State of Play

2002 short story by Jonathan Hicks

Thirty-eight years after Episode IV – A New Hope

Two months after the Fall of Chancai

FROM: Fleet Commander CATHUM, Zelon System, Setnin Sector

TO: Prime Lord ATHEUS, Fedarn System, Ki-Ki Sector

SCRAMBLE CODE: 867GHDUE8830

CAPSULE: Progress Report, Setnin Sector Occupation Forces

My Lord,

I hope this communication finds you in the best of health and that all in the home sector is well.

It has been two months now since our successful occupation of the Yatchrare System, home system of Zelon and capital of the Setnin Sector and, although there have been some problems, all appears to be going smoothly.

First of all, I must report that the subjugation plans drawn up by your House Barons have been, by and large, ignored. Hostages and prisoners have not helped our situation and caused more distress than order. Our purpose now is to bring the citizens of the sector in line and ruling through fear is effective but impossible due to the lack of equipment and manpower we now have. Once again I must ask that more personnel and supplies be shipped to the central occupation zone so that the heart of the troubles can be addressed.

You will be pleased to hear that nearly all of the remaining worlds within the Setnin Sector have sent us their formal acceptance of our presence within their borders. In some cases they surrendered outright. Now that we are in control of their financial centre, their government facilities and their main trade routes they realise that any future transgression would be futile. It has been an easy affair as the Zelon Wave Exchange enables us to send pictures of our victory here, which helps much with our persuasion techniques. Once they see what has happened to their beloved, and ‘impregnable’, capital, they are more than willing to bow to our demands. There are some dissidents, the ‘last stand’ types, but they pose no real threat and can be dealt with in time.

The citizens of Chancai have now returned to help rebuild their shattered city. We have work groups toiling night and day to have the city prepared for your visit, but we are behind schedule and I must ask that any arrival be delayed until the area is completed. I do not ask this from the point of view of one who wishes everything to be pristine for his Prime Lord – although this is a major factor – but there are security issues that must be addressed before any dignitary of major importance should be allowed to land. Only when the city is back to its former glory and all issues have been tackled will I be comfortable with the safety of my Prime Lord. This stems from what appears to be a raiding/terrorist party of soldiers left over from the assault. They disrupt comings and goings, destroy equipment and otherwise harass our men. Personnel have taken to calling them ‘The Shadows’ but I have discouraged nicknaming a group of desperate men trying to live the old glory of their sector. Besides, I would rather our professional soldiers not give their enemy such ridiculous sounding titles.

Fleet Commander Dagger has been spending the last few days travelling between the primary occupation worlds and making sure that all is well. There has been no word of dissent from these planets and it appears that occupation forces are doing nothing more than a policing action in already suppressed areas. With that as a factor, I would like to repeat my request for more personnel to be re-directed to the central occupation zone, Chancai in particularly, to help with the situation.

I can happily report that Fleet Commander Dagger has performed extremely well during this entire invasion/occupation. From Prime Warrior to Hero of the People, to Fleet Commander – one being has never accomplished so much in a whole lifetime! His ability as a commanding officer and the respect the men give him is a credit to our military.

One the other side of the credit, there is also Fleet Commander Brotus, who has recently returned to active duty after his brief ‘personal leave’. What I mean by this is that he spent weeks chasing individuals who are not important in the scheme of our invasion for nothing more than petty revenge. He embarrassed the military and turned himself into the stereotype we have been trying to avoid this whole invasion – the archetypal ‘evil invading soldier’ image. This endeavour has also cost him both of his arms, one of which has been replaced by a synth-skin cyborg copy, the other a hideous claw device, which was all that was at hand at the time. Coupled with the scars that are so visible, even when he is in uniform, he does not present a very good image. He is also the proponent of the ‘rule by force’ plan set out by your House Barons. I can only advise you of this – Fleet Commander Brotus is unfit for duty, has abused his position and must be removed from the force and returned to the capital at the earliest possible opportunity.

As you have already been informed, the Bank of Zelon has been completely cleared out which has caused a financing problem here in the centre of the occupation zone. All other occupied worlds containing branches have been cleared and the credits are being shipped to us but I fear it will not be enough. Much of the invasion program relied on the money taken from these vaults, the central bank on Zelon being the prize above all. I think it is time for our Allies in this war to stop talking support and physically give it. We have a great war machine here, but the wheels are greased by credits and I feel that grinding to a halt now, after we have achieved victory, would be an ironic fate indeed.

Sheu Ho-Travi, former Policy Advisor to the Galactic Federation, has now been inaugurated as Governor of Chancai, Overseer of the Central Zone and Pro Consul of the Occupied Worlds. A bad choice, my Lord, if I may be permitted to speak clearly. He has taken a wife (Ambassador Klite, no less) and together they live in opulence in the upper reaches of the Chancai Trade Centre. It appears that the Fleet Commanders have been left to deal with the aftermath of this crusade and Sheu Ho-Travi, whilst I adhere to the fact that he was instrumental in keeping the Galactic Alliance out of the war, does little to address the problems we still have. He is already talking of bringing in slaves, perhaps making some of the citizens here - I do not think the liberal minds of the Setnin citizens are ready for our ways yet, and such things should be introduced slowly. He has also talked of turning the Hardball Stadium here into a fighter’s arena. I must stress that things are still in turmoil here and such activities will only serve to create more tension.

