[ may ii log: we're a broken people living under loaded gun ]

[barrayarmods]

Who: Everyone
What: Victory quickly curdles when the Cetagandans go nuclear -- literally.
When: May 18th - 31st
Where: the Barrayaran camp, the Cetagandan base, Riverfall Village
Warnings: TBD

Quick links:
Barrayar / Cetaganda

barrayar
The jubilant atmosphere in the Barrayaran camp doesn't die out, but it does shift back into the sense of intense focus on their next task, their exhilarating victory driving them forward. The attitudes toward the outsiders are gradually lightening -- the fact that two of them rescued Princess Sonia has gone a long way toward fostering good will. While Prince Yuri and Colonel Vorvolk are still staunch their position of mistrust, Dorca is now openly showing support for Piotr's decision, tipping the balance of politics among the top brass -- which always has a trickle-down effect. But it's a slow spread, and while some of the other soldiers have turned entirely grateful to the outsiders for their part in the attack, for most of them they're only just starting to tone down the hostility. But the shift in atmosphere, however gradual, is clear: the outsiders are starting to fall back into favor with the soldiers.

Vorvolk himself still remains unconvinced, and in the downtime between briefings, can be seen frequently in conference with Piotr, and they don't often look to be in agreement. The fact that the body of Falco Vorkalloner, one of the more vocal anti-outsider dissidents, was found dead shortly before the attack only throws things into hotter contest: although as far Lakshmi and Sisko, the ones to discover the body, reported to him, it appeared to be an accidental death. Colonel Vorvolk remains suspicious considering the timing, but a funeral for Vorkalloner complete with death offerings is held on the 19th. If one is positioned correctly in certain circles, too, one may overhear more talk about the increasingly tense succession politics – talk, say, about finding Yuri a new wife so he can produce another heir. Yuri, perhaps surprisingly, seems reluctant, and harshly bites off the subject every time it comes up.

Lapis has requested a note be delivered to Sonia through the villagers, and Sonia rushes to show it to Piotr. While the gene therapy trials weren't news – and subsequently dire conclusions could be drawn from it – any deals with Jackson's Whole are news, and dangerous at that. If the Cetagandans release the outsiders' gene complexes to the Jacksonians, they might as well be releasing them into the wild: there'll be no hope of permanently recovering them. Piotr is going to want the his handlers to pass on this information to their informants so that they can keep an eye out for any new developments or ways to sabotage the deal.

Scouts are sent to Vorkosigan Vashnoi to further coordinate their efforts with the civilian underground resistance in the city and move on to the next step in their plans to retaking the city. The attack on the base had been meant to force Zahal to withdraw some of his troops from the city, and it works – except that according to Barrayaran intelligence, by May 21st he has recalled the entire occupying force from Vorkosigan Vashnoi.

At approximately three o'clock in the morning on May 22nd, the night sky goes ablaze with a sudden flash of light. The sound of the explosion doesn't follow for another minute, but even at night, the mushroom cloud is clearly visible from the mountains. And even at night, given the vantage point, it's clear that this means only one thing: the Cetagandans have just bombed Vorkosigan Vashnoi.

There's nothing left of the city -- the Cetagandans went nuclear on it, obliterating the city and all its inhabitants and leaving nothing but an irradiated crater behind. Morale in the camp takes a sharp U-turn after the total destruction of the district's capital. Not only were they on the verge of successfully retaking the city, it's the capital of the district, and a symbol of hope for many of the soldiers, especially those from the district -- or it was, anyway. Now there's nothing left of it. Everything they've been working toward for the last few months, everything they've struggled toward -- simply gone.

The soldiers all react in different ways. Most of them are furious, angry like a wounded beast, despairing but only more determined to eliminate the Cetagandan threat to them. Many of them weep openly in grief or despair -- lost family and friends, a lost home -- and some are simply stunned into numbness at so dramatic an escalation. The Barrayarans are badly thrown, and they need to regroup before Cetagandan strikes again.

