Commander:
“What’s the situation?”

Agent:
“Last night, we neutralized University High School and John Wayne Airport in Irvine. Currently, Shadows have formed a broad 25-kilometer front along Santa Ana, Huntington Beach, and Anaheim.”

Commander:
“That’s rapid progress. If only L.A. weren’t so obscenely large.”

San Diego, Miramar Military Airport, UAV Control Room

The facility was quiet, save for the rapid exchanges of information and heated discussion among the few remaining personnel. San Diego was the best vantage point for observing Los Angeles via UAV, making Miramar’s control room the most crucial spot in the nation’s defense efforts.

Each day, transport planes flew in fuel supplies for the UAVs, while convoys and escorts braved dangerous highways to keep them running. The U.S. was stretching every available resource to the limit.

The results were impressive—Los Angeles’ status was being updated in real-time.

Analyst:
“Retaking a 610-square-mile area in a week would be impossible without kiloton-level nuclear missiles. It’s a miracle the death count isn’t rising.”

Everyone looked up at the Icarus UI display, labeled “Operation Sunrise,” with a counter marked “Death Count.” Despite days into the mission, the count hadn’t risen from zero. If actual U.S. forces had been deployed, they’d likely need tens of thousands of body bags just to begin. Los Angeles was the largest city in the Western U.S.; securing it block by block with only conventional weapons would have been unthinkable.

No one knew exactly what Shadows were, but one thing was certain—they were an invaluable asset to the U.S.

Commander:
“How many Shadows are active now?”

Agent:
“Stable at around 100,000. They’re being continuously replenished as they’re expended in battle.”

Commander:
“A staggering number. And they show no signs of moving further south, it seems.”

As the UAV pilot adjusted the trajectory over Anaheim, Disneyland Park came into view. With real-time CCTV hacking active, they scanned the facility.

Everyone gave a wry laugh.

Commander:
“My god, it’s all in flames and rubble.”

Pilot:
“My dream was to take my 12-year-old daughter to Disneyland. By the time it reopens, she’ll probably be in her twenties.”

Analyst:
“A theme park built on childhood dreams, now reduced to a battlefield. If this were a movie, I’d be curious to watch it.”

The view beyond the screen was nothing short of chaotic. The fairytale-like structures were engulfed in flames, and Russian armored vehicles were smashing through buildings left and right. RPGs shot across the landscape, sending shrapnel from shattered attractions, while Shadows with inhuman, metallic forms mounted machine guns behind cover, mowing down drug-addled Cartel soldiers.

On the iconic Disney Castle, Russian machine guns were mounted, while mortars fired from behind destroyed buildings, creating a surreal scene of black humor. Sticky bombs and thermite grenades reduced the castle’s already battered appearance to shreds.

Having enjoyed a moment of dark humor, Commander Powell spoke up again.

Commander Powell:
“How long until Shadows penetrate the main L.A. area?”

Analyst:
“Ten to fifteen days, at best. The complex layouts of Long Beach and Torrance will slow us, and we anticipate strong resistance from LAX.”

After a brief pause, Powell continued.

Commander Powell:
“Is it possible that these Shadows could survive friendly fire?”

A round of chuckles filled the room, as everyone understood Powell’s hint. No one raised an objection.

After a quiet confirmation, Powell directed the Chief of Staff to contact Florida, Virginia, and New York. A video screen appeared as Powell began.

Commander Powell:
“We’re planning to conduct strategic bombing on Los Angeles. I’d like to hear your thoughts.”

Not a single voice opposed the idea.

Thirty minutes later, Powell secured the authority to launch nearly all available ballistic missiles. After confirming the orders, he said:

Commander Powell:
“Just bring me coordinates that will maximize effectiveness.”

At that moment, someone was eavesdropping on this brief conference—the Dagger Team.

Lorentina:
“Let’s reach out to the rookie. Let’s rain fire from the sky.”

Lorentina requested Yujin to provide precise enemy locations, and within ten minutes, a list of coordinates arrived.

Explosions began to ripple across Los Angeles within an hour.

[ISO Announcement]: This is a notice to all allied forces operating near Los Angeles. A large-scale strategic bombing is imminent. Moving beyond the line connecting Disneyland Park and Huntington State Beach may result in friendly fire. Repeat…

Harmony:
“What a spectacle. What on earth is going on?”

Dice:
“Maybe it’s a belated fireworks season.”

Harmony:
“In these cases, it’s usually Yujin pulling the strings, right?”

Yujin:
“Haha, you’re kidding…”

Harmony and Dice were getting sharper every day. It stung a bit to see them figure things out without much of a hint. My conscience wasn’t completely intact, but perhaps the triangular piece of it was still there.

