Sic Semper Tyrannis (22 page)

He had failed to protect Brin.  He had failed to protect Ted's family.  He had failed to get them out of Florida, to get them out of harm's way.  He had failed to escape the Russians.  He’d even failed his first interrogation—he could see that now.   The Russian had totally owned him from the get-go.

I don't have any training for this bullshit
, he thought angrily to himself.
Ted knows how to handle this.  Where the hell is he?  Where the hell am I, for that matter?

Another scream echoed through the wall behind him.  This one was louder and clearer than before.  He couldn’t be sure it was Brin—the wall muffled the voice just enough to make recognition impossible.  But it was a woman’s scream—that much was certain.  Erik threw his head back and roared into the darkness, “Brin!  Can you hear me?  Hang on, baby!  Stay alive!"

He listened for reply.  There was nothing but silence.  Then, to his sheer horror he heard a rhythmic
thumping
sound coming through the wall.  The blood boiled in his veins and the darkness around him seemed to turn a reddish color.  His imagination started running wild, showing him scenes of the depravity of the Russian soldiers whom his interrogator had said had been so transfixed by Brin's exotic looks.  More screaming from the other room, accompanied by that damn rhythmic thumping made Erik tremble with rage.

Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump…

"You sons of bitches!  I'll kill you all!"  Erik screamed.  He shouted and cursed until his voice gave out and he dropped his head to his chest, panting.  Still the torture on the other side of the wall continued to the sound of shrieks and grunts in time with that damn
thump-thump-thump-thump.

In the darkness, Erik’s spirit quietly broke in two.

CHAPTER 13

Retreat Orders

PRESIDENT SUTHBY LOOKED AT his staff.  "You understand—all of you—that this is the hardest decision I have ever been forced to make.  I do not want to do this, but I have little choice in the matter."  President Suthby looked down on the paperwork before him.  In front of him stood Daniel, the senior cabinet officials, and one cameraman to record the event for posterity.  Besides himself, only Daniel knew that the camera was also there to provide the United Nations with proof of Suthby’s good faith.

"We understand, sir," said the newly-appointed Secretary of Defense.  Despite the fact that he wore a similar expression of sadness, there was a certain sparkle in the sycophant’s eyes that gave President Suthby just a hint of uneasiness.

"It's for the good of the country," intoned the Senate Majority Leader with just the right amount of hesitation.  The man looked like he had just swallowed his own vomit.  He was good.  The dirt Daniel had found on him and a certain underage party-girl was even better.  "And it will only be temporary."

"Yes, temporary, of course.”  A dim ripple of agreement made the rounds among the nodding heads.  “I will strive to do everything in my power to make sure this order is not only abolished but rescinded in full when the time is right.  I want it on record that all Constitutional powers will be reinstated in the government of these United States at the very earliest possible moment."  President Suthby looked down at the dreaded papers again. 

Is this what Reed felt like all those times I was pressuring him to sign those Executive Orders I drafted?  No wonder the man had ulcers…

"Sir, we're ready to start filming whatever you are."

The President didn't even bother to look up to acknowledge the cameraman.  "Go ahead and start, let's get this over with."  He took a few more moments to gather his thoughts and slowly raised his head to stare straight at the camera.  He saw someone to the right of the camera wipe tears from their eyes.  Suthby was just as upset as anyone, but being overly sentimental about it could lead to a lot of unnecessary tragedy.

"My fellow Americans—indeed I speak to all peoples of the world as represented by the United Nations.  This day dawns in the aftermath of the greatest national tragedy that the United States has ever suffered through.  Yet, today also dawns with renewed hope for the salvation of this country.  For all of us, now more than ever, depend upon and require a strong, stable United States."  He glanced down at the papers on his desk again for dramatic pause.

"This document," he said, lifting up the top page to show the camera, “is an official request from me as President
pro tem
of the United States requesting that the United Nations grant protectorate status to our beleaguered country."  He let the paper fall to the desk.  "No country—at least not from the Western world—has ever applied for such a status from the United Nations.  Thus far, it has been a little used escape for impoverished, war-torn, developing nations.  I want every American—indeed every citizen of the world—to understand that I am
not
doing this out of desperation.  This option, in this time of crisis and upheaval, is the fastest method to get our country back on its feet.  It is the fastest way to get our economy going once more and to restore balance in order to the world.  Above all, understand that this is a
temporary
measure."

