American Strategic Deception Bureau

　"Hmm? It's not on the blueprint. There are only three vents in total."

　Major General Haig was stunned for a moment, then unfolded the shelter blueprints he had obtained from the construction company, examined them carefully, and then shook his head. "Although they were all well disguised, we still found them all. One of them was injecting foul air, and the remaining two were sealed with quick-drying cement by my men."

　"But this blueprint of yours was drawn in 1961, and it's been ten years since then. Are you sure that this shelter hasn't been rebuilt or expanded in the past ten years?" Firi, who was also wearing a gas mask, leaned over to take a few glances at the blueprint, then spoke in a muffled voice.

　"That's true. It's indeed been ten years... But I think it's more likely that the rioters were all suffocated in the shelter and didn't have time to open the door and escape." Major General Haig thought about it and still felt that aimlessly looking for other ventilation holes around was probably not very reliable - what's more, it is very likely that there are no other ventilation holes at all, and someone is simply scaring himself.

　Anyway, as long as we try to send troops to force the door and see if there is any counterattack from the shelter, we will know the situation inside.

　So, without hesitation, he rejected Firi's suggestion and instead sent engineers armed with oxyacetylene cutting guns to attempt to destroy the main entrance to the shelter. However, what Major General Haig never expected was that before the engineers could even begin their action, the enemy's counterattack had already arrived!

　——Suddenly, accompanied by a soldier's panicked shout, a gray smoke was dragged towards them by a well-known killing weapon!

　"Oh my God! R--P--G!!!"

　"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

　Rockets flew in from the clifftop behind them, quickly striking the high-pressure cylinders containing hydrogen sulfide gas on the beach, instantly creating a mushroom cloud with a stench as foul as hell. Then, the crackle of gunfire began to echo along California Highway 1.

　The thugs, who were thought to be hiding in the shelter like gutter rats and fighting desperately, somehow ran out and sneaked around behind Major General Haig without being noticed, and engaged in a fierce exchange of fire with the National Guard and Los Angeles police who were carrying out the outer blockade mission.

　——It is obvious that this shelter not only has other ventilation holes, but also has a new escape passage that leads directly to Highway 1 outside the encirclement!

　Even if the shelter couldn't withstand the prolonged influx of poisonous gas, the people inside could still find another way out besides opening the door and committing suicide: while Major General Haig focused his attention on the main gate on the beach, intent on filling the stench below, the thugs rushed out from another exit above with guns!

　In the blink of an eye, besides the special forces soldiers who were bombed outside the shelter on the beach, the National Guardsmen who were hiding far away and caught off guard were also hit hard by the automatic rifle fire. Many people were so frightened that they lay on the ground, unable to move, but some summoned the courage to raise their guns and fight back against the attackers.

　On the surface, there were hundreds of National Guards and police blocking the area, while there were only a few rioters, and the firepower of both sides should be one-sided.

　But the problem was that the wealthy people who built the shelters seemed to have prepared a small arsenal inside. Now all of it fell into the hands of the rioters, which suddenly increased their firepower to a point where they could even fight the National Guard in armored vehicles.

　Pistols, grenades, submachine guns, automatic rifles, PRGs, grenade launchers...

　The fierce exchange of fire between the two sides instantly turned the road into a blurred color of gunpowder smoke.

　An armored vehicle had barely started when it was hit by an RPG, flipping over, knocking through the cliffside guardrail, tumbling down the shoulder of the road and crashing onto the beach, where it collapsed into a smoking pile of scrap metal. Then another police car was blown up by an RPG on the highway, a bright flame rising in the smoke.

　How did things turn out like this?

　Listening to the intense gunfire that ripped through the air not far away, a dazed Major General Haig lay sprawled on the beach, thinking foolishly. But his mind, fuzzy from the explosion and shockwave, was incapable of calm thought at this moment.

　Got attacked!

　This was the only thought left in his mind, followed by a hallucinatory picture: screams, explosions, and earth-shaking tremors.

