DIPLOMATIC EFFECTS / CH. 16:PUBLIC SPEECH
MARS COUNCIL CHAMBER, 12:15PM, MONSOL 11TH MARCH
Each clutching their new breather, tent and claim forms, Svetlana and her entourage were ushered into the Council chamber by Eloise. The podium area had more chairs than normal — all occupied apart from theirs — and there was a significant crowd of dignitaries and reporters in the lower half of the chamber.
Mack stood at on podium and said “Your highness, thank you for your patience with our immigration procedures. You asked to address the Council. We are all here. Ladies and gentlemen of the press, her Imperial Highness, Crown princess Svetlana of Russia.”
“I'm entirely used to waiting for important formalities, Mr Chairman, and very very happy that you felt able to offer me this right of claim. Mr Chairman, honoured Council members, I do not really expect I will ever have the time to practice the skills needed to produce my own first-harvest, but it has long been a dream. Thank you for making it one step closer. It is my greater desire that in the time I plan to be on Mars this trip I'll be able to make significant steps towards normalising relationships between our nations. That establishment of diplomatic links is, partially, why I'm here.”
“Partially, highness?” Mack asked.
“I'm also here on a number of more painful matters. One is I wish to deliver a message from my mother, and also from my brother. I expect that they are necessary, but I also expect they will reopen painful wounds and that they will not be universally well received. My mother's message is as follows: With others, our nation has done great harm to Mars, and reestablishing of relationships first needs an acknowledgement of fault. Twenty-five years ago, she learned of the tripartite Mars Plan that targeted the Firsters and their descendants for executions. One third of firsters for each nation, allocated by lot at the end of the third year of the colony. As a result, she immediately threatened to cancel her engagement to my father unless the use of Russian assassins was put to an end. It was.
“She feels she bears some responsibility for not extracting a promise from my father that he would make it clear that he would not allow anyone to restart it, but she felt she had won her point when he persuaded my grandfather to bring our involvement in assassinations to an end, a few months after her ultimatum.
“She was heart-broken to hear, just before Mars gained independence, that once again our nation was seeking to destroy lives, besmirching its honour in the eyes of the world in this manner. She praises God that he answered her prayers and not only protected lives but also she was easily able to persuade my father to remove from power the general who tried to restart that campaign, and cancel the orders given.
“The message from my brother is that a privileged upbringing, good teachers, and fierce pride are not enough to ensure wise decisions. He apologises for his youthful encouragement, eight or ten years ago, of that general who felt that Russia's not keeping to its commitments to other shareholders demeaned its honour. He acknowledges his encouragement resulted in the breather failure of the ambassador for the Restored Kingdom.
“I add, from myself, and by way of explanation that my father does not, cannot oversee every decision taken by his trusted advisors. All authority in Russia is his, but he has also been a devoted husband to my mother through her many illnesses that result from the poisoning she fell victim to soon after my birth. He therefore trusts and delegates. This has led to deplorable, unjustifiable decisions. He does not deny his moral responsibility for giving the authority, nor for the actions taken in his name, but I will state that they were not his will, nor did they receive his approval.
“Another message I bring from my brother is that of sincere apology to the Council and the Ambassador to Mars of the Mer, for his actions against her when he was general-in-charge of the Imperial Space Force, which includes within its remit all activities outside the Earth's atmosphere. He offers no excuse himself, but I will state he felt himself under extreme pressure to win my father's approval, and when the justly condemned criminal Koschev came to him with his murderous and dishonorable plan, he approved it. Again, my father had no knowledge of the plan before it was carried out.
“I am now in administrative charge of the Imperial Russian Space Force, though I hold no formal military rank, and I have taken vows that, in as much as it depends on me, I will work for peace. I understand why assassins have been part of Russia's security service, but I do not approve. My hope and prayer is that I will never be called upon to approve the use of assassination to defend myself and my family. Here, given our terrible history on Mars, I will go further. I publicly reject any use of assassins here. May the Lord God strike me dead before I ever approve any assassinations on Mars. I also state, there are Russian officers who were sent here as undercover assassins. They bear that role no more; I order them to return to Russia if they feel they want to reclaim that title. I also order them to obey the just laws of this planet and the authority of this council, and inform them that their superiors have been instructed to assume their honourable retirement from the Imperial security forces if they do not express a desire to eventually serve as embassy guards. As of this moment, by my Imperial Father's decree, Russia has no assassin officers on Mars. We have embassy guards on extended standby and retired officers.
