"An ultraviolet sterilization protocol, the absolute thoroughness of it," Dr. Hanson murmured. "Weapons that can only operate at night—it's a massive limitation, but it also makes them easier to control, preventing them from spreading indefinitely."
Inside the warehouse, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, but no one cheered. The sight before them was far too tragic, and they all knew this was just the situation in a single refugee camp. What about the other camps? What about the entire planet?
"Hyperion calling ground forces," Matt's voice rang out. "The Meinhoff Command Center has activated its emergency contingency plan. They are deploying sterilization and cleanup crews into the refugee camps to search for and rescue survivors and incinerate infected remains. All external combat personnel are requested to proceed to Assembly Point Three, undergo quarantine, and evacuate the planet's surface. Repeat, all personnel proceed to Assembly Point Three."
"Finally, we can leave this godforsaken place," Tychus stood up, his power armor joints clacking.
Raynor organized the squad, and they warily exited the warehouse. The streets were littered with melting corpses, and almost no living infected could be seen wherever the sunlight reached. Yet, in the shadows and inside the buildings, remnants surely remained.
Maintaining a defensive sweep formation, they moved toward Assembly Point Three. Along the way, they spotted other surviving small squads and refugee groups, everyone looking utterly terrified as they hurried on.
Assembly Point Three was located in a reinforced freight station at the edge of the refugee camp. It had already been secured by the Meinhoff garrison, who had set up temporary quarantine tents and decontamination spray units. Everyone—including Valerie and her security operators—had to undergo rigorous decontamination and medical screening before boarding the dropships back to the orbital port. The process was tedious, but no one complained.
During the wait, Valerie saw Dr. Hanson in a heated discussion with several Meinhoff officers and scientists. She stepped closer, catching fragments of their conversation.
"—We must immediately conduct ultraviolet scans and sweeps across all refugee camps on the planet! The incubation period of this infector is unknown; there could still be carriers who look normal but are already infected!"
"We've mobilized all available UV radiation equipment, Doctor, but our quantities are limited, and some of the refugee camps have already... spiraled out of control. Comms are down, and our men can't get in."
"Then use orbital ultraviolet searchlights! Adjust the spectrum and conduct regional sweeps! Even if it causes collateral damage to the uninfected, it's better than letting a full-scale outbreak erupt!"
"That would kill every living thing in the shadows, including uninfected civilians who are hiding! We can't—"
The argument raged on. Valerie could tell that the Meinhoff authorities recognized the severity of the issue, but resource scarcity and ethical dilemmas left them paralyzed to make a decisive move.
At that moment, Raynor walked over, his expression grim. "Matt just sent word. It's not just Refugee Camp Three; massive outbreak events have also occurred in Camps Two and Four, and... a worse situation has emerged."
"What's happened?" Valerie asked.
"Some of the infected... seem to have undergone a secondary mutation. They are no longer entirely photophobic, only sluggish in the light. Furthermore, ranged variants capable of spitting infectious fluid have appeared, and... there are even reports of structural features resembling Swarm units being spotted."
Dr. Hanson overheard this, her face turning deathly pale. "Genetic instability—meaning they might evolve rapidly, and even... fuse with other biomass. If the infected come into contact with Swarm spores, or if the Swarm consumes the infected—"
She didn't finish her sentence, but a shiver ran through everyone. A fusion of the Swarm and biological weapon infected? What kind of living hell would that be?
The dropships were finally ready. Valerie, Raynor, and the others boarded the craft, ascending from the ground. Looking down through the portholes, columns of thick smoke still billowed from several refugee camp sectors on Meinhoff's surface—they were incinerating the corpses. The beams of ultraviolet searchlights pierced into some of the densely built-up areas like sharp swords.
The orbital quarantine zone of the starport was also overcrowded at this moment, the atmosphere extremely tense. All personnel returning from the surface were sent into individual isolation pods for twenty-four hours of observation. The Hyperion was also under semi-quarantine, with only essential personnel allowed in and out.
In the briefing room of the Hyperion, Raynor, Dr. Hanson, Tychus, and Valerie gathered once more. Matt Horner's holographic image also manifested in the room. The atmosphere was heavy.
"The Meinhoff authorities have formally requested our assistance," Matt's hologram spoke. "They admit they no longer have the capacity to handle both the refugee crisis and the infection outbreak. The infection is spreading to non-refugee areas, and might even enter the starport through undetected carriers. They want us to help, or at least... help evacuate the civilians who haven't been infected yet."
"How are we supposed to help?" Tychus asked gruffly. "We're practically turning into a refugee ship ourselves."
"They are willing to provide some transport ships and supplies, but they need combat forces to cover the evacuation operations," Matt brought up the star map. "The plan is to establish a temporary evacuation point in Meinhoff's north polar region. The climate there is cold, and ultraviolet radiation is strong due to a thin ozone layer, which should suppress infected activity. We will gather survivors confirmed to be uninfected from each camp there, and then use the transport fleet to ferry them away in batches."
"Sounds like another version of Agria," Raynor rubbed his temples. "And more dangerous, because the enemy isn't just the Swarm anymore, but these goddamn infected."
"We don't have many options, Jim," Matt said quietly. "If the infection breaks out completely on Meinhoff and this transit hub planet falls, the entire outer perimeter of the sector will collapse. The refugees will have nowhere to go, and the Swarm will drive straight through."
Raynor fell silent for a long moment, then looked at Dr. Hanson. "Doctor, if we go to the north pole to establish an evacuation point, what would the active capability of the infected be in that environment?"
"The low temperatures will slow down their metabolism and movement speed, and the strong UV radiation will cause them greater harm," Dr. Hanson analyzed. "But the situation regarding the secondary mutants is unknown. Furthermore, they might still attack areas of gathered life regardless of the cost."
Raynor then looked at Valerie. "Miss Valerie, is your Far Star Alliance... still willing to participate in such a high-risk humanitarian operation? I understand your mission is risk assessment, but this has already far exceeded the scope of ordinary risks."
Valerie had long since received Osiris's directives: continue participating, collect more data on the infected—especially the mutated variants and potential Swarm-infected hybrid samples—and continue to support Dr. Hanson's research.
"Risk assessment includes evaluating the response capabilities of all parties under extreme circumstances," Valerie replied composedly. "The crisis on Meinhoff is a classic case study for assessing the interstellar community's ability to handle compound disasters. The Far Star Alliance will continue to provide assistance. My security team can take charge of a portion of the defensive command at the evacuation point, just as we did on the ground."
Raynor nodded. "Thank you." He turned to face everyone. "In that case, we accept Meinhoff's request. Target: the north polar evacuation point. Mission: establish a defense, receive survivors, and organize the evacuation. This is going to be the toughest fight we've ever faced, because the enemy isn't just bugs, but monsters made from our own people."
"And possibly a combination of both," Dr. Hanson added heavily.
"Whatever it is," Tychus pulled down his visor, his voice muffled, "as long as it stands in our way, we blast it to goddamn pieces."
The plan was set. The Hyperion would serve as the command center and the mothership for some of the evacuation vessels. The main force of the Raiders, Valerie's security team, and a portion of the Meinhoff garrison would proceed to the north pole to establish defenses.
And everyone knew that the key to this battle would be how to hold off the tide-like infected during the night, standing firm until dawn to purify the battlefield with ultraviolet light.
The nightmare of Meinhoff was far from over. And the true terror, perhaps, had only just begun.