　A foul smell suddenly entered his nostrils, making Major General Haig shudder - was his gas mask broken?

　Could he have been overcome by the hydrogen sulfide and algae putrefaction he brought with him? That would be too embarrassing.

　Major General Haig struggled to get up, but his limbs were so weak that he could not move at all.

　"Are you okay? Alexander!"

　A voice that sounded somewhat familiar reached Major General Haig's ears, and it seemed very ethereal.

　He struggled to discern the voice's owner amidst the continuous explosions and gunfire. But before he could identify it, a pair of strong arms dragged him to his feet. First, they injected Haig with a stimulant into his thigh, then carried him limping out. This battlefield drug releases extremely quickly, circulating through the bloodstream and taking effect in just a minute or so. The pleasant sensation of the drug made Major General Haig practically groan, and the cool sensation also temporarily restored his clarity.

　Then, he discovered that his former boss, Ferry, was carrying him and trying to escape from the chaotic battlefield.

　Looking back, the elite troops brought by Major General Haig from the capital had been bombarded by the sudden rockets.

　, they were blown to pieces, and they either fled in panic or lay unconscious on the beach - the lethality of RPG was a small matter, the problem was the horrible stench of leaking hydrogen sulfide.

　And above the cliff, on California Highway 1 that opened up from the middle of the mountain, the sound of fierce gunfire showed no signs of stopping, occasionally interspersed with horrific screams. Just from the dense gunfire, Major General Haig could tell how brutal the mob's firepower was.

　Damn, how many illegal high-powered weapons did the guy who built this shelter store in it?

　Major General Haig took a deep breath of the still smelly air, seized a gap where the gunfire was sparse, leaped up, and using his hands and feet, he rushed to the road in a few seconds - the stimulants had obviously greatly increased his strength, although he suffered from muscle soreness afterwards.

　Seeing this, Fili also drew his pistol, followed him up the cliff, and then fired at the thugs repeatedly as cover.

　But it was all too late. When they finally rushed onto the highway, the thugs who had escaped from the shelter had already seized a jeep that originally belonged to the National Guard on the side of the road. They left two bodies behind and the remaining four people drove through the roadblock and fled at full speed.

　Major General Haig looked at the jeep as it sped away with hatred, his dusty leather boots rolling over the smoking bullet casings.

　He looked around at the devastated scene, reached out to take off his gas mask, threw it away, and squeezed out the next instruction through his teeth: "Get in the car! Chase!"

　Firi, who was following behind, thought about it, grabbed a bulletproof vest and put it on, then followed Major General Haig and jumped into a police pickup truck.

　-

　The scorching sun of early summer bakes the Santa Monica Mountains into a caramel color, and the mountain breeze rises from the bottom of the canyon with the heat.

　The police Ford pickup truck that Major General Haig and Fieri were riding in was bumping along the mountain road, and the thermometer on the dashboard had already broken through 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

　In front of the Ford pickup were two other police cars. In the rearview mirror, there was a serpentine convoy of three police cars and two desert camouflage military vehicles, which were closely following the jeep stolen by the thugs. The dust raised by the rear of the cars was twisted into a golden veil in the heat wave.

　"These bastards killed three of us! And five National Guardsmen!" Old policeman Tom, who was in the driver's seat, roared angrily in his hoarse voice, which was burned by cigarettes and whiskey. "We must kill them today! Revenge for our colleagues!"

　The jeep the thugs were riding in suddenly spun out of the road, and a head in a gas mask popped out of the rear window. The driver of the police car chasing behind caught a glimpse of the Thompson submachine gun barrel gleaming coldly in the sunlight and swerved, the bullet already gouging a trail of sparks on the hood.

　The pursuing police and soldiers also leaned their heads out of the car windows and fired at the jeep while maneuvering their vehicles to avoid the bullets.

