Chapter 1
How It Began
“Ladies and gentlemen of the world, I am here today to announce to you that as my final act as the President of Iran I have just ordered the launching of our nuclear missiles against the nation of Israel.”
When the President of Iran announced to the world that his country had just launched three nuclear missiles against the nation of Israel, little did he realize that his grand plan would set in motion a series of events that fulfilled prophecies in Islamic and Christian holy writings, by heralding the return of the Islamic Messiah, the one the Bible calls the ‘ANTICHRIST’.
The sleek black sedan rolled along East 44th Street in New York. It was followed by several other cars, including three Chevrolet Suburbans. All of them had tinted windows. It was the same as a United States presidential motorcade, but while the motorcade’s most important occupant was a president, he was not an American.
He chuckled at the irony of the situation. The automobile he was riding in was an iconic symbol that represented American industrial might and ingenuity, yet it was carrying a leader that was opposed to everything the vehicle represented.
As the motorcade approached the United Nations building, Iranian president Mustafa Zaakir’s heart began to pound. This would truly be a historic day.
He had sent teasing signals that, at this particular meeting of the UN Security Council, he would be making an announcement that would radically transform the peace process in the Middle East. Such statements typically referred to some type of peace gesture, and with previous Iranian regimes referring to the nation of Israel being a blight on the world that needed to be obliterated, the media was rife with speculation that the Iranian government would be repudiating its previous policy of antagonism.
The reports were fueled in part by leaked statements in Zaakir’s government, under his direction. He could not help but think how the world would view his actions in a favorable light. And why shouldn’t they? He had been making a series of reforms, including freeing multitudes of Christians who were imprisoned for simply practicing their faith.
He had a well-thought-out plan to divert everyone’s attention towards Persia. Persia was once a great empire until Alexander the Great had conquered the nation. His intention was to restore the Persian Empire to its former greatness.
Even the timing was significant. This particular year the Security Council meeting was happening on the opening day of Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar. This further fueled the speculation that a new era of peace would be happening in the Middle East. That is exactly what his intentions were, to usher in a new era.
He exited his vehicle and began to move toward the building along with his delegation. Even this was deliberate and part of the choreographed moment he was hoping to preserve as part of history. Inside, the other delegates were already seated and awaiting him. He had deliberately chosen to be fashionably late for this meeting. It was all part of the drama meant to heighten the curiosity of those attending.
The delegates were talking to each other as he stepped inside. They were a microcosm of the peoples of the world. Members of the democratic Western nations were cautiously optimistic about the possibility of peace in the Middle East. In America, this had been the goal of multiple administrations going back to President Eisenhower. During a previous administration, Iran had publicly agreed to halt its nuclear program, which helped that particular president score major political points at home.
This realization caused the current US ambassador to hope that a similar event would take place this day. Doing so would be a significant feather in the cap of President Jefferson Goodman, who was facing a difficult reelection campaign.
Delegates from Muslim countries had also heard the rumors, and they had a certain sense of trepidation about Zaakir’s address. Iran, by virtue of its sheer size, location, and persistent stand against America and Israel, had been a reassuring leader that these nations looked up to, even if it was not publicly admitted.
_•_•_•_•_
Airman Hennessey was looking at the screen in front of him. He was nearing the end of his ten-hour shift, and thoughts of getting off work began to swirl around his head as he began counting the minutes until his relief showed up.
As he began contemplating the various activities he had planned for this weekend, his thoughts drifted to the stories he heard from the senior NCOs. They had told him of the days during the Cold War when incursions by Russian aircraft at the edge of US airspace were a common occurrence. Those probing flights, which were done by both sides, caused constant alerts that would frequently involve NORAD sending up interceptors to verify the target’s intentions.
He remembered veterans telling him of a time when the world nearly went to nuclear war in 1979. Right here in this very mountain in the heart of the Rockies, the computers told men such as himself that the Soviet Union had launched a massive nuclear strike against America. The launch was confirmed by two other systems at other locations. Commanders quickly met, knowing they had only minutes to make a decision on whether to retaliate for this egregious act by the Communists.
