Prime Minister Lord Mountbatten had been having a terrible morning. The Admiralty had been assuring him that the Kusari were pinned down in Tau-31, and that they were incapable of staging a massive offensive. The sudden loss of the upper part of the Leeds system to Kusari forces came as a shock to everyone involved. Worse still, any hopes that Bretonia had of Liberty becoming involved are gone now, with the Libertonian declaration of war against Rheinland. He knew that there were plans in the works to shore up the remaining defenses in the system, and hopefully hold back the Kusari invader, and maybe even push them back into the Taus. Lord Mountbatten, on the other hand, had other issues to deal with. The citizens of Bretonia, as well as the members of Parliament, were understandably frightened, and worried about what was going to happen next. It was up to him to calm their worries.
After being acknowledged by the Speaker, Lord Mountbatten stood before the House of Lords, and prepared to give his speech.
My Lords, Members of the House of Commons, and Citizens of Bretonia,
I know many of you have seen the reports or heard rumors from the BAF forces in the Leeds system. I regret that I must confirm those reports. The Battle of the Taus is over, and the Battle of Leeds has just begun. Earlier today, Kusari forces began a massive offensive through the Tau-31 gate, and have taken the upper part of the Leeds system despite a valiant defense by the BAF, BPA, and Bowex forces stationed in the system. Our stalwart defense has halted the Kusari advance before they could reach Planet Leeds itself.
As dire as our circumstances may seem, I assure you that we are far from defeated! Measures are now being put in place to fortify our defences around Leeds, and meanwhile we are taking steps to build up our forces ready to one day strike back against our enemy. But to do so, we must mobilise all our available forces, and be prepared to endure great sacrifices. We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many long months of struggle and of suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I can say: It is to wage war, by space, air and land, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy. You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word: It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.
To aid in that victory, the entirety of the Bretonian economy and it's populace must be dedicated to the war effort. Every citizen, whether in Leeds or elsewhere in Bretonia, must stand ready to defend our worlds against Kusari aggression. Leeds shall not fall! Bretonia will not be defeated!
We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in Leeds, we shall fight in orbit and in the atmospheres, we shall fight hand to hand on our space stations and battleships, we shall defend our systems, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the Planets' surface, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets,we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, Leeds or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire across the stars, armed and guarded by the Bretonian Armed Forces, would carry on the struggle, until, in God's good time, foreign fleets of our allies, with all their power and might, step forth to the rescue and the liberation of Bretonia.
Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that if the Bretonian Realm and its Empire last for a thousand years, men will still say, 'This was their finest hour.'
Lord Mountbatten accepted the applause from the House of Lords for a few moments, then stepped down. Now that this duty was done, he had to meet with Her Majesty and the newly constituted War Cabinet to plan the details of Bretonia's defense.
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