535 Camerons return Part 1
07:55 20th of August, 3028
Ceti Alpha system, Nadir Jump Point
THNS Phoenix, McKenna-class Battleship, Command Variant
Admirals Quarters
Fleet Admiral Marianne Sanderson sat in her office reading various ready reports. She still couldn’t wrap her head completely around the idea of invading all five Successor States. Well, she could, but it still boggled the mind in her opinion. Especially with all the intelligence reports of how hopelessly outclassed their targets would be. Holding those worlds however would be another matter entirely.
Regrettably her musings where interrupted by the beeping of her com terminal.
“Sanderson here”, she replied, her voice promising humiliation to anyone interrupting her without good reason.
“It’s 0755, Fleet Admiral”, came the dry voice of her XO before he closed the line.
Sighting in defeat Marianna gave one last look at her paperwork. Standing up and stretching all the kinks out of her body Marianna gave one last controlling look over her Uniform. With everything as it should be she left her office and made her way to the Bridge.
Even after years of service on a space ship her stomach still made flips the moment she left the grav-deck. Gliding through zero gravity several crewman, NCOs and officers saluted her on her way which she returned crisply, always making sure her crew was not breaching any rules in uniform, haircut and accessories.
As she entered the bridge she could still clearly see the differences between a normal McKenna and the Command variant, the extra controls and consoles, the massive holo-projector, the double amount of personal and so much more. After she strapped herself into her chair Marianne tunred to her XO, who was strapped into his own seat, and was reading something on a display to his right.
“Report”, she said. The XO looked up from his current display and pulled out a datapad “All elements are ready to go and Damocles Command gave us condition green to start the operation on your command Fleet Admiral.”
“Ma’am it’s 0800”, called an information officer as the displayed picture of the Innser Sphere atop the holo-projector changed and a man wearing a splendid white uniform standing on a balcony appeared.
“People of the Terran Hegemony, nearly 250 years past a dream died. A dream, created by the best of intentions maybe, but achieved through the deadliest of results. A dream which could have been so much more, a true unification of our species in the age of space exploration, but greed and hunger for power corrupted and distorted this pure vision, like it did so many times before.
“And while the Star League still brought what it promised, it also enabled its own destruction, which now looking past, with the wisdom of bygone decades and centuries had been so obvious, so predictable. And so it came that this great vision, this promise of peace and prosperity, was first brought low, not by enemies from outside, but from supposed allies and partners from within.
“When finally brought low, the dream of our forefathers was then defiled by those who had sworn themselves to protect the innocent, the common people who could not defend themselves. Defiled by power hungry lords, who couldn’t see, who didn’t have the courage to see past their own insecurities and egos. And finally, after all it had suffered, this magnificent dream of a worthy goal was finally buried, buried by those entrusted to defend it, which deserted, abandoned their duty and broke their oaths, buried by madmen and madwomen, who in a frenzy of insanity abandoned any and all restrains to visit untold destruction not only onto others but also onto their own people.
“Those who fled the madness, those who broke oaths, abandoned duty and fled their responsibilities thought themselves free of the corruption and insanity of those left behind, never realising that they themselves brought the seeds of their own ruin with them. And those so called great lords and ladies who stayed behind raped and plundered a realm in need, butchering its people just to make sure the other cannot utilize them.
“That was nearly 250 years ago, when the Star League died and the greater part of the Terran Hegemony was butchered, raped and finally sliced into pieces. However, even in times of despair and hopelessness there were people ready, willing and able to help. These people, heroes of their time did everything to preserve what had been lost, what they had originally fought for. First they saved my ancestors, those who would have had a chance to maybe stop the coming madness, but were never given one.
“These heroes saved millions of people of all walks of life and from all of our planets of this once great realm. And here, in these hidden systems, systems set aside by wiser heads as a retreat should the worst happen, we rebuild. We rebuild a nation in decline, made it better and made it worthy being proud of. Through blood sweat and tears, through diligence and hard work our ancestors build a nation, build a system, where no one needs to be hungry, where everyone is given a fair chance and each person comes as far as his ability and willingness allows.
“250 years ago, our home has been savaged, cleansed by nuclear fire, desecrated by biological and chemical weapons and butchered through orbital bombardment. 250 years ago our ancestors made a promise, to return to our home, take it back from the scavenger lords, to repair the damage done and to take those responsible to account for what they and their realms had done.
“And should their answers be not sufficient, should their apologies not be felt true we would visit upon them what they have visited upon us, to show them the error of their ways. 250 years ago the survivors of madness and insanity, and all those who would join them in hiding and obscurity made a promise to finally take back what was ours. A promise reaffirmed by every Director-General and head of House Cameron ever since.
“A promise that finally after 250 years will be fulfilled. People of the Terran Hegemony, after 250 years of waiting and preparing, we are finally coming home and restore what has been destroyed, to finally take back what is ours, by force if necessary.”
Fleet Admiral Marianne Sanderson looked around the bridge, noting here and there men and women sitting or standing slightly taller, some even with tears in their eyes. She gave one last look at the image of Lord Sebastian Cameron, 26th Director-General, as he bowed to the people beyond the balcony, which couldn't be seen but definitely heard with thunderous applause.
“Coms,” Marianne calmly called, falling back into her training “Give the go command to all fleet elements. Operation Rebirth is Go.”
“What about Terra”, her XO asked softly as the bridge exploded into action.
“Terra is already ours XO, those fools never saw what hit them”, Marianne answered with a humourless smile which sent shivers down the XOs back.
