Mercenary I am the king

Chapter 1257 Black Hawk Down
"missile!"

On the helicopter, the machine gunner, disregarding his firing, turned back and shouted in terror towards the cockpit.

The co-pilot quickly pressed the heat decoy release button, and the pilot yanked the control stick, causing the helicopter to climb and turn wildly to the right, maneuvering at a sharp angle in an attempt to avoid the deadly danger that was approaching.

Unfortunately, the altitude was too low and the distance too close.

It's all too late!

The man-portable air defense missile drew a decisive and deadly arc in the air, completely ignoring the scorching decoy flares frantically released by the Black Hawk helicopter at the last moment.

The burning magnesium strips drew brief and alluring flashes of light in the air, but like a stone thrown into an abyss, they failed to create the slightest ripple.

The missile resolutely hurtled towards the "Quick Knife 1-1" that had just completed its dive strafing and was in its most vulnerable turning position!
Everyone who witnessed this scene, whether it was the mercenaries struggling to hold on to the ruins inside the checkpoint or the 1515 members swarming in like locusts on the ground, paused for a moment without prior agreement.

The gunfire seemed to subside for a moment.

Every pair of eyes was fixed on the trajectory in the sky that foreshadowed destruction.

The next second—

"boom!!!"

A huge red fireball suddenly exploded near the connection between the tail boom and the main rotor of the "Quick Blade 1-1"!

The explosion mercilessly tore apart the relatively fragile fuselage structure of the Black Hawk helicopter!

A shockwave ring, visible to the naked eye, suddenly spread out in the darkness!
Without the balancing torque provided by the tail rotor, the main rotor instantly lost control. "Quick Blade 1-1" was like a giant bird with broken wings, screaming as it detached from the fuselage with tremendous inertia, spinning wildly and being flung into the dark night sky!
The aircraft tumbled violently in the air, and burning aviation fuel spilled out from the ruptured fuel tanks and pipelines, leaving long trails of fire in the sky.

"Do not--!"

Inside the checkpoint, someone, whose voice was hoarse with despair, managed to squeeze out a desperate, distorted roar.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the burning wreckage of the helicopter, carrying the pilot and machine gunner who may still be conscious, crashed heavily onto a relatively open sandy area less than 100 meters from the checkpoint!

“Rumble——!!!”

A series of impacts and secondary explosions, even more violent than when the missile hit, followed!

An even more dazzling fireball rose from the crash site, soaring into the sky and instantly obliterating everything around it.

Amidst the towering flames, the helicopter wreckage could be clearly seen to have been completely shattered by the violent impact. Larger fragments were flung in all directions like toys, while smaller parts melted and deformed rapidly in the flames that exceeded their melting point.

Black Hawk has crashed.

Time seems to have frozen.

A deathly silence fell over the checkpoint.

Only the distant enemy, after realizing what was happening, howled even more frantically.

Another "Quick Knife 1-2" panicked and pulled up altitude, turning around and desperately trying to get away from this dangerous airspace.

"There are anti-aircraft missiles on the ground. We must evacuate. Good luck!"

The people on the helicopter no longer cared about their comrades on the ground. Only a farewell came over the radio before the helicopter disappeared into the darkness in the distance.

Sanders stood frozen in place, his hand holding the binoculars hanging limply at his sides.

"SHIT! It's over!"

His face was expressionless, except for his pupils, which were contracting violently.

A chilling coldness instantly spread from the soles of my feet throughout my body, more deadly than any injury caused by a bullet or shrapnel.

Hope arrives so fiercely; yet vanishes so swiftly and cruelly.

In a single explosion, everything was reduced to nothing.

A few seconds later, Sanders grabbed the radio:
“雷霆指挥中心！雷霆指挥中心！这里是四号检查站！紧急呼叫！‘快刀1-1’被击落！重复，‘快刀1-1’被地对空导弹击落！坠毁于我阵地东南约100米处！机上人员……估计全部罹难！‘快刀1-2’已经脱离战场！我们失去了空中支援！重复，我们失去了空中支援！形势极度危急！急需立即、有效的支援！任何形式的支援！”

He paused, almost gritting his teeth, before uttering the ominous military phrase:

"—Black Hawk Down, repeat, Black Hawk Down."

A brief silence fell over the other end of the radio, broken only by a faint crackling sound. Clearly, the personnel on duty at the Thunder Defense Command in Bakda were also shocked by this sudden bad news.

After a long silence, the reply finally came from the radio:

"...Checkpoint Four, received. Confirmed... 'Black Hawk Down'." Finally, the voice on the radio lost its previous calm and composure, carrying a barely perceptible tremor, as if someone were choking it. "Hold on, the Quick Reaction Force (QRF) is on its way. We will do our best to coordinate... all available resources..."

