화룡점정

Drawing dragons with dots in the eyes.

Kanggye, April 9th, 1949

The last bandits shuffled against the wall, unsure of their fate. Lee Chang-ok was sure of it, however - as was Yoon Si-u. The campaign against the Revolutionary Guard had been confused and confusing; spurts of extreme violence, and long lulls of extraordinary boredom. War was a little like that. As Lee Chang-ok told it, he was sweeping the land of the perfidious, imperialist, anti-revolutionary influence, and he was acutely skilled at that.

In any event, the Internal Operation was coming to a close. The last of the bandits in the mountains had been rounded up and shuffled to Kanggye, for a public trial. Trial was generous, Yoon Si-u thought. It was a public execution. A crowd of villagers stood around, observing with interest the law of the revolution.

A dozen of the disheveled bandits, some truly guilty and some in the wrong place at the wrong time, waited as the head of the Justice Department, Choe Yong-dal, read off the charges. "Banditry. Theft. Desertion. Dereliction of Duty. Treason. Subversion of the Revolution. The only punishment fit for this lamentable list of wrongs is - death!"

A firing squad, headed by Pak Kwan-hui, took this as their sign. Two of the prisoners looked wildly about, apparently surprised at this turn of events. Before they could move, the crack of the Arisakas felled all but one. He shook, squirmed for a moment, before Pak slammed his bolt back into battery and shot the prisoner dead.

"Justice!" Choe Yong-dal pronounced. The murmur of the crowd agreed. He tucked the sentencing document into his pocket as he approached Lee Chang-ok. A quick bow was exchanged between the two technical equals. "You have achieved our security," Choe said. "And it is time for bigger things. You will expect a promotion in short order."

"As you like it," Lee responded. "I request to keep my adjutants at my side."

Choe looked at Yoon, then at Pak who had hurried over after unloading his rifle. "This is amenable."

Pak smiled broadly, bowing to his superiors as Choe left for the train station. "A great victory!" he proclaimed.

"A great beginning," Yoon Si-u, "to security in Korea."

"Of course, comrade," Lee commented. "It will be done."