Tarkin

BSNA | General Burtova Concludes Myrovask Inspection; Frontier Posts Placed on Heightened Readiness

RADEKGOROD (BSNA). General Natalya Burtova returned to the capital today following a five-day inspection of defensive positions in Myrovask Oblast. The General Staff described the inspection as complete and stated that no deficiencies requiring urgent correction were identified.

On the final day of the inspection, frontier troops near the village of Zarechye detained four individuals crossing on foot from the Vawfissian side of the border. The individuals were carrying portable radio equipment and Woplongan currency. None possessed identity documents. The matter has been transferred to the RSB.

The General Staff has placed frontier posts in Myrovask on heightened readiness pending the outcome of the investigation. It stated that the measure is precautionary and is not directed at any neighboring state.

The Commissariat of Foreign Affairs has informed the Soviet embassy of the detentions as a courtesy and has offered consular access should any of the individuals prove to be Soviet citizens.

Myrovar. RSB Regional Directorate, Sublevel Two.

Director-General Menshov spent eleven minutes with the youngest of the four detainees. The radio was Vawfissian army issue, the currency was Woplongan and printed after Mbeki's death, and the boy's boots had been resoled by a cobbler in Myrovar who remembered him. When the prisoner finally asked who Menshov believed had sent them, the Director-General closed his folder and did not answer.

In the corridor, the duty officer asked whether he should prepare a preliminary report for Radekgorod and noted that the Commissariat had already offered consular access to the Soviet embassy. Menshov told him to keep the prisoners separated, permit no visitors, and send nothing to the capital until instructed. Then he opened the folder, removed the first page, folded it once, and put it inside his coat.

Myrovar Garrison. Office of the Commanding General, Myrovask Military District.

General Burtova had not yet left for the capital when Menshov arrived a little after midnight. He placed the folded page on her desk and waited while she read it twice. "The work is already done," she said. "Eight days ago," Menshov replied. "The boy and two of the others were hired as laborers at the Myrovar rail yard. They were paid to stay out of sight while a fourth man worked under carriage nine. They had no idea what he was doing. They only knew they were to leave the country afterward and not return." Burtova looked up. "Carriage nine is the General Secretary's car." "It is," Menshov said. "And the General Secretary arrives in Myrovask on Thursday."

Burtova folded the page along its crease and held it for a moment before sliding it back across the desk. "He led us through the revolution. But he is a relic of it now, and the revolution cannot advance while he stands in its way." Menshov allowed himself a thin smile. "The Soviets are massing on the frontier, and he sends ambassadors to ask their intentions. The Presidium meets, and nothing is decided."

"Then the report to Radekgorod just mentions four smugglers, a radio, and Woplongan money," Burtova said. "Nothing more." "Nothing more," Menshov agreed, tucking the page into his coat. He leaned against the edge of her desk. "Consider what Friday looks like, General. The General Secretary dead on a railcar. The Presidium leaderless, half of it terrified, the other half already counting votes. The Soviets on one border and an insurgency to blame." Burtova raised an eyebrow. "And the country looking for someone who isn't afraid." "Someone with the army behind her," Menshov said, "and the Bureau quietly in her pocket." She returned to her chair and studied him for a moment. "You've given this a great deal of thought, Director-General." "Only since the revolution," he said, and let himself out.

Radekgorod. Office of the General Secretary.

General Secretary Ivan Radek read the report standing at the window, a glass of tea cooling on the sill beside him. "Four smugglers," he said. "A radio and Woplongan money. That is all?" "That is all, Comrade General Secretary," Menshov replied. "Petty couriers. The money likely changed hands somewhere in the south. The Bureau will follow it." Radek set the report down. "Stanislau's people will call this a provocation." "Stanislau's people call everything a provocation," Menshov said. Radek allowed himself a short laugh. "And Myrovask? I am told General Burtova has the frontier well in hand." "She does. The district is calm. I would expect a warm reception on Thursday." Radek nodded and reached for his tea. "Good. It has been too long since I traveled by rail. The people should see their General Secretary among them." "They will, Comrade General Secretary," Menshov said, gathering his folder. "I have no doubt the whole country will be watching."

On Tu'Nasain Emperor HL Chastain's Response After the Tarkin Times Report

The papers had been on the desk since the Tarkin Times went out. One headline carried the suspicion of Tu'Nasaian money behind Al Alquat. Another carried Premier Stanislau's charge of hegemony. Neither had moved.

The communications aide set a draft on top of them. "Sire. The private press has been asking. So has a minority in Congress. I've finished the statement."

"I would have been surprised if they had not."

"Which?"

"Either. The press has a story. A few members have a controversy they can run on. That is not the same thing as a fact."

The aide hesitated. "Anything further on the Premier's speech, before this goes out?"

