“You should,” Jeanette said. “Particularly if” - she changed the subject, so abruptly that Alice was taken by surprise - “you know they’ve shut the schools? And started mandatory blood tests practically everywhere? It’s pretty bad not being able to go out without having some wanker poke you with a needle and take your blood.”
“It could be worse,” Alice said. “How are you coping?”
“Well, the girls are wearing through my patience,” Jeanette admitted. “Hubby is lucky, of course. His workplace hasn’t closed. Pity, that. He’d be able to take care of the girls while I go shopping.”
“And get poked with a needle everywhere you go,” Alice said. Research had clearly moved on in her absence. The doctors had not only devised a sample kit, they’d put it into mass production. Jeanette - and the rest of the civvies - might bitch and moan about regular blood tests, but better that than the alternative. “Jeanette, if you ever listen to me about anything, take the threat seriously. It’s worse than anything you’ve heard on the news.”
Jeanette eyed her for a long moment. “Are you alright? I mean ...”
“Sure, couldn’t be better,” Alice said, quickly. It was actually true. “Just listen to me for once, really. Keep the blood tests going and make sure you’re careful.”
“I know,” Jeanette said. “But it’s hard to believe, you know?”
“Yeah,” Alice said. “I know.”
She sighed. It had been a long time since Britain had been threatened with a disease outbreak that might bring the country to its knees. The combination of genetic engineering and advanced medical treatments had stopped a number of diseases, including the common cold, in their tracks. Even the genetically-engineered diseases hadn't been able to gain a foothold. But now, the virus had to be taken seriously. Alice knew, all too well, that even military-grade vaccinations wouldn’t do more than slow it down. It could not be allowed a foothold on Earth. It would be the beginning of the end.
“I’ll speak to you later,” she said, softly. “Goodbye.”
“Goodbye to you too,” Jeanette said. “At least, until we meet again.”
Her image vanished. Alice shook her head as she stood. She had orders to meet with Major Parkinson in an hour, just long enough to raise a glass to Captain Kaminov and his men with the rest of the crew. He’d saved their lives. And that meant ...
We won’t forget him, she promised herself. And no one else will forget him either.
***
“Well,” Duncan said, as he poured two glasses of wine. “Thank God that’s over.”
Stephen scowled at his brother. The formal service had been short - the Russians had been oddly reluctant to participate, even though it was their crew that was being honoured - but necessary. He had no intention of allowing Captain Kaminov and his crew to be forgotten, no matter what their superiors thought. Besides, it would hardly be the first time the Royal Navy had honoured a foreign military officer. There was a brotherhood between spacers that transcended simple politics. And yet, the moment the service was over, Duncan had insisted on going straight back to his apartment. There had been no time to speak to anyone before they’d left.
He took refuge in crudity, hoping to tweak his brother a little. “And who pissed in your expensive glass of plonk?”
Duncan, Lord Shields, ignored the jibe. “There’s quite a bit about the whole affair that doesn’t quite make sense,” he said. “The Russians insist on assigning Dezhnev to Task Force Leinster, then she vanishes somewhere in the trackless wastes of Alien-1. She’s declared lost ... and the Russians assign another ship, commanded by a very well connected officer, to search for her. And then, when Dezhnev pops up again, Yuriy Ivanov rams her, destroying both ships.”
“And saving my life,” Stephen said. “I would not be here today if Yuriy Ivanov hadn’t rammed Dezhnev.”
“Oh, I know,” Duncan said. He took a sip of his wine. “I’m not ungrateful. But ...”
He looked up. “Let me run a scenario past you. The Russians are practically bankrupt. They are spending more than they earn, which is pretty damn bad when we’re talking about billions of pounds. In theory, they can make cuts; in practice, any cuts will lead to social unrest, military decline and a slow collapse. They can’t depend on us or anyone else for help and even asking will be disastrous, if we decide to take advantage of their weakness. And so they decide to make contact with a new and potentially powerful alien race. A risk, perhaps, but one that might pay off.”
“Madness,” Stephen said. “The virus ...”
“They didn’t know about the virus,” Duncan pointed out. “How many of the analysts are still in deep denial over the virus’s mere existence? They thought they could forge an under-the-table connection to another race and ... well, it blew up in their face.”
Stephen frowned. “Do you have any proof?”
“No,” Duncan said. “Just a chain of inferences. It could be nothing more than paranoia. But Stephen ... things are changing. We have to be careful.”
“Yeah,” Stephen said. “How are they changing?”
“The reports you brought back frightened hell out of a lot of very powerful people,” Duncan said. “I wasn’t Lord Shields when the Tadpoles showed up, but I remember just how scared we all were after New Russia. The virus alone is an insidious threat, even without a powerful fleet. It came very close to pushing us out of Falkirk. And if what you’re saying about their industrial base is accurate, Stephen, we could be out-produced and crushed within the year.”
“Perhaps,” Stephen said.
