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"AFTER MANY SETBACKS, I’m pleased to say that the HMCS Royal Sovereign is ready for launch," said Rear Admiral Philip Mahoney, leaning back in his chair with a satisfied smile.
Watching the man – the man now in charge of the entire Commonwealth Navy – Radko bit his tongue. The Royal Sovereign, the largest and most complex warship ever built by human hands, had become something of a legend since it was first rumoured to be in development at Cagliari Aerospace, but its legendary status had become something of a joke lately. Mahoney had in three previous meetings announced the ship’s readiness for launch only to have to backtrack on that statement when the ATC Castle engineering teams ran into yet another snag. Blame was frequently placed at the feet of the Cagliari designers by Upshaw and her people, but rumours had been swirling for months that it was more a case of the ATC Castle staff having trouble following and integrating the advanced concepts put forth by the late Anton Cagliari and his design team.
"We are preparing her for a shakedown cruise as we speak," continued the Admiral. "And barring any last-minute adjustments required by said shakedown cruise, the Royal Sovereign will be entered into active service within the month."
"Good to hear," said Prime Minister Rocco deFreitas, slapping his palm on the table. "Damn good to hear – we could certainly use another ship on the front line."
And again, Radko bit his tongue and took a sip of water while very deliberately not meeting the glance thrown his way by another member of this haphazard advisory committee thrown together by deFreitas. For months, Radko had been beating the same drum, arguing to increase both offensive and defensive strength by forging formal alliances with the Soviets and the icarans, and all to no avail. Despite the informal alliance between Radko, Kovalenko and Locaris that had enabled them to strike back at the ril-galas, nothing had been formalized. The Commonwealth government had declined the assistance of the icarans – who had returned to their homeworld to protect their own people – and the old animosities of the Commonwealth/Soviet dynamic had proven too great to overcome for many, despite the threat of extinction facing the human race. The Soviets who were present on Thor’s Hammer kept to the "Soviet Block" and none were ever invited to be involved in the Prime Minister's planning sessions.
The thought process that led them to this point was a mystery to Radko, but he supposed that was simply the effect of his thinking tactically rather than thinking politically. Many in the Commonwealth trusted neither the Soviets nor the icarans. DeFreitas was still concerned about public opinion.
"Adding the Soviet fleet to ours would help our front line as well," said Nasrin Khaifa. "Has that option been explored further?"
Radko coughed into his water.
Though his name was relatively well-known, Khaifa was quite possibly the most famous human in the universe given the wide distribution of her ril-galas autopsy video. She had also been named Director of the Ministry of Health a matter of weeks after her return from Von Daniken's Landing.
"Miss Khaifa-."
"Doctor Khaifa."
"Doctor Khaifa," said Mahoney. "Given our history with the Soviets, an alliance with them would be fruitless. We simply cannot trust them. I realise that your experience on Von Daniken’s Landing has deeply affected you. Believe me, I, as anyone fighting the front lines of this war, fully understand. But we cannot grasp at straws to be victorious, and an alliance with the Soviets would be just that – grasping at straws. I believe even your friend Commander Radko would agree with that statement."
Radko sat up straighter, opened his mouth to reply then closed it again. Learning to be more restrained with his commentary was more alien to him than the icarans, but he would try...
"I beg your pardon?" he said.
"We are all on the front lines of this war, Commander," said deFreitas. "And just because we have a new threat to face doesn't mean old threats simply go away."
He waved his hands as he said it, like he was swatting away a cloud of mosquitos.
"I understand that there are deep ideological rifts between us and the Soviets," said Khaifa, with a level of diplomacy Radko knew he'd never achieve. "But I still feel that holding to old ideologies, in our current situation, is dangerous. They could help us. We could help each other."
The Prime Minister offered the doctor one of the most condescending smiles Radko had ever seen, but it was Mahoney—perhaps seeing how the discussion was developing—who spoke.
"We appreciate your input, Doctor, but these... are difficult situations. Difficult times, of course. Those of us fighting on the front lines, how can we focus on the war if we're not certain whether we can trust those at our side?"
Closing his eyes, Radko tried to concentrate on his breathing, tried to find his inner calm.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" he said.
Everyone sat up straighter and all eyes turned to the Commander.
