A letter to an old friend

[Carys]

It has been a long time since Shmatko joined the coalition army. Battle after battle, victories and defeats. It's all exhausting, as are the internal intrigues. After recent events and, one might say, his exile to the planet Tangier as commander of a penal squadron, Alexander's emotional state and even his physical health have been severely shaken.

Noticing Alexander's rapidly deteriorating condition, the commanders of the penal wing camp sent the penal squadron commander to the planet Jiangxi for treatment, seemingly out of pity for the sick man. Knowing that he would not have to stay in the hospital for very long anyway, he remembered Biryukov, an old comrade with whom he had gone through thick and thin. After thinking for a while, he decided to write to his old friend:

-"Vadim, greetings. I hear you've risen to the top of the command structure. Congratulations on your promotion. Maybe you could get me out of the hands of the doctors and nurses for a while? We haven't seen each other in a long time, and I understand we have a lot to talk about. I hope the “power” hasn't gone to your head. I'll be waiting for your reply."

After writing and sending the message via a secure channel, he waited for his comrade's reply, thinking to himself:

-“How life can change... I remember him as a weakling under my command, and now he's risen to the top...”

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