A Clever Invention

Organizing everyone as he went down the hallway, Calvin dismissed Raymond's doubts. Raymond tried to get his attention by following him quickly, but he was unsuccessful as Calvin kept giving the others directions. Raymond was even more irritated at being disregarded by the cacophony of voices and busy footfall all around him. At last, Raymond moved ahead of him and grabbed his shoulders to stop him in his tracks.

With a forceful voice that pierced through the constant turmoil around them, Raymond remarked, "I really need an explanation about what you meant by taking out that many zombies, Calvin."

Calvin paused for a moment, then brushed Raymond's hand off his shoulder and gave a last order to a man nearby, who immediately complied. Calvin looked around to make sure everyone was doing as he had instructed. "Well, I planned to explain it later, once everything was set," he added. "But I suppose I can brief you and the future crew about this mission now."

Raymond felt a wave of relief because, after persistently pressing Calvin, he was finally receiving answers. Calvin pivoted and called forth the group assigned to the task. They assembled and then proceeded to a room.

"Uh, Calvin?" Raymond took a chance.

"What is it?" Calvin answered.

"Why are we discussing this in the storage room?" As he made his way through the jumble of boxes, Raymond questioned.

Calvin said, "Well, somebody couldn't wait," "Besides, I doubt we'll find a command room, and the other spaces are hardly empty after I've given so many orders."

Calvin took a small piece of paper out of his lab coat pocket and dragged a box in front of him. Raymond wondered how long Calvin had been waiting for him to awaken, always holding the blueprint for his plan. The crew and Raymond leaned in to watch as Calvin unfolded the paper completely. It showed a crude drawing of a skyscraper with odd remarks written on the side.

"This, troop, is the Inferno Bloom," stated Calvin proudly.

A crewman questioned, "What exactly is that?" before Raymond could ask the same thing.

"It's simple," answer Calvin. "This building is ideal for the best-case scenario of our design. To go to the second phase, we must first arrive at a structure like this outside. He reached into his coat and took out another paper. "And this is the second step."

Spreading it out, Calvin showed Raymond a blueprint he had seen in military drills. "Isn't that a mine or some kind of explosive device?" Raymond enquired.

"Close," said Calvin. This is the design for a very powerful bomb that is rarely produced because of its peculiar yet destructive characteristics. It explodes only a short distance away before rising to a height of about a kilometer. That is around the height of the majority of contemporary buildings, for individuals who are not familiar with scale.

More than anything, Raymond found this hard to believe because his years spent on the battlefield had given him a very different impression of deserted, dusty, and frigid ghost towns with broken buildings that were too small to protect him from the enemy. As an experienced soldier, he was unable to imagine his world of destruction with such tall structures.

Raymond looked around and saw a mixture of terror and amazement on the faces of the crew. He may admit that people who aren't used to battle and have seen the type of building Calvin mentioned before might find it overwhelming.

After being shocked, one soldier stumbled, "But…" "what do you plan to do with it?"

"Huh?" Calvin gave him a perplexed look. "Isn't it clear? We'll place it in a structure like this and set it off."

A flurry of startled responses ensued. Having done previous operations, Raymond wasn't overly shocked, but he had to acknowledge that Calvin's tone of indifference was startling.

"But aren't we supposed to protect this city from the creatures?" responded one person. "What's the point if you're just going to blow up buildings at random?"

"Don't be misled," asked Calvin. "Our objective is to exterminate the beasts at all costs, not to safeguard anything from them. At the moment, that is the only viable option. We'll put zombies throughout the building. I think we can confine enough zombies inside to say we've eliminated them from the region. We'll be free to roam the city after that."

"But wait," Raymond said. "Just because we eliminate some zombies doesn't mean that nearby cities aren't also infested. Once we let our security down, they might move here."

"You wouldn't know this, but that's accounted for," Calvin reassured him. "Barracks surrounded cities throughout Sakurashi in an effort to contain the epidemic. Although it clearly didn't stop the spread, it guarantees that no more zombies will infiltrate the city. We'll simply remove any survivors of the explosion."

Although another crew member made a reasonable argument, Calvin's statements allayed Raymond's worries by outlining a sound approach. "So, if we're cramming the building with most of the zombies we can and then blowing it up, how will we escape?"

Calvin answered, "To get to the rooftop, we'll call in a rescue helicopter." As you can see, the architectural sketch also addresses that. It states that we must have access to the roof, preferably a landing area.

