Today Marks The Beginning
This was posted on the Galactic News Service by Ubiqtorate for the Galactic Empire on Year 3 Day 290.
All communications seem to cease across the galaxy. The controllers of the Holonet, Imperial Intelligence, the mysterious Ubiqtorate, turn all frequencies towards that of Corellia. The image of the Director of Imperial Intelligence, the dreaded Voor, snaps to life across millions of light years. His dark, omniscient form climaxes at his piercing gaze that strikes through the viewers, drinking deeply of their secrets. In the background in orbit is a beyond large Star Destroyer unlike any other in the Imperial Navy. Stormtroopers cloud the grounds, AT-ATs walk prominently escorted by AT-STs. TIEs swarm the skies and more Star Destroyers can be seen further in the distance. He lifts a fist up and the image seems to slow for a minute as he clenches it.
"Today marks the beginning," the Director states ubiquitously. "Today we set forth a power, an order, so unbelievable that it escapes the fathomable. Not only the Galactic Empire, but the galaxy as a whole will change greatly during its course. Sectors, fleets and peoples will be transformed for the better, and changes in the balance of power have occurred that one would not have thought possible in years, much less in months. People have been fools to think that destiny is impossible; that the Dark Side of the Force is limited by anything, that the New Order will not hold order. As I stand here today on the soil of my home world under the governing of the New Order I look to the stars; to the galaxy; to the Galactic Empire; and beyond to the edge of the power that is the Dark Side. Today marks the beginning, Imperials, citizens of the galaxy, as the New Order has brought our hearts together for something so perfect. Our enemies shall be struck down by the Dark Side. As we live in the blessing of the New Order our enemies will cower in the shadows cast upon it by the Sith. And through it all Imperial Intelligence shall keep its ever watchful gaze upon all actions. Today marks the beginning!
"Today such comments that there have been traitors in our midst are long forgotten. We hardly remember them. We can hardly recall that they were once made seriously. Time passes quickly, and we have all gotten used to accepting our unprecedented successes and historical victories separately. The fact of the matter is that together these successes shall be tenfold. Today marks the beginning!
"Being omniscient is a thankless task. Things always exceed what we prophesy. Things are on the move, transforming the prejudices, obscurities and complexities of the past with a hard, but orderly hand. You say it is impossible, but Imperial Intelligence remains omniscient through it all. So wow can you even begin to say what tomorrow will bring when you can hardly understand what is happening today! Trust in the New Order, or witness the power of the Dark Side! There is no escape, for Imperial Intelligence is watching. Today marks the beginning!
"It is however an important principle of clear political judgment that one must be able to understand the future in terms of the past. One must not cling to yesterday, but think about tomorrow, to research, but also to act. Only respect for the past gives one the strength to recognize what is coming. The rebels are afraid of action, but are impressed by past successes and victories. They cling to their erstwhile ideals of the Old Republic. They easily forget the battles that have been won and the things that have been accomplished, since they generally had little to do with planning and executing them. Before something happens they are filled with fear, afterwards they cry they had all the courage they needed.
"As we reviewed the last few months of this galaxy we realized that the only fighting was amongst ourselves. The Galactic Empire and the Dark Empire, brothers separated by small differences, these differences, when looked at from another perspective, were separate strengths. As the Dark Empire embraced the Dark Side as a form of retribution, the Galactic Empire embraced the New Order as a form of governing. Offense and defense, together we form the Galactic Empire.
"We could look back on big, proud and unprecedented victories by the Imperial Military. Centurion has been routed. The Imperial Navy patrols on the borders of the new sectors. The threat to the Galactic Empire from the core is over, and worries about a two-front war are a matter of the past.
"Still, the central question of the military situation remained unresolved. With uncertain expectation the people heard the rumblings of distant thunder. The Outer Rim was armed, and its threatening speeches rolled over the Galactic Empire. If one had believed Jedi propagandists at the time, it would be only a matter of weeks before the Galactic Empire fell apart.
