Fatal Terrain

by Dale Brown

  a Chinese carrier battle group and a couple of Taiwanese war-

  ships," Balboa went on. He fidgeted -nervously, which told

  Finegold that he was concealing some other tidbit of infor-

  mation, probably something about American military units in-

  volved in the skirmish. "Both Taiwanese vessels were

  destroyed. No word yet on the Chinese ships."

  " And what about the American forces?" Finegold asked.

  Balboa began to look like a fish out of water-he realized, as

  if waking up from a bad dream, that he had said too much.

  "What happened to the American subs?"

  Finegold saw the hint of relief in Balboa's face-she had

  guessed wrong. "All four subs shadowing the Chinese fleet

  are safe," Balboa said.

  7-

  FATAL TER RAI N 183

  "Thank God," she replied. Time to take a chance, roll the

  dice, Barbara Finegold told herself She leaned toward Balboa,

  turning him away from Joe Crane so it felt as if they were

  talking alone and confidentially, and asked, "What about the

  stealth bombers? Did they make it out? Hopefully they were

  far enough away when the nukes went off."

  Balboa looked into Finegold's eyes, searching to see

  whether or not she knew or was just guessing. In response,

  Finegold gave him her sternest, most confident expression, not

  breaking lock with his eyes even for a moment. Balboa asked

  himself the question, Does she know about the bombers? and

  his tortured mind answered, Obviously so.

  "They're safe," Balboa said. "They weren't involved in

  the nuclear explosions-in fact, they probably shot down other

  Chinese missiles and may have even intercepted the missile

  that exploded over Quemoy, resulting in only a partial yield.

  They're safely on their way back."

  "Good ... that's'damned good news, Admiral," Finegold

  said. Outside, she appeared relieved, but inside, her brain and

  her guts were leaping. The President sent stealth bombers over

  the Formosa Strait-bombers that could apparently fire anti-

  missile weapons? In the face of harsh congressional investi-

  gations that he might have illegally used stealth warplanes to

  bomb Iran, the President actually dared to use them again, just

  a few weeks later, in the middle of a China-Taiwan conflict?

  It was absolutely amazing, incredible, unbelievable! And now

  the "skirmish" was blowing up into possibly a full-scale nu-

  clear war, one in which the United States was obviously going

  to get involved-and the President's hands were in deep, deep,

  deep shit, up to his armpits. The new President of the United

  States was possibly illegally involved in precipitating a nuclear

  war. "This information will go no farther than this room."

  4 11 Wait a minute, wait a minute," Crane gasped, finally get-

  ting up to speed with the others. "You're saying that ... ?"

  "Let's drop it, Joe-we're not here to pump the admiral for

  information," Barbara Finegold said, although she wanted

  nothing more than to do just that. "This conversation didn't

  take place. It did not take place. All we needed to know was

  that the evacuation was precautionary, and that no American

  forces have been mobilized."

  "Yes, completely precautionary-definitely not a prelude to

  war, and no American forces are on alert," Balboa verified.

  184 DALE BROWN

  "Our guys may have fired some wea ons in self-defense ...

  "The bombers?"

  Balboa nodded as he continued, but no attack orders

  were ever issued by the President. None."

  "We can support self-defense," Finegold said. "Even help-

  ing to protect innocent lives and property, especially if we

  knew the Chinese might use nuclear weapons. That action is

  acceptable."

  "That's all that was used," Balboa added, looking as if a

  huge weight had been lifted froth his chest. As long as he

  believed this conversation was off the record, Finegold

  thought, he felt confident in saying just a little bit more. Of

  course, she never said it was off the record, just that it never

  took place-which, of course, it obviously did. She took one

  more flyer: "You should be proud of your guys out there,

  Admiral."

  His relieved expression hardened into a dark scowl, and

  Finegold was afraid she had said too much-or maybe she had

  hit the nerve that had been jangling in Balboa's brain all this

  time. He said fervently, as if pleading with her, "Don't look

  at the Navy, Senator. Not our ballgame."

  "Jesus," Finegold gasped with as much sympathetic horror

  as she could summon. "You mean, the President shut your

  boys out again in favor of some other secret no-name sandlot

  pickup team?" '

  "You got it," Balboa responded bitterly, now convinced

  that the Senate Majority Leader really did know the entire

  score. "You got it."

  That was all he had to say-but Barbara Finegold's heart

  was leaping in pure, abject joy. He had already said quite

  enough-and it might be enough to bring down a president.

  MINISTRY OF DEFENSE, BEIJING,

  PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

  "WHEN MEN HAVE MINDS SET

  ON VICTORY, ALL THEY SEE IS THE

  ENEMY. WHEN MEN HAVE MINDS

  FILLED WITH FEAR, ALL THEY SEE

  IS THEIR FEAR."

