Ethan Schweitzer had always enjoyed intelligence work. He liked the idea of secrecy and being able to know things that others did not. Most of all he liked being important and having powerful men ask him what to do. To Ethan, that was just the cat’s meow and made all the effort and time worth it.

After mandatory retirement he made his peace with the fact that he would never have that feeling again and he was okay with it. But he had just been lying to himself. He was not okay with it. Now things were back the way they were supposed to be.

General Sampson might be the most powerful man in North America and he was looking at Ethan with such an expectant and open face that Ethan just had to take a moment to soak in the feelings of…well, what was it? Ethan thought for a moment. He was many things, but self-delusional was not one of them. He had spent a lifetime manipulating people to do what he wanted them to do through recognizing and exploiting their wants, needs, and vulnerabilities. Ethan could certainly recognize his own. He had a need to be accepted which characterized itself so typically as egotism mixed with a deep insecurity. Knowing this about himself did not cause Ethan to want to change anything about his character.

“So, what’s this all about?” asked Sampson. “Is Anderson for real?”

Ethan nodded, “It appears he is telling the truth. The power plant of Kentucky Dam is shut down indefinitely and the whole JP is without electricity just like we are. My sources tell me they came close to a burnout of some sort at the dam and had to cut everything off to stop from causing damage that possibly could never have been repaired. A wise move, I would say.”

“How long is this going to last?” asked Sampson.

“They don’t actually know,” said Ethan. “They’re without many trained technicians and electricians, and of course replacement parts are an issue.”

“Those pompous jerks should have asked me for help. We have several Tennessee Valley Authority guys here who escaped from the east and worked at dams. They might have helped,” said Sampson.

“General, they fear your influence on the dam. They fear your power, your leadership, your vision. As a matter of fact, that fear is likely the only reason they agreed to let us keep getting electricity from them in exchange for compensation,” said Ethan. “They believe that the electricity they are providing you is worth far more than what they’re getting in exchange and would cut us off if they could. When the time is right for them, they will cut us off. Rest assured.”

Sampson rubbed his chin in thought. “How long until they would feel secure enough to do that?”

“Hard to say,” said Ethan. “But they are getting militarily stronger every day. Their borders are more secure, that regimental system of theirs is a joke, but it at least frees up their other troops. They also have the weapons they need due to the raid on Fort Campbell. All in all, they’re nowhere close to us, but given enough time they could be.”

“What about the people there, what would their feelings be towards an annexation into the WTR should it come to that?” asked Sampson.

“In my opinion General, their feelings would be irrelevant. As long as you provided them electricity, they would be happy with whatever else you allowed them to keep. The dam, General, is the key to everything because electricity, and all the other things it makes possible, has become the rarest of commodities.”

“Are they expecting an attack from us over this?” asked Sampson.

“Almost certainly. The fact that Anderson called you immediately and offered to give everything back shows that not only does he consider it a possibility, but something he fears greatly. Additionally, we know they are pushing troops south and preparing defensive positions. All their forces are on alert.”

“So we’ve already lost the element of surprise?” asked Sampson with a frown.

Ethan smiled, “Not necessarily.” He moved over to the map on the wall and pointed at the common border. They are expecting attacks, or at least some sort of intimidation, here along our northern area. But not in these regions,” Ethan pointed at two other areas of the map. “We could feint toward what they expect, and attack where they do not, catching them by surprise.”

Sampson was suddenly intense, “It might work. I know what I think, but what about you? Is it the right time?”

Ethan felt the enormity of the moment upon him and something akin to a physical rush. “General, this is exactly the right time. We could not have planned a better time. Not only is the JP unprepared for a conflict with us, they do it without the benefit of electricity, which means limited communications and much lower production. Their people will also be demoralized and lack confident in their leadership due to the sudden loss of power. On top of that, you have a perfect pretext to start a war. They broke a deal with us. We paid and they didn’t give what they promised. It’s not our fault they cannot properly manage the great responsibility given to them in the dam. Perhaps other more capable hands should take over that responsibility for the welfare of all concerned. JP, as well as WTR citizens.”

Ethan smiled again to himself. “Honestly, based on what my sources tell me, the mere threat of invasion may cause the JP to settle with us without the need for conflict.”

Sampson stared at him for a long moment absorbing all that Ethan had said. He then nodded and began to smile. “The time is now. This is what I was put here to do. Right here and now is the time for me to fulfill my destiny!” Sampson stood and began to walk out the door and then turned and looked at Ethan, “We’ll move forward immediately. And…what about the other thing we discussed, is it ready?”

“It is General, my man is ready.”

“Then do it,” said Sampson forcefully. “I want to strike a blow to their heart before we meet them on the field of battle. The JP might just roll over and welcome us with open arms after we’ve dealt with Mister Phillips.”

Ethan started to say something but Sampson turned away and continued walking, calling back over his shoulder. “And Ethan!”

“Yes, General?”

“I want you to stay very close to me from now on. I’m going to need you even more in the coming days,” Sampson spoke, as he disappeared into the darkness of the hallway.

Ethan’s heart swelled and his mind raced. Actually, it is my time, he thought to himself. Things are coming together the way I wanted them to.

Ethan suddenly realized that N-Day was the best thing that ever happened to him in his entire life.