"_" "_" "_" "_" "_" "_" "Like the red flu, it arrives silently, infecting everyone it touches." "The victims have no idea they've been poisoned." "They hear the news..." "The cure has arrived..." "So they rush out of hiding, leaving safe zones and quarantines for the promise of protection, of salvation." "They don't know they're already dead." "And the deception at its core makes it all the more sinister." "Whole nations are at risk of complete extinction, and they don't know it." "This is genocide." "Sir, the missile we found contained enough of the anti-cure to affect a 20-mile radius or more, depending on the winds." "Strategically deployed at ports where the actual cure would be delivered," "President Peng could kill off a country the size of Japan with only six of these weapons." "And how many more of these missiles are out there, Captain?" "It's hard to say, sir." "But we're pretty sure we know where they're coming from." "And where is that?" "Uh, Mr. President, the intel from the man whose ship we intercepted suggests that the missiles were either picked up or manufactured from a small island called Paraiso." "It was an old U.S. Army forward operating base from World War II." "Mothballed in the '50s, it was believed to be uninhabited until now." "And how certain are you of this intelligence?" "Fairly certain." "Peng is too smart to do this out in the open." "He'd build and transport these weapons out of sight to conceal his involvement." "And what do you need from me?" "Sir, Shackleton and Hayward have been running in circles since this whole thing began." "I'd like them to join us." "We're gonna need them to take on Peng and what's left of his navy." "My understanding is that President Michener once offered you those ships and you turned him down, choosing to run this operation solo." "Yes, sir." "And since then, you've left a lot of bodies in your wake, many of them American sailors." "Captain, we don't know each other well, but you need to know that if my first act in office is to declare war on China," "I'd like to base it on something more than the testimony of smugglers and pirates." "Of course, sir." "Go to this Paraiso island, find the source of these missiles, tie it to Peng, and I'll do everything in my power to help you finish him off." "Consider those two ships under your command." " Thank you, sir." " Good lack." "Dennis, POTUS wants the proof-of-life videos ASAP." "Please tell me you figured out what's wrong with our video signal." "That distortion... the warble on incoming communications..." "Look." "It looks like noise, but it's not." "It's a signal meant to block a part of the channel, like a reserved carpool lane." "Where's it coming from?" "I don't know, but with this lane blocked, it's taking up extra bandwidth and we can't get a video signal." "Can you fix it?" "Not unless I can figure out how it got there in the first place." "I clipped off a few chunks of data to analyze." "Each is a small burst of information, but it's encrypted." "Been a while since ASW school, but I know how to read a signal and I know that pattern." "It's a human voice." "Wait, a voice?" "Are you sure?" "Where's the president?" "In the Oval Office, sir." "Those the troop-readiness reports?" "All available military assets and what's left of our leadership on the..." "Save it." "I got it." " I'm sorry, Kara." " It's fine." "I know you're feeling a little bit boxed out these days, and I have not done enough to bring you in, but believe me, I'm working on it." "Things are changing around here, but we all still want the same thing." "And Secretary Rivera?" "Well, I'm gonna have to operate under the assumption that he's as much of a patriot as the rest of us." "Hey, Doc, give me the room." "I'll check on your wife and son." "Thank you." "How they doing?" "My son is strong." "My wife and I..." "The transfusions are becoming less effective." "Heard you were looking for me." "What Peng did to Japan, we cannot allow that to happen again..." "Anywhere." "On that, we agree." "Let me help you." "I have men." "I have ships." "I know these waters." "We can fight him together." "I owe you that much." "Captain." "Get some rest, Captain." "Nathan James, this is Nomad." "Vulture team is on Paraiso Island, heading out." "Roger that, Nomad." "Nathan James, Vulture team on deck." "All conditions normal." "On the move." "Roger, Vulture team." "Good luck." "Wolf, Burk, sitrep?" "The port is empty, sir." "No ships, no cargo, no people." "That