Meanwhile, thousands of missiles were en route to Los Angeles. Cruise missiles from SSBNs stationed in the Gulf of Mexico, the Nevada Missile Range, Fort Bliss in El Paso, and Navy bases in Virginia, among others, were followed by ballistic missiles carrying laser-fusion hydrogen bombs with 1-kiloton yields.

A blinding streak of light shot across the sky, descending towards its target.

Then—

BOOM!

Dice:
“Wow.”

Harmony:
“Lots of nukes going off these days.”

Yujin:
“Those are clean—no radioactive fallout.”

Comments:
-Why is that even important? 😂😂😂
-This is insanity for an incursion endgame 😂
-Just insane 😂
-Wouldn’t this wipe out all the enemies? There’ll be nothing left for us!
-That day, L.A. earned three skulls.

It was a dazzling light show.

Military bases, large shopping complexes, Westminster Mall, refineries, ports, cargo facilities, fortified military sites, high-rises, strategic sites like LAX, the presumed enemy command in Beverly Hills, and even the Malibu resorts—all of it was obliterated.

Although it lacked the unique mechanics of previous operations like Bluefield or Chariot, Operation Sunrise and its strategic bombing left one message for all players: this game’s incursion scenario would stop at nothing, even bombarding its own soil, to eradicate every last enemy.

After only ten minutes of intense bombing, the players grew impatient.

Player:
“Are they saying we should enter L.A. today?”

Other Player:
“Hey! Get in a car, now! We’ll drive until we drop dead on the road!”

With the sound of shattering windows and gunshots, players broke into cars and sped down the roads. With 100,000 players now surging from Anaheim and Huntington Beach, the game’s tide shifted dramatically. The wave of players swept into Long Beach, Paramount, and Santa Fe Springs, the southern fringes of Los Angeles.

Of course, the bombing alone couldn’t resolve everything. The Russian-Chinese-Cartel alliance still had around 500,000 troops, and even with their morale shattered, scattered enemy units filled the L.A. area. Allied operators faced platoon to battalion-sized enemy groups repeatedly at key intersections and highways.

Among those units was Yujin and her team.

Yujin:
“Enemy ahead. I’m stopping the car.”

Dice:
“Deploying foam chem. Temporary defense line established!”

Harmony:
“I’ll launch the drones. Hold your positions.”

A giant tangle of highways and overpasses loomed—an intersection of the 5 and 91 Freeways, sprawling in seven overlapping layers. Yujin hit the brakes as Dice loaded a foam chem into a chemical launcher, spraying it under nearby vehicles to create cover. Yujin and Dice aimed forward, firing as Harmony deployed drones to scan the area. It was chaos. Enemies boldly fired down from the top overpasses.

Harmony:
“This position is awkward.”

Dice:
“They have the high ground advantage!”

Yujin:
“I’ll hold the line with a ballistic shield. Let’s prioritize targets, especially those with anti-tank weapons.”

Dice nodded, as Yujin raised her shield with one hand, fired her machine gun with the other, and expertly threw grenades up to the overpass.

Amid the intense exchange, Harmony marked something on the UI, causing all of them to grin.

Harmony:
“Well, now. That’s an interesting plan. It might just work.”

Their plan? Destroy the bridge supports to drop the enemies down to the road.

Dice swapped the foam chem for nanites, Harmony set the drones to self-destruct mode, and Yujin readied thermite and sticky bombs. With their advanced Icarus operator firepower, the plan was feasible.

As Yujin maintained suppressive fire until her barrel glowed red, she placed thermite on the left support pillar while Harmony approached the right with a drone.

BOOM!

It was a small explosion, but the effect was significant.

Thermite, sticky bombs, drones, and nanite canisters shredded the bridge’s structure. The bridge went from supporting the road to barely hanging by a thread. Dice then fired four more nanite canisters at the roadblocks to collapse them entirely.

After a few moments—

Sound Effect: Crrrreeeeeak!

Enemy Soldier:
“An earthquake?!”

Other Soldier:
“The bridge is collapsing! Move out!”

Tons of steel and concrete broke under gravity’s pull. Dozens of soldiers and a BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicle teetered on the edge before plummeting down, landing in a twisted heap. A pulse scan confirmed the damage was extensive.

Yujin:
“Oh, all their necks are…”

Harmony:
“It’s not over yet.”

The remaining enemies were scattered and disoriented. Yujin and her team easily cleared out the stragglers, glancing at the makeshift cover Dice had set up but barely used.

Yujin:
“Turns out we didn’t even need that.”

Dice:
“Maybe we should’ve just gone with nanites from the start.”

Comments:
-You guys are crazy 😂😂😂
-Normal people would use smoke grenades and run, not blow the bridge! 😂😂😂
-Running away? Nope, annihilate!
-When the situation’s bad, just kill everyone—easy solution!

With the chat buzzing, Yujin stepped back into the car and hit the accelerator.

The stage was set. It was time to retake Los Angeles.