　In the chaos, two police cars collided awkwardly, forcing the police pickup truck carrying Major General Haig and Fieri to swerve. Its tires screeched as they scraped against the cliffside guardrail. Meanwhile, several ricochets struck the rock face, sending sparks cascading into the withered bushes, slowly forming small flames. But in the frenzy of the chase, no one paid any attention.

　As the midday sun burned the sandstone like iron and curls of green smoke emerged from the cracks in the rocks, a policeman's rifle finally shattered the jeep's left rear tire. The out-of-control jeep flew off the road and hit the road sign. The moment the fuel tank exploded, the fireball ignited the entire oil and calyx forest.

　The flames climbed madly along the resinous bark and in a blink of an eye they reached the thirty-foot-high canopy.

　But unfortunately, only one of the four thugs died in the fire along with the jeep, while the remaining three managed to jump out of the car at the last moment. After rolling several times on the road, one of them stood up first and threw a thermite grenade at the pursuing military and police convoy.

　A blinding white light exploded in front of the convoy, and the frightened drivers subconsciously slammed on the brakes, causing the vehicles to fall over and fall into a pile.

　Then, crisp gunshots were heard again from behind the white light, causing the police and soldiers, who had not yet recovered their sight, to lower their heads.

　Five minutes later, hot bullet casings rolled all over the road, and another short gunfight ended. Three thugs who had previously robbed a wealthy man's villa and occupied an underground private shelter were all shot dead after losing their vehicle. One Los Angeles police officer was killed and one was seriously injured.

　Well, no matter how embarrassing the process was, the gang of criminals were eventually wiped out and no one escaped.

　But when Major General Haig stood up from behind an overturned police car, ran his fingertips over the bullet holes on the hood that were still warm, frowned thoughtfully, and considered how to whitewash the battle record in his report, Firi came over with a dark face and patted his shoulder, motioning him to look back.

　"What's wrong? Why do you look so grim? Don't worry, as long as the criminals are killed, this matter will be resolved."

　At first, Major General Haig thought that Firi was worried that he would not fight well this time and would be criticized when he returned, so he spoke in a nonchalant manner.

　But Fili said that the case itself is no longer important, you should look back and see what evil you have done by setting fire to the mountain!

　So, Major General Haig looked back in confusion and was shocked to see a series of pillars of fire rising into the sky at the same time on both sides of the canyon.

　At least three fire spots erupted simultaneously along the mountain range, and under the orange-red sky, the blazing rising

　The air currents were forming into terrifying fire tornadoes, carrying burning dead branches and leaves, and slamming heavily into the farms and small towns at the foot of the mountain!

　The Los Angeles area has a Mediterranean climate characterized by mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. But right now, it's a dry summer, with scorched vegetation and a high risk of wildfires! Furthermore, Los Angeles is experiencing a drought this year, with no rain for over 100 days.

　During the car chase just now, both sides were firing rocket launchers, throwing grenades, and shooting bullets, and they even blew up several cars!

　If no one cleans up the aftermath, it would be strange if the mountains on both sides of the road don't catch fire!

　"Damn it! Call the Fire Department!" Major General Haig quickly jumped next to an SUV equipped with a radio, kicked open the deformed door, and shouted loudly. But all that came over the radio were curses from various Los Angeles government departments.

　The Los Angeles Fire Department did arrive shortly afterward, but they were faced with a raging fire that had engulfed several hills. Besides urgently establishing a cordon, they were unable to extinguish the flames. Furthermore, Major General Haig's team of soldiers and police officers were trapped in the fire they had created because their vehicles were damaged.

　——Neither the police nor the army could find anyone willing to drive across a burning road to pick up the culprits who set the mountain on fire.

　While the firefighting helicopter in the sky was screaming on the radio channel that it was running low on fuel and had nowhere to get water, Ferry, Major General Haig and others were running wildly on the burning fallen trees. The flames licked the forty-foot-tall redwood trees, and the resin exploded into a string of fireballs under the bark.

　Their figures were distorted in the heat wave, and at first glance they looked like evil spirits escaping from hell.

