Klothilda Sodo Zabi P.O.V.
Januar 2, UC 0080
Asteroid Belt, Axis Space
Deck of Axis Asteroid
It was an amazingly good day for me. First of all, I had the best night's sleep in weeks. All this time, it didn't give me much time to sleep, relax, or any form of deeper psychological comfort.
However, it began many months ago when the news of the death of our youngest brother fell on me and the rest of the family like a bolt from the blue. October UC 0079, Garma, the youngest of our siblings, ended their lives. It was undoubtedly a devastating loss for the entire Zabi family. For this reason, for the first time in three years, I decided to leave the Principality of Zeon fief I managed and returned to Zum City, where a rather grand funeral of our youngest brother took place. Me, my twin sister Kycilia, our father and the Sovereign of the Principality, Degwin, older brothers Dozle and Gihren, also arrived. Of course, the oldest of us and both the Commander-in-Chief of the Principality of Zeon and the Premier of the Principality made the speech. In fact, and despite all my admiration for our eldest brother, his intellect and fiery passion, it was still hard not to consider it a disgusting dance on corpses. However, I could not allow myself to complain or object, in the face of the difficult times on the one hand and the effects of this speech on the other hand, because thanks to this the morale of the army and society grew in a really significant way. Regardless, I had to return to Axis space as soon as possible and continue my duties as Protector of the region, overseeing research on new machinery for the army and the extraction of resources.
In fact, in my five years of supervision and authority here, I have accomplished a great deal. First of all, Axis itself was rebuilt and enlarged many times, while hiding about three million people inside, many of whom were experienced and highly competent engineers, physicists or experts in other fields. In addition, thanks to easy access to many resources, it was possible to rebuild larger and adjacent asteroids so that they were remarkably similar to it. They were: Deikun, Zabi, Pest, Draconia, Cuba, Litzmannstadt and Neu Kyiv. The first four were mainly mining, while the core of the factories and shipyards was concentrated on the Cuba and Litzmannstadt decks. Meanwhile, Neu Kyiv, in fact, acted as the granary of the region, thanks to the concentration of food production there. Considering all of this, I can confidently say that I have managed to accomplish something really great that could never have happened without me.
However, in this memoir, I departed too much from the original topic. First of all, it should be mentioned that the time after Garm's death was one of the most lousy in my relatively short life. However, much worse news came after, in my opinion, the decisive Battle of Solomon, which ended not only with defeat but also with Dozle's death. This time, however, it was pain much easier to experience, all because of a previous loss. In fact, I've discovered a pretty foolproof way to deal with your loss. It all comes down to focusing on work and responsibilities while flooding your mind with all sorts of analyzes, progress on assignments, or any other type of job-related information. Thanks to this, I was able, at least as far as it seems to me, to be reasonable and effective and not to sink into the resulting loss of depression.
As I pondered these issues, I finally arrived at my duty office, and the two guards outside saluted me almost immediately. I saluted, then stepped inside.
Inside, everything looked and was in exactly the same condition as last night when I was returning to my quarters. The office was an oval-shaped space, with a large and massive desk in the center, behind which was a fixed chair on one side and a window on the other overlooking the asteroid belt and the endless black space of space. As for the interior itself, it was quite modest and utilitarian in its execution. The only noticeable decorations were the decorations on the walls, the portrait of the father and the eldest brother. I should also mention two full plate armor, given to me a few months ago by one of my sister's underlings, Colonel M'Quve. According to this man, they were original armor from the late Gothic period, and given his knowledge, I never had the slightest doubt about it.
I very quickly sat down behind my desk, then reached into one of the drawers to my right, which I was fully aware of contained the documents and reports that had been sent to me this morning. To a large extent, I have been informed of steady progress in the extraction or production of war material and energy. On average, all rates over the past month have risen by about twenty-five percent, thanks to the expansion of complexes, the emergence of new ones, and a steady flow of labor from the principal sites and colonies belonging to Principality. Personally, I had the impression that by the end of this decade, we would be able to expand with additional asteroids, the inhabitants of which would be able to extract raw materials, produce food or industry. Basically and not without significance was also the fact that compared to, for example, Earthnoids, we could produce ships and Mobile Suits with virtually no end or limitations. Meanwhile, unlike the inhabitants of other colonies, we were not dependent on the supply of raw materials from the ground or other places. As a result, Axis, under my vigilant and effective management, was able to provide the Principality with many hundreds of state-of-the-art equipment, or hundreds of thousands of tons of ammunition or food. Generally speaking, when Gihren's older brother was very often compared to Adolf Hitler, my father used to compare me to Albert Speer because of my unquestionable talent for managing the arms industry and administering resources under my control. It should also be noted that thanks to me, Axis and the surrounding asteroids, which were inhabited, acquired a similar significance for Zeon as the Ruhr basin for the Third German Reich, during the Second World War and earlier.
