Counter Poised (18 page)

“So what are you getting at, Chaplain?” Pappy pressed.

“What I’m trying to establish here is an understanding amongst us that this mission is
not
a holy crusade.”

“You’re absolutely right,” the XO agreed, “and we all need to understand that.”

“But we also need to understand what motivates radical Islamists to kill hundreds of thousands of innocent people,” said Lieutenant Johnson. “Apparently, they don’t believe they’re going to be punished for that—they believe they’re going to be rewarded! That’s a very different value system than what Christianity teaches.”

“That’s true,” agreed the Chaplain. “The radicals believe that if they die in a martyrdom operation, they go straight to heaven where Allah supplies them with seventy-two virgins for their sexual pleasure! That’s pretty primitive thinking, actually. Something you’d expect cavemen to think of…”

Lieutenant Johnson responded, “It may be primitive, Chaplain, but it’s a pretty effective motivational tool. Every Muslim suicide bomber they have captured because his bomb malfunctioned has said he was really looking forward to those seventy-two virgins, made by Allah, especially for him!”

Pappy interrupted. “Okay, okay. Let’s get back to the issue at hand. Since Western democracies allow anybody to come in, and allow anybody to worship any religion, then we have a problem when huge numbers of Muslims immigrate, and when large numbers of people convert to Islam. Eventually, when the Muslims become a majority, it’s bye-bye religious freedom. Maybe even bye-bye democracy as we know it.”

At this point, the captain interrupted and said, “All right, this is all interesting conversation, but let’s get back to the
real
issue. You may find this hard to believe, but I don’t have a problem with Muslims immigrating to the U.S. or people converting to Islam. I don’t blame Muslims for believing what their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents believed in. Most of us in this room consider ourselves to be Christians, and the reason we’re Christians is because that’s what our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents were.”

“But what about the threat to democracy and freedom of religion, Captain?” asked Pappy.

“As long as things happen peacefully, and in accordance with democratic principles, so be it. That’s what government by the people is all about. If the will of the people changes, then the country should change with it. Like Lieutenant Johnson said, our nation today bears very little resemblance to early America. But none of us thinks it’s all that bad. If Muslims become the majority in America and vote to establish an Islamic nation, democracy will most likely go down in rewritten history as a failed heretical attempt at society.”

The men around the table looked at each other to see if anyone had a response for the captain. No one did.

The captain turned to the chaplain. “I want to thank you, Chaplain, and congratulate you, too, on a job well done. Perhaps in your new life you can be an actor.”

The chaplain smiled sheepishly and glanced around the table at the perplexed officers sitting there.

“What’s this about, Captain?” asked the XO.

“Well, the opinions the Chaplain just expressed about the
Bible
and the Christian Church were
mine
, not his. I asked him to express them because I felt they would have more impact coming from him than from me. Most people immediately discount any criticism of their own religion unless it comes from a credentialed source. I wanted you to actually think about what he was saying. The point being,
all
religions are flawed. So this mission is not a Christian versus Muslim crusade.”

Glancing around the table, the captain noted everyone was listening intently.

“We hope and pray we never have to kill a single Muslim. Our enemies are not people who have chosen or were born to worship God through Islam;
our enemies are terrorists who use selected texts from the Qur’an to justify mass murder
. Unfortunately for most of the world’s Muslims, it is Islam the religion, the terrorists hold most sacred, not God’s underlying teaching of universal love. Therefore, it is Islam itself we must hold hostage in order to force the terrorists to stop their murderous ways.”

The room was silent. Each man met the captain’s gaze with agreement. As usual, the captain’s logic was infuriatingly…logical!

“Like I said, I don’t have a problem with peaceful change.
Nothing is permanent
. What I have a problem with are murderers who kill hundreds of thousands of innocent people in order to further their twisted and perverted version of theology.
That
, my friends is what we’re about. We’re not against peaceful change; we’re against murderers. And there is only one thing they understand:
greater force
.”

The room remained silent.

“Does everyone understand that?” asked the captain.

The captain looked around the room and met the eyes of each man. Each nodded in assent as he did so.

“Questions?”

There was a unanimous and simultaneous, “No, sir!”

“Then let’s get busy. You all know what to do.” “Aye-aye, sir!” and the room cleared out.

Chapter 23

Those in the Islamic world assumed the
Louisiana
would be maneuvering into a position from which it could launch its longrange ballistic missiles against Muslim nations. However, even if George’s plan had been one of retribution, he had always known that use of the
Louisiana
to launch missiles was not a viable option. The launch of a single missile would be immediately detected, and their position would be pinpointed. After that, it was highly unlikely they could evade U.S. and allied forces long enough to make another strike. It was even more ridiculous to contemplate using the
Louisiana’s
missiles as a deterrent against future terrorist attacks. The
Louisiana
would have to remain undetected for an extended period—
years
, in fact. A totally absurd proposition! Therefore, George’s plan was quite different. But before the plan could be implemented, they had to evade all of the world’s antisubmarine warfare (ASW) forces while operating with one-third of the submarine’s normal complement of officers and crew.

