Sky Masters

by Dale Brown

  brother-in-law and Secretary of Defense Preston. "What do you think,

  Thomas?" the President asked. "What's Cheung up to?"

  "I think it is fairly obvious, Mr. President, that he intends to use

  this episode to fortify his position in the Philippines and fill the

  void created by our departure, " Preston replied. "He's created a

  substantial resupply line from China to the Philippines that we might

  find impossible to break, and he's found a way to get the government to

  offer him basing facilities and local support. We may never be able to

  shake him loose if he manages to consolidate all his gains."

  "So we have no military options?"

  "We have many military options, sir, " Preston replied, "but it'll mean

  a serious escalation of our military commitment. Cheung has both the

  military power and at least the appearance of legitimacy-that's an

  unbeatable combination no matter how you look at it. If we want to

  counteract the advantage he has, we have to risk stepping up to the

  brink of a superpower war. "We'll wait to hear what the ASEAN has to

  say, " the President said finally. "If they vote to condemn the

  Chinese, world opinion will start to turn away from them-we can add our

  evidence of the Chinese firing that nuclear missile if we can get

  someone to confirm that Sky Masters data. Cheung won't have any choice

  but to back down then." To the Defense Secretary the President asked,

  "But in case they won't back down, Thomas, what can we do then?"

  "Mr. President, this may be more of a political decision to make with

  Dennis Danahall and the Congressional leadership, but I see the Chinese

  as a serious military threat to our national interests in the region, "

  Preston replied. "If they take the Philippines, they can militarily and

  economically threaten every other Pacific Rim nation. We'll have no

  choice but to build up our own military forces in the region to

  counterbalance them. We must act."

  "So what do we do?" the President asked. "Are you considering sending

  in the Marines or this Air Battle Force thing?" Preston considered the

  question for a moment, then replied. "Yes, sir-in limited numbers and

  in total secrecy. General Curtis mentioned the equipment installed on

  Brad Elliott's experimental planes-that may be a good place to start.

  Sending the entire Air Battle Force would be difficult to keep secret,

  but sending three or four aircraft would be a simple matter. I

  recommend approving the STRATFOR's plan to deploy the PACER SKYequipped

  combat aircraft as soon as possible." The President's eyes glanced over

  to his brother-in-law, Benson, who was enthusiastically nodding his

  agreement; Secretary of State Danahall looked grim and undecided, but

  eventually gave a slight nod. "Approved, Thomas, " the President said.

  "Keep it quiet. 1 want those planes kept under wrap until I decide to

  tell the world they're there." He paused, rubbing his eyes wearily,

  then added, "And I hope to hell we get some good news from Ambassador

  O'Day in Singapore." ASEAN HEADQUARTERS CONFERENCE HALL, SINGAPORE

  FRIDAY, 30 SEPTEMBER 1994, 0821 HOURS LOCAL (29 SEPTEMBER, 2121

  WASHINGTON TIME) The emergency meeting of the Association of South East

  Asian Nations began shortly after the first of five daily prayers for

  its Moslem members; the crier's call to prayer was played over the

  building's public-address system, and a shining silver and crystal

  chandelier on the right-hand wall of the conference center indicated the

  direction of Mecca. Deborah O'Day, the United Nations ambassador from

  the United States, had been reminded to stay in the ladies' room until

  prayers were overwomen, even foreign nonbelieving women, were not

  encouraged to be nearby during prayers. O'Day was familiar with most

  aspects of Moslem life; she was especially versed on its feudalistic

  treatment of women. In many ways ASEAN, where four of the seven member

  nations were predominantly Islamic, was little more than an exclusive

  all-male country club, their play interrupted occasionally by short

  periods of more or less serious work and debate. Women performed the

  usual secretarial duties and little more-except, of course, for the

  courtesans who could be seen wandering the halls of the adjacent hotel

  where most of the delegates and foreign ministers stayed. It was

  important for these delegates to not look upon her as a woman, but a

  representative of the United States government. She even went as far as

  wearing a very male-cut outfit, with a double-breasted jacket, a long

  ankle-length skirt that resembled a Muslim robe, and had even cut her

  hair very short for this meeting. Anything to blend in was fair game.

  The meeting got under way with the last series of short speeches

  concerning the Chinese presence in the Philippines, and one by one the

  delegates voiced their opposition to China sending so many troops and so

  many warships to those islands. As expected, the delegation from the

  Philippines urged restraint, patience, and understanding through these

  troubled times. O'Day had not met the new ambassador from the

  Philippines, knew nothing about him, and had not been granted an

  appointment with him. The ASEAN executive council had immediately

  credentialed him, however, so he had full authority to vote and debate

  during the meeting: "The Philippines are in the process of enacting the

  first meaningful, productive change in our nation's history, " the

  Philippine ambassador said. "Our nation has been dominated by

  foreigners almost since our inception . O'Day cocked an eyebrow. She

  got the drift-the ambassador was obviously somebody's parrot. Well, she

  sure as hell wasn't buying it. "Mr. Ambassador, let's cut to the chase,

  shall we? Where is President Mikaso? Has he been assassinated? Taken

  captive?"

