Standing in for Dad Ch. 30

Bill barked, "I want the Adjutants for both the Army and Air Force Joint Chiefs, are you here?"

Both raised their hands and addressed the President, "We are here, Sir."

Bill gave them the lists of those commanders who were contacted, "Is this legit? Was this done?"

The Air Force Adjutant replied, "Mr. President, both of us were aware our Secretaries were discussing this and we both advised our respective Secretaries that they would be in violation of the Goldwater-Nichols DOD Reorganization Act of 1986 which states: "the chain of command runs from the President to the Secretary of Defense; and from the Secretary of Defense to the commander of the combatant command."

"I was unaware the General acted on his own to usurp the chain of command or I would have let the Secretary of Defense know immediately he had done so."

The Army Adjutant nodded her agreement, "Mr. President, Sir, I also was unaware."

"Alright then, both of you are acting Secretaries of your branches until further notice. I want you to personally call each and every command and make sure they understand what happened here and that they are expected to follow the commands of the President of the United States as expressed through the Secretary of Defense and they are to execute those orders yesterday."

"Sec. Def.: I want all commands notified by you over secure channels of what has transpired and to reassure them who is in command and what their orders are. Let them know this is not for publication due to impending hostilities and no one talks to the press either directly or indirectly. I will address the Nation when Operation Chili Pepper has commenced as the element of surprise is paramount for a quick and effective strike."

"Additionally, Sec. Def.: Get Homeland and the F.B.I. on this immediately and determine if our plans have been compromised. Get a Federal Judge to order wiretaps on all their devices, their families devices, and their immediate friends devices as well as any burn phones they may purchase and I want all digital traffic to Mexico or the Mexican Embassy and their personnel monitored and anything suspicious is to be immediately disrupted and the originator identified and detained as a matter of national security."

"Move ladies and gentlemen! I want reports from all of you within 2 hours that all this has been accomplished!"

The shit hit the fan.

****

As we were pulling out of the dock, heading towards the fleet in the Gulf of Mexico, the communication's officer sent me a notice on my pad that the Secretary of Defense was on a secure channel and wanted to speak with me. I had him patch it through on a secured ship's channel and we spoke face to face.

"Hello Mr. Secretary, how are things unfolding up there on the Hill?"

"Honestly, the shit has hit the fan with the information you gave us. It looks as if we caught them in time to prevent any leakage, but time will give us more information."

"I'm just glad we were able to cut things off before we had a clusterfuck, Sir. Has anyone uncovered their motivations?"

"From what we have gathered the Mexican President offered them quite a sum of money soon after you rescued his wife. It seems the two had a but too good a time on their latest vacations and the Mexicans had some incriminating tape. That alone would not have been enough, probably, but it seems they also had political ambitions to the White House and were going to use the fiasco they were going to create as a way to embarrass the administration."

"No shit. Was that all you needed to tell me, Sir?"

"Well, I wanted to let you know that all the combatant commanders are being informed that you are in overall command and that all orders will come through you from me and ultimately the President. We are contacting all logistics commanders with the same information as well. But, I gotta ask, and I want an honest assessment...you up for this?"

"I appreciate your candor, Mr. Secretary. And I, personally, cannot tell you yes or no as this is my first time riding this pony. However, I have people with me and the various commanders under me who know their shit, Sir. I will facilitate and coordinate them and get the hell out of their way. Will that suffice?"

The Secretary of Defense nodded his head, "Actually, that makes me feel a hell of a lot better, Mr. Ambassador. I am sending a list of every commander as well as their direct phones and their areas of responsibility to you in a spreadsheet at the end of this call. You will have a dedicated military communications satellite for your use and your communications officer has been trained on that equipment in the past so it should not be a problem."

"We are also tasking a deep look satellite for your use and the Air Force will be providing as many MQ-1 Predator, MQ-9 Reaper, and Avenger drones as you request for intel gathering and offensive operations. You will need to provide tasking orders 8 to 12 hours in advance so they can be used most effectively."

"Thank you, Sir."

