Empire Rising

by Rick Campbell

  Moments earlier, Greenwood had handed Christine’s flash drive to an awaiting Missile Tech, who opened a hatch in the side of the missile tube and removed an access panel in the launch canister, inserting the drive into a compartment in the UAV. Greenwood explained the UAV would be ejected to the ocean’s surface, where its container would pop open and deliver an electric charge to the UAV, launching it. The UAV was an electric fuel cell-powered X-wing airfoil with just enough range to reach the Air Force base on Okinawa.

  Lieutenant Cordero, the submarine’s Officer of the Deck, announced Michigan was proceeding to periscope depth, and all conversation in Control ceased. It was imperative they ensure there were no Chinese forces nearby that could detect their launch. As the submarine rose toward the surface, Christine leaned forward, compensating for the ten-degree up angle. The only sound in Control was the occasional depth report from the Diving Officer of the Watch.

  The submarine’s angle leveled off and Cordero began circling on the Conn, twisting the periscope in a continuous clockwise rotation, searching the horizon for nearby ships.

  After determining there were no ships that were a collision hazard, Cordero announced, “No close contacts!”

  Muted conversations resumed in Control, accompanied by the faint staccato chirp from the early warning antenna mounted on top of the periscope, searching the surrounding airwaves for enemy radars. Cordero followed up with several revolutions with the periscope optics at maximum elevation, scouring the sky for aircraft capable of detecting their periscope.

  A moment later, Sonar reported no contacts, followed by the operator in Radio who monitored the submarine’s Electromagnetic Surveillance Measures (ESM) equipment, who reported there were no contacts exceeding a signal strength of five, and none with threat parameters. Lieutenant Cordero, meanwhile, followed his quick assessment of the surface and air with a detailed survey of all quadrants in high power, finally reporting to the submarine’s Captain that the ship held no air or surface contacts.

  Satisfied it was safe to launch their UAV, Captain Wilson rose from his chair on the Conn and entered Michigan’s Battle Management Center, located aft of the Control Room, where the submarine’s crew conducted Tomahawk mission planning and coordinated its SEAL operations.

  Christine followed Wilson into the room, which was crammed with twenty-five tactical consoles, each with a keyboard and dual trackballs plus two color displays, one mounted over the other. Thirteen of the consoles were mounted on the port side of the ship with an aisle between them—seven consoles facing outboard and six inboard, while the other twelve consoles on the starboard side faced aft, arranged in four rows of three. Mounted on the aft bulkhead were two sixty-inch plasma screens, along with a third sixty-inch display on the forward bulkhead behind Christine.

  Only one of the twenty-five consoles was manned this morning, and Captain Wilson stopped behind the petty officer manning the middle console on the port side. Wilson glanced at the display on the forward bulkhead, watching a video feed from a camera mounted on the back of the submarine’s sail.

  Next to Wilson stood the ship’s Weapons Officer, Lieutenant Karl Stewart, who wore a sound-powered phone headset, a communication system that functioned using the energy of the speaker’s voice, a critical circuit should the submarine lose electrical power. Stewart held the mouthpiece close to his lips, waiting for the order from Captain Wilson.

  “Prepare to launch UAV.”

  Stewart acknowledged Wilson’s order, then ordered Missile Control Center, one deck below, “Open Missile Tube Ten.”

  On the video screen in the Command Center, Christine watched the muzzle hatch atop Tube Ten lift slowly upward, coming to rest in its open position a few seconds later.

  “Ready to launch UAV from Missile Tube Ten, MAC One,” Stewart announced.

  “Launch UAV,” Wilson ordered.

  Lieutenant Stewart relayed the Captain’s order over the sound-powered phones and a few seconds later, a canister was ejected from Missile Tube Ten, disappearing as it streaked toward the ocean’s surface.

  Wilson’s and Stewart’s attention turned to the petty officer in front of them. A minute later, after manipulating a trackball and flipping through several screens on the lower display, the petty officer announced, “Positive control of UAV obtained, sending landing coordinates now.”