  "Silence, Ambassador O'Day, " the chairman of the executive council, the

  ambassador from Indonesia, said. "You are not permitted to speak in

  this forum.. She ignored him. "I would like proof that it was an

  American weapon that detonatedoff your shores, as you claim. This

  council has been given substantial evidence that it was a Chinese

  warhead-"

  "Lies, " Ambassador Perez spat. "I demand that this woman be removed

  from our presence and that her government apologize for her insulting

  behavior . "Sit up and take it like a man, Ambassador, " O'Day said

  evenly. "After all, I'm only a woman. That was too much for the ASEAN

  delegates; even the Brunei Crown Prince, who could not keep his

  lascivious eyes off her and had nodded approval when she first spoke up,

  shook his head. "Ambassador O'Day, you have been granted observer status

  only, " the chairman said. "You are not permitted to speak. You will

  not be warned again. Ambassador Perez, continue with your statement."

  "Thank you. My country has been bled by the former regime's failed

  economic policies and by American imperialism. The Chinese were victims

  of rebel aggression as well. When they offered humanitarian aid after

  the nuclear attack-a gesture that was not made by any other nation until

  days later, including many nati
ons represented here-we also requested

  assistance in quelling the well-armed and bloodthirsty rebels . "You

  ought to write techno-thrillers, Mr. Perez, " the Crown Prince from

  Brunei said with a laugh. "They are very popular in my country.

  Unfortunately, your lies are not." Perez pressed on. "I urge my fellow

  delegates to vote to disapprove sanctions against my country and to

  follow continued relief and police efforts by the Chinese government. My

  people beg for your help and understanding. Thank you." He turned and

  gave O'Day a murderous glare, then stared straight ahead, waiting for

  the Council's decision. "The resolution before the council would approve

  full economic sanctions against the Republic of China and the

  Philippines, " the chairman summarized, "and would restrict all trade

  and commerce with China, and would authorize the Association to

  implement all policies and invoke all measures to urge China to withdraw

  its military forces from all members' territorial or disputed waters. We

  vote by open-voice ballot. Five votes are required to pass the

  resolution. If all discussion is concluded, please record your vote."

  One by one, they voted. Indonesia. Malaysia. Singapore. The Kingdom of

  Brunei. All in favor of the resolution. The Philippines voted against

  it. As did Thailand, who along with Vietnam-the last two ASEAN countries

  to vote-had waived any closing arguments to the resolution. That had

  O'Day worried. She had tried to talk to each ambassador before the

  meeting, but had no luck. Both were critical countries; both had

  borders with China, and their huge neighbor was always a major presence

  in any political and military situation. But both were members of ASEAN

  to counter China's influence, and so far it was working. They finally

  had the political clout to stand up to their powerful neighbor. "The

  kingdom of Thailand, " its ambassador said, "is convinced that such a

  resolution, made in the heat of passion and without extensive study and

  debate, would be counterproductive. As much as Thailand seeks an end to

  violence and fear, we cannot support such a resolution without further

  study. Thailand abstains." O'Day couldn't believe it. Of all

  countries, Thailand stood to lose the most if China were allowed to

  exert a greater influence in the region; she had never expected them to

  abstain. That left Vietnam as the deciding vote. They would have to

  vote yes, O'Day thought. After all, Vietnam and China were all but

  enemies. True, Vietnam was the only Communist country in ASEAN, and

  true, Vietnam and China had once been uneasy allies, but. "Republic of

  Vietnam."

  "Vietnam abstains." Deborah O'Day shot to her feet in absolute shock.

  "What!" she shouted. "You're abstaining? Why?" The chairman was

  pounding his gavel over the sudden flurry of excited voices. "Ambassador

  O'Day, your outbursts will not be tolerated! You are ordered to leave.

  I will have order in this chamber... "I want an explanation!" O'Day

  shouted. Security guards were quickly rushing to her side. "Don't you

  understand? You're handing over the keys to your cities to the Chinese

  if you don't stop them now!" O'Day was still shouting as she was

  unceremoniously pulled to her feet and half-dragged, half-escorted to

  the rear of the conference room and outside. Her aide was deposited

  beside her a few moments later. "I don't believe this, " O'Day told her

  aide as they made their way to the entrance. What the hell is going on?

  Vietnam should certainly be opposed to Chinese aggression. ...

  Something is very odd..."