“On the subject of retired officers, Vasile Vladimirovich Gorbachev's dishonourable discharge has been overruled by my Imperial Father, and replaced by a reprimand for failing to arrest Koschev for giving an order illegal under the Geneva conventions. His full pension rights are restored.
“The wife-beating drunkard and adulterer known as Koschev has long been a disgrace to his family and the uniform he wore. He is discharged without rank or honor. Furthermore, in view of the long list of crimes he has committed, here and elsewhere, his failure to accept aid offered to his subordinate, and his callous declaration that he did not care if Vasile Gorbachev lived or died, Koschev is classed as outlaw and legally dead. May he seek God's mercy on his soul as he continues to have breath do do so. I leave his actual fate to this Council and humbly ask they not mention of his despicable name in my presence. By my order, in view of the failings of those who were his superiors to protect his long-suffering widow and child until now, these innocents have been classified as full dependants of the armed forces, which is to say that as well as receiving a pension to use as they wish, all their regular and reasonable expenses will be met directly from imperial funds.
“I thank the Mars Council, and the representatives of the press for their attention.”
“Your Imperial Highness,” Mack asked, “I know you asked that the press be admitted, but you have not formally stated whether you are willing for your speech was to be broadcast in full. Was that your intention?”
“It was, and I am sorry for not making it clear. I am also willing to answer relevant questions.”
“How long will your stay on Mars be?” a reporter asked.
“I plan on staying more than a week and less than a month. I will not be more precise because of security issues.”
“We understand your visit was unexpected. May we ask where you will be staying?”
“One fun thing about making unexpected visits is seeing how quickly things get resolved. I plan to stay in my spacecraft, if other suitable options do not present themselves before this evening.”
“So you don't know yet?”
“I have some ideas of who I might ask. For security purposes, I won't publicise them.”
“You seem nervous about security.”
“My mother was poisoned during a state visit to a friendly nation. My father would have been poisoned at the same time, if he didn't detest that particular foodstuff. I am not aware of any immediate threats against me, but I know I'm a target wherever I go.”
“You're not worried about someone seeking revenge, then?” Another reporter asked.
“I understand that people might hate my nation for sending assassins here, trying to prevent independence. I would like to add that while the more recent wave were only Russians, the earlier wave of assassins was not, and that it was the efforts of my parents that put an end to that multi-national policy, and we stopped long before they did. The honourable ambassador for the Restored Kingdom's beautiful song 'code-red' is not entirely accurate: from the records I've seen, there were men and women with lists.”
“Will those records be made public?”
“I expect they will be eventually. At the moment, I do not have the authority to publish them unilaterally. I do not know quite how big a diplomatic crisis it would cause if I did. What I can say is that the records do exist, and I have taken measures that I hope will ensure that they are not destroyed.”
“Was Russia behind the hiding of the missing clauses?”
“Russia was one of the big-three shareholders in Mars Corp. I do not know which nation proposed that part of the plan, but I assume you realise that the tripartite plan pre-dated the founding of Mars Corp, and incorporated all the major elements: the missing clauses, the failure of breathers belonging to Firsters and Seconders, the deliberate suppression of small-scale hydroponics, the production of goodstuff from gloop. All these elements that have come to light in the last few years. Other elements of that murderous initial plan were not put into effect. Perhaps the selective sterilization of the Firster's children would have been better than assassination, I am repelled by both. In either case, I rejoice that the plan failed. Mars is a planet of free citizens, and not a planet of serfs and slave-labourers paid in gloop.”
“Why did Russia keep sending assassins after the plan had obviously failed, and every single one was detected?” a journalist asked.
Svetlana wasn't surprised “I think I have dealt with that in part — pride. Let me be more clear: not just individual pride, but national pride. Russia tries to keep to its international commitments.
“The plan foresaw the possibility that some Firsters or their descendants might successfully hide and then come forward later, and called for increased presence of assassins in that eventuality. Hence on learning that queries were being made about the missing clauses, the general complied. Additional assassination officers were sent. Except for the first one, orders for them to act were never given, as the general was replaced.