When I finished going through the reports, I let myself take a breath and leaned back a little in my seat, fully resting my back on the comfortable back. It was undoubtedly a welcome moment of relief in this situation. Especially since I was still waiting for the report or any news from A Baoa Qu. In fact, ever since Solar Ray was used, all information about the situation in that part of the solar system was chaotic and completely inconsistent. Some spoke of the overwhelming and complete victory of the Duchy, which allowed it to end the ongoing war. Others spoke of the death of my father Suzeren and the seizure of power by Gihren. There was also more and, in my opinion, completely unbelievable news, about the destruction of A Baoa Qu and the total defeat of our fleet, which at some point and for completely unknown reasons, was to plunge into total chaos, and not even some of its components would spontaneously fly away in different directions. This last news was, in my opinion, completely unbelievable. It was unbelievable to me that Gihren would allow something like this. It was impossible, especially in view of the immense authority my older brother had and was able to secure for himself over the years of building his own cult of personality, while significantly marginalizing the role of our father.
After five minutes of relative peace and relaxation, my deputy and assistant, Captain Johan von Achse, entered the office. He was a rather tall man, twenty-six years old. Although he was naturally bald and stripped of any form of facial hair, his strong and amber eyes effectively compensated for this lack. He was wearing the standard olive green uniform of our forces with gold rank markings. My attention was immediately drawn to the fact that his usually completely stoic expression was replaced by obvious fear and nervous trembling in his mouth. In addition, the usually slightly pale skin around the face was practically pale as a corpse's. It has become obvious to me that he has no good news to convey. However, he had never acted this way before, so the news must have been really bad.
Inadvertently, I looked at the small mirror on the desk, which showed my face very quickly. I was undoubtedly a well-built woman of twenty-four. My eyes were black and my breasts were relatively modest in size and hidden under a gray uniform with gold ornaments and epaulettes. My purple hair, which distinguishes me from my sister, was pinned up in an elegant bun and held by a black hair tie. Another thing that set me apart from my sister was the typical expression on my face. While my sister Kycilia used to present herself as ruthless and to be reckoned with, I tried to appear calm and understanding, which was extremely useful when you were the administrator and manager of a huge industrial area.
I looked straight into the eyes of the terrified assistant who was approaching my desk with very slow and measured steps. At one point his eyes began to twitch as nervously as his mouth. All of this was completely unlike him, and was rather a harbinger of unpleasant news. After all, I tried to mentally prepare for literally everything, and the best thing to do was start by telling a joke that could help ease the tension.
"Johan, you don't need to be scared. You know perfectly well he won't beat you for bringing me bad news. " I tried to start with a joke, but it didn't work. Seeing that, I sighed heavily and decided to get straight to the point by asking why. "What happened to make you pale as a corpse. It's rather hard for me to imagine anything that could put you in this state. In fact, all I can think of is the death of both my father and other siblings and the defeat of A Baoa Qu. "
While it was supposed to be ironic, saying it all aloud was extremely painful. After the very painful loss of two brothers, I felt that the loss of another sibling might be completely beyond my strength. At least I thought so, but I couldn't really say it for sure. Perhaps I would indeed be devastated and completely mentally damaged, or perhaps I would take it coldly and without any feelings. Not. First and foremost, this option is completely unlikely due to the multitude of factors that would contribute to failure in such a case. Such an accumulation of unfavorable factors was completely impossible. It was for this reason that I dismissed it as pure nonsense and a pessimistic whim in my mind. At that moment, I had no idea how wrong I was.
"Grand Duchess Zabi." He started awkwardly by using my title, which also defined my role as Axis space manager. Although after Zeon was established as a Principality, she became a Princess just like her twin sister, but with the development of Axis Space, she was also given the title of Grand Duchess of Axis.
"I have ... I have ..." For a moment he seemed to freeze like a computer and just kept repeating the same sentence over and over again. Eventually, however, he was able to stop it. "I have disastrous information to convey. Put simply, A Baoa Qu was destroyed, and the Principality's fleet was completely dispersed and disorganized as a result of the defeat. There is total chaos in the administration of our colonies, and the Deputy Prime Minister will most likely try to sign the unconditional surrender. The rest of the government, faced with no quick alternative to him, will most likely support this proposal. "
Even though I was prepared for the bad news, hearing it made my stomach literally twist and I felt like I was starting to sweat slowly. After a while, she was even forced to shake the uniform's tunic by the collar because of the heat. My eyelids twitched a few times, but I had a hard time holding back all the rising emotions. The news was not only bad, it was catastrophic, but a few gaps caught my attention.