"Good luck, Son. Don't make us look bad. Get in, get it done, and back off just as fast as you can stabilize the new government."

"Understood, Sir. I will give you a daily appraisal starting in three day's time after I have spoken with all the combatant commands."

The Secretary of Defense nodded his approval and signed off. I walked to the safe room on the fourth deck and called the Captain, Dad, and two LTs to my office. When they arrived I asked them: What do the Spec Ops guys need right now to help them acquire all the intel they need to be ready to take out all our targets on a moment's notice."

Both LTs spoke up and said almost as one before I nodded for the senior officer to continue, "Each team needs a Predator drone and the overall mission needs a Global Hawk. The Predators need to be linked to each squad commander's data pad so they can see in real time and the Global Hawk needs to coordinate with the battlefield command and control center. This must be in addition to their mobile drones they use."

The other SEAL then added, "Initially that needs to be the Carrier but as soon as a land based control center can be created, you can offload that to the base command and control center. The Predators should be loaded with small diameter bombs to be deployed as the squad commander directs."

"Those forces will have their own tactical drones but they will not have air launched munitions capability."

I had comms connect me to the OCP (Operation Chili Pepper) Special Operations Commander and the Air Force Drone Commander and we had a three way secure call.

"Commanders, I am Ambassador Harry Walker and I know you have both just been informed I am the Theater Commander for Operation Chili Pepper (OCP). I need each squad leader for all the Spec Ops teams in Mexico to have a Predator drone for their individual use 24/7. I want each drone to include a full load out of switchblade 600s to be deployed at the squad commander's discretion."

"I need each squad leader to have real time video relayed to their tablet and I need any hand offs to be completed in-situ so there is no lapse in availability or coverage. I want the drones to be controlled out of Joint Base San Antonio-Randolf and in-air refueling available to keep them in the air."

"I also need a Global Hawk on station to coordinate between Randolf and the Carrier in the Gulf Fleet. I need all live feeds provided to and through the task force satellite assigned to this operation and I need this operation up and running in 5 days. Is there a problem?"

Both commanders agreed it was a workable plan and they would coordinate with each other to ensure all my requests were met. They also agreed to let me know the access codes we would need to be able to view the live feeds as they became available and they already had the digital location of my communication relay so they could contact me directly.

"Before I go I have one question for each of you, are either of you having issues with logistics? Are the teams in-situ fully replenished, including switchblade 300s for example, since we are going to implement the killweb attack design for efficient operations."

"We fully replenished the teams via air drops in the jungles to the south in Mexico as they came across so they are good to go. We even deployed some prototype robotic carriers to carry additional munitions and food supplies."

"I will coordinate with Randolf and ask them if there are any logistical issues and keep you advised, Sir."

"Very well. Thank you both for your service. You have full autonomy to do what you have to do to get this done and you have 12 days to get your men and material in position before we hit Mexico with everything we have on the 13th day. Keep me in the loop and let me know when you are deployed."

I then called the commander of Space Command and the OCP Air Force commander, "Sir, I need our deep look satellite to identify as many tunnels under the border with Mexico as possible and I need that intel shared with the Air Force. When this operation kicks off, I need bunker busters to take out those tunnels the moment we light the fuse on this operation. You have just under two weeks to gather as much intel as you can before we shut everything down."

"I want the Air Force Pararescuemen on standby to help with any hot spots and I want all units at the border and in BAHA backed up with Thunderbolt II close air support. I want all the Spec Ops boys to pack in Switchblade 300s as well and I need them to have integrated, real time intel from MQ-1 Predator drones. You have full autonomy to do what you have to do to get this done and you have 12 days to get your men and material in position before we hit Mexico with everything we have on the 13th day."

"I need your commands to plan for and implement a killweb attack design, coordinating with the other services to make this operation as safe as we can for our men and women on the ground and in the air."

Next, I called the Army Special Operations Command: "General, I need as many Army Rangers as you can spare to sweep up the BAHA peninsula, cleaning out all the gangs with prejudice before sweeping them from the border and border cities going east across the northern border. Additionally I need the Green Berets, starting at the eastern border edge, sweeping across the Mexican border and taking out all combatants they find."

