Finishing his coffee, Hustvedt glanced at his watch. It was nearly midnight. The new watchstanders were making their way up to the bridge. He got out of his chair and walked over to the OOD. “I think I’ll turn in. We’ve had a busy night. Give me a call if you run up on anything,” he said.
“Aye, sir. Good night, Captain.”
Hustvedt handed the coffee mug to the messenger as he walked out the bridge wing door. He made his way to a small room behind the bridge. He turned on the light and got undressed. Before sliding between the sheets he turned out the light and opened the porthole. The fan at the foot of his bed helped draw in the cool night air. The rocking of the ship was almost like being rocked in a baby’s bed. Within minutes, he was fast asleep.
President Steve O’Bannon was thanking his stars again. After only 48 hours the forces in Korea had retaken nearly half of South Korea and devastated most of the North’s military machine. General Black was almost gleeful as he recounted how far and how fast General Richardson had moved with the First Marine Division. Admiral Johnson just finished his rushed brief on the naval actions on the east and west coasts. Both men had promised more surprises on the third day.
“Damn! I wish I had been there” exclaimed Butler as he briefed the President over a working lunch. “He crossed the “T.”
O’Bannon almost laughed. He wasn’t quite sure what had his Chief of Staff so excited but knew it must be earth shattering for a Navy guy. He got a kick out of seeing Butler excited. “I’m not sure about how, but that guy Hustvedt sure did a bang up job. From what I was told, he’s responsible for sinking over half of their fleet. The missile battle on the other side was just as exciting,” he said through a sip of iced tea.
“Exciting isn’t the word, boss. Missile engagements are hairy as hell. It’s a good thing they use such antiquated equipment. The newer stuff might have been different. But for a surface sailor, what Hustvedt did was what we have wet dreams about. Crossing the ‘T’ is a tactic as old as ships and the sea. To do it successfully has almost always worked and Hustvedt used it to maximum advantage. He will be cited in the history books for over 100 years. That one victory made it worth all the work and expense of bringing the battleships back. From now on, we won’t have to worry about their navy.”
“I’ll take your word for it. I see Roger took out one of their main supply depots. I bet he’s having a ball out there,” O’Bannon said. “Do you wish you were there?”
Butler snorted and sat back in his seat. “Yeah, in some ways, but I’ve kind of gotten used to this job. I always thought being around you politicos would be the biggest bore, but working with you has been fun. Now that I’ve seen how things really work and learned my way around a little it’s not as boring as I thought,” he said with a sly look.
“Yeah, I guess you’ve earned your keep,” the President said. “At least I’ve had somebody I can beat up every so often. You’ve thrown a few punches yourself.”
“Only to keep the bad guys at bay, sir,” Butler laughed.
“Well, at least we got rid of a few of those. How long do you think it will take to get to Seoul?”
“No telling. Those guys have been doing a great job so far. But remember, we still have to go across the DMZ and on up toward the Chinese border. There’s no telling how much these guys will be able to resist once we get into their home territory. You fight harder in your own backyard,” Butler said. “We have a briefing this afternoon at 4. Just be wary of anyone telling you it will be over in a month.”
“I’ll take that under advisement. You say tomorrow will be the turning point?”
“Yes, sir. They should have had time to set up their infrastructure. Our guys will have to be on their toes,” Butler said. “I talked to the Navy and Air Force and they have a few things up their sleeves to weed out the rest of the defenses. Right now the biggest problem I see is the ground forces. Somebody said it right. You can bomb and you can shell, but it takes ground troops and occupation to win wars,” he said.
“Did you see the casualty reports? We’ve lost about 800 so far,” O’Bannon said. He knew full well that Americans would quickly turn away their support with too many casualties.
“Yes, sir, but if you remember we lost 29,000 dead and over 100,000 wounded on D-Day. Even Inchon during the Conflict cost us over 500 killed and we landed only about 40,000 on that one. Last night we landed over 200,000 troops in three locations with hardly a scratch. Claire Richardson’s plan was brilliant. She was able to get the troops landed right under the noses of the North Koreans. All of our casualties have been after the invasion and during the move inland. Also keep in mind almost half of those casualties came with the sinking of two of our ships during the missile attack last night. In all, these guys have done really well,” Butler said.
“Ok, what’s the next step?”
Butler got very serious. “Boss, we let them do their jobs. The best way to screw things up is to start fighting the war from here. Give Richardson and the others the chance to do things the way they are trained. They’ll get the job done,” he said. “One thing we can do is make sure the good word gets out. That guy Murrow is helping a lot. He’s reporting the way people feel and how what we are doing is helping. If he’s like his relative he will be honest and positive. But keep in mind he will eat us up if we really screw the pooch. I know there will be some of our esteemed politicians who will be complaining about the ship losses and focusing in on the rough spots. I asked the Pentagon to let the reporters send their stories in as quickly as possible. Right now there is good news and we need to get that out. If we get indications from the naysayers, we need to counter it with truth and facts as soon as we can,” he said.
“I agree. A friend of mine on the Hill called this morning and told me of a couple of people we need to watch out for. I have feelers out,” the President said. “It’s a shame some people feel like they have to be a stick in the mud.”
“Yes, sir,” Butler agreed. He glanced at his watch and then turned on the radio beside the table. “It’s time for our friend in Pusan.”
The men listened to the local radio station and the advertisements leading up to the broadcast from Korea. The announcer began the program and turned it over via short wave.
“This is Pusan, Jason Murrow reporting. A miracle happened in Pusan this morning. It was in the form of music.” The sound changed to a distant band playing a Doobie Brothers tune named “Rocking Down The Highway.” “In the midst of an invasion and after a night of raining devastation, the people of the beleaguered port city of Pusan woke to the sound of a ship’s band playing across the harbor. It wasn’t military music or marches, but the sound of American rock music full of youth, hope, and joy. The music echoed across the waters and through the streets bringing people out of their battered homes and down to the waterfront to listen.
These people came from their homes to find relief and peace for the first time in months. They crowded the waterfront clapping and dancing to the American music as the unknown band played. For over an hour the music filled the harbor drawing thousands to its message of hope and joy. Then as the American battleship left the harbor, the people stayed and celebrated a new world for themselves and the rest of South Korea.