"Deputy Prime Minister? The rest of the Government? " I asked, just after getting hold of all my emotions. However, I had a strange feeling that the answer would not be too happy. Nevertheless, it was something I really wanted to hear, because in my opinion, the most brutal truth has always been better than the most beautiful and best for the ears, a lie. "What happened to the Prime Minister, Sovereign or Commander of the Mobile Assault Force? Where are they?"
I felt that I was starting to slowly lose the ability to control my temperament, but nonetheless I was still fully stable and as controlled as possible. I couldn't explain it, but at this point, I only expected the worst. Was it a display of pessimism that had been sprouting in my heart and mind for years? Perhaps, nevertheless, let it be known that, always looking at my siblings and father, I always thought about how they could best serve the cause of the Duchy and our war effort that would ensure the inhabitants of Side 3, and now the Principality of Zeon, freedom from corrupt the Earthnoid dictatorship, whose heart is Jaburo. In truth, and it may sound absolutely unbelievable, I myself have focused all this time in my ministry to Spacenoid to achieve the best possible results, at least in the long term. What I was able to do here in the Asteroid Belt was the best proof of my sincerity. Perhaps without me, the asteroid Axis would remain the only location of this in this space. However, this was not the time to consider alternative history, but to focus on what was now a hard and unpleasant reality.
"Degwin Sodo Zabi, Gihren Sodo Zabi and Kycilia Sodo Zabi. They are all dead. However, we don't know the exact details of what happened there yet." His words would once have led me to a mental and nervous breakdown. However, at this point, and after having experienced the loss of relatives several times, my only reaction was a slightly lowered eyelid, with no tears or any denial of reality.
"That said, you are now the Sovereign of our Duchy and the leader of the people of Zeon." He added it very quickly, but I knew it already, so I didn't pay much attention to it. What caught my attention, however, were his next words, which took me out of my thoughts about the current situation and potential scenarios for the future. "I am waiting for your decision on our future together, my Sovereign."
I stared at him for a few moments, not knowing at all how to react or respond. On the one hand, I wanted to scream and toss left and right. Honestly, I felt all too clearly in my heart that this would be the most appropriate response. Nevertheless, no such reaction or feeling came. Instead, just cold and without any deeper feelings, I took everything with cool calm, and as I glanced briefly at the mirror for a moment, I realized that my cool facade might now resemble Gihren. Even so, I had to answer and take full responsibility for both the people living at Axis Space and my minions or any survivors of A Baoa Qu. It was my natural duty and I wasn't going to run away from it, especially now that what my family had been working on for many years was starting to go downhill.
"Got it, Johan." I replied both dryly and stoically in my voice, to the Captain's rather considerable surprise. Apparently, he was expecting something much more fiery, passionate, and he accepted my calm with some relief. "When will I be able to find out any details about what actually happened there?"
"It's hard for me to answer that question." Johan replied quickly. Apparently, my calm had an impact on him as well, and it allowed him to quickly regain his composure. Even his deathly pale skin took on a little more color. óra, received some life and glowed so much that he began to look like a living human again. "Nevertheless, I will do my best to find out as much as possible about the details of what happened there."
"Excellent, Johan." I replied to his assurances, then decided to go straight to the next point. "Meanwhile, he has called a meeting of all the top commanders and officials at Axis Space. I have to meet with them as soon as possible and talk about the new situation, that has the highest priority at this point. "
"Yes, I will try to summon them as soon as possible, Klothilda." His answer came almost immediately and she was extremely energetic. Apparently, he felt the importance of what was to come and was more than determined to carry out his mistress's orders without fail. "He will order all summons to go to the main conference room, located on this level."
"Do it as soon as possible. And now you can go. " At my words, Captain Johan saluted then turned on his heel and practically ran out of my office.
Seeing that, I just couldn't help but smile from entering my lips very quickly. I and he have known each other since the time of the military academy, we have been united from that moment by an interest and focus primarily on issues of logistics, management or administration, but not the fight itself. Although we have been good friends for many years and have known each other for many years, it never grew into something deeper or romantic.
