A NATION AT WAR - The Second Civil War Book II (The Second Civil War - BOOK II 1)

by Marshall Huffman

“So you feel that the bombings of Houston and Atlanta were justified but not the retaliation against Richmond and Buffalo.”

  “That is exactly right. We didn’t start this. They did when they started all this bellyaching about the second amendment. You have to be a total gun nut to think that anyone outside of the military needs a gun. Those people are illiterate rednecks that should never be allowed to touch a gun.”

  “Senator, you are oversimplifying the position they are taking. It isn’t just the second amendment they are concerned about but the whole Bill of Rights.”

  “Hogwash. The second amendment has nothing to do with the others. That’s just window dressing. No one wants to limit the first amendment or any of the others. This is about keeping the American people safe and nothing more,” the Senator replied.

  “And how do you ensure that nothing will happen to the other amendments?” the commentator asked.

  “We are the government. We have no reason to lie about something like that. No one has designs to change the Constitution,” he answered.

  ****

  What started out small in the scope of major wars quickly escalated. Fighting broke out all across the country. Chaos was rampant as those trying to flee from the seceding states to the United States took on epic proportions.

  It was far from one sided. Hundreds of thousands were fleeing to the American Republic States as well. Many chose to relocate to the non-committed states of Iowa, Nevada, and North Dakota.

  The western seaboard had remained quiet about their intent. There was even some talk of the three states, California, Washington State, and Oregon forming their own Republic. They were so far removed by distance that it would make it difficult to remain a part of the United States.

  Even those states were not immune from violence. Cities like Los Angeles, Van Nuys, San Jose, and Oakland had deadly riots that took over a week to bring under control.

  The military ships, along with the Marines and Army personnel on the west coast were relocating to the east coast. That left California with only a few reserves to help the police with enforcing curfew.

  Even the Air Force had its share of problems. Canada, Mexico, and all the countries all the way to Peru and Brazil refused to allow any planes fly over their air space.

  The reason was simple. They would be choosing sides in an American Civil War and they could find themselves on the losing side in the future. It was safer simply not to allow any American planes in their air space.

  Of course this immediately led to sanctions by the Administration. They restricted all travel to those countries and shut off financial aid.

  ****

  Mexico was carefully watching the war with its own plans. Once all of the military was removed from the western states it would offer an excellent opportunity to drive the Americans out of Baja. Depending on the actions of the US, they could then consider reclaiming California.

  The Mexican President, Señor Hermilo Medrano, authorized his top military Generals to begin work on increasing the military in size and to draw up plans to reclaim California.

  Canada on the other hand wanted nothing to do with the war taking place to the south of them. They immediately started closing their borders and increased the amount of patrols along the southern border of Canada. The last thing they wanted was to get caught in the middle of what they considered to be an internal affair.

  Panama was in one of the most, if not the most, difficult positions. While they had refused the American Air Force to use their air space, shipping was a different story. Closing the canal to US ships would put them in jeopardy of being bombed and put out of commission for years to come. Allowing US ships to traverse the cannel could be equally risky.

  An ambassador was dispatched to both the United States and the American Republic to discuss the situation. After weeks of negations, it was decided by all parties that US commercial ships would be allowed to use the canal but no war ships from either side would be permitted passage.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  The American Republic States had patched together a government consisting of the President, James Jason and Vice President Senator Zack Folly from Florida. Rather than emulate the United States they decided on doing away with the Senate and House of Representatives. In their place each state would elect two CITIZEN REPRESENTATIVES and they would be the voice of the people.

  Citizen Representative’s terms would be for six years but with a provision that if they did not obtain at least a fifty-five percent approval rating they would be replaced. The maximum number of terms allowed would be three.

  The President and Vice President would both serve six year terms as well but could not repeat terms. One six year term was all that was allowed. Any President or Vice President not having at least fifty-five percent approval rating was subject to impeachment. It was harsh but effective in making sure that the President was accountable to the people.

  The traditional cabinet was jettisoned as well. New positions were appointed by the President and included:

  MILITARY SUPREME COMMANDER: General MacMillan

  REPUBLIC AFFAIRS CHIEF: Senator Mary Lake

  INTERNAL AFFAIRS CHIEF: Senator Beau Zimmerman

  TREASURY CHIEF: TRANSPORTATION CHIEF: Unnamed

  JUDICIAL CHIEF: Honorable Jackson Miller

  Originally the Capital was going to be Atlanta, Georgia but the devastation caused by the United States bombing meant that a new location had to be chosen. Cities such as Memphis, Little Rock, and Nashville were all considered. They finally settled on Nashville, Tennessee.

  ****

  Month three of the Civil War heralded more and more skirmishes along the borders of the two opposing forces. Fighting intensified along the Ohio, West Virginia, and Virginia State boundaries. Not only the regular military but civilians started joining together to protect their property.

  Some of the most intense fighting took place from Portsmouth, Ohio along the Ohio River down to Huntington, West Virginia. It became one of the most bloody battles in terms of one-on-one fighting.

