B004V9FYIY EBOK Read online

  Applause resounded again.

  “Since this happened, more than forty nations have been in contact with us via the hotline. All deplore this dastardly act and offer their assistance.”

  More applause.

  “And we have not been sitting idle. We have met with industrial and business leaders of this nation. Already we are working to restore the communications so quickly taken from us.”

  Applause.

  “I have taken the steps to get the trains and other forms of transportation operating again to keep our people fed and electricity flowing.”

  Applause again.

  “Over the coming weeks I will be working with the military leadership to field an Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps that will be ready to mete out the justice our American casualties cry out for.”

  Applause

  “But to do everything needing to be done, we must work together. We must find the ways to restore what this nation lost, to stand up to those who struck out at us, and to take the steps to make sure this never happens again.”

  Applause.

  “The United States has been struck from behind. We have been wounded by an unknown assailant that remains hiding like a coward in the dark. We have been knocked to our knees. But we have not been knocked out.”

  Applause.

  “One of my staff said it right. This is not a political situation. It is a military one. No one deplores sending our young men and women into combat more than I, but that time has come.”

  Applause.

  “Therefore, I ask the Congress to declare that the United States is now in a state of war.”

  The House erupted in applause as everyone jumped to their feet, applauding and yelling their support. After a few moments, the President continued.

  “We will continue to search for our attacker. We will find the nation responsible. And when we do, they will feel the full power and might that this nation can produce.”

  The men and women stood cheering again.

  “I will work closely with the Congress to bring about our ultimate victory and to set right the peace of the world. We did not start this fight. Until two days ago, we harbored no ill will toward any nation on this earth. In fact, we have set the standard for peaceful coexistence with all nations. But this fight has come to us, and we will not back away.”

  Applause.

  “We have a long way to go. I do not know how long this will take, or how far this shall go. But go we will, and together we will achieve ultimate victory,” he said completing his speech.

  The floor erupted one last time, and the Congress voted quickly to place the United States on a war footing. Within minutes the orders went out to everyone. All veterans and retirees were ordered activated and to report to the nearest reserve center. All military industrial centers began bringing in workers, retirees, and hiring new labor to begin gearing up. A draft was instituted, and the call went out to gather any and all pieces of working military gear. The United States was activated. The nation was gearing up for war.

  Over Northern Virginia

  Colonel Claire Richardson was bone tired. She had spent a day in the CH-46 flying to Memphis. While there, she surveyed the destruction, set some things in motion, and 24 hours later was flying back. It was particularly dark around Washington as the helicopter approached the city. With the imposed blackout, no landmarks could be seen. The helo made a turn to the left and, looking out the window, Richardson saw someone signaling with a lamp. In a moment a crewman came aft and approached her.

  “Colonel, we have been told to take you straight to the White House. We should be there in about five minutes,” the crewman yelled over the noise of the engines and rotors.

  Richardson nodded. She knew from such a short message they probably didn’t know the reason behind the change. She only wished she had a chance to straighten up a little before seeing the President. After a few minutes she noticed a small ring of lights over which the helo lowered and positioned itself. The Sea Knight came to rest in the circle just in front of the White House. She could see someone on their way to the chopper, not even waiting for the rotors to slow. Richardson left her seat to meet the person at the door.

  General Black’s outstretched hand was accepted and he quickly ushered Richardson out of the Sea Knight and through an opened door of the mansion. The brightness of the lights inside made her squint. “You’re the first one back, Colonel,” Black said. “We wanted to hear it from you right away,” he said as they walked briskly through the halls and finally into a heavily guarded Oval Office.

  The White House had almost become an armed camp. But inside, the President came from behind his desk to greet her warmly. The President ushered her, Black, and a man he introduced as the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the sofa and chairs in front of the fireplace. Coffee and some snacks were on the table. A mess specialist poured some cups of the dark brew before departing. “Colonel, I appreciate your efforts. What can you tell me about Memphis?” the President asked.

  Richardson set her briefcase on a low table beside the sofa and pulled out a pad of paper covered with notes she had taken that day. “I hope somebody can read these,” she said as she handed the papers over. “They need to be transcribed and the materials rounded up. Basically, civilization came to a standstill in Memphis, Mister President. It was a ground burst in the heart of the city. No buildings are standing within two miles. There is a crater and there is residual radiation. The blast extended out another seven miles before it stopped breaking every pane of glass. The city’s hospitals were downtown, but some outlying hospitals and clinics have set up rudimentary services. No electricity, no water, no sewer, and the infrastructure to restore them is almost nonexistent. They need everything – tents, cots, blankets, food, water, medical supplies, and portable generators to keep things operating. You name it, they need it,” she said solemnly. “There is no transportation system and the survivors are on foot trying to find refuge. The Red Cross ran out of supplies the first day. They only had local supplies and couldn’t get more in. There was some rioting for fresh food, but I let people know pretty quickly that only canned food would be safe. The neighboring towns of Bartlett, Germantown, and West Memphis are sending everything they can, and a lot is being delivered by tractor on small flatbeds. In some instances drivers have been attacked and the food taken before they got to their destinations. In what’s left of the city, bodies can be seen everywhere. There are no mortuary services and, frankly, no one wants to go in and pull the bodies out.

