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Chapter Text

"If you, who are growing up, do not understand that you have to defend this, then in the end, we will lose. Other people will come, smack you down and take over." - Singapore's First Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, speaking in 1967 on the importance of National Service.

"Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training Singapore 2010 [Image 2 of 2]" by

PO2 Eric Cutright, US Navy, identified by DVIDS, is licensed under the Public Domain. 

Area of Operations - Republic of Singapore Navy

Map created using Google My Maps and Google Drawing. 

RSS Stalwart

Exact Location Classified, South China Sea 

Local time 1840 hours

All was quiet on the bridge of the RSS Stalwart as she steamed through the warm choppy waters of the South China Sea. Night was rapidly approaching and in the distance, dark fluffy clouds were gathering overhead, along with the rumblings of what could soon be a heavy downpour. 

The atmosphere on the bridge was, however, tense as the crew manned their stations. Perhaps it was the result of them knowing what could happen in the next 24 hours as they sailed into the South China Sea, nearing the Southern portion of the Spratly Islands to monitor Chinese fleet movements. Before they left Changi, they had been briefed on the imminent war with China and the foreknowledge that they were the first in harm's way created a serious and sombre mood over what was once a cheerful and bubbly crew. 

Nevertheless, their training in the Navy had prepared them for such an occasion, for they were able to bottle up their emotions and focus on their current tasks and responsibilities. But, some could not help but wonder whether they would be able to see their loved ones and families again. 

In the meantime, located near the central area of the bridge, in between the navigation station on the right and the weapons station on the left, the Officer of the Watch (OOW), Second Lieutenant Lo Shu Qi, was nestled in the captain’s chair, watching on as the ship continued its journey. As the OOW, she had full responsibility of coordinating the crew on the bridge and making sure they didn't crash head on to any other obstacles, such as other ships, while in the absence of both the Captain and the First Officer (XO). 

“Ma’am, Nav reports no close contacts. Nearest surface contacts are 3 civilian ships, Royal Malaysian Navy ship KD Maharaja Lela and 2 fishing boats. Closest contacts are 15 nautical miles out (or 27 km),” the navigational officer reported. 

“Very good. Keep me posted on any sudden movements,” Shu Qi said. 

“Yes ma’am.” 

Looking around the bridge as the 28-year old patiently waited to complete her shift on the bridge, which wouldn’t end for another 4 hours, she couldn’t help but think of what might come next as they proceeded deeper into hostile territory. Nobody knew Singapore and China, both Chinese-majority countries, would experience such a dive in bilateral relations, especially since many Singaporeans and Chinese alike had relatives in either country, like Shu Qi. She wasn’t even able to say her goodbyes to her grandparents before the Ministry of Communications and Information shut down all Internet traffic with China and banned the use of Chinese apps, citing national security concerns. 

Furthermore, on the military side of the issue, the Chinese Navy had grown significantly in strength and capabilities in the last decade, allowing them to threaten even the most advanced and powerful navies in the region, including Japan and the United States. In the aftermath of the Taiwan Reunification, the Chinese had also significantly expanded their presence in the Spratly Islands, and together with rumours of the Chinese fleet being spotted in the Spratly Islands, they could only mean one thing — war is imminent and very soon the press of a button would determine whether they live or die. 

Keeping that grim thought in mind, her thoughts shifted to a quick reflection of her service in the Navy thus far. Having achieved the rank of Second Lieutenant, Shu Qi had only been in the Navy for 4 years, spending most of her first year in Basic Military Training and later, furthering her studies and training in the United States for most of her second and third year. In total, she had only been on two deployments to sea, once aboard a training vessel and another aboard the littoral combat ship RSS Sovereignty . Now on her third deployment — and her first combat one, she still had some doubts about her experience and abilities — whether her studies in the States and all of her training thus far were sufficient to prepare her for what’s next. She did realise, though, that literally nobody in the entire Singapore Armed Forces had actual combat experience as Singapore has never been at war since her independence in 1965, and despite having participated in a few overseas deployments for peacekeeping operations, never once fired in anger. Or at least that’s what is publicly known.

Everyone’s in the same boat as me… how ironic. Maybe—

Her thoughts were momentarily interrupted by the soft thumping of boots approaching fast behind her. Turning her chair around, she quickly identified the 33-year old Captain, Mark Yeo, whose reddish-brown hair with strands of white was a dead giveaway. Instinctively, she rose from her seat and saluted. 

