Ch.75: Allied Astonishment: Bharat's Rapid Advancements

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Months had passed since Athena's transformation, and Bharat had made remarkable strides in its military capabilities. The induction of the new Delhi-class aircraft carriers, advanced battleships, state-of-the-art aircraft, and cutting-edge tanks and artillery, along with other military technologies akin to the Cold War era of Aryan's previous timeline, had significantly bolstered the nation's defense forces. These advancements, combined with the already existing drone technology and other innovations, had transformed Bharat's military into a formidable force.

The impact of these new technologies was soon felt across the Indian Ocean. Bharat's forces swiftly defeated the remaining Axis bases, capturing strategic locations such as Seychelles, Socotra, Mauritius, and the Reunion Islands. The Axis powers were pushed out of the region, and Bharat's attention now turned towards the South China Sea, aiming to liberate Southeast Asian territories from Axis control.

The rapid advancements in Bharat's military technology did not go unnoticed by the Allied forces. Countries like the USA and the UK were astonished by the sophistication and effectiveness of Bharat's new arsenal. The sheer speed at which Bharat had evolved its technologies, potentially surpassing even the most advanced Allied capabilities, prompted urgent discussions and meetings among global leaders.

Camp Lehigh, Washington DC, United States of America, July 15, 1944

In Washington, D.C., Nick Fury, armed with detailed reports and photographs of Bharat's technological marvels, made his way to meet Howard Stark at the meeting room in Camp Lehigh, a secret military base part of the Strategic Scientific Reserve. Stark, a leading supplier of military technology for America and a close friend of Fury, was intrigued by the reports.

"Have you brought the photos and documents I asked for?" Howard Stark inquired as soon as they took a seat at the large meeting table.

"Yes, here," Nick Fury replied, sliding the folder containing the documents towards him as he took a seat across from Stark.

Howard eagerly opened the folder and began reading the reports and documents. His interest was particularly piqued by the technology, especially the drones. Observing the blurry photograph of a Bharatiya drone in action, he commented, "Man, why is it so blurry? Couldn't you get a clearer picture? Not to mention the details here are severely lacking," he said, pointing at the picture.

"Haah... what you are looking at is the best we could gather, Stark. We couldn't get any details from the inside, so all we could gather was from outside observation by our military intelligence and analysts." Fury sighed as he rubbed his temples. He had been in contact with the intelligence agencies, and from what he could gather, no information was able to be collected from inside the Bharatiya military or their agencies. Bharat had recently tightened their hold on information leakage so much that they couldn't even tell what was actually happening inside. This naturally put the intelligence agencies across the world in a difficult position as they couldn't get hold of the methods or information of these weapons and technology from inside Bharat.

"Well... it is only natural for them to protect the information about their technologies," Howard said, not taking his eyes away from the photograph as he observed it for uncovering even the slightest of details. He had been following the recent moves and achievements of Aryan quite closely since his meeting with him at Princeton University, approximately five or six years ago, had left quite a good impression on him. Their talks about various research topics greatly intrigued and impressed him with Aryan's genius. He had realized that Aryan was something very special, and he was proven right. He could clearly see that these new technologies were merely the tip of the iceberg of Aryan's capabilities.

"What do you think? Can you manufacture these technologies for the US military?" Fury asked with hope as he was sure that the only person who could quickly fill the gap that was beginning to form between the military technologies of Bharat and the US was him. In fact, he had been tasked with the same by the higher-ups in the government, as they were now pushing for whatever funds were required for the acquisition of these technologies into the US military through their own agencies as well as leading private dealers that provided these types of military technology.

"Hmm…I can try to make something like this but it will not be exactly similar as the details are not clear, however, I will guarantee its quality." Howard said while thinking of the various possibilities as well as methods to make these unmanned aircraft as well as other technologies.

"What I actually can't comprehend is the speed at which Bharat is progressing in technology. From the last I checked, it was quite a poor country. They might have quite intelligent people up there, not to mention Aryan himself, but from where did they get so much funds and resources to develop such technology at such a speed?" Howard asked while still in contemplation.

"You don't know? Aryan actually has a massive business empire that sells all kinds of clothes as well as jewelry and trinkets from a wide range of variety from common quality to extremely luxurious ones across Europe and America. Not to mention that he is involved in almost every sector in his domestic space and is slowly etching its way globally. He's a multi-billionaire." Fury said, looking at him seriously.

"With his various business ventures, all the profits are actually divided, with 70 percent of all the profits going to his philanthropic works and the remaining 30 percent for the progress of his companies. All these topics are quite widely known nowadays due to him donating a lot of money to war-torn African countries as well as his own nation. I bet he channeled some of those profits to make these technologies." Fury continued, relaying the widely known facts to him he seemed to be ignorant about.

"That's….an interesting way of doing business. I believe, since he gets benefits and salary as a President he doesn't require much money and wow…he donates 70 percent of his total profits? That's one hell of a man, but not surprising as Tata, a prominent business owner in Bharat, does something similar, so I guess it's sort of their mindset." Howard said, wide-eyed as he compared him with Jamsetji Tata who was beginning to form a good reputation worldwide after Bharat's independence and the support of its Government.

Listening to him Fury's paranoia kick started and he started rambling his thoughts to him. "Yes, and it makes me naturally very paranoid about him. He is powerful, I mean literally no one knows the limits of his powers, along with being extremely intelligent and resourceful. He has too much power and influence for an individual to possess. I fear what his unchecked influence and power can mean for the future."

Listening to him Howard couldn't help but sigh at his friend's paranoid nature. "Well….I think everything would be fine you are needlessly worried about a possible future," he said as he thought about finally going to Bharat to meet with Aryan personally to discuss with him about various research projects he might be able to collaborate with him.

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