A/n: This doesn't originally belong to me but to its respectful owner, @SPBasillio.
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YNA 1, Monday, 1st Week, Month Of Noah
After the day of mourning, a month had passed according to the New World Calendar. It was now the first day of the first week of the Month of Noah. During this time, the government and the Emperor announced a National Revitalisation Program for the entire Austronesia, which means the government would help in reestablishing the business and structures that the flood has damaged.
At the same time, a national emergency has been declared, and a price freeze on essential foods was implemented. The government pledged to shoulder the burden and help the masses.
Furthermore, the government has started the return to the gold standard. Metals and precious metals are going to be used once again in dictating the value of money, instead of the paper currencies in the past. Consequently, the Empire has been intensifying its mining operations lately, especially for precious metals such as platinum, copper, silver, iron, nickel, zinc, tin and many other minerals used in coinage.
To further enhance the security of the coins and prevent them from being melted down by enemies or those who want to take advantage of it, all coins except for iron coins would be plated.
Moreover, the transaction would not just rely on coins. These coins have intrinsic values on them, which would be clearly indicated on them.
Stainless Steel Coins - 1 Earthian Cents
Bronze Plated Brass Coin - 1 Earthian
Silver-Plated Bronze Coin - 25 Earthian
Gold Plated Silver Coin - 100 Earthian
Platinum Plated Gold Coins - 1000 Earthian
The lowest denomination would be the Stainless Steel Coins, which are worth 1 Earthian cent and so on and so forth. The name of the currency will be called Earthian, as they don't want to forget their original home from which they came and originated from. It was a sign of respect and remembrance for their old home.
The government decided to move back to the gold standard because of the fact that paper money had become practically worthless as toilet paper in the trade of precious commodities. However, the transition will be gradual, until the time when the Empire finally has another country to trade to.
Unfortunately, given the current state of the world and how it works as of now, it doesn't seem like they will have any trading partners nor forming any alliances. Instead, they will only have people who wishes to enslave them and plunder their resources and ultimately lead to the rape of their dignified motherland.
Furthermore, there were a lot of shocking things that transpired before them when they started mining back for resources.
What once desolate lands were now abundant with countless, immeasurable amounts of resources. Not to mention the fact that there were also unknown metals but also minerals that were once not found in the lands of Austronesia, were discovered.
Not only did they find them previously unknown in Austronesia, but the sheer quantity was unprecedented.
It was as if the entire land of Austronesia had undergone a rebirth, with massive amounts of natural resources waiting to be harnessed. Nevertheless, they vowed to exploit these resources responsibly without causing too much harm to the surrounding nature, that is to preserve the newfound beauty of their motherland.
Scientists began researching these new metals and minerals. Fortunately, one of the elves accompanying Melian recognized the metals and provided valuable explanations about them.
One of these metals, which is called Mithril, and it is commonly found around the Third-Civilization Zone. Mithril is lightweight and highly valuable silvery metal which is stronger than normal steel.
Because of its light weight and strength, Mithril is often used to craft superior armor and weapons, due to its possessing or enhancing magical properties that offer protection against both physical and magical attacks.
Another metal, which seemed to gleam with a reddish or golden hue, is known as Orichalcum. Like mithril, Orichalcum is an incredibly strong and durable metal, considered even rarer and more valuable than gold.
It possesses unique magical properties, making it highly sought after by sorcerers, enchanters, and alchemists.
Orichalcum is used to craft powerful weapons and armor reputed to be nearly indestructible and capable of holding magical enchantments. It even enhances spellcasting abilities, protects against magic, and even possesses innate magical powers.
Lastly, there is a dark greenish metallic sheen called Adamantite, known for its extreme strength and durability as it is one of the hardest and most durable substances in the Third-Civilization Zone. It is extremely rare and highly prized for its exceptional qualities as they are often used to forge more powerful weapons and armor.
Weapons made of adamantite are usually sharper and more durable, capable of cutting through almost anything. Armor made from it is nearly indestructible and provides excellent protection, even against magical attacks from Tier 6 magic casters.
As for minerals, there is something that nobody in Austronesia had ever seen before.
Shining blue crystals that radiate arcane energy.
They are called mana stones or mana crystals, and they're common in this world, often serving as sources of magical energy.