“Captain on the bridge!” 

Mark returned the gesture. “As you were, lieutenant.” 

Shu Qi sat back down and swivelled the chair around, facing the front of the bridge while Mark joined her at the side. 

“How are things going on? Nothing much so far?” Mark asked. 

“Boring as usual, sir. The Malaysian ship is still hanging around nearby. Although I’m sure they are also not too happy about the Chinese loitering near their waters,” Shu Qi replied. 

“Good. If only we can get them on our side…” 

“What good would that do, sir? The Chinese would still overwhelm us, especially with their superior missiles and aircraft.” 

“Well, it's still better to die with friends rather than dying alone.” 

“Good point, sir. Do you think the Chinese will actually attack us?” 

“I don’t think my opinion matters, lieutenant. It’s all up to the guys on top to decide. But I’m damn sure they will because this time, nobody other than us is standing in their way. Not even the US or our good friend the British. Times have changed, sadly.” 

A silent moment ensued as Mark allowed his remark to sink in, while also appreciating the state of tranquillity that was present on the bridge. It was a rare opportunity, as the captain of the ship under wartime pressures, to be able to spend some time in silence without having to respond to every call, email or report. 

“I think that will be all, lieutenant. Keep up the good work, and make sure we don’t bang into anything. If you need me, I’ll be in my room,” Mark patted her chair, before turning around and promptly exited the bridge. 

The way back to the captain’s quarters wasn’t long. After climbing down some flights of stairs, greeting crew members as he passed, he arrived at his room which was in the crew quarters located towards the stern of the ship. For redundancy purposes, the Commanding Officer (or the Captain) has his bunk in the main crew quarters at the stern of the ship, while the First Officer (or the Executive Officer) has his bunk in the secondary crew quarters at the bow of the ship. In the event of an attack on one of the crew quarters, at the very least one of the senior officers would still be alive. 

However, that wasn’t on Mark’s mind as he entered his room and began setting up his work table, which mainly consisted of a laptop and some stationery and paper. His mind was now set on the tasks that awaited him — clearing a stack of important emails. 

Once his laptop was energised and sprung to life, he opened up his email app and began sifting through them. He was fortunate enough to have the hindsight to make sure he opened his email while he was at port, since they were now travelling at EMCON Alpha (Emissions Control), which prohibits any unnecessary and unofficial transmitting of data from the ship. Everyone had to surrender their personal devices to the Master Chief for safekeeping for the duration of their deployment.

There were over 40 emails to read, some were just brief, short orders issued by Command that were now obsolete, some were words of encouragement and well wishes from his superiors, others were notifications for the Navy’s Open House, boring reports made by the various departments during their routine inspections. In fact, many of them were days, if not weeks old, except the top few. One of them, though, caught his attention, which was titled: INTELLIGENCE REPORT_MAY 25. Curious, he opened it and here’s what it showed: 

INTELLIGENCE REPORT

NO. 8975, DATE: MAY 25, 2030 

PUBLISHED BY THE DIGITAL AND INTELLIGENCE SERVICE (DIS)

INTELLIGENCE GATHERING ON CHINESE SOUTH SEA FLEET MOVEMENTS

The Digital and Intelligence Service has obtained first-hand actionable intelligence on the movements of the Chinese South Sea Fleet, also known officially as the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) South Sea Fleet. The intelligence data and analysis gathered (which are up to date as of 25 May 2030) is as follows: 

1. US surveillance systems operating in and around the South China Sea have detected the Chinese aircraft carrier Shanghai and her battle group operating in the Spratly Islands.
2. Malaysian and Indonesian intelligence sources have confirmed the additional deployment of Chinese air force and navy aircraft in the Spratly Islands, along with heightened aerial activity near Royal Malaysian Air Force bases in Sabah and Sarawak.
3. Satellite imagery confirms the additional deployment of air and naval assets in Chinese-controlled Spratly Islands bases, with most island air bases packed with combat aircraft under camouflage nets. These islands include the Fiery Cross Reef, Subi Reef and Mischief Reef. At least 150 aircraft and over 45 ships are visible on satellite imagery in the Spratly Islands. DIS believes there to be more as many satellite images were obscured by cloud cover.

