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Episode 3 Type-04 second ② - Regular procedure -

July 26, 2014

United Nations Army Yukon Base, Conference Room 207

Lieutenant Yuuya Bridges

”The Japanese Empire is attempting to invade the Hive by regular procedure.”

In the conference room, I was handed documents by a representative of the Japanese Empire, who asked whether I could discern the Empire's true intentions from them.

After thoroughly reviewing the documents, I responded accordingly. The papers contained typical bureaucratic language, such as "TSF Type-04 second batch enhances the redundancy and expandability of our forces."

Looking at the specifications, I noticed astonishing details beyond the understated descriptions. If realized as described, these developments would significantly deviate from the existing framework of tactical machines, aptly fitting for the next generation.

Normally, one would be skeptical of the creators of such documents. If made public, they could be perceived as disinformation or indicative of the Japanese Imperial Army's recklessness and ignorance.

However, the problem was the man who had handed over this document.

Iwaya Eiji, a Lieutenant Colonel in the Imperial Army of Japan. I can't quite make out his kanji name, as I've decided not to bother with characters that have more than five angles, but it consists of rather stern-looking characters.

I once heard from an acquaintance named Kuze that the more angles in a kanji character, the more prestigious it is, so he might be of high status.

In any case, I couldn't dismiss the documents handed to me by the person in general manager the Type-04 modification plan as nonsense.

It was surprising to see this man in the meeting room. The part of the Type-04 that I was responsible for was supposed to be just a small part of the overall modification plan. In other words, it wasn't considered very important.

At least, he was an unusual member to show up for a meet-and-greet. To put it in terms understandable to those unfamiliar with the military, a Colonel is about equivalent to the president of a large company, and a Lieutenant Colonel is one rank below that.

If you were to assign a corporate title, it would be like a Managing Director, the highest position in terms of practical work. And Lieutenant Colonel Iwaya had achievements that matched his rank.

When looking into the introduction of tactical feighters in the Japanese Empire, he's been a unique figure since the F-4 phase. There's even a legend that he beat an F-15 with an F-4.

In other words, he was a so-called Ultraman.

Every country has its specialists, and their level should never be underestimated. Embarrassingly, when I first joined the company and was feeling omnipotent, I learned this lesson through several projects I undertook.

Now, back to the Type-04 modification plan. The performance of a tactical feighter is largely determined by two elements:

- The main output of the jump unit

- The output per cross-sectional area of the Carbonic Actuator

These two points, mentioned as the modification focus for the Type-04 second batch, went beyond the conventional framework of tactical feighters.

As for the main output of the jump unit, which is my specialty, well, that's fine. This is what it is, but he’s still writing a realistic.

The problem lies with the Carbonic Actuator. Only this section is unusually detailed, showing the output per cross-sectional area in a graph, suggesting a breakthrough if read as it is.

There is a type of machine called the tactical surface attacker. Sometimes, I'm asked what the difference is between this and a tactical feighter.

Setting aside their different roles in the military, the mechanical difference between the two is the presence or absence of the Carbonic Actuator. More precisely, tactical attackers use the Carbonic Actuator, but also have conventional mechanisms like hydraulics to complement it.

It's fair to understand that to maintain the armaments that exceed the scope of tactical feighters, they are equipped with an exoskeleton. Of course, this sacrifices responsiveness.

If the Type-04 second batch were equipped with a new Carbonic Actuator throughout its body, it would become a tactical fighter capable of armaments comparable to a tactical attacker. This was indeed a new generation machine.

I have numerous doubts, so I start the conversation focusing on the jump unit.

"As for the main engine of the jump unit, are we assuming a technology transfer from the United States...?"

Essentially, I'm politely asking if this is realistic.

"We have agreed to trade technology related to the synthetic plant."

The Japanese Empire had played its strongest card. However, while the United States isn't too closed off about technology transfers to other countries, the item in question was significant.

Next main tactical fighter F-35, uses a high-powered engine called the P&W F-135, a monster of a machine. It's an engine originally developed from the P&W F-119 used in the F-22, but significantly enhanced in power for cost reduction in the aircraft.

It might sound strange, but to lower costs, the F-35 is equipped with only one jump unit, making it a single-engine aircraft. Therefore, the F-135 has roughly double the power to achieve sufficient output from one engine.

The Type-04 second batch is said to be equipped with two of these engines. That means it would have four times the power of the F-22.

The actual thrust is not simply 2✖️2 equals 4 times, as there are various factors involved, but on the spec sheet, it's undoubtedly something extraordinary.

