Kee glanced at his watch. 9:47. Plenty of time to get out of the tunnel. He didn’t wonder again what he had been carrying until he cleared the tunnel and was five miles away.
The four big automobile carriers approached the port of Ulsan, the home of Hyundai Shipbuilding. Colonel Che Ju Lo had been notified that some ships were expected. He was summoned immediately and an officer sent out with the pilot boat. His instructions were specific. The ships must follow the prescribed instructions to the letter or the crews would be killed. Luckily, when the ship approached the coastline, they began signaling with their light for permission to come in the harbor. The short range radar set up at the harbor entrance had reported no other contacts, just four of the auto carriers. Che told the officer to go aboard with the pilot and make sure of the cargo, then when the ship pulled up to the pier, to tell him they were a “gift to the people.” Just in case, two tanks and four squads of men were ready to board the ships and take over if necessary. He waited anxiously on the pier.
Captain Kua Gun Doe was already queasy. The boat with the harbor pilot moved out of the relatively calm waters of the harbor and into the swells of the ocean. The thirty-foot boat rocked and rolled in the seas as they approached the big ships. The pangs of nausea were reaching at his throat and he was glad he had entered the army instead of the navy. He staggered over to the harbor pilot smoking a cigarette in the protective shelter of the small pilothouse. “How do we go aboard the ship?” he asked.
The pilot reveled at the sight of the army captain already so ill. A small light in the pilothouse was all he needed to see that the man was pale. Even his voice was cracking. He broke out in a wide grin. “They will lower a ladder for us from an opening on the side. You have climbed a ladder before?”
The captain gave the pilot a stern look. He even felt his hand move toward his pistol. Such insolence. Of course he had climbed a ladder before. But he could not let this man know his little remark had upset him. “I was wondering. I have seen some ships with some kind of steps they let down.”
The pilot nodded. “An accommodation ladder, but these ships don’t carry such things. They have these big ramps for getting the cars on and off. They only do that at piers. So we are stuck with ladders,” he said.
Satisfied, the captain stood with the pilot. The ship was indeed huge. It had slowed to allow the small boat to come alongside. They were near the giant ramp in the side and saw a door open and men come out. They were lowering something over the side. As the small boat came toward the side it looked to be about eight meters between the boat and the level where the men were. He watched as the pilot walked to the rail, extended his arms and grabbed something, swinging his feet up and then climbing up the side. That was when he saw a metal ladder made from what looked like cable or chain hanging along the side of the ship. He had never tried to climb anything like this!
The pilot reached the top and called for him to get a move on. The captain grabbed for the ladder and hung on for dear life. Unlike common ladders, this one was flexible. He tried putting his toes through the rungs, but there were only a couple of inches of clearance before hitting the hull of the ship. Then as he tried to move, the whole thing twisted and he felt his back hit the hull. Moving like some uncoordinated newborn, he finally was able to get turned back around. His toes slid out several times before he finally angled them and got his footing. Slowly, rung by rung, he made his way up until willing hands reached down and grabbed him under his arms.
“Are you alright, captain?” asked one of the sailors who helped him up.
He stood and straightened his uniform, now stained by the salt and sea growth from the side of the hull. He had to protect the dignity of the uniform. “I am fine. Take us to see your captain, immediately!” he demanded.
The sailor nodded. “Please come this way,” the sailor said.
A door was opened and the men walked into the red tinted light. The interior passage was bathed in red light to protect the sailor’s night vision, but as they went up two sets of ladders there was an opening into the main hold. There the captain saw row after row of brand new Hyundai automobiles lit by a very few overhead lamps. He took note that the cargo was exactly what it should be and continued following the sailors up to the pilothouse.
Upon arrival, the captain and the pilot shook hands warmly. “Captain, as a representative of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, I commandeer this vessel and all in it. You will proceed immediately to the pier and surrender,” he said placing his hand on his holstered pistol.
The captain looked at the man with some surprise. “Captain, my ship has been yours since we left the United States. We are Korean and offer ourselves and our services to our country,” he said. “We will of course do as you ask.”
The captain lowered his hand from the holster. It suddenly dawned on him how precarious his position was. He was alone on this vessel and if they had wanted to do something he would have been in no position to stop them, pistol or not. “Thank you, captain. Please proceed to port,” he said more amicably.
The pilot boat turned on its lights for the ship to follow. It took twenty minutes for the ship to come to the end of the pier, then another ten to ease in until positioned. The thrusters pressed the ship onto the pier where men stood by to handle the lines. Captain Kua looked down at the Colonel and his troops. The tanks stood menacingly at the end of the pier. He leaned over the rail and waved to get attention. “Colonel Che, these ships are a gift to the people,” he shouted down.
Colonel Che smiled. It had been so easy. These would make grant prizes for the state and he had been instrumental in their capture. He called back to Kua, “Have them lower something so that we may come aboard!”
He saw someone wave back. In a moment he had his response, “They will be lowering the large ramp on the side, Colonel. It will make it much easier to come aboard the ship,” Kua yelled down.
The Colonel waved and ordered his men to move toward the ramp. There was some noise as motors engaged and the restraining bolts were pulled back. The ramp slowly began to lower before them. The interior of the ship was pitch black, but a noise coming from it sounded like some high pitched turbine. It must be from the ship’s engines or something, the colonel thought. He looked on with satisfaction as the ramp extended and then settled on the pier. He thought he saw something moving.
The M-1 Abrams moved swiftly onto the ramp and down onto the pier, turning its turret and letting loose the first round. The round struck the closest North Korean tank in a catastrophic explosion sending the tank’s turret high into the air. Within a few seconds, a second shot rang out, dispatching the second Korean tank. Then the M-1 moved quickly down the pier, followed by several Bradleys. A few of the soldiers got off some shots before a Bradley opened up on the assembled men. They quickly threw down their weapons and raised their hands. The Colonel was furious and urged the men to fight, brandishing his pistol in the air until a hail of machine gun bullets peppered the pier around him. He stood in awe as the Bradley moved right in front of him. The Bushmaster gun pointed directly at his head. He dropped the pistol.
Sounds from down the pier made him notice that the second and third ships had seemingly docked. Their ramps were coming down as well. Suddenly all images of glory and honor were dashed and the man seemed to wilt away in front of his men. A figure came out from behind the Bradley and walk toward him.
“Colonel, you and your men please move next to that crane over there,” said a female voice. “You will be treated well,” she said.