Klonor
30-10-2004, 21:59
The Assembly Hall was nearly a riot, Representatives shouting themselves horse in an attempt to get themselves heard. Accusations were flying through the air, condemnations following right behind them, rebuttles zipping back. Unfortunately, when there's several thousand people all yelling it's rather difficult for any one person to be heard.
Attention! Attention! The Duke will be arriving in seven minutes. I repeat, the Duke shall arrive in seven minutes. Please, take your seats.
Even the announcement was barely heard over the roar, but after the third repetition the message did get across. Slowly, the members of the People's Assembly sat down and waited for the Duke. With a flash of light that left the audience temporarily blind and burst of music that left them temporarily deaf the Grand Duke Solomon Klonor appeared at the podium in the center, hovering several meters above the ground and surrounded by an unearthly glow. His voice echoed throughout the room.
"Greetings Representatives of the People of Klonor."
The response was just as penetrating, a single voice coming from several thousand throats.
"Greetings oh Duke, leader and shephard of our great nation."
Then the Duke lowered to the ground, that weird glow died, and the real meeting started.
"Gentlemen, we're screwed. The Association is going down the tubes and I can't see how we're going to save it. Salm is back, Petrarch has gone rogue, and somebody is stirring up problems in Lil miss. We're being torn apart from the inside."
"Surely it can't be that bad?"
"Salm has stolen an entire System Fleet. What the hell are you smoking to think that's not 'that bad?'"
"Well, yeah. But---"
"But what? He has the power the annex an entire Stellar System if he wanted to! Nearly 10% of our entire Navy is now in enemy hands and the man who was vital to us stopping that enemy is now an enemy, too."
"Bu-----"
"Not only that, but we have no idea where Salm is. When he left he took a pair of Ganymedes with him, so he can skip from system to system and leave none the wiser."
"B----"
"Add to that the fact that, in case you've forgotten, Salm has killed me before. The last time I checked, that makes him a pretty big priority."
"-----"
"Oh, just shut up already. Does anybody else have something to say?"
"We need to bulk up the Fleet! It's just common sense! If we have more ships we can patrol more territory, if we can patrol more territory then we can find Salm, and if we can find Salm then we can send in the Colossus and the Constantine to blow the hell out of him."
"No, reduce the Fleet! Look at all our problems now, it's from our own guns being turned against us! If there are less guns total then Salm and the rest will have a lot less to throw at us."
The hall erupted then, hundreds Representatives voicing their support for either of the options while the Duke sat in the middle and drank.
"Everybody just shut up!"
It wasn't the order itself that brought quiet, but rather the origin. For the first time, a representative from Tau Ceti was speaking (A bit of backstory: Tau Ceti is a system owned by Klonor, but inhabited by a colony of Guanyu. Due to the new constituion in place when the Association formed the Tau Ceti colony got a say in the government. Since most people really don't like having a foreign say in the government, and because a bloodthirsty mob usually doesn't listen to official commands to halt, the Representatives don't usually say much.)
"If we build more ships we can actually end up giving Salm more ships. If we lower the numbers then Salm runs wild and begins to kill people again. So what's the solution?"
The murmurs from the crowd showed their acknowledgement.
"Or rather, what's the problem? The last time I checked ships don't fly themselves. Ships don't turn traitor. People do. Control the people, and you control the ships. You want to make sure we keep Salm from recruiting and that Petrarch doesn't have a few wannabe followers, we need to clamp down. Take control of the people, and make sure they know who to follow."
And the Hall erupted into chaos.
Attention! Attention! The Duke will be arriving in seven minutes. I repeat, the Duke shall arrive in seven minutes. Please, take your seats.
Even the announcement was barely heard over the roar, but after the third repetition the message did get across. Slowly, the members of the People's Assembly sat down and waited for the Duke. With a flash of light that left the audience temporarily blind and burst of music that left them temporarily deaf the Grand Duke Solomon Klonor appeared at the podium in the center, hovering several meters above the ground and surrounded by an unearthly glow. His voice echoed throughout the room.
"Greetings Representatives of the People of Klonor."
The response was just as penetrating, a single voice coming from several thousand throats.
"Greetings oh Duke, leader and shephard of our great nation."
Then the Duke lowered to the ground, that weird glow died, and the real meeting started.
"Gentlemen, we're screwed. The Association is going down the tubes and I can't see how we're going to save it. Salm is back, Petrarch has gone rogue, and somebody is stirring up problems in Lil miss. We're being torn apart from the inside."
"Surely it can't be that bad?"
"Salm has stolen an entire System Fleet. What the hell are you smoking to think that's not 'that bad?'"
"Well, yeah. But---"
"But what? He has the power the annex an entire Stellar System if he wanted to! Nearly 10% of our entire Navy is now in enemy hands and the man who was vital to us stopping that enemy is now an enemy, too."
"Bu-----"
"Not only that, but we have no idea where Salm is. When he left he took a pair of Ganymedes with him, so he can skip from system to system and leave none the wiser."
"B----"
"Add to that the fact that, in case you've forgotten, Salm has killed me before. The last time I checked, that makes him a pretty big priority."
"-----"
"Oh, just shut up already. Does anybody else have something to say?"
"We need to bulk up the Fleet! It's just common sense! If we have more ships we can patrol more territory, if we can patrol more territory then we can find Salm, and if we can find Salm then we can send in the Colossus and the Constantine to blow the hell out of him."
"No, reduce the Fleet! Look at all our problems now, it's from our own guns being turned against us! If there are less guns total then Salm and the rest will have a lot less to throw at us."
The hall erupted then, hundreds Representatives voicing their support for either of the options while the Duke sat in the middle and drank.
"Everybody just shut up!"
It wasn't the order itself that brought quiet, but rather the origin. For the first time, a representative from Tau Ceti was speaking (A bit of backstory: Tau Ceti is a system owned by Klonor, but inhabited by a colony of Guanyu. Due to the new constituion in place when the Association formed the Tau Ceti colony got a say in the government. Since most people really don't like having a foreign say in the government, and because a bloodthirsty mob usually doesn't listen to official commands to halt, the Representatives don't usually say much.)
"If we build more ships we can actually end up giving Salm more ships. If we lower the numbers then Salm runs wild and begins to kill people again. So what's the solution?"
The murmurs from the crowd showed their acknowledgement.
"Or rather, what's the problem? The last time I checked ships don't fly themselves. Ships don't turn traitor. People do. Control the people, and you control the ships. You want to make sure we keep Salm from recruiting and that Petrarch doesn't have a few wannabe followers, we need to clamp down. Take control of the people, and make sure they know who to follow."
And the Hall erupted into chaos.