The order was given, and the large force of Minuteman missiles buried deep throughout the American West were given a preliminary warning that the country was under nuclear attack and that a launch order would be forthcoming. The entire continental interceptor force of aircraft was also placed on full alert, ready to bomb their targets deep inside of Russia.
Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed as they realized it made no sense for the communists to choose that particular moment to attack and that there was probably another explanation. It later turned out that the entire incident had been the result of a training tape accidentally being uploaded to the computers running America’s early warning systems.
Now, with the fall of the Soviet Union, NORAD was presently keeping track of all aircraft over North America in order to be able to swiftly respond to another 9/11 type of attack by aggressors using aircraft as weapons. NORAD, operating in conjunction with Canada, also monitored the thousands of satellites and other objects in the earth’s orbit.
Suddenly a klaxon went off, jarring the somewhat lethargic duty crew to an instant state of heightened awareness. Immediately Major Walters, the officer in charge, ran over to Hennessey.
“What have we got, Hennessey?”
“It looks like a missile launch, sir. I got two, no, make that three confirmed launches from Iran. Verifying heat signatures now, sir.”
“What in the world are those camel jockeys thinking,” the major said as he looked at Lt. Michael Jones and barked out orders to the men and women in the room. “Jones, get a confirmation on that, and then get me the CIC.”
Within seconds, a secure dedicated line rang in General Sam Martinez’s office. Knowing that the line was only used for the direst of emergencies, he hurried over to pick it up.
“What in the blazes is going on,” Martinez answered the phone abruptly.
“It’s Iran, sir,” Major Walters said, anxiety in
his voice. “We just picked up seismic readings and heat signatures. We estimate the launch of three missiles. They have not announced any scheduled tests recently. It doesn’t look good.”
“Do we have a heading on these birds yet? Are they headed our way?”
“Unclear at this time; we’re attempting to get a trajectory on their projected course now.”
“Keep me advised of the status,” the general said. “I’m going to call and alert the president. In the meantime, get all of our forces on alert.”
The line was kept open as Martinez picked up another phone that was intended to go to an aide with direct access to the president when suddenly he remembered the commander-in-chief was at the United Nations. Realizing time was of the essence with any type of launch such as this, he made a stunning decision that he knew was violating every protocol established during the last half-century in dealing with such situations. If he was wrong, he knew he could face a possible court-martial, but if he was right…
In recent years with things had started occurring in the Middle East at a much faster rate than in the days of the Cold War. There was the threat of Islamic terrorism as well as other radicals who might operate independently of foreign governments. The US and its allies had realized the importance of having a way for allied military commands to immediately relay information to their counterparts in other countries because minutes or seconds could make all the difference between preventing a mass casualty event or a disaster of epic proportions. This was one of those times, Martinez reasoned, as he called General Ackerman, head of the Israeli Defense Force.
“General Ackerman, this is General Martinez CIC with NORAD. We just picked up a launch detection we believe to be three separate missiles. We’re trying to get a confirmation on their trajectory. While NORAD primarily exists to warn against threats against North America, my instincts tell me they’re heading your way.”
General Ackerman went silent for a brief second upon hearing the news when suddenly an aide told him the Prime Minister was on the other line. He asked Martinez to hold on a minute while he took the call.
“Martinez, we just received word, the president of Iran told the UN that he was taking steps to eradicate us. Of course, we’re used to such rhetoric, but apparently, his tone raised some eyebrows. You just confirmed what he said is true. I’ve got to go.”
“I understand and will let you know if we have anything else here. May God protect you and your country,” Martinez said as he hung up the phone.
Now it was time to call the president.
Later that day as the Senate’s debate continued to grow more and more heated, a similar debate was also taking place in the House of Representatives. Speaker of the House, Dwight Gibbons, was being confronted by Representative John Askew, Democrat from Pennsylvania.
