The thought of the Chinese having air superiority weighed heavy on John’s mind. The attack would have to be quick and severe. The jet finished circling the city and flew in low over the river. John could swear he saw the pilot looking over the side of the cockpit at the harbor. John took his binoculars out and looked at the mouth of the river. He didn’t see anything at first, then the bow of a ship came into view from the south. As John watched, it was a destroyer. He knew somewhere there was an aircraft carrier. There was no way a carrier was going to dock in the harbor. The smaller ships on the other hand would try to dock and form a landing party.
John hoped that the men would remain patient. The last thing he needed was for everything to be in vain and miss out on the chance to put a large dent in the Chinese fleet. The signal was the same as before, a flare shot into the air giving the signal for an orgy of destruction.
The destroyer came down the river followed by more boats and cargo ships. The plan was coming true like the female Chinese sergeant had said. An army was going to unload here and create havoc on the east coast. John stayed on the rooftop and waited.
“Sir, should we do something?” Private Brown asked watching the ships covered in rockets and guns moving closer in the river.
“If we sink that ship in the river, it should block anything from reaching the harbor, or at least make it more difficult.” John said thinking of his final strategy out loud. “Tell the tanks on the harbor to aim at the water line when they open fire. I want that ship sunk in as short a time as possible.”
Private Brown ran across the roof and down the fire escape to the tank crews. John kept his flare gun in his pocket and those who were out in the open were wearing sunglasses. The longer they could keep up the rouse the better.
The crew on the boat was running around getting the ship ready to dock. None of the tanks moved as they were ordered. John saw men on the deck inspecting the men on the shore. John crossed his fingers but had a bad feeling. The ship slowed and started to turn toward the dock.
As the ship moved the guns moved as well. The crew started to man them and ready them for combat. John pulled the flare gun from his pocket and fired the round into the air. The crew stopped moving watching the bright light move through the sky. A man on the ship started to yell at the seamen, John didn’t understand the words and didn’t need to. He was ordering them to open fire. By then it was too late, the tanks moved their turrets and aimed the barrels at the massive vessel. The cracks and bangs echoed between buildings and men ran chaotically around the deck trying to do what they were trained. The number of rounds flying into the ship turned it into a floating earthquake knocking it around and making the crew unable to move. John watched as the hull was ripped open and the men on the .50 caliber guns stopped the Chinese from returning fire. Across the river, the American tanks were unloading their artillery on the cargo ship and other vessels that were part of the fleet. The sheer size of the cargo ship meant that it could still reach the sea before it would sink if they tried to escape.
After a few minutes the destroyer was submerging into the harbor and men were diving into the water trying to escape. The militia men on the shore opened fire into the water making sure they never set foot on American soil. So far the plan was working. Then, John spotted the ball of fire across the river. The roar of a fighter jet caught his attention and he looked up to see the MiG flying past after releasing a rocket on the tanks.
Private Brown was next to John still waiting for further orders.
“Get those TOW missiles in the air now.” John ordered.
Brown ran to the edge of the building and blew a whistle to get the attention of the men in the Humvee. He pointed to the TOW missile mounted on the turret and then at the jet flying back for another pass. One of the men stood in the turret and tried to lock in the jet. As the MiG passed he fired and the MiG released flares as the missile trailed behind and detonated prematurely.
The tanks across the river continued to fire into the cargo ship and had destroyed two other boats in the water. John was impressed they didn’t run after the first tank exploded. The Chinese tanks on the docks joined in and started to tear apart the hull on the opposite side. Sirens rang on the ship as it took in water and slowly sank into the riverbed. More jets approached from the sea and the Humvee had another rocket loaded in the TOW missile system. The system operator fired as they approached and hit one of the jets sending it flying into a skyscraper. The image looked similar to 9-11 and caused many of the men to stop and watch. John wondered if 9-11 would be remembered in the near future, if it was a temporary event that would be forgotten in the passing of time.
John couldn’t see them doing any more damage to the fleet and fired another flare into the air ordering the retreat of the men on the opposite shore of the river.
The Humvees and the men on the docks drove away from the docks, finding comfort between the buildings. The cover of the warehouse and office buildings wasn’t as much as they thought but it was better than being on the shore. John thought about the tanks trying to cross the bridge and hoped they would wait until night or try it on foot. The jet would be in the air for a while and fire at anything that they could see in the open.
John left the docks with the rest of the troops. He drove the Jeep and had Private Brown sit in the back as a shooter in case there was any trouble. John didn’t drive directly back to the mainland like the rest of the militia, instead he drove to the shoreline to see what the rest of the fleet looked like. Reaching the shore he parked next to a building and walked the rest of the way. He could see more jets flying around and several ships off shore. Directly ahead stood the Statue of Liberty. It was then he realized he had never seen it before. Taking out his binoculars he could see the aircraft carrier several miles off shore. A few battleships that surprised him and a few other ships he could not make out.
