Author: Haruo Chikamori
Rating: M
Classification: Angst, Romance.
Spoilers: N/A
Summary: Continuity of Government (COG) – a stark term for starting over after a holocaust the likes of which is hoped will never ever happen. This is a what-could-happen if the button was ever pressed.
DISCLAIMER: The characters Harm Rabb, Jr., Sarah "Mac" Mackenzie, Meg Austin, AJ Chegwidden, et al. belong (in concept if not name) to CBS/Bellisarius. Animal and all OC characters are the property of Heather and Hugo Chikamori. No profit is being made from this story, nor is any infringement intended.
------------------------------------------------There is nothing worth having that can he obtained by nuclear war - nothing material or ideological - no tradition that it can defend. It is utterly self-defeating. ~ George Wald
------------------------------------------------ PentagonOffice of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Washington, DC
1100 ZULU
"Come in..." the admiral stated as he looked casually in response towards the knock at the closed door. Admiral James Pointer, former Commander, Naval Forces Pacific and now Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was not liking that he had to tell his former shipmate and subordinate flag officer about the way that the situation involving several Pacific Rim countries was shaping up. It all pointed to a nasty mess that could potentially touch off a conflagration in short order.
"You asked me to come see you, sir." Vice-Admiral Toshio "Animal" Nakamura stated as he stepped towards the desk; a worried look of question written all over his face.
Admiral Pointer looked up at the worried admiral with a sigh. "Have you seen the latest intel report? Animal, it's not looking good." Those four words sent a spear of ice through the vice-admiral.
"Did you hear about the situation?" a casually asked question couched in non-inflammatory words opened up the conversation as Admiral James Pointer looked over at Vice-Admiral Toshio "Animal" Nakamura.
"To be honest, I haven't been watching anything on the boob-tube lately" was his response. "There's nothing on TV other than Big Brother and it's not the thing that I want to watch." Animal's tone was dismissive of the trash that was on TV. Nothing worthwhile was ever found watching the TV. Most of it was escapist baloney.
Admiral Pointer got to the point quickly, "To make a long conversation short, Animal, I was just notified by the President himself via com that we're at DEFCON2. The whole situation in Asia has just blown up big time and our peckers are in the wood-fire. All we need now is for the Chinese and the Russians to jump in. The Japanese are screaming at us to do something and there's nothing that we can do? If we twitch, the Sovs are going to blow us off the face of the earth." the admiral sounded frustrated. Animal understood immediately the gravity of the situation.
The admiral pushed back his chair, stood up and walked over to Animal who was standing at ease...
When the admiral stood next to him, he said, "No time for niceties...or formality. I need to make sure that none of this information goes outside these four walls. Do you understand the gravity of the matter?"
"The situation calls for unprecedented measures to preserve the continuity of government. I'm sure you're aware of the term?"
That pronouncement made Animal's hair on the back of his neck rise. He felt a prickle of sweat at his hairline as he stood at ease in front of the admiral's desk. "I am aware of the term, sir."
"Animal, I don't know if we're going to see the other end of this mess." Pointer replied; he looked as though the entire weight of the world rested on his shoulders. "It's a hard decision of who gets to live and who doesn't...who will be important to the rebuilding process. It's the kind of decision that is hard to fathom even contemplating, let alone having to make."
Animal understood all too well the process of making combat decisions and deciding what was considered acceptable risk in war-time. However it was sailors to whom he was responsible for and the lives of those who served under his command rested on his shoulders - whether they lived or died was based on his decision making. In a nuclear war, those at risk were everyone.
"We are in a grave situation where what happens next is what will determine the fate of mankind." It wasn't hyperbole. When it came down to a bunch of hairless apes tossing explosive projectiles at each other, things could rapidly go to hell in a handbasket really quickly.
"COMSEVENTHFLT just sent me the latest intel that says that the Task Force 82 has been sent into the Sea of Japan enroute to the China Sea to patrol the area and keep the tensions down." The Admiral looked towards the far wall in contemplation.
"Right now the Chinese are at odds with the Japanese over the Senkaku Islands and with Taiwan trying its best to break away from China entirely exerting its sovereignty, it's a major hot-spot." Pointer cautioned. "If any spats are going to break out, it's going to be there. Xi-JinPing has been posturing at Taiwan and at Japan going so far as to send his missile boats to harass Japanese patrols of the area. They haven't fired anything but it's only a matter of time."
"The likelihood of Japan and China going to war is around eighty-five percent at this point."
"China is holding the nuclear sword of Damocles over the Japanese...if they even attempt to land on Senkaku and establish a beach-head there to exert their sovereignty and the Japanese are going to defend the islands there...with everything they've got; especially now that there's the possibility of oil there. And that is the reason why that area is so hotly contested."
"I don't like the looks of it, Animal... and this one seriously looks as though it's going to get out of hand." The admiral said soberly.
...and if that happens...
...God help us all...
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This is a war story with mature themes and some sex and violence involved in the story. If you shy away from those themes, then this is not the story for you. Please comment accordingly.