Sky Masters

by Dale Brown

  Elements section of the Command Center, two positive-control technicians

  quickly prepared the radio message for the SAC alert force crews. Using

  a computer, they devised a forty-character message, triple-checked it

  manually for accuracy, using the same code books that the crews in the

  field would use, then broadcast the message via telephone, radio, and

  satellite communications channels to all SAC units in the United States,

  England, Germany, and Japan. The message directed all SAC units to

  stand by for further emergency action messages; it placed SAC's two

  hundred B-52 and ninety B-1 bombers, and thirty Minuteman ICBM

  launch-control centers, into higher readiness states, which would make

  their reaction times much shorter should they be directed to execute

  their SlOP war plans. It would also direct twenty-two rail-garrisoned

  Peacekeeper missile convoys out from their shelters onto the nation's

  rail system and put twenty MGM-134A Mustang missile crews on

  full-deployment alert. After receipt of the message, each SAC unit would

  verify and authenticate the coded message, rebroadcast the message to

  their forces, then compose and send a coded acknowledgment message back

  to SAC Headquarters. The entire process took approximately two minutes.

  Tyler watched one of the big digital screens before him as a list of all

  the SAC units was displayed, with red dots indicating connectivity with

  each unit; as the acknowledgment messages came in, the red dots

  disappeared. "All units acknowledge, sir, " Colonel Dunigan reported.

  "Expect status report from the field in about five minutes."

  "What's the latest status on the units?" Tyler asked. In reply,

  Dunigan put up a computerized listing of the latest status reports of

  all the SAC bases in the world, beginning with the SAC bomber units, and

  read off how quickly-or not so quicklythe units could move. "What's the

  status of the Air Battle Force?"

  "The current session reports ninety percent manned, due to some elements

  being recalled by their parent units before the session completed, "

  Dunigan answered. "The new session that began training last month has

  the first B-2 bomber elements"-she paused as she referred to her notes,

  then said"plus some GENESIS elements."

  "GENESIS?" Tyler exclaimed. He had forgotten all about thqfbut it was

  easy to forget about Lieutenant General Brad Elliott's research group,

  lost from view in the middle of Nevada. Tyler had remembered granting

  approval for Elliott's weird hybrid planes to participate, but had not

  bothered to check up on their status during their course. "Jesus, I

  completely forgot about that. Refresh my memory, Colonelwhat's he got

  at Ellsworth now?"

  "He's got four modified B-52 bombers, six stretched F-1 11 G bombers,

  and a B-2 bomber involved in the Air Battle Force session, " Dunigan

  reported. "The -111's and the B-2 are garrisoned at Ellsworth; the

  B-52s-I should say, the EB-52Cs-are stationed at HAWC but still

  participate in Air Battle Force activities." She paused, then said, "I

  can get General Elliott and General Jarrel on the line and "We don't

  have time, " Tyler said. What a time to have Elliott's mutant planes

  out flying around in the Air Force Battle, Tyler thought. Christ, it was

  like Elliott knew there was going to be trouble. "It'll have to wait

  for the Air Battle Force status report. Move along." Up in the Support

  Staff area, General Stone could not hear most of the interphone exchange

  between Tyler and his staff-but he was familiar enough with the items up

  on the big board to know that something serious was going on. He saw

  lists of all the SAC bases in the world on the big board, saw the status

  indicators change as he received the message sent by Tyler, and saw

  weather maps, charts, and checklist pages being put up on the board so

  everyone knew where the staff was in the Zero-Tango response procedures.

  But the left-center screen had something more interestingsatellite

  photographs. Stone turned to the technician seated beside him. "Is that

  real-time imagery?"

  "Not real-time, but very recent, sir, " the tech replied. He checked a

  computer screen and replied, "It's about ten to thirty minutes old. DSP

  Control Center will automatically upload the latest satellite imagery of

  a subject area. I don't exactly know what the source of this imagery

  is, though-it's not from Colorado Springs. "Any ideas when we can get

  the real-time pictures of the area?"

  "I'm sure the request is being made right now, sir, " the tech replied.

  "The request will probably come through whatever command is placed in

  charge of the current emergency, or direct from JCS or the National

  Security Council." Stone's ears buzzed when he heard the words "current

  emergency, " but he didn't bother to ask what was going onhe was busy

  scrutinizing the satellite photos being flashed on the board. "Ulugan

  Bay, " Stone observed. He turned to a technician seated a few chairs

  beside him. "I recognize that harbor. Ulugan Bay, Palawan. The

  Philippines. But that big ship... I don't recognize it. What's going

  on?" The technician seemed to ignore him, but he had depressed his mike

  switch and had sent a message down to the Battle Staff area. Then, as

  the satellite imagery of the warship zoomed in closer, maintaining

  remarkably high resolution even in ultracloseups, Stone realized that

  what he was watching was not a Filipino ship. 'Hong Lung, " Stone

  declared. "It's the Chinese destroyer Hong Lung. What's it doing so

  close to Ulugan Bay?" Just then Stone's headset clicked to life.

