King of All I Survey-Chapter 164: Introducing Radiation Shields

"Now, if you will excuse me, I have other urgent matters to attend to." I continued standing there looking at the camera for about one second more until the green light on the camera switched to red.

Then, I looked away and saw a horrified Khaled Abadi staring at me. I raised my eyebrows curiously, inviting him to say what he had on his mind.

"Look, I understand that you removed the Russians from inside the plant, somehow. I would not have thought it could be done. That was bad enough, but now you have directly called Volkov a criminal and demanded his arrest. He will not hesitate to break open a reactor or cut-off the power to let it melt-down. I spoke with the Russian staff here, before you took them. They were very clear that there is no limit to his desire to hurt the Ukrainians for defying him. The Ukrainian attacks into Russia have stoked his fury, now this? What defenses do you have? If Russians are still patrolling outside, you can’t have anti-aircraft placements outside. He WILL bomb this place if he thinks he can’t retake it. And what’s that posturing with the UN, you know Russia has veto power over anything the Security Council does. What are you trying to accomplish? This is madness!"

I stood and listened patiently until he ran out of steam, nodding as he made each declaration. "Khaled, my friend, I will remain here to show you how safe I believe it to be. I assure you that no Russian soldier, bullet, tank, aircraft, or missile can enter or harm any building on these grounds. We are going to be flying your IAEA crew in with several helicopters. Likewise, I assure you they will be safe and completely protected while they land on the rooftop of the Turbine Buildings."

Judging from his face he was not convinced. "They have explosive on the roofs of two of the reactors as insurance against losing control. They will use them. The Ukrainian workers who stayed here to keep the plant operating safely, have been terrorized! As they shut down the reactors, fewer personnel were needed. They disappeared. Sent to Russia as prisoners! One who objected to the lack of safety protocols at the plant was beaten to death in front of everyone. There are over 100 military vehicles filling the turbine halls. Russia used it as a military vehicle, weapon and ammo depot because it could not be attacked. They will assault the buildings tonight, especially after your statement. There are still more five thousand Ukrainian technicians on site, who have been working to keep the plant safe. Over ten thousand volunteered to stay and keep the plant from melting down as they Russians moved into the surrounding countryside and onto the grounds. Half were taken away over time. We don’t know if they are dead or in Russian prisons."

Again, I listened and nodded. "We have taken care of the explosives and other booby traps around the buildings. There is no threat. I apologize that I didn’t know about the technicians that have been removed. I will get our people on it right away. We will find them. If they are still alive, we will bring them back to Ukraine. The crimes committed by those Russians we removed will be put into the public record and those responsible will be held accountable. The Russian equipment that is stored here will be turned over to the Ukrainians. We have the means to deliver it to them safely."

I could see him building up a new set of objections. I held up a finger to forestall him.

"Friend Khaled, I appreciate that you have been under a great deal of stress here. I thank you for your service under such difficult circumstances. I have not lightly undertaken the mission of making Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant safe inside a war zone. We have the means to defend both it and the personnel inside the plant including the delivery of food and supplies necessary to support the entire staff. Please, I would ask you to not undermine the confidence of the staff in our security precautions. Walk with me, and we will calmly discuss any concerns you have. If there is anything, like the Ukrainian technicians taken away as prisoners, that I have overlooked, we will address them together."

I started a mental conversation with Joe, Joe, find the Ukrainian prisoners removed from this plant. While you’re at it, find every Ukrainian prisoner held by the Russians. I want every single one rescued by LITV ASAP. Plan it and take the necessary measures ensure they have no chance to execute any remaining prisoners if we have to do it in waves. Bring Zaporizhzhia technicians back here inside the plant. Coordinate with Dovzhenko for some place to bring the others. Arrange for family reunions, especially for those taken from here. List the names of any killed and provide it to Dovzhenko with my suggestion for him to offer condolences and some national honor for those technicians who volunteered to stay and keep the nuclear plant safe even as the Russians took over. Universal Earth Concord will provide pensions for the families of the deceased. Also ask Dovzhenko where he wants the Russian equipment delivered, send him a full inventory of what’s here.

Acknowledged.

I turned my attention back to Abidi, "Why don’t you give me a tour and we can talk. My best people are looking into the whereabouts of the missing technicians. We’ll find them and I promise you, we will get them back."

Abidi turned his head to looka t me quizzically as we walked down the hallway away from the control room. "How can you do all this? Are you CIA or working for the Americans?"

"No. I was born in the United States, but my organization is independent of any country. I make the decisions as I see fit, without pressure from any nation. We have supporters who have helped fund us from the start, private people from different countries, but now we are able to generate funds enough without outside support."

"Why?" freewebnøvel_com

I put my hand on his shoulder, "Because it’s the right thing to do, my friend. You’ve seen what happens in war. I decided that it needs to stop. I started with the drug cartels in South and Central America, and now I am here. Our early success has led to a number of requests for assistance from many different countries, but I need to make sure I don’t stretch myself too thin, too quickly."

"So, you’re going to war with Russia as a small beginning?"

I laughed. "Yes, actually. It sounds funny, but yes. We have substantial advantages that give us certain advantages. As you see, I have been lucky enough to attract the loyalty of very talented associates. I have research labs working on state of the art technologies that no country can match for example. I have experts in many fields in my employ, good men like Luca Mueller who you’ve met, an expert in nuclear power and power generation. I tend to attract capable people who believe strongly in our mission."

"Volkov is a powerful and ruthless enemy. He will stop at nothing to punish and kill his enemies. I hope you have good bodyguards as well."

"I have the best in the world, actually. We have a unique training program for them. There is no need to worry about my personal safety."

"That’s almost too much to believe," Khaled shook his head, then gestured grandly at the facility all around him. "So what do you want to see first?" We stood at an intersection of two long hallways. This was leads to the Reactors and turbine buildings and cooling towers..."

"Yes, I’ve never seen an actual reactor, is it safe to go inside?"

Khaled laughed, "We will not go into the reactor itself, but there is an observation deck behind leaded glass. Even so, we will wear dosimeters to make sure we don’t get too much radiation."

"I understand there are limits not just on a single exposure, but also long-term aggregate limits as well. How do people in your field deal with that?"

"We have to be careful and be very judicious about our exposure, but yes, eventually we reach our career limits and get reassigned to desk jobs."

"So, one my scientists believes he can make a personal shielding device that could block radiation completely using some sort of electro-magnetic field. Perhaps you would be interested in testing a prototype?"

Khaled looked at me again, raising an eyebrow. "Some kind of magnetic containment field, reversed? It would have a tremendous power requirement, I think. Must the wearer be tethered to power cables?"

"No actually. You can wear it as a wrist band, with a built-in dosimeter, just in case."

Khaled scowled, "Now you are joking with me."

"No, I’m completely serious. I will have one sent for you to test. Wear your normal dosimeter as usual to see how well it works. Carry a second dosimeter that you pick up after activating the radiation shield device to compare the two."

Khaled shook his head, "I will try it, but I will not trust it."

I smiled, "Of course, caution and safety must always be a priority in your field."

Joe, can you whip up something like that and deliver it to me? I assume it’s just a subset of the functions of the shield generators we all wear, I mentally requested.

Yes, King Tim. I can have one in five minutes, Joe replied.

Updat𝓮d from freew𝒆bnovel(.)com