Two weeks later.
(())
"Ambassador," Nell said with the utmost enthusiasm, "I am very happy we were able to come to an agreement."
The Green Earth ambassador sitting across from Nell dipped his head just so. He was a handsome man. Severe, perhaps, but handsome. Far too serious for Nell's tastes, though. "Likewise, Commander." Then he turned to the man sitting next to Nell. "And you, Mr. Secretary."
"Absolutely. This is a great day."
The redhaired woman accompanying the ambassador extended her hand.
"I'm so glad this is done with," Jess said. "Maybe we can finally have some peace."
Nell gladly shook the offered gesture, beaming. "I hope so, General. I hope so."
Jess smiled back. She looked smart in her green uniform, buckled belt and tie. Very prim and proper. Or as proper as a tank commander could be.
The handshakes went around. Then the Green Earth side of the table – Jess, the ambassador, and two aides – gathered their things, pushed in their chairs, and rounded the table. Jess gave Nell a salute as she was leaving, and Nell returned it.
Orange Star's Secretary of Foreign Affairs followed them to shut the mahogany door after their departure. Then he turned back to the mahogany room. It was quite mahogany, actually. The table, chairs, even the lamps, they were all of the same reddish-brown hue with only slight variations.
The Secretary, a fat man with bristling gray mustaches and quite the ambassador's opposite, rubbed his hands together. An uneducated person might've summoned a stereotype and labeled him as a dishonest politician, but Nell knew he was about the most honest upper-level government official in Orange Star. "Well," he said, "I'm very glad that's up and done with. Echoing the good General's words, I dearly hope we see more than a few months of peace in our time."
Nell adjusted her violet cap, and then picked up her briefcase. Inside she breathed a heavy sigh of relief. It was done. The conflict was officially over, and would be forever remembered in the annals of history as the Resting War. Not because of any general lack of bloodshed, no, but because the war began and ended on a Sunday.
Fighting was officially two weeks over. The casualties were still being counted. Given the two theatres in Omega Land and Cosmo Land, it was being estimated at fifteen hundred per side. Perhaps not many compared to the Black Hole conflicts, but for such a short space of time, very bloody. And very sudden. The suddenness had contributed to deaths on both sides. It was all unfortunate. More than unfortunate.
"It's not quite over, Mr. Secretary," she reminded him.
The man nodded while gathering his own briefcase and a rather fancy pen that he dropped in his suit's breast pocket. "Ah, true enough, Commander. But I don't suspect we'll have any real trouble with Yellow Comet, eh?" He chuckled, but it quickly faded. "I forget myself. That is not an issue to be taken lightly." He turned one old, wizened eye to Nell. "Tell me, Commander, what is your position on the issue of the Comets? I could always use friendly advice."
Nell set her hands on the back of a chair and drummed her fingers. Orange Star was still technically at war with the Empire. That country had relinquished control of Dorton City and withdrawn, but only because their forces were spread too thin to retain it and defend their Omega Land holdings at the same time. But the Comet nation was becoming increasingly polarized between hardliners and loyalists. The former still grudgingly declared their fight in Orange Star and the latter desired a peaceful settlement. The loyalists, of course, found their leadership in Sonja.
The analysts were expecting civil war.
"I will be frank, Mr. Secretary. If we are going to play mediator, then you only have one shot. The fighting will start soon, I imagine."
The Secretary's mustaches wiggled as he pondered this. "Yes. Well. I'll do my damndest, if you will excuse my language." He shook his head. "Still, as I said, more than just a few months of peace would be excellent."
Nell adjusted her briefcase shoulder strap. "We shall see, Mr. Secretary. We shall see."
(())
"He was a soldier, like any of us," Sami began.
"Just another soul brought into a war that no one wanted to fight. But when he was called upon, he did not hesitate. He did not shirk from his duties. He stood by each and every member of the armed forces that is standing here today.
Sami cleared her throat. "I…"
Then, for just a fraction of a second, she stopped.
It wasn't a lengthy speech. Besides, she hadn't known Christoph for very long. But during that short time she'd gotten to know him quite well.
It was hot, for an early September Saturday. Not humid, just hot. Sami was in full uniform, and it wasn't terribly comfortable. But no one would ever catch her complaining. Not even about her shoulder, which still hurt.
The dais stood in front of her, on the tiny erected podium that supported her polished shoes. Her short, typed work sat upon the dais' surface. Down to the podium's front was the coffin itself, wrapped in the orange and gold flag of the nation, resting on the green grass. It was flanked by two rows of honor guard, each man standing perfectly still, rifles parallel. There was not a blemish on their black caps, nor on their black uniforms. Max stood among them as the ranking officer, dwarfing each man. He, too, looked out of place in his uniform, his hat alone big enough for a horse.
Beyond them were the relatives and friends. An elderly couple, perhaps in their mid-sixties, assumedly the parents. One Sepp Lee, one Romana DuBois. A few others, close friends from outside the military.