“I do not defend the general's actions, I abhor them, but they were called for under that amoral agreement.
“You might also ask why Russia has not formed diplomatic links with Mars. Easy, all parties to the plan agreed not to for a period of at least four years after independence.
“So might I ask another question in reply? Why did the other major shareholders not keep their part of the amoral international agreement that was the tripartite plan? Why were they so quick to form diplomatic ties with Mars?
“If I might take this opportunity to cause diplomatic upset and answer my own question, I personally believe that the only reason that the other major nations did not uphold all their commitments under that tripartite agreement was self-interest. I do not believe it was because they had suddenly found some moral high ground, I have strong reasons to believe they did not in any way take on board my mother's efforts to stop the assassinations. I expect they were surprised at the inconsistency of our policy, but no question was raised at any meeting about us doing it. The tripartite plan was last re-ratified only eight years ago, in 2270.
"But, it seems they simply decided that keeping their promise to fully abide by the plan was not in their interests any more, so they forgot all about their so-called cast-iron promises.
“I do not have the authority to release the records I spoke of earlier, but in response to the unfaithfulness of the other parties, I will be making the whole text of the Mars plan available before I leave. My Imperial father insists that I add the following in case any of the other parties thinks to assassinate me because of this announcement: I remind the former parties to the Mars plan that Russia keeps it's promises, positive or negative, no matter how inconvenient. An attempted or actual assassination of an Imperial crown-prince or princess has only ever had one response. Your deepest bunkers are not deep enough to hide in.”
In a much more friendly tone of voice Svetlana said “Now, I saw a hand raise part way through my long reply. Another question?”
“Errr, I had planned to ask if you could comment on the current diplomatic relationship between the three major stakeholders.”
Svetlana laughed, “Now or just before I announced I would be sharing their dirty laundry? Relationships between Russia and its former partners in the tripartite Mars Plan have not been good recently. One might say a little frosty. I hear they have made claims about talking to Russia about their little charade regarding compensation. I don't know if they talked to a minor official or just a patch of bare Russian soil somewhere, but word of that conversation certainly never reached my father. So, they were frosty. I expect they're now a little cooler; like, say, the Martian icecaps.”
“There has been some speculation that the big three would not have provided the financial support of MarsCorp to the extent they did if there had not been the expected financial return,” Someone asked.
“I believe that might be the case for the other two. For Russia, space exploration and exploitation have always been a matter of national pride. Some documents I have seen support my belief, but I don't know.”
“If Russia's involvement in Mars is a matter of national pride, how has it become such a disaster for Russia's international standing?”
“My brother tried to be competent, but struggled with the bigger picture. The man he replaced believed that asking the Tsar for advice was a sign of weakness. And of course, I am still an idealistic teenager who thinks of things in black and white, so I see it as the inevitable result of agreeing to an evil scheme, and being too pig-headedly proud to try to negotiate our way out of promises that shouldn't have been made.”
“I don't think there's been an open question and answer time from a member of the Russian royal family for a hundred years. Is this a one-off or do you expect it to be something we should expect to continue?”
“I cannot imagine this pattern will work everywhere. I prefer openness but there are security concerns, especially at home. So, perhaps I will only be able to give impromptu open press conferences when I make unexpected visits to Mars. I don't know.”
An Asian-looking woman stood. “I am Ai Chen, assistant to honourable Ambassador of China. Does imperial princess say there there is honour in keeping a dishonourable promise?”
Svetlana bowed her head in acknowledgement “I greet you, honourable assistant of honourable representative of our southern neighbour. I am young, and perhaps foolishly bring dishonour on myself by speaking rashly. But to my mind there is no honour in breaking any promise, nor is there honour in keeping a dishonourable one in its dishonourable portions. I think when there is a dishonourable promise made, the action of honour is to agree with the others involved that the promise was dishonourable, and should not be held to by any. That path was not taken. When one side breaks an inconvenient promise, and another keeps it, that brings deep distrust. Russia has held to that dishonourable promise, both the violent parts and the inconvenient parts, and because others acted as though breaking it was of no importance, distrust has grown. I have studied some history, and think understanding of a country's actions is only possible through a knowledge of treaties.