Breaking out of my reflection, I decided to turn the chair around and direct my gaze at the stars, which are a kind of lanterns, in the endless sea of dark emptiness. To tell you the truth, I felt strange at this point, on the one hand my mind was still turning its attention to the deceased siblings, of whom only I was still alive. I felt the natural emptiness that always arises after the loss of loved ones. However, on the other hand, I was able to accept all this information without much trouble or feelings, all thanks to the experience of previous losses. First and many years ago Sarso, later and during the war Garma, later probably the best of the whole family, Dozle. Now, however, my father, my twin sister and Gihren, whom I personally admire with all my heart, as an older brother and an eminently intelligent man. The eldest of our siblings has always been a role model for me, all because of his intellect and the fact that he always had something about him that was able to attract followers to him. Although his views on wanting to exterminate Earthnoid and limiting the earth's population to one billion in order to avoid future revolts, I was completely indifferent to it. I had no emotional connection with those born and lived on earth, so I saw no particular reason to show them any form of compassion or pity.
"It's just the past." I stated to myself and expected no reply in return. To tell you the truth, I had already made up my mind about what to do for the future, and it just had to be put into practice. "My siblings are dead, as are the father and sovereign of our great nation. With their deaths, an era ended for Zeon and me. However, the end of what was meant the beginning of a new beginning for me. "
At this point, I no longer felt the slightest spark of feelings, or any regret at the loss of what was left of my siblings and father. While it might sound like I had no feelings at all or lost all my humanity, at this point I actually felt nothing but a certain joy, all because of the opportunity.
For a brief moment, I felt bad about it, as it basically meant ignoring the family tragedy. But let's be honest, I had a lot more to solve at this point than worrying about what was and what will never come back.
Turning in the high heels of my shoes, I immediately turned to the exit door, then left the office, then headed to the large conference room a few rooms away from my office. It didn't take long, and soon I went inside.
As you can probably guess, the room was quite large, and at the same time it was dominated by a clearly utilitarian style, focused solely on functionality. In the center, there is a large black table with twenty fixed armchairs around it. This room, however, had no porthole which would give a view of outer space. Instead, two quite useful things have been installed in the hall. The first was a large television that effectively allows you to video chat with people who are currently unavailable. The second was an electronic map built into the floor, which displays the entire Solar system map and allows you to mark the location of fleets or important combat stations on it.
Not allowing myself to stare too long, I immediately sat down in one of the armchairs at the top of the black and steel table. I was waiting for the arrival of the military and officials I had been working with for several years, and at the same time I had the opportunity to remember the names or functions of all of them. Vice Admiral Moradin Penwond, was in command of the fleet stationed at Axis Space. Brigadier General Rax Antonio, performed a similar function to Moradin, but in terms of the army and additionally commanded the military police, which have a role of normal police in Axis Space. Commander Hans Pannwitz, was responsible for the logistics of the fleet, the army, and also supervised the Mobile Suits development project, when I was too busy with administrative matters. Major Levente Horthy was the director of the Mobile Suits development program and it was under his direct command that there was a whole corps of engineers and specialists working on all projects. Commissioner Albert Lux, was the Industry Commissioner and oversaw all production at Axis Space. Director Cala Black, she was responsible for agriculture and its development. Secretary Clovis Fox, responsible for health service and social policy at Axis Space. Last, but not least, was Secretary Rodion Faust, whose responsibilities included overseeing the development of Axis Space, cities on asteroids and other civilian installations. It was also this man who proposed the transformation of one of the asteroids into a fully-fledged metropolis, the economy of which would be based solely on the energy or service sector. Personally, I had mixed feelings about this idea, but at the urging of my assistant, I finally gave permission to start construction, which should be completed in three months.
After a dozen or so minutes, the door to the conference room opened and quite a large group of people entered, nine of them, and all of them walking in clear and blissful ignorance of what they were about to find out. All nine took seats as close to me as possible, with Johan standing behind my right side. I gave everyone a judgmental glance, then decided to move on to the conversation and satisfy their undoubted curiosity as to why this meeting was being called.
