The Scalian Legacy
Chapter Thirty

Rauug was in his office, catching up on his correspondence, when a call came in from the bridge. It was his first officer, Gargke. “Sir, there is an urgent announcement coming in from Scalia.” Gargke said. “The Minister of Justice in Nagarus will be addressing all Scalians. It’s about identifying the leader of the rebellion!”

“Thank you, Gargke,” Rauug replied. “I’ll tune in.” As Rauug closed the holographic communication with Gargke, he commanded the computer to display the urgent incoming broadcast. The holographic display showed a message indicating that the minister would be joining soon. Rauug nervously waited. Did they get some information from his sister after all? He asked himself. The implants designed to stop the neural interpreters typically provide a solid roadblock prior to ending the life of its carrier.

Rauug didn’t have to wait for long for his answer as the minister appeared on the holographic display. He was surrounded by a few of his aides behind a podium of sorts. He appeared to be just outside of the Ministry of Justice building with a small crowd in front of him. It was dark as night had recently fallen on the capital. After a few moments, the minister nodded to his aides and turned towards the camera.

“Greetings, citizens of Scalia!” The minister announced. “Today, I bring you triumphant news! The leader of this wicked rebellion against our leaders is dead.” There was applause from the crowd as the minister smiled with what appeared to be relief more than joy. “With this victory, we will begin to restore order to our great society. We will once again follow the wisdom of Nagaran as provided for through our leaders. We….”

Suddenly, the holographic display cut out and was immediately replaced by the face of Rauug’s sister! Rauug almost jumped out of his chair. What is this! He thought to himself. She looked very much the same as she had earlier in the day. You could only see the top of her dress, but it was a common Scalian robe, without decoration. Her face was peaceful and she smiled as she began to speak.

“Welcome, citizens of Scalia!” She started much in the same way as the minister had just a few seconds earlier. “My name is Ectsy Tranier and I was blessed to have organized the movement that has become known as the rebellion. You are listening to this message because I have indeed died, but this was always the plan. Now that I am dead, I can lead you openly through the plans that we have put in place. This rebellion is not about me or any leader and never will be. It is about following Nagaran’s will and our leaders stopped doing that long ago. This rebellion will continue as my sacrifice will be followed by many others. We will no longer die meaningless deaths in order to satisfy the power and greed of our leaders. We will die with purpose. We can no longer allow ourselves to be manipulated and controlled due to our beliefs. We must use reason in conjunction with our beliefs to determine the best path forward for all Scalians. This will not be the last of my speeches; just the first. Every time our leaders call for a global announcement, you will hear my message as well. May the power of Nagaran be with you all!”

The video ended and the feed returned to that of the minister in front of the Ministry of Justice building. However, the scene was quite different as the minister was waving his arms angrily and screaming obscenities at those around him. In addition, the crowd appeared to be in a frenzy with the camera shaking. As if that weren’t enough, Rauug then heard the distinctive sound of FPE blasts with their associated flashes of light. It was chaos! Then, the video feed was cut and the screen went blank.

Rauug was still in shock, when his communicator sounded off. It was Tarza! Rauug accepted the holographic call.

“Rauug, did you see that?” Tarza yelled through the display.

“Yes, sir,” Rauug impishly replied.

“I’m going to make a fleet wide announcement,” Tarza began. “If there is a single soldier that steps out of line, he will be shot on the spot! Understood?”

“Yes, sir,” Rauug replied.

“Since this lunatic was your sister, I want you next to me denouncing her for the insane traitor that she is,” Tarza continued. “Do you have a problem with that?”

“No sir,” Rauug replied.

“Come to my office at once!” Tarza’s video went blank as he hung up.

Rauug crashed down on his chair. How did I not see this? He asked himself. She wasn’t lying when she said that her leader was Nagaran, because she was the leader and thus there was no one else above her other than Nagaran. Despite his disgust of her methods, at some level Rauug admired what his sister had done. She had organized a movement that is challenging the core leadership of Scalian society. Amazing! Also, while her actions were horrific, her motives were pure. He was no longer certain that this was the case with his leadership.

Rauug couldn’t let himself ponder on the incredible events of the past few minutes for too long as he had to go support Tarza. The irony of it all. He loved his sister and couldn’t stand Tarza and yet he had to go defame his sister as he supports Tarza. Rauug shook his head as he stood and exited his office.

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