  It started over the control of the Ironton-Russell bridge that spanned the Ohio River. Bitter fighting broke out with both sides drawing more and more men and women into the battle. Most of the combatants were regular citizens who were fighting for what they considered an essential crossing.

  The battle raged back and forth with both sides encroaching on the other’s territory as circumstances changed. The battle stretched along the Ohio River as each side tried to gain control.

  ****

  “Allen, I don’t want you to go on this raid. I have a bad feeling about it.”

  “Baby, you say that every time. I have to go. Bob and his people have crossed the Greenup Damn. They have been making their way down, keeping to the woods to flank Kinkaid’s army.”

  “Allen, that’s all well and good but do you have to go on this mission? You have already crossed over at least a dozen times.

  “Honey, this is our home. Our country now. Of course I have to go. How could I sit at home while others risk their lives? We are all in this. No one can just stand by and hope for the best.”

  Janet closed her eyes, fighting back tears. For the past three months her husband had been crossing the river and fighting. Each time she felt like it would be his last time. The odds were going to catch up with him eventually.

  “Honey, it will be alright. Morton has a good plan in place. Maybe the best we have ever had. Having Bob Kingman pulling a flanking maneuver is going to give us an incredible edge,” Allen told her.

  “Then if they can’t get in position or it doesn’t work. Then what?”

  “Then whatever happens, happens. I have to trust in my Maker to watch over me.”

  “That’s a great sentiment but there are millions of us fighting. He isn’t going to watch over all of you or no one would get killed.”

  “That’s not the way it works and you know it. Honey, you have to accept the fact that I am going this time. Probab
ly the next time and the time after that until this is finished,” he told her.

  “You are so damn stubborn. You can’t let it go this one time. You have to go be a hero. I hate that part of you.”

  He didn’t respond for several seconds. He knew the strain she was under. She wasn’t the type that could take a lot of hardship and the stress of battle was wearing her down. She was a good woman and he loved her dearly but she just couldn’t come to grips with why he had to go fight for his new country.

  “Jan, I love you baby but our country needs me. I am fighting for our rights to make a better place for us to live and raise the children. If I don’t do this, how will I ever live with myself?”

  “Damn it. I want you to live with me. You aren’t much good to me dead,” she said angrily.

  “And I won’t be much good to myself if I don’t do this,” was his reply.

  Allen spent the rest of the day getting ready. He had decided to take his heavy barreled Scar 17s that used the 7.52 x 54mm rounds. He liked the additional punch over the standard AR-15s. He sat loading extra magazines while reviewing his part of the mission.

  He would be leading fifty men south to Ashland and then crossing the Ohio River. This would put them south of Ironton. They would then work their way north until they reached a point where State Road 141 crosses Highway 54. That would put them directly across from Ohio University’s Southern Campus. They would remain there until the main attack started.

  A group of nearly ten thousand militia fighters would then attack at the Ashland Ohio River Bridge. Another ten-thousand would attack at the Ironton-Russell Bridge. The idea was to form a pincer attack and encircle the opposing forces of Seth Kinkaid’s Army.

  It would take precision timing and most of all, a good deal of luck.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  Using Demarre Inflatable Boats they crossed the Ohio at 0330 hours. They met no opposition and were able to quickly get ashore without a shot being fired. The first two inflatables were loaded with twenty men and women in each. The third inflatable carried ten men and additional munitions and medical supplies.

  From start to finish it took just slightly over an hour to get everyone across. They divided up the extra munitions and started slowly making their way north sticking to the heavily wooded surrounding areas. It was slow going but it was necessary if they were going to remain undetected.

  ****

  “What do you think?” Allen's second in command asked.

  “All in all, it went remarkable well. The inflatables did a fantastic job.”

  “We are slightly ahead of schedule. Do you want to keep pushing or have the men take a break?”

  “We need to keep going. I want to be on the other side of Highway 52 before it starts to get light. Once over we can find a place to rest. For now we have to keep pushing.”

  “Alright. I’ll pass the word down the line and the reason. That should keep grumbling to a minimum,” the second in command said.

  “They can grumble all the want but it’s what we have to do,” Allen replied.

  They arrived at the crossing at 05:50 hours. It was later than Allen would have liked. They were forced to slow down several times as they came to small groups of houses.

  “What do you think?”

  “It’s getting pretty light. Fortunately not many cars have gone by while it is still dark. We need to cross in twos. I want everyone down except the two crossing. Once on the other side, they need to make it to the tree line. No screwing around, everyone needs to hustle,” Allen said.

  “I’ll cross first and make sure the others keep moving.”

  “Good. I’ll be the last over. Go ahead and get started,” Allen told him.

  Within minutes the men were in position and paired off. The second in command made a dash across the four lanes of road and immediately dropped to the ground. He looked back up and down the road quickly and then motioned for the first pair.

