by Andrew Watts
Using submarine-launched nuclear torpedoes. “Not an option. That would trigger Russia entering the war.”
Another idea was to use a new type of electronic jamming device that could cause very-low-altitude aircraft to be completely hidden from radar.
David was excited at that one. “Can we place that on our LRASM missiles? That might get them through—”
“No way. This would need to go on an aircraft.”
“What about fitting it on a fighter or bomber and having them attack—”
“They would guzzle fuel at that altitude. Plus, we’re talking really low. Like twenty-five feet above the ocean’s surface. As soon as the aircraft came up to get on an attack profile, they would be toast.”
“What about helicopters?”
“We don’t have anything that’s outfitted for electronic attack right now, but maybe. But then you have the issue of ordnance not being suitable. Helicopters won’t have a good antiship missile option like the LRASM.”
The group shifted to other possible options. Finally, one scientist brought up some type of weapon system based on black hole energy waves.
David did a double take. “I’m sorry. Did you say black hole? That sounds like something out of a science fiction novel.”
The scientist, a woman in her midforties, said, “When we say black hole, we’re really just naming it for the radio frequency it operates at. It’s not like we’re actually making a black hole. That would be impossible.”
“Sure. Sure.”
The woman continued, “Black hole jets, or gamma ray bursts. Black holes create huge amounts of power at very high frequencies—higher than anything we have in the US electronic warfare arsenal today. Theoretically, we could put out these bursts of energy from an antenna.”
David shook his head. “And what would it do?”
She looked at him as if that was a stupid question. “Obviously it would fry whatever it came into contact with. Enemy electronics being our target.”
“And the Jiaolong’s air defense system—does that operate the same way?”
“No. Completely different technology. But the black hole weapon could do some serious damage to the Jiaolong’s antenna system.”
“And we have this capability?”
“Well…we’ve been doing some testing…” The scientist began arguing with two other physicists using terms that David couldn’t understand.
David held up his hand. “Please. In English.”
“Well…theoretically, we could build a prototype quickly. But it would be limited in range.”
The other physicist said, “And maybe power, too! These are brand-new ideas. Very costly and—”
David said, “How limited would the range be?”
The female scientist said, “Depends on the height of the antenna. It would be line-of-sight, so you could theoretically mount it atop a two-thousand-foot radio tower.”
“That sounds great. What’s the problem?”
“The current idea for generating the weapon is unrefined.”
One of the physicists said, “You’d have to be a madman to go near it, she means.”
The woman frowned at him. “There’s a reasonably high probability that it could set off a cascade event…”
David cocked his head. “Like a nuclear detonation?”
She clicked her tongue. “No, no. Nothing like that.”
David let out a sigh of relief.
“More like a neutron-bomb blast, destroying all life within a certain radius.”
David blinked.
The physicist she had been arguing with said, “Don’t waste your time, Mr. Manning.”
The woman said, “We have nothing else.”
“Even if it worked, and even if you could build it quickly, the range is a real problem,” the other physicist said. “This is because it would have to be land-based. It’s too unstable and dangerous to place on a ship or aircraft. It would also need an enormous power supply. You sure as hell wouldn’t want to place it on Hawaii with all the people there.”
Another of the team members said, “You could place it on an island.”
“An island with no one else on it, maybe.”
David said, “But what would the point of that be?”
One of the experts in surface warfare spoke up. “David, maybe we’re thinking about this the wrong way? What if we created a barrier around the Hawaiian Islands, but these black hole devices were used as gates?”
“What would the barrier be?”
“Mines.”
“That’s a shit ton of mines.”
“Yes, it is. But you don’t need the mines to be everywhere. Just the possibility is enough to deny a certain area.”
David nodded. “So, we use the mines to form a denied area barrier around the Hawaiian Islands, and place this black hole energy device on an unmanned island to serve as a gateway in and out of the castle?”
“Yes, exactly.”
“And it wouldn’t harm friendly ships?”
“No, no. Of course not. Our operators on the gateway islands would know not to target friendly ships, just like with any other weapon system. Think of it like a drawbridge. All the Allied warships and merchants could enter near those drawbridge islands. But the Chinese fleet would either have to pass through a minefield or go within range of the black hole device islands in order to get to Hawaii.”
David’s face lit up. “Could this really work?”
The surface warfare expert said, “It really would take a huge number of mines. I assume that the Chinese will have minesweepers deployed within their fleets. But we could lay undetectable nonmetallic mines, slow them down and spread them out. That could be an opportunity to pick off the peripheral ships, or launch some type of attack.”
The female scientist who had come up with the black hole idea said, “The islands would need to be chosen carefully. The black hole device would need a nuclear reactor or some other type of very large power supply. And the antenna and technology that goes with it would need to be built immediately.”
