Three Kings

It wasn’t up to him after all. Kinlan was going north, and he was going to fight for Great Britain in this war, and that was that. He doesn’t know that now, and he certainly won’t believe a word of it should you try to tell him, but that’s what will happen. So all you have to do, really, is go along for the ride. In fact, that won’t be our choice either. These men have us now, and they certainly won’t apologize, send us back to the KA-40, and wish us farewell.

Perhaps General O’Connor and I can do something about that first, before Kinlan takes that hard road north. Then he smiled again, wondering how O’Connor was going to take in the sight of a battalion of Challenger 2 tanks! Standing there in disbelief was one thing. Putting your hand on that Chobham armor, hearing that big 120mm gun fire, and the thunder of this force in attack-well that was quite another thing entirely, and it will make a believer of O’Connor in short order. He won’t understand it at all, but he’ll see it with his own eyes, and seeing is believing.

It would be good if I could somehow spare both Kinlan and O’Connor the shock and confusion of everything we went through to get this far on this amazing journey. Then he thought of something he could do that would make a very strong argument with Kinlan. Something very simple.

All he had to do was convince him to look over his shoulder!

Brigadier Kinlan gave Popski a frown as he turned from his Staff Officer. “This is already wearing out my patience,” he said. “Now, I’ll give you one more chance to tell me what you are really doing out here, and if I get any more of your nonsense, Major, I’ll lock you and this whole troop up for good! You’re standing there wearing a British soldier’s uniform you must have dug up at a surplus store, and you think you can make me believe your regular army? Alright, have it your way. You know what happens to enemy combatants found behind lines, particularly someone trying to pose as one of our boys?”

Popski had a look of shock on his face, but before he could say anything Fedorov tugged urgently on his arm. “Major, he said quickly. “I need to speak with this officer, and I need you to translate everything I say, faithfully, and without question. Can you do that?”

“I’d just as soon give him a piece of my own mind,” said Popski in Russian, “rank or no rank. The man is going bonkers on us if he thinks we’re his enemy. What’s gotten into him? He’s no British General I’ve ever heard of, nor have I ever seen anything like this lot here!” He gestured to the vehicles still passing them in a long, steady column.

“I need you now, Popski. This is urgent. I must speak with this man. Can you translate? You may not understand any of what I will now say, but just translate. I’ll explain it all to you later, but consider this discussion top secret, something known only to the very highest placed officers in your military. Believe this. I was with Wavell and Admiral Tovey, and privy to things you will not have heard, but I must trust you now. Can you do this?”

“Well get on with it then,” said Popski, a dejected look on his face, arms folded, eyes dark with his rising temper.

“Very well… Please tell the General that…”

How should he begin? He was about to try and give this man the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, the heartache of a thousand natural shocks, the whips and scorns of time. But he had to do something, so he led with the one suit he knew was long in his hand.

“Tell the General that I regret the attack on his position, and hope that it was not my countrymen who were responsible.”

Popski frowned. “It’ll take a bit more than a nice apology,” he said to Fedorov in Russian.

“Popski! Don’t think now. Don’t even listen. Just translate as faithfully as you can. This is critical!”

“Very well, don’t get your britches in a wad. We’ve enough trouble here as it stands.” Then he translated as Fedorov continued.

“Tell him that my men had no mission here associated with that missile strike, and I ask him to believe that. We were here to find and rescue the man his scout troop has just found, but I must now ask him to do one thing that will help explain this entire situation.”

Half a minute later Brigadier Kinlan spoke again. “Sounding a bit better. Yet I fail to comprehend why Russian Marines would be interested in finding a British General, except to capture him.”

“I understand that would be your view,” said Fedorov, “but again, I ask you to do one thing that will help explain everything here. The situation is very critical.”

“It doesn’t get much more critical when the nukes start flying,” said Kinlan darkly. “Alright, what is your request, Captain?”

“Do you still have vehicles near the Sultan Apache facilities?”

“What? We’re nearly ten kilometers outside the perimeter here. You don’t think I was going to sit there and wait for another missile, do you?”

“What does he mean-missile?” said Popski. “Is he talking about those rockets of yours?”