The Romulan War_ Beneath the Raptor's Wing (Book 1) - Michael A. Martin [45]
Once again, she surprised him. “ ‘Alternative strategic plan’?”
“It is the real reason I have decided to delay my return to Vulcan,” she said. “You and I will present that plan during a joint meeting tomorrow with the United Earth government’s civilian and military leaders, along with the other Coalition representatives. We will lay out the broad strokes of that plan together, since it has taken shape sooner than I had originally expected, thanks to the labors of the Vulcan Science Academy.”
She reached into a fold of her robe and extracted a small padd, which she handed to him. “This contains the new tactical plan’s most pertinent briefing materials. Study them closely after your meeting this evening. In the meantime, you must resist doing what your emotions tell you to do. You must dissuade the Andorians and the Tellarites from trying to take our place on the front lines.”
Soval thought he could feel the planet shifting beneath his feet, though he knew he was merely reacting to the rapidly accelerating pace of change. He had no doubt that it would accelerate further before any of the current crises were resolved.
“I am not at all sanguine about the outcome of any attempt to ‘dissuade’ my Andorian and Tellarite counterparts,” he said as he flicked the padd’s actuator and scanned its table of contents briefly before tucking it into his robe and fixing his gaze back on T’Pau. “Thoris of Andoria has always distrusted me, at least to some extent, Administrator. Your official pronouncement today can only have exacerbated that situation.”
“Of that I have little doubt,” said T’Pau without any perceptible trace of emotion. “Nevertheless, I trust your expertise.”
“My expertise has never included the mastery of a communication style sufficiently blustering and insulting to impress Gral of Tellar. Besides that, both diplomats take their respective worlds’ Coalition Compact obligations very seriously—particularly those concerning mutual defense. They will both be most difficult to ‘dissuade.’”
“Regardless, you must convince them of the unacceptable danger inherent in engaging the Romulans,” T’Pau said. “Both Tellar and Andoria share much of Vulcan’s vulnerability to the new Romulan weapon. You must make them understand this. Without revealing anything else, of course.”
Despite his lingering personal reservations about T’Pau’s decided course of action, Soval could see no alternative to bowing to the inevitable, other than simply resigning his post. And he wasn’t about to do that, particularly during a crisis. Besides, he hadn’t had time to give her “alternative strategic plan” a fair hearing.
“Of course, Administrator,” Soval said. “I shall do my utmost to persuade Thoris and Gral to press their governments to do as we have done. Without revealing anything... inconvenient, of course.”
T’Pau glanced down momentarily at the pocket into which Soval had tucked the padd she had given him, then met his gaze head-on. “Tell them that there are ways to fight without fighting. And that we will work cooperatively to discover them together.”
Then she turned and walked back toward her aides, who were just barely visible along the distant edge of the deeply shadowed garden. A few moments later, he stood alone again in the courtyard with only the stars, the deep shadows, and the rows of Vulcan plants for company.
The minister withdrew the padd from his robe and began studying its contents. He could see immediately that a great deal of work lay ahead of him once he finished up tonight’s meeting, for which he was now running quite late.
Just as he could see in T’Pau’s new understated strategic vision reason to harbor grave doubts about its potential for success.
He began to move in deliberate fashion toward the entrance to the center of the compound, through which he had to pass in order to depart for the nearby Andorian diplomatic compound. His feet