Summoning the Union of South East Asia (USEA)

Chapter 30: Lit Fuse

Magdola Naval Base, Holy Milishial Empire

January 31, 1641

A warm breeze blew in the air as the sun beamed down on the Magdola island chain as the day began in earnest for the inhabitants of the islands. From the bustling city of Magdola to the now almost empty port of the Naval Base, people went along their daily lives as the winds of war have yet reached this part of the world.

Moored in harbour was the legendary Zeroth fleet, or what was left of it. What was supposed to be a fleet of 3 battleships, 2 armoured cruisers and numerous smaller vessels such as destroyers and gunboats now only comprised of 2 battleships moored next to each other, the Mithril-Class Aix and Gold-Class Variant. Standing along the railings close to turret A of the battleship Variant, captain Timi could see the train bridge that connects the island housing the naval base and the city of Magdola directly Infront of him. Despite the serene scene around him, his thoughts were still filled with theories as to why those three Gra Valkas 'cruisers' charged headlong into danger knowing they were outgunned.

He had been questioned for the past week by members of the HME's military intelligence bureau about what had transpired. Questions he had answered truthfully as he had nothing to hide. Although the intelligence officers didn't delve much into it, he noticed some level of discomfort when he started talking about the enemy transport ships that were prioritized by admiral Utema during the start of the engagement.

'Were those not military transport ships...?'

His heart sank as he began wondering who exactly were on those vessels. Were they military personnel as Utema believed or civilians. Targeting the latter during a war constitutes a violation of the Treaty of Civilized Warfare that was signed between the Holy Milishial Empire and the nation of Mu in an attempt to distance themselves away from how wars were fought by nations outside the civilized areas. The Parpaldia Empire was meant to be a signatory but the diplomatic crisis with USEA had effectively put its ratification on the back burner for now. One of the primary focuses of the Treaty of Civilized Warfare was the guarantee of the protection of civilians and surrendering combatants as well as to provide adequate arrangements for them until the end of hostilities.

'If the ships that idiot was targeting were civilian vessels then-'

Timi's thoughts were interrupted by the sudden howling sounds of air raid sirens blaring throughout the naval base.

"An air raid?! Here?!" yelled one sailor who was mopping the wooden decks behind captain Timi. Just as he was about to head to the bridge and await tasking from the command unit on the naval base, one of the sailors manning a 25mm anti-aircraft gun points his index finger to the sky.

"Look!"

Timi squinted his eyes and used his right hand to shield his face from the sun's rays as he investigated the wide blue sky above. High above, he could see a massive formation of 6-engine bombers arrayed into a formation that had some bombers at slightly different altitudes next to each other. As the first Alpha-3 fighters were heard taking off from the naval base's runways behind the harbour facilities, it soon dawned upon him where those bombers were headed towards to.

...

Above The Magdola Island Chain, Holy Milishial Empire

January 31, 1641

Slight turbulence shook the airframe while the sound of the 6 air-cooled radial piston engines bled into the cabin as the flight of 50 ultra-long range heavy bombers took off from an airbase on the eastern coastline of the Muish continent. The cabin was cold, so much so the bomber jacket that was worn only gave a slight respite to the crews of the Guti Maun bombers as they began making final checks to begin their raid.