From The Ashes: America Reborn

by William W. Johnstone

  WWJ: But some did join your movement.

  Ben Raines: Oh, sure. And once many of them understood what we were all about, they softened their views and became valuable assets to the movement. Others quickly dropped out and drifted. I don’t know what happened to them.

  WWJ: You think they’re still active somewhere?

  Ben Raines: You bet they are. But they leave us alone. When they left us, they went hard underground, and they’ll fight the newly formed government outside our borders.

  The general smiled and added: “Which suits me just fine.”

  WWJ: Before the breakdown of government and the germ warfare, there were numerous bombings of federal buildings and various other government installations. Did any of your people have anything to do with those?

  Ben Raines: Absolutely not. Most of us were still clinging to the faint hope that the government would perhaps realize that millions of decent, hardworking, taxpaying, law-abiding Americans were so unhappy and dissatisfied with the system they were ready to revolt. We were hoping against hope the elected men and women in power—on both the state and federal levels—would finally open their eyes and see that the nation was teetering on the verge of civil war.

  The general sighed, shook his head, and said, “But they didn’t. They just blundered on blindly right on down the path to socialism. The government, in all its wisdom, or lack of it, instead of meeting with and listening to the grievances of these hundreds of groups, with thousands of members, including members of the legitimate militia groups, chose instead to refer to those good American citizens as domestic terrorists and train federal enforcement agents how to deal with them . . . which meant, ultimately, killing them.”

  WWJ: Did they?

  Ben Raines: Kill some who were opposed to the ever-growing burden of taxes and the seizing of privately owned weapons and all the rest of it? Oh, yes. It got really bad toward the end. You see, the government was losing the fight. That stupid son of a bitch in the White House ordered troops out to assist the federal agents . . . which he really didn’t have the authority to do. But as it turned out, a great many of the troops wouldn’t open fire on American citizens.

  General Raines chuckled for a moment and said; “Quite a number of the troops deserted and joined those they were sent in to fight. It was quite an embarrassment for the president.”

  WWJ: That really isn’t the way the new history books that are in use outside the SUSA depict the struggle.

  Ben Raines: Oh, I know. We have copies of them. The liberals rewrote history to their liking. Would you like to tour some of our schools?

  WWJ: I would like that very much.

  Ben Raines: Let’s do it. Then you can see firsthand how we operate down here.

  BOOK #14

  COURAGE IN THE ASHES

  Thunder is good, thunder is impressive, but it is lightning that does the work.

  –Mark Twain

  The liberation and reestablishment of order in Southern California leads to a much-needed period of R&R for Ben and the Rebels. But like any well-honed fighting force, it’s not long before they’re itching for action and, in fact, there’s a job to be done up in Alaska, where bands of outlaws are gathering to make a stand. It’s the last real pocket of resistance in North America, and Ben means to clean it out. The problems with the Believers (Night People) and the outlaws in Europe make the campaign in the States look like a piece of cake, and they will have to be dealt with—sooner rather than later.

  Now ten thousand strong and very well equipped, the army heads north through Oregon. Outside of Tacoma, Washington, they run into a blockade manned by several hundred outlaws headed by a man named Junior Nelson. Ben gives him a choice—live the Rebel way or die. Faced with a clear decision, Junior agrees to clean up his act and man a Rebel outpost.

  The Rebels move forward to the first series of clashes in British Columbia. If there are any doubts that the fight will be a tough one, the body of a man with a sign saying BEN RAINES SYMPATHIZER hanging from the knife in his chest sweeps them away.

  Gene Booker, a vicious criminal and head of the southern band of outlaws, is taken at Penticton. His execution marks the end of lawlessness in the area. But the fighting grows fiercer as the army moves north. Intelligence tells Ben that the enemy is made up of real veterans of past campaigns with the Rebels. They are savvy and tough, blowing bridges and slowing the advance to a crawl.