  "Rat-Tyler here, " the Commander in Chief of SAC said. "Sergeant Rowe

  says you seemed to recognize that harbor and that ship. What is it?"

  The technician pointed to a button near the base of the microphone on

  the desk in front of him, and Stone depressed the buttoi' and replied,

  "Yes, sir, Ulugan Bay on Palawan in the Philippines. Palawan is a large

  island about two hundred miles southwest of Manila. That ship looks

  like the Chinese destroyer Hong Lung. It's one of the two EF5-class

  destroyers in China's fleet. It's the flagship of the Spratly Island

  flotilla." There was a long pause; then: "Well, you're right about the

  Philippines, " Tyler said. "But what's the Spratly Islands? I never

  heard of them."

  "It's a small island chain between Vietnam and Palawan in the South

  China Sea, " Stone replied. "China claims them but legally occupies the

  lower one-third; the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia

  occupy the northern third, with the middle third a neutral zone. Those

  five countries have been fighting over the islands for decades."

  "Well, the fighting has just reached a new level, Rat, " Tyler said

  dryly, "because someone set off a nuke right near the Philippines just a

  few minutes ago." Richard Stone was so surprised that he forgot to press

  the mike button. "A nuke?" He paused, then managed to find the button.

  "Someone set off a nuke . . . ? General Tyler, that destroyer, the

  Hong Lung-it carries nuclear-tipped missiles." Tyler and half-a-dozen

  other staff me
mbers in the Battle Staff area looked up in the Support

  Staff area. The near-realtime satellite photo of the Chinese ship had

  changed several times by the time a shocked Tyler asked, "That Chinese

  warship carries nuclear missiles? I never heard that before, Rat." He

  shook his head, stared hard at the charts of the South China Sea region,

  then rubbed dried sweat from his eyes in exasperation. "Jesus Christ,

  what's a Chinese ship doing cruising around the Philippines with nukes

  aboard?" He turned to Stone again and asked, "Can you verify that, Rat?

  What kind of nuclear missiles? How many...?"

  "It's never been verified as far as I know, sir, " Stone replied, 'Just

  like we never verify that American warships carry nukes. But it's a

  well-known fact that EF5-class destroyers carry at least two Fei Lung-9

  antiship cruise missiles with RK-55 warheads-twenty-kiloton yield. I

  can't believe the Chinese would actually cook one off, though."

  "Do the Filipinos have nuclear weapons?" Stanczek asked. "Not to my

  knowledge, sir, " Stone replied. "We had some nuclear weapons

  stockpiled at Clark for a few years, but they were removed years ago.

  "Could they have built a weapon of their own? Are they advanced enough

  to do that?"

  "I'm surprised there was a Philippine Navy out there for a nuke to

  destroy, " Stone said. "Everything they have is at least twenty to

  fifty years old, and most of it is World War Two vintage. As far as

  weaponry, they have Sea Lance and Harpoon missiles, but nothing more

  potent than that. No, they couldn't have built a nuclear device." Stone

  could see Tyler shaking his head in amazement at the news, and it was

  then that he began to get a real feeling for the pressure that was on

  Tyler and his staff right now. In a few minutes the President of the

  United States was going to get on the line with Tyler and ask him how he

  should respond to the incident. That call came a few moments later, but

  not from the President. After a ten-second warning tone on the microwave

  telephone hookup, a voice began, "All stations, all stations, this is

  RENEGADE on Zero-Tango action teleconference network. Security

  classification is Top Secret. All stations stand by. Network poll in

  progress. National Command Authority, White House..." While the lengthy

  teleconference poll continued, Tyler got on the intercom to Stone. "Rat,

  tell me more about the Chinese and the Philippines. Are the Chinese a

  threat to the Philippines or is their involvement limited only to the

  Spratly Islands? I mean, could they have been victims here, caught in

  the explosion?"

  "Hard to say, sir, " Stone replied. "The Communist movement in the

  Philippines has very close ties to the mainland Chinese, but as far as I

  know, the link is only ideological. Until the current regime got into

  power, there wasn't any direct contact between the Philippine Communists

  and the Chinese. But I've never heard of the Chinese ships operating so

  close to Palawan before, especially not a destroyerand especially not

  the EF5 class. It's their newest, most modern and wellequipped model,

  and they're risking a lot driving that big boy around in those shallow

  waters around Palawan."

  "What do you mean, the current regime?"

  "Teguina, the First Vice President, " Stone replied. "He's the leader

  of the pro-Communist National Democratic Front. Some say he's the

  leader of the main Communist armed opposition, called the New People's

  Army, that's been operating in the outlying provinces for the past

  several years. Teguina has been active in strengthening economic and

  cultural ties with China over the past few years; China has become a big

  trading partner with the Philippines and the United States. But it has

  been suggested that Teguina is working not only to strengthen economic

  ties to China, but military and political ties as well."