  A few seconds later the evolution was complete—Michigan’s UAV was on its way to Okinawa.

  28

  WASHINGTON, D.C.

  In the Situation Room beneath the West Wing of the White House, the conversation took a turn for the worse as the president aimed pointed questions at the next man in the military chain of command. The president was seated at the head of the conference table, flanked on his left by Secretary of Defense Nelson Jennings and Captain Steve Brackman, while on his right sat chief of staff Kevin Hardison and Secretary of State Lindsay Ross. The rest of the chairs around the table were empty. Jennings had planned to bring along the Joint Chiefs of Staff for today’s meeting, but at the last minute decided to leave them in the Pentagon for a final review of Pacific Command’s plan for full response, now that three additional carrier strike groups were almost within striking distance of Taiwan. Jennings was well briefed on the plan and could explain it to the president. But first, he had to explain what had happened to the first two strike groups.

  “How the hell did they sink one of our carriers?” the president asked.

  “We almost lost both carriers,” Jennings clarified, not helping the situation. The president stared at Jennings, waiting for an answer. Jennings continued, “China was able to insert malware into our Aegis software build, then activate it via our own tactical data links. The malware disrupted the Aegis Warfare Systems aboard our cruisers and destroyers, and they couldn’t shoot down most of the incoming missiles.

  “The good news, however, is that Lake Erie was able to bring up her Aegis fire control system using a software build that was loaded on the cruiser for developmental testing. It’s a new version, which didn’t have the malware embedded in the Fleet release software.”

  “What are we doing about this malware and China’s hijacking of our tactical data links?”

  “General Krae at Cyber Warfare Command, along with everyone at N6, is working to identify and close the holes in our tactical data links. Concerning the malware in our Aegis software, now that we know what to look for, NAVSEA has already identified the malicious code and has developed a software patch to remove it.

  “As far as the larger malware issue goes, we’re combating a difficult problem. All China has to do is flip a programmer at one of our defense contractors, who inserts a segment of code that lies dormant during normal operations. If the code remains dormant during developmental and operational testing, there’s really no way for us to find it.

  “We’re actually very lucky, Mr. President,” Jennings continued. “If NAVSEA hadn’t been able to identify the malware and confirm they can remove it, I’d be sitting here advising you to throw in the towel. Without the ability to shoot down China’s DF-21 missile, we couldn’t risk bringing our carriers within launch range of Taiwan. And without carrier strike group support, we can’t land our Marine Expeditionary Forces. It would have been game over. China has prepared incredibly well for this campaign and we’re still in it by sheer luck.”

  “It could have been far worse,” Captain Brackman added. “Our war plans called for initial support with only two strike groups. If we had waited and engaged with the entire fleet, we could have lost every Pacific Fleet carrier. At first blush, it seems like losing a carrier was a serious blow, but in hindsight, we were fortunate. We forced China to reveal their hand, and now we can compensate when the entire fleet engages.”

  “Speaking of engaging,” the president replied, turning to Secretary of State Ross, “how are we doing on the diplomatic front? I’ve talked with Russia’s president and Japan’s prime minister, and although they agree with our response, I haven’t been abl
e to convince them to assist us militarily. What are you seeing at your level?”

  “We’ve had discussions with the Japanese,” Ross answered, “but Article 9 of their constitution prohibits offensive military action. Since Japan hasn’t been attacked, they can’t aid our defense of Taiwan. Russia is unwilling to intervene, fearing a potential land battle against a standing army of over one million men, with another two million reserves who can be called up.”

  Ross added, “South Korea has North Korea breathing down its neck, and it can’t afford to suffer significant losses in an engagement with China. Our other Pacific Rim allies have also refused to assist, afraid of provoking China into a retaliatory attack.”

  “What about a U.N. resolution, condemning China and authorizing military force to defend Taiwan?” Hardison asked.