“They’re talking about amalgamation,” Duncan said, as if he hadn’t heard Stephen’s comment. “The Great Powers and the smaller powers - everyone with any presence in space, basically - are considering a world government, something to tie us all together. They’re still working on the specifics, but there’s a very good chance it will go through.”
Stephen blinked. He’d studied attempts to create a supranational authority, from the League of Nations and the United Nations to the European Union and the Asian Alliance and they’d all ended badly. There was too much room for disagreement and too little trust between the various parties. In the end, they’d all died in war.
“Parliament will never go for it,” he said. It was hard to believe that the Russians or the Chinese would go for it either. “We’re talking about giving up our independence.”
“It depends on what the exact terms and conditions are,” Duncan said. “But yes, there is a good chance that Parliament will go for it.”
“... Shit,” Stephen said. “Are we really that desperate?”
“You’re the one who brought back those reports,” Duncan said. “You tell me.”
His terminal bleeped. “Excuse me,” he said. He stood and walked over to his desk, keying the terminal with one beefy hand. “Yes?”
“My Lord, we just received an emergency message from the Speaker of the House,” his secretary said. “Falkirk has fallen. The enemy is at the gates.”
Stephen felt his blood run cold. Falkirk was a mere six weeks from Earth. And, if Admiral Weisskopf’s fleet had been destroyed, there was nothing standing between Falkirk and Earth for several transits. The virus could infect a dozen colony worlds ... or simply keep pushing down the tramline chain towards Earth. It would be weeks before the naval bases could be reinforced. They’d already been stripped of mobile units.
He tried to tell himself that it couldn’t be that bad. Admiral Weisskopf could have conducted a fighting retreat, preserving most of his mobile units. But there was no way to know.
Duncan met Stephen’s eyes. “Yes,” he said. “I think we are that desperate.”
End of Book II
The Invincible Trilogy Will Conclude In:
The Right of the Line
Coming Soon!
Appendix: Glossary of UK Terms and Slang
[Author’s Note: I’ve tried to define every incident of specifically UK slang (and a handful of military phases/ac
ronyms) in this glossary, but I can’t promise to have spotted everything. If you spot something I’ve missed, please let me know and it will be included.]
Aggro - slang term for aggression or trouble, as in ‘I don’t want any aggro.’
Beasting/Beasted - military slang for anything from a chewing out by one’s commander to outright corporal punishment or hazing. The latter two are now officially banned.
Beat Feet - Run, make a hasty departure.
Binned - SAS slang for a prospective recruit being kicked from the course, then returned to unit (RTU).
Boffin - Scientist
Bootnecks - slang for Royal Marines. Loosely comparable to ‘Jarhead.’
Bottle - slang for nerve, as in ‘lost his bottle.’
Borstal - a school/prison for young offenders.
Combined Cadet Force (CCF) - school/youth clubs for teenagers who might be interested in joining the military when they become adults.
Compo - British army slang for improvised stews and suchlike made from rations and sauces.
CSP - Combat Space Patrol.
CYA - Cover Your Ass
Donkey Wallopers - slang for the Royal Horse Artillery.
DORA - Defence of the Realm Act.
Fortnight - two weeks. (Hence the terrible pun, courtesy of the Goon Show, that Fort Knight cannot possibly last three weeks.)
‘Get stuck into’ - ‘start fighting.’
Head Sheds - SAS slang for senior officers.
‘I should coco’ - ‘you’re damned right.’
Kip - sleep.
Levies - native troops. The Ghurkhas are the last remnants of native troops from British India.
Lorries - trucks.
Mocktail/Mocktails - non-alcoholic cocktails.
MOD - Ministry of Defence. (The UK’s Pentagon.)
Order of the Garter - the highest order of chivalry (knighthood) and the third most prestigious honour (inferior only to the Victoria Cross and George Cross) in the United Kingdom. By law, there can be only twenty-four non-royal members of the order at any single time.
Panda Cola - Coke as supplied by the British Army to the troops.
RFA - Royal Fleet Auxiliary
Rumbled - discovered/spotted.
SAS - Special Air Service.
SBS - Special Boat Service
Spotted Dick - a traditional fruity sponge pudding with suet, citrus zest and currants served in thick slices with hot custard. The name always caused a snigger.
Squaddies - slang for British soldiers.
Stag - guard duty.
STUFT - ‘Ships Taken Up From Trade,’ civilian ships requisitioned for government use.
TAB (tab/tabbing) - Tactical Advance to Battle.
Tearaway - boisterous/badly behaved child, normally a teenager.
UKADR - United Kingdom Air Defence Region.
Walt - Poser, i.e. someone who claims to have served in the military and/or a very famous regiment. There’s a joke about 22 SAS being the largest regiment in the British Army - it must be, because of all the people who claim to have served in it.
Wanker - Masturbator (jerk-off). Commonly used as an insult.
Wank/Wanking - Masturbating.
Yank/Yankee - Americans
Para Bellum Page 41