At five o'clock in the morning, Washington had not yet fully awakened, but the offices in the E wing of the Pentagon were already lit with a glaring light.
A military report labeled "Top Secret · Urgent" was gently placed by the adjutant on Admiral Miller's mahogany desk.
The brief title on the cover portended sothing ominous—"Hulmatu Defense Assessnt and Northwest Theater Crisis Warning."
The report ca from front-line commander General Duke; the ssage ti displayed was four hours ago, but the situation described within was deteriorating by the minute.
At exactly six o'clock, the encrypted video conferencing system started on ti.
Multiple screens lit up sequentially, reflecting the grim faces of representatives from the Ministry of Defense, State Departnt, and National Security Council.
General Duke's face appeared on the main screen, with the background being the massive screen of the front-line command post.
"Gentlen, ladies, ti is not on our side."
Duke got straight to the point, with the red dot from his laser pointer falling on the Hulmatu area on the electronic map.
"Colonel Ross and his troops have held on for twenty-four hours, showing courage. But the reality is, all three outer lines of defense have fallen, and sixty percent of the city has fallen into the hands of 1515. According to the latest intelligence and battlefield assessnt—"
He paused for a mont, as if each word had to be forced out, "Hulmatu can hold out for at most another twenty-four hours."
The map zood in, red arrows, like poisonous snakes, attacked the blue circle indicating the defending troops from three sides. Duke's tone turned somber:
"Once Hulmatu falls, 1515 will open a corridor between Ozham, Titrick, and northern Hulmatu, gaining unprecedented strategic initiative. They can move north to threaten the Kurdish Control Zone, advance west to cut off the Mosul supply line, and may even establish a so-called 'Northwest Province.' At that ti, the troops, resources, and ti we need to invest will be three to five tis what we are now."
State Departnt representative Marian Cortes leaned forward, her gaze sharp behind gold-rimd glasses: "Where are Song Heping's troops? Earlier briefings said his rcenary camp had already arrived in Area 4."
"They are indeed in Area 4."
Duke switched the screen, displaying a satellite thermal imaging map, with hundreds of small dots representing life heat sources quietly lurking in a hilly area.
"They have been lurking for forty-eight hours, completely in attack position. But—"
He emphasized his tone, "Song Heping refuses to act unless all his conditions are t."
"All conditions?"
William, the civil official responsible for Near East Affairs at the Ministry of Defense, almost jumped up.
"You an that ridiculous list? Allowing Samir to gain the rank of Lieutenant General in the Iligo Defense Army, reorganizing his ragtag army into the Tenth Border Defense Division and integrating it into the regular army lines, and—actual control of Hulmatu and its surroundings?"
His palm slamd heavily on the table, "This is outright extortion! Who does he think he is? An East University alum rcenary leader, daring to negotiate terms with the United States of Arica!"
The conference room descended into short chaos, with a few officials exchanging opinions in low voices.
Admiral Miller had been silently observing and only now slowly raised his hand, signaling for silence.
"Mr. Williams," Miller's voice was frighteningly calm, "you just used the word 'extortion.' So let ask you: if we reject his 'extortion,' what alternative plan do you have to save Hulmatu?"
Williams opened his mouth.
"Let answer for you: none."
Miller brought up another set of data.
"Our nearest reinforcent is two battalions of the 101st Airborne Division, currently stationed in Kuwait, requiring at least twenty-four hours to mobilize. Once mobilized, it is equivalent to re-entering Iligo, not to ntion the enormous political risk, if there are significant casualties, it will beco a disaster that all decision-makers present will face."
"The 'Freedom Fighter' forces of Kurd have already been severely hit, and being able to hold on to Elbil is already quite a feat. Forcefully reallocating them will cause the entire frontline to weaken. And our own Special Forces—"
He scanned the entire audience, "in Iligo and Afghan have seventeen higher-priority mission points. The reality is, at this mont, within a two hundred kiloter radius of Hulmatu, the only ard forces capable and willing to intervene are Song Heping's rcenary troops and the militia organization he controls."
Cortes rubbed her temples, displeased: "His conditions are extrely sensitive from a political perspective. Who is Samir? Three years ago he was an anti-Arican militia leader, who only raised a force under Song Heping's funding and training. Now we're supposed to acknowledge him as a Major General, and even give him a regular division's formation? This will cause a political earthquake in Baghdad."
"Samir is a proxy, Song Heping is the real controller."
The intelligence departnt representative interjected, "We assess, Song Heping's investnt in Northwest Iligo has exceeded eighty million US Dollars, not only militarily, but also in aid to local tribes, infrastructure construction, even small hospitals. He's establishing a de facto sphere of influence."
"That's exactly the problem!" William exclaid excitedly, "Are we supposed to sit by and watch a private military contractor with countless ties to East University carve out a 'fiefdom' in Iligo? This is equivalent to admitting we're unable to maintain regional order!"
Miller suddenly laughed, but there was no warmth in that smile: "Mr. Williams, you finally got one thing right—we are indeed unable to maintain it. Not 'equivalent to admitting,' but it's a factual situation. After the President's decision to withdraw troops in 2011, our presence in Iligo has been limited and fragile. If Hulmatu falls, what happens next?"
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