The Devil Comes to America

Chapter 320: No, no one cares about my opinion?
In an alley, Robin looked outside, then turned around and looked at the person opposite.

"Read it?"

Catherine nodded. "That's Luke, right? He's really brave. You said before that all five experimental subjects would become strange, but I haven't felt that yet."

"You don't feel it?"

Catherine shrugged her shoulders: "Yeah, I don't feel anything. I don't think the fifth phase potion has any effect on me."

Morris appeared beside Robin: "Why are you surprised, Robin? The moment this woman started killing people, the old her no longer existed. Don't you think it's useless?"

"Shut up Morris." Robin said unhappily, "If the fifth-stage potion has no effect on me, where did you come from?"

Catherine looked around: "Where is he?"

"On your right."

"Hello, Mr. Morris."

"He said that from your tone, it sounded like you wanted to kill him."

“How could that be?” Catherine smiled and said, “But now I believe that this fifth-phase potion can really affect people’s brains. Those people were hiding well, but they had to do this. And these are the ones we have captured now.”

Catherine shook her head. “If they had refrained from killing anyone and chose to hide in Miami, a city with a population of hundreds of thousands, it would have been difficult for us to find them.”

"These fifth-stage experimental subjects became stronger by killing people, and Luke is actually very smart." Robin added, "That's what Morris said."

Catherine looked at the empty space beside her: "Oh? Very smart?"

"Yeah, remember that thing in California?"

Catherine thought for a moment, then said, "There have been so many things that happened in California before. Which one are you talking about?"

"The military one."

"What about the San Diego base incident?" Catherine thought for a moment and said, "What does this have to do with it?"

"It was Robin, the responsible FBI, who arrested the person." Robin said.

Catherine pouted: "Don't tamper with other people's words, Mr. Robin. To be honest, it's really tiring to talk to you. I have to chat with two people alone."

"If you didn't ask, there wouldn't be so much trouble." Robin said.

"I couldn't help it, Mr. Robin, and I was communicating with a mentally ill person who was conscious and logical. I was learning from this experience so that I wouldn't end up like you in the future."

Catherine thought of something again: "Oh, I thought of those middle-level officers, right?"

"Yes, that's the thing. The army is not a monolithic group, Miss Catherine, but you may not understand it."

“I used to be a soldier.”

"Just new recruits." Morris said through Robin's mouth: "Just like politicians, there are many factions in the military, such as the navy, army, air force, marines, coast guard, national guard, etc. They all look like military personnel, but what are they really like?"

"The allocation of military spending, how to trick Congress into giving money, who Congress prefers to give money to, who earns more, who earns less, etc. There are all kinds of interest issues involved."

"Where there are interests, there are factions, and where there are factions, there are confrontations. Including this experiment, the military is not united. Some people think it is a waste of money. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent on building a person, but his role on the battlefield may not be as powerful as a missile. Others think that super soldiers are the key to changing the battlefield."

"So?" Catherine asked puzzledly, "What are you going to say?"

"What I want to say is that if this matter gets out of hand, the Ministry of National Defense and the military will have to quarrel internally. After all, no matter what, the money spent on the Super Soldier Program is also part of the military budget, and this part should have belonged to them if there was no Super Soldier Program."

"Are you saying that the military will turn against the person in charge of this project?"

"Maybe, but that's not the point. The point is that we should get back to the question. What were the results of those people Robin investigated before?"

Catherine thought for a moment, then said, "That thing will be wiped out along with the pot."

"To be precise, a large number of middle-level military personnel were arrested. Although it is somewhat taboo for these people to do that thing themselves, and this incident alone may not be a big deal."

"But what is Luke now? He is also a mid-level officer. If you were a mid-level officer in the United States now, and faced with persecution by people of your level, what would you think, Miss Catherine?"

Catherine was stunned for a moment, then said instinctively: "Am I not safe?"

"That's right." Robin said reluctantly, "Although technology is advanced now and orders can be issued directly, mid-level officers are the key to coordinating soldiers and command levels, not to mention that in addition to Luke, there are many soldiers around him."