They usually contain concentrated magical energy, which can be tapped into by mages or other magical beings to cast spells or perform magical feats.
They also often act as batteries for magical energy, storing mana that can be used when needed. This can be particularly useful in any situation where magic is not freely abundant in the environment.
These crystals can also be used as catalysts to enhance the power of spells, make magical items, or even as components in complex magical rituals.
In this world, mana crystals have significant economic value due to their rarity and the power they contain. They can be mined, traded, or fought over, similar to precious gems or metals on Earth
The power and type of magic stored in mana crystals can vary. Some might be common and store only a small amount of mana, while others might be rare and incredibly powerful, often requiring special knowledge or tools to harness their full potential.
Not only were abundant minerals such as these magical metals and crytals suddenly discovered below the ground throughout the entire Austronesia, but large deposits of fuels were also found.
Additionally, it seemed like something once submerged areas of the Empire had now resurfaced. The entire region of Austronesia was adapting to the environment of their new planet, which had not been touched too much by the might of industrialization of their original world.
This presented the perfect time to have an economic boom. All it takes is just for it to be properly exploited efficiently and distributed to the right pocket at the right time.
But the most surprising discovery that even shocked the government was the sudden drop to zero in radiation levels in Mindanao, which has the most places devastated by nuclear bombings and having the highest radiation levels in human history.
At first, the government expected a nuclear fallout, but instead, they witnessed signs of plant growth and even the emergence of a forest.
This phenomenon defied scientific explanation, but in a world of magic, they should have expected this.
Fortunately, the Elf Queen had already provided an explanation for this miraculous recovery. According to her, the world they were in possessed a special ability to heal itself from any environmental destruction. Even if a thousand nuclear bombs were detonated, the area would heal at an astonishing rate, preventing nuclear fallout, and allowing nature to regrow in a matter of months.
This revelation left the government, mostly in the Science Department, in shock and awe, as it presented a reality that such a world was far beyond their scientific comprehension.
But the good thing is that they won't be worrying about any nuclear fallout.
With the entire month that had passed, the dirty aftermath of the New Year's Tragedy had been significantly cleaned up, and the surroundings were becoming increasingly organized. Which is what they really needed to rebuild the entire structures that have fallen. After all, you can't do an effective reconstruction properly if it isn't organized into proper areas and distribution points.
Since food is becoming scarce, the things that are now mainly eaten are seafood, and it is quite surprising to the locals to discover that there are a lot of kinds of seafood in this new world. Furthermore, it seemed that the marine life from their original ocean had also mixed with the sea life of the New World they were in.
To avoid people being taken advantage of, the government declared a price freeze on all essential goods, including food.
Unfortunately, many animals in Austronesia have died due to the storm and subsequently the flood that followed. The majority of the animals drowned in water, and species like dogs and cats became endangered as a result as the disaster struck too sudden for everything and everyone to be rescued in one piece.
Since almost the majority of the industries have come to a standstill, the government firstly secured food resources and restored the power lines, which involved reviving oil refineries and oil wells. The next focus was gathering resources to rebuild the country, followed by efforts to revive the industrial sector.
As much as the government disliked it, they first had to rebuild the civilian industry, so that their production power would be increased before gradually changing focus to include the military industry in working power again.
Though some of the military industry activities have restarted, it is still in the low priority in terms of resources, so reactivating old equipment is a must.
Fortunately, because of the threat of war, a large amount of military stockpiles have been reserved and maintained in working condition, that is until the storm came, but all of these stockpiles need just a little fixing and maintenance. Furthermore, all the ammunition remained functional, which means the Empire is still armed to the teeth.
Despite the widespread destruction in Austronesia as much of everything has been destroyed, some positive developments have happened. The national revitalization efforts were progressing, and it was only a matter of time before everything was operational again.
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Austronesian Empire, Imperial Maharlika, Luzon, Manila, A Naval Dock In Manila.
YNA 1, Wednesday, 1st Week, Month Of Noah
Preparations were underway as agents that will be sent towards other countries to gather firsthand knowledge and evidence of crimes against humanity being perpetrated by other nations of this world. Even though the other nations were unaware of the existence of Austronesia, the Austronesians are very much aware of what's transpiring everywhere in the world.