“It’s a simple matter of using Leona Harris’s daily position reports to evade the ASW forces while giving them bits of information that lead them in the wrong direction,” the captain explained to the XO. “We hope to make them think we’re headed for the Indian Ocean via the Cape of Good Hope. So we’re heading for the southwest coast of Africa, off Angola, where we’re going to give them a decoy transmission.”

“Captain, we’re actually going to make a radio transmission?” asked the XO incredulously. “Isn’t that a bit risky?”

“Everything is risky, Pappy.”

“Yes, I know, but—”

“If we keep the transmission short, they won’t be able to pinpoint our location. They’ll only know generally where it came from—which is what we want them to know.”

“That’s only true, Captain, as long as they don’t have any ASW forces in the immediate area. What if the U.S. has a P-3 or the Brits have a Nimrod flying in the area and we poke the antenna up and make a transmission? They’ll be on us like a duck on a June bug!”

“We’ll have to take that chance, XO. We need the diversion to buy us time. However, I’ve picked the location for the transmission because of its distance from any airfield to which the Americans or the Brits could gain access. It’s well outside of any of the ASW patrol areas that Petty Officer Harris has reported. They’re concentrating their efforts further south where they have the geographic advantage of the chokepoint going around the Cape. According to her reports, it’s crawling with them down there!”

“But how do we know her reports are accurate or complete?”

“Look, she’s the SUBLANT Ops officer’s assistant. If he’s doing his job right, he’s coordinating everything with Intel and with all the forces allied in their efforts to find us. And under these circumstances, I’m sure Rowdy Yates is making sure he’s doing his job right!”

“Yeah, the admiral’s not going to let this new guy screw up for a while as a learning experience!” the XO agreed.

“And that means Leona’s sitting in on every briefing and every brainstorming session. So she not only knows everything they’re currently doing to find us, she knows everything they’re even thinking about doing. Her reports are coming in regularly, and as far as her accuracy, I would trust her with my life.”

Recognizing that the captain had made his decision, the XO shook his head in resignation. “I hope you’re right, Captain—all our lives depend on it!”

Although the
Louisiana
was submerged, she trailed a floating wire antenna that enabled her to receive radio communications and news of world events. Everyone onboard was aware of the fear and panic that was gripping the U.S. because of the speculation the
Louisiana
had been hijacked by terrorists.

The next day, as the captain studied the navigation charts in the control room, the XO approached and said, “Captain, some of the men have been discussing the decoy radio transmission we plan to make off the coast of Angola. We have a suggestion for the message content.”

“What would that be?”

“‘NO FEAR,’ Captain.”

“It’s okay, go ahead and tell me.”

The XO laughed. “No, that’s the message: NO FEAR. It accomplishes several things. First, it’s short, so as we discussed, it doesn’t give triangulation systems a chance to pinpoint our location. They’ll know generally that we were off the western coast of southern Africa, but that’s about the best they’ll be able to do. Second, intelligence analysts will recognize immediately that this is American slang, not a term used by Islamic terrorists. It will give a clear message to the people of the U.S. that they are not our target. They need that message right now. Hundreds of people have been killed, and the economy is at a complete standstill.”

“That’s good thinking, XO. I like it.”

“There is one other good thing it does for us, Captain—a very important thing.”

“What’s that?”

“Any intelligence analyst worth his salt would look suspiciously at a boomer popping up and making a radio transmission—especially one that’s being hunted by the entire world. They’d conclude for sure that the transmission was a deception—a decoy. However, given the situation in the U.S., and knowing we would be aware of it, they might deduce we took the risk of making the transmission in order to save American lives. They would be more likely to conclude that the transmission accurately reflects our projected track.”

The captain thought pensively for a few seconds and then looked at the XO and said, “You’re right. When we reach the transmission point, we’ll tell the world: NO FEAR.”