  “Member nations are extremely upset at China’s use of force to unify the two Chinas, and a resolution condemning China’s aggression should be approved within the next day or two. However, a resolution authorizing military force by the United Nations must come from the Security Council. Unfortunately, China is one of the five permanent members on the Security Council and will veto any resolution authorizing the United Nations to intervene militarily.”

  Ross examined the solemn faces of the men at the table, then returned her attention to the president. “I’m afraid that no one in the region is willing to engage China.”

  The president frowned. “So it looks like we’re going it alone.” He paused for a moment, then directed his next question at SecDef Jennings. “How are we going to compensate for the Aegis malware and new Chinese surface-to-air missiles? I don’t want to lose another four carriers and their air wings.”

  Jennings replied, “First, we’ll download the Aegis software patch to all our cruisers and destroyers in the Pacific. It’s risky, since it hasn’t gone through operational testing, but it’s our only option.”

  “Why not use the new version Lake Erie used?” the president asked.

  “It doesn’t have full functionality,” Jennings replied. “It was loaded to test new variants of our Standard SM-2 and SM-6 missiles, and thankfully it had SM-3 capability. But it’s not fully integrated with the rest of the Aegis Warfare System yet.”

  The answer appeared acceptable to the president, so Jennings continued. “Second, we need to address the new Chinese surface-to-air missiles. They’re a mix of new-generation radar-guided and heat-seeking missiles. We’ll compensate for the radar-guided missiles by doubling the number of radar-jamming Growlers accompanying each cycle of fighters, and using the telemetry data we received during the first encounter, we’re modifying the Growler’s infrared-red jammers to be more effective against these new heat-seeking missiles. These changes should significantly increase the air wings’ survival rate.

  “One piece of good news,” Jennings added, “is that Christine made it safely aboard USS Michigan. She suffered a minor injury—a gunshot wound to her arm—but will be fine. The even better news is that she delivered the flash drive she was given by the head of President Xiang’s security detail, and it’s been transported by one of Michigan’s UAVs to Okinawa. Unfortunately, we don’t know what’s on the flash drive, because the drive is encrypted. It’s being transported to a cryptology center at the Office of Naval Intelligence, and they’ll inform us once it’s been decrypted.”

  “That is good news,” the president affirmed. “I’ve been worried about Christine. Should we wait to find out what’s on this flash drive before we engage China again?”

  “We don’t have that luxury,” Jennings answered. “We have no idea how long it will take to decrypt the drive, and we can’t wait. We have to land our MEFs before we lose the last beachhead on Taiwan. At the current rate of China’s advance across the island, we can’t delay.”

  The president sat back in his chair for a moment, evaluating the information discussed this evening. Finally, he sat up, a hard gaze focused on SecDef Jennings. “I realize things don’t go as planned during war, gentlemen, and China has had a few surprises up their sleeve, giving them the advantage up to now. It’s time we turn the table on our Chinese friends. When will the rest of Pacific Fleet be ready to engage?”

  “The three additional strike groups will be within launch range by tomorrow night, Mr. President. Nimitz is conducting repairs and should also be able to participate.” The president nodded as Jennings continued. “I have to warn you, sir, that we’re placing the entire Pacific Fleet at risk. Everything hinges on this Aegis software patch—it’s not fully tested. We’ll be bringing all four carriers within range of their DF-21 missiles, and if the patched Aegis software build malfunctions, we could lose every carrier.”

  After a moment of quiet reflection, the president replied, “I understand. Continue with your plans.”

  29

  USS NIMITZ

  Four hundred miles east of Taiwan, USS Nimitz loitered in placid waters under a clear blue sky, a light breeze the only reminder of the passing storm. With the sun a few degrees above the horizon, the orange sunlight reflected off glassy waters as Captain Alex Harrow stood on the Flight Deck, a foot from the edge of the crater created by the DF-21 missile. The fires belowdecks had been extinguished and two-thirds of the forty-foot-wide hole had already been covered, thick metal plates welded into place and supported with I beams. Red sparks and molten slag spit into the air as the ship’s welders continued repairs.

