American Reset (The Economic Collapse Chronicles)

by Mark Goodwin

Matt replied, “Unless D.C. figures out that the plans have been intercepted. In that case, they may launch early to catch people off guard.”

  Doc said, “You could be right. Just let me know what to do.”

  Matt said, “Why don’t you and Lt. Joe start taking down the radio. I’ll get Justin and Adam to help me with the solar array.”

  Doc said, “Okay, but you take it easy on that leg. It needs a few more days before you start playing football again.”

  Matt chuckled at the comment and went to wake Adam. Once Adam was awake, Matt relayed the information to him.

  Adam said, “It sounds fishy. I’m wondering if it could be a ploy by D.C. to get us to take down our communications.”

  Matt said, “It’s coming from the AmRRON network hub. They are pretty good about vetting the information. But you’re right. How would we know if it is misinformation from D.C.?”

  Adam said, “On the other hand, it could be misinformation from the Coalition. They could be planning a counterstrike against the Federal States. They may be releasing the information this way so we’ll roll up our comms and power systems but not risk tipping their hand to D.C. Whatever the case may be, we should roll everything up.”

  Matt agreed. “I’d say we should build a Faraday cage inside the work shed to keep everything in. We can build it out of the extra chicken wire I bought for the coop.”

  Adam said, “The work shed kept everything safe last time. Don’t you think it will protect everything?”

  Matt replied, “It’s impossible to know. It depends on the magnitude and proximity of the blast that generates the EMP. I think we should take every precaution we can.”

  Adam put his boots on. “Then let’s get started.”

  CHAPTER 35

  “Is it not High Time for the People of this Country explicitly to declare, whether they will be Freemen or Slaves? It is an important Question which ought to be decided. It concerns us more than any Thing in this Life. The Salvation of our Souls is interested in the Event: For wherever Tyranny is establish’d, Immorality of every Kind comes in like a Torrent. It is in the interest of Tyrants to reduce the people to Ignorance and Vice. For they cannot live in any Country where Virtue and Knowledge prevail. The Religion and public liberty of a People are intimately connected; their Interests are interwoven, they cannot subsist separately; and therefore they rise and fall together. For this Reason, it is always observable, that those who are combined to destroy the People’s Liberties practice every Art to poison their Morals. How greatly then does it concern us, at all Events, to put a Stop to the Progress of Tyranny.”

  -Samuel Adams

  Ryan Randall entered the hangar Tuesday evening for his pre-flight inspection. The missiles were being loaded into the cargo bays of the planes. He had never seen the new Gen 6 JSM 19-C. It was a lighter, more compact competitor to the AMG 158 from Norway’s Kongsberg designed to fit in the weapons bay of the F-35. The larger AMG 158s were recently integrated to be carried externally on the F-35, but it increased the overall radar signature. The downside to the new Gen 6 JSM 19-C was that it had less range than the extended range version of the AMG 158. Maximum range for the new stealth cruise missile was one-hundred-fifty miles. This meant the pilot had to get much closer to the target to launch the attack. The upside was that once the missile was launched, it was completely invisible to the most sophisticated radar systems in existence.

  Ryan looked around the hangar. There were other F-35s as well as some aircraft being outfitted with larger missiles, mostly F-15s. All military aircraft had been hardened against EMP, but the proximity to the blasts had still crippled many of the bombers and fighters in the Coalition fleet. No doubt, Howe had specifically targeted military installations to receive larger pulses.

  Ryan noticed General Jefferson, who had come to personally see how the preparations were coming along. Ryan walked over to the general. “Hello, General.”

  “Hey, Ryan. Are you all set to go?”

  “Yes, General,” Ryan said.

  Jefferson said, “We’ll be living in a different world tomorrow.”

  Ryan said, “I know everything is on a need to know basis, so forgive me if I’m being too nosy, but did I see B-83 gravity bombs being loaded into those Raptors?”