  “I spent yesterday setting up a military perimeter to keep things contained. We have a few Guard units escorting as many of the supplies we can, but there aren’t enough. Sir, we need manpower to get things down there and set it up. I recommend we send in some medical teams that know radiation poisoning and have the tools to deal with it. I talked to the mayors of the neighboring towns. They are having water shipped in and are trying to get the electric lines back up, but their resources are limited. When I talked to the National Guard COs, I ordered them to get their people online and lend a hand immediately. It’s difficult under these circumstances, but things are moving. In my notes you will see the places I set up for four evacuation stations. They are the Liberty Bowl and University of Memphis on the east, the international airport in the south and the town of West Memphis in the west. Each is on a major thoroughfare and has easy access along with some shelter to work for a while. I wish I could have stayed, but you needed the information,” she said finally, slumping back into the couch.

  The President smiled at the Colonel. “Colonel, you did a nice job, but it needs a good touch to finish it. I’m going to have to send you back down there tonight, but at least you won’t go empty handed,” he said. His expression changed as he became more serious. “Did you happen to find anything out about the Vice President?”

  She could see some hurt in the man’s eyes as she shook her head. In a softer tone she said, “No, sir. I was told
he and his party were downtown when it happened. There’s nothing left of the hotel sir. I’m sorry.”

  The President nodded sadly, then smiled. “It’s no matter. We have a lot to do.”

  FEMA spoke up. “We anticipated a lot of what you will need and already loaded it on trains out of Petersburg. The other things you listed will be gathered up and brought in on the next available transport. I must admit, there are some things we didn’t think of, but make a hell of a lot of sense. I’ll be incorporating them in the next load. If all goes well, I should have additional FEMA teams on the ground there in a couple of days to help out. Until then, I am sending along an HF communications truck so we can have some voice communications,” he said. “Whatever you need, just ask for it, General.”

  “The 46 is refueling and will take you down to Petersburg,” said Black. “The trains leave in three hours. I have detailed 2000 troops from Quantico and Fort Belvoir to be under your command. They are already loaded and waiting. Your staff is also embarked. There is a supply train, a passenger train for the troops and medical personnel, and a vehicle train we scared up to help with the transport. Claire, get down there and help those people,” Black said with a smile.

  Richardson looked slightly overwhelmed. She was already tired beyond limits, but things were going a little too fast. The details were okay, but there were two things that stuck out. FEMA called her a General and Black had addressed her by her first name. A questioning look came over her face. “So I am in charge of the whole thing,” she said, more as a statement than a question.

  The President almost laughed. “I need people who can get a job done. I don’t have time for bureaucrats or politicians, I need things done and right now. From what I have seen tonight, you are the one to do it in Memphis. Get down there and keep going,” he said. Then he reached behind his desk and pulled something out. “But I do need someone with a little more clout than a Marine Colonel,” he said.

  Black started unbuttoning Richardson’s eagles as the president pulled out a set of single stars to replace them. “I heard you were up for it anyway, so I used my influence to speed up the process,” he said as he fastened them on. “Claire, just get down there and make a difference. I’m counting on you,” he said as he shook her hand.

  “I won’t let you down sir,” she said totally overwhelmed. “I’ll contact you every day on our progress. If I run into trouble…”

  “I’ll take care of it,” the President said with a nod. “You have the authority of the White House until I say stop. But more help will be on the way. All the government agencies will be reporting to you. We’ll do it together,” he assured her.

  “Then, sir, I have the conn,” she said coming to attention. The sound of a helicopter starting up was heard faintly through the walls.

  “Thanks, General. I appreciate your help,” the President said. “Now, I believe your chariot awaits,” he said.

  The two shook hands and the two generals left the Oval Office. “That’s a tall order,” FEMA said to the President after they left.

  “Yea, I know, but I think she’ll do just fine. Glancing through the papers she gave us it looks like she has her act together.”

  “I agree. She has a pretty detailed set of plans. I’ll make sure my people don’t get in the way. Any word from Dallas?”

  “Not yet, but hopefully by tomorrow we should hear back. Are the trains ready for Dallas?”

  “I got some old rolling stock from Chicago on its way via Arkansas. The trains are making a stop there to make a requisition and should be ready tomorrow afternoon. It’s getting hard to piece all this together. Two separate disasters of this magnitude are using about everything up,” FEMA said rubbing his chin. It had been a long day.

  “I know, but we have to do it. Our biggest problem is going to be scraping together things to fight this war,” the President said before collapsing into his easy chair. “We’ve got to do that too.”

