After the call, Marshal Ferragu sat dazed in his seat for nearly another half minute before finally coming out of his reverie. He straightened his collar and gazed out the window, where the Pacific shimmered in the sunlight.
The marshal soon realized that he was aboard his own luxurious shuttle, cruising at a steady speed within Earth's atmosphere. The nine-seat shuttle skimmed barely a hundred meters above the sea. Sunlight, ocean, beaches, cacti, and the old captain aboard a fishing boat all passed through Marshal Ferragu's field of vision.
At the distant point where sea met sky lay the seat of the Blue Star Commonwealth government: Eternal City.
If one ignored the imperial fleet about to seal off the Earth-Moon system, the Commonwealth's seat of government, nestled in the middle of Earth's largest ocean, always offered a seascape so beautiful it was almost intoxicating. It looked just like a tourist city.
Well, on another, perfectly ordinary worldline, this chain of oceanic islands, formed by eight main islands, really was one of the world's most famous tourist destinations.
But as Eternal City's main island drew closer, Marshal Ferragu suddenly laughed. "I remember that young man saying something like... 'The capital's weather reflects the nation's fortunes.' With our capital in this state, what will become of the country?"
The shuttle's pilot, adjutant, secretary, and guards said nothing. As the marshal's subordinates, they naturally had above-average emotional intelligence and knew when they should speak and when they should keep silent.
Marshal Ferragu rummaged in the compartment beneath his seat and pulled out a high-powered smart binocular. He turned it toward Eternal City.
His gaze quickly passed over the presidential palace in the center of the main island, then settled on an estate on Lizan Island. It was a rather elegant imperial garden-style residence.