THIS IS AN INTELLIGENCE REPORT AND NOT A STATEMENT OF ORGANISATION POLICY

RESTRICTED SECURITY 

INFORMATION

Upon finishing the report, Mark shook his head. Until now, he didn’t realise the Americans were actively sharing intelligence with the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), although they had been told that the Malaysians and Indonesians were actively cooperating with Singapore by passing real-time intelligence and information to the SAF. However, if what the details written on the report were true, then they were in big trouble — it would not be long before the first Chinese aircraft or navy ship would appear on the radar and war could be declared within minutes. In addition, even though the RSS Valour — a missile corvette, was escorting her, both ships were ill-equipped to handle a blue-water navy, one that is equipped with aircraft carriers and destroyers. Realistically, they would be easily swatted aside like bugs if the Chinese decided to attack. 

Keeping that in mind, he continued reading through his emails, hoping that they’ll distract him from whatever might come next. 

"717 Fokker 50 Singapore Air Force" by Steven Byles is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. 

Hydra 4-0 

Exact Location Classified, 3,000 metres above the South China Sea 

Local time 1900 hours

Flying some distance above the clouds, shielding it from possible eyes on the surface, a lone pale-coloured twin-engine turboprop aircraft sliced through the sky, heading deeper into the South China Sea. However, looks can be deceiving. Even though the Fokker 50 was built originally for civilian purposes, the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) had converted the civilian airliner into a maritime patrol aircraft, installing external sensors, an onboard radar system to track surface ships; added wing pylons for missiles and repurposed its spacious cabin into a command and control room. While not on maritime patrol duty, the aircraft with its large cargo space could be repurposed for transport. But, for this lone Fokker 50 travelling over the South China Sea, transporting logistics was not its current mission as two AGM-84A Harpoon anti-ship missiles were attached to both weapon pylons. 

In the main cabin of the Fokker 50, codenamed as Hydra 4-0 , 3 crew members were seated and staring at their respective computer screens. Apart from the pilot and co-pilot seated at the front, the other crew members aboard included a Radar System Operator (RSO), a Weapons System Operator (WSO) to operate the Harpoon missiles and an Overall Tactical Supervisor (OTS) to supervise the crew and coordinate with other friendly assets. 

Some form of silence existed in the cabin, despite the loud whirring of the propeller blades while the crew worked at their consoles; that’s why everyone onboard were wearing noise-cancelling headsets so they could hear who was speaking. 

So far, on the screens, there was nothing out of the ordinary. The South China Sea is an extremely busy waterway, being a critical trade route connecting the East with the West. Thus, on the RSO’s computer screen, hundreds of yellow dots of various sizes dotted the screen — the size of the dot is relative to the size of an object’s radar signature. Screening those dots and radar signatures with a list of known surface objects based on past data and data shared by other countries, the RSO had not seen any Chinese warships. Yet. 

“OTS, uh, RSO here.”

“OTS here.” 

“OTS, I’m seeing a cluster of radar contacts just at the edge of detection range, some are mobile and some are stationary. Bearing 0-8-5. Possibly Chinese.” 

“RSO, can you confirm? Check those contacts with the intelligence data provided by the Americans.” 

“Gimme a minute sir.” 

The RSO then began selecting the new radar contacts and vetting their radar signatures with a data sheet provided by the US Navy. It was not the first time they had used data provided by foreign countries, as they had often done so as part of anti-piracy operations within ASEAN waters. Roughly a minute later, the RSO realised the radar signature of the contacts matched those of Chinese ships. Destroyers, frigates and even an aircraft carrier now appeared on the screen, closing within 300 kilometres of the tiny Singaporean flotilla.

“Uh, OTS, RSO here. New radar contacts are identified as Chinese warships. I have a Chinese aircraft carrier, several destroyers, frigates and other ships on the screen. A full carrier battle group, sir.” 

“What the hell,” the WSO cursed. “We’re really going to war is it?” 

The OTS quickly got off from his seat and scrambled over to see the radar contacts for himself. 

“Shit.” 

“What is it, sir?” the RSO asked, turning to look at the OTS, who loomed over his seat. 

“That’s an entire assault force. We have to call this in. Our orders are to keep our distance to a maximum from any Chinese task force,” the OTS replied, a finger on his chin. “And if necessary… hold them back to buy our guys at home extra time to prep.” 

The OTS then went over to his station and tuned the frequency of the radio to that of the Stalwart. 

“Starry, Starry, this is Hydra 4-0. Do you read me, over?” 

Seconds later, a female voice came over the radio. 

“Hydra 4-0, this is Starry. We read you loud and clear.” 

