Smoke over the Atlantic

The crew of the Theseus, having found themselves in the seventeenth century against their will and having laid the foundations of their state, Russian America, on the island of Trinidad—in the very heart of Spain’s possessions in the New World—have already firmly found their footing and forced all those around them to reckon with them. But this does not suit England, which once tried to subjugate the Trinidad newcomers from another world and, as a result of that adventure, lost all its possessions in the Caribbean. A large-scale provocation has been devised and carried out, with the ultimate aim of setting Russian America and Spain against each other, where among the king’s entourage there are also plenty dissatisfied with the actions of the “henchmen of the devil” who settled on Trinidad. And this move unexpectedly succeeds. Spain decides to act by the old and proven method, placing its bet on military force. A punitive expedition—the New Armada—sets sail from Cádiz. A huge fleet with troops on board, intended to restore the power of the Spanish crown in the New World. A clash is inevitable; all attempts by the newcomers to avoid war have proved futile. And the young state of Russian America, which hinders so many in “civilized” and “enlightened” Europe by the mere fact of its existence, has no choice left.