Beijing, China. 1415 hrs.
President Deng Xiaopen of the People's Republic of China was reading in his study when an aide came in. "Mr President!" He stuttered, exited. "Sir, North Korea has invaded Japan!" Xiaopen looked up sharply. "What?"
London, England. Local time 2343 hrs.
Prime Minister Stephen Hawk was awoken from a deeply refreshing sleep by the shrill ringing of his telephone. "Do you know what the Hell time it is?... What? Get me Pyongyang at once!"
Langley, Virginia, USA. Local time 0945 hrs.
The CIA men watched as the waves of North Korean infantry and armour streamed up the beach. The satnav was of good quality, up to date, so there was no mistaking these images. "Dave." Said the first CIA man. "Call Washington.Get me the President. As if China attacking Vietnam wasn't enough."
Command room, Marine HQ, Qingdao, China. 1420 hrs.
Rei Kon was leaning against a control console in the command room, watching as the Chinese marines cleared the bodies of the dead soldiers from both sides from the floor. Captain Hing approached him, limping from a leg wound. "You okay, Rei?" He asked. "Yes, Zhui, thank you." He replied. "How's your leg?" Hing grimanced. "I'll live." A techie came rushing up to the two officers. "Sirs, North Korea has attacked Japan!" Rei blinked in surprise. "What!" Exclaimed Hing. "Why?" The tech shrugged. "I don't know." The man turned and pressed a button on the console. A satillite image flashed into being on the remaining screens showing waves of NK armour and infantry steaming up the beach, bulldozing the light Japanese defences. Rei stood, shocked. "What are we going to do, sir?" Hing looked uncertain. His radio sparked into life. "Captain!" Came the harsh voice from the speakers. "Report to Beijing with your second-in-command and one Sergeant Xung. A Helix will be put at your disposal." The radio fell silent and Rei looked at his superior in surprise.Hing shrugged and motioned for the soldiers to follow him to the helipad.
The Helix combat helicopter lifted off from the Qingdao marine HQ with onboard Captain Zhui Hing, Lieutenant Rei Kon, and Sergeant Zhiang Xung. Rei stared down at the pall of smoke that was the base, strangely sad. So many dead, so far behind he front lines. He could see no good coming from this accursed war. The Helix turned north, towards the capital.
Beijing, China. 0005 hrs. 26th Feb 2005.
The Helix touched down with a bump on the rooftop helipad on the PLACC (People's Liberation Army Command Center) compound in Beijing. Hing, Rei, and Xung dismounted under the glare of the neon lights and walked across the pad where they were met by a colonel. "You got here quick. Good. The general is waiting for you." He led the three weary marines through the PLACC's sterilr white corridors. He stopped in front of a plain wooden door. "General Zi is waiting." Said the colonel, and pushed open the door.
Rei walked in, followed by his fellow marines. General Zi looked up from a stack of papers and smiled briefly. He was a small man with a strong presence that made him look and feel bigger. A large Chinese flag was strung up behind a plain wooden desk. A high-tech PC was on this desk and a view of the city to the west wall. Zi stood up, smoothing the creases from his uniform, and motioned for them to sit. Rei scratched the back of his hand anxiously. The general looked at them each in turn and spoke.
"Thank you for coming so rapidly." His voice was soft and gravelly. Hing spoke for all of them. "It was no problem, sir." Zi turned to the PC and typed in a rapid command. Then he spoke, his back to the three soldiers. "You performed exellently in Qingdao. I hate to have to do this." Rei shifted. "What, sir?" Asked Hing. "I'm going to have to separate the entire marine contingent that was there. To reduce the public and international fallout. Do you understand? Rei was in shock. "Separate us, sir?" He repeated. "Don't worry, It won't affect your careers. You will just be sent to different units. Captain Hing, you will assume command of the 82nd paratrooper unit." Zi drew a patch from one of his drawers and handed it to the surprised would-be paratrooper. "Congratulations, Major Hin, and good luck. Sergeant Xung and Lieutenant Kon, you will put into the 181st commando regiment. SM Xung, congratulations." Xung looked shocked as he, too, was promoted. "Lieutenant, I am promoting you to Captain." He took a third flash from his drawer and slid it across the table. Rei picked it up and looked at it for a second. Then he gave it back to the general. "I think that I would do better as a lieutenant, sir." Zi looked taken aback for a second, then shrugged nochalantly. "It's your choice. Now, that's all. Well done and good luck to all of you." The three men stood, saluted, and left. In the corridor, the colonel was no longer there. The three friends headed off to the helipad. Stepping out into the cold Beijing night, Major Hing said his goodbyes. "Well done fellas. Take care and give 'em Hell." He shook hands and climbed into the Helix. The tireless Major lifted a hand in farewell as the helicopter lifted off and disappeared into the inky blackness.
The colonel was back. "Follow me." He ordered. "I'll take you to your quarters and tomorrow you'll be taking a Phoenix FP-8 to your new units." Rei nodded and he and Xung followed the tall colonel back inside.
Beijing Military airfield, China. 0900 hrs.
The Phoenix FP-8 touched down on the wide concrete runway of the Beijing military airfield. A copy of the Yank B-52 Stratofortress, the FP-8 was China's cutting-edge bomber. It taxied to a halt and the rear ramp hissed down. A humvee arrived seconds later from the direction of the heavily-defended perimeter fence. It came to a halt and a well-rested Rei got out. Slinging his AK-74 over his shoulder, he trooped up the ramp with Sergeant Major Xung in tow. Rei skirted the two humvees parked in the cavournous hold and sat himself on one of the grey metal benches running up the side of the plane. Xung joined him. The huge FP-8 roared off the end of the runway and into the cold morning air. A mustachioed man in a dark suit approached from the direction of the cockpit. Holding out a hand to shake, the man introduced himself. "Kung Su. MSS. Pleased to meet you, Lieutenant Kon." The Ministry of State Security, or MSS, was China's feared secret security service. Rei shook the spy's hand and shook it vigourously. The agent smiled and headed off towards the cockpit. Xung leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. Rei fished in his pack for a moment and retreived his book, "Lie Down With Lions". Flicking to the last page that he had read, Rei happily immersed himself in the story. Xung snored softly as he fell asleep.
Chinese airspace, 0945 hrs.
Outside the lone FP-8 bomber, an Antonov A-11 stealth plane slid into position above the Phoenix. The A-11's cargo door whined open and a group of black-clad commandos moved into position, firing a magnetic clamp down onto the PLAAF bomber. It stuck just above the cockpit. The pilot didn't have time to realise how strange the sight of a passenger aircraft-sized thing appearing on his radar before the first enemy bullets smashed through the cockpit window and pierced his heart. Su, the MSS man, whipped a pistol from his suit and slipped through into the hold. Rei was already there, behind the door, with his 9 mm pistol cocked and ready.