Re: Blood and Iron-Chapter 926: A Decade in the Making

The negotiations concluded, and an agreement was brokered between the two parties. The Tsar and his wife Elsa were back on the trans-Siberian railway nearly as quickly as they had arrived.

Germany and Russia had spent the better course of the last two decades ensuring that a high speed rail connected their two empires. The project was an effort to modernize the Trans-Siberian Railway and connect it to Berlin .

A permanent bridge that acted not only as the spine of their two empires, but a symbol of their alliance.

Over the last two years, enormous manpower, funding, and resources had been set aside by the two Empires to create a parallel maglev track.

The idea was to follow the German example of using the Maglev line for long range transportation between major metro areas across the two empires. While the older Diesel-Electric high speed rail spread out as the backbone of regional transportation.

Though Germany had nearly finished its own maglev system as they began the project early on during the Second Weltkrieg. By now only a small portion had been laid down.

Within 10-15 years the project was set to be complete. And by 1957 at the latest one would be able to travel from Berlin to Moscow within a mere three hours.

Of course, that was still many years away from manifesting into reality. Because of this the journey from Korea back to Saint Petersburg would no doubt be a long one.

Elsa didn’t mind this though, it meant that she had time to discuss things with her husband. The Tsar seemed unusually quiet after the agreements had been negotiated and signed. He had barely touched his tea.

When Elsa noticed this, she simply smirked, showing the first real emotion of the day.

"That went better than I thought it would."

Alexei quickly shifted his attention to his wife, and chuckled, shaking his head and sighing.

"I was concerned that the Canadians would still see us as enemies. There’s no knowing how many of their boys they sent to their deaths in the war."

Elsa didn’t bother affirming her husband’s anxiety, and instead looked back over at his teacup whose steam had begun to disperse.

"Your tea is getting cold. There will be time enough on this troop to worry about such things. Besides... I think they were scared, not angry."

Alexei was midway through drinking his tea when he heard Elsa’s words, nearly choking on it they had surprised him so much.

"What do you mean they were scared?"

Elsa rested her hands calmly in her lap as the train rocked gently beneath them. Outside the wide windows, the winter landscape of the Korean countryside rolled past in long stretches of white and grey.

The Tsar had grown used to the rhythm of long train journeys over the years. Still, the suddenness of Elsa’s comment had caught him off guard.

"They were polite," Alexei said after a moment. "Perhaps even overly so. But I would not say they appeared frightened."

Elsa tilted her head slightly.

"You were watching their words," she replied quietly. "I was watching their posture."

Alexei leaned back into his seat and folded his arms across his chest.

"And what did their posture tell you?"

"That they understand exactly how the world has changed."

The Tsar frowned slightly, but he did not interrupt her, Elsa continued calmly.

"They arrived at that conference knowing two things. First, that their nation now shares a border with a land that has collapsed into chaos. And second, that one of the powers sitting across the table from them helped create that chaos."

Alexei gave a small sigh.

"That may be true, but the Canadians are a practical people. They know we had little interest in dismantling the United States ourselves. It collapsed under its own weight."

Elsa allowed herself a small shrug.

"Whether that is true or not matters very little in diplomacy."

The Tsar looked down into his teacup for a moment.

"You believe they blame us."

"No," Elsa said softly. "I believe they fear us."

The words hung in the air for a moment as the train rattled across a bridge. Alexei set his teacup down carefully.

"That seems a rather strong conclusion."

Elsa leaned forward slightly and rested her elbow on the armrest.

"Think about it from their perspective. They watched the two greatest powers of the old world collapse in less than a decade. Britain lost its empire almost overnight. France tore itself apart and had to be rebuilt under a monarchy."

She paused briefly before continuing.

"And then the United States collapsed as well."

Alexei rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"That was not entirely our doing."

"No," Elsa replied. "But the Canadians cannot ignore the pattern."

She gestured vaguely toward the west.

"Germany defeated Britain and France. Russia secured its eastern borders and stabilized Asia. And now the American Republic has fractured into dozens of petty successor states."

The Tsar was silent for a moment as he considered her words.

"The Canadians have survived all of this," he said slowly. "That counts for something."

"Yes," Elsa agreed. "It does."

She leaned back into her seat and crossed her legs.

"But survival is not the same as security."

Alexei glanced out the window.

The train had begun to pick up speed now that it had cleared the outskirts of the city. Snow-covered farmland stretched out in every direction.

"You think they requested the conference because they are afraid of being next."

Elsa smiled faintly.

"I think they requested the conference because they realized they cannot handle the situation alone. And now that we share a border with them, they would rather be on our side than against us."

She tapped the armrest lightly.

"Canada is a large country, but its population is small. Their military was already strained during the war, and now they are being asked to police thousands of miles of border against refugees, smugglers, and militia bands."

Alexei nodded slowly.

"That is true."

"And now," Elsa continued, "they share that border with the ruins of a continent."

The Tsar sighed quietly.

"I suppose we are not in a much better position ourselves."

"Perhaps not," Elsa admitted. "But our situation is far more manageable."

She gestured northward.

"Our border with the former United States is a frozen ocean and a sparsely populated wilderness. Canada’s border stretches across farmland, forests, and entire cities that once belonged to a unified nation."

Alexei allowed himself a tired chuckle.

"Yes... Detroit is not exactly a frozen tundra."

"No," Elsa replied dryly. "It is something much worse."

The Tsar leaned back in his seat.

"And yet they still approached us with a proposal for cooperation."

Elsa nodded.

"That is precisely my point."

She folded her hands together again.

"They are afraid of what might come out of that broken land. And they understand that they cannot contain it alone."

Alexei glanced over at her.

"So they turn to us for assistance. And you believe that fear will keep them cooperative."

Elsa’s smile returned.

"For now."

The Tsar raised an eyebrow.

"For now?"

Elsa looked out the window again as the train roared across the snowy plains.

"Fear is a powerful motivator," she said quietly. "But it rarely lasts forever."

Alexei was silent for a moment.

"And what happens when it fades?"

Elsa turned her gaze back toward him.

"That depends on whether the Canadians learn to adapt to the new world."

"And if they do not?"

Elsa’s expression remained calm.

"Then eventually they will make the same mistake the Americans did."

Alexei chuckled softly.

"Which mistake was that?"

Elsa’s answer came without hesitation.

"Believing that geography alone can protect a nation. Nothing lasts forever my dear..."

The Tsar stared at her for a moment before shaking his head.

"You sound more like your father every day."

Elsa did not seem offended by the comparison.

"Perhaps."

She reached for her own teacup.

"He has spent most of his life proving that geography is only an advantage if one has the infrastructure to use it."

Alexei gave a quiet laugh.

"Yes, that does sound exactly like him."

Outside, the train continued its long journey northward. Thousands of miles of rail stretched ahead of them, crossing forests, mountains, and frozen plains before eventually reaching the heart of the Russian Empire.

Elsa watched the landscape drift past in silence for a moment before speaking again.

"By the time the maglev line is finished," she said thoughtfully, "this entire journey will take less than a day."

Alexei glanced toward the window.

"Hard to imagine."

"Not really," Elsa replied. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

"My father has spent his entire life making the impossible seem routine."

The Tsar leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.

"Let us hope he continues to succeed."

Elsa took a slow sip of her tea.

"Oh, he will."

She looked out across the endless winter plains as the train carried them deeper into Eurasia.

"After all," she added softly, "he already has."