While the United States, Russia, and China scrambled to improve their ability to cloak their own armed forces, Krieger had done their spoofing efforts one better. He had developed a way to cloak one’s enemies. No longer could military leaders be 100 percent certain that the forces they were commanding electronically were actually where their computers said they were. The US Navy thought its Shiloh was seventy nautical miles north. But here she was.

Compared to his new enemy-spoofing technology, hacking into a computerized warship, taking control of her systems—from comms to propulsion—was easy.

Krieger turned to Meng. “You may wish to check with Zhanjiang, Admiral. They’ll find Shiloh in its scheduled position. And they’ll find no vessels indicated at ours.”

Mapes offered Meng an encrypted phone.

But Meng did not move to take it. Instead, with his hands behind his back, he studied the incoming American warship. After a minute, he issued a short grunt and his second officer stepped forward and accepted the phone from Mapes. The officer dialed the phone, spoke for a few moments, and waited. Another minute passed. The officer spoke briefly to Meng and then returned the phone to Mapes.

“Confirmed?” Krieger asked.

Meng nodded.

“We are in disputed waters, gentlemen,” Krieger said. “The Philippines and China claim Dangerous Ground. The Philippines is a US ally. One cannot afford a conflict here. One can afford peace. I would like . . . Perseus Group would like to offer China a new weapon, based on the latest technology. A demonstration of this capacity is my gift to China.”

A numeric code appeared on the center monitor. “Admiral Meng”—Krieger gestured to the keyboard—“the future is yours to deliver. You need only press the enter key.”

Meng tilted his head slightly, his expression curious.

“You cannot destroy a ship that does not exist,” Krieger encouraged. “You will be dividing by zero.”

Krieger waited.

Meng offered no indication of what he was thinking. His latest orders, Krieger knew, were to expand China’s occupation of reefs and islands within Dangerous Ground. The United States challenged China’s claim to the waters, diving her bombers at China’s new Spratly Island airbases, slicing the waters with its ships, and interfering with China’s secret efforts to map an internal sea-lane navigable by its nuclear-powered ballistic submarines. If China’s boomers were able to sail Dangerous Ground, then a third of the world’s population would come within reach of China’s ballistic missiles.

Krieger spoke again. “The ship’s own navigational error put it here, Admiral. That error will compound throughout the ship’s systems in a manner adverse to survival. The fault will lie entirely with the US Navy. Complete mortality. Untraceable. The latest in a string of accidents in these waters . . .” Krieger added a phrase he had been practicing. “Yi chang meiyou xiaoyan de zhanzheng,” he said. War without smoke.