I'm starting to understand the purpose of integrating the GE F-110 into the Type-04, which is my area of responsibility in the modification. They're trying to test the compatibility of American engines with a Japanese Empire-made machine here.

Originally, the Japanese Empire had experience with American machine like the F-4 and F-15. However, in the Type-04, including the main engine, everything was domestically produced, so the compatibility with American engines must have been a non-functional requirement.

When you're in development, non-functional requirements are the list that you can forget if necessary. It's quite possible that the Type-04, which rolled out just before the BETA invasion of the Japanese Empire, didn't reach that point.

The regrettable thing is that the only suitable main engine for the current Type-04 is made by GE. However, in America, you can choose between P&W and GE engines in a convertible manner, so there shouldn't be a significant problem.

There might be doubts about whether the United States will unseal its latest engine technology, but the United States isn't as secretive as it might seem to other countries.

The United States clearly understands the point that Japan offers civilian technology. Although the United States is the world's leading military power, they haven't forgotten that the military exists to enrich civilian life.

The United States has been generous about converting military technology for civilian use. They would be particularly interested in mobile synthetic plants, known as plant ships.

So, regarding the main engine of the jump unit, it's certainly an incredible thing, but still realistic. I'd like to worry about the fuel issue, but since it's liquid, it can be stored almost anywhere, and besides, fuel efficiency is improving year by year.

It should work out somehow. I couldn't simply disregard what the experts of the Japanese Empire were saying. After all, the overall design of the Tactical feighter is a bit out of my area of expertise, so it's hard for me to comment.

The same goes for the Carbonic actuator. This is already the world of science, and as an engineer, I don't really understand it. In the development of Tactical feighters, we only evaluate the input (electricity) and output (expansion and contraction force).

But I can think about feasibility. The Japanese Empire was a frontrunner in the field of materials for Carbonic actuators.

Originally, their motive for starting to crush the BETA wasn't for food, but to discover new materials. If the Japanese Empire, which found new tastes from BETA powder, says they could innovate in Carbonic actuators, there's a good chance they could.

"I expect the unit cost of the machine to be quite high, but regarding this..."

It's a polite way of repeating the question: Is it really feasible?

"The Japanese Empire is willing to let go of battleships to realize this plan."

I can't take the statement of the Imperial Army Lieutenant Colonel at face value. But it probably means that they're not setting any upper limits. It's not a matter of the army selling off navy assets on their own. That would lead to war.

However, there has been precedent for such means. The European Union has been selling ships to raise funds for transferring their economic base to Africa. Thanks to that, the African Union no longer struggles with naval power.

In a total war situation against extraterrestrial life, the question of the cost of weapons becomes quite complex. Still, even in total war, workers need to eat, so the concept of pricing continues to exist.

In the end, the commercial aspect of weapons didn’t change much before or after the BETA war. Also, the military-industrial complex isn't as nefarious as it's perceived to be. They even return excess earnings.

That reminds me, considering Tactical feighters as a product was what sparked my deeper understanding of Japanese Empire-made Tactical feighters. It all started as a part of my journey to find my roots.

It's common for new employees, but it made me aware of my limits. It might sound odd coming from me, but if you don't prune a branch that's grown too high, it can hinder the growth of other leaves.

Pride based on talent is hard to regain once broken. Having only experienced growth in a positive direction, I was unaware of my starting point. So, I sought to understand my originality.

I can now look back on the awkward challenge I had at that time.

The idea I came up with was to research Japanese products, specifically Japanese Empire-made Tactical feighters in my work.

I thought that if there was a specialty not found in other countries, perhaps that's where my originality lay.

In the end, there was no such thing. Everyone just plays the game with the cards they are dealt. It was a simple fact, even reported in the newspapers.

Regarding the Japanese Empire-made Tactical feighters, Type-04 and Type-10, I might touch on them eventually. But let's save that for the margins of the page.

Now, why does the Japanese Empire's objective, derived from here, become the regular procedure for Hive conquest?

But before that, let me touch on why such an important objective isn't clearly written in the document. This issue occurs occasionally, regardless of the country.

Even in civilian product development, efficiency improvement, adding functions, and cost reduction through part review are often mentioned as new product themes. However, when the purpose of a new product is stated, there's usually something hidden.

The real objective is to knock down rival companies and monopolize the market. Or, if they're already on top, it's to continue their efforts to maintain dominance.

However, such underhanded objectives cannot be clearly written in documents. Well, they're probably thoroughly considered internally, but they can't be made public.

But as engineers, we need to be aware of these hidden objectives in our development work. New engineers sometimes struggle with this contradiction.

