Troy Rising 3 - The Hot Gate (29 page)

“That is a…” Dr. Werden said.

“I said to my satisfaction,” Tyler said, mildly. “I did not ask for agreement nor concurrence. That the issue is based upon lack of maintenance by a group of spoiled rich kids who are just marking time until they become the officers they properly should be is established, quite well, to my satisfaction. Equally that they would make as bad of officers as they did engineers.”

Tyler nudged one of the folders closer to the Foreign Minister.

“I believe that one is your signature complaining about Doctor Velasquez’ son being treated in a ‘racist’ manner. The reply details the duties he failed to perform to his division chief’s satisfaction. I did not download the plant recordings that serve as a rather definitive proof of reality, but they exist. Those rather trail off after a bit which means, I suspect, that Doctor Velasquez’ son, at least, has learned how to maintain a shuttle. You had better hope so because we’re going home on those same shuttles.

“My understanding of the situation is satisfied. I do not require agreement. Simply that you understand that I am, now especially, unpersuasible on this argument. Do you understand my lack of persuasibililty, Doctor Werden? Only that.”

“I understand your lack of persuasibililty, Mister Vernon,” the Foreign Minister said, his jaw firming.

“Thus I would look like a fool in my own eyes making such a suggestion,” Tyler said. “But I am persuaded it would be a good idea.”

“Excuse me?” Admiral Duvall said. “What?”

“In time,” Tyler said. “I believe it is doable. But not in the present condition.”

“You don’t think we’re ‘ready’ for such an honor?” Admiral Benito asked, angrily.

“Duty, Admiral,” Tyler said. “Duty, not honor. That is one of the large things you don’t understand. You refuse to understand. Who makes up the bulk of the Alliance Navy at present, General Barcena? And by that I mean the flotillas of the Troy and the personnel of the Troy and Thermopylae?”

“North Americans,” General Barcena said.

“Notably Americans, Canadians, British, Australians, Germans, Scandinavians and a touch of French,” Tyler said. “In the Troy. In Thermopylae, deliberately, the Alliance has tried to make a more mixed group. And has run into not only…cultural issues but cultural issues.”

“Excuse me?” Dr. Barreiro said. “Could you clarify that?”

“There has been…angst expressed, very quietly but very firmly,” Admiral Duvall said. “By both other Alliance countries and non-Alliance countries.”

“Two things,” Tyler said. “Both based upon trust. One, the groups that are starting to be used for the battlestations, the countries from which they derive, their motivations, have been questioned by other countries. Such was the case, officially, about Troy. ‘Instead of Horvath owning the orbitals, it’s the dangerous Americans.’ Unofficially, we were given every green light except by the Russians and the Chinese. Because when it comes down to reality, you gentlemen know very well that you trust us to fight and die as hard as possible to protect the solar system. And you also trust us not to use that power to dominate directly. We don’t say ‘Send us stuff or we’ll drop a rock on Santiago.’ Do we, Doctor Werden?”

“No,” Werden said. “On the other hand…”

“On the other hand we do throw our weight around rather aggressively when it comes to trade,” Tyler said. “And we do tend to tinker in other people’s governments. Wish we wouldn’t. However, two points have been expressed, quietly but definitively by various countries. The first is that, especially after the MASSEX, very few countries other than your own feel that you are capable of defending the solar system.”

“That is…” Dr. Barreiro said.

“An insult?” Tyler asked. “How about a rational examination of the facts at hand, Mister Foreign Minister? Then there is the fact that Argentina, Chile and El Salvador, primarily, have at their fingertips a fleet of boats which are capable of dropping an invasion force into Brazil, say, has come up, very quietly, as a very real and serious, not for the cameras at all, point of concern.”

“We would never…” Dr. Barreiro said.

“I know that,” Tyler said. “Among other things…still not exactly omnipotent in that area and you can’t get them to fly at all. Also, I trust that you would never do that. But other countries are less trusting. Giving South America it’s own, mobile mind you, battle station? Especially select South American countries? I do, you see, pay attention to politics, Doctor Barreiro.”

“So it is out of the question,” Dr. Barreiro said.

“No,” Tyler said. “I said I thought it was a good idea.”

“Sir, with respect,” Admiral Duvall said. “I doubt you could get any traction. That is not a definitive policy statement of Alliance Navy, but from the point of view of my department, that is the official position based upon the experiences of the One-Four-Three.”

