by Ben Winston
“What slip do you want her in?” Cindy asked.
“Excuse me?” the Director replied.
“The ship, Mister Director, what slip do you want the ship in?” Cindy asked.
“You’re going to move the whole ship?” the Director asked, astounded. "Uh, I’ll have to check on that, just a moment please.”
“White Queen, stand by for our TacOp, Challanger, please drop to close observation altitude and record the op for us, that’ll make sure everyone has plenty of footage to analyze. White Queen, could you try to warn off all approaching craft. If this goes sideways, the last thing we need are civilian aircraft dropping out of the sky from the pulse,” Cindy said.
“Understood and appreciated, Major. We are issuing the alert to all affected ATC installations. Standing by for your TacOp,” Chloe said.
“Challenger is descending, on station in two minutes, Major. We have you locked in,” the pilot of the Challenger called in.
“Director Stansfield, make yourself useful, and contact the FAA to let them know what’s about to happen over the mid-west,” The President ordered. "It might be wise to alert FEMA mid-west as well.”
“But Madam President, we have no proof that...” the Director tried to argue.
“Are you really that stupid, Miguel? Didn’t we already independently verify the threat? Stop being an ass, and do what you’re told, or I will find someone to fill your office that isn’t a fucking moron!” The President almost yelled. It was a sign of how upset she was that she used profanity. Everyone knew that she didn’t swear. Ever. "Admiral Collins, please do what you can with our military to back up the Terran Forces.”
“Already in motion, Madam President. The 148th fighter wing is already clearing the sky, and have grounded all civilian aircraft into and out of Duluth, and the North Shore area. The Coast Guard is quietly trying to contact all civilian ships and get them to clear out as well. They are using helicopters to try to contact the smaller private fishing boats, but there are sure to be some they simply can’t get to in time.” The Admiral replied. “I ordered the locks at Sault Saint Marie closed immediately when we first heard about the threat, and had them recall all vessels that hadn’t cleared the harbor yet. We have had some inquiries from the Canadian Harbor Authority requesting an explanation, but have managed to put them off for now.”
“Good work, Admiral,” the President replied. “I guess it’s all on you Major Swift.”
“Wouldn’t have it any other way, Madam President. Damocles is executing the Op. Swift out.”
“The Damocles has muted all inbound comms so they can’t be distracted by our chatter, however we can still listen in to them. If we need to warn them about something, their computers will alert them we need to speak to them, and they will reconnect with us,” Major Brighton replied. “Until then, they are on their own.”
Chapter Six
CAV 001, Raptor Damocles
Lake Superior, Minnesota, United States
Earth, Sol Sector
Major Cynthia Swift-Williams, Commanding
“Okay kids, remember, the world is listening, so mind your language. Damocles, release the drone, and put us in drop position,” Cindy ordered. "All units, stand by for drop.”
“Major, the drone has the bomb,” Lissa reported. Lissa, or Melissa Dancer, was an AI in an android body created specifically for the Raptor program by the engineers at Phoenix Base. The AI core itself wasn't actually in the android body since it was far too large for that, rather the body was ‘ridden’ by the AI. The core was built into the frame of the Raptor itself. More than ever before, the AI was literally the ship it was mounted in. The AI was created by Star, Colonel Anders, Major Laskar, and a team of other AI specialists specifically for this purpose.
“Beautiful,” Cindy said. “Drop team! Go! Go! Go!”
Aboard the U.A.F. Morning Star, everything was quiet and running smoothly, which was just how the new Captain liked it. His mission was to see his cargo to the Port of Duluth, a place in the heartland of the ‘Great Satan’. Allah’s divine fire will burn the evil Americans in a place where they believe they are the safest, and they will know. They will know that no place is safe from Allah’s wrath.
It had been a long and tiresome journey to this evil place, but just as the Ayatollah had told him, the American infidels had been so arrogant that they had not even bothered to check the cargo of the freighter. Now they would pay. They would pay for all the evil they had done to the children and innocents of Islam. No, they would not escape Allah's wrath.
“Status?” the Captain asked.
“We are on course, and should arrive in port on schedule, Captain,” the First Officer replied. “Allah willing, this will be a day long remembered by the Infidels."
“Yes it will. We must be especially alert from now on. If they suspect us, they will attempt to stop us from reaching our goal. Be sure to keep an eye out for anything unusual,” the Captain replied.
“I have already posted look-outs, Captain. There are three men on the bow that appear to be simply resting and having a discussion. Two more men are ‘repainting’ the bulkheads at the stern. Finally, I have placed two men on the crane ‘fixing something’ that can help scan to port and starboard,” the First Officer replied.
“Very good, Hassid. Nothing can stop us now,” the Captain said. He took out a small tablet computer and handed it to the First Officer. “I am going for a cup of coffee. I'll return shortly.”
The first officer took the small device and slipped it into a pocket, then nodded to his Captain. “I’ll maintain the watch until your return.”
