The People Will Hear | First Order

[Natasi Fortan]

As many of you know, I was asked to step into the Supreme Leader's shoes today. [Beat] Who knew the Supreme Leader was into kitten heels? [Pause for laughter] I joke, of course. The Supreme Leader is more of a stilettos kind of guy. [Pause for laughter] As I look across this magnificent vista, I am reminded...

Spoiler

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEPyFeB8TIE

"First of all, fire whoever wrote this," Natasi said, holding up the copy of the speech she had been handed by Sioux a moment ago. "I'm not kidding. Fire him today. And shred this. And never speak of it again" She handed the speech to Sioux and then glanced at her wristwatch. Five minutes until the ceremony and no speech. She took Sioux's pen out of her hand and snatched an postcard off the rack. They were standing in the visitor's center at Avalonia's Victory & Memorial park, which had been converted into something of a green room for the event's proceedings. The occasion? To promote [member="Ludolf Vaas"] for his years of competent service to the First Order. The Supreme Leader had thought it a good test of his new Grand Moff's abilities and had asked Natasi to perform the ceremony.

And when the Supreme Leader asked, he didn't really ask.

Natasi scribbled some notes on the back of the postcard, pausing to chew thoughtfully on the end of the pen here and there, until Sioux cleared her throat. "It's time o'clock, ma'am."

"Finished," Natasi said, handing back the pen. She glanced over the postcard once more and then tucked it into the inside pocket of her blazer. She walked out of the building as the Commissioner of Avalonia announced her to polite applause. She contuned down the ramp towards the makeshift dais setup at the base, facing a sea of white chairs filled with military and political leaders from across the First Order as well as guests of the honoree, General Vaas. Natasi mounted the stairs onto the dais and waved at the assembled crowd and placed the postcard on the podium in front of her and paused to survey the crowd as they applauded.

When Natasi spoke, her voice was firm and strong, but lacked her usual charisma. "Ladies and gentlemen; soldiers of the First Order; honored guests, good morning. Please, be seated. It is my distinct privilege preside over the promotion ceremony of my friend and colleague, [member="Ludolf Vaas"]. He is a man known to the entire First Order as an exemplar of the ideal Imperial officer: loyal, trustworthy, chivalrous, tenacious, and resourceful. He is a man known by every soldier under his command as tough, fair, and principled. And he is a man known by the Supreme Leader, the Supreme Commander, and myself as a man of true conviction and a single-minded dedication to the First Order and its ideals, a tireless champion of Human High Culture and the civilization built around it."

She paused, swallowing around the painful lump in her throat. When she spoke again, her voice wavered a little. "We gather here... in our Victory & Memorial Park, among tributes to the victorious dead of our campaigns, to underline the solemnity of these proceedings -- to remind all of us of the high price that is paid by each man and woman in the Supreme Leader's armed forces, every time they put on their uniform, or their flightsuit, or their armor. Although this is indeed a moment of celebration, we must not fail to understand the responsibility that we place in the hands of the officers and leaders like General Vaas -- responsibility for the life of each man under his command; responsibility for the safety and security of every world under our control."

Again she paused to collect herself; she spotted a few handkerchiefs out in the audience as well. "But," she said, her voice suddenly gravelly. She cleared her throat. "But the burden does not lie with him alone, or with the Supreme Commander and the Supreme Leader -- no. It lies within each of us. We all have a duty to the glorious order we have built together, to our neighbors and communities, to our children and their children. It is our responsibility to stand side by side with men like General Vaas -- to emulate his bravery, his valor, his dedication -- in uniform or out, in everything that we do. And we must, each of us, be prepared to give of our own lives for the cause of something greater than ourselves, and strive to be worthy of the men and women who do it every day. We must trust in our leaders -- in Vaas, and Kalast, and Ren -- that our sacrifices are not in vain."

Natasi stopped abruptly and looked sidelong at Vaas, sitting nearby on the dais. The corners of her mouth drooped a little, and she turned back to the crowd. "Without further delay, I ask you to rise as I award the rank of Field Marshall to Ludolf Vaas, with immediate effect. Field Marshall Vaas, thank you for your many years of loyal service. May you continue to demonstrate the qualities of leadership that have taken you to this point." She picked up the small box from the podium and opened it, taking the rank pin from within it, then walked over to Vaas. She carefully removed his current rank badge, setting it on the podium, and then set about getting the new badge pinned properly, taking care not to stab him with the pin. She didn't speak until she had managed the clasp, then looked blankly up into his face. "Well done, Field Marshall." She offered a handshake for the cameras and then released his hand, striding past him to take her seat on the stage to listen to his remarks.

Well, once the enthusiastic applause of the crowd died down. The First Order loved a hero, and for their money -- and Natasi's -- they couldn't do better than Ludolf Vaas.

 

[Caid Centurion]

Cafe, Commercial District
Avalonia, Dosuun

"Honestly...I don't know how she does it. I don't know how any of them do it."

"Do what?"

"Do what?" As if by some magnificent, immensely obvious cue, the brunette motioned at the feed of the promotion ceremony within the comfortably appointed cafe. "Wear that...uniform."

The blonde in her company chuckled lightly. "I would never."