He frowned as he leaned forward over his desk and stared into the camera.  "Let me be perfectly clear: this measure is
temporary
.  There is a set date on this document.  The powers enumerated in this resolution will expire the protectorate status in five years—if it is not voluntarily done so by a majority of the member nations of the Security Council of the United Nations before that date.  There are also some specific conditions that must be met before such termination can be approved by the United Nations General Assembly."

"I know this may come as a shock to most of you.  But know this: my decision was not arrived at without considerable thought and due diligence.  After an exhaustive review of our national situation, I—and my advisers—can only come to one conclusion.  In short, our country is in a shambles.  The government has been cast to the wind following the last orders of our late President Reed—may he rest in peace.  It stands to reason that
someone
must be in charge of the country, while we attempt to locate the next in the line of succession as mandated by the Constitution.  These include Vice President Jorgenson, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Senate Majority Leader, and other top level officials." 

President Suthby looked down at the desk, took three calming breathes, and hoped that he looked at least somewhat presidential.  When he raised his face to the camera, he proceeded: "The remnants of Congress have seen fit to appoint me as your Commander in Chief on a temporary basis until the next in line has been found.  We're doing everything we can to find those people.  Until then, the safest course of action for this country is to apply for protectorate status from the United Nations."  Despite the fact that he'd already given his Cabinet the heads up on what was going to happen and the ultimate consequences of those decisions, he still heard someone gasp.

"You don't know how hard it is for me to say that.”  He paused to clear his throat and regain his composure.  “This nation was founded on principles of independence and self-reliance.  The mere fact that I now have to go hat in hand asking for help is not only embarrassing, but it shakes me to my very core.  I have little choice though, as you are about to see.”

“Our country is beset by not only the economic crisis caused by the power outage which has affected our entire country—we're not only under siege by diseases in our cities like cholera and typhus—our people are sick, starving, and in desperate need of adequate medical attention.  Right now, our own doctors, our own soldiers, and our own government officials have been scattered to the wind.  Most of our military is spread all over the globe.  At this moment, we have units trying to reach America from Europe, Asia, South America, Africa, and all points in between.  Tragically, many of those units have been lost.  It is unknown at this time how many of our brave servicemen and women have been killed by the treacherous hands of nations we used to call ‘friend’.  Nations like Germany, France, and Russia—who have seen fit to take advantage of our weakness and attack our people as they simply try to go home. 

“These global recall orders were issued by President Reed before his untimely death and I've seen fit to confirm them.  Normally, we would leave our military in place throughout the world to establish some sort of continuity.  However, our country is not only attacked by biological and sociological issues—we are also under direct attack by the nations of Russia and China. 

“In Florida, the National Guard and local civilians have banded together and are fighting a losing battle against a well-equipped army of Russian nationals.  With the help of Cuban expatriates, they've already captured Miami.”  He shook his head sadly, the first time during the speech that his emotion was heartfelt.

"I'm sorry about my voice choking there.  I never expected nor wanted to be President,
pro tem
or otherwise.   I never expected to be the first President to announce over the airwaves that a major American city has fallen into the hands of enemy soldiers.  Foreign troops are occupying American land for the first time since the War of 1812."  President Suthby clinched his fist on the desk and emphasis.  He tried to drum up some tears and show some sort of deeper emotion on his face for the camera, but found it very difficult.  Everything was going according to plan.  The Russians were acting a little more aggressive than they had promised, but they were doing their part.  They were drawing attention from the search for the next in line to the presidency.  They had helped convince the other allies to attack American forces overseas.  They had set up everything nicely and it left him no choice but to ask for protectorate status from the United Nations.  All he had to do was finish this speech and he would be established as the unelected and
permanent
ruler of America.