boat came to this island for something, so unless this is a hot spot for drugs and champagne, the missiles are here." ""Paradise"..." "That's what "paraiso" means." "That's either Peng's idea of a joke, or..." "I met the man." "He's not that funny." "Raining poison green death on his neighbors..." "That's Peng's idea of a joke." "Used to be a 16-inch gun there, size of a building." "They took defending the island pretty seriously." "16 could hit anything on the horizon." "Thank God it's not there anymore." "A little help?" "We heard rumors about a safe place to live, far from the red death." "And people from all over..." "Laos, Vietnam, China, the Philippines..." "Came here to be safe." "So we started schools, farms..." "Everything." "Everything is perfect here." "Paradise." "Yes, exactly." "Paraiso." "We walk from here." "When was the last time this base was operational?" "X.O. said early '50s." "No, it must've been later." ""Rebel Without a Cause" came out in 1955." "I went through a James Dean phase in high school." "It's okay." "It's okay." "It's okay." "These are friends..." "American friends." "Why are you here in Paraiso?" "How did you hear of us?" "We were sent to the base to check on old weapons ordnance." "Know of any?" "No." "No, my friend." "No weapons here." "China has claimed most of the islands in this chain." "President Peng know you're here?" "Yes, oh, yes." "Peng knows." "He leaves us alone to live in peace." "How do you live?" "What goes on here?" "We work." "We have a factory." "Everyone buys from us." "We'd like to see this factory." "Of course." "Of course." "I will show you." "See?" "Very productive." "And... the best quality." "Single stitch, overlock stitch." "They go all over..." "Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia." "Please." "My apologies." "They get paid for how many items they make." "We should not interrupt." "I can answer your questions." "What, are we storming a Hanes factory?" "I can show you the school now." "We have many children, thanks to God." "You know, this isn't the factory I wanted to see." "I don't understand, Captain." "This is the only factory on the island." "I swear to my God." "Malaya!" "It's just a dog!" "Who is she?" "Don't worry about her." "Silly girl." "She's been giving us trouble lately." "Maybe it's her age." "Captain?" "No." "This is not necessary." "What is he doing?" "Help us." "Please." "I-I am scared." "My parents are dead." "I live here alone." " I am scared every day." " It's okay." "Hey, calm down." "It's all right." "Y-you're safe." "Tell me, what's going on?" "You're Americans?" "Yes." "I'm Danny." "Tell me your name." "I-I am Malaya." "I-I am a slave here." "You're a slave in... in that factory?" "Making clothes?" "No." "There is a-another factory, a-a real factory near the big, old guns." "What do you make at that factory?" "Malaya, Malaya." "Please, no." "Just go." "Just go now." "Shut her mouth about what?" "Nothing." "Tell them about the ship that came yesterday." "What kind of ship?" "Malaya." "A-A Chinese warship." "Captain, she says there's another factory on the island." "It's match point." "You decide how you want to play it." "Either way, you're taking us where we want to go." "Kara, glad I caught you." "Secretary Rivera." "What brings you to my office?" "I'm worried, Kara." "About what, sir?" "About you, about whose team you're on." "Sir, I am just as committed to the recovery of the United States as I was when I first landed in St. Louis with Captain Chandler." "Ah, yes." "The great Captain Chandler." "The legend, the man that we devoted enormous amounts of time and resources to get out of trouble." "I understand your concern, sir, but now that Captain Chandler has uncovered a genocide in Asia..." "A-Alleged genocide." "Kara, you have to remember, we're living in a post-apocalypse." "Facts and truths are just as much the victim of this plague as everything else." "Right now, the best thing we can do is focus on the American people." "I'm not sure exactly what you're suggesting." "Can you be more specific?" "What I'm suggesting, Kara, is that while everyone is looking eastward, our country is collapsing beneath our feet." "And when the chips fall, it's important you know who your friends are." "Is that clear enough?" "Yes, sir." "I'm glad." "Stop the cart." "What's down there?" "Uh... just an old bunker..." "I want to see it." "I don't have any keys." "We do." "Burk." "This is Vulture team." "We may have