Even though the Austronesians could just turn a blind eye to it, as being of the same blood and figure, they couldn't just abandon the humans there. It is for the sake of the future generations to live in a world not deprived of fairness.
By God's grace, victory shall be within reach.
Inside a military barrack within a naval dockyard in Manila, men of short stature and well-built bodies were gearing up or dressing themselves with standard special operations equipment.
This squad, consisting of six soldiers of different ranks, was among those selected for the mission to the outside world.
"Hey, Angelo! How's it going in life so far?" a man asked.
Angelo glanced at the source of the question, then looked up thoughtfully for a while before answering, "Not much, really. My family is in a better condition since the New Year's Tragedy. How about you, Nathan?"
Nathan thought for a while with a confused face splattered all over his expression.
"I'm good too, though I am still in a bit of shock, you know? Being transported into another world all of a sudden is just so unfair. Because of it, I lost contact with my girlfriend from the People's State of Xinhua. She was a really nice find, with all the gorgeous measures and personality. I'm sure when she heard the news of an entire nation disappearing on the face of the earth, she might be bawling her eyes out right now," Nathan dejectedly said.
Angelo looked at Nathan with pity, however, he tried to lighten up the mood.
"It's alright! You'll find someone new in this world! Who knows, you might find a girl with cat ears?" Angelo said with a laugh.
All the special operations soldiers present in the room laughed along, the camaraderie helping to dispel the depressing atmosphere.
"Who knows? There might actually be races in this world other than humans," another man chimed in.
The special operations soldiers were then brought down into deep thought.
"It's highly plausible, Paulo," another man said. "After all, they've already confirmed the existence of an elf as accurate information. Man, the Elf Queen is really beautiful. I hope I find someone like her someday. It's a good thing we made contact with one of the reformationists in this world. Being in a world with slavery really doesn't sit well with me."
Angelo, realizing something, brought it up dejectedly. "But Marco, our first encounter with the other nations wasn't fantastic, right? We completely wiped out their entire navy. Who knows what the future holds for us? After all, we are humans in this world. They consider us as slaves and disposable."
His words brought down the atmosphere in the room, but Paulo tried to lift the spirits of his comrades.
"Then let us show them what we are made of! Show them the superiority of our technology! That everything isn't decided by birth alone!"
After hearing one of their comrades rallying their spirits, the soldiers were invigorated and joined in on the enthusiasm.
"Indeed, we shall show them! That’s precisely why we need to undertake this mission that was given to us, so that we will have more justifications against our adversaries. We must gather intelligence, after all. No commander won a war while being blind and deaf to his surroundings. Thus, it is our job to supply the higher-ups with crucial information. We shall be the eyes and ears of the People's Empire," Nathan declared with chest high in the sky.
"We shall build peace upon this world!" Paulo echoed.
"We shall build peace upon this world!" The special operations soldiers responded in unison.
Upon fixing their equipment and checking their rations, the squad of soldiers went off outside into the naval dock of Manila.
There, before them was a humongous black nuclear submarine, which would serve as their headquarters and home for the coming months.
Similar scenes were happening all over the naval ports of Austronesia as special operations soldiers boarded nuclear submarines, each traveling to their designated countries. They have already spied the countries with the Austronesian satellites and thus they have a comprehensive map with them and all they need now is to bring in first-hand information.
Now with things blowing in a promising direction for Austronesia, it is now time for them to focus on understanding their soon to be adversaries, strengthening their position, and establish contacts with potential resistance groups in other nations, which will greatly benefit the Empire.
For now, the Empire shall and henceforth recover from the great tragedy that befall them and to adapt and overcome their current situation of their weakened state in the new world.
The submarine carrying the special operations squad was now on the move, which is powered by nuclear energy, allowing it to operate for years with minimal need for refueling, though its rations would last them for several months at least.
Furthermore, they also have enough equipment stockpiled into the nuclear submarine before going out. However, it is still best for the soldiers to conserve their ammunition, so maximum trigger control is required for each of them.
Having faced an abundance of resources at home, the entire military industry of the Austronesian Empire will soon be fully operational, and they will pump countless military equipment out every day, which is more than enough for a large-scale warfare.
"We shall build peace upon this world" was the guiding sentiment in the minds of every special operations soldier as they embarked on their mission.