by Autumn Birt
“Fine,” Arinna agreed though still reluctant. “Tell Eldridge we will be back tomorrow.” She signed off, waiting until the vid faded. “We’ll need to give orders and make sure things really are stable here before heading out.”
“Farrak and Gabriella can handle it. We can leave them my dactyl and fly back in yours so they each have one.”
It made sense. They hadn’t been able to produce too many dactyls in the two years since she’d found the designs. What had really made it possible was an addendum to the last page listing where specialty parts had been manufactured. Most had been in Europe. They’d located enough pieces to make components to construct four more. An additional three were almost finished. That would make ten. Not many, but considering their capabilities, it was enough.
And the transport ships that had been in the designs were proving to be essential to moving the war outside of Europe’s boundaries. Those were easier to manufacture and over a dozen had been built. Boxy but stable, they carried troops while converting to small, armored headquarters when settled. With some careful arranging, the Guard could fight and then create a movable base with portable barracks, power, communications, video, and weapons. They made a war that was becoming increasingly long distance possible.
War. It wasn’t over yet. Eldridge’s request irked her. There were still incidents of FLF in Europe, not to mention incursions. That was why Kieren with her patience and guerrilla tactics made such a good commander back home. Brought up on stories of the IRA, she thought like an armed rebel trying to take down a larger power. Most of the time, she figured out where the FLF would attack next before it even had.
“I’m going to call Kieren after we sort out things here,” Arinna said to Jared just before they reached the transports and were still out of hearing. “I want her perspective on this.”
“Let me know when. I want to hear too. And it isn’t all bad news. Eldridge, MOTHER, asked for you first. Maybe they are realizing you are the reason we’ve won and why the Guard follows you.”
Arinna snorted. “Or they just want to know where I am so they can shoot me.”
—
Despite the dactyl’s speed, Arinna and Jared didn’t arrive at the Guard headquarters outside of Prague until dusk. Kieren met them in the hanger as the roof slid closed.
The youngest of the lieutenants that she and Jared had chosen, Kieren appeared barely old enough to have left home much less hold any command. Kieren O’Dell defied perceptions, and it was part of what Arinna liked about her. Tight russet brown curls brushed her shoulders and contrasted sharply with bright blue-green eyes set above a smattering of freckles. Despite the appearance and occasional skipping step, she moved like a trained fighter, one used to back alleys and difficult situations.
“So I hear the war is over,” Jared said as Kieren saluted.
The salutes had become commonplace for Arinna, just like the title. She didn’t merit either, but no one would listen to her on the topic. Considering it was the only time no one listened to her, she forgave it.
“In Europe it is,” Kieren said with a grin that stretched full lips wide.
Arinna snorted to keep herself from smiling back. Kieren was infectious when she was in a good mood. “Are you sure of that?” Arinna asked.
“Let me show you,” Kieren offered, leading the way back to Command.
The map of Europe lay placidly green on the large display. Jared stared at it.
“Nothing? There have been no incidents in the last ...?”
“Two months,” Kieren finished for him. “And that one was minor and might not have been FLF. He was killed by locals so we couldn’t confirm,” she explained.
Arinna nodded. She’d read the report but in the fighting and hunting for FLF across Asia, she hadn’t noticed the lack of new ones.
“You’ve kept tabs?” Arinna asked, sure of the answer but still not believing even a piece of the war was over. And they had won.
“The communication network with local agents is stronger than ever. We get reports on activity no matter what,” Kieren said nodding to a tidy pile of paperwork on a side desk.
Arinna picked up the first few, glancing at locations and notes as Jared joined her. The most basic listed no unusual or suspicious activity. The more prolific talked about cowherds growing and crops getting planted. It read more like a farm report than a war log.
“This one is talking about a mill being rebuilt,” Jared said, puzzling over the paper in his hands.
“This one is on livestock. Your point?” Arinna asked, amused at his consternation.
“They’re rebuilding,” he pointed out. Arinna’s breath caught.
“Yes. A few small industries a few years ago when the public fuel supplies ran out. Carriage and saddle makers, horse breeders, veterinarians at first. But it’s grown. There are businesses now, mills, and schools. Life is fairly normal.”
“Except the whole horse and carriage thing,” Jared said.
“And the lack of power. No one has put in place any power stations?” Arinna asked, placing the papers back on Kieren’s desk.
Kieren shrugged. “They are too much of a target for the FLF. People are still nervous that the war isn’t over and the FLF will come back. A few are resurrecting photovoltaic panels and others are trying to restore the wind turbines, but that is still piecemeal.”
Arinna leaned against the desk, lightheaded. Kehm had mentioned some of this, of course. And she’d seen the reports, but hadn’t really understood. Not until she stood again in Europe after having left a battlefield. She felt out of place in an altered world.
“How far out have you pushed the FLF?” Kieren asked.
“Azerbaijan was the last fight. We haven’t located another base yet, unless you heard from Lieutenant Assad today or Kehm found something?” Arinna answered. Kieren shook her head.
“There is a safety zone around Europe,” Jared said, stopping when Arinna snorted and cocked an eyebrow at him. “Well not for anything in the zone, but it is safer for Europe that way!”
