For two days, when the opposition reached a critical point, they had to fly during the day, breaking through the barriers of the enemy’s mosquitos fleet. They flew at extremely low altitudes, almost touching the foamy waves with the skids, and stayed on the island for just a couple of minutes, unloading supplies and reinforcements, picking up the wounded and dead, and leaving at full speed, suffering more and more bullet holes during each flight. One transport was hit by a stinger and fell into the sea, the crew killed, while another got shot by a heavy machine gun and barely made it to shore on one working engine, leaving behind a thick plume of smoke. They fought back - Nguyen sank two enemy boats with cannon fire, while one was sent to the bottom with transport volley rockets.
In the second half of the eighth day the enemy began a major amphibious operation, and during the next two flights Crocodile worked in its intended purpose - providing fire support for the defending garrison, performing rocket and cannon strikes on the enemy landing. To get rid of the cursed Crocodile, the enemy called in attack aircraft, but Nguyen was ready for it, performing air combat maneuvers, which he’d practiced many times in theory with his Russian instructor. Seeing the approach of the aircraft, he hovered over the water, hiding from the enemy behind coastal cliffs. Losing the MI24 from sight, the Cessna A-37 Dragonfly roared past over him, and then Nguyen shot two IGLA missiles, one of which found the target.
After the aerial victory, he returned to their base with hundreds of bullet holes and anti-aircraft shells dug into the larboard. Crocodile stood for repairs that began after a truce was arranged. The work was done. Thus began his successful career as a mercenary, which lasted for two decades.
He took people to remote mines and exported gold, diamonds and uranium concentrate by air. He protected merchant ships and oil platforms, sinking a dozen modern filibusters. He participated in search and rescue operations, evacuating survivors from the scene of various disasters and picking up dead bodies. He dropped supplies of military cargo in areas of declared and undeclared conflicts, and participated in special operations, primarily counterinsurgency.
In addition to flight operations, he intensively studied the fundamentals of economy by browsing Marx and Ford, and successfully applied this acquired knowledge, turning his small company into one of the leaders in this kind of market. Under his command he now had a whole regiment of MI17, modernized with the latest equipment, plus a couple of super heavy MI26 and some light helicopters for reconnaissance and express services. He had a squadron of combat helicopters and two dozen transport aircraft of various classes, plus a novelty to which he devoted a lot of attention - drones. As well as this he owned a fleet of cars, trucks and boats for various purposes, plus extensive terrestrial infrastructure that ensured the uninterrupted operation of all vehicles.
That night, Nguyen had stayed at the card table in the local casino VIP lounge, and returned to the office at the first glimpse of dawn. He was surprised to find there Master Lao, president of the largest mining company in the country, and his main client.
“Mr. Nguyen, you heard about what happened yesterday at the port?”
“Very little. It seems there has been a redistribution of power on the Cartel main base. This happens often with drug traffickers, so I think you shouldn’t pay much attention to it, as long as they don’t come back to our side of the ridge.”
“Unfortunately, I can’t share your confidence. Take a look.”
On the table lay a tightly sealed envelope, which held satellite pictures of the port and the surrounding regions. Nguyen whistled in surprise, looking at the destruction.
“And that's not all, pay attention to this picture. Apparently, reinforcements came to the naval base of our American neighbors, who took an active part in the port events. I'm not an expert in these matters, but, in my opinion, it’s not the usual gang violence.”
45. Injection
Bronson's grip was so strong that almost broke her arm, but Palmer made no sound. She was able to endure the pain.
“Easy, Chief, easy!”
Before she made the first injection, she pinned his hands with plastic handcuffs. Precautions were necessary; it was unknown exactly how the body would react to fresh blood. The reaction was violent; with one movement Bronson broke the strong plastic tape, and grabbed her arm with such force that it nearly broke her wrist.
“Easy, Chief, it's me. I just gave you an injection of fresh blood, you're all right.”
The vice-like grip squeezing her arm suddenly relaxed. Bronson fell on the bed, and she saw narrowed pupils. He was unconscious. Palmer made a couple of notes in a notebook, and then raised a bottle of ammonia to his face – they didn’t have time to lay sedated.
“Chief, wake up!”
Reviving him wasn’t easy, but, five minutes later, Bronson was in working order.
“Well, what it was like, what effect did it have?”
“I don’t know, I just don’t remember. It felt like an electric shock and something else I can’t explain.”
“Was the pain strong? And what type of pain was it - as if from a burn or a prick?”
“There was no pain, Francis, pain doesn’t exist. Now I remember - when you injected the pure blood, I experienced bliss. It was the most wonderful moment in my life. I don’t know what it was, but I want to try it again!”
“So, this is how your body reacted to getting what it needs. It’s a good incentive, excellent. Well, Chief, we haven’t time for you to lie here, or for detailed examination and analysis. You have to get out there and take command over your team, otherwise everything will collapse. Richardson could revolt, when he begins to guess what is really happening. He isn’t a fool, however much he might act like it. I can’t cope alone without your fighters, and they need a leader.”
