Stephen Coonts - Combat

The center bay, until then dark and empty, suddenly filled with a bright white sphere, easily ten feet across. It floated in the air halfway between the floor and the ceiling. Ray barely had time to see it before it changed color, becoming a deep blue. Patches of blue lightened to a medium shade, then lightened more, shifting to brown and green. He realized he was watching the world being built, starting with the deepest part of the ocean. Then higher elevations were added, one level at a time.

As Jenny tapped the air with her data gloves, points of light appeared on the surface, and Ray recognized one as Miramar. Lines appeared circling the earth, and he knew they were orbits.

Visually, it was stunning. The implications for command were even more impressive. It was the situational awareness a commander needed to fight a worldwide battle.

“Here’s the hard part,” Jenny announced. A flashing symbol appeared in southern China, becoming a short red line segment. A transparent red trumpet appeared around the symbol as it quickly climbed toward orbit. “This is a recording of their last intercept,” she told him, taking off the helmet and watching the large display. “Here’s what we added.”

A new point of light flashed, at Miramar. It started to rise, and the display went dark.

The sudden blackness left Ray momentarily blind, and he heard a loud, “Damn! I wanted that to work.” He could hear the frustration in her voice.

“The gear was a piece of cake. This display duplicates the one at Space Command, and I could get off-the-shelf components for nine-tenths of what we needed. Hooking it up was straightforward.

“But programming in the new systems has been difficult. We have to be able to track Defender in real time. The display was originally designed to show a friendly unit’s location based on GPS data. We can’t depend on that, so we’re using radar and optical sensors all over the world to track your position. That information has to be collected and fused, then sent to the display. That software is all brand-new.” She smiled a lopsided smile. “I hear they’re having a lot of problems at Space Command as well.”

Ray waited for a moment, then asked quietly, “Is there anything we can get that will help you finish on time?”

She shook her head. “I wish I knew what to ask for.”

Her tone shook McConnell. He heard someone near the end of her rope. She’d accomplished miracles, but in a week this gear had to be rock-solid. Defender needed guidance from the Battle Center. They didn’t have the onboard sensors to run the entire engagement from the ship.

He couldn’t bring in more people. At this late date, they’d have to be brought up to speed. They wouldn’t be ready in time. She certainly didn’t need any more gear. If she had the resources, then it was all about leadership.

“You can do this,” Ray said carefully. “I can’t give you a sunshine speech. Nobody’s more committed to Defender than you, but I think you’re afraid of failing. You care so much about the project that the fear of not making it is tying you up in knots.”

She almost shook as she nodded. “I don’t like to fail. I never have, more so than most. And this is especially important.” Jenny’s fatigue was more evident now, as she leaned heavily on the rail.

Gently taking her arm, Ray led her over to a chair and sat her in it. He sat on the edge of the desk. He looked at her steadily.

“You’ve been a rock for me since the day this began. But also since that day, there hasn’t been the time I’d like for us. I’ve had to say focused, and that’s meant putting my feelings for you in deep freeze, until this is over. Your belief has kept me going. I hope my belief in you can do the same.”

She smiled and looked up at him. “I want it to.”

“Then it will.” He stood. Ray tried to sound positive without being too enthusiastic. “We will make it, Jenny, and I’m glad you’ll be here in the Center when I’m up.”

Ray’s phone beeped, and, reluctantly, Ray answered it. It was Admiral Schultz. “They’re moving,” he said without waiting for Ray to speak.

Ray didn’t have to ask who. “Where? What are they doing?”

“Imaging satellites have been watching along the southern border. They’re leaving their staging areas. They’ll be in position to invade at first light tomorrow.”

“There has been no communication from the Chinese government, either to us or to the Vietnamese.” Secretary Peck sat next to General Kastner. He’d listened to Admiral Overton’s briefing on the movement of Chinese and Vietnamese forces. Now he added a few more details, things the Joint Chiefs weren’t normally privy to.

“The Chinese have purchased Russian and North Korean assistance with promises of economic concessions in Vietnam and the Spratlys.”

General Forest, the Army Chief of Staff, started to laugh, out of surprise, but stopped himself.

Peck nodded. “I agree. Normally I’d say Moscow and Pyongyang would be fools for agreeing to such an arrangement. Talk about a pig in a poke.”

“But the source is reliable,” insisted Peck, “and we believe it shows what they all think of our chances. We’ve been top dog for a long time, gentlemen, but some of the dogs don’t think we’re that tough anymore.”

“It’s still a bargain made in hell,” Kastner remarked.

Peck nodded. “The President publicly committed us to defend Vietnam from Chinese aggression. Now it’s time to put up or shut up.”

“The reasons for defending Vietnam haven’t gone away,” Forest reminded them.

“But the job’s gotten a lot harder,” said General Warner. Air Force and Navy aircraft would have been the weapons used to stop Chinese forces. Now, their power was reduced, and their vulnerability increased.

“That was the entire purpose of the Chinese plan. They knew we would commit ourselves publicly if our risk was low, and once we committed, they changed the game. It was a setup from the start, and we’re trapped.”

“It would still be bad if they overran Vietnam,” Admiral Kramer observed. “There’d be an economic cost, and domestic and foreign political cost.”

“The damage to our reputation abroad could be severe,” agreed Peck.

“‘There go the Americans again, not keeping their promises,’” chimed in General Forest. “Let’s use a Chinese term. It’s about face. They’ve already gained some by giving us a black eye, and it’s paying off. Does anyone want to guess how many new friends they’ll have if they actually take over Vietnam?”

General Kastner shook his head. “We can’t trade lives for pride.”

“I have to disagree, sir,” countered Forest. His tone was respectful, but firm as well. “That isn’t the trade-off. It’s fight here,” he paused looking around the room, “and lose some people, or fight later in a lot of different places, and against a stronger enemy. Does anyone think the Chinese will stop here? They’ve already promised their allies a piece of the Spratlys!”

Peck said, “What if we change the rules? Can we increase their cost?”

“Widen the war,” said Kramer. “Threaten them anywhere and everywhere. We can’t hit the gun, but there are a lot of targets that are in Tomahawk range, or in range of carrier aircraft. We can sink every naval unit and shoot down every aircraft we can find. And we know about the Spratlys,” he said, nodding toward Peck.

“Wide-scale warfare,” Kastner wondered out loud, but then his voice changed. “Hit them where they can’t hit us back. I agree.”

Peck nodded. “It’s an option. I’ll convey your recommendations to the President.”