POV Tatiana
September 1907
Ural Palace, Tanyas room
"A plague. A fucking plague!" I shouted as another pillow joined the rest upon the floor after being thrown at the wall.
Perhaps, it was uncharacteristic of me to act like this, but I couldn't help myself. After being placed here for over two weeks, I needed to vent about being trapped here 'For my own safety'.
The disease was originally a small outbreak originating from Krim, supposedly no big deal. In an act of charity, Viktor's father had gone over to set up a hospital. A good political move, except that he would contract the illness himself, passing away within two weeks.
Things moved swiftly after that. The small outbreak had turned into a pandemic, spreading through all of Russ, taking thousands of lives. To protect their own, our neighbours closed their borders. The last I heard from Viktor, he had been isolated in a Palace in the Carpathians to mourn.
As for me? I was isolated in a small Palace with the Urals with my sisters while my father and mother risked their lives in Moskova trying to keep the government running.
I found myself biting my thumb out of stress thinking about the consequences of this plague. There had never been an outbreak like this in my previous life. Being X must have done something.
All my Father's work in appeasing the Viktor's father had gone to waste with the Duke's death. With Viktor's ascension, I found it fortunate that we were still on good terms. He was smart enough to understand that working together with me was to his advantage and that we could help each other. I'll contact him when I'm sure he's done grieving his father.
Finally calm enough to stop biting on my thumb, I picked up the device that I had been using to keep my assistants in on task.
The telephone! What a wonderful piece of technology! After a moment of fiddling, I dialled for my Liberal ally, Lenin.
He was a dedicated man and had agreed to convince the elites on the benefits of industrialisation. Everything was going well on his side, the real problem was on my end, I was running out of funds and assets. Despite being informed about this, my father did little but tell me how proud he was of me.
Even worse was that I was no longer able to ask my sisters as well. Both Anastasia and Maria had started making their own investments as well, seemingly trying to impress our father as well. As for Olga… it seemed that she had unfortunately gotten sick and was still in Moskva. I know I should be worried, but for some reason, I feel that she'd be fine.
A knock on my door caught my attention.
"Princess? Is everything alright?" asked one of my personal guards.
"Yes, I'm fine. Have you heard anything about Grigori? I can't seem to contact him."
"I'm sorry Princess, we haven't been able to get anything."
I squeezed the bridge of my nose tightly. Where the fuck is that bastard, he disappeared when all this started.
Letting out a cry of frustration I opened the door, "Let's go to train."
They looked at me in confusion and the Sergeant took a step towards me, "Train, Princess?"
"I'm going to make sure my guard are the best. You should be thankful I don't have artillery."
—--
POV Viktor
September 1907
Rurikovich Palace, Hall of the palace
I've never really thought about the Duke as my father, yet all things considered, he was the only one I had in this life. His death affected me much more than I had expected.
The worst thing was that it was my fault. If I never proposed that he send an expedition to the Afrika, they wouldn't have brought the disease back. In his foolish kindheartedness, my father tried to make things right, only to catch it himself.
It was all my fault. What use was setting up a colony if I had to lose so much instead?
Looking at my father's portrait, I took his sword. Passed down from Generation to generation, it was the symbol of the former Tsarate of Kieva and the symbol of the current Duchy of Kieva. Sheathing it, moved before the Patriarch of the Kievan Orthodox Church.
"As heir to the Duchy of Kieva, do you swear to protect the interests of the Duchy before the interests of Tsarate Russ?"
"Yes," I answered, as I thought about how I had already done so thanks to Tatiana's help.
"Do you swear to protect Orthodoxy against its enemies?"
"Yes," I answered, even as I thought about how little God had helped me in my first life.
"Do you swear, in honour of your family name and your family, only to use the sword to protect Kieva".
"Yes," I answered with a smile. With this sword, we will help Tatiana kill every last one of those communist pigs.
"All of you, kneel before the new Duke of Kieva."
I turned to see everyone kneeling, the nobility, the bourgeoisie and the army. It was strange how Kieva was more stable than Russ even with the death of my father.
I raised my hand.
"All of you, rise!"
As the visitors stood up, I made my announcement, "First, the coronation party will be cancelled due to the fact that we are in dire times. Second, my mother will be my Regent till I come of age, to deal with our current crisis, we will be investing funds in healthcare and a cure. Finally, I reaffirm my loyalty to Tsar Nicholas II."
Giving no mind to the applause of political rats, I made my way back to my room.
"Aren't you ashamed?" spoke the person who had followed me, Steban Bandera, "There is no better time to declare independence than now. With the improvements of our military, we have the ability to win. Yet you declare your loyalty to Russ just like your father, both of you disgrace the throne of Kieva."
Staban was a good general, but too nationalistic for my tastes. Somehow, despite him speaking against his ruler so often, he had managed to rise up the ranks. Perhaps a testament of just how capable he was.
"In times of trouble, we Slavic peoples have to unite, times are changing, we won't achieve anything by dividing the Slavs."
He laughed mockingly, "Dividing us? The Muscovites took Kievan Russ from us, they tried to Muskovise us."
Finally at the door of my room, I replied, "Yet while you were complaining about that, I convinced the Romanov family to abandon the Moskovisation. In a single year, I have done more for Kieva than you have in your entire life. So ask yourself, who is the real disgrace here?"
