Stealth Journeys with the Steam Mapper

Chapter 97: "Overboard" or Ships to the Rescue!

 The pride of North Korea in action, a stealth ship-destroyer, with  deadly missiles.

The research vessel begins to slow as shouts of "a ship spotted on the horizon" bring excitement.   It is too small to be the USS Carl Vinson, but it is likely that one of the cruisers accompanying it traveled faster due to the emergency.   MYKA nudges StLF and comments, "Hey look!   The Koreans and the Ukrainian have their laptop bags and they're having a very excited conversation with someone by phone!    They have awfully big smiles for being rescued by an enemy ship.   What's with that?"

The question is soon answered, as a strange high-speed ship approaches very quickly, possibly traveling one hundred miles per hour.   It is a cross between a catamaran and a hovercraft.   It is armed with KH-35 Uran missiles and two North Korean AK-630 30 mm Gatling guns.   MYKA  has seen pictures of this stealth ship-destroyer vessel that is the result of a 10-year project for the North Korean navy.   It is able to launch deadly attacks without warning.  "The air-cushioned ship is equipped with a rigid, faceted hull, allowing it to efficiently bounce along the surface of the ocean while also limiting its radar presence- making it incredibly difficult for large vessels to detect the ship-destroyer before it launches its deadly sea-skimming missiles."   MYKA  had memorized its description verbatim when the news release was first made public.

The Koreans had a flotilla that had been traveling southerly undetected with intentions of confronting the U.S. ships that remained in the Pacific ever since the Korean missile program ramped up back in 2017.   In addition to battleships, they now possessed three of these stealth ship-destroyers, and always included at least one in any flotilla sent out to sea.

The arrival of another vessel to aid in destroying the enormous sea monster, believed to be the largest squid on record, brought exclamations of joy to the crew until the national flag for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea was seen flying.    The quick arrival was startling to the Chief Scientist who had been in contact with the United States Navy and had been advised that no ship was close enough to arrive for possibly another day.    Then to hear that the rescue ship was property of the Navy of North Korea, was perplexing to say the least.   Aboard it was a life raft, which was quickly launched into the sea and pulled alongside the research vessel.   Near the fan tail, a permanently installed ladder led down to a small landing used for divers and scientists boarding the submersibles.   By the time the hover-craft catamaran had pulled up, the Korean scientist and his interpreter were half-way down the ladder and VLAD the Ukrainian was attempting to join them.   The Koreans were shouting "Suryeong!   Suryeong!"

At once, several unfathomable actions took place.   Someone recognized that the man standing onboard the hover-craft catamaran was none other than Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un.   He was surrounded by military officers.   All on the craft with him watched with great concern as the two Koreans jumped into the raft.    The Ukrainian was shoved aside and fell into the water. Suddenly, a blood-red massive appendage raised up into the air.   It then reached towards and seized the hapless man first struggling to swim and then struggling to free himself from the feeding tentacle of the monster-sized squid.

While all eyes watched in horror as the man was pulled under, cries went out from the life raft as it overturned spilling out all seven onboard including the two men just picked up from the research vessel.  More tentacles raised up and tangled themselves around the raft and the seven men who had been hanging on to it for dear life.   The catamaran moved in closer and began aiming its weaponry towards the churning waves of a large eddy, where it was presumed the head and body of this Kraken- sized creature would be submerged below the surface.

And then, the unthinkable happened.  The entire stealth ship-destroyer was pulled under the surface, before even one missile was fired from it.   Its crew, wearing life vests, and carrying high-powered rifles were bobbing helplessly about in churning eddies created by the monster.   The appearance of Kim Jong-un had been a shocker.   It had been widely held that the North Korean government was being led by a committee of high ranking officers who were going to great lengths to convince the rest of the world, that their Supreme Leader was alive and well despite, the reports of an assassination led by a covert UN-approved team.

Just as rumors continued to persist that Osama Bin Laden had not himself died, but it was his body double who had been assassinated and buried at sea.    Convenient, as no DNA evidence was made public for independent testing that could dispute the claim.   Conspiracy theories never stop.  But if this was the Supreme Leader who had risked everything once again, it seems that this time, his death would be the result of a totally nonpolitical entity that dispatched his whole Korean crew in no time at all.

No one reported any signs of the Supreme Leader, who refused the life jacket and insisted on wearing his heavy woolen pea coat.  Supreme Leaders are invincible.  Supreme Leaders can travel the seas and destroy sea monsters and other threats to their sovereign lands.  They can be hailed as heroes in their country besieged by bullies and rich nations trying to end the Communist rule of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.  The Supreme Leader's duty was to prepare to defend his homeland by whatever means necessary, including nuclear weapons. No other nation had the right to enforce nuclear arms treaties on a country not wanting to participate.

The research vessel scientists watched helplessly as the drama unfolded, realizing the creature might strike them next.   And, then to their amazement, shouts rang out and heads swiveled to see the USS Nimitz approaching quickly from the opposite direction, guns readied and aircraft lifting off.   The chief scientist and ship's captain were in contact with the admiral aboard the USS Nimitz.   While the Kraken-like giant squid was occupied with the Korean crew, the research team took full advantage in getting up steam for a fast get away.

The research vessel running at full speed, with waves sending an over wash of sea spray, the crew held onto railings for dear life and looked back over the fantail to watch the bombs drop on the "3rd Millennium Kraken" and its prey.   Blood red tentacles reached for the sky in anger, as it was bombarded many times, over an area of half a mile.    From the depths, up floated huge chunks of tentacles, with larger pieces still writhing, and other unidentified soft body tissues, amounting to more pieces than would account for one mammoth creature.