  Harrow hadn’t asked the Chief Engineer which bulkheads had been cut down to obtain the material; sealing the hole was the only thing that mattered. Now that the storm front had passed, Harrow could no longer use the strong winds to his advantage. Nimitz would launch its air wing soon, and when it returned, the aircraft would need the entire Flight Deck to land.

  They didn’t have much time to complete the repairs. The rest of the Pacific Fleet had arrived and the other three carriers were preparing to launch their air wings. To the south, Harrow could see USS Lincoln, a tiny speck on the horizon. Farther south were Stennis and Vinson, and arrayed in front of the four carriers were the strike groups’ fifty-six cruisers, destroyers, and frigates.

  Lagging behind, well out of range of Chinese ballistic missiles, were the Pacific Fleet’s two Marine Expeditionary Forces, embarked aboard amphibious assault ships, transport docks, and landing ships—two divisions of Marines plus two Marine air wings, waiting for the Fleet to clear a safe path to Taiwan.

  The DF-21 missiles still posed the most significant threat. Until the launchers were taken out, the Fleet would have to rely on SM-3 missiles for defense. Fortunately, the DF-21 missile appeared to have one weakness. Although the missile had a theoretical range of seventeen hundred miles, Navy intelligence had determined the missile could be effectively targeted out to only seven hundred miles, which corresponded to the range at which Nimitz had been attacked two days earlier. The four carriers would soon close to within range of the DF-21, and Harrow hoped this time the outcome would be much more favorable.

  In a few minutes, Harrow would turn Nimitz west again and order ahead flank speed, generating headwind to assist his aircraft during launch. Thankfully, both reactors could be brought up to full power. Radiation levels and chemistry analysis of primary coolant had determined that neither reactor had sustained damage during the few hours operating above one hundred percent power.

  As the first Hornet rose toward the Flight Deck from the Hangar Deck below, Harrow felt a deepening uneasiness. China had prepared well for America’s initial response, and would undoubtedly be prepared for the onslaught of the entire Pacific Fleet. The United States Navy would not make the same mistakes this time, underestimating not only the capability of Chinese missiles, but the accompanying cyber warfare that made the missiles much more lethal. Their Aegis escorts had new software, their fighters were loaded with additional chaff, and each wave of aircraft would be supported by the Wing’s entire complement of EA-18G Growlers, the aircraft refueled in-flight so they could support all three cycles. A
s Harrow turned and headed toward the carrier’s Island, he wondered if those adjustments would be enough.

  30

  USS MICHIGAN

  As the eighteen-thousand-ton submarine leveled off at periscope depth, the top of the sail four feet beneath the ocean’s surface, Christine checked her watch. Standing in the aft port corner of Control, Christine waited for Captain Wilson to man Battle Stations; in less than twenty minutes, Michigan was supposed to begin launching her Tomahawk missiles. As Wilson peered through the submarine’s periscope, Christine’s thoughts drifted to the orders that had been streaming into the submarine over the radio broadcast. Michigan had been tasked with launching all of her Tomahawk missiles. That wasn’t surprising considering the circumstances. What was surprising was that the missiles would be launched without a single target assigned.

  The Tomahawk missiles loaded aboard Michigan were the new Block IV Tactical Tomahawk, or TACTOM variant, capable of loitering after launch, doing donuts in the air while awaiting targeting information. Although Tomahawk cruise missiles were extremely accurate, capable of flying through the window of a house, it took hours for launch orders to be generated, transmitted, and loaded aboard older variants, plus additional time spent during the missile’s transit to its destination. During that time, enemy units or mobile launchers could reposition, resulting in the Tomahawk destroying a vacant building or deserted patch of dirt. The new TACTOM missiles overcame this deficit. They would already be launched and loitering nearby, reducing the time between identification and ordnance-on-target from hours to mere minutes.

  Wilson stepped back, turning the scope over to Lieutenant Cordero as an announcement came over the Conn speakers. “Conn, ESM. Hold no threat radars.”