"William C. Dietz - Deathday" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dietz William)

 McCHORD AFB, WASHINGTON
The conference room was long and narrow, like the table that ran its length, and looked out over a
semicircular space. There wasnтАЩt much doubt who the facility belonged to, since the Air Mobility
CommandтАЩs shield dominated the front wall. It consisted of a globe, wings, and a clutch of arrows.

Like the rest of the AMC, McChordтАЩs team was dedicated to putting equipment and supplies wherever
the rest of the military wanted them to go. That included airborne refueling for the air force, navy, marine
corps, and allied aircraft as well. The areas to either side of the AMC shield were covered with the new
Sony-manufactured тАЬvideo wallpaperтАЭ that allowed the thirty-six officers and enlisted people who staffed
the Tactical Operations Center, or TOC, to тАЬpostтАЭ images in any manner they chose.

Though the Air Mobility Command was headquartered at Scott AFB in Illinois, the functions of the
Tanker Airlift Control Center, or TACC, could be duplicated elsewhere, and McChord was one of
those places. And, while they were doing the best job they could, their efforts had been hampered by a
lack of what computers need most: reliable data.

In spite of the fact that the TOC was more than five stories below ground level, and was hardened
against nuclear, biological, and chemical attack, those individuals lucky enough to be thereтАФand that
included Alexander Ajani Franklin, the governor of Washington StateтАФcould still feel the reverberations
of the powerful subnuclear explosions. They shook dust out of the light fixtures, made coffee shiver in
cups, and sent a stylus tumbling to the highly polished floor.

General Charles тАЬCoopтАЭ Windgate bent to pick it up. HeтАЩd been up for more than forty-eight hours, but
his uniform looked like it had just come off a hanger, and his shoes were mirror-brightтАФjust as they had
been every day for the twenty-seven years heтАЩd spent in the air force. He surfaced with pen in hand.
тАЬDamn the bastards anyway . . . . How many bombs do they have?тАЭ

Others were present as well: Jina Claire Franklin, the governorтАЩs wife; Major Linda Holmes, the
generalтАЩs adjutant; and Michael Olmsworthy, secretary of the air force. None of them replied. None had
to. The answer was obvious. The extraterrestrialsтАФor XTs, as many had taken to calling themтАФhad
enough bombs to reduce the entire country to burning rubble, and assuming the reports from abroad
were reliable, the rest of the world as well. Why? Nobody knew. If the aliens had the means to
communicate, they hadnтАЩt bothered to do so.

Holmes sat in front of an IBM тАЬCyber WarriorтАЭ field-ready portable. It was waterproof, shockproof,
and damned near bulletproof. She touched an earplug and cocked her head to one side. Holmes had
short black hair, serious brown eyes, and a thin-lipped mouth. She listened for a moment, murmured an
acknowledgment into the boom mike, and bit her lower lip. Governor Franklin had never seen an air
force officer cry but sensed she was about to.

тАЬWell?тАЭ Windgate demanded. тАЬSpit it out.тАЭ

Holmes struggled to control the tremor in her voice. тАЬSir, that was the com center. They caught a relay
from a nuclear sub.Air Force One went down near Kansas City. Some sort of energy weapon was fired
from orbit.Air Force Two was attacked and destroyed on the way back from Panama City. No known
survivors.тАЭ

тАЬWere the planes targeted?тАЭ Windgate asked. тАЬThat would tell us something.тАЭ
 тАЬNo,тАЭ the major replied. тАЬIt doesnтАЩt sound that way. Preliminary reports suggest that the XTs have
downed thousands of civilian and military aircraft. Average life of a fighter after launch is just twenty-five