Men of steel, thought Nikolin. Another man had called himself that too—Josef Stalin, the man of steel. So now we are a ship of little Stalins at large in an unsuspecting world. He wondered just how far the Captain was going to take things, but being a junior officer he knew it was not his place to speak up in this situation. He found himself wishing that Rodenko was here on the bridge. The Starpom was below decks on his relief shift, and the Captain had nothing more than his own internal muse for council.
Now the sound of the forward deck gun punctuated the still airs sharply—crack—crack—crack, and Samsonov methodically fired in tightly controlled salvos of three rounds each. He had a solid radar lock on the steamer, and within minutes Tatsu Maru was a flaming wreck. Nikolin looked to see hapless crewmen leaping from the fiery deck into the sea. It brought to mind the same image of men leaping from the devastated hulk of the Admiral Golovko when the American battleship had scored that lucky hit with one of its big main guns.
All it took was that single round, he thought. But the Captain does not seem in any way concerned here. He believes we are invulnerable, and perhaps we are. That said, the Japanese Navy here beat the entire Russian Pacific Fleet, and those ships must be harbored somewhere close at hand. Something told him he would soon be watching more men go into the angry sea, and he hoped he would not be one of them.
Chapter 20
Rodenko paid a visit to Doctor Zolkin on his relief shift. There he discussed their situation, and the Doctor was still struggling with the amazing notion that the ship had continued its regression in time.
“We seem to be on a long slide to oblivion,” he said. “1908? Why this year, I wonder?”
“No one knows. With Dobrynin and Fedorov gone we seem to have no real idea what is happening. The control rod was removed from the ship, but we still move in time whenever we are close to some massive detonation. First it was that damn volcano, and then that last warhead the Captain fired must have been a little too close.”
“Perhaps the Captain might refrain from flinging nuclear weapons about,” Zolkin dried his hands with a white towel as if washing the trouble away. “That, clearly has something to do with it. What’s been going on in the night sky? Has Karpov been testing more weapons?”
“The night sky? You mean the strange glow after dark. Yes, we have all wondered about it. At first we thought it was an after effect of our latest time displacement, but it should not last this long, and it appears to be coming from well over the horizon to the northwest, up in Siberia. But it has nothing to do with nuclear weapons, that I can assure you. Thankfully the Captain has ordered the warheads put in magazine storage. He thinks our conventional weapons are sufficient now.”
“Well, what does he intend to do, Rodenko? You aren’t here for a headache or cut finger.”
Rodenko smiled. “You are very observant, Doctor, and of late I have been closely observing the Captain as well. He has been under a great deal of stress since we left Vladivostok to confront the Americans in 2021. At times he appears to lapse into remorse and depression. Then he is suddenly energized with his old, willful ambition. I’m afraid the farther back in time we slip the more aggressive he may become. That little theater he staged at Vladivostok is a perfect example. He actually announced himself as the new Viceroy of the East!”
Zolkin laughed. “My, my. That man’s ego knows no bounds. Viceroy of the East? The Captain has been spoiling for a fight with someone he could push around for a good long while now. His only difficulty has been the fact that his enemies push back. We were a squadron of eight ships when we left Vladivostok, and now here we are alone on the sea again. The navy can do without commanders like this, in my opinion.”
“Well, doctor, now that we are here I believe the Captain intends to do considerably more. He says he wants to make Kirov the new flagship of Russia’s Pacific Fleet here.”
“What’s left of it. As I recall the history there wasn’t much left but a few old armored cruisers in Vladivostok.”
“But he intends to use Kirov to try and redress that.”
“In what way?”
“I believe he thinks he can confront the Japanese and recover the ground and prestige Russia lost to them in the war.”
Zolkin was very quiet now. “Looking for another war to fight, is he? Hasn’t he seen enough? We’ve fought the British, Italians, Japanese, and then the Americans in two different eras, and now he wants to take on the Imperial Japanese Navy again? It has been said that there is nothing more dangerous than an admiral with a compass and a map. Men like Karpov are at the heart of that truism.”
