Chp. 35: The Spirit of the Revolution
March 17, 2024
Shen-Jiau, Verusa
Three days until the UN met to discuss the investigation timeline, and President Wáng-Xú was feeling the pressure. He was cornered, and the two ways out were neither pleasant, nor easy. The one he'd chosen was the one that would hopefully save himself and his country. The old men in the Standing Council were going to find that the tide of revolution flowed both ways. He had three important allies with him: the commander of the Verusean Special Operations Regiment, the commander of the Strategic Rocket Forces and the head of the state's primary media apparatus: Xing-Ji. The three men sat around a table in the center of the president's office, with their commander and chief waiting to see if there were any objections to his plan. He expected none from Xing-Ji's CEO, Zhen Guan-Lee; the man owed his current post to Wáng-Xú. Lieutenant General Peng of the Strategic Rocket Forces was a portly, fed-up individual who would bow to the right pressure, specifically death and the internment of his family.
His foremost concern was Senior Colonel Cao-Li of the Black Daggers. Verusean Special Forces were a pragmatic kind of soldier. Loyalty remained with the party as a whole, but who represented the party from the Colonel's perspective was what he wanted to be sure of. Wáng-Xú glanced towards Peng, who was still sweating steadily. The President's gaze shifted back to the Colonel a second. The slender, clean-shaven man interlocked his fingers and looked towards the President.
"This operation would take up most of my battalions still in the country, Comrade President...and I cannot guarantee the total containment of every site." Cao-Li said, more for the record than as a legitimate objection.
"That is why General Peng's cooperation has been secured. Peng will ensure that all missiles and warheads are secured in case one or more of his subordinates feels compelled to resist. Especially when your men secure our primary objective." Wáng-Xú replied.
"And what of our chemical stores?"
"Those have been placed under tighter control since the UN meeting. Even the old men are weary of letting them go anywhere but where they're documented as being."
Talking about it brought the President a bit of comfort, but not much. When asked how soon the Colonel could prepare his men, he was confidently told that the Black Daggers had a reputation for rapid response. For this, it would take only twelve hours. Peng assured his president that he could arrange an exercise. Details on why could be hidden beneath conditions such as loss of greater command and control. That left Guan-Lee's part in the whole affair.
"Once we have control of the country's strategic weapons, Xing-Ji will ensure that the arrest of the Standing Council is portrayed as an act to stop their own coup."
"Yes, Comrade President." Guan-Lee nodded.
"I'm dead serious, Comrade Guan-Lee...we do not have the time to ensure the rest of the nation's loyalty to me over the Standing Council's. When this is over, they must bear the damnation alone."
Going against those who were associated with the creation of the Peoples' Federation created a wave of unease in the room, but Wáng-Xú wouldn't remind them of the alternatives. Peng still seemed quite worried, but he wasn't admitting it.
"Something worries you, General Peng?" The President asked with an arched eyebrow. The man stiffened, then shivered and dared glare in Wáng-Xú's direction.
"The Standing Council is what worries me! They have eyes and ears throughout the government! You think the solution is to go against them?"
The President stood up so fast his chair tumbled back and broke the uneasy calm the room had kept so far.
"To prevent the DESTRUCTION of our nation, General! Might I remind you that this isn't the Osea we saw in the past decade! Might I also remind you how deeply Belka suffered for using weapons of such power, and on their own soil! I will not allow these old fools to drag this country into armageddon. The Peoples' Federation of Verusa has a long-standing policy never to commit a nuclear or chemical first strike. If you are not with me, General Peng, then you ARE against me. Against me and against the people, now would you rather face the wrath of the Standing Council if we fail, or my own wrath now?!" Wáng-Xú snarled.
Peng let out a ragged breath and noted that even the Colonel was watching him. Like a leopard waiting to pounce on its prey. Cao-Li stood up and administered a salute to the President.
"Sir, I shall commit to your plan. As a staunch member of the socialist struggle, it is my duty to help crush any threat to its advance. The Standing Council cannot be allowed to destroy it all for the sake of their own pride." He said. Peng glared at the man, quietly labeling him as grandstanding to make the General look even more cowardly. Peng looked back at the President and nodded before making a reluctant salute.