  Ben allows a young outlaw, Jerry Harris, to join the force under the watchful eye of his trusted commander, Thermopolis. From Harris and other prisoners Ben learns that the force against him may number as many as fifteen thousand.

  Once reaching the Alaskan border near Fort Nelson, Ben orders his choppers to shower the outlaws with leaflets giving them seventy-two hours to surrender or die. Even though the outlaws are convinced they can’t win, many choose to fight rather than face the hard justice of Ben Raines.

  Everything proceeds according to plan until Ben settles into the town of Tok, Alaska. There, during a walk down the main street, he is gunned down by a group of assassins. Shot in the chest and seriously wounded, he is in mortal danger. Rumors begin to fly that he is dead, and for a brief moment he visits the other side, meeting with old friends and lovers who tell him his time has not yet come and give him the will to survive.

  While Ben is on the road to recovery command of the Rebel army is passed along to his trusted officers Cecil, Ike, Gregori, Buddy, and Tina. General Striganov will have supreme command. The Rebel army splits into two forces, one will head for Fairbanks under the command of Buddy and Striganov and the other, headed by Ike, will take Anchorage. Once the cities are clear the army will reunite and focus on the Peninsula, where Lan Villar, Khamsin, and others await them. The villains are captured and killed and North America is once again free. All that is left is a sweep of the lower forty-eight to establish order firmly and clean out a few pockets of outlaws. Then Ben and the leaders will begin the massive move east to the Atlantic and ships that wait to carry them to Europe.

  During the course of the sweep Ben makes a startling offer to the remaining outlaws—meet in central Kansas with white armbands of surrender and join the Rebel army. Over thirty-five hundred comply and begin the difficult training, both physical and mental, to become Rebel regulars.

  The last major piece of business is finding and stopping Sister Voleta and the remnants of the Ninth Order near Chicago. Ike takes the job and the insane woman, Buddy’s mother, is eliminated in a bloody battle.

  The armada sets sail for Europe, first stop Ireland, where Jack Hunt aka the Beast is entrenched along with the dreaded Night People. The Rebels make a landing in Galway Bay. Hunt mounts a fierce counterattack in Galway but is driven east to Dublin by the forces of justice. Many of his men surrender and become members of the Rebel band.

  Ben now has a secure beachhead in Europe and preparations for the advance east begin.

  FIFTEEN

  On the way over to the first school, we were held up for a few moments by an army convoy moving through an intersection. I took that time to ask the question that a great many reporters outside the SUSA had wondered about for several years.

  WWJ: General, are you the real power behind the government here in the SUSA?

  Ben Raines: No. I am the commander of the Rebel army. Cecil Jefferys is the elected president of the Southern United States of America. The two are separate. Cecil is the commander of the home guard; our equivalent of the national guard, and it’s several million strong. Unlike other governments, our elected officials, and that includes the president, cannot direct battlefield operations from the capital. That is up to me, and me alone. The best way I can think of to lose a war is to have a bunch of damn civilians running the show from their armchairs.

  WWJ: But isn’t that risky? Doesn’t that open the door for military takeover?

  Ben Raines: In any other form of government, yes. But not here. Here, the military and civilians are practically one and the same. No force, from in
side or outside, is going to overthrow a government when the civilian population supports the government one hundred percent and is armed to the teeth and trained to fight at a moment’s notice.

  WWJ: But other than the obvious fact that you and the president are close friends, how does the government know what is going on inside the military?

  Ben Raines: There are political officers in each unit who take orders from the president. Officially, they don’t take orders from me. They report directly to the president. They are his eyes and ears.

  WWJ: Officially?

  Ben Raines: I cannot order them to fight on SUSA soil—only the president can do that—or to turn on a government that is duly elected by a majority of the population. All that is spelled out very clearly in our constitution and every member of the military, including me, takes an oath to defend the constitution, the SUSA, and most importantly, the will of the people.

