by Paul Phipps
“This is true.” The Lieutenant said with feeling.
They continued to talk for some time and after a second pot of tea, they were ready to write up their report. Beijing and their immediate superiors weren’t known for having too much patience with their junior officers.
* * *
TSN/USN Epiphany – Monday 2230L November 9, 2026
Ansel is in Fabricator #3’s Control/Observation room looking at a large scale Holographic depiction of a Standard Missile IV Block II. The Missile is intended for Surface to Air and Surface to Ballistic Missile interception.
“Are you positive about this Epiphany?” He asked
“Yes, I’ve checked over the Fabricator A.I.’s finding and they are correct. This Standard Missile that was transferred to us for examination and duplication has been sabotaged. With this IC chip here and this Code Section in the Guidance software, if the target starts to transmit on its IFF this short identification code the guidance software will automatically target any formerly defined Friendly in its vicinity.” Epiphany replied.
Ansel looked at Lt. Commander Thomas and DC1 Fletcher. “You know in the movies there would be some sort of music right now.”
“Yes sir”, Said Fletcher, “Just doesn’t seem right without some right now does it.”
Epiphany started to play some soft music over the speakers. And when the people noticed there was a snort of laughter and then the tension eased a bit.
“Ok, Epiphany, you’ve made your point.” Commander Thomas said repressively.
“Very well, I’ll remove it if you don’t want it.” She said.
“No, please keep the music playing; it goes with my mood right now.” Said Ansel.
He stood there moodily looking at the Hologram then made a decision.
“Epiphany, please contact the Bush. If Admiral Crane is still awake I would like to talk to him. If not, then see if Captain Welles is. This is too important to wait. This means that most of our conventional defenses are less than useless against whoever did this.”
He then continued. “Fabricator! Can you come up with a fix for this sabotage?”
A deep masculine voice answered him. “Yes Commander Webster, we can design an IC Chip to replace this one without the portion that makes the code fragment viable. Removing the Code Fragment is simplicity and renders the attempted sabotage null. Removing both will eliminate this sabotage completely.
I recommend the code change be implemented to all effected missile units.”
“Thank you for the Information. I’ll pass that on to the Navy.” Ansel Paused then asked. “Do you have a use name?”
“Harold calls me Contraption. But I would prefer Edison.” The Fabricator replied.
“Thank you, Edison.” Ansel turned to DC1 Fletcher and smiled, “Harold I would like to introduce you to Edison, Edison this is Harold.”
“Harold Fletcher, smiled wryly and then straightened up. “Edison, I’m glad to know you.”
“Like wise Harold, it will be good to work with you.” Edison replied
Epiphany interrupted at that point. “Admiral Crane and Captain Welles are both available. Would you like to use the system there or come to the Conference room?”
“Please use this holo display over here Epiphany, that way they can see the large one behind me.” Ansel said.
“Completing the connection now.”
“Good Evening Admiral, Captain.” Ansel Started off, “We have found something you need to be made aware of immediately.”
“I figured it had to be important.” Said Admiral Crane. “Go ahead”
Ansel and DC1 Fletcher then proceeded to explain the circumstances and the discovery of the Sabotaged missile. What the consequences were and how to fix it.
Admiral Crane and Captain Welles listened quietly with only a few questions to elaborate a point or two. Finally the impromptu briefing was done.
“Thank you Commander, you’re correct this is one of those things that needs to be dealt with immediately.’ He paused and looked at Captain Welles and then back to Ansel. “How long will it take you to analyze any other weapon system like Torpedoes and Tomahawks?”
“Edison?” Ansel said turning to look at the Fabricator Room, “How long to do as the Admiral requests?”
“If they are similar to the Standard Missile, a half an hour or so. If it has a different design philosophy it could be several hours per unit.” Edison answered promptly.
Ansel turned back around. “There you go sir.”
Admiral Crane rubbed chin and thought for a moment or two, “I am going to have examples of all of our advanced ordnance brought to you as soon as possible.” He was quiet once again with a distant look in his eye. Then he spoke again slowly, “What are the possibilities that everything has been infected?”
Epiphany entered the conversation then. “I think we would have to examine each weapon system in turn then. But that should only be considered if the units you are giving us to examine also show signs of being ‘Infected’”, She laughed then, “Such an interesting term….”
“It is, isn’t it. I believe it probably goes back to when the sciences of Parasitology and Computer Science were coming of age at the same time.” Captain Welles said with a slight smile.
“In any case, thank you for letting us know so promptly. That would have been a short nasty surprise if we had to use them in combat.” Admiral Crane said with feeling. “I’ll contact you in the morning. Good Night to you all.”
