Chapter 148: Unity Forged in Chaos
Three months after the dimensional invasion
In the redesigned depths of the Military School, a few hundred meters from the devastated Invalides, the National Defense Operations Center hummed with intense activity. Holographic screens projected a France fragmented into colored zones: red for lost territories, orange for contested areas, and finally, those precious green islands that were gradually expanding - the reconquered territories.
Adrien Valcourt contemplated this changing cartography from his central command post. At 47, this former colonel turned general coordinator of the National Unity bore on his shoulders the weight of a responsibility that no military manual had ever anticipated. His rise to power had not been without turbulence.
Three months earlier - The first critical 72 hours
The initial collapse had been total. The government, hastily evacuated to secret bunkers, had lost all effective authority. Prefects, cut off from their means of communication, improvised local crisis centers. The armed forces, scattered and disorganized, struggled to understand an enemy that defied all their doctrines.
It was in this chaos that Adrien Valcourt had taken an initiative that would change the course of events. Using his network of former Saint-Cyr and War College comrades, he had launched what he ironically called "Operation WhatsApp" - improvised coordination via encrypted social networks and messaging applications.
- "All active and reserve military officers, all civil security officials, all certified hunters: meet at Military School, access via Invalides metro if still accessible. Objective: national emergency coordination. Valcourt."
This message, relayed from contact to contact, had created a snowball effect. Within 48 hours, more than 200 people had gathered in the underground installations of the Military School, transforming these places into a makeshift headquarters.
Present - The administrative machine in motion
- "Situation report, Léa," Valcourt asked, turning to his former lieutenant, now promoted to Director of Integrated Tactical Operations.
Léa Moreau, her face marked by three months of intense stress but eyes bright with determination, activated the tactical interface. "Mister Coordinator, here is our progressive reconquest assessment."