“Mr. Speaker,” Askew said. “I still think that this is a matter that does not concern us in any way. This is an incident that occurred between the nation of Iran and the nation of Israel. If it is to be considered anything, then it should be considered an international incident, and that means it should fall under the jurisdiction of the United Nations. This should be a matter for them to handle and not for the United States of America.”
“Why you overblown, arrogant, pompous windbag,” responded Representative Jim Tyler. The Republican Congressman from Oklahoma was a tea party member and known for taking a hard line stand when it came to following the constitution.
“We should not leave this matter to the United Nations. Israel is our ally, and we are bound by a treaty with them to help them deal with these type of matters. Besides, you don’t really believe the United Nations will do anything more about this than just pass some irrelevant resolution, do you? You must know that they never, ever want to make any hard decisions about anything. Besides, even if they ever did decide to pass some kind of resolution, or place some kind of sanction against the nation of Iran, they would never take any real action to enforce it.”
He cleared his throat before adding, “Just try to remember what happened with Iraq. Don’t you remember all the countries that turned out to be on the take with the oil-for-food program? That is an excellent example of the kind of things that you can expect to get out of the United Nations. I’m not saying that every person in the United Nations is corrupt, but there are just way too many of them over there who are. Just think of all those countries who made deals with Saddam Hussein under the table. We didn’t find out anything about it until after the invasion and the fall of Iraq. Is that the kind of thing that you want to happen with Iran?”
“So, what would you suggest we do>” Askew asked. “Is it your intention to just outright declare war against the nation of Iran? Are you willing to risk the lives of thousands of our own soldiers just to get back at them for this one attack? Or maybe you’re thinking about applying some more sanctions on them like that has ever had any kind of effect against them in the past.”
Gibbons banged his gavel on the podium and called for order. “Calm down, gentlemen,” he demanded. “Let’s try and be civil. Please return to your seats. We are going to have to come to some kind of decision on this matter. This special session of Congress was convened to come up with an appropriate response to the attack on Israel by Iran. We are not here to give you all an opportunity to attack each
other, so let’s all get back down to business.”
Later that day, in New York City, a similar event, to that in Washington, was playing out. Mohammed and his sleeper cell had been careful to meticulously bring all of the bomb components into the city, a small section at a time to avoid the sensors and other security features designed to check for radioactive material that could be used in a dirty bomb or worse, a nuclear bomb, like his fellow jihadists have assembled.
Mohammed laughed inside; security was always a game where one side came up with procedures to protect themselves, which then resulted in the other side coming up with countermeasures. Then policies were put into place to counter the countermeasures, and the cycle began all over again.
Americans are foolish, Mohammed thought. There is always radioactivity present in a variety of devices and is even naturally occurring. All we had to do was patiently bring them into the city in minuscule amounts, and no alarms were set off. That is the biggest difference between the West and the children of Ishmael. America never looks at the long-term and is impatient. It would never occur to them that the rest of the world may not think the way they do. Their arrogance will be their downfall.
It took several months to smuggle in the amount of uranium and other parts necessary to assemble the nuclear bomb he now possessed. Now, in the back of his van, the fruit of their patience was ready to pay off. On September 11, 2001, Islam struck a blow against the great Satan in New York and Washington DC that forever changed the course of American history. The twin towers of the World Trade Center, which were featured in many photographs and films, were now a distant memory. Pictures of the New York City skyline showed a striking difference after the attacks. Finally, after years of wrangling, the Americans had rebuilt Freedom Tower on the site, and once again, Allah’s servants would strike it down to oblivion in such a way they would never be able to rebuild it.
Our attack on the Pentagon changed the very nature of how the Americans viewed their own seat of government. How much more so, Mohammed thought to himself, would the victory have been if Flight 93 succeeded and reached its target of the U.S. capital while Congress was in session.
However, while these events revealed to the world the power of Islam and the greatness of Allah, what would soon happen to these two cities that night will make the events of 9/11 seem like a minor traffic accident.
As thoughts of his impending victory for the cause of Allah distracted him from events around him, he was driving along the waterfront by the East River on a path that would take him directly to the 9/11 Museum at Ground Zero.