"Please have the 7th Special Forces group secure the National Palace as well as the other Federal District buildings in Mexico City."

"I need your commands to plan for and implement a killweb attack design, coordinating with the other services to make this operation as safe as we can for our men and women on the ground and in the air."

"I need the 101st Airborne parachuting in and holding the middle while working east and west to meet up with the Rangers from the west and Green Berets from the east. The regular Army brigades forming along the American side of the border are to post along the border to shut it down completely and move into those areas cleared by your special operations groups. The only civilian traffic allowed will be those verified Americans who are returning from Mexico and food or other commercial shipments moving back and forth after being fully unloaded and inspected."

"You need to coordinate with the Air Force for your Predator intel up links and A-10 support. You have full autonomy to do what you have to do to get this done and you have 12 days after today to get your men and material in position before we hit Mexico with everything we have on the 13th day at 0500 Mexico City time. Any questions?"

I got the affirmatives I wanted and with that I hung up and called the Captain of the Aircraft Carrier in the Gulf: "Captain, is your Marine Commander with you?"

"Yes, Mr. Ambassador, we are both here."

"Wonderful! I need you to plan for and implement a killweb battle plan to first secure and lock down the port at Veracruz so we can use it as a base of operations. After securing the base I need your Marines to create a secure perimeter, locking down all civilian communications for an additional one mile black out zone. Any cruise ships need to be moved out of the port and I need a sub presence to block any underwater attempts to infiltrate the base as well as support your battle group. You need to coordinate with Special Operations Command and the Army as well to develop your killweb battle plan."

"You have full autonomy to do what you need to make this happen, just keep me in the loop. Also, I will be at your location in 2 days and I would love to have both of you over to my Embassy Afloat for dinner."

The Captain responded, "We are on it and everything will be ready to rock and roll. When are we going in?"

"We need to be cocked and locked in 12 days and we commence operations on the 13th day after today at 0500 Mexico City time."

"We will be ready, Ambassador. And the XO and I gladly accept your invitation for dinner, thank you."

Just to make sure, I then had dad call the head of the CIA to give them the specific day and time, making sure to point out it was to be local Mexico City time, to pull all the banking assets of all the crime families into Lady Isabella's new account.

When dad hung up I looked at my crew, "Anything else we can do right now?"

Captain Barnes said, "We need a team to secure the U.S. Embassy."

"Remind me to ask the Fleet XO for a small contingent to back up the Marines stationed there."

The four of them nodded their heads. The SEALs both had big smiles on their faces. "Sir, those boys on the ground are gonna love what you just did for them. You just reduced their risk factor by an order of magnitude."

"And giving the direct commanders autonomy to plan and execute the killweb battle plan was a master stroke. The men and women on the ground will be much happier and well motivated knowing politicians got out of the way this time."

"Some will say this is overkill for a country like Mexico, but you have obviously studied military doctrine and know overwhelming forces reduce casualties and radically diminish the length of a campaign."

As we were walking out of the safe room I said: "I really want most of the fighting in the major cities over in two to three days on the border, and one to two days in the central part of the country. I hope and pray they get this right."

Just as I finished Walsh announced her first training session over the intercom, "Okay, boys and girls, anyone who is interested in learning how real bad asses fight, meet us at the dojo on deck 3."

Captain Barnes laughed, "She is in for some shit, now!"

I smirked, "I would not count on it. Dad, what is your assessment?"

"I would run the other way and make sure I was faster than the slowest person."

"Yeah, me, too."

When we got to the dojo, Walsh was standing in front of two rows of SEALs who were sitting before her. One of the men raised his hand and when recognized said, "No offense, ma-am. But if we are going to spend time learning this technique, I think we need a demonstration of its effectiveness. Perhaps you and the Ambassador could spar for us so we can analyze your style?"

Shit.

One look at Walsh and I knew she was game so I stripped down and donned some sparring gear Mom had brought for me. Okay, so this was a set up.