"Since we are all here, I can begin and present the reason why I have distracted you from your responsibilities." I started out quite diplomatically and with the same cool calm that they all knew me for. Probably neither of them expected a bolt from the blue that would soon fall on them. "We lost the battle for A Baoa Qu. Our fleet has been wrecked. My father, the Premier and Commander of the Mobile Assault Force, are all dead. Simply put, the forces of the principality are routed and the country is essentially defenseless and devoid of any real leadership. "
The reaction to my words was not difficult to predict, because all the gathered officials and military literally froze with terror. Only to plunge into the total chaos of quarrels in a moment. It was clear that no one was expecting catastrophic news, so their chaotic reaction was understandable. Still, I hoped that at least the military would stay calm, but both Vice Admiral Penwond and Brigadier General Antonio and the other two also got into an argument. The first and quickest topic was what needs to be done at the moment. Commander Hans Pannwitz and two Secretaries were of the opinion that at the moment I must go to Zum City as soon as possible, take control of the Duchy and save the country from complete defeat. However, this proposal met with strong resistance, in the form of opposition from Vice Admiral Penwond, Brigadier General Antonio and Director Cala Black, who were well aware that getting there was unrealistic and the Federation fleet would get there much faster. Another topic was what had to be done in this situation. Here, however, everyone agreed that capitulation to the Federation, a tyrannical and corrupt regime in the struggle against which literally billions of lives had been sacrificed, was not even an option. However, it still did not solve the question of what should be done in this situation. Nevertheless, given our location in Solar system and access to many extremely important strategic resources, I had a certain concept.
"Enough!" I raised my voice emphatically at everyone present, which caught my attention. Each of them was aware that in this case I have the last word on what to do in the face of this situation. I decided to pronounce the next words a bit quieter and calmer, because arousing fear was not necessary in this case and could only be harmful. "First of all, we need to consolidate our own resources as well as gather as many of the surviving forces as possible. In fact, in the current situation, it will be unnecessary to continue the fight and will only bring more unnecessary losses. "
I can safely say that my words caused a certain shock and disbelief. It became clear that they rather expected me to fight back to the last man in the face of the invasion of a tyrannical and corrupt land government. Out of the corner of my eye, however, I was able to see Johan give me a slight but distinct smile. My assistant had known me very well for many years and was aware of my reluctance to put everything on one card or to settle everything with one action. He was also aware that I was not a sentimental person or stubbornly pursuing one and the same idea. In fact, there is already a plan in my head, or rather the contours of the plan, about what to do in the current situation.
"My Lady, you are not suggesting that we should capitulate and literally piss off all the victims of this war, do you?" The question was from Brigadier General Antonio, a rather small but muscular man with a square jaw and black hair. He was a great organizer and a man of quite a lot of charisma, which is why I chose him as the commander-in-chief of all garrisons within Axis Space. His support for the war, and his memory for the victims of this conflict, was also truly admirable.
"I didn't say something like that, General." I replied dryly and dispassionately at his accusations. "Nevertheless, we must tell ourselves this openly and now that the war with the Federation is lost at the moment. Our central power is in complete chaos, and the force that could stop our enemies has literally collapsed before our eyes. We must boldly face what fate has given us and understand that the Principality of Zeon is a losing cause at this point. "
My not very optimistic and somewhat depressing observation put everyone in a rather gloomy mood. After all, no one seemed to have the slightest intention of contradicting such an observation. I had no doubts at this point that most of them had no idea what to do, and due to my brother's propaganda, none of them had even considered such a possibility. Until recently, I, too, did not consider such a possibility, but unlike the others present here, I already had an idea for the next steps.
"But let's be honest, this end is actually the beginning of something new and a chance to start all over again." My words caught their attention, and I almost smiled, but was able to hold back my stoic façade from collapsing. "What we need to do first is connect with what's left of our fleets and armies as soon as possible. Additionally, I want to establish a connection with one of my most trusted men and garrison commander in the capital, Colonel Alex Krüger. It is to immediately ban and then begin the evacuation of workers, factory equipment and prototypes created by Zimmad to Axis Space. I'm going to explain the situation to him, and he is going to explain it to Company Chairman. Of course, the employees of the company must also receive an appropriate explanation and be presented with an alternative, in the form of slave labor for the Federation. "
My recommendation, however, caught the attention and misunderstanding on the part of Commander Pannwitz, who was apparently unaware of my ties to this company. "My Lady, Zimmad is a private and company, and then an evacuation order is basically an order to seize the company's equipment and personnel. In such a case, it will be a mere act of unlawful banditry. "
"It won't, Commander." I refused this accusation with all firmness and righteousness. "Chairman of Zimmad, he is an old friend of mine and a friend of the family. When I present the situation to him, he will undoubtedly agree to take such action. Not to mention the fact that quite a lot of the company's assets have already been deployed on the decks of the asteroids Cuba and Litzmannstadt. "
"But what are we going to do about the Deputy Prime Minister and his plans for surrender?" Director Cala Black asked this question. It was a swarthy woman with red and long hair. Her body was just lean and with no obvious signs of training or athleticism.