Chapter 24

Commander Lannis Wayne was coordinating all intelligence activities associated with the search for the
Louisiana
. On the morning of August 25, Lannis stood in an auditorium-style briefing room before Admiral Yates, the Joint Chiefs, and their combined staffs to present a hurriedly prepared briefing. He couldn’t remember ever seeing so many stars in one room! The entire top echelon of the U.S. military was there: General Daramus, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Admiral Byers, the chief of naval operations; General Stevenson, the army chief of staff; General Metcalf, the air force chief of staff; General Naeger, the commandant of the Marine Corps; and Admiral Bostich, the commandant of the Coast Guard. Each had ten to fifteen staff members with them, so there were close to a hundred high-ranking officers, eagerly awaiting Lannis’s findings. Lannis stood at a podium directly in front of the Joint Chiefs and tried in vain to stop his left knee from jerking nervously. He began…

“Good morning. I am Commander Lannis Wayne, intelligence officer on the staff of the Commander, Submarine Force Atlantic Fleet. I am here this morning to present the findings of the special investigative team appointed by Admiral Yates on August eighteenth to investigate the disappearance of the USS
Louisiana
on the night of August seventeenth. Our team consisted of myself, navy intelligence specialists, and agents from…”

General Daramus, the chairman, interrupted. “Commander, we know who you are, we know the team members, and we all know why we’re here. Let’s skip the formalities and move on to your findings.”

“Aye-aye, sir. As you all know, the USS
Louisiana
disappeared from her berth at Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base on the night of August seventeenth—apparently hijacked. There was no sign of any struggle at the site of the hijacking, and no evidence of forced entry on the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base that evening. Fifty crew members and two marine guards disappeared when the
Louisiana
was hijacked. Our investigation has revealed that none of them were married and none had any children. This seemed to be a peculiar coincidence at first, until we questioned the submarine detailer at BuPers. We discovered that Captain Adams specifically requested that a large number of such crew members be assigned to his submarine when he took over as the commanding officer of the
Louisiana
.”

A murmur arose throughout the room. Bodies shifted and chairs squeaked.

“What are you suggesting, Commander?” asked General Daramus.

“Nothing yet, sir. Just presenting the facts.”

The general nodded for Lannis to proceed.

“The night of the hijacking, the crew of the
Louisiana
held a ship’s party at the Chief Petty Officers’ Club on the Naval Submarine Base at Kings Bay, Georgia. Except for a small watch section that remained onboard, the entire crew and their spouses were present at the party. Shortly after dinner, Captain Adams, the XO, and several other key crew members left the party unannounced. All who left are among the missing. Additionally, the ship’s senior watch officer, who is not among the missing, has revealed that he did not assign the watch section that remained onboard that evening. That task was taken over and handled personally by the XO.”

Another murmur spread throughout the room.

“We know the
Louisiana
is capable of monitoring worldwide news broadcasts while she is deployed. In the days following the
Louisiana’s
disappearance, fear and panic were causing a great many deaths here in the U.S. One week after the disappearance of the
Louisiana
, we received a brief message from her containing simply the two words, NO FEAR. We do not believe that either the content or the timing of this message was accidental. The content is Western slang, and it is highly improbable that Islamic terrorists would be familiar with it. This leads us to believe that Westerners are in control of the submarine. In addition, the timing indicates they were concerned that their actions were causing the loss of U.S. lives, and they wanted the citizens of the U.S. to know that the U.S. was not the submarine’s target. This concern leads us to believe that the Westerners are Americans.”

This time, it was more than a murmur that spread throughout the room. Everyone started talking excitedly at the same time! General Daramus and Admiral Byers, the CNO, exchanged irritated glances. General Daramus rose from his seat in the front, ran his fingers through his silver hair, and turned to the gathered staff members. “Everyone, hold your comments until the commander has finished,” he ordered. The room quickly grew silent, and after glaring a few stragglers into silence, the general turned and resumed his seat. “Please continue, Commander.”

“Thank you, sir. We have concluded that the hijacking was premeditated and carefully planned for months in advance. Captain Adams specifically requested BuPers to assign crew members matching the profile of those who are missing. They were assigned to stay onboard the
Louisiana
the night of the ship’s party by the XO. The ship’s party, although a commonly held event, was likely scheduled for that particular evening as a diversion to get other crew members off the submarine and to occupy them for the entire evening. Since there was no sign of any struggle or forced entry, there is only one logical conclusion: We have concluded it was not terrorists who hijacked the
Louisiana
, but Captain Adams and forty-nine other crew members.”

A hush fell over the room as the assembled officers turned and stared at each other in shock and disbelief.

“The marine guards have not been found, and we suspect they were kidnapped and are onboard.” Lannis paused, before quietly adding, “We do not know the crew’s motive.”

Admiral Byers, the CNO, shook his head in disbelief.
Darn intel officers. They don’t know a thing about operations or the mentality of real warriors.
In the silent room, Admiral Byers slowly rose to his feet. A submariner, Admiral Byers had so many rows of military ribbons on his uniform that his dolphins were practically pinned to his shoulder! He turned and accusingly pointed a shaking finger at Lannis and said, “You better recheck your facts, Commander, because your conclusion just isn’t possible! Only our nation’s most trusted individuals are assigned to positions where they control nuclear weapons. They go through years of rigorous training and are subject to extensive background checks and psychological testing. Our Personnel Reliability Program makes sure this sort of thing can’t happen!”