"...The Strategic Rocket Force will support your...intentions." He admitted.
"Good; very well, that is all I need to know. We have two days, comrades. Should we be discovered, initiate the plan anyways. We must at least slow them down if we cannot stop them. General Chen will be in command should I be deposed and arrested." Wáng-Xú said.
The three men, even the Colonel, nodded with some hesitation but said nothing (Wáng-Xú had no desire to hear them, either way). Once they were gone, the President went to his phone and dialed his second in command of the conspiracy. General Chen, currently at his headquarters in Fusamone, was trying to deal with the situation on the frontlines. His northern advance was reaching the point of collapse. He'd dedicated fewer heavy units once he was certain much of the north was defended by more infantry and less armor. Now he was trying to get heavier units moved north. Units that he already needed to push back the concentrations of mechanized and armored units beating back his attempts to encircle the capital and reach the eastern coast of the main island. The President's words gave him some hope; hope could not stop armies, though. He needed to find a place to make a stand, to reverse the tide in his favor. Somewhere he could inflict a demoralizing enough defeat on the Oseans and Shimojis to send them reeling back. His eyes fell on the island of Gianshu…
Major Yeung held on as the Yongshi jeep traversed the country roads leading to the residence of Zhen Woo-Fung. The air inside the vehicle was visibly tense as the six men inside waited for their destination. Their target was a secluded, simple home in the northern suburbs of the capital. Woo-Fung was known for his simplistic life; there were no guards or perimeter to breach. No militia checking everyone who came through the man they were after was one of the oldest individuals in the government, someone with a great deal of public respect. To think he was involved in a conspiracy to destabilize the country and plunge it deeper into the war made the Major uncomfortable. For the first time in his life it chipped at the confidence he had in the party and its leadership. With luck, he wouldn't go down in history as someone who killed an old man. A rather famous old man.
The Yongshi raced up and over a small bridge and around a curve, always mere inches from the trees on either side of the one-lane road. The Major yanked back the charging handle on his QCW-05 and keyed his radio.
"Spider 1 to all units, remember that we want our target alive. Shoot only if your life is in direct danger." He hissed. His two team leads, Spiders 2 and 3, were quick to acknowledge.
The four jeeps came around a corner and jolted to a stop outside a one-story house. The men deployed with six stacking up outside the front door and the other ten divided between securing a perimeter and stacking up near a side door. One man, armed with a battering ram, came around to the front and locked gazes with the Major. Yeung held up three fingers and counted down. When his hand was a clenched fist, the battering ram was brought to bear against the door. The wooden barrier nearly broke in half from the force.
"Breach breach breach!" Yeung shouted as he dashed forward behind a man with a ballistic shield.
The first person they came upon was a couple, his children. The two were frozen in shock and fear as all but two of the armed men rushed past them. Yeung's pointman seamlessly went through a doorway into one of the backrooms, where the man they sought was on the phone behind his desk. He seemed bewildered, but still annoyed that he'd been interrupted. On the other end was another member of the council, Li Yan. The man heard shouting and nothing more before the receiver clattered against something and was soon hung up. His jaw tightened for a second before he hung up the phone and dialed a new number. The elderly man shuffled to the nearest window and looked into the distance as the evening swallowed more and more of Shen-Jiau. The phone continued to ring, then the beep of the answering machine caused him to slam the receiver down and curse the President of the Peoples' Federation. He drew in a breath, sat down and picked up the receiver again. This time it was his fellow Councilman, Chen Yow.
"Comrade Yan, to what do I owe the pleasure of this unexpected call?" The man asked, cordial as he always was.
"Something's wrong, Comrade Yow. I was talking with Comrade Woo-Fung when he was apparently arrested. I heard men shouting at him about dropping the phone, then it was hung up. I've tried reaching out to our comrade the president, but to no avail. I need you to try and call him, but after you come to the Congressional Hall. I will gather the others, so go! There isn't a minute to spare!"
He told his secretary to start summoning the rest of the available council while he made a call to the headquarters of the Peoples' Militia. He was directed to the shift commander, one Colonel Haotian, and decided that was good enough. The man could hail the senior commanders of the local division after they were done.