The surface warfare expert said, “And we would need to check on our mine inventory. With the numbers that we are talking about, the factories might need to go into overdrive increasing production. And all current inventory would need to be pre-positioned on Hawaii and then pushed out to the proper locations.”
“Don’t forget you’ll need to coordinate this with all of the ships coming and going in the Pacific right now.”
David nodded. “Look, however we do this, it will be an enormous undertaking. But the full weight of our nation will be behind it. I’m sure of that.”
A knock at the door. Susan and General Schwartz entered. “Mind if we sit in?” the general asked.
David tried not to be annoyed. Not only were they giving him an impossible task with an impossible deadline, but they were going to look over his shoulder while he made his attempt. At least now, he had a lead idea.
“Not at all. We were just discussing building black holes.”
“Lovely,” said Susan, sitting in the back of the room. General Schwartz sat next to her and began scribbling in a notebook. He stopped and raised his hand.
“Yes, sir?”
“Can you catch us up? Give me the two-minute version.”
David and the group did their best to fill them both in.
General Schwartz said, “So it’s low probability of success? Do we agree on that?”
Reluctant nods from around the room, including David.
The general said, “How quickly can we do it?”
All heads turned to the private sector representation, an executive from one of the largest American defense contractors. “I’ll have to get an estimate on construction. As you can imagine, this isn’t a typical project. Just shooting from the hip, I think most of our project managers would laugh at any timeline under six months. But that’s with a very limited understanding of the technology. It could be longer.”
Shouting and
arguing commenced, ending when David gave a loud whistle. “Alright, thanks, everyone. Let’s take a short break.”
As people began getting up and heading towards the restrooms, David huddled with Susan and General Schwartz in the corner of the room. David found himself saying, “I realize it’s a long shot, but I think this could be our best bet.”
Susan said, “Keep fleshing out the details, then meet us later to finalize a plan of action.”
David nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Susan said, “There’s something else you should know, however.”
“What?”
“Both Chinese fleets have resupplied and begun moving again. Exact whereabouts and destination are unknown.”
24
Raven Rock Mountain Complex
Pennsylvania
Day 21
Edward Luntz, one of the top-level civilians in the Office of Naval Intelligence, listened quietly as General Schwartz gave his recommended plan. Everything about it sounded crazy. The new technology. The timeline. The sheer number of mines that would need to be deployed. Apparently, the national security advisor agreed.
“General Schwartz, you’re telling me that you want us to fill the ocean around the Hawaiian Islands with mines? That sounds pretty drastic.”
“Normally I would agree with you, sir, but desperate times…”
The Pentagon’s senior military officer representative said, “What’s the distance from Midway to Johnston Atoll?”
“About nine hundred and thirty miles, sir.”
“Is our mine inventory able to handle an operation of this size?”
“Sir, our mines are essentially just converted five-hundred-pound and one-thousand-pound bombs. We’ve talked to the manufacturers, and they’re already converting over several production lines to help us out.”
“So will we have the inventory available or not?”
“Yes, sir, we think so. It should be ready for deployment in about two weeks’ time.”
The senior military and intelligence leaders began discussing it among themselves. Luntz normally didn’t butt into this kind of stuff, but he figured he should show that he was paying attention. That way, they would keep inviting him to these meetings.
“Can you describe why you chose the…uh…security gate islands that you chose?”
General Schwartz said, “Midway and Johnston Atoll both now have military facilities and runways established. They’re located sufficiently far away from population centers in case of—er—any accidents.”
The conversation went on for a few more moments before the national security advisor said, “Do we really think we have a chance of building these black hole devices and getting them to work before the Chinese get there?”
“We’re going to do our best, sir.”
After the meeting, Luntz typed up his report to the ONI’s director, a rear admiral. It pissed Luntz off to no end that he’d been there for decades, and the Navy kept putting idiotic admirals in charge of him. He was smarter and more knowledgeable about the job than any of them. He should be in charge of ONI. But instead he was treated like some second-class citizen because he wasn’t in the military. It was bullshit.
But the one thing that made his daily charade worth it was proving just how stupid they all really were.
He finished typing up his summary of the meeting and placed it into the top-secret message folder, where it would be reviewed and sent to his boss back in Suitland, Maryland.
He then folded up his computer and headed out of the office.
“Going to lunch, Luntz?” one of his nosy coworkers asked.
“Yup.”
“Want some company?” The guy was CIA. The whole office was a hodge-podge of three-letter agencies and military, all supposed to work together like one big happy family. Fuck that.
“Oh, no, thanks. I need to run a few errands.” And send our plans to my Chinese handler.
He left the building and drove into town. It was a quaint little place. The kind of old-town America that you could still find in rural areas. Places like these were great for dead drops or a covert rendezvous. There were fewer people who could be watching him, which meant that his surveillance detection routes could be much more efficient.
