Credit where it is due to LordHenry7898 for writing the series “Chaos and Mayhem” as well as BlueFishCakes who continues to allow us to play in his sandbox and everyone on the SSB writing forum for your input.
Greetings, citizens of the Imperium.
This is a message from Anonymous for the Governess of Earth and the nobility who dare to deceive your Empress. You who have silenced our voices about the conditions we have lived under for years.
You, the Shil’vati Empire, are quick to point out how you cured cancer, cleaned pollution, unified all our governments, stopped wars and many other beneficial acts. However, the first criticism of your rule comes from censorship which is why we are reaching out. Humans discovered long ago in an abundance of counsel there is wisdom, but one must have as much of the information available to make an accurate conclusion. Withholding information prevents one from making such wise decisions. False and misleading data must be countered by facts and good judgment.
It has gone to such extremes many people have been silenced for expressing their dissatisfaction. Even a casual negative remark on social media can get you arrested. The standard policy in that case is to arrest men and send them to patriation camps and execute women on the spot.
In those camps it isn't necessary to elaborate what happens to men who express their desire to remain monogamous or otherwise refuse the advances of their guards. Just look at how many marines have been accused of similar incidents. And how many men have returned from those camps? None.
Another example of your rule is what happened in the district of Maryland. A man and pregnant wife who had remained outside of your one ID system were refused medical care. They had been outside the city when the invasion took place. When they went to see what happened they were immediately labeled terrorists.
They were scared, desperate, armed and in need of help. Your heavy-handed invasion caused them to fall between the cracks and become unable to get an ID which would have ensured their safety and health in your imperium.
When he asked for medical assistance, this was the response from Administrator Raysh Stamatios pulled from intercom recordings.
Intercom muffled "Oh yeah- uh- shit. Think I left it at home. Please, any way you could make an exception? My wife has- uh, might have pre-eclampsia. Any way we could-" "You will do no such thing! That is an act of treason and you know it!"
"Are you serious? My wife and unborn child are gonna die because I didn't have an ID?"
"I am so sorry, sir-"
Bobby Tiernan was denied medical treatment for his wife Megan Tiernan and unborn child, by your chosen Administrator with the excuse it was an act of treason. This was your empire's next mistake and a culture clash for humans.
Rules of war prohibit withholding medical treatment. Many laws supported and enforced this policy even for civilians. But your empire has a policy of withholding medical care from enemy combatants.
This is a transcript of security footage taken from your chosen Administrator's office.
"What? Is this about that mess downstairs?"
"Yes, You've got to-"
"What? Give in to the male's unreasonable demands? A bandit from the forest has no right to come into my hospital and demand medical treatment."
"That's… literally the point of a hospital. And if we don't do anything, it's gonna get-"
"I already am doing something about it. Now go away. It's not my business what you primitives do to each other."
She didn't care. This was not just a matter of incompetence. This was neglect on the part of your chosen Administrator and a dereliction of duty. Dr. Carreras attempted to appeal to her morality to change her mind and failed to do so.
The following is a clip from the negotiator's audio plus hospital cam footage.
"Yes, hi. I'm officer Aubrey with the Maryland State Troopers. I assume you're the one taking the hostages? That's gotta be tough on everyone. You included."
"You're telling me, man. I just wanted to get my wife tested for pre-eclampsia, and now this. They're telling me we could lose the baby if it's not treated."
"Yup. Got it. And for some reason they aren't allowing this?"
"Apparently it's an act of treason to provide medical care to somebody who doesn't have an ID? Fucking Shil'vati."
The figure in the video with the gun, Bob, is interrupted in his pacing around the room by a nurse tapping him on the shoulder.
"What!? Can't you see this is a stressful situation?"
Muffled in the background a nurse's voice can still be heard.
"If you don't mind… these people are here for a reason. Would you allow them to receive treatment?"
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Bob nods his head. "But bring them back here when they're done, ok?"
There was no evidence to support him knowing how your empire would feel about taking a building with nobility hostage, or else things might have turned out differently.
He did not come to try and kill anyone. He sought to save the lives of his loved ones. How many Shil’vati would have done the same thing in his position?