  -from The Methods of the

  Minister of War,

  Fourth-century-B. Chinese

  military textbook

  WEDNESDAY, 4 JUNE 1997, 0809 HOURS LOCAL

  (TUESDAY, 3 JUNE, 1909 HOURS ET)

  "You have thirty seconds to explain," Chief of Staff General

  Chin Po Zihong thundered, "why you ordered this insane,

  monstrous attack. I have already ordered that you be dismissed

  as my chief deputy. Your response will determine whether or

  not you spend the rest of your life in prison for what you have

  done-or if you are executed as a traitor!" The Minister of

  National Defense, Chi Haotian, waited for the response as

  well, hands on the armrests of his chair, watching Chin's dep-

  uty-rather, ex-deputy-Admiral Sun Ji Guoming, with a sag-

  ging, tired grimace.

  " Our carrier and its escort ships were under attack by rebel

  Nationalist naval forces, assisted by an unknown force launch-

  ing anti-radar and anti-ship missiles, sir," Admiral Sun re-

  sponded, his voice loud, steady, and assertive. "I suspected a

  185

  7-

  186 DALE BROWN

  stealth aircraft attack, based on the same type of reports during

  the recent United States-Iran conflict, and I immediately or-

  dered a full-scale counterattack."

  -you ordered? You are just a deputy, Sun, not a com-

  mander!" Chin thundered. "You have no authority to launch

  a strike mission or countermand my orders!"

  "I beg your understanding, Comrade General," Sun said,

  with as much sincerity as he could muster, keeping his eyes

  averted, "but there was no time. Our forces were being dec-

  imated by the rebel warships and the American B-52 bomber.

  If I had gone through proper channels, the American air
craft

  would have wiped out our battle group."

  "A B-52 bomber!" Minister of Defense Chi exclaimed. Chi

  knew well the power of the American B-52s-he had been in

  power during the abortive attack on the Philippines. "This is

  incredible! Are you sure, Sun?"

  "The Nationalists used an American stealth aircraft to sup-

  port an illegal intercept on the high seas against our warships,

  sir," Sun retorted. "'Me fighter pilots from the carrier Mao

  confirmed the sighting before they were shot down-another

  act of war. I used my judgment and ordered our battle group

  to commence their attack against Quemoy from long range-"

  "With nuclear weapons?" Chin retorted. "You ordered Yi

  to launch a thermonuclear attack against the Nationalists?"

  ,,I ordered Admiral Yi to do everything in his power to

  defend his battle group and carry out his attack orders," Sun

  replied. "I did not order him to launch a nuclear attack-but

  I support his decision to do so. His battle group is intact with

  only minor losses, the rebels have been severely wounded, and

  the world is paralyzed with fear. The mission was successful."

  "You are absolutely insane Sun!" Chin said, unable to

  believe what his subordinate was saying. "You actually think

  this action was proper? Do you think nuclear weapons are just

  another bullet to take from your belt and load into your pistol?

  Did you stop to think for one second about the conse-

  quences?"

  "I have thought of little else, sirl" Sun responded. "Sun-

  tzu says that if an incendiary attack can be launched from

  outside without relying on inside assistance, it should be ini-

  tiated."

  "So now I suppose you think we should invade?"

  "No, sir," Sun said. "We should desist."

  -1

  FATAL TER RAI N 187

  "What? YOU approved a nuclear attack on Quemoy--don't

  try to deny it, Sun, you gave the order without specifically

  mentioning nuclear devices-then say we should not continue

  the invasion?" Chin shook his head in stunned disbelief. "I

  do not understand you, Sun! You orchestrated a nuclear attack

  against the Nationalists, an attack that may well isolate China

  for decades in the eyes of the world, and now you advise us

  to abandon the mission? Why? Explain yourself!"

  "Because we initiated an incendiary attack against the Na-

  tionalist army on Quemoy, and they are quiet," Sun replied.

  "Sun-tzu teaches us that if the enemy is quiet after such an

  attack, wait and do not attack, for it means that the fires did

  not substantially weaken them."

  "Explain in words other than this ancient drivel, Admiral!"

  "The blast was not directly over Quemoy, and it appears it

  was not a full yield," Sun replied. "I think the rebel forces

  on Quemoy are mostly still intact, protected in underground

  command centers, garrisons, and marshaling areas. Besides,

  our fleet was substantially damaged, morale among the naval

  forces is low because of the ferocity of the stealth bomber

  attacks, our ground forces are not ready, and the Americans

  are on the alert. No, we cannot press the attack now. We have

  no choice but to withdraw."

  Chin shook his head, totally confused. Minister Chi asked,

  "So what happens now, Admiral? We do not fight, we do not

  attack. The Paramount Leader's directive is no more. What are

  we left with, comrade?"

  "Sir, we have proven that the United States committed an

  act of war upon the People's Republic of China by firing anti-

  ship missiles at our ships-this may be our most potent

  weapon against the influence of the Americans in our region,"

  Sun said. "We have shown that the Americans are terrorists,

  that they will stop at nothing, break any law, to advance their

  dgenda. This undeclared war, this illegal attack against our

  battle group, combined with their illegal overflight of our air-

  space without permission by an armed combat aircraft during

  the Iranian conflict, deserves immediate world condemnation!