Rodenko lowered his head, thinking before he asked his next question, an edge of uncertainty in his voice now. “Doctor…What if the Captain persists with this? He will be trying to reverse the course of history itself, and restore Russia as a Pacific Power, yet with only this single ship. Certainly we are powerful. We can impose our will at sea and outfight anything we encounter here. But Japan has an army too, and they beat the Russian army of this era convincingly. I think the Captain has again bitten off more than he can chew.”
“Yes, and if he keeps doing that he will choke one day and that will be the end of it.”
“But the men, Doctor. Can we keep asking the men to fight like this? They hardly had a week ashore after we got home, and then we were out to sea again to fight the Americans.”
“I agree, it’s been difficult for them all. That Russian Inspector General didn’t help matters either. Yet I see quite a few in here for one thing or another. The men still seem rather buoyant to me. Their morale has not flagged.”
“That’s the problem,” said Rodenko. “They’ve seen Karpov fight, and fight hard. Yes, he’s a good tactical officer, but he makes grave strategic errors in my opinion. He puts the ship at risk in situations where it could easily be avoided. We could have steamed due east into the Pacific long before we ran into the Americans in 1945. I was in favor of our intervention to assist the Soviet landing in the Kuriles, but Karpov didn’t have to pick a fight with those old American destroyers and cruisers when we found them patrolling there. It was as if he really wanted to provoke them, and anyone could see what they would do in return. Firing on those first planes they sent to have a look at us was an accident, or so I have heard. What came after was something more intentional.”
“You believe Karpov was deliberately trying to provoke the Americans? That sounds very much like the man I know.”
“Of course! He knew that if they came in force he could then use the real power of this ship to try and convince them they were overmatched.”
“Yes, I saw his little demonstration when he fired that first missile into the sea. The strange thing was the reaction of the crew. They seemed ebullient. A couple even came by to tell me what Karpov had done, and they were literally shaking a fist in approval.”
“And look what happened to the Admiral Golovko.”
“That was a hard thing to see. I can only wonder what happened to Orel as well. We felt time’s cold hand on our neck again and escaped a hard fate there. I wonder if Orel moved in time as well? It may have gone somewhere else—to another year. I hope Yeltsin keeps his head if that was the case.”
“It isn’t Yeltsin I’m worried about now, Doctor.” Rodenko got round to the point of his discussion with Zolkin again.
Zolkin nodded. “Let’s get to the heart of this, Rodenko. You came to me to sound me out regarding Karpov’s state of mind. Yes, he’s been under stress, as we all have. Yes, his moods have shifted considerably, but is he incompetent? This is what you are getting at here, yes? At the moment I think it would be difficult to make such a case against him. He may seem to be making irrational decisions, yet who do we take the matter to? When Volsky was here there was always some superior authority aboard, but that is not the case now. If you want my advice, you must do what you have been doing up until now. Observe, and report any unstable behavior to me. Otherwise do your duty for the ship and crew. Should the time co
me when things take a darker turn, I think you may rely on me to use my professional judgment. This is what you came here to learn, yes? So now you have heard it.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
“Do not thank me yet, Rodenko. If anything happens to Karpov, then this whole mess is yours. I hope you understand that and make yourself ready should you ever find yourself in that Captain’s chair.”
Rodenko thought about that, but then the sound of a deck cannon cracked and he found himself looking out the porthole to see what was happening. He could see a pair of steamers, commercial traffic, and Kirov was running parallel to them about five kilometers off their port side. There was just enough sunlight to catch the small plume of seawater as the first round fell in front of the lead steamer.
“Here we go again,” he shrugged. “The Captain has fired what looks to be a warning shot on a steamer.”
“A trade ship? What could he be doing now? Why bother with that?”