"We should let him if he really wants to be remembered as a traitor to Spacenoids and Zeon's ideals." I replied dispassionately, but that was not the end of my speech, all because of the role this man could play in my plans. "Nevertheless, I want communication with him to be established as soon as possible. Perhaps there is something else this man could help us with. "
Vice Admiral Penwond was curious about this idea and decided to ask me about it. "What do you mean exactly, my Lady?"
"Everything will be made clear in due time, Admiral." I replied impassively and with no intention of revealing the details of the plan to him, at least not at this point. "Nevertheless, the Deputy Prime Minister could prove to be extremely useful as a smokescreen for our retreat and regrouping of forces here at Axis Space."
After these words, I turned to my assistant. "Johan, you are to go to the communications center immediately and allow me to establish communication with the Deputy Prime Minister immediately. I want to talk to him directly so that we can make this situation perfectly clear to us. "
The captain nodded quickly to me, then left the conference room very quickly, so I stayed here with only a group of the most influential people at Axis Space. Personally, I had no reason to doubt their loyalty, which was in some way incomprehensible to me reinforced by my feelings. Simply put, I didn't feel any hostile intent on their part, and in some absolutely irrational way, even for myself, took those feelings for granted. Regardless, however, there is still quite a bit of work to do.
"Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you this straight, and now, the Principality of Zeon has just been thrown into the dustbin of history, as have all the ideals of the Zeon Zum Deikun. Fighting to defend what was and may not come back is completely pointless. and it will be as harmful as continuing this conflict. " I declared firmly and to a certain disgust to all those gathered here for perfectly understandable reasons. They all believed and fought for these ideals, so hearing something like this must have been a real disaster for them. "Nevertheless, if Newtype's ideal of human development among the stars and our full development here is to survive, then we must adapt it to the new realities. We need to look at everything we have believed so far as objectively as possible. Then analyze what might be useful and what might not. Everything that can be outdated, harmful must be buried in the darkness of history, or adapted to new times and circumstances. "
"What do you mean, my Lady?" The question came from Commander Pannwitz, who, like the rest of those listening to my monologue, did not know what to think about it properly, but at the same time was undoubtedly fascinated by it and the exact implications of these words.
I looked into the eyes of each of the people here, one by one, without haste, and only then did I give the answer they wanted. "We need to proceed with our reconstruction here at Axis Space, where we can rest, reorganize our fleets, and build up our industries and armies. We have to start converting more asteroids into industrial, agricultural or even residential and service bases. We have to start developing better and better machines and technologies. Simply put, we must adapt, just as any living organism must evolve and adapt to new circumstances. I intend to lead what will be erected on the ashes of the ideas of Zeon and Principality, and in its place will be a mighty empire, the first cosmic empire in all human history, with me as their Kaiserin. "
I told them this initial plan calmly and without emotion, but they took it with quite a bit of enthusiasm and excitement. Let me put it bluntly, my whole life I had some strange and probably unhealthy fixation about the Second German Reich, or simply the German Empire. I liked the idea of a monarchy with elements of typically Polish constitutionalism, with strong military ideas. Perhaps some would call me a fan of Fritz or Nazis who did not live up to reality, but I don't care. If I have the opportunity to implement what I consider my vision for the future, then I will take all necessary measures to achieve it.
For the next few minutes, I entered quite a long but not fruitless discussion with the military and officials present on some very important issues. The first was the question of rebuilding new satellites into bases for our industry, agriculture, technological and social development. We have agreed that the asteroid housing construction plan will be continued and expanded in the near future. In addition, I also made a decision to direct resources for the construction of new and powerful industrial, agricultural and research complexes that could provide us with enough war material for a possible future war. In addition, I also made a decision to replace fiat money in the future with a currency based on bullion, gold and silver, which was not lacking in Axis Space. All these ideas have been written down and bound under one coherent framework, called the five-year plan. The reason was simple, as all development and expansion plans were ultimately to be implemented in Januar, 0085 UC. Although we called it a development plan, it was nevertheless just a simple sketch at best, with few details. Nevertheless, we also agreed that the rest will be finalized in the next few days, including the name of the new country.
Fortunately, the end of the discussion on this issue coincided with a message from my assistant. "My Lady, Deputy Prime Minister Voroncov is now available. He says he has had a hard time finding time for this conversation, given the chaos that is now reigning in the capital and the rest of the colonies that make up the Duchy."
I was not surprised by these revelations, but rather surprised that there was no fighting and no civil war between the various branches of the army. Basically, I was positively surprised by this turn of events. I decided to improve my collars before the interview.