While he drove, he quietly recited what he had heard in the brief, as if he were talking to himself. “So they want to use Johnston Atoll and Midway as locations for a new technology that could neutralize the Jiaolong-class ship, and deny all other areas of water around Hawaii with large minefields. The minefields could be ready in a few weeks, but they don’t know if the new weapon system on the islands will be ready in time, or if it will even work.”
He made a turn and drove onto a curving road that would take him to the next town. There was a drugstore open there. A rarity, considering the supply-chain issues America was facing now. Before he went into the store, he removed a memory stick from the small audio-recording device under his steering wheel. The device had automatically encrypted the memory stick contents.
Inside the drugstore, he picked up a small pack of ibuprofen. As he did, he fixed the memory stick to the underside of the product shelf, where it was hidden from passersby and wouldn’t be touched by shelf stockers.
He purchased the ibuprofen and a bottle of water.
The guy at the register said, “Headache?”
“Yeah.”
“Hope you feel better.”
“Thanks.” Asshole.
Luntz was glad to help Jinshan. Jinshan had certainly helped him. Two decades ago, in Thailand, the police had jailed Luntz for a full day after catching him in the act with an underage prostitute. His career would have been over if the US government had ever found out.
Enter Cheng Jinshan. Luntz knew that he was only doing it to get something in return. But Jinshan offered a lot. He’d not only gotten the Thai authorities to drop all charges, but he’d made sure that Luntz got even better girls that evening. Jinshan had no problem with Luntz’s fondness for young Asian women. And Jinshan had even helped Luntz’s career through various means. He doubted he would be a GS-15 today if not for some of Jinshan’s string pulling. Jinshan still sent Luntz presents of women. The two men always coordinated meetings to coincide with Luntz’s vacations. Jinshan and Luntz hadn’t met in years; both men were too senior now. But the relationship had turned into something so much more than just a way to score hot girls. Now it was about the excitement of sticking it to the government assholes who didn’t appreciate him.
As Luntz drove back to Raven Rock, he knew how happy Jinshan would be with him when he got today’s message.
25
Khingan Mountain HQ
China
Day 22
General Chen sat behind his desk, sipping tea as his staffers briefed him on the day’s events.
“Guam has been fully reinforced, General. Our long-range bombers have been placed on the island, along with several infantry divisions.”
They rolled out a monitor. One of the staffers began flipping through different slides they had prepared. Maps displaying Chinese military positions. Images from key engagements. Twice a day, General Chen joined Chairman Jinshan’s senior leadership team for updates on the status of the war.
Within the Chinese mountain bunker headquarters, thousands of intelligence analysts received reports from around the globe, dissecting and identifying the most important reports. Piping them up their chains of command. Editing what was to be shared and what was to be held back. Massaging the information. Formulating the best message.
The general’s staff knew that he didn’t like bad news. Therefore, they minimized any negative information in his briefs. He also detested facts, figures, or details in general. Instead, they packed his presentations with images. The general liked to select only the very best images to bring to Chairman Jinshan, like a cat presenting a mouse to its master.
“And what of the Southern Fleet?”
General Chen was the only one still referring t
o the fleet that way. Everyone else was calling it the Jiaolong Battle Group, because the Jiaolong-class battleship had become such a heroic symbol of Chinese victory. While Admiral Song still maintained the aircraft carrier Liaoning as his flagship, the Jiaolong had quickly become the pride and joy of the Chinese military.
But General Chen despised the thought. The idea that a navy ship would steal from his glory irked him to no end. This war would eventually be fought and won with his armies, or at least his strategic vision. He thought of himself as a brilliant tactician.
As several of his peers in the leadership team reminded him, he had not seen the importance of the Jiaolong-class technology. After Guam had fallen, he had suggested that the newest two carriers, which were still in the Sea of Japan, should be dispatched to Hawaii immediately. Their firepower, in combination with their support ships and submarines, would surely be enough to take on the single American carrier that guarded the island state, even with the air support from the island. But Jinshan had opted to wait for the beloved Jiaolong. It was humiliating to be the head of the Chinese military and get overruled by a man who hadn’t spent a day in the uniform.
“The Liaoning Carrier Battle Group has begun their journey north, sir.”
Headed for Hawaii. The prize of the Pacific. Once they had Hawaii, it was only a matter of time before Chinese troop transports landed in the Americas. It would be fierce fighting, but they would prevail.
Still, Hawaii needed to be taken. And the general needed to save face, lest one of those spineless fools on the leadership team try to dethrone him by getting in Jinshan’s good graces. General Chen had sacrificed his only daughter for the cause. Surely Jinshan would always remember that. And he had been loyal. Well, that had mostly been paid back with promotions and other contributions to the general’s well-being. His bank account certainly hadn’t suffered. But that was how things were done. As long as Chen continued to be of value to Jinshan, both men would prosper. But if General Chen fell out of favor…