“You're saying that I'm infected. And you want me to leave the hospital and return to my team?”
“In our situation we have to take the risk, and I believe that this risk is justified. I'm pretty sure that you won’t go mad, like the driver did, because you've already had three clean blood injections. I also believe that the disease isn’t spread by airborne droplets. If it was, we would all be infected. It can only become worse than it is now in one case - if we lose control of the situation. And we will lose control if you don’t take command.”
“Who knows that I’m infected?”
“Just the two of us. Three of my people know that Pete Anderson was infected, they are now watching him. But the fact that you have these changes is known by just the two of us and the hospital staff. Two of them are dead, while the third is in a serious condition and will not soon wake up. To everyone else, you came here yesterday with shrapnel wounds from which you recovered quickly. I'll give you a walking stick to be more convincing. We should go now.”
“What did you say to Richardson?”
“The same as before – the infection causes increased aggression, it is necessary to enforce quarantine and limit contact with the outside world, in order to avoid information leakage and subsequent panic. And he doesn’t know about the increased regeneration.”
46. Guesswork
“Eve, can I get coffee and breakfast for two?”
The early meeting had turned into a busy workshop, so breakfast and strong coffee would be useful.
“My man in this city said that yesterday morning and afternoon there was a fight in the port, plus a very large fire, which burned almost all the main warehouses. Here, you can see the destruction in this photograph.” Mr. Lao handed to Nguyen the photo. “And, most interestingly, the Yankees took an active part in the incident. Their convoy entered the city, under the cover of helicopters, and they broke into the port and fought there.”
“Fought with whom, the Cartel? They are allies; they have everything under control…”
“I don’t know why. I don’t know the reason for it, and I don’t know how it ended. About three o'clock the Yankees came back, and everything was quiet until nightfall, but then it g
ot dark, and they began to shoot again. Battles started all over the city. That was the last thing I received from my man, before I lost contact with him.”
Nguyen went to the window and looked at the morning city. All was calm.
“What do they say in the presidential administration and the Ministry of Internal Affairs?”
“They are pretending to know nothing. The Yankees are not commenting on what is happening.”
“The situation is very interesting.”
“Mr. Nguyen, what do you think will happen if it isn’t gang violence? Civil war? A coup attempt?”
“There’s something very serious happening, but I don’t think it is what you fear, Mr. Lao. It isn’t a revolution. I understand that you are responsible to your leaders in Shanghai for the fate of their giant investments in this country and therefore you are afraid of any changes in power, which could be arranged by the Americans. A new government may terminate the contract with your company on their orders. But the revolution would begin here, in the capital, or in one of the major cities on this side of the ridge.
“And all this happened over the ridge, in the territory that is actually beyond the control of central government. Plus a complete absence of any requirements, and information barrier imposed by the Americans. Typically, they prepare for such operations with powerful propaganda support, and here, on the contrary, there is complete silence. They are desperately trying to hide what is going on. No, it isn’t a revolution, there’s something else that we don’t understand yet. I think this is very serious, so I will give the order to gather all my men. I recommend that you tighten security on your assets, Mr. Lao.”
“I’ll give orders, wait…”
Mr. Lao took a small army-style phone from his pocket as it rang, and then listened attentively.
“Yes, of course, keep me posted. Call as soon as you have new information.”
“Who was it?”
“This was from the presidential administration. The Yankees have just made contact with the government. They say that there is a deadly epidemic in the valley, and there has been an urgent need to implement quarantine to prevent the further spread of infection. They have assumed defense of the airspace and waterways, and government forces are moving to close the mountain road, so the valley will be completely blocked. The president asks us for help, his troops don’t have enough mobility to quickly capture the passes, and we need helicopters.”
“Clearly, they need me. Do you believe them?”
The Chinese man nervously wiped his glasses.
“Honestly, I don’t know what to think. I need to ask headquarters for directions. If my management agrees, we'll hire your company for this operation. In the meantime, we need to know what's really going on. Do you have any idea how this can be done?”
“Aerial reconnaissance. I can send an unmanned scout into the valley, so that we can see with our own eyes. The drone is made in Israel, it doesn’t have any markings, and if the Yankees shoot it down, they won’t be able to guess who sent it.”
“Well, we will pay the costs. How much time will it take?”
“The drone will be above the valley in two hours.”
“Well, start it immediately. By that time I'll have all the necessary instructions.”
47. In the same boat
“Colonel, I'm willing to admit an obvious fact - we have a serious lack of understanding that could threaten the successful implementation of the tasks ahead of us. And, in many ways, it's my fault. I want to leave our differences in the past; we need to cooperate if we want to solve the problem. Take this as a token of my apology.
Palmer put a bottle of amber dark liquid on Richardson’s table; malt whiskey, bottled thirty years ago.
