Presidential Emergency Operations Command, Classified; 0549
The Command, located in a bunker somewhere to the south of Belgae was in full emergency mode. When the Foreign Ministry received the diplomatic note from Vanuku, Plan 45 was quickly enacted. Senior government and political leaders were quickly moved to Tier 3 security facilities while the President was evacuated to the bunker. All information was now run through a triumvirate of officials, who controlled ultimate access to the President and her inner staff. The Chief of Staff, National Security Adviser and the President's Legal Counsel all now vetted information as it was needed. And there was lots to vet through.
Information from the General Military Intelligence Office showed massive troop movements north of the border and some Jelbanian troop movements as well to the west. Sources embedded in the Vanukuean navy, along with other outside intelligence showed their ships were preparing to leave port and make south. War was coming and the entire Zardic National Security Organization was going into hyperdirve to prepare the nation. Strategically located stockpiles of arms and supplies were left at carefully concealed safe houses, trained operatives and special agents were slowly moving into place to organize resistance for the coming Vanukuean occupation. Important legal and administrative documents were being readied for evacuation from northern sites while Protocol Delta protection measures for sensitive information were being prepared. It was truly a mammoth effort being coordinate by the central government.
The main presidential point man on the matter was National Security Adviser Thomas Williamson. The man had spent his career working in the ZNSO bouncing around to most, if not all the intelligence and security agencies. He worked at the FIA, ZCA, IDA, CTA and a whole host of others. Now he sat as the National Security Adviser and chaired the National Defense and Security Council, one of the prime advisory bodies to the President. All of the council members were present in the bunker along with representatives from all the intelligence services, the military and selected domestic security agencies. His mind was totally frayed from the near 36 hours of total work which had consumed his office. Now he and the entire NDSC was moving into a conference room for a special meeting with the President and Prime Minister. Heavily armed guards stood and patrolled everywhere as he worked the corridors to try and make it to the meeting room.
At 0600 sharp all stood up as the naval officer called "Attention on Deck!" President Julia Harrison, who had just been resoundingly re-elected in a surprise election, entered and took her seat. All other sat down and when they finished she cut right to the chase.
"Fellow public servants, today we received a threat from Vanuku. Leave Dankuk or be forced to war. Well, as many of you know, during my time on the NDSC under the previous administration I opposed sending in "peacekeepers" there and to this day I oppose it. Many of you came here expecting war, and indeed I did contemplate not backing down. But it is in the national interest of the nation to do so. We are not yet ready for war. We have much work to do yet. Rebuilding our network in Vanuku, expanding operations against Dorvik and securing allies is the paramount concern. However this will not go unpunished. I have ordered the Information Dominance Agency to launched a small scale assault, through third parties to hit financial and banking transactions regarding Vanuku. That is all. By executive order I hereby terminate operation of Plan 45."
Information Dominance Agency Headquarters, Venetio; 0624
Orders had come down from the President to launch a series of covert cyber attacks on financial infrastructure of Vanuku. Disrupting bank transaction, government regulatory systems and the stock and financial markets was the key objectives here. Yet it was not to be a conventional attack. When General Ray Ubrario received the order, he smirked and chuckled to himself lightly. There was just a plan to get this going and the best part was, it was totally unconventional and nearly untraceable to Zardugal. Perhaps after a few years of analysis and tracking the virus would be it be traced to Zardugal but that was a pure hypothetical. Not even the brain whizz's over at Development could trace it. He picked up his red telephone.
"This is Operational Control Officer Ubrario. Tyrannis, I say again Tyrannis."
Vanuku National Stock Exchange, Wiel; 0915
It was almost time for the opening bell and the markets seemed to be less skittish today. With the Zards surprisingly agreeing to remove their mission from Dankuk, a rally was expected today as fears of war had been quelled, at least for the interim. Johan Linden, a mid-level stock broker was rushing from stand to stand to try and get back in the game. He had but 15 minutes till the markets opened and he was just starting back up as a broker for a new firm, catering to the rich and powerful in north Wiel. He had to make sure the orders were placed and what data could be obtained was obtained to make sure the analysts at the firm were ready to move right at 0930.
As he whipped around the corner of one desk, he crashed right into one of the night staff, just finished up cleaning and ordering. The papers he was carrying went everywhere and the cleaning cart had several bottles fall off. Both men quickly tried to clean up the mess and, now running late the man sprinted off while our janitor went to the workroom to clock out.
It was now 0929 and the markets were about to open. As he reached the offices, he quickly began distributing the papers to his irritated coworkers. Then he heard the bell, the markets opened and he his heart raced a bit as it always did. He was always nervous when the body opened as each day brought new surprises and anxieties. Today however, things were turning out differently. Almost uniformly across the the computer room, the traders, relying on the hyper-fast communications relay systems to get transactions in, began reporting problems. Trades weren't going through. Buy orders were turned into sell orders and soon the destabilization could be seen across the floor. Traders and brokers panicked and soon all the buy orders were turned into sell orders and the markets started trekking downwards. Normal computer stabilization of the markets or fixes wasn't possible for some odd reason as those programs were frozen out and the financial regulators began panicking as they lost any ability to shutdown or bring the markets back under control as the entire infrastructure of the market was timer based and would only close when the timer went out or when the authorities ordered it closed, something that wasn't happening at the moment. Panic gripped the floor and fights broke out between angry investors as security moved into bring the place under control. While the authorities could probably annul the days trades, an unresponsive cyber system made that task infinitely more difficult. This would be days, maybe even weeks worth of deep financial pain for investors, hedge fund managers and all other types as not only the damage from today would be inflicted but also gaping holes were found in the financial security systems.
It was in all the commotion, with security totally distracted that the elderly old man had walked right out of the building calmly and to a waiting cab. It took him to the airport within 20 minutes and he checked into his flight to Keymon, under a different name of course. As he sat in the waiting lounge to board his plan, he looked at the television screen. They were alternating reports of financial disruptions in Wiel and of the surprise Zardic move. He smiled to himself. They robbed me and left me to dry. Those power hungry cretins left my people out to dry, left me and my son out to dry. When we needed help they gave none. Vanuku has seen the last of the Mrnskyn family and they will never even know how I left them.
By 1020 he boarded his flight and it was off to Keymon where he would enjoy a retirement among the fine beaches, the women and under covert Zardic protection. It was all a simple matter really. At 0730 he got the order to go forward with Tyrannis. At the server room, which he was ostensibly cleaning, he implanted several small chips into the servers which contained the programs to make the trading network go haywire while the virus seeped into the financial regulatory controls and inhibited efforts to stop the fall. None of it could be traced to Zardugal...
Turadrad, Jelbania; 1358
Agent Tskaov and Mr Salyzar were both holed up in a safe house in rural Turadrad, waiting for the security team to come evac them across the border. It had been a rough flight from Vanuku. The SSA was hot on their heels and nearly caught them a few times before they sneaked across the border. Now they were waiting and fervently praying that the Special Affairs Unit paramilitary team would come get them, and soon. Jelbania, while having a poorly regarded intelligence apparatus was lousy with SSA and other Vanukuean agents who were much better trained and had access to much more resources than the Secret Department could ever hope for.