Eagle Station

With that in mind, he had chosen to hold this conference in an ornate chamber that dwarfed the small number of participants — Leonov himself, his aides, and a handful of senior Chinese generals and staff officers. The room’s high ceilings and walls were covered by elaborate molding and gold leaf. Intricate geometric designs were repeated across its parquet flooring. Nineteenth-century murals depicted Russian military triumphs against the French, the Turks, and savage Asiatic tribesmen. A round conference table and chairs occupied the middle of the enormous room — with a portable, flat-panel LED screen as the sole concession to modernity.

Right now, selected footage from several different U.S. and European news programs flickered across the screen. The American president’s recent declaration that his nation planned to establish a permanent mining colony on the moon within five years had generated a firestorm of commentary. Roughly half of the commentary condemned the idea as lunacy, a sordid bid to funnel tax dollars to favored private contractors. The other half hailed it as a long-overdue bid to rekindle America’s pioneering spirit, a bold move that could lead to the formation of a true space-faring civilization.

When the clips ended and the lights came up, Leonov turned toward General Chen Haifeng, the commander of China’s Strategic Support Force. Early on during his previous visit to Beijing, he’d realized that the balding, middle-aged military officer was one of Li Jun’s most trusted and forward-looking subordinates. The other members of the Chinese delegation were essentially window dressing. Chen was the man he needed to convince. His control over China’s military space, cyberwar, electronic warfare, and psy ops units would put him front and center in any future conflict with the United States or its allies.

“Comments, Comrade General?” Leonov asked politely.

Chen shrugged his shoulders. “As always, I am amused by the ability of so many Western journalists and politicians to speak for so long and so vehemently, while saying so little of any real value.” He smiled thinly. “In my country, we conduct our public business with more decorum.”

Left unspoken was the fact that Chinese reporters who failed to toe the approved Party line tended to disappear or turn up dead. The same went for any government officials foolish enough to disagree with policies approved by their superiors.

“There is certainly strong American political opposition to Farrell’s plans,” Leonov noted carefully. It was important to draw this other man out, to learn his honest opinions. Chinese negotiators had a well-deserved reputation for masking their true intentions behind a façade of meaningless politeness. They were masters at the diplomatic art of delay. But the American president’s sudden decision to radically accelerate his nation’s space efforts meant neither Russia nor China could afford the luxury of watching events unfold.

He had Li Jun’s promise of an alliance with Russia. Now it was time to find out how much that alliance really meant to the People’s Republic.

Chen waved a dismissive hand at the now-dark LED screen. “Mere noise, signifying nothing.” He shrugged again. “Our political analysts are sure that President Farrell controls more than enough votes in the U.S. Congress to win approval for his lunar mining enterprise.”

Leonov nodded. “My experts say the same.” Farrell had cleverly structured his proposal so that his government’s initial outlays would be relatively minor. Larger costs would come only if the Americans actually succeeded in establishing a working mine on the moon’s surface. It was a far cry from earlier grandiose plans submitted by NASA for various manned missions to the moon and Mars, all with price tags in the hundreds of billions of dollars.

“What really matters,” Chen continued, “is whether or not the proposed American program is technically and economically feasible.”

“And?” Leonov prompted.

Chen looked pained. “Unfortunately, our analysis suggests that it is. Certainly, there are serious scientific and engineering challenges involved. But none of those challenges are insurmountable.” His mouth tightened. “In fact, my country’s space scientists and engineers have been working very hard on plans for similar lunar mining operations.”

“As has Roscosmos,” Leonov acknowledged, referring to the government megacorporation that ran Russia’s civilian space program. “But we will not be in a position to build such an enterprise, at a cost we can bear, for many years to come, perhaps not until the mid-2030s.”

Frowning, Chen nodded his understanding. At the moment, Russia and the People’s Republic could almost match the United States in the automated mining technology needed for a lunar helium-3 mine. But America’s current lead in reusable rocket technology put it years ahead in achieving affordable access to space.