“I don’t understand,” Kieren confessed.
“Most of Russia, at least as far as Moscow and south to Georgia is uninhabitable. I don’t know what the FLF did there ... it was early in the war before Captain Prescot commanded the Guard and different branches of the armed forces responded as they saw fit with little direction from NATO headquarters where I worked,” Arinna explained.
“And Michael and I were stationed to the south. We didn’t see the fighting that left that wasteland. Must be nuclear,” Jared added.
“Or chemical. Nothing will grow, little survives, and buildings are twisted shells. Below that is the new desert,” Arinna finished.
“Which is why incursions have been less or over the sea,” Kieren said. “Of course, I should have seen that. I knew to watch the coast, but never really put the pieces of why that was the main route together.”
“You were focusing on hunting for spies, which is why we left you in charge here,” Arinna said. Kieren blushed, which made her look fourteen. Arinna chuckled wearily.
“And the oceans are their own obstacles, which makes our job easier,” Jared said. “Shit. Is it over here?”
“I’m not certain. I need to see what Eldridge wants,” Arinna said, pushing herself from the desk’s edge. The thought weighted every muscle.
“Tomorrow,” Kehm said from the doorway. “I told him you’d meet with him at o-ten hundred tomorrow.”
“I said we’d be back today,” Arinna replied, frozen half-way across the central platform of the Command Center.
“After a battle while leaving two new Lieutenants in command of a newly acquired FLF base. I really thought tomorrow was being optimistic,” Kehm replied. “Glad to see you made it back early.”
Arinna laughed on a quiet breath. She shouldn’t be surprised. Kehm had always had her back even when it put him in danger.
“Thank you,” she said, heartfelt. Kehm nodded with a smile. “In that case, I�
�m taking a shower, having dinner, and going to bed,” Arinna said, relieved for the first time in two days since Kehm had reminded her of Eldridge’s request.
“Lieutenant, fine job. So tell me, has the food improved since the fighting ended?” Jared asked Kieren. Kieren grinned.
—
“Where are we going?” Arinna asked Eldridge, her words and body tense.
Eldridge casually glanced at her before turning his gaze out the carriage window. She hated him anew for the ease he displayed in her company.
“When was the last time you were in Europe, and by that I mean not on a military base?” he asked.
“You are taking me for a joy ride?” She choked down the laughter the thought spawned, afraid her tight throat would pitch it toward hysterical.
“No. I want you to see what you’ve been protecting.”
Those were not the words or sentiment Arinna expected from him. She crossed her arms and sat back, gaze turning to the scene outside her window. The carriage rocked in its slow movement down old paved streets, potholes from the war filled in with cobbles. Above the patched streets, repaired or rebuilt buildings stood solid. People, patrons, entered stores, the scene unchanged from before the war, but for carriages and lanterns. As they journeyed on, buildings under construction rolled past.
“Has any progress been made on restoring power?” Arinna asked, thinking of Kieren’s assessment.
Eldridge shifted in his chair. “Most of the transmission lines were damaged, badly. I don’t suppose you are aware of any cable supplies lying around?” He sighed at Arinna’s negative. “Ah well, I had hoped. It will take time. We can scavenge some sections, but the rest will need to be manufactured. Which means building the means to manufacture the cable and towers.”
“And reconstructing power plants,” Arinna added.
“Yes. And determining what type: solar, wind. Nuclear is out. I don’t think we retain the technology to handle the raw material.”
“Hydro might be the best place to start. Or solar.”
“The oldest and the newest, how poetic of you. It will take time to recreate infrastructure and until then cities will need to fend for themselves. But it is time to rebuild.”
Eldridge held her gaze a moment before returning to his window. Arinna hesitated, knowing he was baiting her to steer the conversation. But it was why she was there. It was best to get it over with.
“You really want to declare victory in Europe?”
“Do you see any reason not to?” he countered.
“The war isn’t over. There is so much we don’t know about the FLF, what they hold in the world, and whom we might be able to trade with. Saying that Europe is safe seems ... presumptuous.”
“Perhaps,” Eldridge admitted. He pulled a signal cord to alert the driver. “Come. There is more to see.”
Arinna sighed, but followed as he exited the carriage. Eldridge led them down a narrow walking path to emerge on a side boulevard that was filled with market stalls. People, more people than Arinna had seen in a long time outside of a battle, swirled by. The first person snagging her eye was a mother holding the hand of her son. Families, children playing, and young lovers teasing each other over ripe fruit: the scenes stole her breath. Arinna blinked away surprise as they moved slowly along the street market. They stopped by a fountain, water bubbled from the carved stone to trickle into the pool at its base.
“You use power for this?” Arinna asked, scrambling to focus as her thoughts scattered like seeds on the wind.
“This? This is old. Roman, I think. Ancient pipes and water lines, something to do with pressure. I have no idea how it still works. But it does. It is a sight. Isn’t it?” Eldridge said, absently pulling at his pants as he sat on the fountain’s edge. Arinna joined him, relieved to be off feet that felt unsteady. A few breaths, and she felt more together. Befuddled instincts sorted out, she evaluated the market.
