The shrill beeping of my pager jolts me out of sleep. I grope for it on the nightstand without taking the pillow off my face, but once I see the message, I jerk upright throwing the covers off.

"Josh?" Donna lifts her head and looks at me groggily. "What's wrong?"

"Noth-" I bite back my automatic response. This isn't nothing. They don't page me to the situation room in the middle of the night for nothing.

Our eyes meet for a long moment, then I shrug. "I'm not sure yet, but I have to go in."

She nods once then sits up and watches as I pull on a suit. I forgo the tie, stuffing it in the the coat pocket. I can put it on later.

When I'm ready, I walk over to her side of the bed and sit down for a moment. Donna immediately wraps her arms around me. I absorb a little of her strength then place a soft kiss on her lips.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

"Try to go back to sleep. I'll send a car back for the two of you if I'm not going to be back before it's time for you to leave."

"Okay."

I slip into Lulu's room and watch her sleep for just a moment, then I head out, reminded why I do what I do.

Less than ten minutes have past before I'm sitting in the car speeding towards the White House. Even though I'll be there shortly, I pick up the phone in my car.

"This is Josh Lyman. Alpha, Bravo, 77642, Zulu, Tango. . . . Put me through to the situation room."

. . . . .

When I stride into the room, people glance up, then back to their monitors. They all have concerned looks, some of them might even be called grim, but none of them look scared. I find that comforting.

"Josh." As I take my seat, General Alexander acknowledges me with a brisk nod. As does the National Security Advisor. I like Glenn well enough, but honestly, in moments like this, I miss Nancy McNally.

"General, Glenn." I greet both of them before staring at the large screen before me.

The National Security Advisor starts the briefing. "There's been an incident in Kazakhstan. The continuing protests in Almaty have turned violent again. Tamirov sent in riot police."

"Casualties?"

"Yes, possibly several hundred. Mostly ethnic Chinese."

"This is sounding a lot like how this whole mess started in the first place."

"Yes. It is." Glenn responds.

General Alexander interrupts, "The reason we called you in- is that a large number of Chinese troops have crossed the border into Kazakhstan. At the rate they are moving, they'll reach Almaty in less than five hours."

He points to the screen where I see a group of arrows progressing steadily towards a star with a circle around it.

"What about the Russians?"

"I'm sure they are looking at the same data we are. I expect to see troop movement any minute now."

"How many troops do we have left in Kazakhstan?"

"Less than 5,000. More in Astana than in Almaty. It's not really a peace-keeping force. It's primarily a diplomatic mission. Embassy security. We kept them there to maintain a presence. Not for intimidation."

"Well, yeah, it seems pretty clear that nobody's intimidated by our presence." I quickly retort.

Alexander gives me a disgusted look.

"Sorry. I wasn't disparaging our troops, just pointing out that the size of our presence is no longer motivating the Russians and Chinese to stay in their corners."

He nods in acknowledgement that I have a basic grasp on the situation but otherwise his demeanor remains the same.

"As you know, I didn't want to remove as many troops as quickly as we did. And now, we have a small force standing between two nuclear powers." He looks toward Glenn, who picks up on the conversation.

"We need to decide whether to evacuate completely or send reinforcements. Although, truthfully, I'm not sure that we will have enough time to do either."

I feel my heart drop into my stomach, but I try to remain calm and collected as I respond with the only thing I'm really qualified to say.

"I'll wake up the President."

. . . . .

I walk into the room. Pick up the phone, and dial a number.

"Yes?"

"Mr. President. We have a situation. I'm waiting in your study."

"Do I have time to put on pants?"

"Yes, sir."

I smirk to myself as I wait. I chose wisely. Even being awoken in the middle of the night, Matt is alert and ready. The pants comment was both a touch of humor and completely practical at the same time.

Less than five minutes later, he walks into the study. His shirt is crisp, with the top buttons, open and he's pulling on his suit coat. For some reason, I expected him in old jeans and a hoodie, but I don't have time to think about that now.

"What's up, Josh?" He asks as soon as the door is closed behind him.

"We're needed in the situation room. The Chinese have crossed the border. They're on their way to Almaty. We expect an immediate response from the Russians."

Matt turns and reaches for the door immediately. "Let's go."

As we stride down the hall, I feel an odd mixture of dread, confidence, and pride.

If we don't somehow defuse this situation, World War III really could break out. Two years ago I couldn't comprehend why on earth Jed Bartlet would send troops into Kazakhstan right before the election. I doubted the seriousness of the situation, and I'm ashamed to admit, I wondered more than once if he just liked Arnie Vinick better than my candidate.

But I'm starting to understand, now, what it's like to be responsible for the world. When two countries as large and powerful as Russia and China fight over land, the whole world is in danger. And there's no one else who can stand up to them. I just hope we didn't make a mistake bringing most of our troops home.

As we jog down the stairs, Matt breaks the silence. "Was the Secretary of Defense in the room?"

"No. He was on his way in."

"Good. Wake up Arnie Vinick too. I want him there as well."

"Of course."

I immediately dial the switchboard. "This is Josh Lyman. I need you to page the Secretary of State. Code Alpha. 444-8762. "

Just before we arrive, I ask Matt what's been on my mind ever since my pager went off.

"Is this one of those things that seems worse than it is because of my inexperience with the military?"

