Chronicles of New Joseon, Episode 3
Seonghan turned his head, surveying the faces of the people aboard the Hwanung.
Jeonguk was beside him, and he confirmed that the other employees and staff from partner companies were there.
However, he could not see Hyeonsik's face.
Anti-air missiles began firing from the missile batteries deployed on the ground.
Flames embroidered the sky, and beyond them, countless black dots were growing larger.
The radar officer on the bridge cried out in a voice filled with shock as he looked at the radar screen.
"Fighters detected! It's a JSDF aircraft carrier!"
"They all came! Damn it all!"
Heoyun cursed as he saw the Japanese fighter jets that looked like tripods.
The fighter jets visible outside the window were diving steeply.
The radar officer urgently shouted.
"Enemy missile launch!"
Jang Seongho shouted.
"Activate defense systems! Intercepting missiles! One! Two! Four! Activate close-in defense weapons! Seven! Eight! Intercepts complete! Damn…! Enemy fighter cannon fire!"
Heoyun spun the helm hard, struggling to evade the machine gun rounds fired from the fighters.
But the Hwanung was too massive; it could not help but take rounds.
Though the damage screen showed nothing, he was certain they had been hit.
Kim Inseok called out to Jang Seongho in an urgent voice.
"Chief! The engine room!"
The quick-witted Jang Seongho was already lifting the receiver, calling the engine room.
A woman's voice echoed loudly from the receiver.
"Chief engineer! Engine status?!"
"—No abnormalities!"
"Is output at maximum?!"
"—Yes!"
"Understood! Report if there are any abnormalities!"
"—Understood!"
The engine room was safe.
He thought it was a fortunate thing in the midst of misfortune.
Just then, a booming thunderclap erupted from behind the Hwanung with a loud "Boom!"
The radar officer shouted again in alarm.
"The Usa! The Pungbaek! They're being shot down!"
"What……?!"
"The Habaek is under attack!"
The thunderclap was the sound of the two transport ships exploding in midair.
Soon after, the Habaek also fell victim to the JSDF attack and erupted in a roar.
Everything was vexing and wretched.
Everyone on the bridge was furious, their eyes bloodshot.
Only Kim Inseok maintained his composure.
"If we enter the outer atmosphere, the enemy will attack with lasers! Raise the forward shields to maximum! Once we leave the atmosphere, perform a spatial leap to Earth!"
Jang Seongho questioned.
"If we leap to Earth, the Japanese and Chinese fleets will……!"
"We're going anyway! The place we must return to is Korea! Leap to Earth!"
"Ah… understood… Captain!"
"Perform the spatial leap immediately upon entering the outer atmosphere!"
"Yes!"
They had to survive.
The crew's spirits snapped to attention.
Following his orders, they raised the forward shields to maximum and prepared to perform a spatial leap to Earth.
The ascending JSDF fighters fired missiles at the Hwanung.
Decoys were launched, scattering metallic fragments in all directions across the sky.
The missiles, having lost their way due to the electronic jamming, self-destructed, and the JSDF fighters that had entered the atmosphere could no longer pursue the Hwanung as it climbed in altitude and entered the outer atmosphere.
Heading into space required enormous fuel and engine thrust.
Heoyun checked the altitude and air pressure and reported to Kim Inseok.
"Entering the outer atmosphere!"
Immediately afterward, a red light enveloped the bridge.
The enemy destroyers were conducting beam attacks.
The radar officer panicked as he looked at the screen.
"It's a beam attack! The shield is collapsing!"
Jang Seongho gritted his teeth and counted down.
"Five! Four! Three! Two! One! Activate warp drive!"
The stars left afterimages, becoming lines.
Spacetime distorted, and everything was pushed back faster than light.
Near the Taebaek Star, the Hwanung vanished without a trace.
And between the Earth and the Moon, it suddenly revealed itself.
The Earth, retaining its majestic visage, filled the bridge windows.
Gasps flowed from the crew's mouths.
Jang Seongho urgently called to the radar officer.
"Kim Cheon! Report if there are any warships nearby!"
Having suffered a surprise attack from China and Japan, he thought they could be attacked similarly in interplanetary space near Earth.
At Jang Seongho's order, the radar officer checked the screen.
And stared intently.
Absurdity gradually seeped across his face.
Adjusting his glasses, he checked the screen again and reported to Jang Seongho.
"Th-there are none!"
"What? That can't be……?"
"No warship, no base facility of any kind is being detected! The screen is clean! Chief!"
"……?!"
Kim Inseok called for Lee Taeseong.
"Communications officer! What is the status of communication with the United Nations?"
"There is no signal!"
"What about signals on other channels?"
"There are none! No signal of any kind is being detected! Not even any signals intercepting our communications!"
"What on earth……"
It was a state of utter bewilderment.
Great confusion began to arise before the Earth.
It was true that Japan and China had attacked from the Taebaek Star.
Thus, they could not help but worry about what state Seoul and their hometowns were in.
Jang Seongho personally adjusted the Hwanung's telescope using the computer at the chief's station.
And aimed it at Seoul to check the situation.
Jang Seongho was greatly startled as he looked at the screen.