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"That there was some kind of agreement, all know. Some parts of the agreement are not known, and I would find no honour in allowing another to be blamed for what I had agreed to and been a part of.
“I follow Christ, and think that confession of sin must come before forgiveness. So I confess on behalf of my nation, and hope that forgiveness can come. Thus, I will release the Mars-plan. But as I speak of honour, I will not allow all the dishonour for the assassinations to fall on my great-grandfather, for I do not believe such an idea came from Imperial Russia at all. I say so for a simple reason: the sterilisation plan is listed as developed by us, as an alternative to the assassination plan.”
“Do you know why the sterilisation plan was not put into effect?” A reporter asked.
“The three doctors who were sent to Mars for that purpose all became involved with Firsters. Strangely enough, their loyalties changed.”
“Three Russian doctors?” someone asked.
“Bad question.” Svetlana said, “I will not say who came to Mars on such a ticket. I believe the law states that all Martians have a right to their privacy, do they not?”
“Thank you, your Imperial Highness,” Mack said. “Regarding the assassins, do you have information on who targeted whom?”
“I have some. I will be releasing data on when Russian agents were sent, and how Russian agents applied policies. The tripartite plan states that the number of agents from each nation will be the same, I have no information that that was not held to, though of course our agents stopped assassinations twenty five years ago while others continued. Beyond that, I have some information in terms of how the targeting of individuals worked. Registrin' was a jit thing to do, obviously. Is a jit thing to do, according to people I trust.”
“You believe there is still a threat of assassins?”
“In my life there is always a threat of assassins. I was speaking of Marscorp's ability to keep data safe, however.”
“You don't believe that MarsCorp has cleaned up its act?” Claudia asked.
“I don't know. Please tell me if MarsCorp has actually proven it has any need for that data, beyond curiosity. If so, please show me the report from the expert systems penetration team that reads 'I'd trust them to know how to access my swiss bank account.' Because they're asking almost enough to do that.”
“I don't think many Martians have a Swiss bank account, your highness,” Mack said, smiling at the thought.
“I'm not surprised. But maybe someone has used the data from MarsCorp to open one in your name, Mr Chairman, and are even now running up a huge debt for you, payable in six months' time.”
“You don't think I'm such a jit I'd go and register do you?” Mack asked.
“My point exactly,” Svetlana said, “nor am I.”
There was a chuckle from the crowd, and looking around, Svetlana noticed a cluster of mer-warriors, entirely distinctive with their blow-pipes and knives. She was pretty sure the one in the middle was the ambassador she'd very briefly met on arrival. Deliberately, she decided she'd like to talk to Karella's ambassador once there were no more questions.
Ruth nodded, and Svetlana mentally reviewed the long complex question she'd been filing away. It boiled down to did she think that Russia had anything that Mars wanted.
“Yes. For example, I believe that Mars wants more comet deliveries to help with terraforming. Which nation do you think provides seventy-five percent of Mars-Corp's most powerful fusion engines? That's to say the seventy-five percent that have an outstanding reliability record, rather than the twenty-five percent that MarsCorp are forced to buy from other sources by their charter, and frequently have problems. I do not doubt that Mer technology is superior — how could I, after I've got here in a week by a Mer vessel? But I have spoken to her Imperial Majesty Karella of Atlantis, and she agreed with me that the mostly boring work of shepherding comets was not a job that would appeal to many Mer. It makes more sense to apply the limited and amazing skills of Mer artificers to tasks only they can do, and to leave boring comet watching and boring mass production work to us landfolk, and I assure you, engine production in Russia is not running at peak capacity. This is just one area of possible trade, of course.
“This seems a good moment for me to conclude. The ships that brought the Firsters here were powered by Russian engines, the ships that brought almost all immigrants here were powered by Russian engines, because MarsCorp prefers to use non-Russian engines on drone ships, because of reliability issues. I do not in any way wish he to downplay other nations' historical visits or the sad failed attempts in previous generations. But the ships that brought almost everyone here were designed with Russian expertise or involvement. Other nations played their part of course, but I understand the general consensus of space engineers from outside Russia is that Mars colonisation without Russian involvement in MarsCorp would have almost certainly involved several transports lost en-route.
