Dirk Pitt18-Black Wind

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Dirk Pitt18-Black Wind Page 15

by Cussler, Clive


  global markets. The Sino-American threat, which has long justified the

  use of our countries as pawns to the superpowers, is no more. It is

  long past time that we throw off the shackles of foreign domination and

  do what is right for Korea. Our destiny is as one, and we should seize

  the opportunity now."

  "The goal of unification beats strongly in all our hearts, but the

  reckless leadership and military juggernaut of North Korea mandates

  that we tread with caution," replied the third politician, a beady-eyed

  man named Kim.

  Kang brushed aside the comment. "As you know, I recently toured North

  Korea as part of a fact-finding trip sponsored by the Ministry of

  Unification. We found their economy to be in a moribund state, with

  food shortages widespread and rampant. The depleted economic state has

  taken a toll on the North Korean military as well. The military forces

  we witnessed appeared ill-equipped and extremely low morale," he

  lied.

  "Yes, I can attest to their struggles," Won Ho replied. "But do really

  think reunification would be a benefit to our own economy?

  "The northern provinces offer an abundance of cheap labor that is

  readily accessible. We would immediately become more competitive on

  the world markets, as our average labor costs would diminish

  substantially. I have assessed the impact to my own enterprises and

  make no secret of the fact that my profits could be boosted

  dramatically. In

  Hdition, the northern province economies would provide a new, un-ned

  consumption market that South Korean business is poised to No,

  gentlemen, there is no question that unification would provide an

  economic windfall to all of us in the south."

  "There is still the issue of North Korea's hard-line contention in the

  matter," Won Ho stated. "We cannot simply achieve reunification

  unilaterally."

  "Yes," Kim added. "They have repeatedly insisted that the United

  States military presence be removed from our soil before reunification

  can be considered."

  "That is why," Kang continued calmly, "I am asking the three of you to

  support the resolution recently introduced in the National Assembly

  demanding the removal of all American military forces from South

  Korea."

  A stunned silence fell over the room as the three politicians digested

  Kang's words. Kang had brought them there for a reason, they knew, but

  the politicians had figured the corporate giant was seeking legislative

  tax relief or some other aid to his business empire. Not one of them

  expected a demand so risky to their political careers. The elder

  statesman Rhee finally cleared his throat and spoke deliberately.

  "That particular resolution was introduced by radical elements in the

  assembly. There is little chance it would ever pass a full vote."

  "There is if the three of you came on record in support of it," Kang

  replied.

  "That's impossible," Kim stammered. "I cannot support weakening our

  military defense for the asking while North Korea continues to consign

  all its resources toward boosting its military might."

  "You can and you will. With the recent murder of the girl in Kun-san

  City by the American serviceman, there is a firestorm of animosity

  toward the American military from the mainstream populace. It is

  incumbent upon you to place pressure on our president to act and act

  now."

  "But the American forces are essential for our security. There are

  over thirty-five thousand troops stationed in our defense," Kim argued

  before being cut off.

  "May I remind you," Kang hissed, his face contorting into an evil

  smirk, "that I have paid and negotiated your way into the position that

  you hold today." The controlled rage glowed from his eyes like burning

  embers.

  Rhee and Won Ho slumped back in their chairs and nodded gravely,

  knowing their political futures were finished if knowledge of their

  graft over the years was ever released to the press. "Yes, it will be

  done," Won Ho said meekly.

  Kim, however, appeared oblivious to Kang's rage. Shaking his head, he

  replied firmly, "I'm sorry, but I cannot support placing our country at

  risk of military defeat. I will not vote in favor of the resolution."

  He turned and peered at his fellow politicians with a look of scorn.

  The room fell silent again for several moments before the servants

  returned to clear away the dinner dishes. Kang leaned over and

  whispered something into the ear of one of the servants, who quickly

  paced back to the kitchen. Seconds later, a side door opened and two

  hulking security guards, attired in black from head to toe, entered the

  room. Without saying a word, they strode to either side of Kim's

  chair, grabbed his arms, and yanked the politician roughly to his

  feet.

  "What is the meaning of this, Kang?" he cried.

  "I will suffer your foolishness no more," Kang replied coldly. With a

  wave of his hand, the two thugs muscled Kim to a veranda door that

  opened onto an outside balcony. Flailing and struggling hopelessly

  against the stronger men, Kim was dragged outside and to the edge of

  the balcony wall, which jutted over the face of the rock cliff.

  Obscenities burst from his mouth as he demanded to be let go but his

  pleas were ignored. As Rhee and Won Ho looked on in horror, the two

  men in black hoisted Kim up off his feet, then unceremoniously pitched

  his thrashing body over the wall.