And Sami, up front.
All of it was taking place under the shadow of a rather large oak.
After that fraction of a second, Sami swallowed, and continued.
"I worked with Captain Christoph John. He took orders, and he gave them, and never was either task done poorly by him. It was his command of Kilo Company that won the Battle of Loch Haven. It was his command, and his decision to put himself in the line of fire at Calciki, that allowed our armed forces to liberate that city.
"I am afraid I cannot repeat all the high words Captain Lee had to say about his good friend, for I did not know Captain Jorn as long as he. But I will say that I was proud to serve alongside him, as I am proud to serve alongside those who remain with us."
(())
The flag was presented to Christoph's parents.
Sami watched from a short distance as it happened. Sepp Lee and Romana DuBois folded the flag in precise measurements. Thirteen folds total. Then Lee took the flag and turned to the older couple to hand it to them. They didn't cry. But their expressions were somber. Perhaps they'd prepared for the possibility that their son would die in this war-torn world, as was wont to happen to soldiers.
Captain Lee stepped back and saluted.
Max gave a command to the honor guard. Sami didn't hear what it was. They all turned in tandem, clicked heels, and marched away from the small podium.
And that was it.
With the ceremony done, Lee abandoned the precise motions required by military funeral rites. But he remained respectful. He knelt next to the parents and removed his cap to give them what appeared to be consoling words. There was familiarity there. Sami didn't know if Lee knew them well or not. After some time he stood, replaced his cap, and saluted again. He faced DuBois and nodded.
Then his eyes found Sami, and he made a beeline for her.
"Lieutenant Colonel," he said as he approached, saluting.
She returned the salute. Even if it was done with her right hand, her left shoulder ached with the movement. The sling had been removed only yesterday. "Captain." She'd only met Sepp Lee the day following the Battle of Calciki, but she felt like she'd known him for a lot longer. Maybe because of his relationship to Christoph. "How are your new stripes?"
Sepp's curly hair was getting to be past regulation length, and spilled from under his cap. He lifted his right arm and looked at his insignia patch on his shoulder. "Fine, I s'pose. I don't really care either way."
"You'll come around, trust me. You deserved the promotion. I heard what you did for Kilo Company in Calciki. That took guts."
They stood there in silence for a moment. Sepp lowered his arm and looked up at the sky, like he was wondering at the heat. Sami looked with him. It was otherwise a perfect day. Blue sky, white clouds. Everything was green and blue and white. It was something peaceful to admire, finally, after all the fighting.
Sepp's gaze dropped. He looked down at the ground, scratched his cheek. Then he swept his cap off and ran a hand through his hair. "I lost two good friends in that stupid war, Colonel. My Captain and a fellow Lieutenant. I'm not in a good mood, no." Then he looked back at Sami. "I also heard things, Colonel."
Sami had been watching the oak tree, examining its crags and patterns from afar. Now her eyes settled on Lee again. "Things?"
"About Christoph. Mostly from his loaders, from Loch Haven and Calciki. Like something wasn't quite right 'bout him, ma'am. There were other things…" His pupils were a funny shade of gray. Sami noticed this as they fixed on her. "You were there, Colonel. What happened to him?"
Sami blew out a breath. She rubbed the bridge of her nose with a thumb and index finger. What was she going to tell him? The truth? Or some lie to make Christoph seem better than he was? They'd already done that with the ceremony. It was obligatory to pick out only the best qualities of the deceased. And none of what Sami had said was a lie. The unseemly parts had just been left out.
A deep part of her reflected on what had happened to Christoph. She wondered what had ultimately caused his breakdown, caused him to believe those things he said about Eagle. Loch Haven? Certainly the events there were a trigger. Seeing those civilians killed, seeing such destruction… those were not events to be taken lightly. By anyone.
Or had it been earlier? He'd held such… such hatred for Black Hole. Utter, complete hatred. Sure, the Allied Nations had fought tooth and nail against Sturm and Von Bolt for years, but Sami didn't remember the hatred being so strong. The fact that Christoph had been forced to work with Black Hole must've interacted poorly with his psyche. She'd seen enough evidence to believe so.
There is no justice… save what we create.
His words defined him.
"Yes," she said finally, looking off at nothing. "Yes, I was there. I was with him, from the very beginning. But I'll tell you, Captain, even though we went through the same experiences, saw the same things, Christoph wasn't… he wasn't fighting for the same reasons I was. We were a war apart from one another."
Sepp watched her for the longest time. He blinked.
Sami would've put her hands in her pockets, if she had them. "I'm sorry, Captain. I don't know what else to tell you."
Sepp ran his tongue through his gums. His Adam's apple shifted as he swallowed. Then, slowly, he replaced his cap, and assumed a standing military posture.
"Thank you, Colonel. I understand." He clicked his heels and saluted.
Sami returned it.
Then Sepp Lee pivoted and walked away.