  WWJ: So if a clear majority of the population of the SUSA is opposed to the Rebel army’s going to, say, Russia, their decision is final?

  Ben Raines: Absolutely final. We would stand down immediately.

  WWJ: Has that ever happened?

  Ben Raines: Not yet.

  WWJ: All right. That’s cleared up, at least to my mind. Let me shift gears here. The SUSA is a heavily religious nation, correct?

  Ben Raines: That’s correct.

  WWJ: Lots of churches with about seventy-five or eighty percent of the population attending the church of their choice?

  Ben Raines: That’s right. Although I doubt the percentage of people actually attending church every Sunday is that high.

  WWJ: What is the SUSA’s official stance on separation of church and state?

  Ben Raines: The same as the framers and the signers of the original Constitution of the United States. Our constitution bars the government from establishing an official religion. That’s all it meant 250 years ago, that’s what it means now.

  WWJ: But you have church-run schools here?

  Ben Raines: Oh, yes, a few, and a few private academies.

  WWJ: Do they receive federal money?

  Ben Raines: Not one penny.

  The military convoy rolled on past and the roadway was clear. We drove on through the light rain and turned into the parking lot of a high school.

  WWJ: One more question before we go inside.

  Ben Raines: Shoot, figuratively speaking.

  WWJ: What state is Base Camp One located in?

  Ben Raines: None. It’s a district. It’s run by the military. Which is the way the old District of Columbia was supposed to be run and had they stayed with that it wouldn’t have turned into the crime and welfare capital of the world.

  WWJ: Can the citizens here vote?

  Ben Raines: Yes. That’s another difference between the old DC and Base Camp One. Not that there is that much to vote on here. There isn’t. Here, towns and communities have real town-hall meetings to air complaints and compliments, and the turnout is impressive. This is truly a government of the people.

  I sat for a moment looking at the buildings that made up the high school.

  Ben Raines: Ready?

  WWJ: I’m ready.

  As we walked toward the main entrance, I asked the general; “Have you been here before?”

  Ben Raines: I make it a point to visit schools all over the SUSA. The teachers tell me that if they do have any unruly students, a visit from me calms them right down; has a lasting effect, so I’m told. I can’t possibly imagine why.

  I looked at the general to see if he was kidding. But his face was unreadable. I looked behind us. His security detail had fanned out, half a dozen of them running around the complex, quick-checking the buildings for any possible signs of danger. I had asked about his personal team: Jersey, Cooper, Beth, Corrie, and his adopted daughter, Anna. Everyone but Anna was on leave while the Rebels were back in Base Camp One for a time. Anna was attending a college out of the district.

  WWJ: Oh, I can’t either, General. Here you are, the only person in the SUSA to wear lizard BDUs—other than your personal team—with a dozen heavily armed security personnel. You’re a living legend all around the world. Your exploits are the stuff that books are written about. Just the mention of your name causes some people to faint. No . . . I can’t possibly imagine why your showing up in person somewhere might have a calming effect on a kid.

  Ben Raines: By golly, I never looked at it that way. You just might be right.

  I shook my head and sighed at that remark. I just never knew when the general was kidding. I had been warned by several people who knew him well that Ben Raines had a strange sense of humor. The general smiled as we walked toward the front door of the facility.

  The principal—a Mr. Hardesty—met us at the door and appeared to be rather nervous. I couldn’t imagine why. The general introduced me, and Hardesty appeared to be much relieved at the reason for this surprise visit.

  Ben Raines: We’ll just visit a few of your classrooms, Mr. Hardesty. We’ll try not to create any disturbance.

  Hardesty: Of course, General. Always glad to see you.

  But I noticed a glimmer of amusement in the principal’s eyes. There was no way a visit from General Ben Raines could not create a disturbance.