  Kim's screaming voice could be heard trailing away for several seconds

  as he plunged down the cliff wall. A faint thud signaled that his body

  had struck the beach landing below and his screaming suddenly ceased.

  Rhee and Won Ho turned ashen white as the two thugs calmly returned to

  the dining hall. Kang sipped at a glass of wine, then spoke to the

  security men in a nonchalant tone.

  "Retrieve the body and take it to Seoul. Plant him on a street near

  his residence and make it look like a hit-and-run traffic accident," he

  ordered.

  As they left the room, Kang turned to the frightened politicians and

  asked with icy politeness, "You will stay for dessert, won't you?"

  Kang peered out the dining hall window and watched as Rhee and Won Ho

  anxiously boarded his yacht below. Kim's body, wrapped in brown

  blanket, had been crudely dumped on the boat's stern deck and covered

  with a tarp but was readily distinguishable to the two shaken men as

  they climbed aboard. Observing the yacht-as it cast off and began its

  fifty-mile trek upriver to Seoul, Kang turned as a man entered the room

  and approached. He had a scrawny build and greased-back black hair,

  with pale skin that seldom saw the light of day. His blue suit was

  well worn, and his choice of tie dated, but his white shirt was

  starched crisp. What Kang's administrative assistant lacked in panache

  he made up for in thrift and efficiency.

  "Your meeting was a success?" the man asked Kang, with a dose of

  subservience.

  "Yes, Kwan. Rhee and Won Ho are going to promote our initiative for

  the rem
oval of U.S. forces through the National Assembly. It was

  unfortunate that we had to eliminate Kim, but it was apparent that he

  had lost his loyalty to us. His death will send a strong message to

  the other two."

  "A sensible decision. Sir, a courier from Yonan is arriving by boat this evening to receive the prototype missile guidance chip set that

  has passed final test at our semiconductor facility. Do you wish also

  to relay a briefing status?"

  Like a foreign embassy in a hostile nation, Kang and his superiors in

  North Korea relied on couriers to funnel information, technology, and

  contraband out of the South. Although the Internet had become the

  spy's best friend when it came to dispatching information, there was

  still the need for one-on-one contact to transfer hard goods. An aged

  fisherman in a beat-up sampan, easily neglected by the Navy patrols,

  was the favored agent's disguise for crossing the DMZ to Kang's

  estate.

  "Yes, we can report that a National Assembly vote will be brought forth

  on the expulsion resolution within the next several weeks, and that

  progress is being made on its passage. Our organized student protests

  are gaining momentum, and our media payoffs will ensure continued press

  attention and coverage of the U.S. serviceman murder incident," Kang

  said with a wry smile. "Our external disruption plan is proving to be

  most effective. What remains to be seen is whether we can implement

  the chimera project quickly enough to maximize the Americans' strife.

  What is the latest from the biochemical laboratory?"

  "The news is most promising. The lab team has completed their study of

  the test results from the Aleutian Islands and verified that the virus

  was successfully rejuvenated during flight release. In addition,

  dispersion of the virus through the mock-up missile-borne vapor

  mechanism covered a ground path larger than anticipated. The program

  engineers are confident that the full-scale deployment system already

  built will be operationally successful."

  "Providing we can generate sufficient quantities of the virus. It was

  most unfortunate that all but one of the canisters on the I-403

  submarine was destroyed."

  "An unforeseen circumstance. Since most of the recovered agent was

  utilized in the Aleutian test firing, very little was left available

  for

  laboratory growth purposes. Dr. Sarghov at the bio lab informs me it

  will take over three months to cultivate quantities necessitated by the

  orogram. For this reason, we have initiated your request to attempt

  recovery of the second Japanese armament stock."

  "A second Japanese submarine," Kang muttered, picturing an Imperial

  Japanese submersible lying torpedoed on the ocean floor. "An amazing

  intelligence discovery that there was not one but two submarines

  destroyed carrying such a virulent cargo. How soon before recovery

  operations commence?"

  "The submarine must be located first. We have the Baekje en route to

  Yokohama to pick up a leased submersible that will be required for the

  deep-water recovery operation. Once on-site, we expect the survey to

  take approximately two days, and the entire recovery operation to be

  completed within ten days."

  "And Tongju?"

  "He will meet up with the salvage ship in Yokohama and remain on board

  to lead security operations."

  "Very good," Kang said, rubbing his hands together in satisfaction.

