Chapter 22

"General Baron, Sir?" His aid for the day, Private Cain asked hesitantly.

"Yes?" Replied Greg Baron slightly amused.

"Communications wants you sir. General Avery is on line for you." The private replied more confidently.

Nodding, Greg made his way to the office in his lodge which had been madeup as a communications/operations center. Shortly he found himself looking at the monitor which showed him General Avery, commanding General at NORAD.

"Ah, General Baron. Once again let me say you're looking very well. How is your wound coming along?" Avery asked.

"I'm fine, thanks for asking. The doctor says I will make a full recovery. Only lost a small tip of my right lung, so I won't really notice any impact breathing wise, or much anyway according to him." Greg responded.

"Glad to hear it. Look, the science johnnies have been going over some data that has been downloaded from a weather and atmospheric satellite. You might not have to move after all." General Avery said with a grin.

"That is good news! Last time we talked about weather, I was told that I might have to move, as well as everyone else that's left in Montana. What's come up?" Greg asked interestedly.

"Well, this is just a guess, some of it is fact, but mostly it has to do with natural gas deposits that were released and have been steadily releasing their contents into the atmosphere. Apparently there were a lot of natural gas pockets that were released, and still being released from the initial impact. The tidal wave caused some stress to the continental shelf and caused further release, and the earthquakes we have had, also has released more.

"The science johnnies say that with the added extra carbon dioxide that has been released into the atmosphere, it is enough to counter the ice age they originally thought might happen. As a matter of fact, the earth will be slightly warmer. Not a whole lot, but enough to offset the birth of that new island out in the Atlantic." General Avery finished with a grin.

"Thank God! I would have moved if I had to, but this is my brother's and my home. I would really have hated to give it up, especially after all the work we have put into it. Not to mention that the earth won't be hit hard with an early ice age. This is great news sir!" Greg said explosively.

"I thought you might like that news, so I gave it to you first. Look. I think you have your area under control for the most part. The president has a mission for you if your interested." General Avery said casually.

"Mission? I am ready for anything the president wants me to do, you know that." Greg responded.

"Well, this is a little out of your normal range of duties, but then, this whole mess is out of everyone's normal range of duties." General Avery said.

"We all have to make adjustments. I think the days of picking and choosing your work or jobs is probably on hold for a few years." Greg said with a grin.

"We have found a straight piece of highway close to the East Coast. We are going to start shuttling men, equipment and supplies in. We want to start mapping and looking over the damage done by the tidal wave from the ground. That straight piece of highway will be our landing strip. We have found other airports which we can land smaller planes, but this first drop will be with a C130.

"You will establish a base of operations there, at least temporarily. We have spotted several likely locations for more permanent base camps for you. Anyway, you should get your second in command up to speed. We are sending a copter for you and bringing you back here for briefings. That will be day after tomorrow. Any questions?" The General asked.

"Tons! But I can wait on those until I get to Cheyenne Mountain, sir." Greg responded.

"Looking forward to seeing you in person. Oh, the president would like you to autograph a copy of one of your books he has. Said it was a good piece of suspense." Grinned General Avery.

"Glad to do it. Looking forward to seeing you too, Sir." Greg responded.

The aircraft carrier Ronald Regan had taken up station well out to sea off the East Coast of the US. The Destroyer and cruiser were all topped off with food items, as was the aircraft carrier. The sub would be re provisioned at a later date. The Tender then steamed south and started to make it's way to the new Texas port of New Hope. There it would transfer supplies into it's cavernous holds and return to the ships that it serviced.

Texas had been spared the major effects of the tidal wave. Although the rains had flooded all rivers, and a lot of cities had been damaged and a few destroyed, the ports of Texas were actually in better shape than was first thought. Work was being done on the newly designated Port Hope. Dredges were removing debris and sand from around the port.

The oil refinery was fully operational and had a crew working 8 hours a day to refine the oil that was in it's tanks. They still did not have enough people to run 24 hours a day, but it was a testament to the construction of the oil tanks and the refinery itself, that it still stood in good condition and was operational. People were being trained, very carefully in how to refine oil into the fuels that were needed. No mistakes could be allowed to happen.

In Europe, things were still grim, but finally getting better. The Middle East was being cautious, but was in a good position. Water levels had risen and the desert was still blooming. That area had not seen this much water in thousands of years. Rivers ran full. Wells long empty were once again full. Countries that had wanted non interference from the Western nations had that freedom, but were now feeling the agony of not having access to the support system of the west.