Plague Doctor

The city that rose on the horizon had skyscrapers surrounded by an imposing stone wall. It stood right on the wasteland. The city would be glittering at night but even in daylight, it was clear that it was not in ruins. At that moment, an opposing cavalcade was hurrying over. It was the armored vehicles from the Angel City, there were tanks and armored trucks. There were even helicopters patrolling the sky. Gu Jun was shocked. However, his shock was not shared by the other men in his group. They were all shouting and chanting. It was the fire of men unafraid to die.

“Ah Bao?” As Gu Jun came to, he asked in a hurry, “Do we even have enough people to do this? To demolish the Angel City?”

“We definitely do.” Ah Bao answered passionately as he waved his fists. “The fact that we’re here is already more than enough. Ha ha ha!”

Gu Jun knew these people were barbaric but not stupid. He even sensed great intelligence in the leader. He wouldn’t have led these men into their death for no reason, so they must have some kind of secret weapon… Gu Jun’s eyes moved to the red truck. Just what was underneath the tarp?

“You are now in the Angel City’s territory!” The speaker announced from the helicopter. “Leave immediately or you’ll be punished as trespassers!”

“Come and get us!” Ah Bao’s screams turned wild. He was joined by Da Niu and Shou Hou. “Send your best Flying Locusts!”

Gu Jun noticed that a yellow cloud started to gather above the Angel City. As he took a closer look, he realized it was a giant cloud of locust. Their wings flapped noisily to form a gushing sound as they flew towards the small cavalcade. The cracks on the ground split bigger with each flap of their wings.

“Those… those are?” He stammered.

“The Flying Locusts have used their spell. They must know we’re not to be trifled with!” Ah Bao laughed. It dripped with his hatred. “Those are not the Locust God they worship; they are just small worms. But be careful not to get bitten. They have a nasty bite. Their bites will cause horrible wheals and you’ll die from excruciating pain. That’s how they killed my brother and father.”

But the swarm did not seem to dampen the men’s spirit. They readied their weapons. Several roughly made rocket launchers aimed at the helicopters in the sky. Despite their patchwork appearance, the rocket launchers packed some punch. A helicopter was hit and it brought on great cheers from the men.

Gu Jun was transfixed. The Flying Locusts knew spells and they were in fact very good at it… Back on earth, the whole Spell Department was drained just to summon a giant nightgaunt. Just how many spell casters and how much mental power was needed to summon such a large swarm of locusts?

The fallen helicopter did not stop the Flying Locust. The armed trucks continued their advancement. The Flying Locust had advantage in both numbers and the quality of their weapons.

“Ah Bao, is there some kind of secret weapon on that middle truck?” He knew his question would raise suspicion but Gu Jun was too worried about his own survival to care. “Or else we won’t be able to win this…”

“Brother, you’re one hell of an observer!” Ah Bao turned to the truck with a glow in his eyes. “Today, Angel City and its residents are doomed!”

“What kind of weapon is it?” Gu Jun asked agitatedly.

“Brother, I’m not sure you’ve heard it before.” Ah Bao guffawed, “It’s called an atomic bomb.”

Gu Jun was baffled. Then he saw someone pull back the tarp of the truck. A giant atomic bomb sat in the carriage. Its cylindrical shell was painted military green. It was connected to computers which were manned by several young men who were hidden under the tarp.

‘Atomic bomb?’ Gu Jun’s expression shifted once more.

“Oh, you can bet your ass that it is strong enough to blow up the entire city, ha ha ha ha!” Ah Bao shrieked loudly.

Gu Jun’s forehead broke out in cold sweat. He said hurriedly, “But an atomic explosion has a great destructive range and it will emit radioactive waves. The consequence…”

“Don’t worry, our tribes have already moved to a safe location!” Ah Bao chuckled. “Brother, you are quite knowledgeable but we’re not stupid either.”

Someone on the helicopter probably spotted the atomic bomb because the voice on the speaker turned nervous. On top of the repeated warning, there was now request for negotiation. The swarm of locusts was approaching. The men picked up their guns and the gunfire intersected with the crazed and fanatic screams.

“Where did you guys manage to find… this atomic bomb?” Gu Jun still found it hard to believe. Could this just be a normal missile?

“That day, a foreigner visited our place.” Ah Bao, who was most in the deepest grasp of fanaticism, explained, “He drove this truck with him. It carried many unique materials and tools, many we have not seen before. He taught us how to use them, how to manufacture bullets and ammunition. He taught us new things every day. He even gifted us this atomic bomb, he said he found it at an abandoned military base.”

“Then where is he now? What happened to him?” Gu Jun’s heart cried with alarm. Who was this man? Something did not sound right…

“You’ve already met him. He’s the one inside the cage. He was killed by the Flying Locusts.” Ah Bao hissed through his teeth. So the leader told a lie earlier.

Gu Jun did not get it. This meant that the poster he had did not belong to the man inside the cage or Ah Bao would have seen it before.

‘Wait a minute, if this is a real atomic bomb…’

“Wait a minute!” He screamed at the leader. “There has to be other methods, please wait!” But no one was willing to listen. His voice was drowned out by the literal war around him. The locusts came and surged into the first car. Instantly, the 4 elite guards were brought under the weight of the locust swarm. They wailed in pain and mercy. The leader ordered without hesitation. “Let it fly!!”

“It’s over for Angel City!” Ah Bao cheered. The people around him joined in the festivities. Tears welled in their eyes but they were all smiling. Gu Jun could not stop the imminent doom and he had no way to stop it either. He saw the man on the red truck press on the initiation button.

The military green shell was filled with high density uranium. The explosive inside was ignited and that caused massive pressure to propel the warhead forward. In a few seconds, the critical mass would create an atomic chain reaction and highly destructive energy would burst through and leak out…

In just a few seconds, millions of locusts flooded this strange cavalcade. The excited screams turned into shrill cries. Ah Bao, Da Niu and Shou Hou’s faces were crawling with locusts. But their eyes were open to see the horrified expression on the members of the Flying Locusts…

A giant explosion and a giant mushroom cloud. The voices from both sides disappeared. Every face dissolved into dust. All the cars, locusts and helicopters turned into nothingness. The metropolis that stood imposingly on the wasteland seconds ago was wiped out of existence.

At that moment, before the citizens could react, they were oxygenated into nothingness.

At that moment, Gu Jun appeared to hear Ah Bao chant a strange name, claiming that they had succeeded. It was the name of the foreigner.

“Nyarlathotep,” yes, that was his name.