found the location of the munitions factory." "Stand by for coordinates." "Roger that, Vulture team." "T.A.O., spin up two TLAMs." "I want enough to burn up everything in that factory." "Aye, sir." "MSS, T.A.O., spin up two TLAMs." "See?" "Nothin..." "Take cover!" "Nathan James, Nathan James," "Vulture team is engaging the enemy." " Taking heavy fire." " Vulture team, fall back." "We'll provide fire support with the five-inch." "Negative." "I need to see what's inside that facility." "Paradise, my ass." "Nathan James, Vulture team advancing on munitions site." "Combatants neutralized." "All right, Vulture team." "This is the place, all right." "Looks like Peng had them clear everything out." "Like he knew we were coming." "And here's one of their missiles... or part of one." "Okay." "But where'd they go?" "What's it say?" "Inchon." "The missiles are headed to Korea." "Malaya was right." "He's not shipping his missiles on a small pleasure boat anymore." "No." "He took a warship." "Sneaker." "Tropics." "Flaming." "Sneaker." "Tropics." "Flaming." "What the hell is that?" "Here's the second batch." "Unswept." "Operations." "Curdling." "Unswept." "Operations." "Curdling." "This is what's been blocking our video signal." "And we don't know what it means." "This code..." "It's either super simple or enigma-level complicated." "But, Kara, based on this data, it looks like the signal is coming from inside this building." "There are several different shipping lanes with varying currents that the Chinese destroyer could've chosen." "This here..." "This is used for oil tankers and commercial ships." "It runs north from here to the leeward side of Taiwan then splits off after Yonaguni Island." "The eastern route goes to Vladivostok and Japan." "The western route... that runs straight north to Korea." "And you recommend that as our new course?" "Well, given the limited information we have, sir, yes." "Captain, do you concur?" "Peng knows you are looking for him." "He will use the Formosa Strait between Taiwan and the mainland." "It is more narrow, with more obstacles to hide from the radar." "Then that's our new course." "Captain's on the bridge." "Sir, you have Nathan James." "This is Hayward Actual, over." "Captain Meylan, how are things?" "Sir, the Hayward is at her fighting weight and happy to be of service to you and the Nathan James." "Couldn't ask for a better wingman." "I read your service record since Annapolis and I know how admirably you distinguished yourself during the plague." "I'm not in your league, sir, but I certainly appreciate the sentiment." "I've spoken with Commander Hicks on the Shackleton." "From his position, he can run point into the Strait." "We'll be right behind." " Outstanding." "Intel suggests the intercept point will be 23.41 North by 118.83 East." "You'll beat us there, but we'll intercept the Chinese destroyer in two hours." "We have designated that destroyer with the code name" " Sea Dragon." " Sounds about right." "C.N.O., is this a stop, board, and seize operation?" "No, Captain." "It's a cut the head off the dragon operation." "Understood." "You're not alone." "DESRON is ready for tasking, sir." "That was Tom Chandler?" "Damn right it was." "So, this is where Chandler's gonna meet our other ships." "Yes, sir." "In the Formosa Strait." "Captain Chandler just radioed in." "He's at 23.41 North by 118.83 East." "Shackleton's approaching from the north," "Hayward from the south-southeast." "That's how they'll triangulate and attack the Chinese destroyer." "Anyway, I hope this puts an end to this chapter." "Hayward's hull-down on the horizon." "Let's close the distance." "Sea Dragon's out there." "We'll have surprise, but not for long." "O.O.D., all ahead full." "Nathan James, this is Shackleton." "We have a SKUNK 14 miles out, heading north at 32 knots." "Roger, Shackleton." "Sea Dragon's hauling ass." "Hayward, this is Nathan James." "Do you have SKUNK?" "Nathan James, I'm looking at the same picture you are." "We have the target." "Designate ship as hostile." "Aye, sir." "Set General Quarters." "General Quarters, General Quarters." "All hands, man your battle stations." "You know what this means..." "Sinking that destroyer." " War." " Declared by us." "If it comes down to it, I'll take the heat." "No, sir." "We'll take it together." "Shackleton, this is Hayward." "We hold ES..." "I cracked it." "The three words..." "They're map coordinates." "GPS?" "Simpler, sort of." "Th..." "They're closing