Chapter 113 – Baekdudaegan Global Seed Bolt (1)
[Recently, some people fear that they will be irreversibly deprived of the opportunity to pursue happiness.]
Kids said. I am having lunch while listening to her radio broadcast.
Today’s menu is a hamburger set.
Beef burger stuffed with plenty of vegetables from a hydroponic cultivation facility on thin rye bread, handmade potato chips baked without oil, and Zero Colada.
It’s been a while since I wanted to eat fast food, so I talked to Artemis and came up with a healthy meal that didn’t feel fast at all.
[To put it simply, I am worried about pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause.]
“It’s a pretty strong topic.”
There are many types of kids’ broadcasts, but they are generally about entertainment and education.
Operation video of a robot squad on an external exploration.
An apocalyptic version of the animal kingdom filmed by a drone.
Shelter workplace labor interview.
Introduction to the residents’ pre-war stories.
Other promotional broadcasts that increase the sense of belonging to the city.
As residents participated in the broadcast, the content became richer, and there was even a skit with a woman who was a voice actor.
Compared to these materials, this one is quite intense.
[I know this is a sensitive issue. However, it is a topic that cannot be ignored. Having a child may not mean much to some, but for others it is a dream. I can’t ignore the fear of growing old alone without children.]
This is a problem I have been thinking about ever since I was rescued from the maritime prison. However, it is also a problem that has no realistic answer.
[Most of you are young, but some of you will be in your 40s in a few years. Given the destruction of the outside world, it may be too late for your physical age when you finally get the chance. But I want you to know that there is hope.]
I can guess what Kids is trying to say. Because it’s about a topic that I recently approved for broadcast.
[Shelter Command is working to develop all kinds of technologies to rebuild civilization, from defense, energy, food, clothing, entertainment, and medicine.]
The video was output to the PDA. It is basically a radio broadcast, but video is also supported when showing some attached materials.
[A new technology has been developed to reactivate the ovaries of postmenopausal women and enable them to produce new eggs.]
The scene on the screen was a 3D image of a woman’s uterus and ovaries.
When something was injected into the discolored and stopped ovaries, they changed to apricot color and appeared to pulsate like a heart. After a while, one or two eggs begin to be produced.
Of course, it is far from what it actually looks like. It is a very exaggerated video, but it is directed to help to understand.
[If combined with the artificial insemination technology the city already possesses, the infertility problem can be completely overcome. This will be a ray of hope for those who think they have forever missed the opportunity to hug their blood relatives.]
At first glance, what comes out on the radio seems full of hope, but when you look into the form in which it was discovered and developed, it is full of despair.
[It takes time to commercialize. There is also whether I will be able to find a husband out there. However, the intricately tangled threads must be unraveled one by one. We have solved the most troublesome part.]
But not everyone needs to know that. Especially in times like today…
[We may be living in an apocalyptic world, but we are not giving up the possibility of a brighter future.]
Calm music began to play.
[Next time, I will come back with more interesting and good news. These were the clowns, the most loyal reminders, and Kids for the enjoyment of the residents.]
* * *
Central control room.
A research profile is displayed on the huge screen in front of me. This is biological test data obtained from Bloodtech’s underground clinical laboratory.
A country whose pharmaceutical industry grew based on unethical experiments that occurred during the war, and even a country that secretly trades that information. Human history is replete with examples that are difficult to dismiss as simple conspiracy theories.
It is quite possible to have a moral debate about whether to use it or discard it, but the current situation is too poor to discuss it.
I buried my mouth in my clasped hands and looked at the profile.
Subject 245
Name: Park Ji-hye
Gender: Female
Age: 48
Status: Class 2 cargo
Progress: Progression of serious mutation while in custody. The vaginal wall protrudes long like a snake. According to medical records, menopause occurred 3 years ago, but abnormally active ovarian activity was detected as a result of imaging.
Measures: The head researcher ordered that the subject be kept alive for research, but due to the military commander’s strong request, culling was carried out. The ovaries and uterus were removed and studied separately.
This is data obtained from Bloodtech. It was memorable because it was so impressive.
The woman in the data was mutating into a variant of the infectious agent that we named ‘Lamprey mother.’
Once the complete transformation is complete, the greatly bulging uterus carries many baby monsters resembling lamprey eels.
Then, when it discovers an enemy, it shoots the young in a manner similar to a blow gun through the long protruding vaginal wall.
‘According to medical records, menopause occurred 3 years ago, but abnormally active ovarian activity was detected through imaging tests.’
This part was key.
Bloodtech, who studied a woman brought to the intermediate stage between humans and the Lamprey Mother, developed a new technology.
It was a technology to restore fertility by reactivating menopausal ovaries and producing new eggs.
This may be the first scientific use of an infectious agent.
[It is almost complete, so it is not difficult to supplement the remaining parts. About a year at most?]
Artemis said the unfinished part did not require additional human testing. It was the area of nanobot algorithms and animal experiments.
The algorithm can be solved by Artemis, and animal testing can be solved by securing animal crystals at the fourth expedition site, Seed Vault.
[What should I do? Should we continue this research?]
It was a week ago that the approval order was given to Artemis, and permission to report on this was given to Kids three days ago.
Recently, residents have completely adapted to shelter life. The percentage of people calling this place ‘home’ exceeded the majority.
Once most of the desires directly related to survival were resolved, the craving for other things slowly began to rise.
It is closer to anxiety than desire. Anxiety about the future, about whether I will be able to have children and a family.
We can’t solve everything, but there’s nothing difficult about creating a beacon of hope.