"Colonel Haotian, we have a crisis developing. The President is out of contact and, as a member of the Standing Council, I am ordering you to mobile all forces under your command to secure the Congressional Hall, Xing-Ji's headquarters, The primary telephone exchange and the Ministry of Defense. Further objectives may follow if warranted." Li Yan instructed. He was quietly grateful that the man didn't question the orders.
With a promise that updates would be relayed to him as they came, the militia commander hung up and left Li Yan to consider the council's course of action. They would need to arrest the president, or at least establish contact with him. Any local army and air force units would also need to be hailed...if they needed to escalate things that much. Li Yan again dialed out, this time to General Chen's office. Unfortunately for him the man was not available. When Li Yan demanded that the next in command be put on the line, he was simply cut off. The man pulled away the phone and glared at it in disbelief. When he tried again, no one answered this time. The man went to the window again, searching for signs of imminent danger. He did see militia assigned to guard the building hurrying out into the street, carrying roadblocks with them to control traffic. Most of them lacked even basic body armor and carried ageing AK-pattern rifles. Li Yan again tried to reach the Ministry of Defense, hoping he could acquire the support needed to stop what was happening…
General Chen, dressed in full AFV crew garb, rode in his command APC as it followed elements of the 38th Mechanized Division. Close to 6,000 men entering the capital from the eastern approaches. Four columns from its first regiment followed the major roads inward, with the foremost elements rushing towards the president's residence. Most of the force rode in ZSLs, ZBLs or trucks; Chen had been firm when he'd organized the advance that they were to apply the minimum amount of force needed to secure the capital. He had the trust of this division, if only because he'd convinced the officers that victory would be meaningless if they were standing atop a pile of ashes that'd once been Verusa. Family, country and honor were things most Verusean officers (unofficially) valued over total loyalty to the party. Not having to fire on their fellow countrymen would keep the chances of the force falling into mutiny and disarray low.
The second regiment established blocking positions on the outskirts, as well as ensuring that there was a solid ring of air defenses against both enemy aircraft, and their own that the council might sway. So far they'd been able to avoid the wrath of Osean air power, and Chen had made sure that any air attacks against Shen-Jiau tonight would fail. The imperialists would have to look elsewhere for something to bomb.
"Comrade General…" The radio operator near him spoke up.
When he looked towards the man, there was a sheaf of paper in his grip. Chen accepted it and noted the fingerprints on the edge, made by sweat from the man's hand. Chen couldn't blame him; this was an undertaking that everyone was fearful of. The message reported that the People's Militia in the city had mobilized, and that Councilman Li Yan had made repeated attempts to contact Chen. The Xing-Ji was possibly already under their control. He asked for the radio and contacted the division's intelligence section to see if they were picking up anything on the radio waves. They would update him when something happened; for now the objective would remain the same. Chen pulled off his helmet and plugged in a headset hanging around his neck. He put one of the cups to his ear and listened to the lead elements of the northern column. Lieutenant Colonel Hwan-Lee, the man in charge, was leading from one of the ZTZ-96s approaching the towering building.
The Colonel rose from his commander's cupola and unlocked the machine gun atop the turret as the first company hit the surface streets. A platoon of tanks and supporting infantry took the onramps to allow the rest of the column a secure entrance into the cityscape. As they moved, a group of People's Militia SUVs was approaching. They stopped a block away from the army troops and put their vehicles in an impromptu roadblock. A third vehicle, a cargo truck with wooden horses in it to block the road, stopped and militiamen deployed to set them up. They kept their distance as the tanks and APCs rolled by. Colonel Hwan-Lee led his tanks onto one of the major multi-lane roads towards their objective. They split up and passed by a park on either side, weapons at the ready in case they received fire coming into the complex that housed the state media's headquarters.
"Orange 1, Orange 1 this is Sun King, come in Orange 1." General Chen radioed.
"Orange 1 standing by...we're four blocks from our primary objective." The Colonel replied.
"Be advised that People's Militia forces may already be in place at primary objective. Fire only if fired upon. Confirm order received."
"Fire only if fired upon, understood. Instructions should they be blocking our way?"
"Tell them to move or face arrest...Sun King out."
