Homo Sapiens

May in the Northern Hemisphere.

Sweltering and oppressive.

Inside the strategic intelligence room at the Pentagon.

Tom and Sullivan, having just rushed back on a flight from Mumbai.

And Edward Jackson, who had flown back from Xiangjiang.

All of them were gathered in this office.

The office air conditioning was set to a chilly twenty degrees Celsius, perhaps to ensure everyone present stayed sharp.

After exchanging a few words with Tom, the Governor of the Southeast Asian Black Ship, Reid Van, head of military intelligence, began the day’s meeting.

He first brought up some images, projecting them onto a large screen on one side of the room.

”Gentlemen, I will begin by providing an intelligence summary of the recent debacle in Southeast Asia.”

”First, our intelligence departments have a serious problem. We gravely underestimated the Homo Sapiens Company’s strength, especially when it came to intelligence on their nuclear bombs, where we made a fatal error.”

Benjamin, the head of the Navy, looked aggrieved. ”That’s the key question I want answered. How did the Homo Sapiens Company manage to evade our intelligence agencies and complete their development of a hydrogen bomb? Don’t tell me it’s because they have some genius?”

Tom looked a little awkward. The Black Ship bore undeniable responsibility for this matter.

Reid Van continued, ”After re-analyzing a series of intelligence reports and satellite remote sensing data, we have identified several possibilities.”

He swiveled in his chair and picked up a laser pointer, gesturing to several satellite remote sensing images and high-precision maps on the large screen.

The areas in these pictures were the Kela Isthmus, the Dangweng Canal, and the central range of the Tannantawong Mountains.

”This one shows the central Tannantawong Mountain range in 2019, this one is from 2020... and this one... By comparing forty-eight satellite photos of the region taken over four consecutive years, we’ve found some traces.”

”During 2020, after the central Tannantawong Mountain range was designated a nature reserve, there was some small-scale human activity here.”

”Extrapolating from the information in the images, we can see that drilling was taking place. Our intelligence analysts previously assumed this was merely geological exploration, but now it appears they were setting up some kind of concealment device.”

”Based on this information, we reviewed satellite photos of Hongsawaddy, Siam, Luzon, and other locations across Southeast Asia, and we’ve discovered another eighty-seven suspected concealed areas.”

Mark William frowned. ”There are others in Southeast Asia?”

Reid Van nodded with a grave expression. ”In the mountainous regions of Lancang, Kampuchea, and An Nan, and on small islands in Malaysia and Java, there are suspected traces. But without on-site investigation, it’s difficult to determine if they’re connected to the Homo Sapiens Company.”

”Moreover, I suspect this is only a very small fraction. Some areas already have logging or land-clearing activities, or existing mountain villages, which greatly interferes with our intelligence assessment.”

Tom added, ”It’s now very difficult for our operatives to move around in Southeast Asia, especially in the various mountain regions. They are easily detected by the Homo Sapiens Company, which makes field investigations extremely challenging.”

Everyone sucked in a breath of cold air.

According to this intelligence analysis, any mountainous region in Southeast Asia could potentially be the location of a secret Homo Sapiens Company base.

After all, right under the world’s nose, the Homo Sapiens Company had secretly hollowed out a twenty-kilometer-long stretch of the central Tannantawong Mountains and turned it into a canal.

And the areas where the Homo Sapiens Company developed and produced their nuclear weapons could also be deep in the mountains or on small ocean islands.

If they had discovered this intelligence before the Homo Sapiens Company possessed nuclear weapons, they could have launched a preemptive strike.

But now, with the Homo Sapiens Company holding an unknown number of nuclear bombs, the City of the Council behind America would never agree to a large-scale hot war.

What’s more, in the small-scale hot war a few days ago, the Pentagon had already witnessed how terrifying the Homo Sapiens Company was. They were no longer confident they could defeat the company in a conventional hot war.

Reid Van added a warning, ”I suspect that Three-leaf Oak, which has been active in Latin America, is very likely being manipulated by the Homo Sapiens Company from behind the scenes.”

”Three-leaf Oak?” Mark William’s brow furrowed.

Chief of Staff Edward reacted instantly. ”Is it because of that dirty bomb?”

Tom, also representing the Black Ship, agreed with the speculation. ”Yes. We previously investigated all powers worldwide with the capability and motive but found no conclusive evidence. Now, considering how events in Latin America have distracted us these past few years, causing us to overlook the changes in Southeast Asia, the Homo Sapiens Company is highly suspect.”

”Damn it! It has to be the Homo Sapiens Company. Only they would dare to be so audacious,” the head of the Air Force, Powell, ground out through clenched teeth.

The others also began to realize the connection.

They hadn’t connected the two before because they looked down on the weaklings in Southeast Asia. They never thought their opponents had the guts or the power to stir up trouble in Latin America, thousands of miles away.

But now, considering the Homo Sapiens Company’s madness and strength, anyone with half a brain would suspect a link between the two.

But what good were suspicions?

What good was being so angry you could explode?

Faced with a villain like the Homo Sapiens Company—fearless, and armed with a big bomb—America had no choice but to swallow the humiliation, unless it wanted mutual destruction.

As long as the Homo Sapiens Company refused to admit anything, all suspicions were useless.

While the men were seething with indignation...

Reid Van continued, ”Gentlemen, the second point I want to make concerns the problem of internal intelligence leaks.”

”Leaks?” A look of shocked uncertainty flashed in Edward’s eyes.

Reid Van’s expression was extremely grave. ”Yes, leaks. We’ve reviewed intelligence from the past few years and found that in Southeast Asia, where the Homo Sapiens Company is located, they often detect our operatives with ease and can just as easily learn the details of our covert operations.”

Tom deeply empathized with this point. ”The food war against Luzon, which we at the Black Ship planned jointly with the Franklin Foundation, the subsequent Cianlan Island operation, the Ceylon environmental operation, and the death of the former Governor of the Southeast Asian Black Ship, Joshua... in every case, our opponent outmaneuvered us with ease. It forces us to be suspicious.”

Edward recalled their planning for the Hongsawaddy operation. They had also been met with a precise counterattack, preempted in an instant by the Homo Sapiens Company.

”Are you suggesting we have a traitor in our midst?” Benjamin’s expression turned ugly.

Reid Van was blunt. ”Internal intelligence leaks are a certainty. Otherwise, Homo sapiens couldn’t have countered us so easily. The most important thing now is to find out which link in the chain is compromised.”

Mark William thought for a moment. He understood that there were definitely leaks.

In fact, everyone present was crystal clear on this matter, even without Reid having to say it.

After all, the exposure of the high-level nuclear bunker locations was proof that America’s internal structures had been infiltrated by Homo sapiens’ intelligence agency.

The City of the Council would likely offer their full support for an investigation into the matter, so Mark William spoke up:

”Reid, you will coordinate with the Black Ship, the FBI, and other agencies to conduct a full-scale screening of the United States Army. You must find Homo sapiens’ moles. Otherwise, our future operations will have a hard time threatening them.”

”Understood,” Reid Van nodded grimly.

Tom, who was in a position of needing to atone for his failures, would not let this opportunity pass. The Black Ship’s losses in the Southeast Asian debacle were also significant.

Coupled with the previous series of blunders, the entire Southeast Asian branch of the Black Ship was now little more than an empty shell.

Next, Reid Van brought up several new images. ”...”