Kurdish Control Zone, US Army Frontline Command Center.
Almost at the same time Song Heping powered down and dismantled the satellite phone, a signal intelligence (SIGINT) analyst at the command center, fixated on his terminal screen, snapped to attention with a voice slightly elevated in excitement:
"Sir! 'Wind Listener-1' urgent report! A brief satellite phone beacon captured! Location, northern edge of Mannier Valley District, grid coordinates 8-1-2-1! Duration extremely short, about 2-3 seconds, beacon disappeared! Unable to perform a second location fix!"
Major James swiftly lifted his head from the electronic sand table, a thrill flashing in his eyes, like a hunter finally finding the prey's exact trail.
He strode quickly to the large screen and observed the continuously flashing red signal marker, newly updated by the system, precisely imprinted on the contour line at the northern edge of Mannier Valley.