"So believe me, if a lieutenant or colonel makes use of this incident and leads a group of soldiers to rebel against the base commander, it will definitely work given the current situation. After all, this world is a world of mutual learning, and a certain island country has rich experience in this regard."

"So, if the military wants to control this kind of thing and doesn't want soldiers and mid-level officers to mutiny, they can only appease them. And these people have already started protesting, right? Appeasing them is more important than arresting Luke and the others."

Catherine was puzzled: "But they have run so far, and the effect of hiding is obviously better than now, and they can even live better. Is this what you call smart?"

"Why not? Remember the factions I mentioned?" Morris said slowly, "For them, this is a gamble. They are not betting on their own safety, but on taking advantage of a ready-made enemy."

"For the super soldier guys, they're their property. But for the other guys, it's a bunch of free stuff. So, you can think of it as their resume."

Catherine shook her head: "That's just a fifth-stage fighter. If we have enough time, we can create more. We all know that."

"Super soldiers are not important." Robin suddenly said, "But... the identification of super soldiers is very important."

Catherine suddenly realized: "They are victims. In theory, as long as we find them and protect them, under this kind of public pressure, they can make any of their opponents roll down from their seats!"

Robin nodded: "After the media chose to cover it up at the beginning, they suddenly let it go. Is that also the reason?"

"Partly." Morris looked at Robin and said, "These media are controlled by the Jews. They control Wall Street, but the military has always been in the hands of the Americans themselves. The relationship between the two sides is that one spends money and the other provides security. But how does that saying go?"

Morris grinned and said, "Those with guns can always rob those with money. Even if they have political dirt on these people, it is actually useless to the army."

"Besides, doesn't the government want to investigate the military's problems? Every time they send people to investigate, they either find nothing or give up halfway. So, this is such a good opportunity. Robin, do you remember why you were able to investigate those officers in the first place?"

Robin was stunned.

"That's why I said that Luke was smart. He seemed to have exposed himself, but what about the reality? The people in the base now know that as long as I find them, there will be others who can find them. Once those people find them, each of them can be an excuse to investigate the military. After all, the military can take action against those politicians, but it can't take action against all Americans. Not to mention, they don't investigate their own faction but investigate the other side."

"The contradictions in our country are laid out right here. It's safer for them to be exposed. Didn't you notice, Robin?"

"Those people have done so much, but your order is still to catch the guys we want to catch here. Logically, after they knew there was a hidden fifth-stage experimental subject here, they should have come by themselves. You and Catherine should have gone to find the whereabouts of those thirty or so people long ago."

"So, there is only one reason why you are still here, and that is that they don't want to find those people now."

Robin thought for a while before reacting, then said, "Maurice, I didn't expect you to be so useful."

Morris said meaningfully, "I'm just Lieutenant Robin. What I know is not enough to analyze these things. In fact, as an officer, I shouldn't have this ability. Politicians, the military, factional associations, criminal inferences, and gains and losses, these are what the FBI is good at, right?"

Robin was stunned.

Maurice smiled and then disappeared in front of Robin.

Catherine said dissatisfiedly, "What did you say again?"

Robin opened his mouth and said, "He left, but he said that the secrecy of the Super Soldier Project has probably made many people dissatisfied for so many years. Although we don't know who is in charge, he is in big trouble now."

The Pentagon in Washington.

To be honest, Bolick really didn't want to come here.

The last time I came here was because of the San Diego base incident.

At this time, in addition to those familiar people and the black Secretary of Defense, there was also a woman in the room. She had a cold expression, blonde hair, and an extremely outstanding appearance.

However, compared to the last incident, this time there were significantly fewer people, and all the military commanders were present.

The defense minister had already said, "Berrick, maybe you need to explain something about these people."

Bolick then spoke up and said, "My report has been submitted. It was Connor who cut corners on the self-destruct collars for some profit, which led to the escape of these Phase 5 test subjects. The Phase 5 test subjects were not healthy to begin with. I think we should conduct a strict investigation of the supplier."

When the woman heard this, she slowly said, "You guys did the purchasing, and all the people involved were your own people. Bolick, are you going to put the blame on a missing person? We don't even know if he is missing or just died and wasn't found by chance."

