Rafael Columbia
Names: Rafael ColumbiaRafaelMr. ColumbiaAdmiralDirector Columbia
First appears in Book 1: Pandora's Star, chapter 4 (THREE)
Appearances
What you know
Book 1: Pandora's Star
- Ch 4Over two hundred years old, appears in his late fifties; chief of the Intersolar Serious Crimes Directorate, a Halgarth family member.
- Ch 4Warns that new nationalist groups could trigger a wave of anti-Commonwealth terrorism like that of 2222.
- Ch 12Columbia calls the attack the most destructive act of criminal terrorism in a century, with 107 dead and 18 missing.
- Ch 13Rafael Columbia reports over two hundred arrests following the raid by the Guardians of Selfhood, hoping to find the organizer.
- Ch 18Rafael gains control of the Special Sciences, Internal Security and Serious Crimes Directorates, plus the defense budget, via Halgarth maneuvering.
- Ch 20Rafael was unhappy with Paula over Venice Coast but says he'd press for cargo inspection; no movement has followed.
- Ch 22Vice Admiral and Wilson's second in command, he runs planetary defense from Kerensk and is skilled at pressuring governments to install force fields.
- Ch 23Admiral Columbia, chief of the Directorate, stripped Paula of command of the Johansson operation, giving it to Alic Hogan and leaving her only an advisory role.
- Ch 23Columbia considers Paula an obsessive compulsive with poor leadership skills, blames her for the LA and Venice Coast failures and dismisses her leak theory.
- Ch 24Dismissed Paula Myo; Gore distrusts him and thinks he wants to be crowned emperor.
- Ch 25Rafael Columbia launches combat aerobots and activates the navy's planetary defense network and city force fields.
Book 2: Judas Unchained
- Ch 1Rafael Columbia is an admiral who dismisses Paula Myo and then summons Commander Hogan.
- Ch 2Admiral Columbia is in charge of domestic defense and wants Paula Myo removed; he denies the Starflyer exists.
- Ch 2Columbia visited Justine to challenge her removal of Kazimir's body and to probe whether she found what Kazimir carried.
- Ch 2Columbia claims the assassin works for a black-market arms merchant who clashed with the Guardians.
- Ch 3Backs the plan to raise about a quarter of a million commando-style navy ground troops, from volunteers and a reserve of more easily persuaded people.
- Ch 3Rafael suspects the Guardians' courier's data on Mars ended up with Senate Security, and that Senator Burnelli's interest is unprofessional.
- Ch 5Abused his power in having Paula Myo dismissed; now has the full support of the Dynasty's senior council and has maneuvered into the Admiral's position.
- Ch 8Rafael is responsible for defending the remaining Commonwealth planets and asks that some ships be kept for protective duties.
- Ch 10Renne wonders why Columbia fired Paula, and whether it was a setup to relax the traitor's guard.
- Ch 11Columbia, with Sheldon and Hutchinson, wanted to strike Dyson Alpha with ships carrying quantumbusters, hoping to weaken Prime civilization catastrophically; a rift with Kime is growing.
- Ch 13Rafael is appointed to command the navy after Wilson's dismissal, voted in by the War Cabinet.
- Ch 13Rafael argues the Primes must be exterminated because they have flare bombs and wormholes and could develop FTL ships and spread like a virus.
- Ch 13Rafael plans to use quantumbusters on the Lost23 Primes and prefers letting Primes land on New48 worlds, then destroying them with quantumbusters.
- Ch 13The Admiral agrees to Hogan's plan on condition it stays out of the files until it succeeds, and warns Hogan of dire consequences if wrong.
- Ch 14Columbia has replaced Wilson and now accepts the Starflyer may be a real current threat.
- Ch 14Columbia sends Oscar as personal emissary to Nigel Sheldon to quietly open the wormhole to Boongate for an arrest team.
- Ch 17Columbia, a navy admiral, reports that over half the Prime ships are eliminated while the rest flee or swarm toward seven Commonwealth worlds.
- Ch 20Admiral Columbia is pressing the Senate for navy involvement with the CST exploratory division and is likely to bid for the presidency.
Connections
- member ofHalgarth family
- leadsIntersolar Serious Crimes Directorate
- related toWilson Kimeserves as second in command to
- ally ofAlic HoganColumbia's placeman
- ally ofWilson Kime
- enemy ofPaula Myoremoves her from her post
- has memberAlic HoganReports to the Admiral; seen as her political appointee
- related toAlic Hoganreports to
- enemy ofLeopoldovichnavy officers coldly receive him
- member ofWar Cabinet
- has memberOscar Monroeserves under Columbia in the navy
Key moments
- Book 1 · Ch 4ExoProtectorate Council convenes over the Dyson barriers
Powerful Council members gather in New York to assess the threat posed by the barriers around the Dyson Pair, discovered by Dudley Bose. They debate whether the barriers are defensive or imposed.
- Book 1 · Ch 4Council approves a starship
Nigel proposes building an FTL starship to investigate the Dyson Pair; the Council votes unanimously in favor and CST will partly fund it.
- Book 1 · Ch 12Investigation of the Alamo Avenger attack
Columbia, Rees and Paula examine the wrecked Alamo Avenger, argue over blame, and Columbia gives Paula full Directorate resources to pursue Johansson.