  In a Small South American Country

  Admiral Pedro Alvarez looked outside his window. The word had reached the government about how bad it was in America and he was concerned. America was not liked in a lot of places and was not especially admired in South America. His small country had maintained friendly relations, but there wasn’t much that interested the United States in his country. Alvarez earned his college degree at Georgia Tech and returned to his small navy to try and get it into the 20th century, if not the 21st. He gazed out at several ships sitting at the pier. They were some of the first real ships used in his navy and now were worn almost out. His men kept up the maintenance, and they still performed well when needed. But he had newer ships and these vessels were awaiting the scrap yard.

  An idea came into Alvarez’s head as he looked at the ships. The United States was preparing to go to war with someone. They had been dealt a serious blow. They were probably looking everywhere for ships to help in this. Anyone helping them in a time of need would benefit greatly after that war. After making up his mind, he walked to his desk and placed a telephone call. Within eight hours four old destroyers made their way out of the harbor and turned north.

  Chapter 4

  April 1 - The Attack

  Korean Demilitarized Zone

  Master Sergeant Paul Hufham was making his midnight rounds as usual. He wanted to personally make sure each of the guard towers was manned and the occupants alert. It didn’t make much sense to him why they were there. The Korean Demilitarized Zone or DMZ had been there for over seventy years and, aside from a couple of small skirmishes, it had remained quiet but tense. The tenseness bothered some of the younger guys but not him. He was used to it and had come to love Korea and its people.

  Tonight it was almost pitch black and the air was cold. A slight breeze blew along the line and brought a shiver to the man as he stood by the tower. There was the smell of dust and decaying vegetation in the air. As he looked at the treeline across the DMZ he could just make out the darker area of the trees from the sky beyond. For several months a very faint light had been in the distance he had not remembered since the last time he was there. Only one other guy had noticed, but it was passed off as a new barracks intelligence had seen being built. He looked up at the concrete tower before him. They had been constructed years before to act as a sort of fortification against the hoards of the north, but they were mostly a cheaper shelter for the occupants that changed stations every four hours. The towers were all the same – a circular tube that ran from the ground up with a much larger circular enclosure with wide viewing slits around the side for watching the “enemy.”

  Entering through a steel door, the first thing he noticed was the dim red glow of an electric heater at the base of the inner curved wall. The men blessed the designers every day for those heaters. The nights at the 38th parallel could get quite cold and the winters brutal. The heaters at the base were out of sight and the warmth radiated up to the men on the top. The floor the men stood on was wooden and had small vents in it. This allowed their feet to stay warm even if the rest of them froze. It made all the difference in the world.

  Hufham slowly climbed the ladder to join the two men on watch. As he opened the hatch at the top, he could feel the heat rushing past him into the cold, dark space above.

  “Come on in the house,” said a quiet voice from the darkness.

  “How the hell did you know it wasn’t some North Korean trying to sneak up on you two,” the Master Sergeant grunted as he closed the hatch.

  “Been watching you make your rounds. Besides, you’re too big to be a Korean,” said Corporal Bill Masters from the other side of the enclosure. He and Hufham once spent a tour together and had come to know each other pretty well. He also knew enough to continue looking out towards the DMZ and not turn to address Hufham. What came next was not unexpected.

  “Keep your sights on that DMZ, Private, or I’ll shove my foot so far up your ass that you’ll taste shoe leather,” Hufham growled at the figure across the way.

  Masters
grinned. Private Dale Ricks was a newbie. Still wet behind the ears and couldn’t keep from turning around to try and see who came in. It was one of Hufham’s pet peeves. Always watch the guy across the street. What’s behind you makes no difference. That was something he always drilled into the guys up here. As a result, they caught onto a few things on the other side that no one else seemingly observed. True, it was small things like smoke break habits and the tendency to avoid certain places along their line where there might be something under the ground to avoid.

  “Yes, Master Sergeant,” came the sullen, quiet reply from Ricks. Masters could almost feel the young kid deflate as he turned his eyes back to the viewports.

  Hufham walked over to where Masters was watching his sector. “See anything new?”

  “Just the usual. Guard change and a sentry taking a leak and a cigarette break.”

  “How can you tell that?”

  Masters grinned. “He stood in one place a long time and when he took a draw I didn’t see any hands,” Masters said confidently. He heard Hufham chuckle.

  “If our night vision equipment was working you might have had a show,” Hufham said grinning. After the one high altitude blast that occurred over the zone, nothing worked worth a damn.

  “What show? I bet that North Korean could hardly find his own dick,” Masters joked. “Make a loud noise and he’d probably piss his pants before he could get it out.”

  The two men shared a light moment as Masters strained his eyes through the binoculars. After a moment, he lowered them and rubbed his eyes. “Sure wish we had our equipment back. It’s hard as hell to see anything with just binoculars.”

  “Yea, I know. You get kind of used to all that stuff. When it’s gone you appreciate it more. Last I heard we wouldn’t get replacements for a couple of months. Just do as best you can,” Hufham said. It was painful having to guard a border with almost none of the hardware they were used to. He was already having nightmares of soldiers streaming across the Z. Luckily, there were enough mines scattered across no man’s land to wake the dead and stop an advance cold. He took a few minutes to stare across the void towards the towers opposite them. Men would be in those, too, possibly thinking the same things they were.