Russia and China both continued to look for ways to increase their own spheres of influence. China was nearing completion of their additional supercarriers and established a solid footprint in East and South Africa to include the establishment of two joint naval, army and air force bases. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) had grown considerably, and so had their provocations towards Taiwan.
Tensions between the two countries continued to increase as Taiwan was going to hold a referendum on whether to officially become their own country or continue to hold their claim as the only legitimate government of the Republic of China. President Stein had made it clear that the US was not going to get involved in territorial disputes that did not directly threaten the national security of the US. The US did continue to sell Taiwan as much top-of-the-line military equipment as they wanted. In technical terms, the PLA was now more advanced militarily than Taiwan. The PLAAF had thousands of fighter drones, the PLAAN had six supercarriers and the PLA had 300,000 soldiers equipped with the newest exoskeleton combat suits.
The PLA and the Russians’ new exoskeleton combat suits integrated both speed and survivability of the individual soldiers. A soldier using the new suit could lift over 1,000 lbs., jump nearly 40 ft. and run close to 35 mph. The helmet worked much like fighter pilots’ helmets did, with an HUD that identified targets for the soldier and kept track of how much ammunition the soldier was burning through. It also had a built-in map and mini ground radar so it could distinguish between friendly and enemy forces.
The polycarbonate uniform sown into the mechanical aspects of the suit protected soldiers against flash burns caused by nearby explosions and flying debris, including limited amounts of shrapnel. The suit also monitored the human body and could automatically inject the body with additional red blood cells and clotting agents to assist the body in naturally clotting an open wound. Also available were insulin, adrenaline, and stimulants.
The soldiers wearing these suits would be able to operate at such a high level that they would be able to accomplish more tasks with less soldiers. The US, UK and EU forces also had similar exoskeleton suits with similar capabilities. This was a very new military technology and though the US had it, the US had not integrated it into the Armed Forces to the degree the Chinese and Russians had.
The situation in Mexico continued to get worse despite the improving American economy. Millions of Mexicans were still trying to cross the American border, which had become nearly impossible since the FP had turned the southwest into a militarized border. Aside from the 20 ft. tall wall separating the two countries, there was also a ten mile no man’s land that was heavily patrolled by border patrol agents and drones.
The various cartels and criminal organizations controlled most of the country outside of the major cities. The Mexican government was quickly losing control of the country, which was putting an enormous strain on the situation at the border as millions of Mexican citizens were desperately trying to escape their crime ridden country.
Infiltration
“Muhammad, are we ready for Operation Allah’s Fire?”
“Yes, our operatives have infiltrated the Port of Baltimore, Port of Houston, Port of LA, and several contracting companies that provide services at two of the major utility companies that provide power to the northeast part of the US,” Muhammad said as he lit his cigarette.
“Excellent. I am glad that you have included several ports, in case one does not work out.”
“As of right now, the primary targets are the port of Baltimore and the port of LA. We have people infiltrating the Houston port in case we need a fall back plan; some of our people believe we should also make use of our LNG tankers. They would act like mini-nuclear bombs if they were full when they are detonated.”
“That is not a bad idea, but the Americans only export LNG, and they only use a couple of companies for security purposes. I am not convinced a shipment from one of our front companies would be able to get through.”
Wanting to discuss the main operation, Caliph Mohammed said, “Tell me about the plans against the American power companies in the Northeast that you mentioned.”
“The primary attack against the Northeast part of the US is going to take place in the dead of winter, when electricity is needed most. The plan for our groups that have infiltrated the power companies is for them to destroy several critical transformer nodes from the inside. One group even plans to destroy one of the power plants directly with explosives.”
“When the power goes out, it will cause a number of things to happen. First, people will lose power in the throes of winter, which will prove deadly as it will take more than a couple of weeks to repair. Second, with no power there will be a lot of looting as people run out of food. Third, we have 200 fighters broken down into numerous smaller direct action units that will go on a killing spree all across the major cities. After the first five days, those fighters that are still alive will do their best to fade away into the population and move to their next assignment once they are able to check the draft emails in their accounts.”
Huseen ibn Abdullah, the Director of Intelligence, made a point to mention, “We are staggering the attacks to take place over an extended period of time, to cause as much fear and damage to the American psyche as possible. Some of our three and five-man direct action units will conduct random and uncoordinated attacks on malls, supermarkets, movie theaters and elementary schools, mostly across small and rural towns, cities and the suburbs outside of the major cities. These attacks will be harder to deter and even harder to predict; we believe this will increase their likelihood of success and cause more casualties.”
“How are we going to ensure these attacks coincide with the two nuclear bombs?” asked Caliph Abbas.
“The plan right now is to have the nuclear weapons detonate two days apart from each other; the first one will hit Washington DC during the first day of the new Congress in January of 2041. The vast majority of the government will be in session that week, giving us the highest likelihood of decapitating a large swath of their government. In the evening, the President is supposed to have a dinner with the Prime Minister of Israel, so it is possible that we may take him out as well,” said Zaheer Akhatar, the Caliph’s Senior Advisor.
“This is also when we will issue our ultimatum to the US to stop supporting Israel and to leave the Middle East and Europe alone. We know they will not agree to these demands, and that is when we will have the second device detonate two days later. After dealing with two months of terrorist attacks across their country, the blackout on New Year’s Day in the northeast and then two nuclear bombs, the country will be in a panic and they will agree to our terms. If they do not, then the attacks will continue and their economy and country will grind to a halt,” said Talal, the Foreign Minister.
The Caliph smiled a sinister grin. “At long last, we will be able to pay the Americans back for all of the wars they have waged on our lands. We need to remember that when this happens and the Americans are most panicked, they will lash out and it will not take them long to do so. What contingency plans do we have in place to deal with the Americans once this occurs?”