　Author's words: PS: The United Nations announced financial difficulties and halved the food ration allocation for Rohingya refugees in Myanmar to six pounds per person per day - more than fifty yuan!

　My daily food expenses, calculated in pounds, are only three or four pounds!

　In other words, these refugees used to have a daily food allowance of £12. How can this be considered standard in Myanmar? How could they still not have enough to eat?

　I wonder how much Commissioner Smith and his men made from it?

　Chapter 621: Sitting at home watching the fire

　Los Angeles, Hollywood, Sunset Boulevard, the Kim family's old house

　A faint sound of police sirens came from the distance, distorted into a mocking tremolo in the thick smoke.

　In the spacious living room with a history of more than 50 years, Major General Ferry King, who was half the owner, and Major General Alexander Haig, who was temporarily staying there, sat on the sofa with depressed expressions, looking out the window at the Los Angeles sky dyed by the wildfires, showing an eerie copper color.

　In response to this, Firi's face was melancholy with a bit of a dilemma, and Major General Haig's expression was even more miserable, as if he had eaten shit.

　The owner of the Kim family's old house, Ferry's father Patrick, pushed his reading glasses that had slid to the tip of his nose again and looked at the Los Angeles Chronicle in his hand. The headline on the front page of the newspaper, "Flames Devour the City of Angels; Doomsday Flames Illuminate the Escape Route," was trembling under his fingertips.

　-- [Emergency Feature] On Wednesday, an unprecedented fire tornado shattered Los Angeles's sunny summer skies. Fifteen separate fires erupted in the Santa Monica Mountains, fueled by 60-mile-per-hour Santa Ana winds, coalescing overnight into a 32-mile-long wall of fire. As of press time, wealthy neighborhoods like Malibu and Bel Air were reduced to scorched earth. Thick smoke obscured the sky west of Sunset Boulevard, shrouding the city in an eerie, infernal orange glow.

　The oak forest at Bel Air Hills has been reduced to a blazing bonfire. A witness reported seeing a flaming Rolls-Royce crash into a hillside villa like a meteor, igniting the multi-million dollar collection of celebrity agent Roger White. Firefighters discovered seven charred classic sports cars among the collapsed marble columns, including license plates showing a Cadillac El Dorado purchased by Elvis Presley in 1965.

　The Pacific Coast Highway had become a "long, burning parking lot." Witnesses reported that at least 500 vehicles were engulfed in flames within the Highway 101 tunnel, with flames melting the chrome wheels of Porsche 911s as fugitives abandoned their vehicles and fled. Helicopter footage showed a long, gridlocked traffic from Mulholland Drive to the San Fernando Valley, with desperate brake lights flashing amidst the ash.

　"Hell has descended upon Earth," firefighter Hawke said hoarsely, standing in front of the ruins of a gas station. Black smears clung to his helmet visor. "We're losing two football fields' worth of forest every hour. The water from the high-pressure hoses evaporates before it hits the ground."

　As Los Angeles police were deployed to the blazes, other crimes flourished in the smoke. On Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, masked thugs used fire axes to break through the bulletproof glass of a Chanel store. At a Long Beach gas station, a gunman opened fire on a crowd fighting for the last tank of gas. Police confirmed they received 237 reports of robberies last night alone. However, most police vehicles remained stuck in traffic jams and at the various fires.

　"I fled in a Louis Vuitton suitcase packed with dog food," Beverly Hills mogul Deborah Clinton said, standing barefoot outside the police station, her diamond anklet gleaming faintly in the ashes. "But when those bastards grabbed the suitcase, they threw my Samoyed into the fire."

　Before the Los Angeles International Airport tower was completely closed at 12 noon yesterday, the weather station said that the PM2.5 index in downtown Los Angeles had exceeded the instrument limit. Sinai Medical Center was crowded with children with respiratory failure, and medical staff used sheets and gauze to

　Filters toxic particles from the air.