[There is no need to tell me everything. Knowing the truth is the right and duty of leaders.]
Kids predicted that rolling out the technology would help calm residents’ anxiety.
It was exactly right.
* * *
A few days after that. Went on our 4th expedition.
The flight to Global Seedbolt is a long-distance operation that cannot be compared to any journey so far.
Numerous landscapes passed beneath my feet. They clearly show traces of the infection war and its aftermath.
Among the cities I passed through, the ones that were burned and torn apart by nuclear attacks were in better condition. The remains scattered everywhere were covered by weeds that were slowly creeping up.
Depending on how you look at it, you can feel the charm of an abandoned old castle and experience a spiritual victory.
You might say there’s some charm to a city hit by nuclear weapons, but what makes that possible is the world we live in today.
“Keeeeek-!”
The great army of infected bodies below looks at the sky and stretches out his hands. Our helicopter was like an angel lost in the depths of hell.
Because of the distance, I couldn’t see their eyes or expressions, but instead I could see tens of thousands of palms rippling like a tidal wave.
It was a more horrifying sight than a face distorted by a thirst for flesh.
“It’s terrible.”
The infected entities ran with their heads raised to the sky, collided with each other, and fell like dominoes.
While trying to get up, they get tangled up and fall down again. Even as he crawls on the ground, he reaches out for us.
It’s not funny, it’s just a sad sight.
“It’s a fairy who got hit by a nuclear weapon.”
Cities that were in ruins without nuclear weapons faced such criticism without exception. If it ends up in ruins anyway, wouldn’t the roar of silence be better than a den of monsters?
Fortunately, it is not just a gloomy scene. When you leave the civilization, wherever you look, it is full of green and life.
The ecology of birds has become more active, and their chirping can be heard even from helicopters.
We also encountered a huge flock of migratory birds. It was such a large group that Artemis had to turn around for a while to avoid being hit.
Deer, elk, wild boars, and even bears were seen several times.
They were roaming freely on a road overgrown with weeds and flowers. The mountain has already begun its green invasion beyond the road and into the area of private homes.
Occasionally he was chased by walkers, but most of them escaped safely. It is even more difficult for a walker to catch a wild animal that even a person holding a gun cannot easily catch.
One time, I saw a walker that was hit by a wild boar and flew several meters away. The wild boar was followed by large pigs that appeared to have escaped from the farm. The wild flowers have already started to appear, and the fur is thick.
And there is a dam. The structure that symbolized human intervention in nature was transformed into a waterfall. The area around the overflowing water is full of green moss and vines. A group of animals can also be seen making their home on the nearby riverbank.
Then, when you enter the city area, the ruins are overflowing with monsters again.
On the one hand, there is the devastation of civilization and the chaos of monsters. On the other hand, there are the restorative wonders of nature.
“Artemis, did you see the infected organisms filling the city earlier?”
[Of course.]
“Until now, I didn’t like the infectious agents that flocked to the city in droves.”
It is an indescribable hindrance when going on an expedition. In fact, I almost died at Bloodtech.
“When I think about it now, it’s not that bad that it’s all concentrated in the city instead of spreading elsewhere.”
[…
Artemis was speechless.
So the helicopter I rode flew endlessly over the remains of the Republic of Korea.
[Arriving soon.]
This destination is not a city center, but a remote facility in the mountains at an altitude of 600 meters above sea level. The threat of infectious agents will be minimized.
However, as always, variables arise during operations. It’s almost time to reach the seed bolt.
[There is something you need to see.]
Artemis transmitted real-time video to the PDA.
It was sent by a drone sent as a scout. Prior to the helicopter passing by, it conducts advance reconnaissance and checks for risk factors.
One of the drones discovered something.
“Tree? Is this a tree?”
It was a huge tree. It was so huge that at first I thought it was a structure. It stands tall at the top of the mountain.
The central branch stretched straight up into the sky, and the twigs on both sides were very long and tightly spread out.
If you stick a filleted fish upside down and increase the length and amount of thorns by 3 to 4 times, it will look exactly like this.
The branches were white as snow and had no leaves. The sight of it shaking back and forth in the wind is like seeing a huge feather.
“Should this also be called an infectious agent, or rather an infectious agent?”
[Maybe both.]
Drone footage was converted to thermal imaging. A red heat source was felt throughout the tree, as if blood was flowing between the branches.
At that moment, noise appeared on the PDA screen.
After 2 seconds, the noise suddenly got worse, and the screen turned black.
No signal.
Only that sentence remained on the screen. The connection with the drone was lost.
[Hold on tight.]
Buuung-.
“Wow!”
The helicopter changed direction. This is a protocol for when a scout drone discovers an unpredictable risk factor.
I quickly turned my head while holding on to the ceiling handle of the helicopter that was tilting sharply.
Temporary error in drone? This is ridiculous. The stability of the algorithm developed by Artemis is perfect. So far, the software has never caused any problems.
Shot down? From what? Not a single infectious agent that attacks the air has been found.
Just as many questions are raising their heads, and I am about to become confused.
Beep.
The video has been restored. The drone was fine and was sending out giant trees again. However, it remains farther away than when first discovered.
“What happened?”
It won’t be an EMP. If that had been the case, it would have crashed.
[Must prevent radio waves.]
Artemis said.
[That tree blocked the communication signal. The moment communication was lost, the drone switched to autopilot mode. We immediately returned to the direction where our helicopter was, and the moment we escaped the radio interference, control was taken over again.]
“What?”
I was so shocked that I couldn’t speak.
Whether I’m surprised or not, the huge tree in the video is shaking sky and sky.