  Jefferson said, “I suppose you’ve earned a position in my inner circle. We’ll be making physical strikes against several military installations around the Federal States. After D.C. falls, our analysts predict that many of the states will fall into the hands of regional warlords. It’s best that we just eliminate the threats immediately.”

  Ryan asked, “Do the Coalition governors know there will be physical nuclear strikes?”

  Jefferson half answered his question. “They understand that we will be physically attacking military installations. Everyone wants an end to this conflict. After the EMP attack on the Coalition, we’re struggling to stay alive as a country. We need a decisive victory. We can’t sustain a multi-year conflict against D.C.”

  Ryan agreed with the general, but he knew that Jefferson was taking a lot of liberties by making these unilateral decisions. He wasn’t about to rock the boat. Ryan wanted to be the one who took out Washington. He wanted to put an end to the criminals who murdered his brother.

  Jefferson said, “You should try to get some sleep. You’ll be in the air in a few hours.”

  Ryan laughed. “I don’t think I’ll be sleeping tonight, General.”

  Jefferson bid the young pilot farewell and Ryan began walking to his parents’ residence, which was a couple of miles away from the hangar. The walk would give him an opportunity to compose his thoughts and think about what he would say. Ryan arrived on the street where his parents were staying. He walked up to Sonny’s front door and knocked.

  Sonny opened the door. “Ryan, what are you doing here?”

  “I’m participating in the attack tomorrow. Can I come in?” Ryan asked.

  Sonny opened the door wider. “Of course, come right in. Did your father not answer the door?”

  “I came here first,” Ryan stated. “I’m flying tomorrow. I don’t want to tell my mom. I wanted to see if you’d have my dad come over so I can tell him without her knowing.”

  Sonny replied, “I’ll call him over here, but your mom deserves to know also.”

  Ryan shook his head, “She’ll worry until I get back. I don’t want her to fret the whole time I’m gone.”

  Sonny said, “She’s a big girl. I’ve never been in combat, but I’m sure regret weighs a ton. I think you’ll be more focused if you go into it with a clear head. I don’t think you’d be at peace knowing that your mom has no idea what you’re getting into.”

  Ryan considered the wisdom of Sonny’s counsel. “Okay, you’re right. I should give her a big hug and tell her I love her.”

  Sonny smiled as Ryan left to knock on his parents’ door.

  Kimberly opened the door. “Ryan! How good to see you. Paul, Ryan is here!”

  Paul came down the stairs. “Hey, son.”

  Ryan told them the news. Kimberly was upset and Paul held her close.

  Paul said, “You could be reassigned to fly a drone in the attack. You’d still have a role in the assault, but you’d be safe.”

  “I need to do this, Dad,” Ryan said.

  Kimberly insisted that they all pray together for a while. Afterwards, she scurried around the kitchen to fix Ryan something to eat. As the family sat down to have a small meal together, Paul and Ryan avoided any subjects that might instigate an argument. Tonight was not the time to be fighting. After dinner, Ryan hugged his parents, wished them good-bye and headed back to the barracks.

  Ryan sat quietly on his bunk and focused on his breathing. He was anxious about the mission, but determined to get it done. The hour finally came for him to depart. He suited up and headed to the hangar. Ryan boarded his plane and taxied to the runway. Ryan watched the hypnotic glow of the afterburners of the jets taking off before him. Soon, he was on deck and ai
rborne shortly after.

  The handling of the F-35 was incredible. Ryan’s speed was calibrated so the detonations of all the weapons systems would be only minutes apart. Ryan could see nothing below him as he flew over Tennessee and North Carolina. The EMP attack made the area below him an ocean of darkness. The first glow of the sun began peaking over the horizon as he turned north toward Virginia. Just before he arrived over Petersburg, Ryan opened the weapons bay and launched the missile. Ryan smiled as he thought, The twenty-kiloton warhead on the missile will radically change the tourist industry in D.C. for years to come.