And the connection was cut. Ansel stretched a bit and then thanked everyone in turn for their hard work and diligence and headed for his quarters. The night was already going to be a short one for him. It was time for more lessons in Slowtime and another two hours in the Med Unit as he was scheduled for another modification.
Pentagon – 0910L Tuesday, November 10, 2026
“I’ve already delayed my departure by one day Mr. Secretary at your request. I must say that I am itching to see the Epiphany. Is there something that you need me here for specifically that my staff can’t cover or hold for me until I get back in 10 days?” Admiral Caparelli asked Secretary of Defense Anderson.
“Yes, Admiral there is. I can now tell you that the President will be addressing the Nation tonight during prime time.” The Secretary of Defense told him. “I want you here to talk to the press and if necessary to the various Ambassadors who are about to go Apeshit crazy.”
“I see…. At least I think I see.” The admiral looked closely at Secretary Anderson wishing that he had a verifier of his own right then and there. ‘Oh well, if wishes were fishes we’d all cast nets’ he thought.
“And do you have any particular message you want emphasized?”
“I’m sure there will be, there always is, isn’t there.”, The Secretary of Defense as he relaxed a bit.
‘He’s got something in mind and I just left him a huge opening too. I hope that it’s something I can live with.’
“Very well Sir, I’ll be here for you. Do you need me any further? I’ll have to cancel some of my arrangements.” The Admiral said deferentially.
“No and thank you, I’m glad that I can rely on you. Have a good day Admiral Caparelli.”
Admiral Caparelli left the SECDEF’s office and headed for his own. He was quiet and kept thinking about some of the rumors he had intercepted. There was going to be trouble, he could feel it. Shortly he was at his office and he asked the first person he saw to have Captain Eagleton and Ms. Harris come to his office.
As he finally got to his office he stopped and looked around. He admired the paintings and the Model of the Original Enterprise. He breathed deep a few times to clear his head and then checked his e-mail for any critical ones.
Since task Force 14 and the Epiphany sailing with them was on his mind he checked that folder group first. And lo and behold a critical and personal message. He opened it and started to read and stopped, went back and started over again.
“Oh Crap, Oh Crap, this is not good
.” He muttered to himself.
“What’s not good Sir?” Asked Captain Eagleton who stood before his desk and his office manager behind the Captain.
“Oh! I didn’t hear you come in.” The Admiral said in surprise.
“I’m sorry Sir, we did knock.” Ms. Nolans said. And Captain Eagleton nodded in agreement.
“I apologize for that. I wanted to tell you both that Secretary Dunbar and I will not be flying out to Pearl Harbor at least not in the next few days to my knowledge.”
“Yes Sir, I’ll pass that onto the staff. Will there be anything else?” Ms. Nolans asked.
“No Julie, not right now.” He paused and looked at both of them. An idea just bloomed in his mind. “Would you both be interested in a late lunch say about 1:00?”
“I don’t have a problem with that Sir.” Ms. Nolans answered.
“I have meeting scheduled for 1:00 but I think that I can move that to a different time or cancel it altogether.” Captain Eagleton replied.
“Very good then, I am going to ask a few other people to join us. Ms. Nolans please see if we can use the Secure Conference room that I normally use for …… Say three hours. That should be just about right. I’ll have Chief Wellinger handle the food for us all.” Admiral Caparelli said decisively.
“Captain, please stay, we have a few things to go over.” He then said.
Ms. Nolans smiled and backed out closing the door behind her. Captain Eagleton just watched the man who could tell anyone and any ship in the Navy to go there and they would go.
“Captain Eagleton I need you to do a few things for me. I need to have my office swept right now for ‘bugs’ also the secure conference room.” Then he looked pensive and then straightened out his shoulders. “Harry, this is important. Do you know where that Verifier that the TSN left us is.”
“Yes Sir, it just so happens that I do. It’s in my office safe as well as the Holographic Projector. No one stopped me when the meeting was over Sunday afternoon and I just took custody of them. You know that the politicians don’t want anything around them that forces them to tell the truth.” Captain Eagleton said.
“You don’t know how that relieves me right now. Please go get both and bring them here. Wait, I’ll go with you to your office. Let’s go.” The Admiral said as he moved into action. Logging off of his terminal and removing his Computer Access Card. They then left the office.
On the way Captain Eagleton arranged for the Security Sweep of the Admiral’s office and the Secure Conference room.
Once they reached Captain Eagleton’s office they went past the administrative assistant that was assigned to the Office of Military Affairs.
Captain Eagleton closed the door to his office and quickly opened his office safe. He reached in and picked up both the Verifier and the Holographic projector and set them on top of the desk. Admiral Caparelli picked up the Verifier and looked at it closely then set it down.