I went to one side as Walsh took the other. I manifested about 25% of my Chi after loosening my muscles and when we began I rushed her. Just before reaching her I planted my foot and did a flip over her to take her from behind.

Only that never happened.

Walsh was as quick as I was and she kicked straight up as I moved above her and struck my left hip, causing me to twist awkwardly. As I was coming down she pushed off of her planted foot and matched my twist to end up with her leg over my shoulder. At that point she bent her knee and created a perfect choke or neck snap hold. As we landed she was careful not to snap my neck but we both knew she won the bout and I tapped out.

The SEAL's eyes got big and they were quiet as a mouse.

We squared off again, this time I brought my Chi up to 50% and went defensive. Walsh then attacked and it was all I could do to hold her at bay. If I had not been as quick as she was and able to anticipate her next move from the flexing of her muscles I would not have been able to do so. The session went back and forth for about ten minutes when Dad called it a draw.

This time the SEAL Team was whooping for Walsh.

I then said to Captain Barnes, "Would you inquire with our Engineer if he has a couple 4 x 4 posts and a 6 foot long steel I-Beam he doesn't mind loosing?"

Five minutes later the Chief Engineer walked in with four helpers carrying two 5 foot 4 x 4s and a 4 inch thick I-beam of steal that was about 7 feet long and a 2 foot square of sheet steel. I grabbed one of the 4 x 4s and held it with my hands spread at chest level and asked Walsh, "Can you break this?"

I set my Chi so she would not knock me over and Walsh took a three step approach and jumped into the air, twisting as she brought her trailing foot around to land flat on the post, breaking it in two. Her follow through hit my chest, along with the broken timber but I was prepared for it and my Chi protected me from the strike.

Now the SEALS were convinced she had something to teach them.

Walsh then asked, "What is the beam for?"

I winked, picked up the other 4 x 4 and smashed it over my thigh, breaking it in two. I then stacked the four 4 x 4 halves on top of one another to form two 2 plus foot wide by 7 inch high rails and placed the sheet steel between them. I then placed the I-beam, flat sides on top and bottom, across the 4 x 4s and had everyone stand back a bit.

"Whatever happens, do not touch me until I tell you it is safe. Understood?"

Everyone nodded and I saw Dad smiling to the side, he knew what was about to happen.

I called up all of my Chi. Having learned from the Master I killed, I let it manifest in Dragon Flame.

Everybody freaked except Dad.

I pulled it in and increased the intensity and let it manifest in Dragon Flame again. This time it was more intense.

I pulled it in a third time and increased the intensity again and expressed the Dragon Flame.

I pulled it in the last time and intensified it and channeled it to my hand and I lightly slapped the I-beam and it immediately snapped in two with a loud crack.

One person said two words in the silence afterwards. Walsh said, "Holy Fuck!"

I stood off to the side to slowly release my Chi until I was safe and then walked back onto the sparring pads.

Walsh said in a whisper as she looked at me, "I will teach you my style if you teach me how to manipulate and manifest my Chi like that."

I smiled and held out my hand to shake on the agreement, "Deal!"

Walsh took my hand, hesitant at first, and then firmly. "I just realized you did something more impressive than that demonstration. You pulsed Chi into the pleasure center of my brain with such control and finesse that you didn't blow my head off when you did so."

I smiled and winked, "Actually, you have that power within you as well." I looked at the SEALS, "In fact you all do. You fight against your full potential, each in a unique way, but you all use only a small portion of your Chi when you let it out to play."

Walsh squared off in front of me, "Show me."

I turned her back to me and put my hands on each side of her torso. "Close your eyes and manifest your Chi."

She did a deep breath and made some arm movements and manifested her Chi.

"No, let that go. This time no theatrical nonsense. Just open up your Chi and let it out."

Walsh released her Chi and after a moment, she manifested it again. I raised my level up just a bit for self protection and said, "Now, feel your Chi. Do you feel the heat from it? Can you see the flame with your inner eye?"