General Yen’s jaw tightened. Listening to the calls for help and not being able to do anything about it was killing him inside. He wanted to scream but knew it wouldn’t change anything. Every second this situation went unchecked meant lives at risk.
“To hell with it,” he muttered to himself. The legal justification was clear.
“Get me Shark One,” Yen ordered.
“Sir, Shark One is online,” Captain Hsu confirmed seconds later.
“Shark One, Fortress Actual. How copy?”
“Fortress Actual. Good copy. Go for traffic,” came the cool, professional response from Mick. While Jodi remained in Taipei, Michael Matsin had stayed on Penghu to assist Commander Tang and his sailors in manning the various autonomous vessels deployed around the Penghu Islands.
“Shark One, what’s the status on your unmanned systems? Do you have something in play near the civilian ship in distress?” General Yen asked.
Mick’s gravelly voice came through clearly. “Affirmative, Fortress. We have six Seeker XLUUVs deployed and loitering on station. We have another twelve Zealot USVs holding at launch point Huay-Two. Just say the word, and we’ll engage.”
The autonomous systems were their hidden edge against the PLA Navy. Months of secret training with TSG were about to pay off. But once revealed… their surprise would be gone.
“General.” Mack’s voice carried urgency. “Sir, we have confirmed submerged contacts entering the battlespace. Two Type 039C diesel-electrics, based on acoustic signatures. They’re positioning to cut off our surface units from Penghu.”
General Yen was about to respond when his air liaison officer called out a new threat.
“New air contacts!” Major Ke called out. “Dragon-Eye is reporting those J-10s accelerating and being vectored toward Penghu. Time to merge with our combat air patrol — six minutes.”
“What alert fighters do we have on deck?” Yen asked.
“We’re launching four Vipers from Penghu Airport. Another six IDF fighters are launching from Tainan.” Ke’s hands flew over his console as he continued to call out the status of the fighters on strip alert. “But, General, those ghost returns of possible J-20s — we’re starting to get some better returns on them. Nothing we can lock up, yet, but there’s definitely something stealthy out there.”
“Sir, should I alert Admiral Han and General Tseng?” interrupted Captain Hsu.
“Yes. Immediately. I want full command staff to the JOC now!” General Yen ordered as he watched the converging forces on the display. “And set Readiness Condition Two across all commands and facilities.”
The radio crackled again. Commander Qiu looked up sharply. “Sir, our frigate the
“Weapons status on all forces?” asked General Yen.
“Currently weapons hold, per standing orders,” Commander Qiu replied.
Yen felt the weight of this moment. Being the first to fire meant bearing responsibility for starting the war. But in their own waters, with a civilian vessel under threat…
“Maintain weapons hold,” he ordered. “But all units, prepare for defensive action. The moment they—”
“Vampire, Vampire, Vampire!” Commander Qiu’s voice cut him off. “We have missile launch from PLA corvette
The JOC erupted. On the main display, a red line streaked from one of the Type 056As toward the approaching ROC corvette.
“
The red line merged with the blue triangle representing
“Direct hit!” Qiu’s voice cracked. “
Yen’s decision crystallized in an instant. “All units, weapons free! Repeat, weapons free! Engage all PLA forces in our territorial waters!”
The tactical display exploded into chaos. Blue lines — Hsiung Feng III missiles — erupted from
“Shark One, execute Piranha Protocol,” Yen commanded. “All autonomous systems, prosecute submerged contacts.”
“Copy, Fortress. Seekers going active. Zealots launching now.”
On the display, six new blue dots appeared beneath the surface as the XLUUVs abandoned their silent runs and went to attack speed. Twelve more streaked from Penghu’s hidden coves — the Zealot USVs racing toward the PLA surface formation at sixty knots.