　Meteorologists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) point out that the "ash snow" falling from the fires contains large amounts of asbestos and heavy metals, and that burning buildings are releasing a toxic cloud of cyanide and formaldehyde. If the wind direction suddenly changes, the toxic cloud could envelop downtown Los Angeles tonight, triggering an ecological disaster that would last a decade.

　In accordance with the governor's emergency martial law order, National Guard armored vehicles have already arrived at the Hollywood Walk of Fame. However, firefighting helicopter pilots revealed to this newspaper that rising air currents at the fire scene caused instrument malfunction on three aircraft, forcing them to suspend their watering operations.

　Santa Ana winds lashed the glass facade of City Hall with ash particles. Citizens wearing gas masks shoved into makeshift shelters, some holding signs reading "Give Me Back My Homes, Incompetent Government!" Scattered scraps of charred paper swirled above them, like a black snow falling on the smoggy city.

　This newspaper will continue to update the latest developments of this "Twilight of the Gods".

　Editor's Note: During the reporting process, two journalists were hospitalized for aspiration lung injury, and a camera crew's vehicle was vandalized by rioters while filming the burning Universal Studios. The price of truth is burning in tandem with the fate of this city...

　"What's going on these past few years? The wildfires are getting worse every year. The air is as bad as London fog!"

　Stroking a newspaper photo of firefighters rescuing a charred teddy bear from a kindergarten, Patrick's father grumbled gloomily, glancing at Major General Haig. Unlike the past, where fires were caused by either a power line failure (a fallen pole or broken wire) through the mountains, or someone starting a fire while camping in the mountains, or someone leaving a cigarette butt. In short, the arsonist was almost impossible to catch.

　The person responsible for the Los Angeles wildfire is very clear: it is Major General Haig, who abused firepower in the suburbs to hunt down criminals.

　Moreover, due to the dry weather and the wind that fanned the flames, this time the wildfire burned directly into the city. Even the hill with the Hollywood sign was on fire. The communities in the suburbs were burned to ashes, and countless middle-class mansions and wealthy mansions were reduced to ashes.

　So, when Fili followed the high-minded but incompetent Major General Haig, and a group of hapless soldiers and policemen who were burned to a crisp, abandoned their cars in a panic and walked through the fire to escape back to downtown Los Angeles, the news that "the Pentagon sent people to Los Angeles to set fire to the mountains" had already spread throughout the second largest city in the United States through the shocking radio and television news, and unsurprisingly aroused public outrage and anger.

　For a time, Haig became a pariah in Los Angeles. Even his hotel was besieged by journalists and protesters. Finally, after being evicted from the hotel, Haig shamelessly took refuge at the home of Fieri.

　Speaking of which, Fili actually felt quite irritated by Major General Haig, the "God of Setting Fire to the Mountain." After all, the wildfires had started in Malibu, and his Malibu beachfront castle had been burned to the point of being uninhabitable—although the castle itself was a reinforced concrete structure, so it wasn't particularly vulnerable to fire. But the surrounding vegetation had been reduced to bare, scorched earth, and the billowing smoke was enough to choke someone to death...

　Therefore, Fili had to urgently transfer his harem members back to the refuge villa in San Fernando Valley.

　Although the area surrounding the San Fernando Valley refugee villas might not be safe as the wildfires spread, at least it's close to the desert, with sparse vegetation and several bare hilltops. Apart from a few low grasses and cacti, there are almost no trees, and there aren't many wooden houses... Even if the wildfires make it all the way there, they'll be out of fuel and die quickly, right?

　Furthermore, the air filtration system in the underground shelter was top-notch. It could withstand even a nuclear explosion, let alone a mere wildfire.

　In short, just because of the loss of the Malibu beach villa, Fili was disgusted with Major General Haig whenever he saw him.

　However, Major General Haig's family background and connections were indeed profound, and he was a political ally valued by Dr. Kissinger, and even a future Secretary of State. So, for the sake of his future career, Ferry reluctantly allowed the arsonist to live in the Kim family mansion.

