Today's date is November the first and Alexander could feel the chilly breeze that signals the upcoming winter season that will upon St. Petersburg.
Alexander hopped onto his Beast and made their way to the airport. He propped up his chin as he gazed out the window, observing all of the different sights passing by him as they went along the road which was cleared beforehand by his security detail. The sun shone brightly against his skin with its rays reflecting off his face.
The city feels so lively and peaceful, and the faces of the crowds on the street are welcoming with smiles on their faces as if they have no worries in the world.
It seems like his effort of making his country a better place for his people to live in is gradually paying off. He dreams of keeping it that way until the day he dies.
He let out a dreamy sigh before glancing over at the man who was sitting across from him. He had a smile on his face, making Alexander cringe a little.
"What are you smiling at, Sevastian?" Alexander asked as his eyes narrowed.
The smile Sevastian was wearing returned to its neutral state.
"Nothing important really, it just seems that you are in a good mood and I can't help but feel happy about it," Sevastian explained.
"Well four years ago I was out to look around the city inside the car and it felt kind of opposite to what I've seen today. It made me somewhat happy that it changed under my administration."
"Your policies made what Ruthenia is today, Your Majesty. I'm fascinated that you were able to do so in just a span of four years. Anyways, I heard that you had a meeting with the Minister of Finance yesterday, how did it go?"
"Meeting? There was no meeting. The Minister of Finance has asked me to reschedule the meeting as he had an appointment yesterday with the Imperial Council Committee of Financial Services. And since I asked him out of the blue about it, I agreed to reschedule it. It was rather sudden actually."
"I see," Sevastian replied thoughtfully. "Anyways, Your Majesty, I've been meaning to ask, where are we going?"
"We're going to one of the airports in St. Petersburg off limits to the ordinary folks. We're going to fly north, to the island of Novaya Zemlya, and we will be watching a demonstration."
"Sounds exciting, I wonder what that is," Sevastian commented. "Do you know why I want to go there?"
Alexander grinned softly, already imagining what kind of expression he was going to have once he saw what his team of scientists was working on for the past two years.
The journey was silent for a moment until Sevastian spoke again. "Your Majesty, have you heard that our Special Forces in Choson have successfully extracted the king out of Hanseong?"
"Yes, the Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff informed me of the successful operation along with the successful takeover of their capital."
"We have total control over the Choson Peninsula, Your Majesty. Since we bombed the port of Busan, sending additional supplies and troops into the peninsula has been a huge problem for the Yamato Empire. I wonder what futile attempt the Yamato is going to make to turn this thing around," Sevastian hummed."
"The Intelligence Department is sure as hell working on it. The Yamatos are not going to give up the Choson Peninsula that easily. They might attempt a night raid but we have control eyes in the skies. Should they do so again, I will annihilate them before their planes can even have the chance to take off."
Ten minutes later, the car stopped as it arrived at its destination. The door was opened by his Chief of Security, Rolan Makarov.
Stepping out of the vehicle, Alexander breathes in the air deeply before looking at Rolan whose hands are still on top of the door.
"Rolan, I read your letter yesterday and I must say I'm surprised. Are you really going to take a four-month break?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. The incident that happened in Yamato still affects me psychologically. I think I'm gonna need some time to refresh myself and recuperate from it.
Alexander nodded understandingly. "That's quite sad, to be honest as I will have more diplomatic trips in the coming months."
"Don't worry Your Majesty, my replacement is just as good as me and loyal to the Ruthenian Empire and to the Royal Family. I picked him up myself and you're going to meet him next week. I really apologize, Your Majesty."
"It's okay, a break is what we need when we are dealing with things like these. I'll authorize it once we get back to the Winter Palace. For now, let's board a plane first."
Rolan nodded and led the way. His fingers pressed on his ears as he contacted the security team, giving commands.
The plane waiting was a copy Boeing VC-25, a militarized version of the Boeing 747, a means of exclusive air transport for the president of the United States. It was the same plane his sisters flew in to get to Sakhalin.
Alexander was greeted by the elite Imperial Guard stationed on the port side of the corridor just next to his office. He gave a smile before entering the executive suite consisting of a stateroom with a dressing room, lavatory and shower, and the emperor's office.
He jumped onto the bed and his body bounced lightly from the mattress. The bed smells good, like lavender which is comforting and relaxing. With a tired yawn, Alexander, little by little, closes his eyes as the drowsiness starts taking hold of his body. He felt himself drifting asleep. He only had a four-hour sleep last night because of work.
What a pain in the ass. Even though he has a group of ministers that helps him run the country, his work just keeps increasing.
***
Two hours later.
"Your Majesty," Alexander snapped back to consciousness, feeling someone shaking him slightly. "We've arrived, Your Majesty."
Alexander slowly opened his eyes and found himself staring into the deep blue eyes of a blue-eyed, blonde hair man.
"Rolan?"
"Yes sir, we just landed in Novaya Zemlya."
"How long was I out?" Alexander sat up straight, fixing himself while yawning.
"Two hours, Your Majesty. The car that will take us to the test site is waiting for us on the ground."
"Good," Alexander stood and straightened his suit. "Let's go."
***
Another thirty minutes have passed for Alexander to get to the testing site. He arrived at the classified military inside the mountain and was escorted to a bunker-like room. There was a rectangular window to look through, giving him a sight of one of the vast plains of the Novaya Zemlya.
"Your Majesty, it's a pleasure to meet you again."
A voice sounded from behind. It was Karl Heisenberg, the chief scientist for the Ruthenian Nuclear Program and one of the theoretical physicist he poached from the Deutschland Empire by helping him finish his papers in the field of quantum mechanics.
"You're now good at speaking Ruthenian. So, is the thing ready?" Alexander simply asked.
"Yes, Your Majesty. It'll begin in five minutes. I just followed your instructions and built the prototype based on the specifics you sent me. One atom could produce so much energy, what if it's a million or a billion more." Karl said as if implying something.
Alexander didn't say anything to him after that. It's best to show rather than tell.
"Anyways, safety goggles," Karl handed him goggles.
Five minutes later, high-ranking officials and the military of the Ruthenian Empire gathered in a small room along with Alexander.
Everyone wore their safety goggles as they stared off into the distance.
The countdown started.
"Ten...nine...eight...seven...six...five"
Everyone was tensed up in anticipation.
"Four...three...two...one."
After the countdown, there was a brilliant flash of light at the center of the plain, and a wave of heat and light swept across the ground. Everything that got caught with it was incinerated and vanished in an instant. A powerful blast wave followed, causing everyone inside to reflexively close their eyes and step backward with a shocked gasp.
Once the wave of devastation had swept fully past them, they looked through the glass and their eyes widened when they saw huge mushroom clouds rising over the epicenter of the explosion.
"What...the."
"Is this the power of a god?"
"No, this is a mere fraction of power we harnessed from god," Alexander corrected them as he removed his glasses.
"What is that, Your Majesty?" One of the trembling officials asked him.
"That thing is called an atomic bomb."