“Starry, this is Hydra 4-0. We have picked up a Chinese carrier battle group heading your way. Based on our orders, we advise you guys to stay around for another hour before heading back towards home.”

“Roger that, Hydra 4-0. Thanks for the intel. Is there anything el—” 

“Sir, new high-speed contacts on screen!” the RSO called out, unable to mask the panic in his voice. “Bearing 0-9-5! Chinese aircraft and supersonic missiles!” 

“Starry, this is Hydra 4-0. Update: Chinese aircraft and supersonic cruise missiles are inbound on your position. I repeat, we are at war. We are at war. Do you read?” the OTS said, having faith in what his RSO had just reported. There was no time to double check the radar contacts or whether there was an error in the system itself as the Chinese missiles blinked across the screen towards the two-ship Singapore Navy formation, travelling at Mach 0.8 or 0.8 times the speed of sound. Any more delay and both ships would be hit by the missiles. 

The line momentarily fell silent, and the OTS exchanged looks with the RSO, who shook his head. Both officers by now were sweating profusely, with sweat dripping from their hair and faces as they struggled to contain their emotions. 

“Hydra 4-0, this is Starry. We read you loud and clear. Thanks for the heads up. We’ll keep this line open for as long as we can. For the moment, we’ll be getting our hands full.” 

“No problem. Good luck down there, Starry.” 

The OTS then muted his microphone and headed over to the WSO’s station.

“WSO, need you to arm the Harpoons and obtain a targeting solution on the nearest Chinese warship. Once you get it, I want you to fire both Harpoons.” 

“Sir?” The WSO turned to look at the OTS, wanting confirmation of his orders. The weight of his actions could now be cleanly felt, as firing the two missiles would mean an act of war. 

“You heard me,” the OTS replied. “That’s an order. We’re at war now, and I want you to fire those missiles. If we don’t, people are gonna die.” 

“Yes sir,” the WSO reluctantly replied. 

The OTS sighed and shook his head, then cycled through the radio to another frequency.

“Command, this is Hydra 4-0 . We have engaged the enemy. I say again, we have engaged the enemy.”

RSS Stalwart

Exact Location Classified, South China Sea 

At the same time

Captain Mark Yeo sat at his seat in his cabin, looking through his mission briefs and other reports on his laptop. 

Observe Chinese fleet movements and maintain a maximum distance from Chinese ships as far as possible . 

Do not engage Chinese ships, even when provoked.

Mark chuckled, wondering whether they had been tasked to act as mere tripwires in the event war was declared. If so, then everyone aboard had just embarked on their shared journey into hell. 

Such sacrifice , Mark thought to himself as he glanced at the photo frame sitting on his desk. 

It was a picture of his family, with his wife seated at his side and his two daughters, aged 9 and 10, standing at the front. Everyone was smiling, with their pristine white teeth almost glistening in the picture. He reached out and touched the photo frame, feeling its smooth, plastic edges. His lips broke into a smile as he thought of the times spent with his family but it quickly faded as he was reminded of the day when he left Changi. His entire family along with his grandparents were there at the naval base to wish him well and watch him depart. He’ll never forget the tears and the faces twisted in sadness, especially those of his kids who were too young to appreciate the full value and rationale behind his work.  

It was then that his emotions and thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the sweet beeping over the intercoms.

“Captain Mark, this is PWO Seng Hee. Your presence is urgently required in CIC. I repeat, Captain Mark, this is PWO Seng Hee. Your presence is urgently required in CIC.” 

Almost immediately, the captain’s expressions hardened and he closed his laptop, getting off his chair and proceeded to the door. At the same time, someone opened the door, nearly ramming into his face. 

“Who’s there?” Mark demanded. “You nearly smacked my face you know?” 

“Sorry, sir!” Janice Lee, the ship’s First Officer or XO, apologised, smiling sheepishly. “I came to get you, sir. We’re under attack.” 

“What do you mean under attack?” Mark asked. 

“Sorry, sir. We aren’t under attack. Not yet,” Janice clarified as she and the captain strode down the corridor, and then climbed down a flight of stairs. “The Air Force recon plane flying above us has detected a Chinese carrier battle group heading towards us. Based on our current orders, we have to turn away in about an hour to avoid a potential escalation of the situation, but we are within weapons range.” 

“ Our weapons range?”

“No, sir. Theirs .” 