We attempted to declare this site a victory of Islam by erecting a mosque at ground zero at the old Burlington Coat Factory building, which was struck by one of the landing gear from one of the doomed aircraft, but our attempts were thwarted by the opposition of conservative firebrands who knew the truth of what the mosque would mean, Mohammed thought to himself. No matter. After tonight the world and the great Satan will be unable to deny the supremacy of Islam over all the religions of the infidels.
As thoughts of delight began to fill his mind with anticipation at the coming events when he would detonate the nuclear bomb in his possession just outside of ground zero, he failed to notice the red SUV that was headed his way.
Ryan Holmes had just left a local bar after having too much to drink. Intoxicated, he fumbled for his keys before finally locating them. After several attempts to insert the key into the ignition, he drove off. Normally the bartender would have intervened and offered to call a cab, but this night the patrons got into a heated discussion over the day’s missile attacks on Israel, which distracted him as he attempted to deal with a potential riot on his hands.
With his faculties impaired by the alcohol, Holmes ran past a red light and was now approaching another one at forty five miles an hour.
Mohammed was so focused on his own driving that he failed to be aware of his surroundings and did not notice Holmes’ blazer barreling down on him on an apparent interception course.
Suddenly with no warning, Mohammed was jolted as the van was struck in front of the driver’s side wheel. If it was a smaller vehicle, the outcome might have been different. However, the forward velocity caused Mohammed to lose control as the vehicle was violently pushed sideways.
Although the entire event took just seconds, to Mohammed, it seemed like an eternity as everything happened in slow motion. The van careened off the road and into the East River, lying on the right side. As the vehicle began to sink, Mohammed was still dazed, and his mental faculties were in a state of shock as his brain suffered from the effects of a concussion when his brain collided with the inside of his skull.
Bringing himself together, he realized he needed to unbuckle his seatbelt. It was difficult since the van was already filling with water because of the broken window on his side. While nervousness and excitement were normal human reactions in such a case, one could often still release the seatbelt and swim to the surface.
However, with the van on its side, the pallet containing the bomb broke loose, and parts of it went flying forward. Some material rested itself where the buckle went into the clasp, preventing his hand from reaching it. Try though he might, he was unable to move the object in order to free himself. Were it not for the concussion, he might have had the mental alertness to complete the task. However, his personal injuries, along with the frigid temperatures of the water, further dulled his senses, and he began to realize the battle was lost.
As death began to overcome him, he thought of the irony of it all. All those months of meticulous patience and careful planning, and now he was done in by a freak accident. His last thoughts were praise to his God, “Allahu Akbar,” as he embraced the stygian darkness.
Under normal conditions, Mohammed and his van would have been found in a matter of hours. Someone would report the crashed blazer, which was now sitting against the curb, its driver dead. As part of their investigation, the police would have examined the vehicle and determine it crashed into another vehicle. They then would have searched the area before realizing the other vehicle went into the river, leading them to call for divers who would have discovered Mohammed’s body. Then, upon seeing the bomb in the back, a call would have been made to Homeland Security.
However, this was not to be because, in a matter of minutes, an event would occur, which would bring tragedy to the country on a far more horrific scale than any puny terrorist attack with a nuclear bomb would ever do. This event would tie up emergency resources to such an extent that the accident and Mohammed would simply become a minor footnote, forgotten to the pages of history.
Iranian president Zaakir sat in his office, anxiously awaiting news of the result of their attack on America. After his announcement at the U.N., he had quickly left in his limo and headed directly to the airport where his private jet was fueled and ready to take him to Iran. He was not afraid of being detained by authorities. After all, as the president of Iran, he had diplomatic immunity. More importantly, he was following the will of Allah and would be protected. He just wanted to be out of New York before the attacks started and watch them from the safety of his home country.
After the failed nuclear attack on Israel, President Zaakir could not afford another such defeat. People were already beginning to clamor for his head. Still, if he were to carry off a successful attack on America that dwarfed the events of 9/11, he would still be the envy of the entire Muslim world. He watched as President Goodman began his address to Congress. Chuckling to himself, he thought, ‘if only those fools knew that while they were acting hostile, they were being led like lambs to the slaughter.’
