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Bombard the Headquarters!
A Timeline In a Day by Japhy

The Vertical Journey of A Lot of Meters

60 Kilometers Northwest of Xi'an
Peoples Republic of China
September 10th 1971

There is a saying often thrown around in mindless action films that “There is no kill like overkill.” It is believed the quote may come from the Vietnam War, an attempt at wit in the face of the casual use of overwhelming force. It would take much more time for the term to become at least recognizable in aspects of Western Culture. It certainly wasn’t well known in the fall of 1971 when it could easily have been said by one of the plotters in a drama separate but at least partially related to that in Vietnam.

The detonation of a bomb on a fast moving train just as it begins to cross a bridge over a hundred plus meter canyon while that bridge is also wracked by a separate but equally powerful explosion is certainly an example of the manta.

As the burning cars of the train plummet to their doom, and the engine explodes into flames as it hits the rocky bottom of the canyon and crashes into the river, and as car after car of VIPs and bodyguards telescope and smash into each other, the guard unit at the bridge stares in horror.

The Guards Division security detachment that has arrived with documentation saying they were to be present to guard the very fireball of a train that has just destroyed itself don’t freeze though. They don’t cry as at least some of the young conscripts do. Instead, they immediately move to repel down the cliff face and make it to the burning wreckage.

From what is left of the east end of the bridge the conscripts and their officers, and a few members of the special security detachment watch. A few minutes later, they hear more explosions. And loud bangs. One of the newly arrived security men puts a large walkie talkie to his ear. He turns to the man who seems in charge of the harder men.

“The bastard’s dead. The actress was with him too.”

“Good”, says People’s Liberation Army Air Force Colonel Lin Liguo. He turns to another one of his men, who is sitting in a PLA Jeep still on solid ground and tells him to transmit on their larger radio.

“Tell HQ ‘B-52 has been shot down over national airspace. F-4 also taken out. Returning to Bejing at once.’”

Liguo looked back over the twisted wreckage of the former bridge and looked down at the fires. In the flickering light of the flames he could just make out the shadows that had to be his men, beginning to climb back up.

The young Second Lieutenant commanding the conscripts walked up next to him and peered over. “Who… who was on that train?”

“Oh, you know who it was.” replied Liguo casually. The Lieutenant froze. Liguo's face was spread by a cold thin smile.

"Good luck on the rescue operation Lieutenant, I'm sure you and your men will do everything they can, to try and save anyone from this tragic bridge collapse. There will be commendations all around." He didn't mention what would come if the conscripts didn't play the right part.

He didn't have to.​

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