The Emperor did not look up from the page. "If Stanislau had let a rumor pass without building a war on it, I would have wondered if God himself had finally shown him the light. Stanislau has wanted a larger fight for years. He will not get one from the briefing, and he will not get it from a newspaper. He'll find it if he keeps seeking it."

He read the rest in silence, then set the page down.

"Send it."

The aide took the approved text to the media room. The Household statement, as issued:

Wow I haven't been involved in RP for so long...

Anyways, a couple of updates on the state of The Plumage. President John Slater has made a full successful recovery and the duties of the office of the President have fully been transitioned back to him from Senate Chair Jessica Vance. The rebels calling themselves "Conservativa" have been fully overpowered and all threats have been diffused. The operation was astoundingly successful: The Plumage and Britarvia surrounded Conservativa's command center and forced surrender without losing a single person. The Plumage lifted its months-long radio blackout around two weeks ago, which it had placed to prevent rebel forces from remotely activating the many bombs they had secretly placed around major cities. These bombs were systematically removed during this blackout and all rebels hiding in cities across the nation have been apprehended.

The Plumage, you may have won for now, but we will be back...

Lady Aleka Zacharias Has signed a naval cooperation treaty with the SSRV. This move allows for Soviet vessels to moor in Phelysia and train off its rocky waters. The Vawfiss-Hellenic agreement comes after Zacharias’ party secured sweeping victories in city state elections.

Myrovar Central Station. Thursday, 11:42.

The General Secretary's train entered Myrovar eleven minutes behind schedule, its engine draped in red banners, the platform packed with factory delegations, schoolchildren holding paper flags, and a brass band that had been rehearsing since dawn. Radek appeared briefly at the window of carriage nine and raised a hand to the crowd. The band struck up the Anthem of the Revolution. The train had not fully come to a stop when the explosion tore through the rear of the carriage, blowing out every window along the platform and lifting the roof of the car into the station's iron rafters.

For several seconds there was only smoke and a high ringing silence. Then the screaming began. The crowd surged in every direction at once, trampling flags and music stands, pressing against the barriers until they gave way. Guards from the Presidium security detail fired warning shots into the air, which only drove the panic further. Rail workers ran toward the burning wreck with buckets and extinguishers while soldiers ran away from it, uncertain whether a second device was waiting. A Party official stood on an overturned bench shouting for calm, but no one could hear him. Within minutes, smoke was visible from every district of the city.

General Burtova arrived at the station at 11:58 in an armored car, with two companies of the Myrovask garrison close behind. She ordered the station sealed, the rail lines out of Myrovar closed, and the telephone exchange placed under military guard. When a colonel of the security detail asked on whose authority, she told him, "Mine. And I am keeping a list of everyone who asks." By 12:30, soldiers had cleared the platform and formed a cordon around carriage nine. No statement on the condition of the General Secretary had been issued. In Radekgorod, the Revolutionary Presidium was summoned to an emergency session, and Director-General Menshov was reported to have left the capital for Myrovask by car within the hour.

Radekgorod. BSNA Central Broadcast Studio. Thursday, 15:10.

Tatiana Kempinski had read the evening bulletin for nine years, through the last days of the monarchy and the beginning of the revolution. She had never read anything with her hands shaking. When the red light came on, she set the paper flat on the desk to steady it and looked into the camera. "Comrades. It is with the deepest sorrow that the Revolutionary Presidium informs the working people of Britarvia that General Secretary Ivan Radek was killed today at 11:42, in an explosion aboard his train at Myrovar Central Station. Doctors at the scene were unable to save him. Eleven others were killed, and more than forty wounded. The General Secretary had traveled to Myrovask to stand among the people of the frontier. He died among them."

She paused, and for a moment the studio was completely silent. "Ivan Radek led our people out of the darkness of the monarchy. He gave the revolution its voice and the republic its name. The Presidium calls on all citizens to remain calm, to remain at their posts, and to honor the General Secretary's memory through discipline and vigilance. Further information concerning those responsible will be released as the investigation proceeds." Off camera, a producer crossed the studio floor quickly and slid a single typed sheet onto the desk beside her. Kempinski glanced at it, then up at him. He did not meet her eyes.

Behind the camera, the studio doors opened. Six men in the gray coats of the Revolutionary Security Bureau entered, rifles slung, and took positions along the back wall. One walked to the control booth and stood behind the engineer. Kempinski watched them for a long second, then lowered her eyes to the new page and read it exactly as written. "The following statement is issued by the Revolutionary Security Bureau. In light of the grave threat to the security of the state, the Bureau has assumed responsibility for the protection of all state institutions until further notice. At 18:00 this evening, General Natalya Burtova, Commander of the Myrovask Military District, will address the nation from Myrovar. All citizens are instructed to listen. That is the end of the statement." She set the paper down. The red light stayed on for several seconds longer than it should have before the broadcast cut to the anthem.