Post
Region: The Celestial Empire
Moles
Abandoned Juneau Mine - May 1912
Lewis removed the hardhat from his head, and rubbed his temple. The old, once thriving mine lay cut into the ground. A literal goldmine from the early 1800s, was closed down when the gold ran out and mining operations moved to Halford and Sparticus. Below, the team of men, with the same hardhats and carrying large lamps with battery packs attached, walked into the gaping mouth that formed one of the many tunnels of the abandoned mine.
Behind Lewis was the old buildings that housed the mine’s command centre. He entered, removing his coat and turning to face the maps and charts that were left behind. The title of one of the maps read “Juneau Company Zimford East Mine.” Lewis shook his head. The Juneau company had a horrific safety record, with many of its workers dying inside its mines.
One of the maps had already been marked. A tunnel that leads nearly 12 kilometres from the central site towards Zimford. Work had already started at the apex where the tunnel turned away from the port city. Wooden supports had been propped up and rail tracks had been removed. Richard had set aside small amounts of dynamite should the teams need it to speed up progress.
Lewis inspected another chart that noted ground and soil quality. He noticed that the apex where they were digging was in an area of soft ground which greatly increased the risk of a cave in, even without dynamite. The mine itself was only 20 kilometres from the city meaning only eight kilometres had to be dug. Assuming that no detours had to be taken. The ground density chart noted the position of Zimford relative to the mine, but didn’t have markings in the area past the soft marshlands.
Lewis grabbed his hardhat again and descended down to the main mine entrance. He took a lift to the base and walked again to the tunnel where the team would be entering. Several horses carrying picks and shovels had been brought down and tied up inside the mouth of the tunnel to prevent them from running off and to protect them from the elements.
Lewis approached the site foreman, a former Juneau employee who worked at the mine. “Foreman, are the lads ready?”
The foreman nodded, “Yes sir, I’ve already sent some boys down with a cart to inspect the supports to check if they are still in place, as well as any other gremlins we might meet on the way.”
Lewis nodded and reached behind his back where he had a pistol. “Now, Foreman, do you remember what we discussed?”
The foreman nodded. “The boys are well aware of who they are working for. I chose them myself.”
Lewis nodded in satisfaction as he returned his hand to his pocket.
KFP Headquarters
Carlton lay in his office. Now an isolated space that he was part of Mansfield’s ‘Little Crack Team’ as it had been dubbed by its members. Leading the intelligence gathering and cooperation with the armed forces, the group acted as a militia, and the command for the KFP side of Operation Rolling Skies.
Now that Rebellion operations were slowly starting to come undone in the west side of the country. Carlton had now been tasked with drawing up plans to infiltrate their operations in the east. Halford and Sparticus had long been cities that seeded anti-government sentiment, meaning getting people to talk would be difficult.
The stack of papers on his desk grew higher by the day. He had shoved casualty reports aside, fortunately, most were minor injuries and very rarely did a deceased show up. There was a knock on the door. Carlton stood and opened the door, and was met face to face with Jessica, the office’s clerk, who also ran the phones for Carlton.
Carlton smiled as Jessica gently handed him a letter. “Minister Leon Allen wants a meeting.”
“With me specifically?”
Jessica nodded. “The Admiral is unavailable, so I went to the next most important person in the KFP.”
Carlton smiled, “That would be our deputy, and your father, Commodore Ian Fairweather.” Carlton went to hand the letter back to Jessica who gently placed her hand on his and pushed it back towards his chest. “I think you will find this is an opportunity you would not want to pass.”
As quickly as their eyes met, Carlton had returned his attention to the letter. Stamped on it was Leon Allen’s seal of the Minister for Internal Security. He sighed, “Very well, when is it?”
“Tomorrow, there will be more details inside the letter.”
Carlton nodded as he pulled away from the door. Jessica also turned to leave but stopped. “Carlton, the governor’s party is this coming saturday. The nation’s most powerful are going to be there. My father has been invited.”
Carlton sighed, his heart racing. He turned to face her once again. Trying not to meet her emerald green eyes. His eyes scanned the figure-hugging blouse she wore. He coughed to clear his throat, though when he spoke he still choked on his words. “And you are telling me this because?”
Jessica smiled at Carlton’s cluelessness. “Well, I would like a partner at the event, to keep me company from the mindless chatter.”
Carlton hid his internal excitement. “Thank you Jess, yes I would love to.”
Jessica smiled. “Thank you, I’ll see you in the weekend, you can take a ride with us.”
