The moment the video conference connected, the Bald Eagle president's face was paler than the lights in the conference room.
He sat in a chair in his temporary office, dark curtains behind him and Washington's night sky outside the window-no, what should have been the nighttime view of the White House's South Lawn, where the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that embodied Bald Eagle's greatest strength still stood.
Countless engineers were cutting through it, while firefighters and doctors rescued soldiers inside the carrier at the former White House site. There was still no good way to deal with the carrier itself. They could only start cutting from the very top, dismantling it piece by piece.
The president's temporary office was in an undisclosed safe house, its wall lamps dim and yellow, its curtains tightly drawn.
The screen was divided into four windows. The other three showed the faces of the John Bull prime minister, the Gallic Rooster president, and the Bear Nation president.
Behind the John Bull prime minister was the cabinet room at 10 Downing Street, with dark red wallpaper, dark wooden paneling, and flames dancing in the fireplace.
The Gallic Rooster president stood in the Golden Room of the Élysée Palace, a huge oil painting in a gilded frame behind him. The crystal chandeliers above the long table were reflected in its polished surface.
The Bear Nation president was in a plainly furnished office, with dark curtains half drawn and a cup of steaming tea on his desk. No aides stood beside him.
The Bald Eagle president dispensed with pleasantries and greetings. He did not even bother making eye contact through the screen.
He simply pulled up a file on the encrypted terminal in front of him and clicked share.
A thick dossier appeared on all four screens at once.