in on the Chinese destroyer." "This is Hayward." "Roger, out." "All units in Zulu, this is Zulu Actual." "I did some research." "The three words, it's a system that maps every nine-square meter spot on Earth." "Look." "This message just came in across the line." "Another three words..." "Barn, table, yard..." "And here's the GPS coordinates it lines up with." "Give me everything." "Here it is, in order." "How far away is the Chinese destroyer?" "Um, sir, last we heard, it was 15 kilometers from the James, closer to the other ships." "This is Hayward." "Contact has slight left bearing drift... over." "This is Shackleton." "Hold ES for Sea Dragon, bearing 2-4-5." "Recommend Hayward close Sea Dragon." "Remain at EMCON." "Aah!" "This is Hayward." "Roger, out." "This is Shackleton." "Roger, out." "We have relative bearing 3-0-5 degrees." "SKUNK Alpha, present target position 1-8-0..." "Got a solid spot track on the target." "CIC, coordinate fire control solutions with Shackleton and Hayward." "This is Shackleton." "Roger, break." " Bird's affirm." " CIC, bridge." "We are five minutes from the rendezvous point." "I see Hayward." "Who are these guys?" "!" "Chinese Secret Service!" "The Formosa Strait between Taiwan and the mainland." "Sonar range from slant range and target depth." "Ready to go with guns." "All ships, stop!" "Stop!" "Stop!" "Vampire!" "Vampire!" "Vampire!" "Fox three inbound bearing 2-5-6!" "Launch chaff!" "All personnel, brace for impact!" "This is the Shackleton." "We have incoming." "Brace for impact!" "Brace for impact!" "Shackleton hit." "Repeat, we've been hit." "Report damages to CCS." "Incoming." "Destroy." "Corpsman!" "We need a corpsman on the bridge!" "Sound and Security... report damage and flooding status." "Sound and Security." "We have water integrity." "CIC, bridge." "Did those missiles come from the Chinese ship?" "Negative." "They launched from mainland." " They knew we were coming." " How the hell?" "Nathan James, this is Hayward Actual." "We have incoming." "Request air cover." "Brace for impact!" "There are more vampires." " Air, kill track 4-8-7-2-6 with birds." " Air, aye." "Killing track 4-8-7-2-6 with birds." "Attention Shackleton, all hands!" "Prepare to abandon ship!" "All hands, prepare to aban..." "Vampire!" "Vampire!" "Vampire!" "Second fox 3 inbound." "Third fox 3 inbound." "Birds away, track 4-8-7-2-6." "Air, kill vampires 2 and 3 with birds." "T.A.O., RSC." "Vampire 1 trashed." " Multiples still inbound." " Birds away." "Vampires 4 and 5." "Incoming destroyed." "Fire in..." "We've lost incoming signals from all three ships." "CIC, trace incoming missiles." "Target land batteries." "Solving, sir." "Tom, we can't let that Chinese ship get away." "T.A.O., you got target coordinates on that SKUNK?" "Solving now, sir." "Stand by." "T.A.O., track 3-5-8-2-9 designated hostile," " standing by to kill with birds." " Captain, T.A.O." "Standing by for fire orders on SKUNK and land battery." " Fire!" "Fire!" " Missiles away." "Vampire 5 is going supersonic." "Bridge, brace for impact!" "Port side!" "T.A.O., CIWS engaged." "Confirm, SKUNK is trashed." "Sea Dragon is sunk." "Confirm, land battery trashed." "Captain, C.N.O., Shackleton is gone." "No longer responding to hails." "Not visible on radar." "Get Nomad in the air." "Search for survivors." "Put rescue and VBSS teams in the water." "Save what's left of Hayward." "Up." "Here we go, buddy." "On two." "One, two, three, four." "O'Connor?" "Miller." "You son of a bitch." "I heard you were on Shackleton." "I thought you were dead." "I got transferred to Hayward a week ago." "I thought you were dead." "Master Chief." "Master Chief." "Never thought I was gonna see you." "Later." "Let's help the wounded." "Aye, aye." "Nathan James, Nomad." "Captain, I see an oil slick about a mile long." "Heavy debris field, bodies in the water." "No apparent survivors, sir." "Sorry, Captain." "Roger, Nomad." "Return to ship." "85 confirmed dead, another 23 missing." "My God." "Search and rescue will continue as long as they have to." "Whoever did this, if they know we're still afloat, they will be back." "We'll leave no one behind, Captain." "You have my word." "What the hell happened?" "We were set up." "We don't know how or by whom, but Peng knew exactly where we'd be and when we'd be there." "Sir, may I ask, how did we end up at these coordinates?" "Who sent us here?" "Takehaya." "The Japanese pirate?" "The same man who kidnapped and tortured your