  China has long been criticized, even ostracized, in the eyes of

  the world for our perceived human rights record-tell me, sir,

  how do you think the United States will be regarded in the

  eyes of the world when they are proven to be the greatest

  terrorist nation ever to exist in the history of the planet?"

  188 DALE BROWN

  To General Chin's surprise, Minister Chi was quiet-which

  was in effect an endorsement of Sun's actions. The tide was

  turning here, Chin thought-it might be best not to complain

  too loudly. But Sun Ji Guorning had clearly overstepped his

  authority and usurped the rank and office of the Chief of Staff

  of the Liberation Army, and he had to be removed from office

  as soon as possible. "You claim that a B-52 bomber shot down

  three Su-33 fighters, the best combat aircraft in our air army?"

  Chin asked derisively. "Impossible."

  "That is the pilot's report, sir," Sun said excitedly. "The

  third pilot radioed details of the attacks just before he began

  his counterattack. The Sukhoi pilots are the best pilots in the

  air army; I believe their statement. It is too implausible to be

  anything but the truth."

  "That is your criterion for judging the validity of this re-

  port-that it is too unbelievable to be a false or inaccurate

  report?" Chin exploded. "Have you gone insane, Sun?"

  "Sir, Comrade Minister, we have seen intelligence reports

  on this aircraft from Russian sources," Sun said. "It was sup-

  posedly used in the conflict between Lithuania and Belarus.

  Our own analysts claim that these modified planes may have

  been used against us in our conflict in the Philippines-the

  planes we assumed to be standard B-52G or-H bombers could

  have been these planes-"

  "Enough," Chin shouted. -You are too incompetent to

  wear those stars, Sun. You are a disgrace to the uniform and

  to your entire lineage."

  "Wait, Comrade General," Minister of Defense Chi inter-

  jected in a low, gravelly voice. "I wish to hear more." Then,

  to Chin himself, he added, "And I wish to hear more from

  you about what you intend to offer as a response to the Central

  Military Commission."

  "Very well, sir," Chin said. "Sun, you are dismissed-"

  "I said, Sun shall stay!" Chi shouted.

  Chin stood at attention and lowered his eyes as a sign of

  respect and obedience, but he was obviously seething over the

  fact that Chi Haotian was not giving him free rein in disci-

  plining his subordinates. "Comrade Minister, there should be

  no discussion here over the fate of this insolent pup," General

  Chin said, keeping his voice respectful although he was fight-

  ing mad. "Sir, we could very well be facing nuclear war with

  the West because of this one unauthorized, ill-conceived, su-

  FATAL T E R RAI N 189

  icidal mission. It is only proper that Admiral Sun should not

  just be stripped of his position and rank and removed from the

  People's Liberation Army, but possibl
y imprisoned for life, for

  what he has done-"

  "You seem to prefer doing battle with your subordinates

  rather than doing battle with the enemy, Comrade General,"

  a voice said behind Chin. The chief of staff turned-and saw

  President Jiang Zemin himself enter the minister of defense's

  office, flanked by his bodyguards. General Chin shot to his

  feet in surprise; Chi and Sun snapped to attention and bowed

  respectfully. Chin Po Zihong was staring dumbfounded into

  the Paramount Leader's eyes. "So. Do you now wish to do

  battle with me, Comrade General?"

  Chin quickly snapped out of his shock, realized what he

  was doing, and bowed deeply, keeping his eyes averted. "For-

  give me, Comrade President," the general said. "I ... I was

  not informed that you would be attending this meeting."

  "No one appears to be informing you of anything these

  days, Comrade General," Jiang said with uncharacteristic sar-

  casm. He took a seat at Chi's desk and sat stiffly, regarding

  General Chin for several long moments. "The People's Lib-

  eration Army has suffered one of its most embarrassing, one

  of its most humiliating moments in it's history today, General

  Chin Po Zihong. Wire services around the world are already

  reporting it; the presidents of most of the world's industrial

  nations have called me, demanding an explanation. Speak."

  "Comrade President," Chin began, "my staff has just now

  informed me that there is evidence that an American stealth

  warplane was assisting the rebel craft, and that it was the

  Americans who attacked one of our destroyers and then shot

  down three of our fighter jets sent to monitor the-"

  "Admiral Sun has already given me the details," Jiang said.

  Chin could not help but shoot a deadly glare at Sun for going

  over his head and reporting directly to the minister of defense

  and the president. "And do not think," Jiang added, "that

  Comrade Sun violated the chain of command-because I or-

  dered him to take the initiative in case the Americans should

  try to interfere with our plans to occupy Quemoy Dao."

  "You ... you ordered him to act on his own, without my