“Due to the purely mechanical aspects,” Tyler said.

“Yes, sir,” Duvall said. “That is the only department on which I can make a definite statement, sir. But it is definite. I believe you used the word unpersuasible. As would be department of tactics and department of astronautics.”

“You don’t think we can do it,” Dr. Palencia said, nastily.

“Cultural, gentlemen,” Tyler said, raising a hand. “Trust is the word. In your culture, trust, to the extent it truly exists, is based upon relationships. Would you agree to that statement in a non-binding but generally positive fashion, Doctor Barreiro? You know someone for a long time, they are generally an ally socially and therefore you can generally trust them to act in a manner in support of your position?”

“Yes,” the Foreign Minister said.

“Doctor Werden?”

“I believe that statement has some validity, Mister Vernon.”

“Then try to understand that in North American, and by that I mean what is generally meant by Norte, blanco, gringo if you will, culture, relationships are based upon trust. That may sound like a simple rephrase but it is as completely opposite as you can get. Especially when I add ‘proven trust.’ Experience of actions which prove that a person or group can be trusted. I would have you gentlemen really apply your, unquestionably fine, minds to that statement. Especially given the request you have posed to me. Relationships are based upon trust.”

Dr. Velasquez leaned over and whispered in Dr. Werden’s ear.

“So you are saying that any relationship between you and we is impossible because we have not proven we can be trusted,” Dr. Werden said.

“You have, in fact, proven you cannot be,” Tyler said, nudging another file. “I would rather trust the French. And that is saying something.”

“Then why are you, generally, in support of the premise?” Dr. Palencia asked.

“Because,” Tyler said, grinning. “I am going to request that the Alliance give you an opportunity to prove yourselves. To regain trust.”

“Sir, this is a purely internal military matter,” Admiral Duvall said. “While I respect your prominent position…”

“Admiral,” Tyler said, holding up his hand. “I don’t have the way, yet, but I have an inkling. There’s something there. But I will only present that recommendation if I have a reasonable method of action. Does that, temporarily, satisfy your department’s position on this matter?”

“Not unless there is a reasonable method of action,” Admiral Duvall said.

“You are saying that your department is going to recommend…what exactly?” General Barcena asked.

“The recommendation is not final,” Admiral Duvall said. “But based upon a hot-wash analysis of the inspection conducted post MASSEX and the maintenance issues found thereof, it is the general opinion of my department that the entire group of personnel are liable for the failure. There are personnel issues involved as well which are under review. However, it is the general tenor, of all departments involved as well as initial findings of meetings among policy makers, that the One-Four-Three as currently formed does not meet the conditions of ‘of Alliance standards’ under the Alliance Treaty and that, therefore, supplying countries are in violation of the Alliance Treaty.”

“WHAT?” Dr. Barreiro said.

“I was going to wait until one of the later meetings to present that initial hot-wash,” Admiral Duvall said. “But I was specifically charged to present the initial findings given the nature of the persons here gathered. Bottom-line, Mister Foreign Minister and Mister Foreign Minister, your personal interference and the interference of your government in normal military affairs have rendered the sole personnel and material your countries have supplied to the Alliance as unfit for operation. Ergo, you are not meeting ‘Alliance Standards.’ Ergo, absent rectification of these items your countries are not qualified for Alliance membership.”

“We have poured out the treasure of our nations…” Dr. Werden said, stunned.

“Doesn’t matter,” Tyler said. “It’s not even in the fine print. What you supply doesn’t matter. It has to be useable. Your units have to be able to fight. They can’t. They are not meeting standard.”

Tyler sighed and leaned forward.

“Gentlemen, you represent specific countries,” Tyler said. “The Alliance is charged with defending a good part of the world. In reality, the whole world and our solar system. In a very real war that has had enormous casualties.”

“What Mister Vernon is saying,” Admiral Duvall said. “And what the Secretary of State will be saying again, in informal situations, is that this isn’t about diplomacy. This is about protecting the world. And if you do not meet the standards, you do not meet the standard. We have to be able to trust you to be there when we need you. And as Mister Vernon pointed out, you’ve failed that trust. The Alliance is, yes, primarily based upon US and Anglosphere countries. We like you in a general ‘they seem like nice people’ sort of way. But if you can’t have our back in a space battle, and your people have proven they don’t, then we’re not going to just let you slide.”