General Metcalf, the air force chief of staff rose at the CNO’s side. His slender athletic build and short-cropped hair reminded Lannis of Admiral Yates. “I concur. Our system recognizes that it may be possible for one loose cannon to slip through the cracks every now and then, but that’s why we have the ‘two-man rule’ for any actions dealing with nuclear weapons. No one man or woman can do something crazy because someone else who’s
not
crazy will be looking over their shoulder. The chances are practically nil that you’ll have
two
crazies in a sensitive position at the same time. But you’re not talking about two crazies in the same place at the same time, you’re talking about
fifty
!”

As Admiral Byers and General Metcalf sat down, the room went crazy! Everyone shouted at the same time, trying to be heard over the din. Nobody believed Lannis’s conclusion. In their universe, such an event was completely impossible! Like the Native Americans who reportedly could not see the Spanish galleons sailing into their bay because “canoes” could not be so large, the gathered officers could not comprehend what had happened. Then General Naeger, the commandant of the Marine Corps, rose and walked to the podium where Lannis stood defensively. The commandant took the microphone from its stand in front of Lannis and turned to face the audience.

“Let me have your attention, please. Everyone take your seats and let me have your attention.” The noise level finally dropped as the officers sat down and turned their attention to the commandant.

“There’s a component to this analysis that’s missing in your thinking. What all of you seem to have forgotten over the last five years is that our nation’s capital was obliterated by Islamic terrorists and over two hundred thousand people were killed! Now I get out and talk to my marines on a regular basis. I don’t know about the members of other services, but my marines take that
personally
. They are frustrated with the political response that this country took, and they are frustrated that nothing has been done to prevent it from happening again.”

Admiral Byers stood and responded. “General Naeger, we feel that way in all the services. The marines are not alone. We all recognize that our national defense strategy is flawed because we can’t deter nuclear terrorism. And in the event of an attack, we can’t strike back at the perpetrators. It’s frustrating to all of us because no matter how hard we train, we can’t correct this problem. But by the same token, we are all
professionals
. We do our job whether we like it or not!”

“I’m sure you do, Admiral. But despite that, there are parts of the
system
that are broken. Just look at the Personnel Reliability Program about which you speak so highly. The PRP program hasn’t been changed significantly since the early 1970s. Thanks to DC, there’s a whole new dynamic now in the way military people think about the world and their role in it. But we didn’t modify the PRP program to match. We were still using a B.DC program A.DC.”

“B.DC and A.DC?” asked Admiral Byers.

“Sorry—that’s Before DC and After DC. We didn’t modify the psychological testing after the attack on DC. We didn’t modify the background checks to identify people who lost loved ones or friends in DC. We should have been identifying those people so we could give them special attention. No matter how professional they are, military people are still human, and all humans have weaknesses.”

Admiral Byers shook his head and sighed. “Okay, I agree some mistakes were made. But I know George Adams personally, and I know he’s professional—clear to the bone. He would never willingly take such an action. If he’s doing this, he has to be doing it under duress.” Admiral Byers was grasping at straws. “Maybe he’s being blackmailed somehow. Maybe he was contacted by terrorists who have a nuke in the U.S., and they told him they would detonate it if he didn’t hijack the submarine. It seems that’s just as likely as Commander Wayne’s scenario!”

Lannis stepped to the commandant’s side and indicated he had a response for the CNO. The commandant handed him the microphone.

“Admiral, I also know George Adams personally. We served together on the SUBLANT staff for three years. We rode in the same carpool for two of those years. And I can tell you, George Adams
would
do this—if he had the chance. He was assigned to fly reconnaissance drones over DC looking for survivors after the blast. He was devastated by what he saw. He was frustrated by our political response; he was frustrated that nothing had been done to prevent a recurrence; and he talked openly about ballistic missile submarines being obsolete as a deterrent force in the age of nuclear terrorism.”

“Yes, but did you interview other people who knew him personally?” asked Admiral Byers.

“Yes, sir, as part of my investigation, I interviewed a number of people. I spoke to his administrative assistant, Petty Office Leona Harris, but she claimed she only knew him professionally, and he never confided personal feelings with her. I also interviewed Commander Robert Sewell, now the commanding officer of the attack submarine USS
Texas
. He was also on the SUBLANT staff with George Adams and was one of his closest friends. Commander Sewell was surprised that Adams would go to this extreme, but he confirmed that Adams was
extremely frustrated
with the status quo. When it comes right down to it, Admiral, George Adams had the capability, the motivation, and the opportunity to do this. My conclusion is that if anyone could and would do this, it would be George Adams!”

The room fell silent once again. Nobody wanted to vocalize what they all feared: Had Adams gone mad? Was he going to wreak revenge on the Muslim world? Was he going to hold the world at ransom? Or had he decided to implement his own brand of the MAD doctrine?