"Cases of the so-called 'Red Flu', or RS-12, a virus of unknown origin and a suspected Orlish pre-war bioweapon, continue to rise globally. With wartime pressure placing great strain on many governments, shortages in PPEs, medical equipment, and facilities, alongside testing equipment remain high. The Global Health Organization (GHO) estimates that at least one hundred thousand to five hundred thousand people are now infected with the disease. Gallia, North Hebei, Larissa, and Asanai remain the hardest hit, with these nations suffering above ten thousand casualties already."

- Geopol Press

+++

Duchy of Rimwurz

Eutstadt City

April 2, 2026

Red Flu. That was the moniker that was now being given to the strange disease that Amelie's Kingdom unleashed on this world. It owes its name to the fact that it caused a very severe hemorrhagic fever, leaving its victims bleeding from their orifices during its worst stages.

She felt ashamed of herself, as the last weeks had gone by, and she hardly managed to hold the line against this disease. Her attention was now consistently divided by so many things, that Amelie was struggling to get a hold of herself.

The war, then this.

It was tiring. Yet she pushed on. Today, she gave another speech in front of the cameras, declaring to the world that Orland is soon and will find both a vaccine and an antiviral against the Red Flu.

With the Bioweapon Control Agency (BCA) now established, and its first director chosen, a 1st Class Mage and an experienced epidemiologist—Sarah von Thruder, a countess from the Duchy of Rimwurz, Amelie believed they would soon reach that point no matter what.

Still, as she walked out of the conference stage, away from the flashing cameras and the crowd of reporters and experts trying to ask her questions, her heart remained heavy.

The disease was airborne. Something that spread from coughing patients as respiratory droplets or aerosols. There were already the first cases in the Duchy of Rimwurz, all of them under heavy quarantine.

At any point, it could spread here, in Eutstadt itself. Unease already spread in the city, so that she and everyone she met wore respirators, even when not a single case had been reported here.

That too. The public was already being warned by the government. Mask wearing and handwashing, alongside other hygienic measures, were being strictly enforced. Not that they needed to, the pictures alone of what the disease could do that spread on the internet spurred enough hysteria anyway.

Stores ran out of mask supplies. Companies were now starting to overproduce masks and protective gear, previously meant to be used against a WMD chemical attack. Seeing someone bleed out to death certainly was a powerful motivator for public obedience. It somewhat reminded her of how so many atrocities were committed by Orland's people because of fear.

It was strange that now, that nature of her people accidentally became useful.

"Hey," William suddenly closed in on her side. He was also wearing a mask, which somehow did little to hide his neutral boredom. "You don't seem quite alright. Did something happen?"

She sped up walking in the hallways.

"Nothing. I just need to meet Director von Thruder in thirty minutes. Can you get Nia with me?"

"I'll call her. Where is she anyway?"

"I made her run some errands in the palace. Tell her to go to the new Headquarters of the BCA, and wait for me there."

William pulled out his phone while following Amelie, calling Nia, relaying Amelie's instructions once Nia answered. When William was done, he leaned close to Amelie again.

"I should say," William started. "I do need to inform you that the three infected folks in Rimwurz have died."

Amelie felt a stabbing pain in her heart.

"Damn it," she cursed under her breath. "So we couldn't even save them?"

"...I was more so hoping it'd cheer you up."

"Tsk. Why would that cheer me up? William, your mind's getting twisted again."

"I mean, the disease is quite gruesome, and it's making you so anxious. Well, now, the folks infected by it in this region are dead, so they can't spread it once they are dead."

Amelie felt that indeed, that was the silver lining to this bleak news, but the fact that he used it to cheer her up was still kinda messed up. It just reminded Amelie that this war veteran simply had truly questionable morals, even if he was on her side.

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"William, you really need to learn basic empathy," Amelie chided. Inside her mask, she pouted, and he must have noticed it because of her puffed cheeks.

"Hey, I'm just trying here," William scratched the back of his head. "Anyway, we're now proceeding with the first human trials of the vaccine."

"No one's told me of this yet."

"Yeah. It's a bit hush-hush from the military's bioengineering teams. Just know that if you receive a request to approve using 'expedient manpower' to speed up the trials, it's us."

Amelie's eyes narrowed as she looked up at William. What the hell was he blabbering about?

"Expedient…manpower?"

"We have…ready, and willing test subjects, is what I'm saying."

"No."

"You flat out refuse? Not even a proposal presentation?"

"Nope. I know what you all mean in the military by that. Haven't I already said a million times that we're not repeating the crimes of yesterday just to save our skin?"