“We paid for those shuttles!” Dr. Barreiro said.

“And you’ll be paid back,” Admiral Duvall said. “Less negotiable expenses for the repairs that will be necessary due to lack of maintenance. Which are going to be hefty. We’ll try to sort out which are Apollo’s and probably fudge somewhere in the middle and the American taxpayer will eat it.”

“Fudge some in our direction, too,” Tyler said. “I’ll tell my people not to geek.”

“Thank you,” the Admiral said. “But the shuttles will be turned over to another group. One which can maintain them and fight them. One we can trust.”

“And that, gentlemen, I would prefer to avoid,” Tyler said.

“It is pretty far down the road, Mister Vernon,” Admiral Duvall said. “Quite frankly, if the Secretary sees one more missive from the State Department about EM Parker he has threatened to drop a rock on Buenos Aires and blame the Rangora. That is a joke, I hope you understand, Doctor Barreiro.”

“One in very poor taste!” the Foreign Minister replied, hotly.

“I don’t know how to fix this but strangely enough I want to,” Tyler said.

“Why?” Dr. Palencia asked. “Your opinion of us, and our sons, is fairly evident.”

“Is it?” Tyler said. “One more time and with feeling. I FLEW UP HERE ON A SHUTTLE MAINTAINED BY YOUR SON!”

“One which your friend, Parker, was the division chief,” Dr. Barreiro said.

“Oh, hell, yeah,” Tyler replied, leaning back. “Seriously. I’m surprised you were willing to fly on them at all. I knew it was Parker’s Division. One of a half dozen reasons that I asked for her. Because she wasn’t going to fly on shuttles she didn’t know were safe. Trust, again. I trusted her because she’d earned it. She’d proven herself again and again. Seriously. Think about it. You all know the true condition of the One-Four-Three and you all know why it exists. You say different because admitting fault in Latin cultures is tantamount to suicide. But you had to have some trepidation about getting into a shuttle that was maintained by the One-Four-Three.”

“They assumed that since they were transporting DPs, special care would be taken,” Admiral Duvall said. “I think that the Ambassador waited until just before the shuttles landed to hint that that had not been the case. The Secretary wanted to send some from Alpha Flight.”

“Point being?” Dr. Werden asked.

“I would have developed a sudden stomach flu,” Admiral Benito said. “And recommended that you do the same, Foreign Minister.”

“Effectively, it was,” Tyler said. “I wasn’t going to ride on one unless Parker said it was good.”

“Because she is your friend,” Barreiro pointed out.

“No,” Tyler said, sighing. “Try, again, to understand my culture. She is my friend because I admire her. I admire her because when she says something, you know it’s rock hard truth. And you had to have been there when she did her comet across the main bay. Video just doesn’t cut it.”

“You don’t remove someone from an alliance,” General Barcena said. “It’s simply…not done. Everyone needs allies.”

“We’re sort of down to bedrock,” Admiral Duvall said, sighing. “This isn’t about establishing and maintaining international relations. This is about survival of Terra. And, yes, survival of the United States and Canada and Britain and Germany and Japan and Australia who are the primary Alliance partners. The State Department has input on Alliance membership but the final call is the Department of Defense. We want everyone we can in this Alliance. But if you can’t cut the mustard, you don’t play.”

She looked over at Vernon and shrugged.

“Doctor Barreiro, Doctor Werden,” Tyler said. “Have you ever played football. What we Americans call soccer?”

“Much,” Dr. Werden said.

“As well,” Dr. Barreiro said.

“You are in a football game when the game is tied and you’re in the last minutes,” Tyler said. “The enemy has the ball on your end of the field. You can bring new players on the field. Do you bring on someone who can play really well or the kid who can’t figure out which end is the goal?”

“That was just insulting!” Dr. Barreiro said.

“No, it wasn’t,” Admiral Duvall replied. “We’re about done producing the first Constitution for the Thermopylae. The decision has already been made that it’s going to a Japanese crew, not the Argentinean which was notionally considered. Most of the flotilla will be Japanese. The One-Four-Three is scheduled to be demobilized, temporarily, refurbished by Apollo and then turned over to a Thai unit. Essentially the Thermopylae will be moving to an all Asian, not South American, battlestation.”