“Shit. Quick, we have to get to CIC, on the double!” The sudden realisation that the Chinese ships or aircraft flying above could fire at them any moment now hit Mark, his heart thumping faster and adrenaline flowing through his system. 

“Yes sir!” Janice called out from behind. 

After running down a corridor, nearing its halfway point, they turned and entered the CIC, which stands for the Combat Information Centre. The CIC is essentially the central nervous system of a ship, where information is gathered, analysed and disseminated and also where most of the ship’s weaponry are controlled from, especially the ship’s missile interceptors that would shoot down any hostile missiles or aircraft that threatens the ship. 

Inside the darkened CIC, which was purposefully done so to allow the crew in the room to have a clear look at their computer displays, about 20 personnel were seated at their posts, and a few including the Principal Warfare Officer (PWO) who supervises the entire CIC and the Cluster Chief of Anti-Air Warfare (AAW) who is responsible for all personnel related to the detection of aerial contacts and firing of the ship’s surface-to-air missiles were standing about, leaning over crewmen and women as they examined their computer displays. 

The PWO, ME5 (Military Expert 5) Kang Seng Hee was the first to spot the captain entering CIC, who helped him and the XO to their own headsets. 

“Captain! Sir, the Air Force bird in the air has reported multiple incoming hostile contacts. They should be within our radar range in the next 10 seconds,” Seng Hee said. 

“What’s the nature of the contacts?” Mark asked as he placed his headset on and moved over to the big screen at the centre of the CIC, which displayed a large electronic map of the surrounding area, with real-time data of surface and aerial contacts shown on the screen at their approximate locations. 

“Cruise missiles, sir,” Seng Hee answered. 

“What the hell?” Mark replied in disbelief. “Is the Valour aware of our current situation?” 

“Yes, we have relayed the information to them.” 

“Sir, RSO here! We have incoming fast-movers, designated as 5 Chinese YJ-83s and 10 Chinese fighters of unknown variants!” one of the crew members from the AAW department called out. 

“Time?” Mark asked.

“Sir?”

“I meant time to impact.” 

“Oh, uh, thirty seconds, sir. First missile will hit us in roughly forty seconds at their current speed and course. Enemy aircraft are still out of range of our missiles, sir,” the crew member replied. “Sorry, sir.” 

“It’s alright, kiddo, we’re now at war,” Mark said as he grabbed a handset from the table and opened a shipwide channel. “Attention all hands, this is the captain. Set general quarters, set general quarters, set general quarters. We are under attack! Bridge, OOW, take over from here.”

The captain replaced the handset in its receiver before moving over to the centre of CIC with the PWO and XO at his side. Seconds later, the familiar alarm began blaring throughout the ship, warning all personnel to head to their quarters or their respective battle stations. 

“PWO, you have the floor,” Mark said, and Sang Hee nodded. 

“AAW, launch interceptors, one per incoming missile.”

“AAW, be prepared to follow up with another volley should the intercepts fail. And get our electronic warfare suite up and running,” Mark added. He remembered from the back of his mind that Chinese missiles were designed to rush at the terminal stage of their flight profile, pushing themselves to supersonic speeds, which would complicate the probabilities of interception and possibly distort the frigate’s onboard detection systems. 

“Aye sir!” came the reply. 

With the press of a few buttons, Aster 30 missiles, missiles intended to shoot down hostile missiles or aircraft, began blasting away from the frigate’s forward vertical launch cells, the vibrations of which could be felt in CIC, even though it was located deep within the ship. 

“Birds away… all missiles are active, no abnormalities,” one of the AAW crew reported. “First interception in ten seconds.” 

The trio of senior officers watched on the screen with immense trepidation and eagerness, silently hoping that the missiles would be intercepted before they hit the frigate. Blue dots moved rapidly away from the frigate, designated as the missile interceptors while red dots moving towards the frigate were designated as hostile cruise missiles. It was like a video game, except that any one wrong move, and everyone onboard — all 90 of them — would be engulfed in a fiery death. 

Ten long seconds later, the blue and red dots began merging with each other on the screen, representing successful intercepts. However, one of the blue dots failed to connect with a red one and the red one continued on its way. Seconds later, though, it disappeared. 

“Sir, we have four successful intercepts!” the same AAW crewmember reported. “Final missile appeared to have malfunctioned and crashed into the sea. Possibly due to electronic countermeasures.” 