Even before to execution, the mission's intricacy was a major concern, with several conditions and uncertainties still unresolved. The expressions of the crew showed their uneasiness.

Calvin reprimanded, "Come on, people, don't look so glum." We'll be out of the city in three days, didn't I promise? I had everything planned out."

"So, you've already selected the target building and prepared the bomb?" Raymond enquired.

"I've sent guys to build the bomb using a bigger plan that I left in the weapons room, and they should be done in a day or two. The building issue has also been resolved. The Sakura Central Mall is our aim. Since it's largely deserted, we can safely presume that there won't be any unforeseen difficulties within. This allows us to concentrate on attracting the zombies.

Raymond was always amazed by Calvin's careful preparation. In a plan like this, most people would have uncertainties or blind spots, yet Calvin seemed to pay close attention to every important aspect. At that point, Raymond questioned if such a mind could actually fit into the pyramid idea, which he continued to reject, or whether it might indeed be the secret to their deliverance.

Calvin then gave each crew member detailed instructions, which they immediately began to follow.

Calvin said, "Hey, Raymond," to him. "May I remind you that you're still a soldier?"

"Are you referring to my run-in with that… whoever he was, just minutes ago?"

"Leopold, yes," agreed Calvin. "We need a strong leader to guide our volunteers, who make up the majority of our workforce. Disregarding the chain of command causes someone to lose focus.

"I apologize for any inconvenience I may have caused," Raymond added, controlling the annoyance Leopold had created.

"It's good that you're apologizing," Calvin said. "But I wasn't done yet."

"Huh?"

Calvin's expression darkened again. Raymond was expecting another one of his strange outbursts, but this one was different.

"You can't let yourself get injured so much from now on," warned Calvin.

"What do you mean?"

"I didn't bring this up earlier, but I learned a few things from my investigation into the virus and a sample of your HHD. As you are aware, when your cells become infected, they adapt and change your body accordingly. Compared to your human form, it gives you extraordinary strength and speed.

"Yes, as I changed, I did notice that the blade was coming out of my arm. I know all of this.

"The thing is, those changes aren't the full story on a cellular level," Calvin said. "The HHD gave you a faster metabolism and rate of regeneration in addition to improved mental and physical abilities. However, those latter skills are suppressed by the virus.

Raymond was confused. He had no memory of being weaker or less able during the transformation. Then a recollection of possible harm in that condition came back. Raymond, startled, looked at the arm he had driven into the Crusher's teeth to cause the transformation.

He had good reason to be afraid. His arm had an old scar, but it seemed undamaged. It was small and only partially traced the wound he had caused, but it was the first time he had ever seen himself so exposed.

Calvin said, "I see you've noticed," "You've been healing that wound more like a normal human would."

"W-what does this mean, Calvin?" With a hint of anxiety in his voice, Raymond inquired.

"I've put you to the test. Your human form returns to its pre-HHD state. However, I have no idea what would occur if you were hurt while in zombie form.

Raymond was relieved to learn that he had not lost any ability, but he still had some misgivings. What if his individuality was progressively undermined by the virus? What if a bite the next day was lethal? Death, which had seemed far away, suddenly seemed dreadfully near, and he felt vulnerable after losing the protection of the HHD vaccine.

Calvin's words, "Don't worry," "Unless you decide to or feel compelled to, we don't want you to change. These missions will continue without my imposing that modification.

Raymond attempted to reassure himself that everything would be alright, eager to relieve the strain on his shoulders.

"In any case," Calvin continued, "I'll give further directions later. Rest and get to know the persons involved for the time being.

The three days that followed involved meeting almost everyone in the building. The diversity astounded Raymond; the majority came from the privileged classes of society, exempt from the never-ending conflicts because of their position.

It was his first time seeing folks who had experienced affluent and happy lives, but it also brought home a sobering reality: everyone viewed them as equals in the wake of this tragedy. People's ability to drop everything when their lives were on the line was amazing.

Raymond spent three days practicing the fundamentals with the people who would accompany him on the expedition. Raymond was given a stand-alone unit, and Leopold was given command of the squad that accompanied him. But even if Calvin insisted on taking chances by joining them, they would both do what he said.

Raymond put on his equipment, including the unique vest Calvin had given him. When the moment came, they got onto a helicopter flown by one of the few military people who were still alive and had experience in such operations. The target building was one block away from where they were dumped.

Calvin responded, "Okay," as they prepared to fight in a city full of aimless zombies who were starting to take notice of them. "It's time to get this over with!"