“The windows in this office need to be cleaned.” He stated. There were no windows and the verifier pulsed a pale red.
“Hmmm, interesting. The ceiling is black.” The Verifier pulsed a deep red color. “Ah, the first time was only a small untruth because there were no windows, Interesting.” He then turned to Captain Eagleton.
“Captain Eagleton, I am Loyal to the Navy and to the Constitution of the United States. I will do everything in my power to protect the men and women under my command and the populace of the United States as a whole.” The Verifier pulsed a bright cheery blue color.
The Admiral looked at the Captain closely, “Harold, can I trust you completely?”
The Captain was a bit surprised and then said. “Yes Admiral Caparelli, you can trust me completely.”
The Verifier pulsed a bright blue. And the Admiral sat down in a chair and breathed a sigh of relief. He looked around and said “Is it safe to talk here?”
The Captain thought for a moment. “I think so, would you rather go to a secure room?”
“Yes, I think that would be wise. Let’s go.”
A short time later, they were both in the secure room. Admiral Caparelli sat there for a few minutes tapping his fingers and thinking furiously.
“Captain I have just received information that is so damn dangerous in its implications.” Admiral Caparelli stated off. “The Epiphany asked for examples of our ordnance. The first one that they examined with the thought of replicating was a Standard Missile, it had been subtly sabotaged.
Admiral Crane had examples of everything else taken over. EVERY ONE of them was sabotaged in similar fashion. If they had been targeting a Hostile target and that hostile sent the proper code back the Missile or Torpedo or whatever would have retargeted a formerly friendly unit.
Even the CWIS was sabotaged similarly.”
“Oh my God,” The Captain said in horror. ”Who do you think did this?”
“I think we did it, I mean the Naval Weapons Development Group. I’m hoping that it was done during the second Civil War as a means of defending against and attacking units that were in open revolt.
What concerns me is that it is still being done with new ordnance. They, that is, the Epiphany and her crew, say that by removing either the guidance code or the sabotaged chip will fix the problem. But if both are removed then it’s totally gone.
Now as CNO I should have been briefed on this item. I wasn’t. So are my suppositions correct and we did it? Or have we been so thoroughly infiltrated by a foreign power that they did it and we never figured it out?”
“Either is not good for us. I understand now why you are paranoid over this. The Verifier will assist in find out what is what and maybe even who is responsible.” Captain Eagleton said. “But what if we did do it ourselves and not until after CWII? What if this is going on in the other branches also? Why? Are we looking at a coup attempt in the making? The President-for-Life is dead; he died in the bunker when it was destroyed in the assault on it… Alternatively, maybe he didn’t and he escaped the destruction of his Bunker and is currently working with a loyal cadre to come back into power. Dear Lord, now I’m getting paranoid.”
“Yes, that thought crossed my mind too. He was one hell of a speech maker if you remember. I think looking back on those times that he somehow hypnotized anyone who listened to him for very long.”
“So what do we do now?”, Asked Captain Eagleton.
“That’s why I want the working lunch this afternoon. I need to find out quickly who I can trust and who I can’t trust.”, Admiral Caparelli said. “Once I do know who is trustworthy, then we can brainstorm this and figure out what to do next.”
* * *
Beijing China, 1800L, (1000 EST), November 10, 2026
Regular meeting of CCP that had started earlier that Afternoon.
The Minister for Defense is concluding his report to the ruling committee.
“The conclusions thus far by our intelligence analysts is that this Super Carrier is but the first of many ships of this style of construction. We do not know where they are being built or where the work force that would be necessary is being housed.
Some of the more fantastical theories is that the Americans have a base constructed under the Ice of Antarctica or even a Underwater City somewhere in the Antarctic Seas. Wherever it is, now that we know that it exists we will eventually find it.
In addition our agents in the Pentagon have reported that there was a clandestine meeting there on Sunday involving the Chiefs of Staff, the President of the United States, some Members of his Cabinet, one of whom might have been the Secretary of State and possibly leading members of their Senate and House of Representatives.
What was discussed is unknown and no other information is available. They are being unusually aware of security.
That is all I have Comrades” The Minister for Defense concluded.
The Minister for External Intelligence started to speak.
“Agents are reporting back that there are other nations now that have discovered the exi
stence of this new “Super” Carrier. So far Russia, India, Great Britain and Japan have all been made aware of its existence through their own intelligence efforts. All are holding back to see what the American Government will do.
Our agents in Washington D.C. also are reporting that something is happening there on a political level but what, is not known. Ever since their Civil War, caution and prudence has guided their hand. This is good for us and the rest of the world. Their predilection for adventurism has been curtailed.