“Good work!” Sang Hee gave the crew an encouraging thumbs up. “Continue scanning for threats. They’ll surely send more soon.” 

“Captain, sir, the CO of the Valour wants to speak to you,” one of the communications officers called out. 

“Redirect it to my headset,” Mark ordered.

“Mark, Mark, are you there?” a familiar voice burst through his headset. 

“Yes, Mark here. How are you holding out?” 

“We’re doing fine. Thanks for propping up an umbrella for us,” Henry Tan, Captain of the RSS Valour, replied. 

“Anytime,” Mark replied. “So, what are you calling about?” 

“You haven’t heard anything from Command yet, right?” 

“No, I haven’t. Have you?” 

“Same here. No declaration of war, nothing. This must be a surprise attack. Comms seem to be jammed. No way to send or receive messages from Command.” 

“Yea, it seems like the Chinese are one step ahead of us. What do you suggest, Henry?” 

“Well since we’re at war now, the most logical solution is to fire all of our Harpoon missiles at the enemy ships and try to inflict as much damage as we can and get the hell out of here. How’s your magazine holding up?” 

“We still have enough missiles for the moment.” 

“Alright. I guess you’re onboard with the plan?” 

“Yes. There’s nothing else we can do. We’ll fire all 8 Harpoons, 4 per ship. Should give them something to worry about while we try to exit the battlefield.” 

“Sir, RSO here!” the same RSO from the AAW department called out. “I’m seeing a new wave of contacts, 6 fast-movers designated as Chinese J-15 fighter jets are closing in on us!” 

“Well, I guess you got to go,” Henry said, realising what was going on. “Good luck.” 

“Yeah. Good luck and good hunting. Mark, out,” Mark replaced the radio mouthpiece back at its holder before turning his attention back to the battle screen. “Weapons, get me a target solution of the two nearest Chinese ships! Once you get it, launch all Harpoons, 4 on each target.” 

“Yes sir!” came the reply. 

“Sir, we have more high-speed contacts on their way. 12 anti-ship missiles inbound!” the RSO called out again.

“AAW, launch interceptors, 1 on each missile!” Sang Hee called out. “Sonar dept, go to active and start sweeping for subs.” 

“Sir, do you think the Harpoons will work?” Janice asked, while watching as blue arrows appeared on the screen representing Harpoon anti-ship missiles and the deck plates shuddered from the launching of multiple missiles simultaneously from the front and central portion of the ship. Unlike the Aster 30 missiles, the Harpoon missiles were kept in canisters located at the central portion of the ship, hidden behind walls sprayed with radar-absorbent materials to preserve the frigate’s stealthy design. “Those Chinese ships do have some formidable air defence systems.” 

“Janice, I don’t think we should get ahead of ourselves,” Mark replied. “There’s a barrage of missiles incoming and the best thing we can do is to do the same in reply. Whether it works or not — we might not even be here to see it.” 

“Sir, sonar reports no close contacts,” one of the members from the ASW department reported. 

“Sir, we’ve got incoming! 3 targets splashed, 9 more still on their way! Time to impact, 15 seconds! Oh wait-” the RSO called out, panic now evident in his voice. 

“AAW, launch interceptors now! 1 per missile!” Sang Hee ordered. 

“Captain, we’re going to run out of missiles at this point. Should I inform the bridge to change course?” Janice asked. Mark nodded in agreement and Janice quickly got to work, grabbing the handset from above and informing the bridge of their change in course. 

“Sir!” Sang Hee urgently called out. “Our missiles are ineffective, 10 missiles are still on their way!”

“Sir, I believe the Chinese are employing some sophisticated electronic warfare system which is jamming and confusing the internal sensors of our interceptors. There’s no way I can counteract that,” one of the crew members from the electronic warfare department added.

“Shit!” Mark swore as he slammed a console with a fist. The Chinese had outsmarted them, and worse, outgunned them. It was a trap after all.

“Holy shit! Sir, we have 3 missiles converging on the Valour!” 

Some 12 kilometres to the North-West of the Stalwart, the RSS Valour was left to fend for itself after the Stalwart’s interceptors failed to shoot down the remaining 10 missiles. In quick succession, Barak surface-to-air-missiles raced out of their launch tubes, rushing to meet their foe that were now travelling at supersonic speeds. Within seconds, 7 Chinese missiles were destroyed in several fireballs just above the water, and the crew of the Valour cheered on. However, the remaining 3 missiles were able to slip through her defences and smashed into 3 different locations in its superstructure, tearing the ship apart as secondary explosions caused by its onboard munitions ravaged whatever that remained. From a live camera feed on the Stalwart, all they could see was a bright flash of light and what seemed like a burning candle far out at sea. 