As he watched the ships and tried to make his plans he saw a large explosion of water fly up next to the carrier. The ship rocked to the side. Whatever it was it was a massive detonation. John wondered if a submarine was offshore and making their move. He knew that submarines could stay out for long periods of time but didn’t expect any to be watching the shoreline. Then another explosion hit the carrier. While this happened a jet screeched overhead and fired a rocket out to sea. John cringed as he watched it fly into the Statue of Liberty, the torso and head exploding. Sheets of copper flew out into the ocean and the once proud greeter to the United States was no longer, a scaffold of steel and copper now deformed and defiled for all to see.
“Those fucker’s.” Brown said as he watched the statue disappear from its former glory.
John said nothing. This was a new America now. He accepted that a long time ago.
“We need to kill more of those bastards.” Brown said watching the smoke rise from the remains of Lady Liberty.
“Our job is done here. They’re distracted by that submarine now so we need to get the hell out of here. Nobody is coming to shore now.” John said walking back to the Jeep.
“Good.” Brown said hopping in the backseat.
Chapter 16: Atlantic Ocean, New York City
Captain Palahniuk looked through the periscope; his ship had stayed on the mission of being a United States Navy submarine. They had lost contact with any U.S. military bases years ago. The only thing holding the crew together was to continue on with the task they were handed. Originally, they were stationed in the Middle East. Tension had risen between the U.S. and Syria with the civil war that was taking place. Iran had started supplying weapons and soldiers to the government of Syria and in retaliation the U.S. Naval presence was increased. The number of aircraft carriers and destroyers was hard to hide. The submarines were assumed by the local countries to also be in the waters of the Middle East.
Before The Day, the USS Nemo was patrolling the Strait of Hormuz. They would report to the other ships of activities in the strait. The mission was long and boring. Nothing ever happened with Syria o
r Iran. Instead The Day happened. They were first notified through radio communication. They had received a transmission from the Baghdad embassy about Washington D.C. being decimated by a nuclear bomb. Military bases around the world were put on red alert. They tried to run themselves independently, however, the head had been cut off, the Pentagon was gone, and now the personal agendas of generals became policy. The USS Nemo became a harvester of information.
Bases in Afghanistan disappeared, communication stopped, and those men were considered lost. One seaman said it sounded like the fall of the U.S.S.R. in the late eighties. The embassy in Baghdad, Iraq was eventually overrun and the 40,000 troops stationed there were taken prisoner or executed after they ran out of ammo and were never re-supplied.
In Asia, the USS Nemo learned that the natives of Okinawa overran the base and drove many of the Americans into the sea after years of rapes and other crimes related to the base over the decades after World War II. China jumped at the chance to knock out U.S. naval superiority and sunk every ship they could find before they sent a fleet to reclaim Taiwan. War erupted in Korea. Seoul was destroyed in less than a week. North Korean artillery fired nonstop and rockets rained down flattening the landscape. Years later the USS Nemo learned that the war was still going on.
The bases in Germany were reclaimed by the German government and the American’s integrated themselves into the culture, disappearing into their new home.
Gitmo no longer existed. With no functioning government, the military/ prison was reclaimed by Cuba after months of standoff between the two armies. The prisoners that were detained indefinitely were executed before the base was overrun by the local Cubans. In the end, Cuba was fully liberated and completely sealed off from the rest of the world.
After four years without hearing anything from the mainland U.S., they decided to head home. Captain Palahniuk feared the worst and tried to prepare his crew for what they might find. Many were looking forward to seeing family and friends that they left so many years before. They were proud to have information to bring back home and have answers for what happened around the world.
While traveling along the west coast of Africa they had large ships show up on the radar. There had been several ships in a row appearing to be a convoy. The nuclear powered USS Nemo was quiet and able to move within range for confirmation of who was traveling in such large numbers. The periscope popped out of the water and searched for the ships on the horizon. It wasn’t hard to see the red flags on the Chinese ships. Cargo ships, destroyers, battleships, even an aircraft carrier was protected in the middle.
Captain Palahniuk ordered the crew to follow the convoy and find out what their final destination was. The Chinese Navy never appeared to worry about U.S. submarines. They pushed on confident and in the open, no fear of attack. The farther north they traveled the more Palahniuk feared where they were going.
After a week of sailing the convoy was putting anchor down a few miles off-shore from New York City. The Nemo stayed back and waited to see what was happening. Palahniuk raised the periscope and watched the ships. A destroyer and cargo ships moved to the mouth of the river and entered the harbor.
“Looks like they are setting up shop.” Palahniuk said to himself. The crew looked at each other. Soon there would be no home to go back to.
“What are your orders, sir?” the crew chief asked.
Palahniuk thought for a minute.
“Load the torpedo tubes,” he replied.
The crew didn’t say anything in response, their excitement showed in the quickness of their movements. They didn’t appear nervous. Palahniuk had known they were tired of hiding for so long. After years of being hidden under the ocean they were soon going to be known.
Palahniuk waited. He watched the ships move into the river and disappear. Those ships were gone and he had little hopes of taking out the entire fleet. He had to concentrate on the big game and put the biggest dent in the fleet he could.