“I started by thanking this council for the granting me and my entourage landing permission and rights of claim. Perhaps, to you it was normal, nothing special. But to my father it is most significant that the Imperial house of Russia now has some hectares of land here after our helping to start this colony of the human race. Before I landed I could only speak in my own name, but now, having been granted this land-right, I have authority to speak in his name. It is in his name I acknowledge the sovereignty of Mars; in his name I ask this council and the people of Mars to accept Russia's sincere regret for ever agreeing to that terrible tripartite plan; in his name I ask you not to lay all or most of its evils at our feet, as some have been tempted to do; and in his name, and the name of all Russia, I ask that you accept full diplomatic ties and at least consider our sincere offer of future friendship.”
Turning to the woman in a mask beside her, Svetlana said, “Truthsayer, thank you for your presence and your time. Would you like to comment on what you heard or did not hear?”
Cecilia Thornthwaite-Durrel, stepped up to the microphone. “Honoured council members and ambassadors, Frank, if you're watching, seconders, thirders, fourthers, fifthers, born Martians, immigrant Martians, jits and crims; I listened to her highness's thoughts all through that. I heard — and understood - some thoughts in Russian, which is probably why her Imperial highness asked for a truthsayer who knows Russian. Of course she's been preparing what to say. Wouldn't you? But she went off script enough and made up enough on the spot that I'm quite sure that what we've just heard is truth.”
“What, all of it?” Svetlana pressed.
“Highness, as a whole you spoke truth. You certainly said no lie. You were a bit politer than you might have been in places, for example about certain people's pride and stubbornness. But I think you trod on diplomatic toes harder than I would like to. I heard a desire to balance openness with avoiding offense, but no lie.”
“Thank you truthsayer,” Mack said. “And thank you your Imperial Highness. You have certainly given us much to think about. Shame about the rest of the day's plans.”
“I do not expect you to devote any more of your time to me today, Mr Chairman.” Svetlana said, speaking into the microphone once more. “Please, do not feel you must leave things undone on my account. I have no definite plans left for my visit, and plenty of things I'd like to do. Ignore me, or quiz me. I am available to this council.” With that, Svetlana stepped off the platform into the midst of her small entourage, and together they retired towards a side room the council had made available for them.
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COUNCIL CHAMBER SIDE ROOM.
Ruth was the first ambassador to come and visit as the council went into closed session. “I understand that one thing on your wish-list is seeking a bed, peace-submarine pilot?” Ruth asked. “Of course you can have one!”
“Not just one.” Svetlana said, “I do have five others with me.”
“The embassy has space, highness, and as you ought to know, you are welcome to it. Will you tell me of them?”
“The young man trying to keep a respectful distance but with the camera permanently glued to his eye socket is Vladimir Vladimirovich, a reporter. The woman trying to stop him from tripping over chairs as he backs into the corner is his girlfriend, Yuliya, who is here deciding if she wants to become my lady in waiting, like Olga is, or take up another job.”
“So it's an extended interview?”
“More like a trial period. I've known Yuliya a long time, since her mother is one of my mother's ladies in waiting. Anna and Leonid are my token bodyguards.”
“Token bodyguards, Highness?” Anna asked.
“Sorry, Anna, a poor choice of words. But we both know that there are many potential threats here that even fifteen bodyguards could not protect me from them all twenty four hours a day. You and Leonid are here to demonstrate my father's will that I not face threats unprotected, and of course provide protection when I do some particularly risky things.”
“You are all welcome to the little outpost of Atlantis on Mars,” Ruth said, and I would like to introduce my husband, Robert.”
“Dr Young, as you might guess, I've been reading about your plans,” Svetlana greeted him, “I hope you don't mind me tweaking them to my own purpose.”
“No, your highness. I'm well aware of Mer preferences, and your suggestion isn't a new one. But without diplomatic or trading ties it has seemed impossible. Do you know if thrusters on a par with the engines of Jupiter-class vessels might be available?”
“From what I have been told, additional numbers of any currently produced engine are easily available. For past designs, we don't normally destroy tooling, so that should not be too hard either. I also understand that thoughts of higher thrust versions, capable of coping with cometary reaction mass without such extreme filtering as there'd be for a passenger ship, are also getting the designers excited.”
