to his stomach grumble. He wanted something to eat. He always did when he became nervous. But if he ate, his ulcer would only become worse. No. He must fast or he must find some milk to drink. Unfortunately, he hated the taste of milk. He needed ulcer medicine. Why did the American submarines have to sink that supply ship?
Concentrate, Bao. You still have to fix several critical problems before the fight.
There were nine operational MC ABMs trundling toward the ambush positions. According to Marshal Liang, eighteen Behemoths converged toward Denver. Therefore, each MC ABM needed to destroy two of the American super-tanks. Of course, Liang had told them he would help even the odds with a fierce air attack at precisely the right moment.
You’re not concentrating on the right thing, Bao.
MC ABM #3 needed new laser coils, and fresh coolant in bin-washer seven. He needed to make sure that each was repaired before the coming battle. All the MC ABMs had beamed often during the siege. The endless laser use meant deterioration in the high-tech equipment. Yes, he needed to recalibrate the mirrors as well. This would be a precision battle, as the MC ABMs needed to engage the Behemoths at the farthest distance possible.
How hot a ray did they need in order to burn through a Behemoth’s plate? How long would he have to keep the laser on target to destroy the heavily-armored tank. An enemy missile or aircraft had tinfoil armor compared to the approaching land-monsters.
What’s the effective range of their rail-guns?
Nervousness only made the ulcer worse. The MC ABMs were leaving Denver to go to their ambush points. The Americans drove for the city, smashing everything before them. Soon now, the enemy tanks would face a tech marvel greater and stronger than their rail-guns.
I-70, COLORADO
Stan dreamed and he didn’t like it. He began to shake. It seemed as if his whole world was under assault. Maybe it was an earthquake.
He opened his eyes, waking up to reality. He realized that someone touched him. No, they had been shaking him. He looked up. Jose stood over him, with a hand on his shoulder.
“You sleep like the dead,” Jose told him.
Groggily, Stan sat up. He was in a tent beside his Behemoth. They’d stopped near I-70. This part of the freeway system was much different from the system in the Rockies. Here, the land was Great Plains flat. Stan had called a halt because everyone had been exhausted. It was vital to keep rolling, moving toward the enemy, but sometimes, a commander had to give himself and his men a badly needed rest.
“Is it morning already?” Stan muttered.
“I woke you because General McGraw wants to speak to you.”
“He’s here?”
“He’s on a tight-linked screen,” Jose said.
Stan struggled to his feet and put on his clothes. He accepted a thermos of hot coffee. He wanted to crawl back into the sleeping bag, but that was impossible now. He checked his watch. It was almost six A.M. He wanted to be moving again by six forty-five.
Eating a bagel and washing it down with scalding coffee, Stan climbed into the Behemoth and took his place in the commander’s chair. He was getting sick of the compartment, as if he’d lived here weeks. It smelled like a mixture of a gym locker room and a mechanic’s shop: sweat and grease.
He tapped the screen and General Tom McGraw appeared. The big man was bent over his desk, hard at work.
Stan sipped coffee.
The general must have noticed the movement on his own screen. He put down his pen, straightened and nodded a greeting.
“Hello, Colonel,” McGraw said.
“Sorry, I was asleep just now and—”
“No, don’t apologize,” McGraw said. “You’re in the middle of the most important offensive in American history. In thirty minutes, you’re off again. I want to speak to you a moment before that. Are you alone?”
“Yes sir.”
“None of that now, old son,” McGraw said. “This is you and me talking. We’re older than we used to be, but we were friends once.”
“True enough,” Stan said.
“I think we’ve surprised the enemy, Stan. We’ve surprised them good. You’ve gotten farther faster than I would have thought. But the game enters the hard part now. The Chinese have regrouped. It looks like Zhen’s Tank Army is going to hit us in the flank today. By the looks of it, the Chinese are trying to cut you off by driving through to the Brazilians. The Brazilians are going to try the same thing on their side. We figured