“Line up with the carrier,” Palahniuk ordered.
The submarine shifted and turned. Watching through the periscope Palahniuk kept his eyes on the shore and watched a flare shoot up into the sky. He didn’t know what to make of it. He figured it was a signal to the rest of the fleet to come in and dock in the harbor. Then the smoke rose into the sky.
“Sir, should we fire?” the crew chief asked.
“Just wait,” Palahniuk said.
More smoke came up from the harbor. He saw flashes of light reflecting off the sides of buildings. Was there a resistance on shore?
“It appears we may have help on the mainland.” Palahniuk said to the rest of the crew.
The men cheered quietly, keeping with their constant silence. Fists thrown up to the ceiling and large grins grew on faces.
Palahniuk continued watching, waiting for the best opportunity to strike. He watched the cargo ship try to back out of the river, quickly sinking as it pushed back into the ocean. Large holes were torn into the hull. He turned the periscope back to the rest of the fleet and noticed the crew on the aircraft carrier busy putting planes in the air. MiGs left the runway and Palahniuk was pissed at himself for not firing sooner.
“Fire the torpedoes.” Palahniuk ordered.
“Fire the torpedoes!” the crew chief repeated.
The hum of the torpedoes played over the speakers of the sub. The crew waited to hear the detonation of their attack. Many long seconds later they felt the detonation and cheered when Palahniuk confirmed the hit.
“Load the torpedo tubes, these bastards are not going home.”
The crew cheered breaking silence and determined to sink as many ships as they could until they were dead or the Chinese were dead.
Palahniuk watched the battle through the periscope. The MiGs flew over the city and rockets trailed them. Whoever was on shore wasn’t unarmed against the Chinese invaders. The MiGs used flares to out maneuver the rockets and circled around for another attack.
“Torpedoes ready,” the crew chief told the captain.
“Fire!” Palahniuk ordered.
“FIRE!” the crew chief repeated.
Palahniuk watched the MiGs fly back to the harbor and another rocket met them on the way. One of the MiGs were hit and spiraled down into the side of a skyscraper. Palahniuk moved the periscope to the aircraft carrier and watched as the side of the ship was rocked by the second pair of torpedoes.
“Hit,” he hollered. The crew cheered.
Destroyers and smaller ships were starting to circle the carrier but not before the damage had been done. Palahniuk watched the MiGs circle around again and instead of flying back over the harbor they fired their rockets into the Statue of Liberty. The giant copper structure blew apart and smoked arose from the remains.
“Lady Liberty is down.” Palahniuk told the crew.
“Are you serious?” the radar operator asked.
“Fuckers,” a voice said in the background.
“Load the tubes,” Palahniuk ordered.
“Already done, sir.”
“Fire on the carrier again, we can clean out some of these small ships before they find us.”
The submarine fired and Palahniuk watched as a destroyer blew into the air. The ammo compartment must have been hit. The second torpedo made it through the line and ripped into the hull of the carrier adding to the damage. Smoke rose into the air and Palahniuk took pride in the damage they were inflicting.
“Load the tubes,” Palahniuk ordered. He wondered how long they could keep this up. They still have nukes available on their submarine but he knew they would never use them and not in something like this. They would have fired those years ago if they would have used them.
Palahniuk looked for the battleship and ordered the submarine to aim at their new target. The battleship had lined itself up with the shore and aimed their guns at the city. The concussion of the guns vibrated through the submarine as the battleship fired into the buildings and skyscrapers of New York. The Chinese were pissed and lookin
g to cause as much damage as they could.
“Fire!” Palahniuk ordered.
The torpedoes ripped through the water and the hum of their motors echoed through the speakers. The crew listened. One of them detonated early hitting a cruiser that Palahniuk assumed had tried to block the torpedo. The second torpedo hit the battleship sending water into the air and leaving the crew in a panic on the deck.
“I can’t believe these assholes are still using battleships.” Palahniuk said to himself.
“Fire when ready.” Palahniuk ordered. A minute later two more torpedoes were in the water.
The fleet was in a panic. This was not the invasion the Chinese had envisioned.
Palahniuk lowered the periscope and paused for a second.
“Cease fire,” he ordered. “Head northeast, maintain silence.”
The order traveled through the submarine and they changed course. Palahniuk knew they were pushing their luck and it was better to leave and fight again later then to commit suicide and stay. He would keep an eye on the Chinese fleet and make sure they were leaving instead of being stubborn and continue with their failed mission.
“I can’t believe they tried this again,” the crew chief whispered to Palahniuk.
“What do you mean?”
“1412, the emperor sent a fleet of ships all over the world to colonize. A fleet landed on the west coast of North America and failed to set up a colony. They tried this before and now they try it again when we are here.” the crew chief explained.
“I can’t say we have learned from history either.” Palahniuk said.
The USS Nemo stayed under the surface and continued on their mission. Instead of collecting information they were now the protectors of the east coast. If anybody tried to invade the United States they would have to go through them to do it.
Chapter 17: New York City
After the Day- Red Tide Page 21