The Crucible. Joaquin De Torres
as a World War Two aircraft carrier,” Antonio continued. “They carry the nuclear Shipwreck missiles, and I got someone from WEPS e-mailing me about thermobaric weapons, too. Ray, if they get all these ships equipped with their entire original and upgraded ordinance, we will face a fleet as powerful as our own.”
“A ghost fleet resurrected from the dead,” breathed Ramon.
“Old, yes; rusted, yes; but armed and lethal nevertheless. Now put into the hands of captains frothing with vengeance.” Antonio stepped around his desk and stood in front of Ramon. “Ray, imagine what a fully-loaded Kirov battlecruiser could do to one of our ships.”
Ramon closed his eyes and thought of Kristina. Antonio shook his head in regret.
“I’m sorry, Ray; I can’t do it. I can’t let her go. She’s too good, too gifted, too valuable. She needs to command a ship. The new ships are coming, but we don’t have captains.”
“Antonio, she won’t be able to handle the stress of battle. She still suffers from what happened on the McClusky.”
“That was almost 16 years ago, Ray.”
“She was only 18, a fresh enlistee onboard that ship. She watched 37 of her shipmates burn alive. You think she hasn’t carried that around with her?”
“Yes, and you’re the one who still encouraged her to apply to the Academy. You wanted her to be an officer; you wanted her to stay in the Navy, Ray!” The vein in Antonio’s forehead began to pulse as his blood pressure began to rise.
“Yes, I did. I orchestrated her career all this time.” Ramon's eyes registered regretful melancholy. “I used my influence to get her into a field in which she would never have to see real combat again.” Ramon put his hand over his eyes. “Now you’re going to throw my daughter onto the front line.”
“She’s too good, Ray. She’s qualified in every warfare position onboard. She knows a ship like her own house, and if it weren’t for you, she’d have her own command. Your daughter is single-handedly revolutionizing our fleet. How can I let her go now?”
More truths and realities flowed forth from Antonio’s words. Ramon knew that despite the pleas and the rationalizations, his brother was right. She was too good; in fact, she was golden. With her quiet leadership, and mastery of a ship’s weapons systems--systems she herself designed--she would make a magnificent captain.
“Ray, you asked me to get her into the Navy’s weapons design program, and I did that for you years ago. That was for you. But now she’s turned that place around. She’s now the head project director.”
“WEPS-ONE,” Ramon whispered.
“That’s right. She’s designed an entirely new NTDS control system and five new prototype missile systems. We’ll be testing out these systems in about a week on the Gettysburg.”
“You know I know this. I’ll be personally overseeing that mission.” Ramon’s eyes were sullen. He was going to lose this battle. He raised his head quickly.
“Can you keep her at WEPS-ONE? Just one last favor for your brother?”
“I can’t promise that. SECNAV will be overseeing a committee to promote qualified commanders to our front line ships.” Antonio turned his head away and dropped his eyes to the floor. “I regret to say that. . .Kristina is near the top of that list, Ray. She’s slated to be the CO of one of our newest missile cruisers, the Rosa Parks. It’s one of the super Arleigh Burke destroyers, refitted with all of Kristina’s weapons systems.”
“Oh my God!” A tear began to pool at the corner of Ramon's right eye.
“Ray, it wasn’t my doing. I was told--”
“You spineless, SON OF A BITCH!”
“Ray, there’s still time. Maybe I can--”
“When were you planning on telling me? During the fucking ship christening!?” The boom of Ramon’s voice made the secretary outside the office and several coworkers slide nearer to the door to listen in. Ramon moved forward slowly, almost stalking Antonio who fell defenselessly into his chair. He moved in closer, raising his index finger like a bayonet. His tone was threatening.
“If you don’t stop this, Antonio, and something happens to my daughter out there--” The malice in his voice and the look in his eyes were horrifying. “If something happens to her, friendship and family be damned, I’m coming after you!”
“Good evening, Baltimore, and welcome to a special addition of Channel 4 Baltimore Evening News. I’m Anita Chavez.
“Today North Korea took another aggressive step towards anti-American diplomacy by deploying five of its newly-purchased warships in close proximity to American and allied warships monitoring the Iron Clad blockade.
“Naval sources tell us that one of the warships, a Slava-class guided-missile cruiser, approached within 10 meters of the U.S.-made Japanese cruiser Kojiro, shadowing her for several minutes before moving off.
“The North Korean government issued a statement that more of their capital ships will come on station in the coming days, and that they will be ready to attack the blockading forces if the order is given. Sources say that Pyongyang’s aggressive maneuvers are a result of their confidence in their new fleet of powerful ex-Soviet combatants, and the fact that the U.S. has no active carrier stationed within Korean waters. In fact, all U.S. carriers are in or around the Taiwan Strait, keeping watch over the Chinese navy whose threat of a Taiwan invasion now seems imminent.
“The area around Taiwan has been dubbed by the Defense Department as the “Ring of Fire.” Presently there are over 75 U.S., Taiwanese and Japanese ships on alert in the Ring. China continues its aggressive force build-up and has amassed over one million landing troops on their side of the Strait; scores of bomber, fighter and air-to-ground attack aircraft squadrons have been moved from all over China to the coast; and several fleets of rocket-attack, landing and transport ships stand poised for what may be a cataclysmic encounter with U.S. and Taiwanese forces.
“There is no word on whether any more carriers are coming to reinforce those already in the Ring. Because the U.S. fleet is stretched so thin, experts believe that North Korea will continue to show increasing aggressiveness towards allied ships the longer the deadly Iron Clad blockade goes on. This has been a Channel 4 Baltimore Evening News update, I’m Anita Chavez.”
Chapter 4
Resurrection
Pier 28
Najin Naval Base
Najin, North Korea
The Kim Il-Sung sat droning at the misty pier like a dragon engulfed in its own breath. Work lights illuminated the ship as groups of workers quietly attended her. The paint was still fresh, her decks gleamed clean, and her flags snapped crisply in the wind.
But it wasn’t always like this. This was a ship that had come back from the dead. She was one of a few vessels saved from the white-flamed heat of a scrapper’s torch and the metal block crusher. Sitting like a condemned building, reduced to an iron shell, she sat at Abrek Harbor near Vladivostok, stripped and left for dead for more than 15 years. Her name was Lazarev.
The Lazarev was the second of four siblings from the monstrous Kirov-class of nuclear-powered battlecruisers first laid down in 1977. Although they were considered four of the Soviet Union’s greatest surface force achievements, the Kirov and the Lazarev, steamed for less than 20 years. The funds to maintain and refit these behemoths dwindled as the nation struggled to finance their arsenal and their forces stationed abroad. The Lazarev joined the growing population of ships decommissioned before their prime in the early ‘90s. Sitting pier-side as historical monuments, or left to rot in dilapidated harbors, the greatest examples of Cold War technology sat in decay, and their highly trained crews were sent home or reassigned.
In the summer of 1996, China’s