  "China and the Philippines?" Tyler remarked. "Is that really possible?"

  "Very possible, sir, " Stone confirmed. "The Philippines have a large

  population of ethnic Chinese, and mainland Chinese own several large

  businesses and banks there. But more importantly, China sees itself as

  the protector of world Communism these days. With the Soviet Union

  becoming more democratic and capitalist every year, China is the last

  and perhaps the greatest exporter of Communism in the world. I'd say the

  Philippines are very fertile ground for them." He went on. "I doubt

  Teguina's had anything to do with this Chinese fleet off Palawan or the

  nuclear explosion, but because of his presence in the Philippine

  government and his relations with the PRC, this could turn out to be a

  lot more complex than it is right now. "What do you mean?"

  "My guess is we probably won't see a total condemnation of the Chinese

  from the Philippine government, " Stone said. "I don't know any

  details, of course, but when it comes time to point the finger, you

  won't see all the fingers pointing at China-you'll see a few pointed at

  President Mikaso."

  "Mikaso? Why?" "Mikaso is popular, but perceived as weak, " Stone said.

  "Teguina is considered a strong leader. Mikaso was also too friendly

  with the United States. Although Mikaso is much more of a nationalist

  than Teguina, Teguina's call for eliminating all U.S. presence in the

  Philippines was a strong stand that most Filipinos liked to hear." Stone

  decided against injecting his own reservations about Teguina into the

  discussion, but remembered all too well the look in Teguina's eye that

  last day at Clark. "I still don't get it, " Tyler said with rising

  exasperation. "Why would Mikaso suffer by having the Chinese explode a

  nuke near Palawan?" Just as Stone was about to answer, the poll was

  completed and the situation briefing began. Five minutes later, the

  briefing concluded with no mention of the Chinese destroyer or its

  weaponry. Space Command or the Defense Intelligence Agency refused to

  comment on the origin of the explosion. Fine-Tyler would tell them

  himself. "General-Tyler at SAC, " Tyler said, interrupting the Space

  Command briefer. "My staff expert here has possibly determined the

  origin of that nuclear detonation." There was a bit of a pause, then:

  "Go ahead, SAC."

  "China. Satellite imagery confirmed their presence in the area, and my

  expert reports that the Chinese ships seen in the satellite imagery

  carry nuclear weapons "Defense Intelligence here, " a voice chimed in.

  "We have no information of any Chinese vessels carrying nuclear weapons

  in the South China Sea. In fact the idea is ludicrous." Tyler clicked

  on the intercom to Stone. "You sure of your data, Rat Killer?"

  "Positive, General, " Stone said. "My intelligence may be a few weeks

  old, but it's reliable." The intercom clicked off, then on, and this

  time Stone could hear the entire conversation on the network. "My

  expert maintains that the Chinese vessel in the satellite imagery we've

  just received carries nuclear-tipped antiship missiles. The vessel is a

  Chinese destroyer, the Ho ng Lung, which is the flagship of a large

  patrol fleet that operates in the Spratly
Islands."

  "JCS copies, SAC, " came the reply after a few moments: the reply came

  from the chairman himself, General Curtis, and he seemed curiously

  unsurprised at the revelation. "What is the current status of your

  units at this time, General Tyler?"

  "Sir, I'm showing one hundred percent of the force fully mission ready,

  " Tyler said, checking the connectivity readout of all his SAC units on

  the big board. The force is currently under posture four, under my

  authority. However, please be aware that the current SlOP OPLAN has no

  contingencies for operations against China or in the east Asian region.

  We hold no Chinese targets at risk."

  "Understood, " Curtis replied. "It may be premature to declare an

  A-hour, however. We will defer that decision for the NCA when we call

  the Charlie conference."

  "Discharge of nuclear weapons automatically invokes at least a DEFCON

  Three level, " Tyler said. "I recommend we proceed with that.

  Undoubtedly the Russians and the Chinese will respond by increasing

  their readiness levels as well; we should take the first step and then

  re-evaluate the situation." "We'd have time for a discussion about

  contingency planning at a later time, " General Curtis said. "Right now

  I want recommendations for the NCA as to the status of our deterrent

  forces."

  "SAC recommends DEFCON Three, posture four, " Tyler said. "Forces

  concurs, " General Jackson, commander of the Army Forces Command, said.

  As the largest single military command, the Army needed the most time to

  generate its units to go on a wartime footing and therefore had an equal

  say in whether a higher readiness state should be declared. "COMSUBFLT

  concurs, " Admiral Towland, commander of strategic nuclear submarines,

  added. There was a slight pause, followed by a cryptic "Stand by" from

  General Curtis. Tyler found his palms moist and clammy. He rubbed them

  on his warmup-suit pants to dry them. The Chairman of the JCS came back

  on: "All units, this is RENEGADE. Implement DEFCON Three. Posture will