  They made a mad dash and kept on going until they reached the trees. Only two cars held them up but it was almost daybreak before Allen was able to make to the other side.

  Once they were all across, Allen had them stop and take an hour break. Most nodded off but some immediately chowed down on MREs. Allen spent the time making sure he knew exactly where they were going and working out how long it was going to take them.

  ****

  While things were going smoothly for Allen’s men, all was not going so well with Bob Ricker’s men and women. They ran into opposition when they crossed the Greenup Dam. It wasn’t too heavy but it slowed them down and alerted others to their presence.

  As they made their way south, they stumbled upon a group of West Virginia Militia near county road 276 and Ohio Furnace Road. It took over two hours to finally subdue the opposition. In the course of the skirmish, sixteen of his men were killed and twenty-one wounded. His unit strength had been depleted by fourteen percent. By the time the skirmish was over they had lost another six hours.

  Jerry Falkner was the leader of the main attack group at the Ironton-Russell Bridge. They were going to use everything in their arsenal to take the bridge once and for all. Skydivers would take off from Ashland Regional Airport and drop along the south side of Highway 52. Boats would travel up and down the river, raking the shoreline with machinegun fire while others ferried soldiers over. Three thousand would storm across the bridge and quickly force a salient. The second wave would expand the bulge and they would start the squeeze with the help of Allen's and Bob’s people.

  ****

  Most military plans look great on paper but once the initial shots are fired they usually go to hell almost immediately. The opposition hardly ever behaves the way you have predicted.

  Allen could hear the first rounds from the mortars across the river as they impacted in Ironton. He sent scouts forward to report back on what was happening. The two radios they had brought had stopped working almost immediately.

  Bob Ricker was way out of position when the attack began. In an effort to get into position they rushed straight into a group of one hundred plus Ohio Militia and Army Reserves. A ferocious fire fight broke out with both sides suffering causalities and wounded.

  This left the pincer maneuver vulnerable to the north. Allen decided he could no longer wait to link up with Bob’s combatants and started his attack from the rear. The troops at the Ashland Bridge were also engaged in heavy fighting. Mortars rained down on both sides causing a high death toll for the two groups of combatants.

  The battle plan had called for no more than one hour to cross the Ashland Ohio Bridge. Three hours later the mêlée was still going strong with neither side making headway. Kinkaid’s Ohio Militia had been well placed to block the attackers. He managed to find just the right instant to shift his people to where they were needed most. Time and time again they pushed back the marauders and were able to keep control of the Ironton Bridge.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  “They aren’t getting across,” Allen said.

  “Where in the hell are Bob’s people?”

  “They must have run into trouble. We are going to have to keep pressing if we are going to take the bridge,” Allen said.

  “This is all going to hell. Bob’s group is missing and we haven’t seen hide nor hair of Ben Appleton’s army. Hell they have almost ten thousand fighters. Why in the hell aren’t they here to link up with us?”

  Allen didn’t reply. He knew it was frustration talking. Obviously both groups had run into heavy opposition. He watched through his binoculars as the battle for the Ironton Bridge unfolded.

  Finally he said, “Look right there at those warehouses by the railroad tracks. They have spotters up on the roof. If we could take them out it would really put a dent in the accuracy of the mortar rounds going out. They would have no direction spotters.”

  “Yeah, but look at what we would need to do. We would have to go right down Park Avenue, right through the heart of town.”

  “So? They are
fighting to the west. We can go over on 7th Street to Railroad Street and then follow it down to the warehouses.”

  “Even if we take the spotters, they are going to know something is wrong pretty darn quick.”

  “We just take over the spotting. Give them the wrong information and that will give our people a chance to push across,” Allen told him.

  “Man, I wish Bob or Ben would show up.”

  “We can’t wait for that. We have to move and do it now. Much longer and Jerry is going to break off the attack. We will be stuck here on our own. Get the men ready. We are going to take those warehouses.”

  “Oh crap,” was all he said as he went off to get the men ready to move out.

  ****

  They proceeded down Railroad Street without incident. It was easier than they had anticipated. No one was outside and the windows were closed. Most had the binds and drapes pulled shut. The first brief fire fight erupted when they came upon ten of the Ohio Militia resting beside a building on South Street. It was over quickly with all ten being killed in the brief exchange.

  They continued to the back of the warehouses and found four access ladders to the roof. Within minutes they had scrambled up the ladders and were pressed behind the first ten A/C units. They were able to listen to the spotters report to the mortar teams.

  Allen whispered to the men next to him, “When we take them you grab the headsets and start calling in false coordinates. Two things will happen most likely. Your voice will make them wonder and the new coordinates may cause some problems. Tell them if they ask that you have just relieved the other man and Kinkaid has found another threat position that needs immediate action. Don’t argue with them, just tell them what has to be done or else. Be assertive. Any questions?”

  “Where do you want them to aim?”

  “Back toward the airport. Obviously they took it out before the skydivers could get off the ground. Tell them that they had made temporary repairs and it must be stopped,” Allen told him.