At the very moment Natalia announced martial law across the city on television, piercing air-raid sirens sounded throughout Kyiv.
Every police station in the city had been notified in advance. Officers took to the streets to maintain order and block off every road.
Every intersection, every main street and alleyway, and every entrance to residential areas was sealed off by police cars with flashing strobe lights.
Unless they possessed a special pass issued by the Independent Prosecutor's Office, no one was allowed in or out!
The hundred-plus task forces had also dispersed throughout the city and begun carrying out their assignments.
Such a massive operation naturally alarmed many people.
For a time, everyone was on edge. Even high-ranking figures were asking around, trying to find out what exactly had happened.
Yet at this moment, aside from the personnel deployed to enforce the law, there were likely fewer than five people who truly knew the details.
Wang Ye, the chief planner of the operation, was one. Andronov, the man handling its execution, was one. Natalia, pushed into the spotlight, was one. Kuchma, hidden in the background and coordinating with Wang Ye, was naturally another...
Other than those four, even Yanukovych and Yulia did not know the specific plan. They had merely been notified that an operation would take place tonight to wipe out Yushchenko's forces in one stroke.
As for everyone else, they knew absolutely nothing.
Even the various police stations in Kyiv assisting with the operation were utterly confused. They had simply received orders and carried them out.
The citywide martial law was provisionally set for twenty-four hours, beginning at exactly ten tonight, when Natalia appeared on television to make the announcement, and ending at ten tomorrow night.
During those twenty-four hours, no one was permitted to leave home without