The Colonel clicked his teeth together, then gently bit his tongue in thought. Well, hopefully even fanatical devotion could be broken by superior weaponry. The People's Militia had ZSLs, some armed with machine guns, but almost no anti-tank weapons with which to oppose his tanks. He looked up as the sound of a helicopter managed to overcome the mechanical rumbling of his machine. He looked up and saw a helicopter in militia livery pass overhead before it turned to the right and circled above. He set his hands on the grip of his machine gun and waited to see what the aircraft planned on doing. He looked down only as the tanks entered the complex containing their objective. The first thing he took notice of was that the militia had gotten there first. They had a pair of ZSLs set up to support what looked to be a major roadblock. The Colonel ordered his immediate platoon of tanks to set up in a firing line while he radioed in the matter.
"Sun King this is Orange 1...be advised that the militia have secured the Xing-Ji complex. Please advise." He radioed tensely.
"Understood Orange 1...await infantry support, then arrest or disperse the militia units." Chen replied.
"Understood, Sun King…"
Hwan-Lee nodded and looked towards the militiamen, who nervously eyed the tanks down the street and those moving into positions at other points around the facilities. The Colonel ordered his tanks' guns to be elevated so they weren't aimed directly at the militia. The waiting game began; Hwan-Lee had never been involved in a standoff, but he imagined it couldn't be too hard. It was definitely tempting to simply fire on the militia and force them to run away, but he wouldn't be the one to receive the General's wrath for that one. The militiamen didn't seem too eager to provoke the armor, either. He watched as a heavyset man constantly talked into a handset, looking out at the tanks every few seconds.
Hwan-Lee settled into his seat and pulled out his map. His tanks secured several positions with no issues. The promised infantry wasn't far behind, either. A ZSL with the Captain in charge of the company rolled up behind the tanks and the officer rendered a salute to the Colonel before he climbed up the tank.
"Your orders, Colonel?" He asked, glancing towards the militia.
"We're going to surround and contain the militia's roadblocks. Once we're in place, we'll demand their surrender. Have your vehicles set up roadblocks; place two tanks to guard the flanks, and two towards the militia. I want your best men up front; anyone you suspect may be skittish is to stay in their vehicle or behind them. I do not want a single shot fired unless they fire first. He looked back up at the helicopter, still circling, wondering when his side's air support would arrive. An airborne brigade was supposed to help capture the airport. If they got their helicopters here soon, they could shoo away the militia's aircraft. He looked back down to see a pair of militiamen and the man on the radio earlier approaching.
"Excuse me, but who is in charge of this unit?" The militia officer barked, hiking up his pistol belt.
"I am...Lieutenant Colonel Hwan-Lee. Commander, 1st Battalion of the 1st Regiment, 38th Mechanized Division. By the order of President Wáng-Xú and General Chen, head of the Central Military Committee, you and your men are ordered to dismantle your roadblocks and return to your barracks. If you refuse to do so, then I have orders to arrest your men as counterrevolutionaries attempting to depose the party leadership."
His counterpart visibly balked at that.
"Under what authority?! We have been commanded by the standing council to prevent the very counterrevolution you accuse us of committing!"
The Colonel rested a hand on his machine gun again while his troops continued to position themselves unabated. Hwan-Lee felt total confidence in his position.
"Are you in a position to arrest us...Captain? I can assure you we won't take any acts of aggression lightly. My men and I do not wish to fire on our fellow countrymen, but we will if you cannot accept our request to peacefully surrender."
The militia Captain tensed a fair bit, then turned and ordered his men after him. Hwan-Lee's subordinate looked to him for orders, but the man shook his head and told the Captain to continue executing his original orders.
"Sun King...Orange 1 is currently securing a perimeter around primary objective. Do we have any contact with personnel inside?"
"That's affirmative, Orange 1, friendly personnel still hold the studios and recording rooms. First transmission expected in ten minutes. Be advised that Beetle 3 is enroute to help secure via helicopter insertion." Chen radioed.
"Understood, any word on if the militia are trying to or have entered the buildings?"
"Unknown at this time, standby."
So began the waiting game. In the meantime, he started piecing together a plan if he needed to storm the media complex and secure the staff from militia influence.