Matt gives me a long look. "No- this is one of those things that seems bad because it is. Trust your gut. I do."

. . . . .

"Ten hut."

The entire room snaps to attention as the President walks into the room. Even the non-military personnel stand taller.

"General Alexander. Sit. Rep." POTUS barks, and for some reason it actually seems to put the room at ease. Maybe it's because he speaks their language.

General Alexander runs down the same information he gave me 20 minutes ago. The President listens intently and nods every few seconds. As soon as Alexander is finished, The President turns to his National Security Advisor.

"Glenn, how secure is the US Consulate in Almaty?"

"It's not like it's a military base. It's an office building. Surrounded by a wall." Matt gives Glenn a glare, and he settles down a bit. "It's secure. For now. But if Tarmiov's riot police fight back against the Chinese, we aren't in a position to help. And we certainly don't have enough troops to defend the Consulate against a Chinese army determined to take it."

"Are you recommending that we evacuate?" Matt asks evenly.

"Yes. I recommend we close the Consulate and evacuate civilian personnel to the Embassy in Astana. Then from there we can bring them home."

"If we close the Consulate before the Chinese troops even arrive we've conceded any position of authority." General Alexander interrupts.

"Are you suggesting that we DON'T evacuate?" Matt asks in disbelief.

"No. We have to evacuate non-military personnel. But we can't just close down the consulate. We need a base of operations and a presence in the city. We can send reinforcements from the Embassy to the Consulate to maintain security. And in 36 hours we can have more troops on the ground. But you need to give the command to mobilize right now."

I see Matt's spine straighten. He won't let Alexander bully him into a decision before he's ready.

Matt pauses as we hear the door buzzer and we all turn to see who has joined us. Oddly enough, I find myself hoping for Arnie Vinick. There are hundreds of reasons that I'm relieved that he's not the President, but he's been invaluable as a Secretary of State. He's calm, reasonable and articulate. I have a profound respect for him. I have mixed feelings when the Secretary of Defense walks through the door. At least it's not Swain, or for that matter Miles Hutchinson.

Matt greets him. "David, good to see you. Are you up to speed?"

"Yes, I got a briefing over a secured line on my way here."

"Excellent. General Alexander was just explaining why we need to at least maintain the illusion that the consulate's office is up and running."

"Isn't that a question for the State department?" Arnie Vinick asks as he walks through the door.

"Arnie! Glad you could join us. You ready to weigh in on this?" Matt does look pleased to see him, although General Alexander does not.

Arnie nods. "Let's be clear about this- the Chinese crossing the border is an act of war. But it's not our war yet. We need to talk to Tamirov. He's probably already reached out to the Russians. So the questions are- Are we joining them in dispelling the Chinese? Can we somehow still play neutral mediator or has that ship sailed?" He pauses and looks around the room but no one is prepared to answer him, so he continues. "We also need to issue immediate warnings to ex patriots and American tourists changing the threat level. And we ought to at least talk about an evacuation plan for them if it becomes necessary."

Matt nods along as Arnie's speaking. I can see he's already pleased that Vinick's raised several new considerations. The way I see it, there's no real doubt that we have to be involved. The question is how much and how fast. But nobody's asked me yet. And it's a good thing, because I don't know the answers to those questions.

"Alright everyone." The President jumps back in. "We only have a few hours until the Chinese reach Amalty. We don't REALLY know what their intentions are until they arrive. Arnie- I need the State department working on diplomatic solutions. And I want the Ambassador from Kazakhstan in the Oval, ASAP. Glenn- I want multi-tiered evacuation plans on my desk within 30 minutes. General- I want to see a range of military options and timelines. Let's go."

"Yes, sir." As soon as everyone responds, Matt and I turn and leave the room.

"You were pretty quiet in there."

"There were enough ideas being thrown around. I don't need to speak just to hear the sound of my own voice."

"No, but I'd like your input on the options that they end up presenting. Are you ready to do that?"

"I serve at the pleasure of the President."

. . . .

After we watch the Ambassador leave, Matt motions for me to sit back down. "So?"

"We're going to have to send more troops back in. Whether Russia joins forces with Kazakhstan or not, we're going to have to go back."

"Aren't you worried about political ramifications?"

"No. We're gonna get creamed for it politically. But I don't have the luxury of worrying about that right now. Right now I'm worried about the planet. If we walk away from this our children might not have a future. There's a bigger picture."

"Yes. There is."

"We do this right. The best we can. Hopefully, we keep the middle east from literally exploding. And then we deal with the political fallout when it arrives."

"Okay, then."

"Okay."

. . . .

Matt, Arnie and I sit with grim faces and cups of coffee. None of us has anything to say. Now we wait. Wait to hear if all the civilians are safely in Astana. Wait to hear if the Chinese army opens fire on the Kazakh police. Wait to hear if World War III has begun.

My phone buzzes and as I read the short message the corners of my mouth turn up a little, and I let out a little sigh.

"They're here." I report to Matt and Arnie and watch as they both respond with the same little grimace. It's not a joyful smile, more like a resigned acceptance.

These jobs of ours are incredible. Unimaginable stress, and inconceivable perks. I'm going to do my best to make sure World War III doesn't start today. But if it does, my wife and daughter are going to be right next to the President's family, safe in a bunker.