Just as the captain turned to the hatch, something smashed through one of the windows. Before he could react, the stun grenade detonated, and he fell to the floor unconscious. Since the bridge was wide, but narrow, two grenades had been used. On the starboard side of the bridge, another grenade was thrown at the same time. When they went off, everyone in the bridge was knocked out.
They didn’t see the armored men enter from each side. One of them turned and looked out the windows toward the bow. “Bridge secured, six disabled.” Cindy's voice said. The other armored figure nodded once to the Major, and quickly left, jumping over the railing on the catwalk to drop down to the deck. He then started running for the bow of the ship.
Automatic gun fire rang out and chased the running person. It was coming from the top of the crane the armored person was currently running past. The armored figure didn’t even slow down, nor did he hesitate.
Up on the bridge catwalk, on the port side, Major Swift stepped out the hatch she had entered by, lifted her rifle, and fired twice. “Crane secured,” she said as an AK-74 clattered to the deck. The other rifle had gotten hung up on the equipment at the top of the crane by the two dead men.
The operation went off quickly, and without a hitch. Of the crew, only the two men on the crane, as well as the two men at the stern of the ship had died. The two at the stern had been blown into fish food when the Damocles used one of its mass drivers on them.
The unconscious men had been bound and brought on deck where they were revived by Lissa, who also served as the team medic. Once all of them were aware of their surroundings, Cindy spoke to them in Arabic to make sure they all understood what she had to say to them.
“Men of Libya, You have been caught committing an act of terrorism. This is a cowardly act only performed by cowardly, shameful men. Allah does not believe in these kinds of acts. Allah abhors violence of any kind. You are devout men, you should know this.” Cindy said, shaking her head. Her movement was translated to her armor and it aped her.
“You have violated your fellow humans in a most heinous and unforgivable way. According to our laws, the only penalty you may receive for this action is death. Do any of you have anything to say before you are executed?” Cindy asked.
Terran Defense Ship TDF Star Dancer
Lunar Orbit
Selene (Earth’s Moon)
Sol System,
Sol Sector
Commander Ian Williams, Commanding
Back on Star Dancer, the President, via the video link, acted surprised, even though she knew what was coming. Ian had to admit she was pretty good at it. “What? What did she just say?”
“Madam President, terrorism, by its very nature, is one of the most reviled of acts one group can visit upon another. As such, it carries the maximum penalty allowed; death,” Ian said just as Cindy’s team shot all the captives with their pulse rifles.
“I can allow that the penalty, if convicted, could be death, but what about due process? Don’t you think those men deserved to argue their case?” the President said, acting miffed. "I’m going to catch all sorts of hell over this.”
“Madam President, our laws do not provide for persons caught in the act, to receive due process. There simply is no point in it, and it only serves to waste time and resources. As for you catching hell for it, why would you? We are the ones that handled this. Since there wasn’t a formal treaty in place to cover emergencies like that, we used our laws as a guide instead of yours.”
“Somehow, I doubt the people will see it that way. I’ll make sure our ambassador works something out with yours, in the event we’ll ever need to call on you again. You used to be an American, Commander, you should know we have a judicial system here that requires criminals be tried for their crimes.”
“Madam President, with respect, you know as well as I do, that those men would have simply been carted off to Cuba, and forgotten about. No trial, no anything.
“As a former citizen of your nation, I’ve often wondered what happens to those people. Because of the way the laws are written, there is no way for the common citizen to find out either. As a nation, you are spending millions of dollars a month to keep these animals alive, when a bullet to the head only costs a few dollars.
“People have sat on the various death rows until they have died of old age! Yes, I know it is better to err on the side of caution, and I agree with you. But there has to be a limit. Now, I agree you lack the same methods we use to find the truth and therefore can never be completely certain you are executing the guilty unless he was caught in the act.
“These men were caught in the act, they were given a chance to defend themselves, by the Major, but none of them took it. They were then executed. Justice; swift, fair, and final.” Ian explained. “I suggest you run a real poll, not one of those fake things sponsored by some special interest group, ask the people what they thought of the outcome. I think you’ll be surprised at the answers.”
“I know it’s not the popular thing to say, but I agree with the Commander, and his actions, Madam President,” Admiral Collins said. "In this instance, I believe he acted in good faith, and in a manner appropriate to the situation. After all, it’s nothing more or less than our own SEALS do in similar situations, and usually with far less evidence.”
“So you are saying we should just classify this whole mess, and forget about it?” The President asked. “I think it’s a little too late for that to happen, Admiral, half the United States was affected by this morning’s activities.”
“What? By that terrorism readiness exercise? Of course they were, but we did learn what area’s we need to work on in order to assure we are better prepared for a ‘real' terrorist threat. As long as the Commander’s people can keep that ship hidden when they move it, no one will know any differently, Admiral Collins explained. “Can you do that, son? Keep a ship that size hidden when you move it to Norfolk?”
“Yes we can, Admiral. That shouldn’t be a problem,” Ian replied.
“There you have it, Ma’am. We don’t release any of our other covert operations to the general public, why should this be any different?" Admiral Collins said.
The President was quiet a moment while she thought through the implications of classifying the event. Of course the Senate oversight committee would know of it, but other than that, there really was no reason that this episode had to become common knowledge.