  "Things are proceeding nicely, Kwan. The domestic pressures on the

  Americans will soon be very hot and the chimera project will be a sharp

  kick to their sides. We must soon prepare for the coming offensive and

  restoration of the country under our home flag."

  "You will hold a place of high honor in the new Korea," Kwan stroked.

  Kang looked again at the sweeping panorama to the north before him. The

  rolling hills of his native North Korea lay just across the Han River,

  stretching wide across the far horizon.

  "It is time we regain our country," he muttered softly.

  Kwan started to leave the room, then stopped and turned.

  "Sir, there is one other item that has cropped up related to the

  chimera project."

  Kang nodded at his assistant to proceed.

  "The helicopter that was shot down in the Aleutians was operated

  by an American government research vessel from the National Un-I

  derwater and Marine Agency. Our crew believed the pilot and crew :

  were killed, which was initially confirmed by an Alaskan media report

  of a fatal helicopter crash. However, our U.S. field operations team

  monitoring the Americans' response to the test reported that the pilot,

  a special projects director named Pitt, and his copilot had in fact

  survived the crash."

  "That is of little consequence," Kang replied irritably.

  Kwan cleared his throat nervously. "Well, sir, I had our team track

  the pilot upon his return to home port in Seattle. Two days after

  their return, the NUMA men were seen in a small survey boat headed for

  the region where the I-403 is located."

  "What? That's not possible," Kang belched with sudden anger, made

  visible by a large vein that throbbed on his forehead. "How would they

  have any knowledge of our activities?"

  "I do not understand it, either. They are undersea professionals.

  Perhaps our recovery operation was witnessed by others and they were

  simply monitoring the I-403 for looters. Or perhaps it is just a

  coincidence. They may have been performing an engineering or

  archaeological assessment."

  "Perhaps. But this is no time to compromise the project. Have them

  both taken care of," Kang directed.

  "Yes, sir," Kwan replied, backpedaling out of the room quickly. "It

  will be handled at once."

  To the ancient Aztecs of central Mexico, it-was known as the "Great

  Leprosy." The ghastly plague of death had appeared sometime after the

  arrival of Hernando Cortes and his troops in 1518. Some believe a

  rival conquistador named Narvaez, sailing from Cuba, had carried the

  scourge. Whoever the carrier, the results proved horrific. When

  Cortes entered Mexico City after a four-month siege against the forces

  of Montezuma in 1521, he was shocked at what he found. Stacks upon

  stacks of dead, decaying bodies were piled high in homes, on the

  streets, everywhere the eye could see throughout the city. No

  casualties of battle, the dead were all victims of disease.

  No one knows the origins of Variola major, but the deadly virus, better

  known as "smallpox," has left an expansive path of tragedy around the

  globe. Though smallpox epidemics have been recorded in civilizations

  as far back as the ancient Egyptians, history knows the disease best as

  the scourge of the Americas, leaving its deadliest mark on

  the highly susceptible natives of the western continents. Introduced

  to the New World by the crews of Christopher Columbus, smallpox wreaked

  havoc throughout the entire West Indies and virtually decimated the

  original Carib Indians who greeted Columbus on his first voyage west.

  The Cortes/Narvaez introduction of smallpox
into Mexico is estimated to

  have killed nearly half of the three hundred thousand inhabitants

  of Mexico City in 1521. Cumulative deaths throughout the country from

  the highly contagious disease easily numbered in the millions. Similar

  devastation transpired in South America as well. When Pizarro landed

  in Peru in 1531 on his great quest for gold, the smallpox virus was

  already annihilating the Inca population. With his army of less than

  two hundred men, Pizarro would never have ransacked the Inca empire had

  the culture not been preoccupied with a chaotic struggle against the

  ravaging disease. More than five million Incas may have died from

  smallpox, which all but eradicated their entire civilization.

  In North America, Native American tribes were not immune to the

  onslaught. Numerous tribes of river valley Mound Builders vanished

  altogether from smallpox, while the Massachusetts and Narragansett

  tribes were nearly wiped out. Estimates suggest that the population of

  the New World declined by ninety-five percent in the century following

  the arrival of Columbus, attributable primarily to smallpox.

  The lethal virus didn't stop there, flaring up in sporadic epidemics

  that killed thousands more in Europe over the next two hundred years.

  Sinister military minds later made use of the disease as a tool of

  battle, to intentionally infect opposing forces. Historical

  allegations claim the British provided smallpox-infected blankets to

  warring Native American tribes in the 1760s, and employed similar

  tactics against American troops during the battle for Quebec during the

  Revolutionary War.

 

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