“How long has this been here?” she asked, noting stalls showing damage from storms and windblown debris nestled into corners.
“This one? A year. Yes,” Eldridge said with a grin. “People have been congregating in public for a year.”
“With a few incidences,” Arinna pointed out. She’d read the reports.
“True. Across Europe. But not enough to stop this. Look at what is for sale. There is commerce, farms producing and selling crops, even some that manufacture value added products. This is not a war torn country. Not anymore.”
Arinna didn’t argue with him. She’d only needed to see the smile on the first boy’s face to realize this wasn’t a country under the constant threat of attack. There was laughter here and sunlight, along with smells she’d forgotten existed.
“I can’t guarantee that there will be no more violence,” Arinna warned him.
Eldridge smiled as he leaned back on his haunches. She knew the look and action, having seen it when she worked for him in NATO. He’d done the same thing whenever he won an argument. She wondered if he’d worn the same look when he’d changed the order and sent Captain Michael Prescot and the best of their fighters to Kiev instead of north. Arinna shoved the thought aside.
“I know. But there are no guarantees in this world,” Eldridge said.
“Then why? Why a victory celebration when it looks like peace has settled already?”
“Because dates are important. There are still fears. The celebration isn’t for me. It isn’t for Parliament to stand and be recognized. I know it isn’t for the Guard who is still fighting, though I wish that were otherwise. It is for these people. They need to have their efforts to rebuild recognized. They need to be told the worst is over and it is time to move forward.”
She hated that he could stir emotion, that his words could hit home and ignite in her. But that was why he was a politician. Before the war, during the war, and now after. She waited a breath, feeling the worn stone under her hands and the coolness of the basin against her legs.
“And if the worst isn’t over?” she asked.
“It won’t be our first mistake. As long as we don’t make it too many times, people will believe it. The time is right. I hope you see that?”
He actually looked nervous, darting a glance at her. A tiny line of perspiration marked his brow. Inwardly, she allowed amusement.
“I do,” she replied. A breath of tension puffed from Eldridge. She glanced at him with a half smile. “Though I would imagine it would take time to organize such an event considering phone lines barely function. How will you let an entire continent know?”
“Newspapers mostly. The members of Parliament will return home to host celebrations in local cities. And you, the Guard, do have a few planes, which perhaps could take several key members to important locations. Any local Guard would be part of the parades ...”
Eldridge trailed off as Arinna stared at him. “You have this planned,” she said quietly. Her tone made him swallow and shift away. “When? When is it?”
“Next week,” he answered hoarsely. “I need you to do this.” He stopped short of please, but there was a hint of pleading in his voice. “The people won’t believe it if the Guard aren’t there. If you aren’t there.”
“Dammit. You could have ... I don’t know, sent a letter!” she hissed it low, to keep the conversation private from the crowd only feet away. “Does Kehm or anyone in the Guard know about this plan?” she asked, wondering how they could have missed it. How Kieren could have missed it. Newspapers, he’d said. She hadn’t seen any in Command. Would anyone have told the Guard about something they would have assumed the Guard was part of?
“Parliament knows. We’ve been organizing. The announcements go into the paper when we give the word.”
The word “conspiracy” popped into her head. This was power. The power to rule a country. But wasn’t that the next step after war? Arinna swiped a tired hand over her face.
“Fine, do it,” she said standing. “Send a formal plan to headquarters by tonight.”
�
�Thank you,” he said, rising as well. Arinna walked a pace away. “The carriage is the other way,” he called after her.
“I know. I’ll find my own way back,” she said without turning.
—
“I stand here, we stand as a nation, due to the leadership of the woman known as the Lady Grey. Her command of our united armed forces, known fondly as the Grey Guard, saved us from the threat posed by the Freedom Liberation Front. But now that threat is gone. Today we declare Europe free from harm and the war ended!”
Eldridge’s speech was drowned in the roar of the crowd. Arinna applauded politely, gritting her teeth. She had been moved the first time she’d heard the speech. Eldridge gave her quite the gift with his words. He cemented her role, legitimized it actually. Her takeover of the Guard had been illegal at best, a coup at worst. She wasn’t a sworn member of the armed forces. She had been a staffer under Eldridge at NATO, a mere liaison to the Guard that had stepped forward when Europe tottered on the brink of surrender, and found a path forward. Still, she’d expected to be arrested when it was all over. Eldridge handed her accolades instead.
Now, on the fourth victory celebration of the day, she noticed the flaws more than the praise. Jared was not mentioned for one. She’d bristled over that and it had been Jared’s laughter that had kept her from responding with something other than thanks and joy for the peace and rebuilding.
“It doesn’t matter. I’m here. They see us together. The war is done. They cannot mention everyone. Besides, you make a much better figurehead!” Jared said.
It still annoyed her. His leadership mattered just as much as hers. If he didn’t have faith in her and follow her orders, none of the others would have. She kept him at her side all day, he in full dress. Her military uniform matched his minus the insignias and medals. None belonged to her so she would not wear them. Let Eldridge sort out how to explain that.