Bolick frowned and said, "Julia, my report is very detailed. The guys who were captured said that Connor is still alive. He is one of the suppliers of Base 6 for the laboratory incident. Not many people know about it, but Connor is one of them as the supervisor."

Julia's voice was still cold. "So what? The people escaped from your base and your encirclement. Everyone has always believed in you. The Super Soldier Project has cost tens of billions of dollars since its launch. The Ford-class aircraft carrier is not as expensive as you can spend. And now you tell us that you have developed a bunch of our enemies?"

"Not only can you not lock them up, you can't even find them."

Bolick's expression remained unchanged: "This time it was an accident."

"The deaths of those soldiers at the Key West base were also accidents?" "That was Connor."

"Whose man is Connor?" Julia was not prepared to let Berlick go: "He is your man, Berlick. As long as there is an experimental base, our military base has always cooperated with you. What is the result?"

"Luke Air Force Base, hundreds of billions of dollars in losses, Key West Base, thousands of soldiers and tens of billions of dollars in losses. Plus the funding given to you. With so much money spent, we don't even know what you are specifically researching!"

“We have periodic reports.”

"Besides that?" Julia sneered; "We only saw the paper reports and the video reports, but you refused any other form of supervision. I admit that super soldiers have great potential, but this is not a reason for you to have so many rights."

"You have always said that it is for safety reasons. Is what is happening now the safety you mentioned?"

Bolick stared at Julia, took a deep breath and said, "This is the first time for us to do something like this. No one can guarantee that there won't be any accidents."

"But that's no excuse for you to squander funds like this."

"What happened in Mexico," Bolick said, "has proven the value of super soldiers, including what happened in South America. If we can find a way to truly control them, they won't be confined to America like they are now. They can go to more distant places."

"Are you talking about things that haven't been done yet, Berlik?"

"What happened in Mexico has already happened, hasn't it?"

"Is that your plan?" Julia said sarcastically, "We think these people should create some value for us. Otherwise, they would probably still be waiting for another riot in your base!"

"I admit that your suggestions are good, but at the same time, Julia, you can't deny the value of super soldiers."

"I recognize the value of super soldiers, but I don't think you have the ability to ensure that the plan continues."

"Julia, you mean you should be in charge of this plan?"

"If you can't, we don't mind."

The two men were on edge, and the people around them seemed to be watching a show.

The defense minister coughed and said, "You two, please pay attention to the occasion."

"Mr. Minister," Julia said directly, "The Super Soldier Program is too secretive and has too much authority. I think it must be restricted."

The black minister said, "There is no rush for this. The question now is how to deal with this matter? The President has already promised the whole country in front of reporters that he will send an investigation team to investigate this matter. Also, how to deal with those Phase III experimental subjects who have already appeared?"

Julia snorted. "It's easy. Just ask them to open their base for investigation."

"Julia! Are you crazy!"

"You have already lost two bases, plus two military bases, Berlik, what else do you want to lose next? If you don't agree, at least give me a solution?"

Bolick was silent for a moment, then handed over his tablet: "Take a look at this."

Soon, the tablet screen appeared in front of everyone.

It contained surveillance footage of the fifth-phase experimental subjects attacking civilians.

The means are horribly cruel.

Bolick said, "It's very simple. We exaggerated their threat. We immediately conducted nuclear radiation examinations on these people and found that their brains were severely corroded. The drugs the military was researching were for soldiers with PTSD. We wanted to solve the problem of soldiers suffering from PTSD after retiring from the battlefield, so we conducted special research."

"And there are still a large number of soldiers at the San Diego base who were not taken away at the time, right? Many of them are at home. Therefore, it is not a fact but a rumor that our soldiers were taken away for experiments."

"We took away those who were affected by the radiation. They were extremely irritable and bloodthirsty. Although the records of Base No. 6 are gone, their previous training records are still preserved at the headquarters. After discovering this problem, we put them under protective custody and have been working hard to research drugs to restore them to normal."

"We can even show how these guys killed our people. Believe me, if people find out that they are aliens far superior to themselves, their sympathy will turn into fear, and the need for their own safety will overcome the sense of justice in their hearts."