crew?" "He's not responsible for this." "He's with us now, against Peng." "I'm not sure I understand, sir." "Captain Slattery will show you to your quarters, brief you on the particulars." "I know we lost a lot today, but we prevented a genocide in Korea." "We'll take care of our wounded, then we'll finish Peng off for good." "Yes, sir." "Kara." "I want to know why you tried to stop our ships." "Sir?" "You knew they were gonna be attacked." "I want to know how." "It was just an instinct, sir..." "The way they were being drawn into that pass." "An instinct." "They've been ambushed before, sir." "I have the Nathan James." "This is Secretary Rivera." "This is C.N.O. Listen up, 'cause I don't have much time." "We were taken by surprise..." "All three ships." "James is seaworthy, Shackleton was sunk, Hayward damaged, and survivors, including Captain Meylan," " are now aboard the James." " How did this happen?" "!" "It is my belief that our lines of communication have been compromised by the enemy." "Until further notice, we will be at EMCON." " X.O., set EMCON Alpha." " Aye, sir." "Is that Captain Chandler?" "He just hung up." "Well?" "The James survived the attack, but we lost the Shackleton, and the Hayward is seriously damaged." "Captain Meylan is with the C.N.O." " I want to talk to them." " I'm sorry, sir." "But they went radio silent." "Damn it, why?" "What happened?" "Sir, we were ambushed." "Somehow, the Chinese knew where all of our ships would rendezvous." "This is a Goddamn disaster." "We have a Marine Recon Division." "They're scattered, but they could be organized and deployed to Asia." "If they flew to Pearl, they could then sail from there to effect a search and rescue of our ships." "That's not gonna happen." "What the hell does that mean?" "Just what I said." "Chandler's China adventure ends now." "Sit down, Howard." "We need to talk." "Don't tell me to sit down, Allison." "Do you know who the hell you're talking to?" "I do." "You were the mayor here." "You ran a great city." "This was your town." "Damn right." "And now I'm the president." "I'm gonna ask you one more time, Howard." "Sit down." "Sit down, my ass." "What are you doing?" "I'm tossing you the hell out." " You're fired, Allison." " There's nobody to call, Howard." "The lines have been cut." "Since the disaster at sea, the White House has been put on lock-down on your orders." "On my orders?" "Are you joking?" "Not at all." "Oh, we'll see about that." "Who the hell are you?" "Your security detail has been repurposed, Howard." "From now on, my men, Agents Murphy and Costas, will protect you." "My God, Allison." "What have you done?" "Mr. President, through no fault of your own, you've stepped through the looking glass into the birth of a new America." "The pandemic, the millions of deaths, the complete collapse of law and order demands a revolution of governance." "Revolution?" "You mean coup d'etat." "Who are you working with?" "Castillo?" "Castillo, Price, Wilson, Croft." "America can no longer be governed by a central power, not now." "Each region must look after itself." "Sons of bitches." "I knew it." "Relax, Howard." "This is a good thing." "You knew that Michener was moving too fast, that America wasn't healthy enough to go back to the way things were." "There are no states." "There are no cities." "There are only tribes scrambling out of the mud over the bodies of 300 million dead Americans." "Face it, Howard..." "Democracy is a luxury that we can no longer afford." "This is crazy." "I mean, what the hell are you talking about?" "Oh, my God." "Who is this?" "Senator Beatty." "Oh, my God." "I'm gonna get you help." "No, no, no, no, no." "Kara, Kara!" "T-T-They're all in on it." "Who?" "What..." "What do you mean?" "You're not safe." "By now, Senator Beatty and Secretary Rivera are dead." "If you try to contact any of your allies in the city, the consequences will be swift..." "As swift as they were for Jeffrey Michener." "You're insane." "That's it." "Y-You've gone completely insane." "Do you understand me, Howard?" "Your family, your friends..." "None of them will be safe if you do not play ball." "Take a minute and think about it before you make any decisions you'll later regret." "Everybody likes you, Howard." "It's a big table, and there's a place for you at it as long as you go with the program." "Have I made myself completely clear?" "This office is your home now." "I'll see you in the morning." "We've got a lot of work to do."