  In less than an hour, there would be no more White House, no more Capitol Building, no more Lincoln Memorial, no more US Treasury building and no more Federal Reserve. The slate was being wiped clean as the sun rose over the pristine Atlantic Ocean.

  Ryan made a turn to the east and proceeded toward his rendezvous point. He was to use the F-35’s vertical landing capability to set down at a remote location on the outer banks near Elizabeth City, North Carolina. The plan was to have as few aircraft in the air as possible when the weapons detonated.

  CHAPTER 36

  “And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, and their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths.”

  -Zechariah 14:12 NKJV

  Anthony Howe awoke to the sound of pounding on his door. He drank quite a lot the night before and did not wake up quickly. “Mr. President, Mr. President, we have to get you to the bunker!” the Secret Service agent yelled as he unlocked the door and opened it.

  Howe looked up, confused, as he forced himself to sit up in the bed. “What’s happening?”

  The agent said, “We have to get you below ground. I’ll explain on the way.”

  “You’ll explain now!” Howe snapped.

  The agent stated, “NORAD has reported that ICBMs have been launched from Malmstrom.”

  “They’re headed here?” Howe’s voice was filled with panic.

  “No sir,” the agent explained. “They are headed west. That doesn’t mean there aren’t other attacks targeting the White House.”

  “Get Scott Hale on the phone,” Howe barked. “I want to launch a nuclear strike against all Coalition states.”

  “Sir!” the Secret Service agent demanded, “we have to get you to the bunker now! I promise, Secretary Hale will be my second priority.”

  Howe conceded, “Okay! Let me get some pants on and we’ll go.”

  Howe turned to his closet, and grabbed a pair of comfortable slacks. The light of the sun flooding into his closet was burning his eyes. It quickly became so bright that it washed out the colors of everything in the closet. Everything was white. Howe closed his eyes, but the light flooded right through his eyelids. His final thought was that he had somehow been transported into the center of the sun and was looking right at it with no ability to close his eyes or look away.

  CHAPTER 37

  “The Constitution shall never be construed...to prevent the people of the United States who are peaceable citizens from keeping their own arms.”

  -Samuel Adams

  Matt approached the observation post near the road at 6:00 AM Thursday morning. He would be relieving Adam from his twelve-to-six shift.

  “Any action last night?” Matt inquired.

  “Nothing.” Adam removed the whistle from around his neck and handed it to Matt. Since the walkie-talkies had been stowed away to protect them from the EMP threat, the post nearest the road had been using the whistle in case an alarm had to be sounded or backup requested.

  Matt said, “Maybe we should pull out the shortwave and see if we can pick up any news. If we don’t get confirmation that there’s been a strike, we’ll put it back. We could keep checking for a few days before we set everything back up. Once we hook up the comms and backup power, it’s at risk.”

  Adam agreed. “I’ll pull the radio out of the shed and come back up here with Lt. Joe.”

  Adam left to retrieve Joe and the shortwave receiver. He returned in less than fifteen minutes.

  Lt. Joe switched the shortwave radio to single-side-band mode and began searching the ham channels. He started off with the known frequencies. He found nothing while scanning the other ham networks in the Eastern Kentucky area. They were likely in the dark, just as Fort Bair was. Finally, Lt. Joe found a signal being transmitted from Fort Bragg. It was a recorded message that was being transmitted on a constant loop. The entire message gave a short brief of what had happened the day before.

  “On Wednesday morning, Coalition forces launched a counterstrike against the Federal States. The strike was carried out by a variety of methods and weapons systems. Intercontinental ballistic missiles were fired and detonated at high altitudes to generate an electromagnetic pulse over many of the Federal States. In smaller geographic areas, strategic strikes were launched by manned and unmanned aircraft to generate EMP attacks. The Coalition also dropped munitions on key military bases which crippled the Federal States’ ability to respond to the strike.

