by Tim Moon
Ben wiped his face dry with a hand towel and thought, coffee. He filled a paper cup as full as he dared.
Shorts alone wouldn’t work for the lobby, so Ben threw on his favorite Star Wars t-shirt and a plain white baseball hat.
Entering the lobby, Ben saw Ty. He was showing the effects of the last two days, but Ty seemed a lot more personable than he’d been last night.
Breakfast at this hotel was serious business. Four large buffet tables held a wide selection of tasty treats. They were fairly early, but things still seemed awfully quiet. One man read the newspaper. Another watched the news on TV, and a family sat in the far corner talking quietly amongst themselves.
Then Ben remembered. Today was the day of the annual triathlon which drew thousands of people to the island from around the world. So, early as it was, anyone associated with the race was already up and out the door.
Two athletic looking announcers chatted about the race on the TV hanging from the wall.
They actually needed to hurry if they were going to go watch. The race would be starting soon, and they still had to link up with the ladies.
Last night, Anuhea had texted Ty to see if they’d like to watch the race with her and Charlotte. Ben was shocked that they wanted to hang out again after the way the evening had gone. But they’d agreed right away because it meant seeing the girls again. Though, at the time, neither of them had been very interested in the race itself. Right now, Ben was almost excited. It’d be his first time watching a triathlon, and it’d be a great way to keep his mind from dwelling in the darkness.
“Before Anuhea mentioned it last night, I’d almost forgotten the race was this week.” Ben nodded his head toward the television. He reached for bacon with silver tongs and grabbed half a dozen slices.
Ty just shrugged as he started shoveling fruit into his bowl. “It could be fun. I’ve never watched a triathlon in person before. I’ve only seen highlights on the news or clips on YouTube.”
Ben walked over to the cook assigned to omelet duty. The man grinned politely as Ben made his order — bacon and cheese with onions and green peppers. As the cook went to work, Ben joined Ty at the table he’d chosen facing the TV. Ben set down his plate of bacon, eggs, and hash browns and turned his attention to the television.
After a few moments, the news anchors switched from talking about the race to talking about the attack at The Brewing Company.
“Ben, look. They’re talking about last night.” Ty nudged Ben’s arm.
“Yeah,” he said shushing Ty.
“Order up,” said the cook.
Ben hurried over to get his omelet, trying not to take his eyes off the TV for long. He thanked the cook and rushed back to the table to watch the news segment.
“Most people go to The Brewing Company restaurant to relax, enjoy a meal, and have a beer with friends or family. They don’t expect the night to turn violent. Samantha Steele has the story,” the anchor said.
“Thank you, Mike. Last night, a man burst through this floor-to-ceiling glass window and attacked a woman.” Samantha gestured at the broken window. “Police reports say the man grabbed her and bit her repeatedly on the arm. It’s one of a string of biting attacks that have been occurring around the islands.” She spoke with the dramatic tone of a movie trailer.
A wide shot showed her standing with the smashed window behind her. She walked toward the camera, chunks of glass crunching under her ridiculously high-heeled feet. “Kona Police Sergeant John Higgs said the man, whose identity is unknown, seemed to have no connection to the victim. A heroic member of the kitchen staff, Keanu Pookalani, responded and subdued the attacker until police took him into custody. The victim fled the scene before police and paramedics arrived. Her current whereabouts and condition are unknown. Sergeant Higgs said police are looking into every lead. Mike, back to you.”
Ty looked over at Ben.
“Well, nothing new there,” Ben said with a shrug. “Except that the girl didn’t show up at the hospital like the officer thought she would. That’s pretty weird, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, she lost serious chunks of her arm to that freak. But I wish they’d share something we didn’t know. Either of us could have given that news report.” Ty sounded disappointed.
“Seriously.” Ben nodded.
Back in the studio, anchorman Mike and his co-host Iolani made a couple of comments implying a connection between The Brewing Company attack and the hotel fire the day before.
Revisiting the story, Mike said, “According to police reports, several eye witnesses claim that two, quote, ‘strange’ people wandered in and bit guests at the breakfast buffet, which started the confrontation that may have sparked the fire. Unfortunately, the number of fatalities from the hotel fire has now risen to seven, two of whom died in the hospital last night.”
Iolani commented on several reports of biting attacks coming out of Honolulu. Two of the Honolulu attacks were fatal.
“A string of biting attacks? That’s not only creepy as hell but too much of a coincidence,” Ty said, as he finished his mountain of fruit. “We should see if anything more specific is online, do you have your phone? I left mine in the room.”
“Nope, I left mine too. What do you think is causing it? That guy last night wasn’t right in the head, even for a drug fiend. He didn’t talk, yell, curse — nothing. He only moaned and growled like an angry dog.”
“I really don’t think it could be drugs,” Ty said. “With such weird attacks in so many different places, tainted drugs seems unlikely. And it doesn’t explain the people on the plane. They clearly weren’t on anything.”
Mike and Iolani were about to turn things over to yet another homogeneous weather report when they cut to a graphic that said, “Breaking News” in bold letters.