"Great, I'm going to have this video call with him here with all the people who trust me."
Johan didn't answer, but did as he was told. A moment later, the picture was displayed on a large TV set. There was a balding and slightly fluffy blond man with blue eyes present and clearly stressed out. It was Deputy Prime Minister Viacheslav Voroncov.
"My Lady." The man on the other side bowed respectfully, his accent quite loud and powerful, typical of Eastern European people. "To what do I owe the honor of this conversation? Are you telling me that you are now in charge of the Principality as the new Sovereign, and that we are to fight the Federation to the end?"
I almost snorted at his lame insinuations, the sole purpose of which seemed to be to discredit me in the eyes of the rest of the people here. Personally, I have always regarded him as a government official who nevertheless truly cares about the Zeon people. Still, I never trusted him, and my instincts made it clear that I should never do that. The reason was a complete and mysterious mystery to me. Nevertheless, I decided in a rather irrational move to listen to my instincts.
"I have no intention of taking power or having to fight to the end in a situation where the war has been lost and continuing the fight will basically only mean unnecessary losses and the pointless death of thousands of people." She replied coldly and showing no signs of going or any other emotion. Which surprised him completely, what I expected at this point, and therefore continued immediately. "I will say this now, and I have no intention of repeating myself. You have my authority, as the rightful successor to Degwin Sodo Zabi, to start peace talks with the Federation government. All is expected of you is to extend these talks for as long as possible."
"For what purpose should I drag the negotiations out?" He asked in response, but he did so with a lack of conviction or firmness, all due to surprise.
"Because it will give me time to turn around and consolidate all my resources, Vice Prime Minister." My answer came very quickly and without thinking, but it wasn't over. "Let me put it bluntly, we have literally nothing left to stop the Federation. Solomon has been destroyed, the A Baoa Qu fleet is disorganized and dispersed. Nothing stands in the way of the Federation from capturing the colonies where our citizens live. But this one. defeat does not necessarily mean the end of the ideas and values we have believed in all these years. With my authority and my resources, I am able to lay the foundations for a new Duchy that could successfully continue to implement the Newtype ideal. "
From my observation, I could clearly conclude that he was not convinced of the idea, but the evident lack of sleep and fatigue made the man just sigh, defeated and without the strength to continue.
"So be it." He stated after quite a while. "If this allows the ideals of Zeon Zum Deikun to survive, then I will do everything in my power to help your cause. Although it will not be easy to prolong the negotiations in a situation where the Federation demands our unconditional situation, I will try to do it. "
"Glad to hear that and please don't worry, I will only need a few days for this to move a few of my key assets to where I am."
A single snort escaped his lips, but it wasn't brazen, which was quite an art. "So you are going to make Axis Space your last stand, Grand Duchess Klothilda Sodo Zabi?"
His question was rhetorical, but that was not what caught my attention the most. "How do you know about this?"
Although my timbre was still calm, I was surprised that this man was aware of Axis and perhaps what I was doing here. It may sound unbelievable, but despite quite a large emigration to Axis Space, supplying the rest of the Duchy with resources and having quite well-populated cities on asteroids, I managed to keep the existence of this place from the public and make the Federation doubt the existence of a well-equipped facility research and production. Me, Kycilia and the rest of the family have worked really hard to make this place known only to a fairly small number of people and the exact location of even fewer people. The deputy prime minister was not one of those people.
"The existence of this place is an open secret, but for me it is obvious where all the raw materials came from, thanks to which our arms industry was able to replenish all these losses on time." His answer also gave me some answers to the questions that popped up in my head. "I just hope your mission to build a new Zeon will prove fruitful, Sovereign of Zabi. All I'm asking is that I use this opportunity wisely. "
For the first time, I felt that I could trust his words. My earlier feelings about him, it seemed, stemmed from the fact that he cares about ordinary citizens first, not Zabi's family or me. Therefore, I decided to trust him.
"Very good, that's all I have to say about this. Goodbye and good luck. " After my words, the Deputy Prime Minister simply bowed respectfully and the screen turned completely black after a while. Then I turned to all those gathered. "This makes machine and personnel transportation operations much easier. Of course, the families of the evacuated workers will be taken with them. "
My statement, however, was met with a reaction from Secretary Clovis Fox. "But our cities don't have enough living space to accommodate all these people."