"Commander Radko, do you have something to add?" said the Prime Minister.
"Yes, I do. I absolutely do. First off, stop talking down to the doctor like she’s a ten year old. You have no idea what she faced on Von Daniken’s Landing any more than you have any idea what I’ve faced with the Vimy Ridge out on the front lines, because you are not on the front lines. You have never left this station, Admiral. Not once since the Vimy Ridge – in an alliance with the Soviets and the icarans, I might add – broke the ril-galas blockade have you ever left Thor’s Hammer," said Radko, amazing even himself with his even, matter-of-fact tone.
"Commander Radko, I would remind you that you are only part of this meeting as a courtesy, given your past service to the Commonwealth," said Mahoney.
"And this will be my last time attending, Admiral, because I’m tired of listening to all of you talk in circles, accomplish nothing and plan nothing but more meetings, then pat yourselves on the back for it and act like you’re saving mankind."
"Commander-."
"I’m not done yet, Admiral," he said sharply, looking at Mahoney, Upshaw and deFreitas in turn. "You want to save mankind? Pull your collective heads out of your asses and realize that we can’t do it alone. We cannot do this alone. Even the Soviets know this. They’re willing to talk, but apparently I’m the only one listening."
DeFreitas glared at Radko.
"Are you saying, Commander, that you are currently in contact with an enemy of the Commonwealth?"
"Really? That whole speech and that’s what you take out of it?"
"I think what the Commander is trying to say," said Khaifa, leaning forward, elbows on the conference table. "Is that we shouldn’t completely discount the possibility. If, heaven forbid, we were to lose one of our warships, we have neither the resources nor the personnel to build new ones. I think we can all agree that the continued delays on the Royal Sovereign taught us that lesson very clearly. An alliance – whether the Soviets or the icarans or anyone else – would strengthen our capabilities immensely."
Back in the beginning, Radko himself would have worded the argument in that manner, more as a possibility to consider than something that absolutely had to be done. But that was then. A lot could happen in eighteen months. A year and a half. About five hundred and fifty days.
"It simply is not a course of action this government is comfortable exploring," said deFreitas.
A lot could happen, or nothing could happen. And Radko had run out of patience with people who could not see the bigger picture. Without another word, he stood and exited the room.
"Well that was certainly overdramatic," said Bianca Upshaw, turning to the Prime Minister. "I believe I warned you about including him in these meetings. He’s a loose cannon."
"But he knows what he’s doing," said Mahoney, almost choking on the words. "I don’t like him, but if I had to hand-pick someone to lead our fleet into battle..."
"Then your fleet would be destroyed. He’s an idealist, not a realist. He doesn’t understand that sometimes you have to make strategic decisions, that you have to think with your head, not just bluster in leading with your heart."
"You must be thinking of someone else," said Cortez, speaking up for the first time in the meeting. "Because Finn Radko made the decision to save you guys from a ril-galas blockade rather than launch an assault on the ril-galas force occupying Earth. He felt that was the best strategic decision. It meant that probably millions of humans would die on Earth, but that it would give us our best chance at saving millions more. And so far, none of you have given him any reason to believe he made the right call."
And she stood and followed Radko’s lead, leaving the room.
After several moments of silence, Khaifa spoke up.
"The sad truth is that they’re right."
"When the Royal Sovereign launches, we will make progress," said Mahoney, tapping his index finger on the table. "We will make progress."
It sounded as if he were trying to convince himself as much as anyone else.
"I will talk to Radko," said Khaifa. "Try to smooth things over."
"What’s the point?" said Upshaw. "Prime Minister, I’d like to once again table my suggestion that we relieve Radko of command and place the Vimy Ridge under the command of-."
"We are not putting a Commonwealth Navy vessel under the command of a deserter," said Mahoney.
"Edward Vossek is not-."
"Edward Vossek was a sergeant in the Commonwealth Army who quit in the middle of the greatest crisis to hit mankind for a higher paycheque with ATC Castle and is in no way qualified to command a space ship. Full stop," said the Admiral. "Radko is... unpleasant. Most times I speak with him, I’d like to wring his neck, but anyone who tries to take him off the command deck of the Vimy Ridge will have to go through me first."
"I will talk to him" Khaifa said again. "I’ll talk to him."