I’m currently reading Swan Song by Robert McCammon and enjoying it, but I didn’t understand one scene. I’m hoping someone who read the book can help out.
In Chapter 11, the president of the United States is in the airborne command plane after the nuclear war has started. The country has been hit hard all over by nukes, and we’ve hit back at Russia. The president is musing over how he’s overseeing the end of the world. Then an aide tells him “It’s time.” They tell the pilot to change course away from DC and fly inland. A five-mile long antenna is deployed behind the plane. They open a high tech briefcase to reveal an arming system and the president authenticates his access. The computer tells him “Talons armed. Ten seconds to abort.”
The president says “God forgive me” and his finger moves toward the N key… and then something else happens and the plane crashes, killing everybody.
So what was about to happen? What were the Talons? Missiles, I assume, but why was he ordering them fired at this point, when the whole nuclear arsenal presumably had been shot or was in process? It seemed this was some sort of very special action planned for after the nuclear war began, not just firing in retaliation. I’m not getting it.
Now if this is supposed to be ambiguous and I’ll find out as I read on, don’t spoil it for me. But it felt like I was supposed to understand or be able to figure it out.