  "We've got to notify Washington about this immediately, " her aide said

  as they made their way to the limousine. "We'll have to brief the

  President... The Marine Corps driver from the embassy staff, in full

  dress blues-spotless white gloves, white belt with .45-caliber sidearm,

  spit-shined boots, and round hat with the brim pulled down so low it

  almost obscured his racing-style sunglassesquickly stepped around from

  the driver's side to the curbside rear door, opened it, and stood at

  attention as O'Day and her aide entered the car. "How's the traffic on

  Bukit Timah Road, Corporal?" she asked her driver distractedly. He

  grunted a perfunctory, Poor, ma'am, " in reply and quickly closed the

  door. "Go ahead and take the central avenue to Government House, then, "

  O'Day's aide said as the driver re-entered the limousine. "Call ahead

  and ask Communications to get a line open for us." The driver pulled

  out into the traffic and, with usual Marine flair and urgency, roared

  down the wide central city avenue toward Singapore's Embassy Row.

  "China's just been given the green light to occupy the Philippines and

  make a grab for the rest of the Pacific, " O'Day's aide said. "The

  President won't have any choice but to respond militarily."

  "But he won't like it, " O'Day said. "He wants the endorsement of some

  Pacific Rim government or organization before he commits troops, and he

  just lost the most important one. God, is he going to be pissed."

  "This will be one phone call I don't envy you, " her aide said. He

  turned to the Marine Corps driver. "Corporal, you didn't call the

  embassy communications office like the ambassador asked. Now please do

  it." His order was answered with a clunk! as the locks on all the doors

  engaged. O'Day immediately scanned all the windows, looking for pursuing

  cars or any sign of a threat; there were none. Her aide immediately

  reached down below the seat to the hidden compartment where a Uzi

  submachine gun was stored. "Corporal, why'd you lock the doors?" O'Day

  asked. "What's going on?" "The Uzi's gone, " her aide said. He

  fingered the door unlock buttons and power window switches-none were

  operable. "What the hell is going on?" He reached for the cellular

  phone in the backseat, but the "Ready" lights were all out-the phone too

  was dead. A .45-caliber Colt semiautomatic pistol appeared in the hand

  of the driver; he showed it to O'Day and her aide but then immediately

  lowered it, out of view. "Please sit still and do not try anything

  foolish, " the driver said. "You will not be harmed unless you try to

  resist." It was not until O'Day looked at the man through the rearview

  mirror that she realized he was wearing sunglasses-their Marine driver

  had not been wearing them before because of the early hour and overcast

  skies. "Where's our driver?"

  "Safely asleep in the trunk, Ambassador O'Day, " the man replied. "He

  put up quite a struggle before we could subdue him. He will awaken in a

  few minutes." The driver eased off the main avenue toward a hotel

  parking lot where the car could be partially obscured, but not appear

  too conspicuously isolated. He parked the car and immediately began

  removing the uniform. "What are you going to do with us?"

  "Nothing, " the driver said. Underneath the blue uniform, he wore a

  T-shirt with palm trees on it, khaki shorts, and white tennis socks; he

  replaced the spit-shined shoes with tennis shoes. He looked like a

  tourist from any number of Asian or European countries. Gripping the

  .45 in his rig
ht hand, he glanced nervously at his watch, leaned through

  the dividing window between the compartments, and said, "I know your

  embassy tracks all its vehicles by microtransmitter, so I will not stay

  any longer. I have a message from Second Vice President General Samar.

  "Samar!" O'Day exclaimed. "Is he still alive? Is he in hiding.. .?"

  Samar had disappeared the day Mikaso had been killed. It had been

  assumed Samar was dead, too. "Silence, " the man said; then, realizing

  he might have sounded too demanding, added, "Please." Then, "General

  Samar requests help from your government to relieve Davao on the island

  of Mindanao. He is resisting the Chinese invaders but cannot hold on for

  much longer-Puerto Princesa and Zamboanga have fallen, and Cotabato and

  Davao will be next... "If Samar wants help, " O'Day told the man, "he

  had better stop playing hide-and-seek and take control of the

  government. The non-Communist citizens will follow him, but everyone

  thinks he's dead..."

  "He may be dead if you do not help, " the agent said. "We need more

  than just..."

  "Silence. I have stayed too long already. Listen carefully. General

  Samar says that the Ranger carrier battle group will be attacked by

  Chinese air forces from Zamboanga if they attempt to enter the Celebes

  Sea."

  "What? How in hell do you know that ?" "General Samar is on Mindanao,

  organizing his people and his resistance forces. He is carefully

  monitoring the Chinese military's movements and communications, and he

  concludes that on the first of October-Revolution Day-Admiral Yin Po

  L'un's forces will attack any foreign military forces that attempt to

  pass near Mindanao."

  "But that's crazy, " O'Day's aide said. "The Chinese wouldn't be stupid

  enough to attack an American carrier. . "I will not debate you. The

  General has risked his life to bring this information to you-in

  exchange, he officially requests military and humanitarian aid from the

  United States. Please help. Contact him at this number immediately. Do

  not alert your embassy by radio or telephone; there are spies