Chapter 67

Eric had passed on details of Salter's plan to be declared president of the OWG. His ambitions and the enormous costs of his proposed palace had to be stopped. When Markov had confirmed that he had taken over the garrison at Brock barracks they were ready to move. Time was of the essence.

The inevitability of his power grab was recognised by them all. Salter had gradually tightened his grip on the OWG until he convinced himself that he was unassailable. Becoming president was the culmination of everything he had worked for. Having absolute control of the world would make Salter a terrifyingly dangerous man.

There was frantic activity at Ryan's headquarters. The unit had to produce two copies of The Military Times. One was a regular copy for inspection by the government's censor and the other was the special copy. Each bundle which was sent out would be topped and tailed with the normal one with the controversial ones hidden in between.

Ryan and Dan had carefully selected the pictures which were to be printed. They would be splashed across the front page. They were going for maximum impact. A headline had been agonised over and they had finally gone with "Salter brings shame on the OWG." It was important that no one missed the fact that he was involved in the scandal.

The photographs featured Nicholas Salter, Alastair Barton and two other members of the inner cabinet. All of them had been caught in compromising situations. Salter was having sex with a teenage boy and Barton was naked with two women. More pictures on the inside pages showed the obscene amounts of food at the party and the groping of the waitresses.

On the front page there was also an editorial piece. It had been decided that the crimes of the ministers had to be explained clearly. There could be no doubt about what was being done and who was involved. Dan had taken on this task and had stolen from historical speeches he could think of.

The editorial read,

It is with regret that we bring to you the photographs which have come into our possession. The Military Times takes its duty to the people of the world seriously and it is not possible to cover up the debauchery of those that lead us.

Some ministers in the OWG, particularly those in the inner cabinet, have no respect for the laws which they themselves create and endorse. Their lives of greed and excess are an affront to every single one of us.

We call on those pictured, Nicholas Salter, Alastair Barton, James Rutherford and Dennis Palisi to resign immediately. They can no longer hope to hold positions of authority under the circumstances.

Join with us to demand that the rot be cut out of the OWG. The people of the world have a right to expect that their leaders be above reproach. If they refuse to leave then we must go out and protest.

We will fight for justice. We will fight the rotten core of the OWG on the streets. We will fight them in the corridors of power. We shall never surrender.

"That should get them going." Ryan said.

All of those who had helped to put the newspaper together were thoroughly sick of seeing the gross images. Nicholas Salter's evil grin and Alastair Barton's flabby naked flesh had tormented them. Any prurient interest in the photographs by the public would soon give way to revulsion.

There was another opinion piece inside the paper. Derek had written an article using information he had gleaned from the medical records of the inner cabinet members. Alastair Barton was outed as a wife beater and the unfortunate minister who had contracted a sexually transmitted disease was named and shamed.

There was a paragraph about Salter's preference for boys. It noted that his wife had died shortly after giving birth to their only child. It had been expedient that she had gone from his life leaving him free to associate with men which was his preference. The inference that Salter had got rid of her was quite clear.

The pictures of the food piled up on the tables were shocking in their own way. Members of the leadership class would rarely have seen such luxuries. The labour class would be outraged at the profligacy of those in charge. They probably knew that the privileged had more than them, but this was something else entirely.

The cartoon strip carried on the theme. Super Sergeant was looming over a cowering Nicholas Salter who was depicted as naked except for a strategically placed OWG logo. The bubble containing Super Sergeant's words read "Do the right thing Salter, go now." George had captured the slightly psychotic grin of the leader of the government perfectly.

Everything was set. Markov was in place. The next 24 hours would be dramatic and dangerous. Timing was everything. Copies of the paper had been sent around the globe. All the people of the world would be opening their copies of The Military Times on the same day. Salter would not be able to stop the publication or recall editions. It was too late.

General Markov had been stunned by the lack of discipline on his first visit to Brock Barracks. There appeared to be no real leadership with the men left to their own devices. He had been in uniform, but no one knew him personally. He had not been asked for identification or questioned about why he was there.

His rank of General should have seen soldiers jumping to attention. Instead there were hasty salutes and an air of confusion as they tried to locate whoever was supposed to be in charge. A couple of sergeants took the initiative and exerted control and he was ushered to a room to await a senior officer.

The troops were summoned to the parade ground where they arranged themselves in rows ready for inspection. Even given the excuse of it being a surprise visit, the turnout was shambolic. Markov moved along the ranks, his face set in a grimace. He stopped occasionally and asked a soldier what their role was. How long had they been at the barracks? What were their responsibilities?

Markov had taken over the running of the barracks and protection of the government. He moved some of his key personnel with him. He needed to get the soldiers on his side as quickly as possible. His team would help him do this. When he gave the order to march into the OWG offices he had to know that they were with him.

The men at the barracks had become idle and aimless. They would not admit it, but they desperately needed some discipline. When the general had been put in charge they had been relieved. They wanted someone to issue orders and get things organised. Before Markov arrived, many had tidied themselves up, haircuts and uniforms, in preparation.

A series of punishments and rewards let the soldiers know how the barracks were going to be run. The new man in control was not a tyrant. He was strict, but fair. Everyone knew where they stood and what their duties were. Markov's men were introducing a new regime to the base.

As the new officers changed the attitudes of their troops they kept an eye out for the troublemakers. Anyone who might cause a problem was reassigned or redeployed. All of this was done in a short period of time. The revelatory newspaper would be issued soon and Salter was pushing to become president. They could not hang around.

NCOs and regular soldiers had been brought in, too. They slotted into the garrison and were able to test the mood of the men. The general who had been there before had been roundly criticised and Markov was generally preferred. His command had been accepted, but what did they think about the OWG.

Conversations were started which would provoke discussions on the subject. The soldiers talked about their duty of guarding the government. It was just that, a duty. They had no idea who most of the ministers were. They were names not individuals. They all seemed to be aware of Salter however.

The war in South America had been an indication of how reckless the government was with its army. Those within the military knew that the generals, Markov was the exception, had been careless with their planning. They also knew that the OWG did not care about the loss of life. All they wanted was their victory. The images in The Military Times of Salter pinning medals on the incompetent officers had been galling to most.

The soldiers would follow Markov's orders. Many of them would not question the directive to arrest ministers. Those that might be reluctant would surely be swayed once they had seen the pictures in the newspaper. Then the troops would be galvanised and would know that they were doing their duty.

"They are ready." General Markov confirmed.

Ryan and Dan had started the distribution of the papers as soon as they heard those words. They were now at the point where The Military Times would be handed out the next day. Dan paced back and forth in Ryan's office whilst his friend ticked off items on a list. They had done everything that they could.