Science Ninja Team Gatchaman
Written by Toriumi Jinzō
Illustrated by Ōtori Workshop
Part 3: The Iron Beast Appears
Chapter 2
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The situation in the North Pacific was a powder keg. There was a tense standoff between Task Force 71 of the U.S. Seventh Fleet and the Soviet Pacific Fleet.
The core of Task Force 71 consisted of two nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, the Carl Vinson and the Ronald Reagan. The two aircraft carriers were accompanied by more than a dozen vessels, including the nuclear-powered missile cruiser George Bush. It was, without a doubt, the most powerful naval force in the world.
The Soviet Pacific Fleet was led by the nuclear-powered missile cruiser Gromyko, which was accompanied by three cruisers, six destroyers, and three frigates.
The two fleets continued their standoff at a distance of about thirty kilometers (nineteen miles).
On the bridge of the U.S. aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan, Rear Admiral James Zucker, commander of Task Force 71, watched the vast ocean through his binoculars—even in this technologically advanced age of radar and missiles.
Zucker was fifty-four years old and nearing retirement. He had only been assigned to the Seventh Fleet a month earlier. Everyone on the bridge had greeted him with cold smiles. It was clear that this was a ceremonial post for his retirement. Promotion after long service, even for the incompetent—such events were common in any military.
“What do you make of their approach?” Major Ramsey asked. He stood behind the Rear Admiral and gave him a scornful, bitter smile.
Zucker lowered his binoculars and turned around. Ramsey was startled by his sudden about-face.
“The men seem to be on edge,” Zucker observed, watching his crew.
“Of course they are. Their comrades were killed by the Soviets,” Ramsey replied angrily, clearly irritated by the calm demeanor of his senior officer.
“Are you certain it was a Soviet submarine that sank them?” Zucker asked.
“We have an audio recording of the collision—you heard it yourself, sir,” Ramsey responded, growing more agitated. Thanks to SOSUS, the collision sounds between the Vandenberg and the enemy vessel were captured in full detail. SOSUS (Sound Surveillance System) was an underwater listening network used for detecting submarines.
“But why would they do it? They’re not foolish enough to sink a ship without cause,” Zucker said.
“The Soviet economy is on the verge of collapse. Any country might try to distract from their domestic issues with a war.” Ramsey paused, then said, “Nine subs have been sunk in the past month. The media is fear-mongering about sea monsters and other nonsense, but Soviet involvement makes a lot more sense.”
“Is it possible that a sea monster sank the Vandenberg?” Zucker asked. He sounded serious.
The rest of the crew was listening closely now.
Ramsey glared at Zucker. “This is not the time for jokes. We’re in a state of emergency.”
Zucker turned to face the sea with a wry grin.
Then the intercom chimed. “CIC to bridge. An unidentified submarine is rapidly approaching the Soviet fleet. Bearing thirteen degrees, distance 49 kilometers (30 miles), depth 1800 meters (5,900 feet), speed 40 knots (46 miles per hour).”
The voice was tense. A ripple of tension passed over the bridge.
“It’s directly behind the Soviet fleet.”
“What?” Zucker asked. He grabbed the intercom. “Bridge to CIC. This submarine isn’t one of ours, is it?”
“No. It’s likely the vessel that sank the Vandenberg.”
Zucker issued orders to the officer next to him. “All anti-submarine helicopters, take off. All vessels, prepare for attack.”
Immediately, the combat alert buzzer sounded. The bridge became a hive of frenzied activity.
Ramsey watched as the anti-submarine helicopters took off. “Our real problems start now. We need to be careful or we’ll find ourselves in combat with the entire Soviet fleet.”
According to the CIC's consolidated report, the Soviet fleet was also in attack formation. The situation was getting worse moment by moment.
“Major, prepare comms. We’re going to talk to the Soviet fleet,” Zucker commanded.
Ramsey stared at Zucker in disbelief. Communicating with the enemy in this situation seemed insane. What is this old geezer thinking? Ramsey thought.