“There would be additional costs, presumably,” Robert said.
“Probably, I'd assume there are good points too. But I won't claim to be any sort of expert.”
“Could you put me in touch with some experts?” Robert asked.
“Robert, love,” Ruth warned, “You do need to remember that the Council get to decide how to respond to her highness' statement, before you can jump into any negotiations. To be honest, your highness, you're entirely right to think that almost all the blame for the assassinations has been laid a Russia's door.”
“And what we publish will be treated with suspicion, as untrusted and untrustworthy villains, only trying to sling mud to spoil new friendships.” Svetlana added.
“Sorry,” Ruth agreed.
“And my father's 'don't you think of assassinating my daughter' warning will be portrayed as a ludicrous attempt to lay credence to the documents, will it not?”
“Not by me, highness.” Ruth said,
“Thank you. And meanwhile the friends of India and China are probably gathering their friends to protest against atrocities that were not of our making.”
“Russia did send a lot of people with the assassination liquid.”
“Not officially, we didn't. I didn't want to argue it in front of everyone, but my brother's predecessor sent some assassins, yes. One or two with the chemical, I can't remember. The rest without. In any case, it was nowhere near as many as Mars has imprisoned. It's one of my 'it would be nice things to do' list, to interview those people and try to find out who did send them.”
“You think that other nations sent Russian assassins?”
“I think other nations bribed Russian officials to use some spare time and their official I.D.s to recruit and send people of Russian origin with the sabotage chemical, yes. I don't know who did it, but it certainly hasn't helped international relationships.”
“And you've just offered them jobs?” Robert asked.
“Not the ones in prison, no. That wasn't my intention, anyway. I meant the sleepers, who I assume someone you know knows all about.”
“Someone I know?” Ruth asked, wondering where this was going.
“Yes. The married Martian truthsayer who used her gift to help Vasile Vladimirovich talk to his holiness the metropolitan of Moscow, and so come to a true understanding of faith.”
“Why do you assume I know such a person?”
Svetlana looked at Ruth steadily and decided that Ruth didn't need Vladimir to hear her say what Karella had said about Ruth's friend.
“Oh, right.” Ruth said, “You're very good at that for a non-thought-hearer, by the way.”
“I did have a lovely educational time in Atlantis,” Svetlana said. “And it's been quite useful on occasions. But yes, I have good reasons to think you know who I'm talking about.”
“And the metropolitan of Moscow spoke to you about strange happenings here?”
“He spoke to my mother, knowing she wouldn't be in favour of assassination attempts anywhere, and more recently I spoke to him about my visit, and other things.”
“Oh? Seeking spiritual guidance?”
“Not exactly, it was easier to talk to the metropolitan than the Institute for the Human Mind. Has Karella told you about my coming to faith?”
“No.”
“My mother put her trust in God soon after she was poisoned, so I grew up with a believing mother and unbelieving father. I heard the gospel explained to me quite a lot, but mostly from mother, or her ladies in waiting, which sort of counted as one witness to my mind. I wanted some independent confirmation, and it came in the form of Jake Karella Christoph, just before western Christmas. He and Karella led me to faith under St Petersburg harbour on a construction submarine.”
“What was Karella doing on a construction sub?”
“Karella as in Jake's new wife, daughter of the Mer ambassador to St Petersburg, she was interpreting for me.”
“Oh! Right, that makes more sense. But your English is good.”
“It's improved a lot in the last few months, I've been travelling so much. I'm quite looking forward to starting University, it'll be nice to stay at home and just have one subject to learn. Oops.” She turned to Vladimir, and said in Russian, “Vladimir, you know you don't mention me going to university to anyone, certainly not staying at home, I hope.”
“I do now, Tsarevna.”
“Good. Don't forget,” turning back to Ruth she asked, “It's been lovely chatting, but do you think we should see if there's anyone else who wants to talk to me?”
“It'd probably be polite, yes,” Ruth agreed, going to the door, “Alice, why didn't you knock? Your highness, her excellency the ambassador for the restored kingdom. Alice, come and meet a sister in Christ, who's been telling me some things she didn't want to get bogged down in out there.”