"They've advanced north through the swamps and coastlines of Florida.  They have sacked cities and towns, killed who knows how many people, and run American citizens off of their own property.  This Russian army has ground troops and air support.  When last we had contact with our own soldiers, the city of Orlando had been attacked.  I want to make this very clear to all patriots who live in the state of Florida that can hear my voice: you have not been forgotten, you are not alone, and we will rescue you.  Unfortunately," he clasped his hands together on the desk.  After a brief glance at his papers for emotional effect, he looked into the camera.  "Unfortunately, my fellow citizens, we are simply outgunned, out-manned, and outmatched.  The Russians and their Cuban allies are simply too much for our Home Guard units to handle on their own.   If we had been able to get our men and women in uniform home from Europe faster, there would be no chance for the Russians to advance.  We would've turned their backstabbing carcasses into shark bait in a matter of hours.  Our military is entangled in fierce firefights all around the world, trying to fight their way to transport ships, planes, boats—anything that will deliver them to the welcoming shores of America."

"Until that day, when our armed forces can successfully reunite on American soil and focus their combined firepower upon expelling the enemy in Florida, I have, with the advisement of our top military commanders, reached a decision to order a complete withdrawal of American forces from Florida. 

“Any citizens—any
patriots—
who wish to remain behind do so with my blessing.  I grant you full authority, to take whatever actions necessary to defend yourselves and your property from these foreign aggressors.  But be warned, the Russians are entrenching.  They've made it clear that they intend to keep Florida.  I don't yet know
why
and honestly I don't really care.  I was never trained for this position.  I don’t think I need to tell you I'm reacting on instinct here, folks.  I believe the best course of action is to pull our troops back to the Florida-Georgia line.  From there we will reinforce our forces, reassess the situation, and counter-attack when ready.  And believe me, we
will
strike back.  We shall exact a bloody vengeance and we
will
be victorious."

Almost there
, President Suthby told himself. 
Time to make mention of China causing trouble out west and wrap it up.  Fourth and goal, baby.

"Unfortunately, the trouble we currently face in Florida is not the extent of our problems.  The Chinese have seen fit to launch a full-scale invasion of our southwest.  Under the disgraceful cover of providing humanitarian relief to Mexican nationals fleeing the United States, the People's Republic of China has taken advantage of our current difficulties to send a large force of ground troops to Mexico.”

“I say again, China has declared that these forces are there to provide humanitarian relief, food and water, and medical supplies to Mexico.  While they did do
some
of that, the vast majority of their humanitarian workers are in fact, soldiers.  We have learned now, through the sad tales of eyewitnesses and survivors from Arizona that the Chinese brought an entire
army
up north through the Mexican desert.  They crossed our border near the town of Nogales and have cut a bloody swath through the state of Arizona."  Once again the President shuffled some papers, nodded to himself, then looked at the camera. 

"At least the Russians were forthright in their intentions.  I've asked Congress to declare a state of war exists between Russia and the United States.  Well," the President looked down at his papers again, "I've asked what is
left
of Congress to declare war.  I've taken Executive Action and declared martial law across this nation in an effort to protect our citizens.  When we collect ourselves after the pummeling we are receiving, we will strike back, and there will be hell to pay.  But we have got to survive first and foremost."

I hope that got the message across,
he thought to himself.
The Chinese are going to screw everything up and I will not allow that happen.  When this is over, I will teach them a lesson…

He continued: "It is unclear what the ultimate ambition of the Chinese is at the moment.  Some have suggested that the Chinese are attempting to capture valuable land resources, mineral deposits, oil reserves, or possibly access to fresh water.  Everyone knows that their nation is overflowing with people.  Others have suggested that the Chinese are trying to divide our country in half to bring the United States down on par with most of the other countries in the world.  Regardless their ultimate goal, they
will
be defeated, and they
will
be punished.  Severely.  We are not going to achieve victory over the Chinese.  We're going to exact retribution."

One final pause to examine his papers and the President looked up, ready to finish things off.  "I want you to know, man to man, citizen to citizen, and American To American: I will act tirelessly to ensure the safety of this nation and all those who live here.  I will not tolerate foreign aggression on American soil.  I will not forget the actions of our former allies, who so blatantly betrayed our trust overseas.  Most importantly, I will work to put down the rebellion afflicting our inner cities, to stop the killing of Americans by Americans, and turn all of our efforts into one united iron fist so that we may destroy those who wish to do us harm.  All this I will do, under the aegis of the United Nations.