Zucker ignored Ramsey’s confusion and picked up a portable radio that he tuned to a specific frequency. “Do you read me? This is Rear Admiral James Zucker, Commander of Task Force 71.” His Russian was flawless. The crew had never heard him speak it before.
The reply came almost immediately. “This is Rear Admiral Kirill Gondrashin, Commander of the Soviet Pacific Fleet. What is your business, admiral?”
“What’s going on? This is absurd…” Ramsey muttered. He’d thought that Zucker was a moron, but morons couldn’t learn Russian this well.
Zucker proposed a joint attack on the mysterious submarine—the same one that had sunk the Vandenberg. Despite their suspicions that this could be an American plot, the Soviet fleet agreed.
Zucker handed the radio over to Ramsey, giving him a slight smile.
“All right, Major. We’re going to sail in formation with the Soviet fleet.”
Ramsey stood at attention and saluted.
Thirty minutes later, the U.S. and Soviet fleets—arch-rivals though they were—sailed together. Ramsey saw the red Russian flag flying from his seat on Ronald Reagan’s bridge.
Ramsey was deeply moved by Zucker’s boldness and decisiveness.
“But what if this is a Soviet plot, sir?” Ramsey asked.
The mysterious submarine continued to approach, closing to within six kilometers (3.7 miles) without slowing down. There was no communication. No one attacked.
The first move was made by an anti-submarine helicopter, which launched an acoustic homing torpedo. Immediately after, a Soviet-made anti-submarine rocket struck. The sea swelled, and a column of water shot up. The shock of the explosion shook the ships of both fleets. Though the explosion was three kilometers (1.8 miles) ahead, the spray hit the Ronald Reagan’s bridge like a splash from the bottom of Niagara Falls.
“I don’t know if it’s a Soviet plot or not,” Zucker said quietly. “But some things are worth the risk.”
“Do you think we sunk the vessel?” Ramsey asked.
Zucker shook his head. “If it’s a monster, we can’t sink it.”
Before Ramsey could say more, one of the officers on the bridge jumped out of his seat. “The enemy submarine is surfacing! Right in the middle of our fleet and the Soviet fleet!”
Everyone on the bridge looked to the side. The surface of the sea bubbled and swelled upward. A submarine was definitely surfacing. It looked like it had suffered no damage at all.
As the submarine surfaced, its shape came into view. It didn’t look like any submarine Ramsey had seen before. It looked like a horseshoe crab, only gigantic in size.
Ramsey thought he had gone mad. He hadn’t. He saw what everyone else was seeing. The submarine was shaped like a giant sea creature, but it was still a submarine. The black hull was covered with a viscous, transparent resin.
“A monster, like I thought,” Zucker said quietly.
The American and Soviet fleets both witnessed the sudden appearance of this strange submarine. The sight of it killed morale. No one had any idea what they were really looking at. Before anyone thought to attack the thing, it submerged itself again, leaving the area at a speed of 120 knots (138 miles per hour).
The American and Soviet fleets reported what they’d seen to their superior officers, but they were not believed. By good luck, there was video evidence of the strange submarine, so it was impossible to dismiss the reports completely.
The US and Soviet militaries withdrew their troops. The leaders of both sides jointly investigated the horseshoe crab-shaped submarine and discussed countermeasures. They concluded that the culprit had been trying to destabilize America and Russia, perhaps so that they could seize power themselves.
Some people feared that Nazis were experiencing a resurgence. Neither America nor the Soviet Union had forgotten the horrors inflicted on the world by Hitler’s Third Reich. Both nations announced that they would put aside their previous tensions and jointly confront any and all Nazis.
Six days later, Major General James Zucker and Major Donald Ramsey resigned from the United States Navy. Their resignation letters claimed that they were leaving the service due to “personal reasons.”
Out of the 6,000 crew members aboard the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan, 1,192 resigned two days after Zucker and Ramsey did. The Navy’s personnel department was astonished, but there was nothing they could do. All those who resigned had absolute trust and loyalty in Zucker’s leadership.
Something terrible was about to happen.
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