“I think he means to do the same thing he did in 1945 when he attacked those American destroyers in the Kuriles. He’ll sink a steamer; the Japanese will send a warship to investigate. He’ll attack that ship and on we go—another war.”
“Perhaps you had better get to the bridge and see what is going on first hand, Rodenko. Remember what I said. You must do your duty, but yet you are still Starpom, and second in command here now. Your voice counts, so if you have anything further to say about the matter, you must say it to the Captain’s face.”
The sound of the deck gun firing was enough to get Rodenko moving, and his heart beat faster with the anxiety of anticipation as he went.
“Thank you, Doctor.”
He was through the hatch and gone.
Chapter 21
Karpov was in the flag room of the bridge, pouring over charts and several old books from Fedorov’s old library. He found them most useful for the research he was conducting now, sizing up his potential enemy. The ship was still off the Tsugaru Straits in a blockading position. After sinking the Tatsu Maru, he watched at a distance while the second steamer attempted to rescue the stricken crew, and when he saw the steamer turn about and head back for the friendly shores of Japan, he was finally satisfied.
Rodenko had come to him in the midst of that action, returning to the bridge shortly after the Captain ordered Samsonov to fire.
“Marching to the sound of the guns, Rodenko?”
“Yes, I heard the forward deck gun, sir, but there was no call to action stations.”
“That was not necessary. We just happened across a pair of Japanese steamers bound for Dailan near Port Arthur. That traffic stops now. We will not permit the Japanese to resupply their forces in Korea or Manchuria.”
That remark surprised Rodenko. “But sir, how can we possibly enforce such a quarantine? We are one ship. There could be ten or twenty ships en-route to those harbors even as we speak, most likely well south, coming from the bigger Japanese ports. There is no way we can stop them all.”
“I understand that, but what we can do is set an example to show what will happen to any ship we do find in violation of this order. Once we slap a few around, the others will think twice about the voyage. We can have a great effect, even if we cannot be everywhere at one time.”
“Violation? What order are you speaking of, sir? Have you communicated with the Japanese?”
“Not yet, Rodenko, but that is coming in due course.”
“Then how can they be expected to comply? If you just attack unarmed ships like this it is tantamount to piracy.”
“Piracy? Don’t be silly, Rodenko. You act as though we are bound by the laws these little men devise to regulate their affairs. Quite the contrary! What you should realize is that we are now the sole authority here. Who do you think that sea Captain out there will complain to after I put his ship on the bottom? He will complain to his government, correct? This is exactly what I intend. In my judgment, the next ships we encounter will be warships, and then we can make our position understood even better. I don’t expect a steamer Captain to be my envoy to Tokyo, but if I shake up the tree a bit, the military command structure here will do that for me soon enough.”
Rodenko seemed troubled by this. It was exactly what he suspected. The Captain was going to slowly escalate this situation just as he had in 1945. At present they were a great unknown, but soon he could envision that the whole of the Japanese fleet would be mustered against the threat posed by Kirov.
“Do you really mean to push this, sir? Are you looking for war here again?”
“What of that, Rodenko? You don’t expect us to take a pleasure cruise here, do you? We were sent to sea as a warship in the service of our homeland. We have fought twice with that charge already. We don’t lay it down simply because we find ourselves here now.”
“Respectfully, sir… May I speak my mind freely on this?”
“Of course. Let me hear what you have to say.”
“Are you certain you do this in the service of our homeland?”
Karpov gave his Starpom a long look at that, as if he were trying to see into his real mindset and discern what his objection was. “Alright, Rodenko. I sense you do not approve of what I have done here with this cargo vessel. Let me hear your reasoning.” He folded his hands on the desk where he had been studying Fedorov’s books, waiting, a look of impatience belying the apparent openness he offered at the moment.