"What the hell is this?!"
The bridge crew turned their heads.
Kim Inseok asked Jang Seongho.
"What is it?"
Jang Seongho answered.
"I observed Seoul… no. It would be better if you saw for yourself. I'll output it to the monitor."
He transmitted what he was seeing to the side screen of the bridge.
When Seoul's appearance appeared on the screen, everyone's mouths fell open and their gazes trembled.
A completely unexpected shock occurred.
No one could easily speak.
Thirty minutes passed.
The people sitting in the cargo hold seats, where heavy equipment was tied down, were curious about the situation outside the Hwanung.
Several people, unable to overcome their curiosity, tried to unfasten their seatbelts.
Just then, the door opened, and crew members entered inside in a state of weightlessness.
Among them was Jang Seongho.
"Tech team, tech team… is anyone here?"
At Jang Seongho's question, a voice rang out from one side of the cargo hold.
"Here."
"Who is the most senior?"
"That would be me. Technical Chief Park Eunseong."
"I think you need to come to the bridge for a moment. And is there an employee from the Space Administration here?"
He was looking for the public company employee who had supervised the mining site.
At Jang Seongho's call, Seonghan looked around again.
He looked for Hyeonsik and realized that he was the most senior.
He raised his hand and answered Jang Seongho.
"Here. And I am the most senior. Section Chief Yu Seonghan."
Hearing Seonghan's reply, Jang Seongho said.
"Please come to the bridge. And I would also like the highest-ranking member of the security force to come. There is something we will inform you of on the bridge."
He couldn't understand why he and his younger brother were being called.
Before that, he wanted to know if the Hwanung was safe.
Unfastening his seatbelt, he launched his body toward where Jang Seongho was.
And grabbing a steel pillar, he asked what the people were curious about.
"China and Japan attacked us. The fleets of both countries must have been waiting outside the Taebaek Star… was that vibration from earlier the spatial leap?"
"Yes."
"Where are we now? Are we safe?"
"……."
Jang Seongho could not immediately answer Seonghan's question.
He appeared to be contemplating something.
And opened his mouth.
"We are definitely safe. However, we will tell you where we are once we reach the bridge. Please follow me."
Jang Seongho held his tongue.
As he headed to the bridge, Seonghan followed, and Park Eunseong and Seonghyeok also moved after him.
He was curious about what story would be told on the bridge.
Entering the bridge with both anticipation and worry, he saw the Earth outside the window and thought they had returned safely.
On the one hand, he considered that Chinese and Japanese warships might attack, yet the relatively calm atmosphere of the bridge crew kept him from being too afraid, and he looked around.
He lowered his head in greeting to the person sitting in the captain's chair.
Kim Inseok nodded, accepting the greetings of Seonghan and Park Eunseong.
Seonghyeok saluted his military superior with a raised hand.
Although it was the Space Force rather than the Marine Corps, he showed proper courtesy to his superior and elder.
Seonghan carefully asked Jang Seongho.
"You said you had something to tell us. What is it?"
At Seonghan's question, Jang Seongho looked at the monitor beside him.
Following his gaze, the eyes of Seonghan, Seonghyeok, and Park Eunseong moved as well.
The three people's breathing momentarily stopped.
Their pupils dilated, and endless question marks arose in their minds.
Seonghan asked Jang Seongho.
"Where… where exactly is that?"
With a stiff expression, Jang Seongho answered.
"It's Seoul. We have come to the past."
On the monitor was the scenery of the Joseon Dynasty viewed from the sky.
Faced with a reality they had never expected, it felt as if the whole world was lying.
They could not believe what they were seeing with their own eyes.
And the future became pitch black as to what they should do.
Accepting reality took roughly two hours.
Afterward, they thought and put their thoughts into action.
The history of tragedy began to change.
#Deciding to Change the River's Course
The lights turned on in the empty room, and people came inside.
Pressing a switch on the wall caused a wheel-like wall to rotate, applying centrifugal force.
As the compartment attached to the side of the Hwanung rotated, the people who had entered felt gravity.
They could sit comfortably in chairs, and with waist belts fastened, there was no longer any need to force their bottoms down.
They attempted to converse in a somewhat comfortable atmosphere.
That was purely physical comfort.
Mentally, they were filled with bewilderment, tension, and fear.
There had been three transport ships outside the Hwanung, and Jang Seongho informed them of what had happened to the remaining three.
Seonghan immediately asked back upon hearing the story.
"The Usa and Pungbaek were shot down?"
"Yes. And the Habaek was shot down as well. We confirmed it via radar and communications just before the leap."
"My God……."
Many people who had lived and worked together at the Taebaek Star had died.
And Seonghyeok had also lost comrades with whom he had shared life and death until now.
He grieved over the loss of the company commander who was his superior and the soldiers of another squad with whom he had been close.
Repeatedly saying it couldn't be, he wiped away the tears gathered at the corners of his eyes with his sleeve and accepted reality.
And he revealed his rage toward China and Japan.
"Chinks. Japs! Damn dogs!"
"……."
"Damn them……."
Seonghyeok's heart was the heart of everyone in the cabin.