"As for the soldiers at the Key West base, they were also killed by them in order to escape from the laboratory. They did not let anyone go. Look at the video, there are children who died at the hands of these executioners. These people are a group of beasts who have lost their humanity. In fact, they are, there is no doubt about that."

The eyes of several people around lit up.

A man in an army uniform said, "That's a good idea."

Julia frowned slightly.

The human heart is the most difficult to guess. A group of murderers who are obviously no longer normal people, no matter what they have experienced before, everyone will only sigh and no longer speak for them. At least normal people will consider their own safety.

This is definitely a way to calm public opinion now, and it is very effective.

Just like when you see someone being killed in the street, you would feel sorry for him. If this person is a capitalist, many people would probably start applauding without caring about right or wrong.

Identity conflict, cognitive conflict, Julia herself had to admit that this was indeed a good idea.

If there is a disadvantage, it is that the seed of distrust has been completely planted.

But Julia didn't plan to give up so easily: "What about the protests from our soldiers? We just dealt with a large number of mid-level officers, and now the ones in trouble are still mid-level officers."

"All they want is to not become these people. In fact, we don't need to recruit people from the military anymore. I mean on a large scale. Maybe you can figure out who should take the blame."

"Major General Morgan is your man now. He is also from the San Diego base."

"This is not something a major general can do." Bolick said calmly; "The rank should be higher."

The black defense minister frowned and said, "Are you planning to ask me to resign?"

Looking at the looks in everyone's eyes, the defense minister smiled and said, "The San Diego base and Florida were in trouble."

"So, one person from each side, the plan has to be approved by someone. As for the candidates, if I remember correctly, there are 17 generals in the army, right?"

The army commander sneered, "There are still 11 in the Air Force. There are also 8 in the Navy. Oh, I remember that most of the middle-level officers who were arrested before were also from the Navy. Let's continue looking for them from the Navy."

The naval commander was dissatisfied and said, "You also said that the officers before arrested our people. Why do you want us to send people? The air force has more people."

The Air Force Commander curled his lips and said, "If the army loses its soldiers, there are people who can take their place. If the navy loses its soldiers, there are people who can take their place, but what about the Air Force? You know the cost of training the Air Force. With the loss of Luke Base, how long will it take us to quickly replenish pilots? Are we going to mobilize the Air Force at this time? Are you serious?"

Then the three commanders looked at a guy at the table who hadn't spoken yet.

The man's mouth twitched: "There are only three of us!"

The others looked directly at the Minister of Defense.

The man got anxious: "What the hell does this have to do with us! Even if we are the ones who committed the crime, if I say it was done by the Marines, will anyone believe me? Ah! Will anyone believe me?"

Bolick said: "Officers are promoted and soldiers are comforted. The lack of middle-level officers has not been made up yet. And if it is only local, it should be fine."

The Army Commander spoke up: "We need at least two-thirds of the quota."

The Navy Commander was dissatisfied and said, "How can you, a bunch of people running around on the ground, get on board? Don't forget that the navy has the biggest vacancies."

The Air Force Commander said, "We have quite a few people on board the ship."

The Marine Corps commander who was ignored was dumbfounded: "You don't consider us, right? We are the most suitable ones to board the ship!"

But he was ignored again.

Julia suddenly said: "The Super Soldier Program must be regulated. This will not change."

Bolick said, "We will open the Phoenix base, okay?"

Julia's face darkened: "I said all bases!"

Bolick said slowly, "We had a test subject who survived after being shot through the heart. After his life was saved, his heart healed in just three days."

There was silence in the conference room for a moment.

In the end, the meeting lasted another two hours.

Then, they left the meeting room one by one.

In the underground garage, Julia looked at Berlick and said, "You are really patient, Berlick, for bringing up that matter last."

Bolick said calmly: "Julia, we are friends and comrades-in-arms. You should help me instead of standing against me."

"Help you? No, Berlick, I will never help you. Besides, we have not been friends since five years ago! Look at your ugly eyepatch, Berlick, this matter is not over yet."

After saying that, Julia got in the car and left.

(End of this chapter)