Mikaso’s smile did not dim one bit as he continued. “You were once a proponent of such a struggle not too long ago, General — in fact, I believe the Chinese would have gladly followed
Samar shrugged, his features still hard-looking and dark despite his hairless face. “Times change, politics change, politics change… but I do not.”
“We shall see,” Mikaso said. “We… shall… see.” He turned to face the two American and the Chinese military officers. “So. Should we now expel all foreign military forces from our country, Jose?”
“Part of the problem in this country was that we excluded some but invited others,” Samar said. “Our country is still too poor to hope we can survive by isolating ourselves from all contact with the outside world — perhaps we should try opening our ports to all foreign military vessels. If the Americans have use of port facilities for their military fleets, why not the Chinese, or the Vietnamese, or the Russians? Is one society more or less corrupting than another?”
“Interesting idea,” Mikaso said. “Interesting…
“I know, I know — you did not expect it of me,” Samar said. “I am just a poor dumb soldier, forced to dress like a politician.”
“Is that how you see yourself?”
“If I could control what others thought of me, it would be different,” Samar said. There was a rather long and comfortable pause between the two men; then: “What will you do with Teguina? Will you push for the gallows?”
“Good question, Jose. What would you do?”
Samar adopted a faraway glance. “I’ve seen enough death in this country,” he said. “Frankly, I do not think that fool Teguina had a chance in hell of succeeding — he is too greedy and self-serving to lead a country in revolution…”
Samar gave Mikaso an irritated glance. “You speak like some kind of amateur psychiatrist, Mr. President, answering questions with questions.” He ignored Mikaso’s question and concluded, “I don’t think such blind idiocy deserves the gallows. The prison at Puerto Princesa would be an appropriate home for him for the rest of his life.”
“Good answer,” Mikaso said. He took a deep breath, expelled it, and said, “I have decided to advise the Parliament tomorrow morning that I will step down as President and that you serve out the remainder of my term. What do you think of that, Jose?”
Without eyebrows, it was hard to tell if Samar reacted at all to the announcement with anything that might be considered surprise. With characteristic calm, he nodded at Mikaso and said with just a hint of a smile, “I approve of your decision, Mr. President.”
“Attention to orders,” Colonel Michael Krieg, General Richard “Rat Killer” Stone’s aide, began. “Citation to accompany the award of the Air Force Distinguished Flying Cross to Patrick S. McLanahan.”
General Stone stood in front of Patrick McLanahan in the Rose Garden of the White House. Just a few steps away was the President of the United States, the Vice President, and just about every other Cabinet member, important Congressmen, and a host of other dignitaries. Aligned along the front steps of the White House were twelve crew members — one B-52 crew from Fairchild AFB in Washington state, one B-l crew from Dyess AFB in Texas, and Cobb and McLanahan — selected to receive the prestigious DFC in a White House ceremony. All members of the Air Battle Force had received Joint Service Commendation Medals, and many had received Bronze Stars for their roles in the Philippine conflict.
“Lieutenant Colonel Patrick S. McLanahan distinguished himself by meritorious service as Mission Commander, B-2 A, from 1 October 1994 to 2 November 1994. During this period, the outstanding professional skill, exceptional leadership, and selfless efforts of Lieutenant Colonel McLanahan aided significantly in the successful battle against invading People’s Republic of China forces in the Republic of the Philippines.”
Anyone who knew about individual citations, as Patrick did, would know that the unit designation had been purposely omitted from his award citation — even though this award was unclassified (he had received the Air Force Cross, the highest Air Force award except for the Medal of Honor, after the Old Dog mission, but was prohibited from wearing the ribbon), the citation still had to be doctored to keep secret the fact that Patrick worked at a secret flight-test facility.