Carlton watched as she left. He closed the door, the letter from Leon forgotten in his hand. Behind the door was a Captain, who acted as Carlton’s second in command. “By our Lord, do not scare me like that again!” Carlton raised his fist as the Captain covered his face.
“Sir, I’ve arranged the car to get you to Barricus.” The Captain said.
“Oh you were listening were you?” Carlton said, grabbing his hat and coat.
“No sir,” the captain said, suppressing a smile. “Though she is a fine young lady.”
Carlton rolled his eyes as he left. “Respect to your senior officers please.”
The Keystone Chamber
Carlton waited outside in the extravagant hallways of The Keystone Chamber. Parliament officials and staff walked around, carrying slips of paper and other faff. Carlton slid the peak of his cap over his eyes to cover them. He inspected the guards at the edge of the hallway. No longer did they wear the red and white of the Imperial Guard.
Instead they wore a light green, combined with red stripes on the pants, and a white waistband and buttons with a feather on their cap. Carlton frowned, he doesn’t remember a uniform change going through, let alone to that of the Imperial Guard in the parliament buildings.
The door opened and Leon’s aide welcomed him inside. Inside, Leon Allen was writing on a piece of official parchment. He looked up and stood as Carlton entered. “Commander, I believe we have met but never acquainted.” Leon shook Carlton’s hand.
“Leon Allen.”
Carlton returned the handshake. “Carlton Marshal.”
The two men then sat down again. “Well, thank you for coming Commander. No doubt the KFP must be busying itself with The Rebellion.”
Carlton nodded. “Yes sir, their western operation will soon be burned to the ground. From there, it's only the matter of finding their homebase.”
Leon nodded. “Well, Commander, first of all, when I saw your name come across my desk a few hours ago, I thought to myself, ‘Now where have I seen that name before?’ Were you the young man who infiltrated the Rebellion communication network?”
Carlton nodded. “Yes sir, well, I didn’t do it by myself, but I was the one who located their base at Qaidong, allowing us to quietly slip into their communication network.”
Leon nodded, “Well then Carlton, you are quite the successful young man, a brilliant leader as well I hear. This will make you perfect for a particular job I have coming up.”
Leon stood and walked to the window. “This coming Saturday, Governor Ryan Caldwell will be hosting his farewell party at the Governor’s residence in Zimford. The nation’s most powerful, including businessmen, politicians and military personnel will be present, as such we need a security team to match. I believe, especially with your connections within the KFP that you are the man for the job, I want you to be incharge of security for the night, I already have the Imperial Guard units chosen, you’ll just have to direct them, feel free to bring in KFP personnel as well if you see it fit.”
Carlton also stood from his chair grabbing his hat. “Well, sir, there might be a conflict of interest, one might call it. I have been asked to attend the party, as the partner of Jessica Fairweather, I fear the security job may, I guess, hamper that commitment.”
Leon smiled, “Is that Ian’s daughter, the KFP deputy?”
Carlton nodded. “Yes sir, that would be right.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem, the Imperial Guards will do most of the heavy lifting, I also suspect the Rebellion could organise an effort this far from The Line, especially in a city like Zimford, the most anti-Rebellion city in the state. You just direct the patrol efforts, you can ask their captain to come get you should something come up.” Leon said.
Carlton grunted. “Very well, sir, there is just one more thing. Those green guards outside.”
Leon turned to face Carlton. “Yes, what about them?”
“What are they?” Carlton asked.
“They are Frederick’s idea, or, depending on which camp you fall into, his way of making sure the Armed Forces, or the KFP can’t keep an eye on him.” Leon said, “Not many people know of Frederick’s potential involvement with the Rebellion, only you, me, Albert, Mansfield and select people within the KFP are aware.” Leon said.
“Which reminds me, I said the Rebellion would be foolish to try anything, however that doesn't mean Frederick won’t do anything on behalf of them, those guards outside, are formally known as the Presidential Guard, they act as personal bodyguards to Frederick, who will also be present at the gala. He could use them to remove high-ranking opposition to the Rebellion, Albert and myself will be present at the party.” Leon said.
Carlton nodded. “Very well sir, I’ll have them wait outside or something like that. Give me time to organise the efforts, they won’t get within a shooting distance.”
Leon smiled, “Thank you Carlton.”
The two men shook hands as Carlton returned to the KFP headquarters, already mulling over the security problem, and Leon returned to his endless paperwork.