“You know how to apologize, Miss Palmer,” replied the Colonel lazily, removing the bottle. “But even this whiskey isn’t enough for complete trust. I need information, complete information about what’s happening on my land, and I'm not interested in hearing about the secrecy levels and a limited range of access. If I don’t know what I need to know, we can’t work effectively, and you will lose my support. And without it, you wouldn’t last long, especially now, when we are cut off from the outside world. So, I ask you with the utmost courtesy – are you ready to cooperate?”
“Yes. I look forward to your questions.”
“Very well. Tell me about your precious ball. As I understand, this is a spacecraft lander?”
“Yes. It’s a lander from the orbiting laboratory for dangerous biological samples research. These samples were too dangerous to explore on Earth, so they were kept in space for many years; obviously they are mutated due to being exposed to solar and galactic radiation. To my great regret, the laboratory was destroyed in a collision with micrometeorites, and so the lander fell in a place it wasn’t expected to, and at a different time from planned. One of the samples has resurfaced, and is causing this epidemic.”
“What is this epidemic? What exactly did you develop?”
“I didn’t develop it, Colonel; the lab was launched into space at a time when I was in high school. But I was taught to work with this sample. In short – it is a viral weapon, affecting the central nervous system and causing irreversible destruction of the brain.”
“The result of this defeat will be the death of infected?”
“After some time, yes. But the death of the infected isn’t important; furthermore, it’s not desirable. Many deadly bacteria and viruses have been created, but this particular weapon works differently. The primary objective here isn’t killing, but encouraging the madness.”
“We fought with the infected this morning, and they didn’t look crazy - they managed to organize a competent ambush. How could madmen do that?”
“Perhaps madness is too strong a word. Mental instability and aggressive psychosis is more suitable. Colonel, imagine that you are fighting against a strong, well-organized state with a powerful army and industrial potential, such as Iran, Israel, China or Russia.
“If you use against them the usual types of biological weapons, such as typhoid, anthrax, plague, cholera or smallpox - some of the enemy’s soldiers and civilians will be killed or disabled. But they will be able to stop the spread of disease with stringent quarantine methods. It isn’t so difficult, especially for the army, and then the ill people will die out and the disease chokes itself.
“Now, Colonel, imagine that you have used this sample. Immediately detecting it will not be easy, because the number of deaths is small. But the infected soldiers cease to obey orders and begin to attack their own; pilots bomb their own city; and the civilian population will go out of control, creating a general panic and disrupting management. Over time, the infected will lose their ability for meaningful action and begin to die, but before that they will destroy the enemy structure from inside. According to our calculations, a spontaneous, merciless and senseless rebellion could cause much more damage than the most severe epidemic. You could see it with your own eyes - only a few armed infected, and the famously disciplined Cartel collapsed in a matter of hours, literally torn apart internally.”
“Your successes are really impressive, Miss Palmer, and I would be very glad for you, if this spectacular demonstration had taken place in Moscow or Beijing. But it happened here.”
“Yes, this is a regrettable fact, which we must deal with.”
“If this is by your design, then you should have an emergency backup plan in case the virus broke loose. Any vaccine or God knows what…”
“Colonel, it's a weapon, and weapons must be reliable and low in vulnerability. This infection was created to be most lethal, and hard to detect and destroy. Treatments for this disease don’t exist. An experimental vaccine was developed, manufactured in small quantities and closed in a safe. Now its production is running again, but it’s a slow process and the vaccine is still not enough for the people in the valley. And we don’t need the vaccine; we can quickly stop the disease by means of quarantine. We’ll stifle thi
s plague.”
“What do you suggest?”
“Now it is important not to let the infection out of the valley, by closing the mountain passes. Bronson briefly outlined our position for me. The remains of the Cartel took the foothills, while the infected control the rest of the valley, capturing most of the villages and farms. Now they have attacked the last Cartel base and the surviving bandits, who aren’t yet infected, fled to the mountains. They shouldn’t be allowed to leave the valley, and if the infected don’t kill them, we need to step in; no one can pass through the mountains. If there are no more healthy people in the valley, the infection will stop its growth.”
“So, the valley will just contain us and the infected. What happens next?”
“As I said, the infection of the mind, caused by this virus, is irreversible; memory collapses primarily. We investigated several infected, and diagnosed extensive amnesia in each patient. Soon they will be completely deprived of their ability to use weapons and coordinate their actions. Thirty, maximum forty-eight hours, and all of them will turn into a herd of lunatics, not capable of the simplest actions and doomed to die of thirst and hunger. You can speed up the process of extinction, destroying the last food stocks and bombing wells.”
Richardson took a pause to ponder her words.
“So, lock down the passes, bomb the wells and wait until the enemy dies of thirst? But what do we do now? They haven’t yet lost their ability to think and continue to pursue the Cartel. And why did they attack just the healthy people - is that included in the action program of your wonderful virus, Miss Palmer?”
Vampire's Day (Book 2): Zero Model Page 10