If it's just about pleasing customers, we could just give things away for free. The reason we can't do that is because of hidden objectives. We're not just calculating unit costs for no reason.

The Japanese Empire's Tactical feighter improvement plan had both apparent and hidden objectives. That was the first question and answer.

If this was about overthrowing American imperialism, I'd make a phone call and excuse myself from the meeting room, but that wasn't the case.

In other words, it's about conquering the Hive through regular procedures.

Regular procedures mean suppressing the Hive with normal forces only. Simply put, it means not using G-bombs, not cheating.

Let's set aside why it's considered cheating and explain the effectiveness of the G-bomb in Hive conquest.

As you know, the G-bomb, or more formally the "Goda Super-Critical Instant Reaction Boundary Interface Destruction Model Five-Dimensional Effect Bomb," utilizes the BETA-derived element Grey 11 in its new bomb design.

What is well-known about it, though? Such a bomb with a lengthy name is certainly not something taught in schools. Moreover, including the Goda Model, which forms the basis for its destructive effects, the United States has not released replicable information about it.

The terms mentioned here were reluctantly disclosed by the United States when they were almost classified by the United Nations as an "ALFA“. Humanity had pressed the United States to disclose the results of the Sign plan, questioning whether they were becoming an enemy.

Specifically, Canada and its sovereign state were upset. Well, considering the dire situation in Kashgar, no country would remain unangered if their neighbor turned half of their territory into an uninhabitable zone. It was relatively mild that it didn't escalate to war.

The United Nations almost recognized the USA as a hostile force, but that was avoided at the last minute. By the way, ALFA supposedly stands for "American-Led Force Against humanity."

It's improbable that the UN would be satisfied without any replicable information, so it's said that there might have been some unofficial sample provision.

Let me summarize the situation so far, as various pieces of information have been presented and it might be confusing.

It should be fine to discuss the first contact with BETA in the 1960s. Humanity realized that we are not alone, but also learned that it's better to be alone if your neighbor is insane. Following an offensive on the lunar surface, a large budget was allocated to begin construction of an orbital defense network based on the orbital defense plan.

By 1973, the incomplete orbital defense network allowed a landing unit to slip through and touch down in Kashgar, China, where the first Hive was built. The complex international situation prevented a serious response, and humanity allowed BETA infiltration into the Eurasian continent.

In July 1974, a unit attempting to land in Athabasca, Canada, was intercepted by the United States using strategic nuclear weapons. The nuclear explosions, aimed at creating an atmospheric shock propagation effect, mostly detonated at the earth's surface, consequently rendering half of Canada uninhabitable.

At the same time, the North American Joint Forces, which had swiftly occupied the northeastern Alberta and northwestern Saskatchewan regions of Canada, began investigating the Athabasca landing colony. This marked the beginning of the so-called enemy advanced technology research, the SIGN plan, under the direction of Dr. William Grey.

In October of the same year, BETA that had invaded 1500 kilometers west from Kashgar, China, built the second Hive in Mashhad, Iran. Humanity was astonished to learn that Hives could differentiate.

The American claim that early interception by the orbital defense network would prevent BETA from spreading beyond a 100 km radius from the Hive's influence was proven wrong. The U.S. was held accountable for the massive budgets collected from around the world for the orbital defense plan, which, although it might seem unreasonable, was clearly a failure in terms of preventing the spread of BETA on Earth.

In 1975, the United Nations condemned the United States for its illegal occupation of Canada and non-disclosure of the SIGN plan. This marked the start of an open confrontation between the UN and the U.S. Concurrently, the UN seized the orbital defense plan from the U.S. and integrated it to establish the so-called SHADOW. The U.S. condemned this move.

By 1976, the westward-moving BETA began advancing north, threatening the other superpower at the time, the Soviet Union. The extent of the damage in the BETA-controlled areas over three years became clear, and surprisingly, until then, the BETA invasion had been considered a topic on par with earthquakes or locust outbreaks. It was realized that only the U.S., defeated on the moon, and the BETA-controlled areas were in a state of panic.

In 1977, the U.S. military completely withdrew from Canada and, albeit reluctantly, agreed to disclose information from the SIGN plan as requested by the UN. Based on the public information, a doctor of physics from the Imperial University of Japan proposed the Goda supercritical model.

To ensure international unity against BETA and to not forget the tragedy in Canada, a policy was proposed to conclude an international agreement in Vancouver. At that time, Vancouver still exceeded the U.S. standard for habitable radiation levels, but all diplomats planned to attend in formal attire.

