Some members of Congress even proposed using large-scale strategic cluster nuclear bomb weapons "Q bombs" to destroy the planet Clandaff.

But the proposal was opposed by many lawmakers.

"We need to defeat the bugs on the front battlefield to prove the bravery and strength of the federal army.

Instead of being a coward and throwing 'planet destroyers' at a distance.

If we rely too much on "Q bombs", what will happen to the colonized galaxies that are also attacked by the Zerg?
Are we also going to throw 'Q bombs' at these colonized galaxies?

If one day, Mars or Earth are invaded by Zerg, can we still blow up our home planet?!"

"Since its invention, the Planet Destroyer Q-bomb has never been used on a real battlefield except for experiments.

The federal constitution clearly stipulates that this strategic weapon will be the final weapon after conventional military means fail and must not be activated at will.

Moreover, the destruction of a planet will have unpredictable consequences for the star system where it is located. We are still unable to determine whether the destruction of the planet Clandaf will lead to even more terrible consequences..."

After the proposal to use the strategic weapon "Q-bomb" was rejected, the new interstellar marshal quickly ordered an increase in the government's military budget spending.

Large numbers of production orders for ground mobile force uniforms, weapons, vehicles, and various artillery and ammunition were issued like snowflakes.

The production of interstellar battleships of various levels, transport spacecraft, and various military equipment and logistical supplies also began.

These large orders distributed to various arms chaebol companies were considered by opposition lawmakers to be the "return on investment" from the new interstellar marshal to the monopoly chaebols and companies that supported her to the top.

The new interstellar marshal then announced the next phase of military action plans.

First, she admitted that under the wrong leadership of the previous government, the "Great Expedition" operation suffered a phased failure.

Next, the federal government will increase its reconnaissance of the Arazi Zerg and increase its understanding of the Zerg.

Secondly, no longer seek to "directly attack" the Arachi Zerg home planet.

Instead, they took one step at a time, targeting several star systems where the Arachi Zerg were active, and gradually eliminated the Zerg forces one by one.

This will achieve the ultimate goal of completely destroying the Arazi Zerg.

This military operation will be long-term and require the mobilization of all federal citizens to participate.

In any case, the new interstellar marshal's military action plan at least sounds much more reliable than before.

First, we need to solve the problem of some planets where the Arachi Zerg have weak control, achieve some phased victories, and give an explanation to the angry people of the Federation.

Then slowly conquer the core planet occupied by the Arazi Zerg.

A large number of arms trade orders also brought a large number of jobs to the federal society. After the guidance and exaggeration of the federal government's media opinion, the vast majority of the people were appeased.

Ordinary people cannot see the inside story, but the representatives of the colonial galaxies can see through the intentions of the new federal government at a glance.

There is no way the federal government would use the "Q-bomb" because they want the war to continue.

Establishing a seemingly powerful enemy would allow the federal government to justify significantly increasing military spending.

The new interstellar marshal’s rise to power is inseparable from the monopoly tycoons and corporate organizations behind her.

The huge military expenditure turned into countless orders for arms, logistical equipment, interstellar battleships, and spacecraft, allowing the monopoly forces that supported the new interstellar marshal to come to power to make a fortune.

The large number of jobs brought by the order can also appease the grassroots federal people.

As long as the war lasts one more day, the new interstellar marshal and the forces behind her will be able to reap huge profits.

Most importantly, all of this is legal and compliant.

The only ones who did not profit from this war were the colonized galaxies, especially the remote ones that were being attacked by the Zerg.

Representatives of the colonized galaxies strongly demanded that they either be allowed to participate in dividing the "war cake" or that the federal army provide them with adequate security protection when they encounter the Zerg threat.

The new interstellar marshal did not give in, but in order to appease the dissatisfaction of these colonized galaxies, she initiated an amendment to the federal constitution.

The colonized galaxies were given more extensive freedoms, the most important of which was to allow them to form armed forces and produce military weapons.

The federal government has to deal with the Arazi Zerg. It has neither the money nor the resources to help you, and sending troops is out of the question.

But the federal government allows you to arm yourself at your own expense, as long as you are nominally affiliated with the federal army.

In addition, the armed forces of the colonial galaxies are obliged to respond to calls and provide assistance in foreign wars launched by the Earth Federation.

Just like that, the new interstellar marshal solved the problem of colonial galaxy security that had troubled countless governments without spending a single soldier from the government budget.

It also barely calmed the increasingly intense "separatist tendencies" in the colonial galaxies.

Even in the near future, the federal government will obtain a group of colonial galaxy troops that will not have to bear the cost of equipment, training, and pensions themselves.

The only thing to worry about is that hundreds of colonized galaxies have since gained armed autonomy.

The opposition angrily accused the new interstellar marshal of playing with fire, claiming that she had opened the "Pandora's Box" and that the Earth Federation's control over these colonized galaxies would be further weakened in the future.

However, this is not a big problem in the eyes of the new interstellar marshal.

As long as the federal army is strong enough, these colonial galaxies will not become warlords.

(End of this chapter)