  We walked up and down the halls, looking into each classroom. I knew that in grades one through six, the students wore uniforms: the girls wore blue jumpers and white blouses, the boys wore blue pants and white shirts. In middle school, the general had told me, uniforms were optional, but most still wore them. In high school, no one wore official uniforms. But I noticed that most of the boys wore blue jeans with a conservative shirt, Western, dress, or casual, no sneakers allowed. Most of the girls wore blue jeans and an equally conservative shirt or blouse. No one wore T-shirts, with or without a message. Girls’ skirts could go no higher than three inches above the knees. I did not see a single boy with long shaggy hair, and the only earrings were on the girls.

  We had left the general looking at some pictures on the walls, and I asked the principal; “Any body piercing allowed?”

  Hardesty: You’ve been with the general almost a week now, so the rumor mill reports. You must know him pretty well. What do you think?

  WWJ: I think not.

  Hardesty (smiling): General Raines and President Jefferys both think exactly alike. If one wasn’t black and the other white, you’d think they were twin brothers. Their kids think exactly alike. President Jefferys has his oldest adopted kids in school right here in this building. A boy and a girl.

  WWJ: The president of the most powerful nation on earth sends his kids to public schools?

  Hardesty: Sure. And they don’t get any special favors cut for them either. Before I became principal, I taught English. I failed the boy his freshman year. He’s plenty smart, but he just wasn’t applying himself. He’s a class clown. He didn’t think it was so funny when his daddy put a belt to his rear end and then grounded him until his grades came up. The boy’s been a straight-A student ever since.

  Hardesty sighed, and added; “But he’s still the class clown.”

  BOOK #15

  TERROR IN THE ASHES

  We are so outnumbered there is only one thing to do. We must attack.

  –Sir Andrew Browne Cunningham

  After establishing the Irish beachhead, the Rebels begin to find out what they’re up against. While used to being outnumbered the odds are now seemingly overwhelming—over three to one. Nine Rebel battalions to thirty-three commanded by Jack Hunt.

  Ben gives Buddy his first major command, leading a full battalion in the assault on Anthenry. He makes Ben proud, capturing the town house by house with no Rebel casualties. During the course of the battle Buddy brings Ben an enemy captain, Bob Miller, who tells them that Hunt’s plan is to make the Rebels overconfident by allowing them to advance easily through the countryside. Hunt will build up his forces on the coast and finish the battle there or force Ben to cross to England, where the forces are w
ell armed and large.

  Hunt’s strategy is also to use women and children as hostages, forcing Ben into hand-to-hand, house-to-house combat. The Rebels’ success in Ballinasloe and Bangher, however, bring many Free Irish to the Rebel cause. For their support Ben makes a commitment to save Ireland’s cultural heritage and not destroy needlessly as he drives Hunt into the sea. In order to do this Ben decides to fight a guerrilla war. He spreads his army into the Irish countryside and they disappear into the mist to the frustration and confusion of Hunt’s army.

  Hunt is forced to make a deal with the Believers to fight their common enemy. Meanwhile Ben plans his assault on Hunt’s stronghold in Dublin. The result of the guerrilla war is that thousands of Hunt’s troops abandon him and join the Rebel army or head for safety in England and its force of a hundred thousand. The game is up for Hunt, and he tries to escape to Hawaii and join other outlaws who are banding there, but Rebel Apache helicopters armed with missiles sink his ship, bringing his reign of terror to an end—the Beast dies at sea a fleeing coward.

  With Hunt eliminated, Ben prepares to do battle with the Night People in the streets of Dublin. During a planning tour there is another attempt on his life, this time by a man from Northern Ireland.

  In the course of a firefight, Ben discovers that the Creepies have developed a nest of tunnels under the city. He decides the only solution is to blow them out and force them to the center of the city. But it’s slow going. To speed things along, Ben decides to run a diversion. He gives the impression that he is preparing to launch a major attack, from ships in the harbor, a place that can be destroyed in the battle and rebuilt easily allowing him to use maximum firepower. The trick works. The Rebels flush the Night People out of their holes and Dublin is secured.