Room 318, Monday Morning
It was morning by the time physical exhaustion set in in earnest for Peter - he might have hustled Natalie to sleep, but that was the only sleep anyone in his room had been getting. His arms burned, his mind was slowing and his eyes were starting to ache. Mentally, he felt a lot better: what fires there had been had mostly been managed or put out, and after rereading Bean's messages in a less frustrated and scared frame of mind, well, he could appreciate the intel the boy was sending him.
Thailand planned to declare itself an ally of China in order to escape capture. That made sense. That was rational. Right now, Peter appreciated all things sensical and rational. It also meant, however, that another response was in order, because it was obvious now in which direction the dominoes would fall.
He stretched and rolled his sleeves further up his arms. Just one more email, then he'd turn in for the night. Well, morning.
TO: Chamrajnagar%sacredriver@ifcom.gov
From: Wiggin%resistance@haiti.gov
Re: For the sake of India, please do not set foot on Earth
Esteemed Polemarch Chamrajnagar,
For reasons that will be made clear by the attached essay, which I will soon publish, I fully expect that you will return to Earth just in time to be caught up in India's complete subjugation by China.
If your return to India had any chance of preserving her independence, you would bear any risk and return, regardless of any advice. And if your establishing a government in exile could accomplish anything for your native land, who would try to persuade you to do otherwise?
But India's strategic position is so exposed, and China's relentlessness in conquest is so well known, that you must know both courses of action are futile.
Your resignation as Polemarch does not take effect until you reach Earth. If you do not board the shuttle, but instead return to IFCom, you remain Polemarch. You are the only possible Polemarch who could secure the International Fleet. A new commander could not distinguish between Chinese who are loyal to the Fleet and those whose first allegiance is to their now-dominant homeland. The I.F. must not fall under the sway of Achilles. You, as Polemarch, could reassign suspect Chinese to innocuous postings, preventing any Chinese grab for control. If you return to Earth, and Achilles has influence over your successor as Polemarch, the I.F. will become a tool of conquest.
If you remain as Polemarch, you will be accused, as an Indian, of planning to pursue vengeance against China. Therefore, to prove your impartiality and avoid suspicion, you will have to remain utterly aloof from all Earthside wars and struggles. You can trust me and my allies to maintain the resistance to Achilles regardless of the apparent odds, if for no other reason than this: His ultimate triumph means our immediate death.
Stay in space and, by doing so, allow the possibility of humanity escaping the domination of a madman. In return, I vow to do all in my power to free India from Chinese rule and return it to selfrule.
Sincerely, Peter Wiggin
[[ door shut, post open. email taken from Shadow of the Hegemon. ]]
Thailand planned to declare itself an ally of China in order to escape capture. That made sense. That was rational. Right now, Peter appreciated all things sensical and rational. It also meant, however, that another response was in order, because it was obvious now in which direction the dominoes would fall.
He stretched and rolled his sleeves further up his arms. Just one more email, then he'd turn in for the night. Well, morning.
TO: Chamrajnagar%sacredriver@ifcom.gov
From: Wiggin%resistance@haiti.gov
Re: For the sake of India, please do not set foot on Earth
Esteemed Polemarch Chamrajnagar,
For reasons that will be made clear by the attached essay, which I will soon publish, I fully expect that you will return to Earth just in time to be caught up in India's complete subjugation by China.
If your return to India had any chance of preserving her independence, you would bear any risk and return, regardless of any advice. And if your establishing a government in exile could accomplish anything for your native land, who would try to persuade you to do otherwise?
But India's strategic position is so exposed, and China's relentlessness in conquest is so well known, that you must know both courses of action are futile.
Your resignation as Polemarch does not take effect until you reach Earth. If you do not board the shuttle, but instead return to IFCom, you remain Polemarch. You are the only possible Polemarch who could secure the International Fleet. A new commander could not distinguish between Chinese who are loyal to the Fleet and those whose first allegiance is to their now-dominant homeland. The I.F. must not fall under the sway of Achilles. You, as Polemarch, could reassign suspect Chinese to innocuous postings, preventing any Chinese grab for control. If you return to Earth, and Achilles has influence over your successor as Polemarch, the I.F. will become a tool of conquest.
If you remain as Polemarch, you will be accused, as an Indian, of planning to pursue vengeance against China. Therefore, to prove your impartiality and avoid suspicion, you will have to remain utterly aloof from all Earthside wars and struggles. You can trust me and my allies to maintain the resistance to Achilles regardless of the apparent odds, if for no other reason than this: His ultimate triumph means our immediate death.
Stay in space and, by doing so, allow the possibility of humanity escaping the domination of a madman. In return, I vow to do all in my power to free India from Chinese rule and return it to selfrule.
Sincerely, Peter Wiggin
[[ door shut, post open. email taken from Shadow of the Hegemon. ]]