　Fortunately, Major General Haig also knew that he had angered the public this time, and he had been careful in his words and actions in the Jin family to avoid causing dislike.

　Of course, Major General Haig's misguided command and indiscriminate use of firepower during the battle were, at best, the catalysts for the wildfires. However, the greater responsibility for the wildfires that ravaged Los Angeles, akin to a city consumed by fire from heaven, lies in the city's ineffective firefighting.

　The Los Angeles city government has, in fact, botched firefighting and prevention efforts. They failed to clear the hillsides of deadwood beforehand, reacted slowly afterward, and deployed firefighters slowly, facing severe staffing shortages and outdated and inadequate firefighting equipment. This has allowed the fires to rage uncontrollably, destroying over 50,000 structures and displacing over 200,000 people. Yet, those powerful figures are still busy making irresponsible remarks and shifting the blame.

　The TV screen lit up with footage of a press conference. The fire chief, his tie askew, faced the camera: "Sixty percent of our fire trucks are past their service life, and the helicopter reinforcements we requested last week are still going through the procurement process..." The camera cut to the mayor's office, where a masked spokesman read a statement: "After investigation, the water pipeline near the fire site was under-pressure, seriously affecting firefighting. This is clearly due to the tap water."

　The company’s gross negligence…”

　"A classic three-part buck-passing scheme." Patrick's father put down the newspaper and tapped his knee with a pencil. "The first step is admitting some facts. The second step is deflecting the core conflict." He pointed at the TV interview with the water company's CEO. "The third step is turning a technical issue into a political one—and sure enough, they're starting to accuse the military and police of excessive use of firepower and neglect of fire prevention during law enforcement operations."

　At that moment, a dull crackling sound suddenly erupted from the French windows of the old house, and the entire sky instantly turned a sulfurous color. Father Patrick lifted a corner of the shutters and saw burning palm fronds falling like meteors at the end of the street, while several diligent servants poured water on the courtyard hedge.

　A team of exhausted firefighters, hanging on both sides of two fire trucks covered in ash and dust, roared through the streets and ran towards a burning wooden building not far away - no matter what, for a key area like Hollywood, which is a city's business card, the fire department still focused on guarding it.

　"Hey! The water company spokesperson is here!" He turned back to the TV. The man in a suit on the screen was pointing at a sand table and ranting. "The water pipeline near the fire site is running low on pressure, leaving firefighters with nowhere to get water. This is partly due to the long-term drought that's dried up the reservoir, and partly due to residents illegally using swimming pool water to put out the fire, wasting precious water resources..."

　Hearing this absurd rhetoric, Fili suddenly couldn't help laughing. "Haha, are they going to ban everyone from illegally putting out fires? Waiting for the fire department to handle the problem? However, facing a fire of this scale, the city's public fire departments are simply not enough. Not only are private fire departments exorbitantly expensive, but if there's no water in the taps, the private fire departments are helpless!"

　"Yeah, City Hall cut the fire prevention budget by 35% this year because they want to build a fancy shelter for the mayor! Now everyone can only talk to the emergency hotline that never gets through, and the only person on the other end of the line is an automated voice recorded on tape, playing a disclaimer on a loop."

　Ferry's oldest brother, Bernard, emerged from the adjacent bathroom, speaking excitedly. He grabbed the asthma inhaler on the coffee table, took a deep breath, and finally calmed down a bit. "I just called the school to ask when classes would be suspended, but was told they'd continue as usual. However, the Education Bureau recommends that parents bring their own gas masks when picking up their children!"

　After hearing this, Ferry couldn't help but look at his eldest brother with pity. The reason why Bernard was now in the Jin family's old house was because his house was also burned down by the wildfire, and the entire community was burned down, forcing him to flee back to his hometown with his wife and children.

　And now he's being asked to wear a gas mask to send his kids to class? It's outrageous that the school hasn't been suspended yet!

　After hearing this, Major General Haig couldn't help but shrink his neck again, hold his breath and keep quiet, trying further to reduce his presence.