The preliminary meeting for the agreement, which would have been called Vancouver 77, was attacked by Christian Conformist terrorists, resulting in numerous casualties among the countries. All members of the terrorist group were Americans.

Then, on January 1, 1979, a unanimous agreement on the Alternative Declaration was reached by all UN member states, including the U.S.

What happened in 1978?

It's completely incomprehensible how the situation could have recovered in a year from the state of affairs in 1977.

At the time, my classmates who were taught history referred to 1978 as the "missing year." As neither teachers nor parents could provide answers, we speculated about what might have happened.

Theories included the descent of God, contact with a third extraterrestrial species called Gamma, and the unifying speech of the G-GUY soul. However, the outcome remained unknown, as there was nothing written in textbooks.

It was more understandable that the U.S. was still antagonizing the entire world. It was clear that they had garnered hate worldwide. However, as a result, the U.S. attitude had softened, and the world had forgiven the past.

In 1982, the unimaginable decision to lease Alaska to the Soviet Union was made. It was incomprehensible why this decision did not lead to a coup, as it ignored so many emotions.

Yet, this history leads up to the present, and we had no choice but to accept it.

I had almost forgotten, but this thread was supposed to be about the G-bomb. I must return to the topic. If I digress too much, the stack overflows.

The G-bomb expands the reaction boundary surface of the Goda supercritical instant reaction from the initiation to the disappearance of the Grey 11 reaction. In this boundary surface, all objects are stretched by the tidal forces of gravitational deviation, causing any object that comes into contact to be destroyed at the atomic level. This is known as the Goda supercritical instant reaction boundary surface destruction model.

There were domestic opinions that the model should be called the Muacock-Lechte model, as proposed by the discoverers in the SIGN plan, but the name was too long and cumbersome to use. The fault lay in not disclosing the information from the SIGN plan.

There was a domestic opinion that it should be called the ML model out of spite, but in the end, the name Goda was used for the G-bomb. If it was called the F-bomb due to its fifth-dimensional effects, it would have been confused with the fuel bomb, and F-bullet would have been associated with a forbidden broadcast term.

Thus, the term G-bomb was established.

Let's also look at the history of the G-bomb. The U.S. military weaponized the G-bomb in the 1990s. The first successful detonation is said to have been the Morpheus experiment in 1987. Further, the origin dates back to a memorandum addressed to the president in 1979, and its development began with the subsequently initiated Santa Fe project.

But could it be that the concept of the G-bomb was not even conceived until 1979?

That's unlikely. The concept of the G-bomb probably existed from the very early stages of the SIGN plan in 1974.

This is because humanity had already experienced the set of nuclear reactors and atomic bombs in the nuclear fission reaction technology tree. Considering that the Muacock-Lechte mechanism had reached supercritical levels by 1979, the concept of the G-bomb, analogous to the bomb, must have existed concurrently, and so must have the G-bomb dominant warfare theory.

Subjectively, I am convinced that various U.S. military preparedness plans up to the 2000s were continuously proposed to deny the G-bomb dominant warfare theory.

So, why must the Hive be conquered with the G-bomb, and why is it sneaky?

It's because the destructive effect of the G-bomb penetrates the terrain. Unlike existing nuclear weapons, the reaction boundary surface spreading from the reaction point in a sphere affects everything in between, whether it's armor or the earth's crust.

As mentioned earlier, all matter within the reaction boundary surface is destroyed at the atomic level, but this expression is somewhat misleading. Near the center of the reaction point, this is indeed the case, but the further away, the weaker the force due to gravitational deviation becomes.

As a result, the earth's crust and sturdy structures are not destroyed to the point of breaking atomic bonds, and the further away from the reaction point, the less damage is done. Literally speaking, if all matter in the ballpark were destroyed, there would be a huge crater in Yokohama, but that's not the case.

However, the damage to living organisms within the reaction boundary surface is fatal. Biological organisms operate on precision machinery made of atomic bonds. The effects of gravitational deviations occurring at the nano level are immeasurable.

From humans to BETA, no living organism is allowed to survive within the reaction boundary surface of the G-bomb. The same applies to electronic circuits.

To highlight the anomaly of the G-bomb, let's compare it with nuclear weapons. The effective radius of the G-bomb used in Yokohama is estimated to be about 1-2 km. This is because the Yokohama Hive, which was in Phase 2 at the time, had that range of influence.

Just looking at this effective radius, can we say that the G-bomb is a revolutionary new weapon?

No.

How we define the effect matters, but generally, an explosive effect radius of 1-2 km is not particularly exaggerated for strategic nuclear weapons.

So, ignoring contamination, could the Yokohama Hive have been conquered using nuclear weapons?