The unabridged mission results can be found here.

cetaganda
Thanks to the Barrayarans' extremely effective sabotage, there's no hope of getting the main or backup power generator back in operating oder until their next supply drop arrives with reinforcements -- still weeks away. Most of the base is without power, which also means no running water, no refrigeration, and no way of recharging their weapons' power packs. As much is being done by daylight as possible, including pre-preparing meals -- still a mix of MREs and fresh food, but especially the latter, as they have no way of keeping it from spoiling, but when they run out of fresh food from the Grow Labs, the base's denizens are stuck with MREs and rather unpalatable ration bars. Thankfully, the water treatment plant has a considerable buffer, so while they may not have running water, they do at least have some manually retrievable potable water for the time being. Hey folks, if you ever wondered what it's like for the Barrayarans roughin' it up out there in the mountains, here is a tiny fraction of what that's like.

On the night of the 20th, Diya is discovered dead. According to Sei, she was attacked and killed by Natasha -- for what exact reason, Sei cannot claim to know, but this clearly marks Natasha as a dangerous entity. Natasha flees the base that night in a hijacked groundcar, leaving no one to fast-penta and no witness but Sei and Ba Talim, and -- even though it would be an affront to suggest it -- haut and ba are immune to fast-penta. An elaborate but solemn funeral is held for Diya on the 21st. It's about what you've probably come to expect of Cetagandan functions, but the mood is distinctly different. There is still a lot of poetry reading. When not in uniform, Zahal now dresses in mourning colors.

The one building that does still have power is the building containing the medbay and gene labs, powered by the secondary backup generator that clearly exists for that express purpose: if all else fails, protect the interests of the Star Crèche. However, even with the base's population reduced, there are still thousands of people who need power, and Zahal is in a heated argument with the haut over redirecting power from the secondary backup generator to other vital base functions. The secondary backup generator does not possess the capacity to power the entire base, but some of its power could definitely be rerouted to select other areas. By May 21st, the barracks and mess have limited power -- just barely enough to get running water and the most basic of kitchen functions running. A little bit of power is rerouted to one of the undamaged research buildings for continued research on the Star Gate Project, since it's of nearly as much interest as the genetics research.

By May 21st, Zahal has recalled the entire occupying force from Vorkosigan Vashnoi. This means a couple thousand soldiers have now returned to the base, but they're still badly undermanned. Reinforcements are slated to arrive along with a supply drop at the start of next month, but until then, it's time to make do. Some of the repairs can at least be started manually, so any off-duty soldiers and willing and able bodies will be asked to lend a hand to start fixing up some of the base now that it's more cleaned up.

At approximately three o'clock in the morning on May 22nd, the night sky goes ablaze with a sudden flash of light. The sound of the explosion doesn't follow for another minute, but even at night, the mushroom cloud is clearly visible from the upper perimeter of the base. And even if you don't have the vantage point to see it for yourself, it doesn't take long for word to get around: the Cetagandans have just bombed Vorkosigan Vashnoi.

Apparently Zahal was able to pull together enough resources to drop a nuclear bomb on the city, utterly destroying it and everyone in it. Judging by the surprise of the rank and file, this was not a long-planned maneuver, but a direct response to the Barrayarans' attack. It isn't the sort of measure they're supposed to resort to so quickly -- the city itself is a valuable resource, and it gave them leverage -- but Zahal is furious.

Between Diya's sudden death and the bombing, the atmosphere around the base is suddenly tense and uneasy. While the Cetagandans have hardly felt threatened by the exotics, after Natasha's supposed recent actions, there's a growing mistrust. The victory might go to the Cetagandans, but it doesn't really feel like it.

The unabridged mission results can be found here.

Comments

[protocol]

Not right now.

[ Quietly. He eases a bit closer, one hand moving up to card lightly through his hair, his hand stilling against the back of his skull. This isn't his loss, not really. He can hold for them both, right now. Miles doesn't have to. ]

[dendarii]

[ He leans his head forward against Wash's chest. Cards his fingers in Wash's shirt, draws in a deep breath. And then just ... sobs, quietly. Shoulders shaking. ]

[protocol]

[ He wishes he could do more.