Amelie stopped and looked William dead in his eyes, causing him to flinch a bit.

"Tell General Albrecht to call this nonsense off. That's my official order."

"But the disease is now getting out of control—!"

"Research safeguards are in place not just to uphold ethics, but also to ensure that our people will be protected as well by any cure we give to them. While this is a risky play on my part as the Queen, I will have to take it. I want speed in this research and trials, but I do not wish for recklessness."

William looked down, sighing. Then, he met Amelie's eyes again, his cheeks seemingly curling into a slight smile hidden beneath his mask.

"After all this time…you really do not wish to change that part of you," he nodded. "Alright. I'll tell them. The military will follow the wishes of the Queen and the new director you placed in charge of this crisis."

+++

April 10, 2026

"These tanks—they're designed to take on those 'Enforcers'?" Amelie cautiously asked.

General Albrecht walked toward one of the newly produced tanks in front of her. It was named the Löwe EP5A. A new variant of the Löwe tank, now on its limited production run.

"No. They were designed last year as a direct upgrade for the EP4A and EP4B variants," he looked up at the new tank's angular turret. "The EP5A's main difference is its upgraded turret, housing a 130mm gun instead of a 120mm gun. That meant the entire turret had to be redesigned, not just to fit that gun, but also to place a bustle autoloader."

"...A bustle autoloader?"

"Indeed," the general turned to Amelie. "No man can easily carry a 130mm round on the constant. It therefore became essential to utilize a machine for it. With this upgrade, the addition of an autoloader is impossible not to do. Secondarily, autoloaders are a mature technology, so there's no point not adding it."

"I see. What about the gun itself?"

"That's the important part, and why we tout this as an 'Enforcer Killer'. The 130mm gun offers a new APFSDS round that these tanks could use to easily penetrate those land drones."

"Are we sure about this?"

"Yes. Though, it might require some aiming on the weak spots on the gunner's part."

"I see."

Amelie smiled, as she admired this tank. The land drone headache had been something that started to plague her frontline troops after all. While the rest of the land drones their enemies employed were deadly and problematic, it was the 'Enforcer' drones that presented the worst.

Heavily armored, and able to traverse all terrain, while being armed with a powerful 130mm gun that could take out essentially everything on the battlefield, it was something that claimed around a hundred tanks already since its introduction on the Orlish front alone.

Those beasts sped up attrition rates for her side at little cost. Due to their nature, they seem to rack up kill ratios as high as 3:1 in their favor. It was a headache she wanted solved, since the only good way to take out the bastards was either with heavy artillery, airstrikes, or flanking attacks.

Now, she might have the solution to that problem…assuming they could mass produce these tanks, of course. They still needed to be tested too, so there was that problem.

"But, what about the armor, general?" Amelie inquired. "Is it improved?"

"No. The hull remains the same, similar to an EP4A. The turret itself, even with redesign…well, we don't know exactly if it's a full improvement. There are too many tradeoffs with it. New weak spots replaced old weak spots, and in general, without heavy ERA covering, it cannot withstand an Enforcer's 130mm APFSDS head-on."

"That's…quite concerning," Amelie mumbled. "Even if we equalize the firepower part, they still have the armor advantage."

"The current plan is to equalize our combat capabilities with our air assets and long-range fires. That should suffice in the short term. Developing a tank that can withstand a 130mm shot after all is tricky. We would practically require a new, full design with that."

"I see."

Amelie sighed, before touching the tank and nodding to herself. Indeed, this proud machine would soon be her Kingdom's new shield.

"Start producing this once the tests are done, General. I'll ensure that the Army receives the budget for this. But also, I need new, proper tank designs to counter the enemy."

"We're working on that. An improved, armored counterpart to the LSS Phanter is already in the works. Besides, the Parasite mechs remain a formidable force on the battlefield where they are deployed. The ATGMs they carry have no problem destroying the enemy's heavy drones."

"What about when facing the smaller 'Courier' drones?"

"Well…" General Albrecht held his chin, deep in thought. "That's where things get tricky. Those 'Courier' drones after all are practically a grave improvement to the Parasite mech, and they are unmanned. Yes, it gets ugly when our light mechs and the enemy's light drones meet."

Amelie sighed.

"I really hate it when we're just throwing bodies and numbers at our enemies. But at this rate, if we can't produce better designs than our enemies, we might be forced to do just that. Relying on a weaker, manned version of what they have," she slammed her fist on the tank's side armor. "It's unacceptable."

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