Let's suppose, despite all difficulties, that a nuclear weapon was detonated at the deepest part of the Hive's main shaft. What kind of damage would it inflict on the Hive?

Actually, it would cause almost no damage.

The blast shock would mostly escape upwards through the main shaft, and the sturdy underground stalk structures (stubs) of the Hive would be mostly undamaged. The BETA within would be similarly unaffected.

If the BETA were lung-breathing organisms, the situation might have been different. They could have been severely damaged by sudden changes in air pressure. However, unfortunately, they thrive even on the moon.

There's also a hypothesis that the gates located in various parts of the stubs might effectively control airtightness. Considering what corresponds to the anus in humans, it's not hard to imagine that they can separate and discharge solids, gases, and liquids.

Therefore, nuclear weapons are not suitable for destroying the sturdy underground structures that extend underground.

Most of humanity's weapons before the G-bomb were designed to defeat enemies on the surface. Battlefields like Hives, which are urban areas inversely embedded into the ground, were not anticipated. Such battlefields are hellish.

Let's clarify the major problem with conquering a Hive. Even if it were possible to eliminate BETA from the surface around a Hive, the issue remains that the majority of BETA's main forces are underground.

To conquer a Hive, it is absolutely necessary to annihilate the BETA main forces underground. The optimistic view that destroying the reactor in the center of the Hive will subdue its activities is overly simplistic.

Do nuclear weapons have the capability to kill organisms hundreds of meters underground? They do not. The only options are to go in for a direct kill or use the G-bomb, which has the ability to penetrate terrain.

It is self-evident that the G-bomb is necessary and the most efficient method for conquering a Hive.

But why is it considered sneaky? It's because the G-bomb has aspects of a dirty weapon, similar to nuclear weapons.

Initially, the G-bomb was thought to be a clean strategic weapon. At the very least, it wasn't supposed to emit radiation. The effects of gravitational deviation were confirmed to subside with the disappearance of Grey 11.

However, the effects of gravitational deviation at the nano level should have been considered more seriously. For example, even if a building miraculously survived the impact of a G-bomb, would you want to live in a structure that has been subjected to forces at the nano level?

The problem is that the effects are too minute to measure. Ultimately, all structures affected by the G-bomb in the area must be completely renewed. This is not much different from the effects of nuclear weapons.

Also, there can be unexpected secondary effects. In the Yokohama Hive operation, where the G-bomb was first used, a momentary atmospheric peeling phenomenon occurred. The air pressure above Yokohama temporarily dropped below 100 hPa.

This affected even those in the designated safe areas. Soldiers not protected by air-tight equipment on the outside were instantly killed or injured. Additionally, the storm that blew into the center caused everything to scatter, resulting in more casualties.

Consequently, the Hive operation using the new bomb was successful, but it resulted in tens of thousands of casualties. The unexpected outcome led to Japan and the East Asian Union, participants in the operation, condemning the United States.

The rise of the G-bomb threat theory was inevitable. However, the U.S. maintains its stance that there is no alternative to the G-bomb in the war against BETA: No alternative.

By the way, there is talk that residual gravitational deviation effects at the nano level could affect vegetation in the used area, but at least regarding vegetation, the impact of BETA occupation until the use of the G-bomb is considered greater.

"Can I assume that the basic strategy of the Japanese Empire in conquering Hives is understood as a 'regular procedure'?"

Lieutenant Colonel Iwaya inquired.

"The U.S. military considers the success of the G-bomb in Yokohama..."

----------- Thump -----------

The desk was struck. Lieutenant Colonel Iwaya had kicked the desk.

"Sorry, my foot hit it. Continue, Lieutenant."

Clearly, he was signaling to be careful with words.

"Based on the effects of the G-bomb confirmed in Yokohama, the U.S. military..."

The explanation was continued with the necessary corrections to the understood points.

Lieutenant Colonel Iwaya was also an excellent negotiator. It's apparent in specification adjustments and such that correcting the opponent's slips or mistakes on the spot is a very important negotiation technique.

No matter how correct the point, bringing it up after the meeting often leads to trouble.

A need for a more solid explanation became apparent.

---

In this story, it is not explicitly mentioned, but a clear difference from the original work is that there was a prior agreement to use the G-bomb in the Yokohama Hive conquest. The reason for this is the belief that war would be inevitable if it were depicted that personnel were killed or injured due to the effects of a new bomb used without any prior warning.

The next topic will be about the procedures of the Japanese Empire in conquering a Hive, particularly why it is difficult to conquer a Hive with conventional forces.