The president began to speak:
“I want to advise not just the American people, but her greatest ally in the Middle East, Israel, that we do not intend to take these attacks lightly. Many are calling them a tragedy for the Muslim people, as one of their holiest sites has now been destroyed. To the Muslim community, let me say our heartbreaks with you over the destruction of the Dome of the Rock, which your faith teaches is where Prophet Mohammed ascended to Heaven.
“However, let us be clear; the fault for this
despicable act is not the result of those of us in the West; those of us many of you call the great Satan. No, the individuals responsible for this horrific act that destroyed your sacred site are your own people. The government of Iran intended to launch an all-out nuclear war on Israel. They launched three missiles, with each having a different destination that was clearly intended to overlap and leave no part of the Jewish nation untouched by a nuclear blast’s effects.
What exactly happened, we do not know. Whether it was the hand of God or some massive technological failure, these rockets failed to arm, went off course, and all struck the Dome of the Rock. We have no doubt that this was not Iran’s intention, but that does not absolve them of their guilt. Moreover, if their plan had succeeded, the Dome of the Rock would be just as destroyed, along with the rest of Israel. We consider this an act of war, and I call upon Congress to allow me, as commander-in-chief, to engage in economic and, yes, military actions that will include bringing down this barbaric regime, the opponent of both the Western and Muslim world alike.
Previous administrations tried to work with this regime, even to the point that some called it appeasement. We did so while ignoring the warnings of one of our oldest allies in that part of the world, Israel. And this is how our graciousness and desire for peace was rewarded.
I ask for this declaration, not because we desire war, but I do so to stand for basic principles of human decency and respect, moreover….”
Suddenly, a powerful high-pitched noise was heard in the background, followed by a bright light as the video feed from all of the networks suddenly went dead.
Zaakir chuckled to himself at the thought of knowing whatever else happened that night; the world would never forget the power of Islam.
Congressman Mike Stevens was a bit of an anomaly that did not quite fit most congressmen’s traditional mold. Although the Colorado representative tried to avoid political labels, an examination of his voting record and leadership as the majority whip indicated that he definitely leaned conservative. In his personal life, this was very much an accurate description of the man. As an infant, he was adopted while just a few weeks old. Being born in the years following the historic Roe v. Wade case, which essentially legalized abortion on demand, this knowledge of his adoption resulted in him being a strong opponent of abortion. Steven’s reasoning was not so much based on the Bible like many in the pro-life movement; it was more personal. He reasoned that a person supporting abortion was essentially endorsing a woman’s right to have him killed, a thought that he detested and found repugnant.
This is not to say he disagreed with the Bible teaching on the issue, just that he did make it the sole authority to guide his opposition to the grisly procedure. Indeed, Stevens had a strong belief in God. Still, he personally likened his views on the deity as being more akin to that of the author of the Declaration of Independence and America’s third president, Thomas Jefferson. Fighting and advocating for these general principles of liberty consistently had earned him the respect of supporters and critics alike. They all agreed he was a lion on the issue. It was this strong belief that made him a perfect fit for Colorado. Geographically, the state was solidly conservative due to the vast swathes of rural areas. Indeed, these areas led by the vast Weld County had long been a thorn in the flesh of the progressives who wielded power in the urban areas and advocated greater government control.
Weld County residents so aggressively believed in local control and self-governance that at one time, the county commissioners had sued the state over unfunded mandates placed upon them. Although the county eventually lost that battle, its elected officials were at the forefront in challenging the state over areas such as gun control, abortion and proudly emblazoned ‘In God We Trust’ on the county seal. Back in 2013, the county commissioners were the face of a movement to secede and form the state of North Colorado. This mixture between the rural, conservative areas and the progressive areas in the cities that ran down the middle of the state made it difficult to predict each election cycle. Because of this dichotomy, Stevens’ libertarian beliefs that advocated for the freedom of both those on the left and the right to self-govern their local areas made him a perfect fit for the state and a mirror image of the state itself.
