"But Beijing is still providing money and military support to the North."

"A relatively modest amount."

"And if there's a war, will that increase or stop?"

Av flipped an invisible coin. "Politically, it could go either way."

"Unfortunately, we need a concensus on this for the President. Anyone care to commit?"

"What do you say?" Burkow asked.

Hood thought back to Liz Gordon's psych profile and took a leap of faith. "We assume they'll continue to support the North at present levels-- even if war erupts. That would allow them to support their old allies without unduly antagonizing the U.S."

"That sounds reasonable," said National Security Adviser Burkow, "but-- if you'll forgive me-- I think you're missing an important point. If the Chinese do increase their support, and the President has relied on our paper, we'll all have egg on our faces. If, however, we urge him to move substantial manpower into the Yellow Sea-- poised to strike at North Korea, but obviously keeping an eye on China-- then he'll be greatly relieved when Beijing does nothing."

"Unless they perceive our sea power as a threat," said Defense Secretary Colon. "Then they might be forced to become involved."

Hood thought for several seconds. "I suggest we downplay the China role."

"I agree," said Colon. "I can see almost no circumstance that would cause us to attack supply routes in China, so there's no reason to move guns into their neighborhood."

Hood was glad, but hardly surprised, that Colon agreed. Hood had never served in the military-- he lucked out on the draft lottery in 1969-- and one of the first things he learned about officers was how they're typically the last advisers to advocate the use of force. If they did, they wanted to know very clearly and explicitly the exit strategies for their troops.

"I'm with you on that, Ernie," said Av. "The Chinese have lived with our military presence in Korea for nearly half a century: they'll look the other way if war erupts and we use it. They don't want to lose favored nation trade status, not with their economy starting to percolate. And anyway, it will suit them to play the role of Great White Father and try to settle this thing for us."

Hood pushed F6 on the keyboard, then Control/F1 to see the current document. As the transcription had scrolled by Bugs Benet, he had merged the pertinent data with a blank Options Paper file. When the meeting was over, Hood would be able to go over the rough draft of the form, add or detract as necessary, and get it right over to the President.

His quick scan of the document revealed that they had everything they needed-- save for military options and the Task Force's opinion as to whether or not they'd be necessary.

"All right," he said. "Good work. Now let's hammer out the rest."

Relying mostly on Defense Secretary Colon and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Parker, and referring to on-file policy papers, the team recommended a measured approach to full battlefield integration: continued slow deployment of troops, tanks, artillery, and Patriots, with nuclear, chemical, and biological depots on alert and ready to move.