Wash just readily wraps his arms around him, offers what comfort he can, lets him sob, lets him shake, one hand stroking through his hair, kneading at the back of his neck. After a while, he moves to seat himself down, leaning back against that hollow log, just gently guiding Miles down with him. Still searching for something to say. There isn't much to say, is there. ]

[dendarii]

[ There really, really isn't. Miles wouldn't have anything to say in return either. But ... eventually, slowly, he cries himself out. And just sort of slumps against him. ]

The bottle's right over there.

[protocol]

[ Wash nods, quiet. An awful knot in his chest, a distance in his eyes. He reaches out to dig a little for where Miles has stashed the bottle, just kind of numbly handing it over to him before he wraps his arm around him again, pulling him closer to his side, covering his hand with his own. ]

Home was the first major loss I ever heard about, after deployment. [ Just reaching for something to say for, and landing there. Probably not the best choice, but he doesn't -- know. He's not good at this. ] There were quite a few people in my company from the same system.

[dendarii]

[ He uncorks the top. And just. Takes a very long swig of it before offering it to Wash. ]

Just as sudden for you then.

[protocol]

Yeah.

[ He'll drink, this time. Not much, still, he's always careful, but for this. He wipes the bottle with his sleeve before he hands it back over. ]

It took a day or two before it even sank in.

[dendarii]

[ Another long draught for Miles. ]

Just numb? Couldn't quite believe it?

[protocol]

Yeah.

We were on standby, at the time, so there was some time to process it, I guess. [ Just loosely stroking his hand down along Miles' arm. ] When it finally did hit me, I just. Couldn't stop crying.

[dendarii]

[ A small nod. ]

You keep going until you can't. And then you collapse.

[protocol]

Yeah.

You get back up again. [ A breath. He hates saying things like that. They feel so fucking hollow. ] But you stay down there a while, too.

[dendarii]

I don't want to get back up.

[protocol]

I didn't, either.

[ From so many things. ]

[dendarii]

... And yet here we are, huh.

[protocol]

Cliché, I know. But yeah.

[ Brushing his hand back down over his arm, covering his hand with his own. A gentle squeeze. ]

Here we are.

[dendarii]

[ He takes another drink. ]

This too will pass, somehow. And Barrayar will still win the war, if things aren't too far off track.

[protocol]

[ If, he wants to say. He bites it down, but the pause there might be a bit too much. ]

The loss that drives us forward, huh.

[dendarii]

[ Don't make Miles picture a conquered Barrayar, for god's sake. He'll kill himself trying to prevent that awful scenario. ]

Something like that. Story of my life.

[protocol]

[ Look he's not going to say any of it but he always, always thinks of the worst. Can't help it. ]

Story of mine, too.

I did most of it alone, though. Wouldn't recommend it.

[dendarii]

... I'm safe enough there. Too small to do it on my own, alas.

[protocol]

Even without that, it's a miserable way to go on.

You don't have to get back up, just yet. In the meanwhile, well.

[ He doesn't say it, but he turns his head against him slightly where he's slumped against his side, his arm tugging him closer, fingers stroking over his wrist. In the meanwhile, Miles can lean on him. There's only so much he can do, but god, it's so exhausting to be strong all the time in the face of something awful, Wash knows how that is, even if he had to act that way for the people he led. What helped was having anywhere he didn't have to be that way. Where he could count on someone else, where he could be weak and vulnerable, even for a while. ]

[dendarii]

[ He takes the hint subconsciously, at least, and leans his small body against Wash. Hardly any weight at all. ]

There isn't even anything to recover. The city will be too dangerous for fifty years, at least.

[protocol]

[ Still a weight to bear, and a weight to give. It's indulgent for him, too, maybe -- he gets protective, he gets too protective, he knows, but even if his intention isn't selfish, taking care of someone is what gives him some comfort. He tucks his face against his hair, lightly taking Miles' hand in his own. ]

Still glowing in the dark. [ That mental image's stuck with him ever since Miles said it. It paints a picture. Pretty, in the same way the black glass of his own world is. ] But after those fifty years?

[dendarii]

[ A horrifying kind of beauty, to be sure. Miles sucks in a breath. ]

Still glowing, but safe enough to enter for brief periods of time.

[protocol]

Even glassed planets are eventually reclaimed. Terraforming's slow, but it was starting again, after the war.

[ Maybe eventually, there'll be something to recover. ]