“Madness?”
“I met men there, as I said. They claimed to be NKVD.” Volkov related the entire story.
Karpov shook his head. “This is truly astounding. Could it be that place has something to do with your disappearance, your movement in time?”
“That had not occurred to me. It took me months to believe I was even sane. Yet, now that you mention this, that may be something worth investigating.”
Karpov paused, considering, taking this all in and accepting it, swallowing the impossible yet again. “It seems you and I have had a steady diet of madness and mayhem for some time, Volkov. Now I understand why they call you the Prophet. Well that makes two of us. You see how easy it was to use the knowledge we have and seize power here. They tell me Stalin was killed in 1908-was that your doing?”
“No. I had nothing to do with that. But I think Kirov killed him.”
“Sergei Kirov?”
“Who else? Stalin and Kirov were going to be old friends one day-until 1934.”
“That explains why Kirov now controls the Bolsheviks. He was far more popular than Stalin, which is probably why he was assassinated.”
“Probably true…” Volkov took a deep breath. “Now what about us, Karpov? What about this little war we’re fighting here while the whole world is choosing sides and getting ready to go crazy out there.”
“I see you have allied yourself with Germany?”
“That seemed to be the thing to do at the moment.”
“But you know what happens, Volkov. Germany loses this damn war. The Axis powers are utterly defeated.”
“Perhaps. But who really beat the Germans in that war? We did! Russia! It was mostly our burden. The British and Americans stuck their thumb in the pie at the end, and wanted half of Germany for their trouble. That won’t happen now, not with the whole country back stabbing in this civil war.”
“Don’t sound so sanctimonious,” said Karpov. “What are your troops doing here in Omsk, eh? Renaming airships now, are you? Feeling comfortable here?”
Volkov smiled. “So you noticed. Well, don’t get your dander up, Karpov. Now that I know who you are things will change. As you say, we are cut from the same cloth, you and I. There is much we can accomplish together.”
That sounded like a good opening now, but Karpov knew he had to be cautious. “We have business here first, Volkov.”
“Yes, and I see you’ve moved more than this single battalion of the18th Siberians west.”
“You see much.”
“Don’t be surprised. I was an intelligence officer, remember? Very well, Karpov, you came here to see if we can settle matters, and I came here for the same reason. Let’s get on with it.”
“We can start with Omsk,” Karpov said quickly. “Kolchak lived here for years. He has a sentimental yearning for this place. Beyond that, we invested a great deal in getting the rail yards in order here-before you showed up with your Grey Legion last winter.”
“Life has its surprises, does it not?”
“Indeed, well Omsk must be returned. We begin with that. If you cannot agree, then we have nothing further to discuss.”
“I lost a lot of men last December trying to take this place.”
“You’ll lose a good many more trying to keep it.” Karpov folded his arms, adamant.
Volkov smiled. “I remember that face, that look, and the way you backed down the Inspector General with that load of Lozh about those missing men.”
“Yes, and I could see you were quite upset about it, but Kapustin had a head on his shoulders.”
“I suppose that is true. I was somewhat impulsive in my youth, but age and the careful winnowing of the soul that power brings to a man have changed me Karpov. Oh, don’t mistake me, you will find me as headstrong and determined as I always was, it’s just that age brings a certain wisdom. Yes? Very well, you can have your city back if that is what it will take to secure this border. Then we can turn our attention to more important matters once we bury the hatchet here.”
“You will withdraw all your units west of the river? Well west?”
“I’ll give the order tonight. We’ll pull back to the old border, in fact, I’ll quarter my men in Petropavlovsk and we can get away from these damn mosquitoes. Fair enough?”
“Done. We’ll reoccupy the city five days after you withdraw to make sure there are no incidents with the men. I’ll want a border checkpoint at Isilkul, and an outpost at Moskalenki, but other than that we’ll leave the border zone alone.”
“And what about the Tartars?”
“You noticed those as well, did you?” Now it was Karpov’s turn to smile. “Listen, Volkov. This war is only getting started. You have an arm full of it right now on the Volga, and you certainly don’t want us at your backside. For that matter, we’ll need troops in the east to stop the damn Japanese. I came in through Vladivostok. You wouldn’t recognize the place if you saw it now. They have warships in the harbor ten deep-troops all over the region. And you know they’ve moved into Mongolia as well.”
“They are biting off more than they can chew.”
“Of course. You and I both know where their real war effort will be directed soon, and how that turns out once the Americans get involved.”
“I suppose we do.”
“Yes, and so if I’m to restore what we’ve lost in the Pacific, first you and I have to come to an agreement. Let me be blunt. I can put half a million Siberian and Tartar cavalry in the field within six months. If I were to move west now in force the Tartars would rally to my banners by the tens of thousands from here to the Urals. Those are fast moving troops, and if we combine our airship fleets we can move thirty-six battalions, that’s three full divisions of regular infantry, and all in one lift, and Sergei Kirov has nothing that can stop us. With our airships and the cavalry I command we can move like the wind. I can swing up through Perm and secure your entire northern flank, or set it on fire and raise hell for you-the choice is yours.”
“Half a million? Yes, I suppose you could. But it’s 1100 kilometers from here to Perm. That’s a long way to go on horseback, and over very rugged terrain.”
“My horsemen live there. They know that country like the back of their hands. They’ll get there, and I’ll organized them when they do. Believe me, we will give the Bolsheviks fits. I can take Perm, and secure the Kama river line all the way to Kazan. Then we have the Urals, the resources, and when Hitler turns his panzers east Kirov will have nowhere to run when the Germans drive on Moscow.”
“You dream big, Karpov.”
“Of course I do. I know you think you will live forever, Volkov, but you won’t. Someone is going to have to take over when you go, and I’m your man. Kolchak won’t be around much longer either. You are not yet old, however. I can see that in spite of your age. With what we know now, the two of us can shape the course of events for the next twenty years. Then you can retire and leave the work to me.”
Kolchak gave him a narrow eyed grin. Then he did something unexpected, though it did not produce the reaction in Karpov that he thought it might. He reached into his inner coat pocket and pulled out a gun, aiming it right at Karpov’s chest.
“So you think you will inherit everything I have given half my life to build here, eh? I could put a bullet in your heart right now, order my airships to blow those overinflated balloons of yours out of the sky, and have that battalion you brought with you for breakfast!”
Karpov didn’t move a muscle. He just smiled. “Look under the table, Volkov. Before you can move a finger to release the safety on that pistol I could blow your balls off.”
At this Volkov laughed, releasing the tension, and he set his pistol squarely on the table now. Karpov drew his hand up from beneath the table and he, too, was holding a pistol, which he set right beside Volkov’s.
“I think we may have reached an understanding,” said Volkov. “And now I think we should put our pistols away and drink on it. I have some very good Vodka on ice in the next room.”