Ramez Naam - Apex

Ouyang took a seat at the end of the table, stared hard at Bo Jintao.

Bo Jintao knew that look. It was the look that reminded him that he was here, that he was Premier, that he was the man behind the throne, because the Army had backed him.

Because Ouyang had backed him.

“We’re making progress,” he said. “Old fashioned radio systems and analog wires are uncompromised. We’re using high altitude aircraft to send signals from one location to another. It’s slow. It’s low bandwidth. But it works.”

“You have control of the armed forces?” Bao Zhuang asked.

“I do,” Ouyang said, flatly.

“And the Americans?” Bo Jintao asked.

“Their fleet elements are as aggressive as ever. They’re in disputed waters, in parts of the East China Sea and South China Sea we claim. Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou are all in their strike range. The entire eastern seaboard is within their range. And if they struck now…” Ouyang shook his head. “Our response would be uncoordinated. They would have a significant tactical advantage.”

“Our response?” Bo Jintao asked.

“We must act prudently and conservatively,” General Ouyang said. “With our systems handicapped and an insurgency on our soil, and the strong suspicion that the Americans are behind it, we cannot afford the added risk that the American naval presence represents. They must understand this. I recommend we contact the American fleet elements directly via ship-to-ship communication and inform them that they are ordered to leave our waters in the South and East China Seas.”

Bo Jintao nodded. “And if they don’t? If they insist those are international waters?”

“Warning shots,” Ouyang said. “We demonstrate that we’re serious. A shore-launched ballistic projectile off the bow of one of their uncrewed ships. No risk of lives lost, no damage, but a clear message.”

Bo Jintao looked around. He saw faces that were frightened. He saw uncertainty. He saw Wang Wei nodding eagerly – anger, needing a target. That was more dangerous than anything.

Bao Zhuang had an eyebrow raised. “An uncrewed ship is good. A warning shot is good.”

Bo Jintao took a breath, turned back to Ouyang. “Do it,” he said.

“Now, as for the protests…” Bo Jintao carefully didn’t look at Bao Zhuang this time. “It’s time to clear them out. Send soldiers to the companies that they’re using to share their videos and pictures and messages. Shut those services down. Turn off the power if necessary.”

“Premier,” Fu Ping started.

Bo Jintao rolled over him, directed his eyes and words at General Ouyang. “And then move in on the protesters themselves. With force. Make it clear that any who resist are traitors or American stooges. Force them from the squares.”

“They have satellite phones,” Fu Ping said. “Laser uplinks. Shutting down the Chinese services won’t stop them from getting news out. Whatever we do will be seen!”

“I recommend – strongly – against live ammunition,” General Ouyang said. “My forces are not the police. To use soldiers against our own people… That is a line, seldom crossed, painful every time. We should do this with sub-lethal force.”

“These are traitors!” Wang Wei cut in, ever the hardliner. “We should use whatever force is necessary.”

“General Ouyang is wise,” Bao Zhuang said, slowly, as if Wang Wei hadn’t spoken. “History is not kind to armies who fire on their own citizens, or to those who give the orders.”

Bo Jintao compressed his lips. It was wise. Death was to be avoided. One had to sap energy from protests and the movements that fueled them, not feed energy into them. “I agree with General Ouyang and the President,” he said. “Sub-lethal force. We don’t want to create martyrs. But find those phones and uplinks. And destroy them.”

“What we’re looking at is a major crisis in China,” Secretary of State Pamela Abrams said. “It’s unprecedented in the last seventy years. Larger than the Tiananmen protests of 1989. The next few days could either see the fall of the government or an incredible bloodbath.”

Pryce nodded. “Thank you, Secretary Abrams. Admiral McWilliams?” She acknowledged the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Stanley McWilliams was white haired, a rail-thin runner, almost ascetic in his appearance. He pissed her off to no end on some days. But the man was a soldier who hated war. That meant a lot in her book.

“The Chinese may have lost most of their internal comms,” he said. “But they have enough. Their fleet has delivered ultimatums to our ships that we’re to quit the East China Sea and South China Sea or be fired upon. There’ve been provocations, boats coming inside the exclusion zones of our carriers. Most worryingly, NRO satellite imagery shows that their shore-based anti-ship missile systems have been armed. Those are a major threat to our fleet elements in the area. If they launch, we can’t guarantee we’ll stop all the warheads. We could lose carriers.”

“Our ships are in international waters,” Bernard Stevens, the Secretary of Defense, spoke up, looking around the National Security Council table. “We can’t give in to bullying. We have first strike capability against those missiles. We may have no choice but to take them out proactively.” His eyes ended on the President.

Stockton said nothing for a moment. Then, “Pryce, what’s your view?”

Well, at least he still asked her opinion.

“We have to put ourselves in the position of the Chinese,” she said. “They’re panicking. They have a domestic catastrophe on their hands. They see our ships in an aggressive posture, that heightens tensions further.” She paused. “Mr President, you said the Chinese President accused us of undermining their state censors. What if they really believe we’re behind their domestic unrest? They link the two, conclude that this is all part of a plan on our part to bring their government down.” She spread her hands. “What would we do in their shoes?”

“I agree with Dr Pryce,” Admiral McWilliams said. “Their home situation – the breakdown of their comms, everything else – has the Chinese on a hair trigger. A shooting war isn’t the goal. We’d be wise to take action to calm them down.”

Bernard Stevens shook his head. “No,” the Secretary of Defense said. “Our ships are only there because the Chinese assassinated a member of this government. Remember that? They started this provocation. All the rest – the accusations – are a smoke screen. They’re blowing smoke to get us to back off. And these are international waters . If we let the Chinese bully us out of there, what does that tell our allies and the world?”

The Secretary of State spoke up. “I share that concern about our allies,” Pamela Abrams said. “We have commitments to the Philippines, to Japan, to Korea, to Vietnam, to ASEAN. Everyone expects us to hold to international law and internationally defined borders. If we back down on this, the signal it sends will rock the whole region.” Secretary Abrams shook her head. “I can’t believe the Chinese are crazy enough to shoot.”

Pryce looked around the table. CIA and NSA weren’t offering any opinions. The VP was silent as usual. “It’s your call, Mr President,” she said, turning to Stockton.

Stockton exhaled. “We stand our ground. We don’t shoot first. But we don’t give in to bullying.”

Bai stood at attention, stoic-faced, mind locked down, not showing any of his horror, as the thing in little Ling’s body gave him and Peng new orders, a kilometer below Jiao Tong.

Ensure that the protesters are not flushed from the square,it sent.