Chapter 166: Chaos Rises

Recently, our reporter was invited to attend the launch ceremony of Umbrella's new engineering vessel, and our reporter will also board that vessel to travel to Umbrella's mining base built on the Moon; at that time, our station will broadcast a distant view of Earth from the Moon for everyone…

(TV channel switched)

Oh! Buddy! This is a deep dark fantasy…

(Channel switched again)

Cornell University and Umbrella will reach a cooperation, expected…

Click~! a sound, and the TV screen fell into darkness.

It seems the person holding the remote, seeing no desired program or channel, simply pressed the power button and gave up searching.

The view pulls away from the TV screen.

One can then see this 55‑inch ultra‑thin TV, hanging on the left wall of an office, provided for the office staff to relax during their leisure.

At this moment.

Standing in the center of the office, the person facing the TV, holding a remote in his right hand, is dressed in a black police uniform, with a badge on his right chest bearing the words "Oxnard Police Department".

Oxnard.

It is a port city not far west of Los Angeles, with a population of about 180,000.

And here is the third‑floor office of the Oxnard Police Department.

The office now has the air‑conditioner set to warm, with red‑green artificial flowers and colored lights hanging on the walls; a small Christmas tree stands beside the exit, and outside the right‑hand window, heavy snow drifts, a scene of a cold winter night.

Today is the United States' most important holiday, Christmas on December 25th.

Therefore, in this spacious office, there are only a few officers on duty; after all, their shifts are relatively unlucky, forcing them to stay here until the morning of the 26th.

Especially since there are no good programs today, making the officers feel especially bored.

The officer holding the remote, showing a helpless shrug to his colleagues, turned back to his desk, opened the computer, and began writing the long‑standing reports to pass the time.

The right‑hand corner of the office.

Seated at the window‑side desk, a middle‑aged officer is also typing his report.

The middle‑aged officer sports a goatee, his unkempt appearance giving him a somewhat weathered look, yet he exudes the vibe of a very reliable uncle.

On the silver metal badge on the left chest of his uniform is engraved "Qiao Er·Mi Le, Sergeant, OxCA379".

Soon, the middle‑aged officer named Qiao Er finished typing, used the mouse to click the save button at the top left of the document, then clicked the X at the top right to close the document.

The closing process was very smooth.

After revealing the desktop, one can see the Start button on the left side of the taskbar, which is also Umbrella's red‑white umbrella logo.

Obviously, the computer's operating system also originates from Umbrella.

Qiao Er did not pay attention to these details, but stared at the desktop wallpaper for a while, and unconsciously a faint smile appeared on his face.

The wallpaper is a family portrait of Qiao Er's three‑person household, with his wife and daughter showing heartfelt happy smiles.

Regaining his composure, Qiao Er stopped staring at the photo, and glanced at the time in the bottom right corner of the screen.

20:47, 2006/12/25.

Seeing the time wasn't too late, Qiao Er pulled out his ultra‑thin phone, apparently ready to call his family.

"Sergeant!" Before Qiao Er could unlock the screen, a handsome young blond officer approached his desk, scratching the back of his head with his right hand, seemingly embarrassed, and said:

"Tomorrow's off, may I invite Sha La to…"

"No." Qiao Er bluntly rejected without hesitation.

"Sigh… alright, Sergeant." The young blond officer looked dejected.

"Zzz…" Suddenly, all officers' walkie‑talkies emitted a burst of static.

!

Hearing the commotion, the officers all stopped their work and focused on the walkie‑talkies.

"All units, attention." At this moment, a female dispatcher's voice came over the walkie‑talkie:

"The town of Ohaï has suddenly suffered a massive power outage, accompanied by numerous malicious arson incidents; local police and fire cannot cope alone, therefore they request our assistance."

Upon hearing this, the officers' expressions hardened instantly, and they all looked toward the equally stern‑faced Qiao Er.

After all, the highest‑ranking officer present is Qiao Er.

Seeing this, Qiao Er picked up the walkie‑talkie on the desk and replied: "This is Sergeant Mi Le, I will arrange supporting police forces."

"Understood," the female dispatcher replied.

Communication ended.

Qiao Er stood, surveyed the officers present, and in a deep voice ordered: "Mu Le, Qiaozhi, Kang Si Te, the three of you stay here; the rest accompany me to support Ohaï."

"Yes, Sergeant!"

The officers receiving the order immediately checked their sidearms and gear, then, after donning cold‑weather coats, briskly left the office toward the police department's underground parking level.

The already empty office now only had the three officers left on duty.

Not long after.

The north exit of the police station.

The underground garage gate rose.

Leading the exit was a police pickup equipped with a yellow snow‑plow, followed by four four‑seat police cars and a police SUV.

They entered the street.

The police pickup lowered its snow‑plow to clear the way, with the five police cars trailing behind, traversing the snow‑covered street.

Subsequently, the convoy first traveled west on Highway 101, then turned onto Highway 33 heading due north, driving straight toward the northern town of Ohaï.

During this time, the convoy also met a police fleet from Ventura City, and the two fleets merged to provide joint support.

In the swirling snow, visibility was extremely low; the whole world seemed as if only they were still out there moving.

However, fate seemed to favor these officers; when they were only two kilometers from Ohaï, the blizzard gradually subsided.

And Oha'i Town gradually entered the view of the police officers.

Flames shot up into the sky.

But the officers in the vehicle did not show excessive astonishment.

Because this is near Los Angeles.

Since the riots after 1960 have occurred, especially the Compton Riots that broke out on April 29, 1994, in just four days they arrested ten thousand people, a thousand more than the total population of Oha'i Town.

Inside the pickup truck.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Joel glanced sideways at the blond officer in the back seat, saw the other's solemn expression as they operated a high‑end smartphone, and couldn't help to speak up:

"Let your family know you're safe?"

"Yes, Sergeant…" The blond officer put away the phone, looked up at Joel, and, in a tone that seemed irrevocable, voiced concern:

"Tell my family… I might be home later; tomorrow's lunch and dinner… they don't need to make my portion."

"It's not as bad as you say, rookie!" Hearing the blond officer say that made the officer driving the pickup laugh, and through the rearview mirror he reassured the blond officer:

"At most it's just a gang taking advantage of the blackout, deliberately setting fires to loot shops and malls. Honestly, those bastards run scared as soon as they see us arrive. Relax! You'll definitely get to eat your mother's cooking tomorrow!"

"Hope that's the case, but… can you focus on driving?" The blond officer seemed even more worried.

(End of chapter)