Although this may at first glance be considered a loophole in my logic, it was only apparent, because I had a solution to this problem and it was not difficult. "Therefore, the construction of the city of Hephaestus will be accelerated and these people will be responsible, among other things, for building another important base for our industry. On the other hand, when it comes to raw materials, I think that it should be enough to meet the needs of such a construction. "
Seeing that there was no objection, I decided to stand up and give them a speech that could motivate them at least a little. "Although Axis Space has an extremely well-developed industry, mining and agriculture, we are far from even reaching the Federation level. Regardless, however, I express my deep hope that this is the beginning of something new. "
"What do you mean, my Lady." One of them asked, but I completely missed who it was. At this point, what mattered to me was the fact that I was going to announce a proclamation of something that could give me an eternal memory in history in the future and the opportunity to live my ideals.
"I mean we either end the past or we cease to exist." I replied with fire in the timbre of my voice, but this time there were no negative reactions, only admiration. Although I tried several times to learn something about speaking from my eldest brother, I was far from his undoubtedly great skill in this area. "The Principality of Zeon is dead and what's left of it is now burning and burning to ash and dust. Either we take responsibility now for our future and that of our people, or history and our descendants will not forgive us. Therefore, for the sake of the future of the people for whom I am responsible, I am announcing Axis Space and the entire asteroid belt as Axis Galaktischer Kaiserreich areas. As for me, let me shoulder the burden of being Kaiserin the new and first solar system scale empire. "
I was pleased with the results as everyone in the room seemed to be heavily influenced by my words. Almost my control over my facial expressions slipped away, and I was really close to showing everyone a proud smile. Needless to say, this would be more than counter-productive and counterproductive.
"So, can I count on your full support?" I asked, then decided to look into the eyes of the first of them. "Vice Admiral Penwond?"
He was as surprised as the others that their loyalty could be questioned. After all, he quickly mastered his emotions and answered the question. "I have been faithful to the ideals of Zeon since this man only appeared in my life. If it is necessary to accept defeat in order to regroup and allow all these ideals to survive, so be it. You have my total support, we Lady. "
I repeated the same process with others and the results were the same. If I were to attribute this to any particular factor, it would be trust in my authority and judgment. These officers and officials had served under my command for several years, so they had to trust me. Especially since none of my decisions has brought about any deplorable consequences that could threaten the stability or economy of this space.
The meeting ended a few minutes later, after the priorities for the production, extraction and development of our machines had been agreed. Initially, I ordered an increase in the production of components for the construction of new housing bases on nearby asteroids that could accommodate potential Zeon refugees. As for research on future military equipment, I ordered that future machines and technologies used in them should focus primarily on high performance. Nevertheless, the exact questions would have to be discussed with the surviving veterans of the war. It was at the same time another important point, gathering veterans of the ending conflict and learning from failures that could lay the foundations for a new military theory of the new state.
At the end, officials and military arose, and as one shouted, "Sieg Kaiserin Klothilda, Sieg Neu Reich"
I was touched by this gesture on their part, but we couldn't afford to delay too long. Time is running out, and we need to make the best of it.
AN: And this is where the end comes.
It was my honor to present to you my latest work, this time embedded in the UC Gundam Universe. To be absolutely honest, at first, I never thought about creating any Fanfiction within this universe. However, I decided to give it a try and the effect is right in front of your eyes.
The idea of Au, in which there is another adult representative of Zabi's infamous siblings, who at the same time has quite a powerful base at a distance from Side 3 itself, I find interesting. Mainly because something like this I have not seen among other Fanfiction. Moreover, such a scenario creates quite a lot of interesting political scenarios. Especially in the face of the threat of the Titans, or the incomplete revenge of Casval Deikun. Not to mention the fact that the scenario where what's left of the army, economy and navy of Zeon has someone who can lead them and constitute the highest authority in the new country is more than interesting, at least in my opinion.
However, in terms of Klothilda Zabi, I tried to create her as a genius administrator and manager, not a genius strategist. This is an obvious reference to Albert Speer, which was also quite subtly mentioned in the narrative. Additionally, I would like to present a character who, under the influence of war experiences, stress and loss of loved ones, became to a large extent almost a wreck of human. So much so that she can't even express my grief over the loss of some of the last members of the family (She didn't knwe yet, that Mineva i still alive).
Also Klothilda Sodo Zabi, Grand Duchess of Axis is also unique because it is my first original character, which is also an MC.
At this point, it's just a one-shot, and I doubt I will continue to do so. Nevertheless, your comments and positive evaluations can effectively change that.
That's all for the moment, I bid you farewell and I wish you all the best. At the same time, I encourage you to leave a review with constructive criticism.