Before he could come up with any sort of retort, I closed the door on his face.
"I'm sure Tatiana would be pleased to hear that her friend is now Duke," spoke a voice from within my room.
It was just my luck, to get into another problem just as I dealt with one.
Laying down in my bed and Sighing, I asked my visitor, "I hope the reason you're in my room isn't because someone is after your life for trying to pick up their wife again."
He laughed out loud, "No, not this time, I'm here for something that worries me."
I gave a long sigh, and pulled out my sword to look at how it gleamed despite being centuries old, "Spit it out, I don't like my time being wasted."
"There have been rumours… that Tsar Nicholas II received a letter directly from the Kaiser".
"Straight to the point!" I said as I stood up and pointed the sword at him, "I don't like your riddles Gregori."
"There is talk of a possible marriage between Karl Hohenzollern and Tatiana Romanova, obviously nothing concrete, but the new democratic government has boosted relations with the Empire and let's just say there is not much opposition to the idea."
I felt my heart rise to my throat. If Tanya was brought out of Russ, she would be safer. But that would mean that I would have to fight the communists myself. Without her plans and her position of power, I'm not sure I would be able to win.
"What do you propose?"
He chuckled lightly, "Well, if you were to ask for her hand in marriage, you might be able to change things. We could remove the meddling of the Imperials from Russ. We cannot let them take her after all."
I put the sword back in the sheath, picked up a chair and placed it in front of him.
"That's not all you're planning. So what happens after I become a suitor?"
The bearded rat began to laugh, "The crown princess is ill, so God forbid, if she were to die, a new heir would be chosen. In this case, it would be Anastasia. But the socialist party wants to change the hereditary laws, mainly because they understand Tatiana's value."
Taking a small breath of air, the rat continued his little speech, "The idea is that the heir should be chosen by the Tsar, with the specific intention that they choose Tatiana, she is a genius in the end, who doesn't want a genius as a ruler? So, if you were to marry her and Olga happened to die, Kieva and Russ would be united, you would be Tsar and Russ would have the best possible Tsarina."
My heart stopped for a second, because although his plan was a very good one, it involved something dangerous.
"Killing Olga is treason, the Duchy of Kieva would be labelled traitors and we would surely enter a civil war."
Gregori began to wave his hands, "Who said anything about you killing her your future highness?"
I never liked Gregori, he appeared to be a very upright and intelligent man, so much so that he got the position of Tanya's educator. Yet somehow, his enemies always seemed to die from 'accidents'.
I didn't like his plan. But it was true, Olga dying was the best possible outcome.
"So… how will she die?
He smiled and hugged me.
"I knew you would make a good decision," he broke away from me and started to look for something in his tunic, pulling out a flag.
"Anarchists."
He nodded, "Anarchists have been killing important people for half a century. Nobody will ask any questions if another anarchist attack happens in Russ."
"And how are you going to make anarchists take over the Royal Hospital in Moskova? Kill the magic guards and then kill the Crown Princess?"
"There are tunnels under all of Moskova, many of them go through the hospital, we just need to set off some explosives."
I felt my heart ache, but in the end only Tanya can solve the communist revolution and take Russ forward. Some sacrifices had to be made.
"God save Tatiana," I said instantly.
"God save Tatiana," replied the bearded rat.
—--
POV Tatiana
December 1907
Royal Hospital
Olga wasn't doing much better. But she wasn't doing much worse either. Goes to show how much effort they were going through to keep her alive. That's what happens when you're royalty, I guess.
Covering my face with the recently invented infection-prevention mask, I entered Olga's room.
As soon as she saw me, my sister tried to move, "Tatiana."
"It's fine, you don't have to move. I'm just making a visit."
She coughed loudly and settled back on the bed. "Fine, I'll be fine, I have the best doctors in all of Russ attending to me."
I walked over to her, sitting in a chair that was nearby, "You know, when you're cured we'll go to the Ural palace and ski on a little lake there, it's quite nice."
Perhaps it was the fact that Olga was the future heiress that I was trying so hard to get on her good side. If father dies, she'll become Tsarina, I wouldn't want to have her as an enemy.
"Yes, I'm sure we'll enjoy the lake together," she answered before being cut off by a rather long coughing fit, "What are you doing here, though? How did you convince Father to let you come?"
I laughed, no one but my guards knew I was here, it was a small sacrifice I had to make in order to continue to improve my relationship. What better way to look like a good little sister than to sneak out to see your sick sister?
"That's a secret!" I said as I waved my hands, "Tell me about the last few months."
She smiled, "You're going to get in trouble. Whatever, it's been pretty awful really. Thank God I can read otherwise I'd go crazy."
"Believe me I understand. The Castle is actually pretty boring."
She laughed, "You and I are the same in that regard, we love knowledge, even if yours is more general and mine is only about medicine."
Olga was a good woman, very gentle and dedicated. That's why she's my favourite sister.
"Yes, speaking of which, how are your studies going?
She shook her head, "Cancelled just because I'm sick, horrible don't you think?"
I shook my head.
Before I could speak, a deafening noise that stunned me, pushing me to the floor. I saw how my sister seemed to want to move, how my guards started running towards me raising shields as the ceiling collapsed.
"Protect the Princesses!" the last thing I heard before I lost consciousness.