“Oh yes?”
“Not all the captured Russian assassins were sent officially. Unknown powers and corruption believed involved.”
“That's.... that's going to be very hard to prove, your highness.”
“I know. That's why I didn't bother mentioning it. I have a list of eight now ex-assassins sent through the correct channels who are still on Mars, other than the pair who tried to start a war with Atlantis. Two of my eight are in jail, leaving urm, what, ten extra? Or is it more? I doubt the others know they're not here officially, but maybe they've been talking to each other or listening to court proceedings and worked it out.”
“Why do you say they might have worked it out?”
“The people we sent were special forces. They trained together, or at least under the same instructors. They knew their rank and serial number, should have known how the Geneva conventions applied, and knew the chain of command.”
“So there were no whispered conversations in a bar late at night, or clandestine meetings on deserted university campuses, like films show?” Ruth asked.
“Exactly. And nor were there 'we'll let you out of jail if you sign up for this mission', or that sort of thing.”
“So, in your view, highness. How should the Geneva conventions applied to make it OK to sabotage breathers?”
“Sorry, your excellency, I over simplified. We also had a pair of secret service agents who might have done the sabotage. They came, after their predecessor came down with an allergic reaction. But when you published about the attack, my mother heard, and the general got fired. So they got no deliveries or targets, and they've all left. The assassins still here are specialists in improvised weapons, not poisoners. The sabotaged breathers were of course acceptable under Russian law and even would have been under international law because the missing clauses were declared to be official secrets. They couldn't be acted on unless published, so anyone thinking of claiming their rights under the charter would have been violating those so-called official secrets. The ability to classify previously public information as an official secret is a loophole that seriously needs closing, I think, but it's there. The weapons specialists were sent here in case an exit needed to be forced for anyone else. We sent no sabotage fluid after the general was fired.
“But I'm confused by something else, your highness,” Alice said, “Breather failures only stopped for ten years, but you said your mother stopped them before her marriage.”
“Officially sanctioned Russian sabotage efforts stopped eight years before certain other countries could be persuaded. One Russian saboteur was convicted of murder after he was found to have disobeyed the order to stop and collaborated with the foreign powers. I can release the transcript of the court case if you wish.”
“Certainly,” Alice said. “But I'm still confused, how did the Russian judicial system have no problem trying a saboteur for a murder that took place on foreign soil? Is that normal?”
“Foreign soil?” Svetlana asked. “It didn't happen on foreign soil, your excellency. It happened on Mars, a jointly dependent crown territory. Jurisdiction was a bit of a mess, but legally from our point of view just over one undefined quarter of this planet used to be part of Russia.”
“And so the Russian Secret Service treated breaches of state secrets just like at home,” Alice said, as light dawned.
“What else did you think was happening, your excellency?” Svetlana asked.
“I thought it was simply an attempt at exterminating of the firsters and their blood-lines.”
“That's what the plan called for. Not even my grandfather approved of that. Our agents were supposed to be more selective than that. My grandfather's favourite motto was that 'the innocent lamb need have no fear of the most draconian laws.' My mother's argument was that if no one hadn't even hinted that the missing clauses might have been classified secret, how could they consider themselves to be anything but innocent lambs?”
“Next question, if I may. Didn't the Russian ambassador try to bring a recording device to the shareholder's meeting so that the shareholders could be targeted?”
“Targeted? In what sense? With bullets or unsolicited mail? It would have been easy to drop a kinetic energy weapon on the shareholder's meeting, would it not, if we wanted to kill lots of people? My brother wanted information. He wanted to know how people reacted, and so on. You, I realise, thought of independence from the supremely incompetent bully MarsCorp, and of Mars growing up and leaving home; My brother thought part of Russia was breaking away. I do not know what he wanted to find out, perhaps he would have suggested that ring-leaders be assassinated. I don't expect my father would have agreed, since he'd only just fired the general for the sabotage campaign.”
“Your highness, as you know I'm also a journalist...”
“I do not claim privacy on anything I've told you, Alice, though I do claim privacy on an accidental slip before you came in. But Vladimir has been taking notes, and I'm sure he'd be happy to earn some grammes.”
“But my English is not very good.” Vladimir said, “A joint work, perhaps?”