A few minutes later, at the Hurmatu command post.

The place is eerily peaceful, a stark contrast to the hellish scene dozens of kilometers away.

Only occasional, sporadic battle reports from the radio hinted at the fierce fighting taking place in the distance.

The tranquility was abruptly shattered by the shrill ring of the satellite phone's dedicated line.

When Song Heping heard the ringtone, he didn't answer it immediately. Instead, he leisurely picked up the enamel mug next to him that was printed with the words "Long Live the Emperor," took a sip of strong tea, and then glanced at the number on the caller ID.

"Humph!"

A faint, cold smile flashed across his lips.

After waiting for the phone to ring three times, he slowly picked up the receiver and put it to his ear.

"Song! What the hell are you doing?!"

Even without speakerphone, Colonel Kurt's roar, filled with anger and anxiety, was enough to draw the attention of everyone else in the room.

"Checkpoint Four has been subjected to a massive attack! A Thunder Defense Black Hawk helicopter was just shot down! Where are your men?! Where are your patrols?! Why is there a fully-fledged 1515 armed force equipped with anti-aircraft missiles in Area Four?! Did you deliberately relax your patrols and vigilance in that area?! Do you want to see Sanders and his men all die?!"

A barrage of questions, like a long-awaited barrage of cannon fire, rained down on him with accusatory rage.

Song Heping held the receiver a little further away from his ear, with an almost indifferent calm, patiently waiting for Kurt's volcanic roar to subside.

Then he responded in a calm tone, even with just the right amount of confusion and innocence:

"Colonel Kurt, please calm down. I understand how you feel right now, but there are some facts we need to clarify first."

He paused, his tone remaining calm and unhurried:
"First of all, I remember very clearly that it was Thunder Defense that, under the pretext of 'unified command' and 'enhanced defense effectiveness,' demanded that the militia withdraw from Checkpoint Four, and unilaterally declared that your side would be solely responsible for all security matters in the area. It was you who insisted on taking over Area Four, treating it as Thunder Corporation's 'private territory.' Now that problems have arisen and a large-scale attack has occurred, you're blaming me for not fulfilling the vigilance responsibilities that shouldn't have been mine in the first place? Colonel Kurt, are you contradicting yourself? There seems to be no logic to this."

On the other end of the phone, Kurt was speechless, stumped by the clear and logical rebuttal, and couldn't find the right words to refute it.

Song Heping didn't give the other party much time to think or organize their thoughts, and continued:

"Secondly, regarding the issue of support. I think it is necessary for me to explain to you that just over ten minutes ago, shortly after your checkpoint was attacked and sent out a distress signal, based on our remaining alliance and humanitarian spirit, I ordered my deputy, Samir, to urgently assemble and lead a full-strength battalion to checkpoint four to support Captain Sanders."

"Where are they?! Why haven't we seen a single trace of them yet?!"

Kurt interrupted abruptly, his voice filled with doubt and anxiety.

"Unfortunately,"

Song Heping's tone carried just the right amount of "helplessness" and "heaviness":
"According to Samir's latest report, about five kilometers outside Hurmatu, they were ambushed by several small groups of 1515 militia, and the road was damaged in several places by what appeared to be IEDs (improvised explosive devices). Although the firefight wasn't intense, it severely slowed their advance. Colonel Kurt, my militia, in terms of both equipment and training, cannot compare to the elite mercenaries of your US military and Thunder Corporation. Dealing with this kind of harassment and sabotage will definitely require more time..."

Kurt nearly ground his teeth to powder on the other end of the phone, his fingers trembling slightly as he gripped the receiver.

He was 100% certain that the so-called "attack" and "road destruction" were just a carefully crafted excuse by that cunning bastard Song Heping!

The goal was to buy time and watch as Thunder Defense's forces were gradually worn down by the 1515 armed forces at Checkpoint 4!
But he had no evidence to expose the lie, and the situation was beyond his control; he needed someone's help, so he could only suppress the urge to tear this yellow-skinned monkey and his hypocritical rhetoric apart.

“Mr. Song…”

Kurt's voice had to soften, and he tried to adopt a pleading tone:

“I know… I know there might have been some… misunderstandings in our communication regarding the ownership of Checkpoint Four. But now is not the time to discuss that! The situation is extremely critical! Sanders and his squad are on the verge of running out of ammunition and supplies, and have suffered heavy casualties! They won't last much longer! The earliest air support will arrive in that airspace is forty minutes! I beg you, for the sake of our alliance, immediately, right now, do everything in your power to save them! By any means necessary!”

"As for a solution..."

Song Heping deliberately dragged out his words, as if he were really racking his brains to think, giving the other party the illusion that he was trying to find a solution.

“It’s not that I haven’t…”

　Asking for a monthly ticket! Asking for a monthly ticket!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)