by that Taiwanese submarine, and a helicopter was shot down when the sub was discovered. Every nation on Earth has the right to defend itself!”
“That is nonsense, Mr. Ambassador,” President Phoenix said. “China has no right to impose restrictions and issue ultimatums on any vessel operating in the South China Sea.”
“Mr. President, Chinese vessels have come under fire from Vietnam, Taiwan, and even from the United States . . .”
“That is nonsense as well,” Vice President Ann Page interjected. “Our Coast Guard helicopters did not open fire on anyone—they were unarmed, as was our P-8 Poseidon patrol plane.”
“Our intelligence reports say otherwise, madame,” Li said. “We have a complete list of the weapons that are routinely carried by your aircraft, and they match with what our crews on the scene reported. As for that Taiwanese submarine: it was an obvious challenge to President Zhou’s instructions that were designed to eliminate the very threat that existed out there—an attack by a submerged submarine on a Chinese vessel. Do you expect China not to respond?”
“Our analysts tell us that the People’s Liberation Army Navy attacked with a
“That is an outrageous lie, sir!” Li retorted. “China has pledged a no-first-use policy . . .”
“Yes, you did—after you attacked Guam with nuclear weapons ten years ago!” Ann interjected.
“I would very much appreciate not being interrupted, madame,” Li snapped, looking like some kind of automaton as he stiffly turned to address the vice president. “Mr. President, I have no explanation for that explosion, which our sea-surveillance satellites and carrier battle group vessels also detected. Perhaps that was a nuclear-powered submarine, or it was a diesel-electric submarine carrying nuclear weapons. The blast was relatively small, so perhaps it was not even a nuclear device—we have not yet had a chance to investigate. But the fact is, sir, that a Taiwanese submarine attacked a Chinese aircraft and warship, and our navy responded. The same with the Vietnamese warship—it attacked a Chinese patrol vessel, and long-range weapons were used to defend our ship because the patrol vessel did not have the weapons to defend itself against the Vietnamese frigate. China is not the aggressor here, sir—it is Taiwan, Vietnam, and the United States, and we believe we are being threatened by Japan, the Philippines, Australia, and Indonesia as well. China has a right to defend its territory and its warships.”
“China must lift restrictions on warships transiting the South China Sea, and do it
“That is a serious and dangerous escalation of forces in that region, sir,” Ambassador Li said. “Think carefully of what you pronounce, Mr. President. A two-to-one match might be construed as preparation for a blockade of China’s port cities or even a general war, sir.”
“Think of it as you wish, Mr. Ambassador,” Phoenix said. “The South China Sea is not China’s sole possession, and it does not have the right to wantonly attack ships and aircraft there, especially peaceful, unarmed aircraft or nonthreatening ships. As for preparation for war, Mr. Ambassador: the United States has been closely monitoring large troop movements all throughout your country, especially along the coasts. It appears to us that you’re mobilizing troops for action.” He held up a hand just as Li was going to speak. “I don’t need to hear your denials or flimsy explanations, sir. Our intelligence is accurate, and I assure you, the United States and its partners around the world that we are sharing our information with are responding accordingly. Our actions will be swift and accurate.”
Ambassador Li Peiyan shot to his feet, all semblance of stiffness instantly gone. “That, sir, sounds like a threat to me,” he said, “and that is what I will convey to my superiors. I have already been recalled by my government. Good day, sir, madame.” And he strode to the door, which was opened for him from outside the Oval Office by a Secret Service agent.
“Well, that went very well,” Kevich said sarcastically under his breath but loud enough to be heard by everyone.
“Get off it, Herbert,” Ann Page snapped. “The Chinese just set off a nuclear explosion in the South China Sea, and they nearly sank a Vietnamese warship with a supersonic cruise missile. Do you think they still care about diplomacy and peace? They are not just asserting themselves—they are putting the world on notice that they will use any and all means, including nuclear weapons, to keep warships out.”