“Well, sir… We have no commission to fight in these waters, not if this is, indeed, the year 1908. Anything we do here could have dramatic repercussions on all future history, and I think we should be very cautious. You have announced yourself at Vladivostok, and they will soon learn that St. Petersburg knows nothing about us. I thought that was very unwise—in fact, I thought it somewhat pretentious. Now you have attacked these unarmed merchant ships, and it will certainly lead to more trouble here.”
“Yes, it will, and that is by design, Captain Lieutenant.” The use of Rodenko’s rank in place of his name was ample evidence that the Captain did not appreciate those remarks. “Now…It is my intention to gain the attention of our adversaries here, and let them know what they are dealing with. Only then can we make demands they may heed.”
“But why, sir? Why start another war here that was never fought in the history we know? Haven’t we done enough already?”
“Because the last war that was fought in the history ended quite badly for Russia. Wouldn’t you agree? If Orlov were here he would put it quite plainly. We got our asses kicked, and by a third rate emerging state. It may have been pure chance that we arrived here after that last detonation, and frankly, I see no way home again short of firing off another warhead. That I will not do. So we are here, and with the power to redress a century and more of hardship for our country. I’m going to use that power, and this is only the beginning. The real game remains to be played. Soon they will begin moving their pawns and minor pieces about, but we are the great black Queen now, and we can defeat them all. You doubt this?”
“We can certainly beat any ship they have, sir, but their entire fleet? Won’t that just be a repeat of what we just faced in 1945?”
“Of course not. These ships are no match for us now. They are mere toys in a bathtub compared to Kirov. The sooner the Japanese learn that their Imperial Navy is useless as a tool of foreign policy as long as we sail these waters, the better. The lessons start today.”
“And what about the Japanese Army? We will be entirely powerless to influence any outcome on land, sir. If the present Japanese government does not comply, what can you do? We certainly can’t put men ashore on the Japanese mainland. For that matter we could not even control Port Arthur with our present naval infantry contingent.”
“That remains to be seen. My hope is that the Japanese will not wish to sacrifice their precious navy and be relegated to the status of a feudal power here again. I have been reading Fedorov’s books! The development of the Imperial Japanese Navy is essential to their ability to project pow
er in the Pacific. We can break that navy as it stands, and prevent any further development. If they fail to comply after that, other measures can be taken, but I do not anticipate this. These are not the Japanese of the 1940s, Rodenko. They defeated Russia, yes, we all know that history and have studied it in our naval academy, but now we have a chance to reverse those losses. We have a chance to prevent Japan from getting rooted in Manchuria and the Pacific as a major power. Don’t you see this, Rodenko? We can prevent the war in the Pacific from ever being fought. We can stop Imperial Japan from rising like a shadow on the world scene—right here, right now.”
Rodenko still had a sullen, troubled expression on his face. “That’s another tall order for twenty-one missiles and four thousand rounds of deck gun ammunition, sir.”
“It isn’t the amount of force that matters now,” Karpov said quickly. “The fact that we can apply that force, wherever needed, and without putting this ship at risk, is decisive here. Understand? And don’t forget that we can also count on the support of our own countrymen here. You saw the welcome we received in Vladivostok.”
“Is that what all this nonsense about the Viceroy of the East was about, Captain?”
“That was mere theater,” Karpov waved his hand dismissively. “What else would I call myself with these men? I simply use a title they might understand.”
“So you intend to provoke a fight here? You are looking to sink more ships; seek a major engagement?”
“Whatever it may take to achieve my objective, Rodenko. And don’t get squeamish on me now.” He pointed a finger at his Executive Officer, somewhat annoyed. “I made you Starpom because you were senior bridge officer; more mature, and with more experience than any of the others. But now you begin to sound like Doctor Zolkin! This is war. You know the old quotation—war is the continuation of politics by other means. If you do not have what it takes to stand at your post, I can find another officer to replace you. Otherwise, I expect your voice to second mine in these matters, particularly in combat. There is no room for equivocation in battle. You must either commit yourself or stand down.”
Kirov Saga: Devil's Garden (Kirov Series) Page 17