“We have a breaking news story. For details, we go to our national affiliate,” Iolani said.
The screen filled with the logo for the national broadcast then faded to a familiar news anchor - Jordan Jackson. Jordan started by welcoming everyone to this special broadcast. Then she got right to the point.
“Just moments ago, China announced that it believes it was the target of a biological attack which has killed thousands of civilians. China has mobilized their police and military forces to respond to the disaster,” Jordan said, pausing briefly for effect. “In order to contain the situation and find those responsible, all communication, travel, and trade have been halted.”
Next to Jordan, a pair of graphics showed the flags of Japan and South Korea.
“Reports first came in from our affiliates in Japan and South Korea, who reported serious communication outages within China. Their field reporters in China had to call in via satellite phones because telecommunications appear to be down in all major cities. An unnamed source within the U.S. State Department, confirmed the reports of Chinese blackouts,” she continued as another small graphic appeared beside her.
“The Chinese Ministry of Transportation and Communication and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have issued a joint statement that all transportation and communication into and out of the country has been suspended until further notice. Sources within China tell us that, quote, ‘disruptions’ began in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou late last night. Several comments were found on social media about random attacks and violence in the streets, but they’ve since been deleted. Now it’s been reported that Chinese internet service providers, the gateway companies to the internet, have shut down completely.”
“Internet security expert Dave Carmichael is here with us. Thank you for joining us, Dave. Why would China order their Internet Service Providers to shut down?”
The screen cut to a middle-aged man with a military style haircut. “As you know, Jordan, China has always kept a tight rein on their telecommunications, including the internet. If they feel like they’ve been attacked by terrorists or a rogue nation, restricting communications access between those responsible and their assets on the ground in China
is a logical step. It limits their vulnerability to electronic attacks during a time of crisis, but it also restricts citizens from reaching out to friends and family which is an unfortunate problem.”
“Thank you, Dave,” Jordan said. “We’re told that just hours ago, Beijing sent instructions to their embassies and consulates worldwide about the communication and transportation blockage before sharing the announcement with the media. It is unknown if Chinese embassies and consulates will have contact with Beijing or not,” Jordan said. “This dramatic and unexpected move by China is being received by other governments with extreme speculation. Some people in the international community question whether an attack actually occurred since no official evidence was provided by Beijing. Many fear this may be a move towards armed conflict, given recent tensions in the region between China and many of its neighbors concerning territorial disputes.”
She took a moment before continuing.
“Japan responded to the announcement, which has been viewed by some as a potential escalation of the situation regarding the contested islands in the East China Sea, by announcing an elevated security posture for their Defense Forces saying, ‘We will ensure the safety and security of our country from any and all aggressive actions. Any attack will be met by swift and decisive retaliatory measures.’ The Republic of Korea’s government in Seoul, has elevated the security posture of their armed forces as well. In a statement to the press, the South Korean President urged caution and open dialog to resolve any dispute saying, ‘We urge our neighbor to remain peaceful for the good of all people.’”
“That’s some serious shit,” Ben said, in awe of the enormity of the situation.
“So much for going to China after this, huh?” Ty said.
Ben nodded. Damn.
International drama on this scale was unlikely to be resolved in a matter of a few weeks or even months. If for some reason war broke out, Ben felt certain neither of them would be going anywhere in Asia anytime soon. The implication of one of the world’s largest economies suddenly slamming the door in the rest of the world’s face was daunting. It almost made Ben wish he was still in college, to discuss it with other political and foreign policy geeks.
“I wonder if the government will be able to airlift citizens out of China? I mean, what’s going to happen to the expats still there if all travel is blocked? Will that policy affect U.S. government flights too?” Ty asked.
With a shrug, Ben said, “I don’t know how it will affect that, but my guess is that the lock-down means everyone. I guess it depends on what actually happened, they weren’t very specific. If it was just a terrorist attack, there’d be no reason to evacuate people.” Ben shoveled omelet into his mouth as he thought about it.
“I guess that’s true,” Ty said, between bites. “Dude, aren’t Steve and Aubrey in China backpacking? I wonder if they even know what’s happening.”
“Oh, that’s right. Wow,” Ben said with his mouth full.
Ty glanced at the clock on the wall. “We need to roll out soon or we’ll be late to the race.”
They finished breakfast and headed back to the room. When they got there, Ben flipped on the TV and turned up the volume so they could listen while they got ready to go meet Anuhea and Charlotte. The news was still showing some clips from a news conference with the Japanese prime minister.
Jordan Jackson came back on screen and announced that the U.S. president would be making a statement soon. She went on to say that video clips had been recovered from social media accounts before the internet shutdown in China. They were from the last 48-hours and showed what appeared to be riots in the big cities.
The screen cut to one of the video clips. The streets were full of people, police swung batons and threw gas grenades, and bodies were lying on the ground.