- Book 1 · Ch 13Farewell gala at the Regency Palace
On the eve of departure, Wilson, Anna and Oscar attend the First Speaker's gala, where Council members debate the mission, weapons, funding and defense, and the Second Chance is saluted with fireworks.
- Book 1 · Ch 17Council votes for a starflight agency
Nigel pushes for a covertly built navy within a new agency overseeing scoutship missions to Dyson Alpha. The Council votes unanimously to propose the agency to the Executive Office.
- Book 1 · Ch 18Halgarths push offensive navy and merge Directorates
At the review meeting Larry argues for offensive capability; Natasha urges new weapons, and Rafael's Directorate absorbs other security Directorates, with the Burnellis reluctantly accepting.
- Book 1 · Ch 22Rules of engagement meeting
Wilson's staff and the oversight committee meet. Dimitri argues for maximum force and destroying any Prime wormhole at once. Patricia is wary, but Wilson agrees to cost out weapons able to break through to the far end.
- Book 1 · Ch 23Paula removed from the Johansson operation
Columbia blames Paula for the LA and Venice Coast failures and appoints Hogan to run the operation; Paula resigns her commission and leaves.
- Book 1 · Ch 25Prime invasion begins
Forty-eight wormholes open in each of 23 Commonwealth systems, and the Primes bombard planets with nukes and projectiles. Wilson, Rafael and Nigel raise force fields and launch defenses.
- Book 1 · Ch 25Primes begin planetary landings
Wilson's team watches Prime ships enter atmospheres on many planets, immune to aerobot fire and heading for water landings, so reinforcement of cities is planned.
- Book 1 · Ch 25Humans use electronic warfare at Scraptoft and Anshun
Wilson's EW aerobots jam Prime communications at Scraptoft, disabling armored soldiers and flyers. Navy warships arrive at Anshun and fight an hour-long battle with the Primes.
- Book 2 · Ch 1Paula Myo removed
Back at the Paris office, Admiral Columbia dismisses Paula Myo, who leaves with her belongings while staff look on stunned. Columbia then calls in Commander Hogan.
- Book 2 · Ch 2Columbia confronts Justine
Admiral Columbia questions Justine about removing Kazimir's body, her ties to him and Paula Myo, and any missing courier item. Justine rebuffs him and conceals her knowledge.
- Book 2 · Ch 3First War Cabinet meeting
Meeting in Washington's Senate Hall, the War Cabinet hears Kime's assessment of the Prime assault and unanimously approves his three-stage strategy, with the Seattle Project noted as stage four.
- Book 2 · Ch 3Justine and Paula confront Wilson
Justine and Paula tell Wilson about the Guardians' Mars operation and ask him to urge Columbia to keep navy intelligence investigating; Wilson says he will think about it.
- Book 2 · Ch 3Wilson discovers Myo believes in the Starflyer
On the train back from Newark, Wilson reviews navy files and finds Myo's restricted reports show she now believes the Starflyer is real; he questions Rafael about the Guardians on Mars.
- Book 2 · Ch 3Cabinet infighting over Wilson
Heather, Nigel and Alan discuss presenting a united front and whether to replace Wilson after the Prime invasion, with Heather threatening to shift the navy to her control.
- Book 2 · Ch 4Wilson and Anna's wedding
Wilson and Anna marry in a media-saturated chapel ceremony at High Angel, attended by politicians and navy personnel, then leave for a short honeymoon before returning to work.
- Book 2 · Ch 8Navy Strategic Review Council debates the Hell's Gateway assault
Advisors discuss the Hell's Gateway location, Dimitri's call for caution and use of the Seattle weapon, and ship production. They agree to wait a fortnight, keeping reserves for defense and expanding guerrilla warfare.
- Book 2 · Ch 9Prime wormholes shut and reopen
Before the attack, 772 Prime wormholes shut down, then all reopened five hours later, showing the human strike on Hell's Gateway failed.
- Book 2 · Ch 11War Cabinet debates striking the Primes
The War Cabinet discusses carrying the fight to the Primes with quantumbusters; Justine backs genocide, Kime opposes, and Doi institutes an ongoing review.
- Book 2 · Ch 12Wilson orders strike on Hell's Gateway
Wilson commits to acting and sends the Cairo and Baghdad toward Hell's Gateway while quantumbusters are used against flare bombs, irradiating Commonwealth worlds.
- Book 2 · Ch 13Wilson forced to resign
The War Cabinet demands Wilson Kime's resignation after the invasion and revokes his codes; he warns them the Starflyer is real before leaving.
- Book 2 · Ch 13Rafael made navy commander; Nigel's weapon plan
The War Cabinet votes Rafael Columbia in command of the navy, and Nigel offers his star-destroying weapon against the Primes' homeworld and firewall strategy.
- Book 2 · Ch 13War Cabinet votes to exterminate Primes
The War Cabinet unanimously approves using every means, up to extermination, against the Primes, and debates evacuating the New48 worlds.
- Book 2 · Ch 13Hogan wins approval to pursue Tarlo
Hogan convinces the Admiral to open the Boongate wormhole so his team can arrest Tarlo, on condition of secrecy and staying behind if wrong.
- Book 2 · Ch 14Columbia briefs Oscar
Admiral Columbia tells Oscar he now believes the Starflyer threat and sends him to ask Nigel Sheldon to open the wormhole for an arrest team after Tarlo.