regime that’s more popular and more competent than the previous
government, and technocratic to the extreme. The business magnates and the
military have divided up rule and roles. Capitalism and nationalism working
hand in hand, rather than the old contradictions they had back in the
Communist days.”
The image switched to one of the Directorate Navy’s new aircraft carriers
tied up next to a pier, Shanghai’s skyline in the background.
“The bottom line is that the Directorate has changed China. They took a
regime mired in corruption and on the brink of civil war and forged a lockeddown
country marching in the same direction, the nation’s business leaders
and the military joined at the hip.
“But net assessment, as they teach you back in the schoolhouse, isn’t only
about looking outward; it’s also about knowing yourself and your own place
in history.”
A visual of two maps of the globe appeared, the first of British trading
routes and colonies circa 1914, the second a current disposition of U.S. forces
and bases, some eight hundred dots spread across the world.
“Some say we’re fighting, or rather not fighting, a cold war with the
Directorate, just like we did with the Soviet Union more than half a century
ago. But that may not be the right case to learn from. About a hundred years
back, the British Empire faced a problem much like ours today: How do you
police an empire when you’ve got a shrinking economy relative to the
world’s and a population no longer so excited to meet those old
commitments?”
A montage of U.S. Navy aircraft carriers in port appeared, the last shot a
lingering image of CVN-80, the new USS Enterprise, still under construction.
“And, of course, if that is the case, you can’t keep doing things the old way
on the cheap. Take capital ships, the way navies back then, and even today,
measured force. With the Ford-class carriers taking so long to build, although
the U.S. Navy has nine CVNs, that actually means four in service to cover the
entire globe. And with the cost of keeping our military in Afghanistan,
Yemen, and, now, Kenya, well, we’ve had to get used to working without
them.”
“I’d rather be on this ship than a carrier anyway,” said Gupal. “Just a
bigger bull’s-eye for an incoming Stonefish.”
“Secure that mouth, Lieutenant, or you’re not even gonna last one cruise
on this ship,” said Riley, jabbing a titanium e-cigar in the air.
“Aye, aye, Captain,” said Gupal sheepishly.
Simmons, as the XO, was supposed to be the bad cop to Captain Riley’s
good cop, making the reversal of roles that much more amusing to the crew.
“Lieutenant, all jokes aside, you are making my point. You’re right that the
DF-21E, the Stonefish anti-ship ballistic missile, is not really about us,” said
Simmons. “But I want you to think about the various trends, the why, and
then the what-next. So, what does the Stonefish offer the Chinese?”
“Well, sir, it’s like a boxer stretching his arms out farther. Gives them the
ability to target our big deck carriers before we can get in range of China,”
said Gupal.
“Right, it gives them freedom of action. So if you’re Directorate, what do
you do with that freedom? And why, or even when? These are the questions I
want you asking. Just because you see the world one way today does not
mean it will be that way tomorrow. It’s pirates today. What will it be next?”
asked Simmons.
Captain Riley stepped over to Simmons. He smiled, but his body language
made it clear he was not completely pleased with the briefing. “Thank you,
XO. The key, folks, is to assess these threats. There’s dangers, but let’s not
build these guys up to be ten feet tall. And if it comes down to a boxing
match, Big Navy’s spent literally billions on the air-sea battle concept, just
for the Stonefish threat and more. In any case, given what’s playing out on
the Siberian border, it might be better for the XO to brief the next Russian
ship we see rather than us. If anyone is going to war with the Directorate, it’s
Moscow.”
“Yes, sir,” said Simmons. “Any questions?” He looked around the room
and chewed his cheek to keep from saying anything more.
Lieutenant Gupal raised his hand. “Sir, where does that leave us on the
patrol? How should we think about the Directorate forces here? Friend or
foe? Or frenemy?”
“Like I said, the Chinese are more likely to go to war with Russia than us,”
Riley replied. “And if the idea does cross their mind to tangle with us, well,
they just don’t have the experience to do it right. The XO’s history lesson
should’ve also mentioned that China hasn’t fought a major war since the
1940s.”
“Neither has the U.S. Navy,” said Simmons quietly.
Silence followed. A few of the crew started fiddling with their glasses in
their laps, trying to look busy. Lieutenant Gupal, though, was too green to
understand that the silence wasn’t another opportunity for him to gain notice.
What worked at the Naval Academy was the wrong call in the wardroom.
“XO, do you think the captain’s right about Russia and China, though?”
asked Gupal.
Simmons glanced at Riley before looking at Gupal.
“The Directorate has been making claims about their guest-worker rights
being abused by the Russians and how their government is not beholden to
the old borders set in treaties signed by prior regimes on both sides,” said
Simmons. “So if I was in Moscow, I’d potentially come to the same
conclusion the captain has. And the Russians seem to be acting on that belief.
The latest satellite photos showed the Russian Pacific fleet has sortied from
its base in Vladivostok, most likely to put some range between it and the
Chinese air bases to complicate any potential sneak attack. It’s the right
move. The history supports it.”
“And with that rare praise from the XO, dismissed,” said Captain Riley.
“We know where to get our sunshine when we need it.”
U.S. Embassy, Beijing
The ambassador loved parties. So did Commander Jimmie Links, but for
different reasons.
The truth was the parties were just an excuse. This farewell soiree was in
his honor — he was finishing up two years in the defense attaché’s office —
but no matter the country the guest came from, no matter the rank, no matter
the clout, everyone in the room was there to collect. Eyeglasses, jewelry,
watches, whatever — all were constantly recording and analyzing. Suck it all
up and let the filters sort it out. It was not much different from how the
people back home did their shopping, wide-casting for discounts.
Links watched a beautiful Chinese woman in her late twenties glide by in a
floor-length translucent SpecTran-fiber dress and noticed the telltale strip of
stiff-looking skin at the base of her neck. The new folks joining the threeletter
agencies didn’t have a choice anymore. The human body, with the right
technology, is an extraordinary antenna. Fortunately, as a U.S. Navy officer
who’d joined before the policy shift, Links had gotten out of that one, at least