President Phoenix nodded but remained silent for several moments; then he picked up the phone. “Get me the secretary of defense right away.”
While he was waiting, he pulled a card from his pocket, looked at his watch, and did a fast calculation in his head. He didn’t have to wait long: “Yes, Mr. President,” Fredrick Hayes responded.
“Fredrick, put us at DEFCON Three,” the president said, then read off the authentication code he had computed, using the current date-time group.
“Yes, sir,” Hayes said, and he read off his own authentication code, which the president checked and verified. Any event involving movement or employment of nuclear weapons required coded verification and a two-man authorization. DEFCON, or Defense Readiness Condition, was a gradual change in military readiness for nuclear war. DEFCON Five was the lowest level of readiness; DEFCON One meant that nuclear war was imminent. The United States had been at DEFCON One immediately following the American Holocaust; on DEFCON Two after a cease-fire had been negotiated with the Russians following the American counterattacks; on DEFCON Three several months later as tensions eased around the world; then down to DEFCON Four about a year after the attacks, where it had been ever since. DEFCON Three resulted in ships being put to sea, leaves canceled, battle staffs formed, contingency plans put in place, and all available aircraft and ships loaded and made ready.
“Secretary Hayes has relayed the order to Northern Command, U.S. Strategic Command, and Air Force Global Strike Command, sir,” National Security Adviser William Glenbrook reported a few minutes later, “and we are at DEFCON Three. The posture change is being relayed to NATO.”
“I’m going to need a complete rundown on exactly what we can bring to bear against China,” the president said angrily. “I’m not going to back down. China will rue the day they decided to set off a nuke. I want to park an aircraft carrier battle group opposite each one of their largest military ports.”
“That may not be a good idea, sir,” Glenbrook said, his face a mask of deep concern. “We don’t dare send a carrier strike group out there now, sir, until we figure out who’s in charge and get an idea of what they intend to do. Whoever’s really in charge in China—Zhou, or more likely General Zu himself—has just let the nuclear genie out of the bottle. They could just as likely hit our carriers with a nuclear carrier-killer ballistic or cruise missile. That could kill thousands of sailors and destroy billions of dollars’ worth of hardware with just one warhead.”
“I’m not going to let that happen,” President Phoenix said. “I want every known storage facility and launch site for those carrier-killer ballistic missiles and cruise missiles targeted by Tomahawk cruise missiles. If we don’t have enough cruise missiles in range to cover all the known targets, I want preparations made to put more ships and subs to sea that can fire Tomahawks. I want as many ballistic missile defense ships and ground systems deployed as possible in the Pacific. I want as many bombers and fighters as possible deployed to bases in the Pacific, armed appropriately with whatever they need to destroy China’s air defense and command-and-control system, penetrate their airspace, and take out ballistic missile sites.” He paused, expecting the usual hesitant reaction from Herbert Kevich, but he didn’t get it this time.
“All that is going to take time, sir,” Glenbrook said. “We have only two aircraft carrier battle groups available right now in the Pacific. Under DEFCON Three we can probably get another put to sea in a few months, but the other is in extensive maintenance and won’t be available for a year at the earliest.”
“Then we need other solutions, Bill,” the president said. “We have other ships, cruisers and destroyers, that can fire cruise missiles. We need to figure out a way to get them the same long-range air protection that the carriers have.” He thought for a moment then said, “Ann, we need to talk to the leadership in Congress about getting funding for more of McLanahan’s bombers, and then to resurrect the Space Defense Force and the carriers I canceled last year. They’re the only solutions we have if China is going to continue to throw its weight around like this. We need to brief them on the DEFCON change—that’ll be a good time to hit them up for the money. Make it a closed-door classified briefing in the Situation Room—I’m going to tell them everything we know about what China has been up to lately.”
“Yes, sir,” she said. She stepped over to Phoenix and asked in a low voice, “Want me to leak some details