Everyone in CIC stared at the large screen at the centre of the room in shock, not believing that their comrades, some 57 of them, had perished in seconds. Nobody could have survived such a huge explosion. However, they had no time to mourn the loss of their comrades as another wave of missiles arrived. 

“Sir! Additional incomings, bearing 0-9-2! 10 more anti-ship missiles launched from the Chinese ships!” the RSO shouted across the room. 

Quietly in his mind, Mark did the maths. There weren’t enough missiles left aboard the Stalwart to stop them all. They would have to absorb some hits, which could potentially be fatal. 

“Launch all interceptors!” Mark ordered, and nodded at Sang Hee, who was still wiping sweat off his face. The stress and heat of the battle had taken a toll on him, even though it had only been 10 minutes and the room was fully air conditioned.

“All birds away, we’re winchester!” Sang Hee announced and turned to look at the captain with fear in his eyes. “We’re defenceless now.” 

“Captain, we have to get out of here,” Janice added calmly and swallowed hard. It seems that everyone in the room was still in shock by what happened just seconds ago. 

“Shit!” Sang Hee cursed as he examined the screen once again. “Incoming missiles, bearing 0-9-0! 6 missiles remaining! Time to impact, fifteen seconds!” 

“Brace for impact!” Mark yelled as he grabbed onto the sides of a table and watched as the red dots blinked towards the Stalwart on the battle management screen, while his XO ran over to the comms panel and began making a shipwide announcement. 

“All hands, all hands, this is the XO speaking. We have incoming missiles, incoming missiles, brace, brace, brace!” 

The remaining 6 missiles increased speed as they closed the distance rapidly, igniting their final fuel reserves and accelerating their engines to supersonic speeds. Aster 30 missiles from the Stalwart splashed 2 of them, but were unable to intercept the rest — thanks to the effects of the electronic warfare systems employed by the Chinese ships and aircraft in the area. With the missiles now seconds away, there was nothing the Stalwart could do to stop them. 

The first missile, the closest to the grey, stealthy hulk floating in the ocean, fell short of its target, crashing into the sea instead, possibly spoofed by the Stalwart’s own electronic countermeasures. The second and third ones, however, were not easily fooled and smashed into the hangar area, destroying the onboard helicopter and causing secondary explosions as the fires reached the torpedo compartment and detonated them. Almost immediately, 20 crewmen and women had perished, while damage control teams scrambled to fight the fires. 

Unfortunately, the attack was not yet over. The fourth missile was launched from a different angle and instead of targeting the hangar, the fourth missile went straight for the main missile magazine and the resulting explosion tore through nearly 20 metres of steel deck plating. With such a big gash in the hull of the ship, sea water began rapidly gushing in, short-circuiting the exposed electrical conduits and forcing the ship’s engine to grind to a halt. Lights flickered off, and computer screens went blank. 

In the distance, the enemy, having wounded its prey, was relentless. 10 more missiles were fired from surface warships and submarines that now dared to fire without fear of being countered. Minutes later, all 10 missiles sliced through various parts of the ship — while crewmen and women aboard were in the process of fighting fires, treating the wounded and evacuating the ship. With the radar systems offline, nobody knew what was heading for them. 

20 minutes after the battle began, two burning hulks remained on the ocean, while dozens of Chinese warships steamed towards them, victorious in their first battle against the Singapore military. Within a span of just 20 minutes, 2 of Singapore’s most capable and technologically advanced warships had been sunk, along with 139 crew lost at sea — nobody survived. Their families and friends would only be notified of their deaths more than 48 hours later — if they had any surviving family members.

Fortunately, the Harpoon missiles launched by the Singaporean aircraft and ships managed to score some hits, heavily damaging a frigate while disabling another destroyer’s radar systems, albeit at a heavy cost of 2 warships lost. 

In the meantime, in the skies above, hundreds of kilometres away from the battlefield, a lone patrol aircraft swept around almost 180 degrees, heading towards its home on mainland Singapore while continually relaying live tactical data back to its headquarters. The Sino-Singaporean conflict had only just begun. 

To be continued…

Chapter Text

Writing in progress...

Will update as soon as I can...