  “The strike was considered successful by Coalition leadership except for one nuclear delivery system which malfunctioned. The error occurred in a JSM 19-C stealth cruise missile which was programed to detonate a high-altitude nuclear strike over Washington D.C. The warhead detonated at a much lower altitude and resulted in a direct nuclear strike against the capital of the Federal States. The failure is being accredited to either a lack of fuel which caused the missile to lose altitude or faulty components within the guidance system. Some speculation has been made that the guidance system could have been damaged by the EMP attack launched against the Coalition. The direct strike eliminated all structures for nearly a one mile radius. The deaths of those inside the city were instantaneous. Those who live in the immediate area will likely die of burns and radiation poisoning over the coming days and months. Those who live east of the Appalachian Mountain chain should take precautions against fallout. The prevailing winds have been in a northeasterly pattern. Those living north and east of D.C. should take particular caution. No further threats are anticipated at this time, and those with communications capabilities inside the Coalition States are encouraged to re-engage their networks.”

  Matt spoke first. “Wow! I guess that leveled the playing field. What does that mean for us? Do you think the war is over?”

  Adam shrugged. “I don’t know. I suppose it will depend on the other Federal States. Without D.C., I doubt they’ll be able to get organized. Without their key military bases, I don’t think they’ll be able to sustain a war going forward even if they do get organized.”

  Lt. Joe asked, “Do either of you fellas buy that bit about the strike on D.C. being a malfunction?”

  Matt said, “It was a very lucky malfunction if it was.”

  Adam replied, “It was deliberate. Someone is trying to save face.”

  Joe said, “I can’t say I’m upset about it.”

  Adam replied, “Yeah, I won’t lose any sleep over it.”

  Matt commented, “But we should pray for the folks who’ll be affected by the fallout. That’s a terrible way to die.”

  Lt. Joe said, “I’m going to grab Doc and get the ham set up. We need to find out what else is going on around here as quick as possible.”

  Adam said, “I’ll grab Justin and Gary and start setting up the solar wagon. All the batteries are just about dead. We’ll be losing everything in the fridge if we don’t get some juice running today.”

  Matt asked, “Adam can you send someone up here with a walkie-talkie? This whistle isn’t the best option for comms.”

  Adam nodded, “See you in a bit. Stay sharp, DHS in Pikeville will be doing everything they can to try and hang on to what they’ve got.”

  Matt said, “I suppose evicting them from the state will be our next big task.”

  As he walked away, Adam said, “The
y’ve got no means of resupply now. We’ll have them out of here soon.”

  CHAPTER 38

  “Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms of government those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.”

  -Thomas Jefferson

  Friday afternoon, Paul Randall was still managing the political fallout from the attacks against the Federal States. He spoke with Montana Governor Mark Shea over the military radio.

  Paul said, “Governor Shea, I understand your concerns, but I hope you’ll consider the broader picture here. China is moving troops and infrastructure into California. I’m sure you’re aware that Eastern Oregon and Eastern Washington will soon follow. We need to stick together.”

  Shea replied, “Paul, you know this isn’t just up to me. All of the representatives from the Northwestern Coalition have voted on this issue. We will be formalizing the language to create an agreement between our states based on the Articles of Confederation. We’ll be happy to extend that agreement to individual states in the Coalition or to a broader federal agreement between Texas and the Southern Coalition, but we’ve decided against obligating ourselves to a federal government.”

  Randall replied, “I think you should at least wait for evidence concerning the missile’s guidance system. You’re basing your decision on rumor and hearsay.”

  Shea shot back, “Senator, we have a myriad of proof that federal military installations were hit with strategic nuclear devices. Whether the strike on D.C. was intentional or a mishap, we were left out of the loop on what manner of strike would be taken against those installations. If it was the only option, we should have been told in the planning phase of the operation. I think this presents an excellent case for absolute state sovereignty. The disagreements between states and federal governments are bound to come. A confederation is the most any Northwestern Coalition state is willing to offer. Please relay our sentiments to the other states. I’ve got to let you go now, Senator.”