Following the attack on Israel, he flew back home from Washington later that day to be at his father’s side. Although he was burdened by his choice and felt a longing to be there, knowing there would be a rare joint session of Congress. He desperately wanted to be there to show his support to the president during this trying time. However, he had gotten word that his father was in a hospice due to pancreatic cancer that was in its final stages. Receiving word that his father would probably not last the night, his choice was made for him.
He was raised to place family first, and he was not about to go against it now, regardless of what was happening in Washington. Before leaving, he held a brief meeting for the press and made his views on what happened known, and backed the president. If the media and the opposition party wanted to use that against him, that was just too bad. He would not regret his decision.
Dave Stevens held to his son’s view on liberty, but with one important difference. He believed the Bible to be God’s infallible word. Indeed, the revered his beloved King James Bible that he said made America great. He was fond of saying it was the only Bible that had been quoted in outer space and was the only Bible that had been to the moon and back, another great American feat that no other nation had accomplished.
Mike Stevens was in his father’s bedroom at the assisted nursing home when his aide came to the door.
“Sir, I’m sorry to bother you, but you wanted me to keep you updated on the emergency session.”
He thanked him for the information and went back into his father’s bedroom. For now, his father needed him more than his constituents.
“What is it, son?” his father asked.
“My aide was just updating me on the joint emergency session of Congress. The president just made a speech. It doesn’t look good.”
As his father’s breathing became more labored, he uttered one final charge to his son.
“Mike, I have done my best to raise you right. You’ve made a great congressional representative for our district, and one day you may even be in charge of this great country. They will need a leader, not in Jefferson’s mold, your idol, but a man in the mold of the father of our country, George Washington. You know how I taught you his thoughts on the Bible and salvation differed from Jefferson. Don’t misunderstand, Jefferson was a great man, but son, you need to trust Washington’s God and trust in the same Savior the first president did. Promise me you will think about these words.”
“I will, father, I promise you I will sincerely consider what you have asked me. I love you.”
With that, Dave Stevens laid aside this earthly realm and graduated to his heavenly home. The staff gave the family some time alone with him and then came to take his body away.
A few moments later, his aide returned. Seeing the frantic and grave look upon the young man’s face, he knew whatever it was must be vital. He quietly excused himself from the room.
Going into the living room, he learned about the attack. Upon hearing the news about Washington, a plethora of tortured thoughts went through the congressman’s mind. His first thought was one of anger as he wondered how any person or group of people could be so evil to flippantly kill thousands of innocent people with no worry at all.
Then he was overwhelmed by sadness and grief as he thought of all of his colleagues he had developed relationships with over the years. Were they alive or dead, he wondered. He had no idea about their condition or, for that matter, about their families. What must be going through their minds right now, he wondered. These two conflicting emotions became supplanted by guilt as his mind shifted to his duty. If everyone in Washington was dead and he was the only surviving government leader, he might be called upon to become the new president. While he had long had aspirations to the Oval Office, this was not the way he wanted to assume the title.
Yet he knew that regardless of how he felt about it, he would need to step up to the plate and be a powerful, forceful, yet reassuring president in the mold of Ronald Reagan following the Challenger disaster. As his mind thought back to Reagan, another great president he admired, his thoughts began to meditate on his father’s words. Like Washington, Reagan was an outspoken Christian, having once discussed Jesus with the former Soviet Union President, Mikhail Gorbachev. Indeed, Gorbachev would later write that it was this meeting that convinced him that Reagan’s faith and belief in America as the shining city on a hill was not political rhetoric, but a sincere belief. This revelation caused the Soviet president to strike a deal on nuclear weapons with the American president.
He understood that the people didn’t just need a president but a father-figure. There would come a time for grieving, but for now, of necessity, his thoughts must turn to creating and reestablishing a new center of government. As he mulled these thoughts over, the lights all over Denver suddenly went dark.Start writing here…
