The last eight missiles, flying almost a minute behind the main wave, were connected to one another by microwave link. Those additions, plus their ultra-sensitive proximity sensors, were upgrades added just prior to departing Murmansk. HMS Cumberland quickly splashed the first pair launched at her, and she sent Sea Darts after the last group of missiles as they entered the western edge of her air defence envelope. Only the last Russian weapon could be attacked due to the extreme range, and Cumberland’s targeting system only predicted a 30 % chance of interception. However the defending missiles were detected a quarter mile away by the tail-end-charlie who flashed a signal to the others. The signal triggered a chain of actions that took less than a thousandth of a second to complete, ending with an electronic impulse reaching Krypton switches in the weapons innards.
Not since the 1960’s had the subterranean complex been filled with so many people and a rich variety of languages and accents seemed to add life to the cold grey concrete walls and passages. The tanned skins of the delegates from the Pacific Rim countries were in sharp contrast to the pallid, prison-like pallor’s of the Americans, most of whom had not seen the sun for many days.
The President had prepared himself for a night of informal meetings and little sleep, but to his surprise there were few delegates with national axes to grind, the war had given focus and unity to the threatened nations.
Any hope of an early night were dashed by the hand written note Admiral Gee passed to him as he made small talk with the PM of New Zealand. It simply stated ‘News from the Atlantic’ and he was wearing a neutral expression so the president excused himself and headed for his office with the admiral in tow. Joe Levi was waiting outside as they arrived, a printout in his hands and a look that matched the admirals, but that changed once they were away from public view.
“Okay… what’s happened?” asked the President.
“Sir, at precisely twenty oh five hours the Royal Navy anti-submarine warfare group made contact with the enemy force… the reds used nukes Mr President.”
His scientific advisor listened grimly as Mike Gee continued.
“Multiple weapons were used and the Brits took heavy losses… their carrier, an air defence destroyer and a frigate are still capable of limited offensive operations, but they lost two frigates and most of their aircraft to the effects… ”
“Actually HMS Campbeltown is still afloat.” Joseph interrupted. “… she’s only sinking quite slowly by the stern, but so heavily irradiated that her crew will be dead by this time tomorrow.” Then he realised he had not allowed the admiral to finish, and muttered “Sorry Mike.”
Admiral Gee wasn’t put out, and merely shrugged.
“Joe has the data downloaded from Illustrious it seems that the total yield was no more than ten megatons but the radiation count is out of proportion to that… the weapons probably all had a cobalt casing.”
“It was quite an ingenious solution to the problem of trying to defeat modern air defences with old systems.” Joe explained. “ If you score a hit on a nuke in flight it will make a mess for years to come, but the warhead won’t detonate… so here they are with a bunch of old systems carrying one meg apiece… or thereabouts, and little chance of doing any real harm with them. They appear to have rigged them all to go off at once, and produce a lot of radiation while they were at it.
The President was getting used to receiving bad news; he did just wish that for once he’d get something he could feel good about.
“No chance at all that the soviets nuclear cupboard is now empty, I suppose?”
Admiral Gee shook his head.
“I very much doubt it sir… our best estimate is that we have whittled down their subs to between twelve and sixteen hulls… if they had nukes to use on the Illustrious group, then they will certainly have some remaining for the convoy.”
“What shape are the rest of them in… the Brit ships?”
“Something on par with sailing through a super tornado… 180mph winds, sixty foot waves, hull plates buckled and leaking, plus degraded electrical systems due to the EMP and a lot of ratings who were topside have sustained damage to their eyes.” Admiral Gee tried to picture what it must have been like in the vessels sickbays, trying to provide some level of comfort to young men and women writhing in the agony caused to their optical nerves. All the while the ships were being pounded by the mountainous seas that resulted from the explosions.
“Okay Mike.” The president’s voice snapped the naval officer out of his imaginings. “If we order the convoy onto a more southerly course they may just avoiding the subs, but it would add another day onto their sailing time. Can we hold out that long in Germany?”
“Supplies are again reaching critical levels sir… they have us outnumbered but our weaponry and equipment makes the difference, but once the ordnance runs out there will be no stopping them. We haven’t been able to snuff out the airborne foothold they have on the western banks of the rivers, and we are only making slow progress in Helmstedt and Braunschweig. And on that note… I have been informed that SACEUR has authorised the use of large fuel air weapons against both those towns. The Brits of their 3rd Mech, a Dutch armoured brigade and the French 2REP, the Foreign Legion paratroopers, together they are the only regular reserve he has left to form a blocking force if the reds break out. SACEUR has ordered the French and Dutch to link up with the Brits, which should happen tomorrow night.” Admiral Gee had spent an hour on the phone with SACEUR as the Canadian ran through his ‘worst possible scenario’ should NATO fail to hold at its present line, it didn’t make for easy listening.
“We have our own 4th Mechanised Brigade of the 1st US Armoured Div out of the line for refit. They fought off the airborne dropped behind them whilst resisting the crossing down south on the Elbe and took a beating… they are at half strength and they are going west to reconstitute. If the line breaks at the Elbe then they will be in a position to join with the blocking force. SACEUR is also about to order forces from Norway to reinforce Germany, the British 40 and 44 Royal Marine Commando units… ”
“Do they have armour?” interrupted the President.
“No sir, they aren’t set up like the USMC.”
“So we will have what… a handful of infantry heavy brigades to stop a whole bunch of armoured divisions?”
“If our line at the Elbe breaks… yes Mr President, but please bear in mind the Reds motor rifle and tank units aren’t anywhere close to full strength anymore.”
The President mulled all that over in his mind
Consequently those German towns are going to be flattened in order to free up the Brits.”
“What the hell is a large fuel air… I thought they were all big?”
“True enough Mr President, but the ones he signed off on are so big a C130 makes the drops.”
“When?” was the Presidents’ only question.
“As soon as we can deliver them from stateside sir.”