“Yes sir,” said Fedorov. “It was a German operational plan for an attack on Gibraltar.”
“I see… Well, you will forgive me for wanting to take a peek at the cake while its baking, but I cannot help myself. This operation Felix… Does it succeed?”
“We do not know,” said Fedorov flatly. “It was never attempted in the history we know. If it does take place, then it would be a major divergence in the course of the war as we know it. I must tell you, however, that if the Germans do launch such an operation, at least as planned, I believe it has a very good chance of succeeding.”
“You know of this plan?”
“It was well documented. The Germans would commit at least three full regiments, all veteran troops, and they will also have two divisions in reserve on the Iberian Peninsula to forestall any move you might make by landing troops in Portugal. I can give you the exact German order of battle, though it may have changed from the history we know.”
“I will gratefully pass it on to the War Cabinet, though I don’t know what good it will do us to know just how steep the odds are. A landing in Portugal? I’m afraid that is out of the question. It would take months to plan an operation on any scale that would make a difference, and we’re still on invasion watch.”
“Admiral, if the Germans do launch Operation Felix, then I think it is safe to say their plan to invade England has been cancelled. We have followed the radio reports on the air battle over Britain. You have done remarkably well in checking the Germans there, just as it occurred in our history.”
“Yet not without great cost. It was very thin with the R.A.F. at times, and I was tempted to ask you for one of those radar sets. As it happened, we managed on our own. The pressure seems to be easing now. In fact, we’ve learned that the Germans have pulled out several bomber squadrons for other deployment-possibly this operation Felix we are discussing.”
“That would be very likely,” said Fedorov. “I must also tell you the German Plan Felix also contained provisions for the possible occupation of Spanish Morocco, and the Canary Islands.”
“That would be a matter of some concern to us. We do have plans to kick a little sand in Jerry’s face should he get pushy at Gibraltar. We have several operations, some underway even as we speak. It will be our intention to immediately seize the Azores, and then Madeira. Our recently failed operation against Dakar will be revisited, this time with adequate naval force to deal with the French. And Wavell has been ordered to begin an offensive against the Italian advance into Egypt.”
“Operation Compass.” Fedorov knew of the operation.
“You know of it?”
“Yes sir, though it did not occur quite this early in our timeline.”
“Yes, Wavell tells us he’s not quite ready,” said Tovey. “But the War Cabinet has urged him to do anything possible to defend Egypt. My God, the thought the Germans may be coming for the Rock is enough to deal with, but we simply cannot lose Egypt…” His eyes carried the obvious question, and Fedorov could see the terrible dilemma. Here they were holding the keys of time and fate, with knowledge of the entire course of the war, at least as it once played out, and Tovey was knocking at the gate and asking to be let in.
“Wavell may surprise you,” said Fedorov. “But I’m afraid that if the Germans do launch this operation, the war will hold many more surprises, even for us if we remain here. Everything will change and I can only take an educated guess as to what may or may not happen. Will Wavell and O’Connor hold off the Italians? They did in our history, but if the Germans attack Gibraltar it may mean they have chosen the Mediterranean as the main focus of their war effort in the next year. That could mean you will be facing more than the Italians in the Western Desert, and possibly very soon.”
Tovey took a deep breath, and his anguish and worry were quite evident. “I must tell you, gentlemen, that this whole affair is on the razor’s edge at the moment. When you arrived on the scene in June we had only seven planes on Malta, another vital outpost. We’ve 36 there now, and plans to deliver 12 more Hurricanes in a few days time. We have exactly three radar sets in the entire Mediterranean theater-one at Gibraltar, one at Alexandria and the last at Aden. The operations we have planned against the Azores and Madeira will involve no more than a single Royal Marine Brigade of three battalions. We’ve got one more teed up with the Free French to have another go at Dakar, or perhaps the Cape Verde Islands. Our effort now is purely defensive. We must seize these outposts to secure the convoy route to Freetown, South Africa and by extension to Suez and Egypt. But I must tell you that it will be some time, perhaps as long as another year, before we can build up enough strength to contemplate further offensives. We’ll be fighting to hold Egypt for the foreseeable future. The question now is when will Russia and America join in?”
Fedorov looked to Admiral Volsky, who nodded, giving him quiet permission to speak further. “As to Soviet entry into the war,” he said, “Hitler decided that in June of 1941 when he launched an operation called Barbarossa and attacked the Soviet Union. That may or may not occur now. It all remains to be seen. As to the American entry into the war, they are of a mind that they can remain neutral until such time that they have adequate forces built up to make a meaningful entry. But you can count on their support, Admiral. I think you already know that much. The timing of their entry, as we knew it, was late in 1941.”
“A long wait,” said Tovey with another sigh.
“And there is one more thing you must know,” said Volsky. “We are here now, Admiral Tovey, but we do not know how much longer we can stay put. Our candle is burning as well, and if Mister Fedorov is correct, it may soon blow out. We may be forced to leave this time before late July in 1941, or we could be facing another problem-annihilation.”
“I don’t understand,” said Tovey.
Volsky explained. “We first shifted in time to arrive on the 28th of July, 1941. That date therefore looms as quite a threat to our continued presence here.”
“I see…” Tovey thought for a moment, suddenly remembering Alan Turing’s long discourse concerning his watch. He shared the story with the Russians to see what they might make of it.
“Amazing,” said Volsky. “You say the watch vanished the day we arrived here, and then turned up in that box?”
“Quite so, Admiral, and our Mister Turing seems to think that when faced with the inconvenient problem of having to account for two identical timepieces trying to occupy the same moment, time seems to have simply moved his watch. Might the same thing happen to your ship come next July?”
Volsky raised his heavy eyebrows, wondering. “Fedorov? What do you think of this?”
“Very strange, sir. Time seems to have exercised a little sleight of hand, just as Kamenski might describe it. I would like to think we might get off just as easily, but we are human beings, sir, not pocket watches, and moving us about like that may be… uncomfortable.”
Schettler, John
Kirov Saga: Hinge Of Fate: Altered States Volume III (Kirov Series)
Part X
“Don’t expect justice from the Lord of the Manor, nor mercy from the Wolf Pack.”
Chapter 28
Convoy HX-69 was making good time, though it was just a little late embarking from Halifax for the long journey to Liverpool. Now it was three days out from its destination port, and though the sailors could almost smell the scent of home in the tang of the rising wind and sea, this was one of the most dangerous legs of the voyage.
It was 23 ships when it first set out from Halifax on the 28th of August, under command of Commodore J. S. Ritchie of the Royal Navy Reserve, aboard the Dutch steamer SS Ulysses. Nine more ships joined the odyssey at sea two days later, and another 15 ships on September 1st to swell the ranks to 47 ships. Ulysses was a stately looking merchant steamer, with a long black hull trimmed in white at the gunwales and a tall single stack amidships. There had been no suitable British ship available at Halifax, and so the Commodore gratefully accepted Ulysses as his convoy flag. The Dutch crew was smart and efficient, though Ritchie noted they were a bit loose in maintaining steady revolutions on the turbine. The ships speed might vary between seven and ten knots, but maintained a good average over time.