Caid, seated firmly and unfortunately within earshot of the vapid conversation rolled his eyes but otherwise held his tongue. Dressed in a tailored charcoal suit, he appeared a business executive of sorts. The unarmed and similarly dressed dark-skinned male sitting in the opposite corner of the room would have, perhaps, seemed a bodyguard to the trained eye. In truth it was a member of the King's Guard from Endelaan, but the planet and civilization had no current king. The Queen, an ancestor of his from hundreds of years ago, had seen fit to send the man with Caid.

They had a meeting set for later in the week with the Grand Moff herself. A formality he was not entirely sure he cared to entertain. For the time being, his silver-green gaze remained focused on the news coverage of the General's promotion to Field Marshal. Caid had to admit, the timing of so many high-level promotions was certainly...intriguing.

 

[Ludolf Vaas]

It would have been difficult for Ludolf to imagine himself in this position ten years ago. During that time, he was still working under One Sith High Command, with Darth Vornskr's Blackblade Guard. He was a largely insignificant figure then, save his war record, yet hardly was he a person whose name carried much weight or recognition in the old order. Ludolf had always assumed that that would be the case forever; he would either fade into obscurity within the One Sith or die unceremoniously somewhere on campaign. The latter was still quite possible, of course, but things had changed since he had helped create the First Order. It felt strange to see so many people gathered in Avalonia today for him.

[member="Natasi Fortan"] did a wondrous job talking up his commendations, as she always did with her strong gift for oratory. For his part, Vaas sat behind her with a look of quiet determination on his face. As Natasi spoke, he introspectively mulled over his relationships to everyone here at this moment. Every General in attendance, he knew, and as Natasi addressed the crowd with her back to him, he considered their relationship. They had been through so much together, and yet how strange was the fate that ensnared them. A broken heart for Natasi and now a trip away from Dosuun to survey First Order space, which Ludolf rightly suspected was also an effort to distance herself from him. The First Order had become everything he'd dreamed and more... except for that part.

As the people rose, Ludolf stepped forward to be awarded. Then his mind shifted one more time, to the Field Marshal pin that Natasi emblazoned on his breast, and everything that had come to symbolize for him. As the shiny new pin was placarded across his uniform, Field Marshal Vaas only saw images of war. He would take the mantle of Field Marshal and harvest the First Order's enemies for destruction. Many men would fall under his command, but ten more of the enemy would fall for every one of his. He would sow the earth with salt on every Galactic Alliance planet in the galaxy. By the time he was finished bringing total war upon the Galactic Alliance, a billion souls would perish and there would be nothing left, only ruins.

"Thank you, Grand Moff," Vaas nodded to Natasi, in a calm and businesslike tone that betrayed none of his emotions.

Ludolf had not forgotten about Eriadu.

 

[Marzena Vaas]

Marzena Choi stood at the edge of the lawn, her eyes cast over the rows of chairs and the stage standing before them. Though there was a chair designated for her in the first row of honored guests, it would remain empty. She had left [member="Ludolf Vaas"]’ flat early in the morning with hardly a word, only a quick ‘I love you,’ and a promise that she would be at the ceremony. It had felt wrong to leave him alone on the morning of his promotion, but Marzena had needed time to herself, and she suspected that he did too. But she was here now – true to her word.

She had chosen a ladylike trench coat for the day; it covered her slim form in dark gray, a color that seemed to match her mood. Marzena’s outfit lacked its usual flare, the only color present was deep red, and came in the form of the First Order symbol pinned to her left lapel. A pair of large sunglasses covered her eyes, hiding the fact that they were still quite swollen and sad. Marzena felt like a thin shadow of her normal self, ragged and weary. She had found very little sleep, for she had cried most of the night through. And when she woke from what little slumber she had, memories of events came back to her, bringing with it a torrent of emotion.

It wasn’t long ago that Marzena had toured these very grounds with Grand Moff [member="Natasi Fortan"], a woman that she viewed as a friend. But today, she no longer viewed her that way. It was a sad thing, too. And when it came to [member="Sioux Chambers"], Marzena would be completely blind to her presence; she was now a figure that the singer would simply refuse to see. Many things had been said, emotions had run high, and none of them could do anything about it now, they could only look back. Did they look back with regret? Most likely. Even though Marzena had been completely blindsided by Sioux and Natasi, she was not without blame either. She had added fuel to flames that were already burning hot.

The anger she had felt last night was gone, it had disappeared and left only sadness in its wake. Marzena folded her hands over her stomach, and drew in a deep breath, determined not to let her feelings cast a shadow over the day. For it was a very important day. As Moff Fortan’s voice rang out, Marzena bowed her head and closed her eyes. It was painful to hear Natasi’s voice again so soon, but the thought of skipping the ceremony had not crossed her mind. Marzena needed to be there to support Ludolf, and so she could someday recount this day to their child, and tell him or her that they were there.

She watched as Ludolf stood, and she flinched slightly at seeing Natasi’s fingertips so close to him. Marzena looked on, focusing instead on her lover’s face, hoping that he could see her. And when it seemed that the ceremony had come to a close, she began to walk. For now, she would simply walk the park and try to take advantage of the calm surroundings.