You will be pleased to hear that the flagship ‘Fedarn’s Shining Beauty’ has now been broken down from the disgusting mess of command globes that it had been turned into and returned to its former grace. The vessel will be returned to you within one standard week for state use. The flagship to replace it has not been decided upon, but I will send you performance reports of all major capital vessels so that the decision can be yours.

Now, the Galactic Alliance has, as predicted, kept out of the fight right up to the end. It is apparent that they know they may have made a mistake but it is too late to correct it. Any intervention now would be a show of strength and questions would be raised as to why they did not do such a thing years ago, and they would lose support of all those senators and ambassadors who voted against intervention from the beginning. This has placed us in a wonderfully secure position – we have the support of surrounding sectors, some we are allied with, and the Alliance is no longer part of our problems. This is a most satisfactory state of affairs, although they are despatching a Jedi Knight to view the situation for themselves. This is why I need the tension gone from the city. Things look bad as they are, and we do not want to dissatisfy the Jedi from what she sees.

The S.D.F have fled and scattered, although some intelligence reports say that they have regrouped on the edge of Setnin space. Where they are we do not know and one of the reason for my request for extra personnel is so that we can send out scouts to track them. It may be wise to decimate what is left of the force, or at least force them into complete submission, for we could do without a band of freedom fighters roaming the edges of our newly acquired territory interfering with our stabilisation work and raising possible support. Now that we do not have to worry about the Mind/Janite threat, we should turn our attention to dealing with what is left of the S.D.F. We managed to destroy many of the ships of the force but some dignitaries escaped. We should also be aware that the mysterious Raven Corporation are somehow involved and, though I do not see them as an obvious threat as intelligence indicates their motives are ambiguous, can I suggest making contact to confirm our suspicions. At the very least we should regard them with caution until their true motives are revealed. I, for one, do not like their interference.

Efforts are still underway to locate your nephews and niece, the Familee children. It is feared they have joined the S.D.F, or at least have a hand in their machinations, and so locating and securing them will be difficult. Fleet Commander Brotus has asked to take on the task personally, but, with reference to my earlier doubts, this may not be a good idea.

In closing, the entire operation has been a huge success. We now occupy sixty percent of Setnin space, control over ninety percent of it through the occupation of the Chancai Trade Centre, and the last few worlds are closing their borders for fear of attracting our attention. The Holovids sent to us showing the celebrations in the streets of Fedarn lifted spirits immeasurably. Victory is complete. It makes me proud to be a Ki-Ki warrior.

Your devoted servant,

Fleet Commander Cathum of the Prime Lord’s First Squadron

END

* * * *

FROM: CATHUM

TO: PRIVATE

SCRAMBLE CODE: 867GHDUE8831

CAPSULE: PRIVATE

My beloved,

It has been so long since my last letter that I hardly remember the words of weeks ago. It was before our success over Chancai, before we were thrown into a war of attrition over this splendid city.

I hate it here. Such beauty and grace despoiled by arrogance and war. Citizens bombed and blasted where they stood, screaming and running, trying to reach safety, wanting to know why. And me, in my safe warship in orbit, watching my plans unfold and people die. How can you ever look at me again as the man you loved? I was afraid that upon my return I would be far removed from the man you knew. Now I am afraid that you may not know me at all when I finally do come home.

I am so very, very tired. Desperately tired. I walk the streets and the citizens do not look at me with submission in their eyes, or respect for my authority as you may have seen on newscasts. They look at me with hatred. No matter what the species, what the age, what the gender, they stare at me and I can feel the fire in their eyes, their wish that my kind and me were gone. Years ago I felt the surge of the crusade, the feeling that we were freeing these people from decades of corruption and abuse. I see now, however, that their existence goes far beyond our black-and-white view of good and evil, that shades of grey permeate the Setnin Sector. This is their world, their life, and what right do we have to come into their lands and force our beliefs and ways upon them? We marched onto their worlds under the thin veil of justice. Justice. A word used by the aggressor to make their killing honest.

Is this right? I am a Fleet Commander, I should not question the orders I have been given and the goals I have been set. But, as a soldier, and the man who is sending these soldiers to kill and be killed, I have to question the honesty of it all, the sacrifices we are making and the galactic reputation we are garnering. We are fighting for a ‘Puax Ki’? For our ideal of ‘Peaceful Systems’? The phrase is a contradiction in itself.

Brotus is mad. He does not seem satisfied that we have won and he wants to root out problems by force of arms. And Dagger… he spends long hours staring into space as if trying to remember a lost memory. I have observed him staring long and hard at pictures of our Prime Lord with an expression of confusion, head cocked as if trying to force an image into his mind. He has a dark past, does Dagger. I will explain more of this when I see you face to face.

And I so long to see you. It is hard to believe that we have not been with each other since that first planet fall on Leogard so long ago. I need to get away from here, back to my home. Back to you. I am so very tired.

I am no longer the proud warrior you know and loved. I was a simple butcher, now I am a simple caretaker of a world which is not my own.

Be safe.

My heart is yours, always,

Cathum

State of Play

2002 short story by Jonathan Hicks

Thirty-eight years after Episode IV – A New Hope

Histories – A document of both personal and professional nature highlighting the inner struggle of Fleet Commander Cathum balancing the demands of his career with his own beliefs and worries.  Writing to both his Prime Lord and his lover, this Jonathan Hicks tale shows us that even the Ki-Ki’s strongest warriors have their doubts about the war.

Cast of Characters

Fleet Commander Cathum