The president’s speech was surprisingly calm and reassuring. He encouraged China to maintain open trade with the world. He mentioned China’s friendly ties to America and suggested that his administration would help seek out any group responsible for attacking China. But he also reassured America’s allies that he would stand with them in case of a conflict. The president said he was confident that the world could work with China to peacefully resolve whatever difficulties they were dealing with.
Nothing was said about U.S. citizens in China though, which troubled Ben. Thousands of people, including their friends, would now be stranded there without communication for an undetermined length of time. He couldn’t imagine how stressful that would be for them or their families.
After the President’s speech, the coverage cut back to Jordan who passed the issue over to some commentators.
“Lame. They didn’t really say anything.” Ty threw a sock at the TV.
“Vague political posturing.”
“Exactly.”
It was disappointing. Ben also wondered what would happen to flights currently in the air heading to and from China. Would they be turned away by their destinations?
“Times like this make me wish I was working in D.C. so I could have the inside scoop,” Ben said.
CHAPTER TEN
October 10, 2015
Alii Drive, Kona
0630 Hours
KONA HAD SWELLED almost to bursting with people - from athletes and their families to reporters, photographers, film crews, police officers, federal law enforcement and security officers, and private security.
Ben and Ty joined Charlotte and Anuhea near the King Kamehameha hotel. From there, they all pushed their way as close to the waterfront as they could, which wasn’t very far. Energy radiated off the competitors as they stood, ready to launch themselves into the ocean and battle it out. All they needed to hear was the boom of the cannon.
It looked like madness to Ben. The idea of swimming with that many flailing arms and legs around him made his chest tighten. With his luck, Ben figured he’d get kicked in the head and drown.
Helicopters hovered high above the crowd. The buzzing mixed with the excited chatter of thousands of spectators as they awaited the final countdown and the start of the race.
Charlotte’s hair danced in the breeze, tickling his neck. For a second, the memory from the airplane flashed in Ben’s mind. He flinched and wiped his face, half expecting his hand to come away red.
The cannon boomed and the crowd exploded with exuberance. Charlotte’s cheering rang in Ben’s ears.
Startled out of his memory, Ben spilled his coffee. Hot liquid rushed over his hand like lava.
“Damn it,” he said, drying his scorched hand on his shorts.
Charlotte looked at him confused. “Sorry, Ben. Are you okay?”
Ben smiled despite the pain. “I’m sure I’ll survive. Thanks.”
The ocean churned like sharks in a feeding frenzy as thousands of athletes swam away.
Ty pushed his phone to the limit taking pictures.
The swimmers quickly took the shape of a pointed comet, with a small line of leaders, then a mass creating the body, which eventually tapered into a thin tail.
Waiting for the lead pack to return would take quite a while.
“Should we move for when they switch to the bikes?” Anuhea said, leaning toward them so they could hear.
“Sounds good to me,” Ben said. The view from where they were wasn’t very good anyway. He looked at Charlotte and she seemed to agree.
Anuhea recommended they make their way to the north side of an intersection that all the athletes would come through on their bikes.
Moving through the crowd on the narrow street would be tedious. Given a choice, Ben would normally avoid huge crowds like this. The press of warm bodies, everyone breathing the same air in close proximity, was stifling.
Ty tapped Ben on the shoulder. “Take the lead.”
Ben’s height and broad shoulders lent themselves well to several things, one being moving through crowds. And despite his dislike for the sheer number of people surrounding them, Ben realized he now had the perfect excuse to take Charlotte
’s hand as he led the way though the press of bodies. Her soft, warm hand felt comfortable in his as they walked. Charlotte smiled at Ben and put her other hand on his arm. Ty and Anuhea fell in behind her, following in their wake.
When they had cleared the bulk of the crowd, Ben looked back. Though he was keeping up, Ty was still snapping pictures with his phone. The kid was everywhere with that thing.
As they walked up Palani Road, Ben noticed some space along the sidewalk further up the street near the corner of Palani and Kuakini Highway. That’d give them a good view of cyclists as they rode south, turned around, and came back north.
Turning to suggest the spot he’d seen, Ben’s breath caught as he watched Charlotte talking with Anuhea. Her lips danced as she spoke. His lips tingled with hope of someday joining that dance.
As if reflecting how Ben felt, the crowd broke out into cheers.
Startled again, Ben nearly bumped into two police officers walking past them. Out of habit, Ben apologized in Korean with a small nod of his head. “Mian hamnida.”
One of the officers scowled at him, but they continued walking. Ben didn’t understand why he was feeling so jumpy.
Anuhea leaned forward and said something to Charlotte, who nodded.
“We have some time before the swimmers get back. Let’s grab some more coffee,” Anuhea said.
Ty nodded. “We can grab that spot once we get some caffeine.”
“Sounds good to me. I spilled the last of mine,” Ben said.
***
October 10, 2015
Palani Road, Kona
0721 Hours
THE RISING DIN of the crowd’s cheering, signaled that the athletes must be in the transition area.
After ordering coffee, they had claimed a spot along the curb near the edge of the crowd. Ben and Ty moved the girls in front of them so they could see better. So far, the event was actually turning out to be more fun than Ben anticipated.