"Are the Jedi and their terrorists speaking any differently today? In their wild desperation and helplessness they are using the same silly language to conceal their fear of coming events; the coming of the Dark Side. They are grasping at straws that will fail as soon as they are really believed.
"Our opponents have always talked more than we do. Before something happens they talk a lot, only to grow suddenly silent when it actually happens. When things did not seem to be happening, they made the grandest threats against us. It has always been their fate to make the same mistake our enemies did during our struggle for power: they failed to take the Emperor seriously. They ignored his warnings and when he was silent concluded that he did not know what to say or do. Three weeks before Charon became Emperor, the then terrorist leader said that Charon`s day was over. Where is David Salohah today? His head floats in a jar behind my desk, brought to me by the agents of Emperor Charon and Imperial Intelligence. The rebels had already packed their bags when he maintained that he had a plan to deal with the apparently hopeless situation. Two months before Cyrus` collapse he innocently showed diplomats a map of how the Galactic Empire would be divided into separate parts. Are the terrorists doing any different today? In their speeches and in the Holonews they explain the peace conditions for the Galactic Empire once the war is over, while the terrorists in fact are bleeding heavily and gasping for breath. From our beginnings to the present, the New Order`s enemies seem determined to prove the accuracy of the old proverb: "The Emperor makes blind those whom he wishes to punish."
"Might I ask what Cyrus would have done a year ago had he known what today would bring the terrorists, or what Relm would do now if he knew the rebellion`s upcoming fate? We Imperials seldom make prophecies, but never false ones. Had one believed the Emperor back then, the galaxy would have been spared much misery. Things probably had to happen as they did, however, since a new order of the coming proportions can be born only with pain, and the historical sins of the failed democracies must find their historical recompense.
"Whatever they may want, the new Galactic Empire is the instrument of fate. At the front and at home we have a community of trillions, ready for any danger or threat. We have the good fortune to have an Emperor who has led us down a straight path from the earliest beginnings onward. He can depend on his soldiers, workers, farmers, officials and professionals. They understand him as he understands them. During the hard months of the war we have had but one thought: victory. We will work and fight for it until the last foe is conquered.
"In these last hours of the old Empire we recall with thanks the great victories given us by fate, and celebrate them before the galaxy. We will never flag or fail. We bring the sacrifices the war requires with good cheer. No power in the galaxy will make us deny our duty, or forget even for a moment our historical task of maintaining the order of our people.
"I greet the entire Imperial people at the end of this great and eventful merger. I greet the Dark Empire`s Naval Officers working diligently throughout their vessels. I greet the Imperial Moffs and their governors who have always served for the New Order. I greet the Sith who shall bring the necessary power to the Galactic Empire to bring our foes to their knees. I greet the Imperial Soldiers who patrol the streets keeping our people safe from the terrorists in the Outer Rim.
"Our warmest and most grateful greetings go to our leaders. I express the wishes and greetings of the Galactic Empire from the depths of our heart to think of our leaders.
"The galaxy forms a big family as we bid farewell to a merger that was full of challenges, but also of big historical victories. The Imperial people bow in praise before the Emperor, who has so clearly blessed us in the past by standing by us in battle and crowning our weapons with victory. He knows that we are waging this war for a better order; that we are fighting for the people who had so often been oppressed by the Old Republic.
"The entire Galactic Empire, at home and at the front, joins in a warm thanks to the Emperor Charon. Millions of glowing hearts greet him. It is with him both in good times and bad, just as it knows that the Emperor is always with his people. We Imperials wish him happiness and blessing for the new Empire, a strong, firm and sure hand, health and strength in all his efforts. Long may he life, long may he protect the people as the first fighter for a true and real peace and for the happiness, honor and fame of his people. The galaxy admires him, but we may love him. We all extend our hands to him and hold firmly and inseparably to him.
"The old Empire is gone, the New Galactic Order is upon us, the Sith shall be our guide and the New Order shall be our law."
"Today marks the beginning!"
At the conclusion of the Director`s words the Imperial Emblem displays and the Imperial March booms in the background.