“Madam President, I’m afraid I have to disagree with the Admiral over this. I feel the cat is too far out of the bag to pull it pack in at this point. Too many agencies were involve in this operation,” Director Stansfield said. “The Minnesota Air National Guard, the Coast Guard, the FAA, FEMA, the Duluth Port Authority, Michigan Department of Transportation, just to name the major players in this. This operation did not follow the normal protocols for an exercise of this type, those people will know we are trying to cover something up."
“With respect, Mister Stansfield, I disagree,” Ian replied. “Obviously, what the President and the rest of you decide is entirely up to you. However, when you use the routine protocols for an exercise of this type, you never get an accurate picture of how responses will be since everyone is on stand-by, and ready for it. If you simply explain that this was a more accurate method for evaluating responses, I feel you would be safe in classifying the remainder of the operation. But, as I said, this is only my opinion, for what it’s worth.
“I do need to make a report to the UN Security Council, however, I do need to know what to consider classified. This was an internal matter for the United States, All I really need to tell them was that we assisted you in a classified internal operation. I do not need to tell them details as long as it was an internal matter. The grey area here is that it did deal with non-American personnel, but since they were there illegally, I don’t see a reason I need to report that if you do not want me too.”
The President nodded to him. “We appreciate your discretion in this matter, Commander.” She turned to the assemble group in her office. “Okay, Admiral, classify the mission. Director Stansfield, put out the story that this was a ‘real life’ test of our readiness get a few of your people to write up reports on how the different agencies responded and where they can improve. Once all that is finished, we will release a public announcement about the test and explain, in detail, why we did it the way we did.” She turned back to look at Ian. “Commander, we never discussed how much this was going to cost us. What are you going to charge us for your assistance?”
As soon as decision was made by the President, Chloe passed along the information to Cindy and the crew of the Damocles, so they knew how to proceed. Cindy grinned, shook her head, and said they’d take care of it, although, they still needed to know where to put the damn ship.
Ian was momentarily taken aback by her request. He had no need for compensation for this, but there had to be something, or they would start turning to him for everything. Then, he had an idea.
“Madam President, we have no current need for money, however, there is something you can do for us,” Ian said.
“Oh?” the President asked.
“The land in New Mexico we originally occupied. Since we bought it, legally, I would like for it to be considered foreign soil. There might be a time in the future that we’ll need that land, and I would like to be able to use it without having to worry about arguing with you over it."
“I think we might be able to reach an agreement about that. However, it would depend on exactly what you would be using the land for. Considering your stated opinions on the environment, I can’t see you doing anything out there that could be dangerous like that," she replied.
“Actually, I was thinking about possibly making it a fighter base if the need arises. Civilian traffic can be handled at either the Mojave facility or the new facility in southern New Mexico built by Virgin Galactic. Of course we would agree to pay the standard landing fees and the like. And possibly even assist some of the other companies to compete with us.
“The New Mexico land we bought would be used as a military fighter base for the protection of your hemisphere. We had planned to approach a few of the other nations for the same purposes, but just haven’t gotten that far yet,” Ian explained.
“You want to place a military base on American soil?” the President asked.
“Actually, I would like you to consider it, Ma’a
m. Please try to keep in mind it would in fact be more of a United Nations facility than a strictly Terran Defense installation, even though we would have complete control of it. This is all still in the planning stages though, and we haven’t actually decided to build it there. I’m just trying to make sure there will be less problems if that decision is indeed made,” Ian explained.
“Excuse me for interrupting, Admiral Collins, exactly where do you want the Damocles to put your ship?” Chloe asked.
“Ah, yes, thank you for asking, Major. In light of the decision to classify the mission, we would like to meet your team outside the harbor, and take it under tow. That would raise far less questions,” The Admiral replied.
“That would be fine, Sir. I just need the coordinates, and we’ll set it there for you,” Chloe said.
The Admiral nodded his head, and gave her the coordinates for a place a few miles off-shore. “In addition to the tugs, there will be two destroyers as an escort. Will that be alright?”
“Not a problem Admiral, just be sure to tell them not to fire on the Damocles, your weapons can’t hurt it, but if you piss them off, they might decide to teach you a lesson. In that case, you’ll need more tugs,” Chloe said chuckling.
The Admiral chuckled. “No, I don’t think that would be a good idea. Please pass along our thanks for the assist to the crew of your ship.”
“Will do Admiral. Major Swift said to expect delivery at the mentioned location at zero-one-hundred local. As per our own doctrine, all radioactive material will be removed from the bomb before delivery, but nothing else will be changed,” Chloe replied.
“I expected nothing else, Major. Thank you,” Admiral Collins replied.
“Madam President, do you think we can reach an agreement over that land?” Ian asked.
“It would be the first time the United States has allowed a foreign power to station forces on our soil. That’s pretty major. I’m afraid I won’t be able to answer you on the issue without the input of Congress. I’m pretty sure we could agree to consider the land autonomous, but the military base will have to be discussed. Sorry, Commander,” the President replied.