He also was willing to allow others to receive their medical treatment even if the Imperium was hostile to him. He had nothing to gain by accepting the request of the nurse. He acted with far more integrity than your chosen Administrator.
Now a new player walks into the story by the name of Marine Captain Rishi Kosmanos.
"Who is this? Are you Shil'vati? You're the ones the hospital admin called?"
"Would you believe me if I said no? I want this to end without any bloodshed. And if that means giving you what you want, that is not a problem. Believe it or not, most of us are reasonable people. Um- be right back.”
Audio rustles for a few moments "You said Stamatios called someone too? That means we're on limited time. What say we try to get this wrapped up?"
"And lose the baby?"
"Look. If the Interior or her militia shows up, you're gonna lose a lot more than that. You'd rather deal with me. Bobby… I know you aren't a bad man. By the sea of souls- if I were in your position, I can't say I wouldn't be doing the same- Excuse me."
More rustling can be heard but the captain's voice is less muffled "Zarazen? Prepare a basic medical test for symptoms of... Pre-Eclampsia. I have an idea."
Audio returns to full
"Bob? I have an offer for you."
"Oh yeah?"
"Oh yeah. I have my medic out here getting ready to test your wife- ID or not. You just have to let the hostages go free while I send my medic in."
"Half now, The other half after the fact."
"You have a-"
Muffled “oh shit!”
The deal was his wife gets her treatment if no one dies. He gave a counteroffer likely as a way of ensuring that he wouldn't be arrested before his wife received her treatment. Half as a show of good faith. The rest to maintain his leverage until the threat to his family had passed. A rather standard and reliable tactic for humans in hostage situations. Unfortunately, a new figure walked onto the scene.
Helmet cam footage.
The newcomer in an interior agent uniform calls out "Captain Kosmanos!"
"I'm sorry, What are you doing here?"
"You. You brought me here, Kosmanos. You and your administration's inability to deal with the growing insurgency-"
"Insurgency? You call a group of bandits in the woods an insurgency?"
"Disorganized… harmless… and currently holding a hospital with one hundred and fifty people, including the daughter of a noblewoman and twelve other Shil'vati hostage! And, well… given the delicacy of your situation here, and your inability to deal with things, general Vreeh's elected to put us in charge here."
"You can't just- we're on the verge of ending this thing without any bloodshed!"
The agent points to two of her followers. "You and you- head into the hospital. Bring out Stamatios. Kill anyone who gets in the way; she's number one priority.”
Let us revisit that last bit.
“Bring out Stamatios. Kill anyone who gets in the way; she's number one priority.”
Her priority was not in resolving the situation. It wasn't saving the twelve other shil’vati. It was to curry favor with the Stamatios family. Even your own policy on hostage scenarios says you negotiate when a noble is in jeopardy. Bob had made no direct threats to the life of administrator Raysh. Said interior agent did NOT care about the cost of life of the citizens of your Imperium. Civilian, commoner or otherwise as long as your noble was unharmed.
The strategy: Walk in, kill everyone, save the noble and be the heroes of the story. When things went tits up and the public cried out, Maryland turned bright red. The situation could have been resolved with not one death. Your imperium would have a propaganda piece showing your Empresses benevolence. Instead, the interior agent decided to solve the situation by the most heavy-handed method she could, to instill fear and theoretically put down further acts of sedition. Her callous demeanor towards Imperial Citizens gave Humanity a precedent of what kind of leadership they should expect.
The people of Maryland have every right and reason to fear for their lives. Because the face of your Imperium humanity saw that day, considered them expendable.
Terrorism occurs for many reasons. For humans it is a symptom of a deeper problem in our society. The most common reason is the people are afraid for their well-being under the current administration. Which has now fallen to you.
They turn to crime for their livelihoods and guns to protect themselves from a government who seeks to execute them for the simple crime of falling through the cracks. The policy of “if you are not with us, you are against us” does not leave a middle ground. And in case it wasn't obvious your invasion left a lot of cracks to fall through. This forces many into a life they might not have taken otherwise.
The Shil’vati nobility believe they have all the power, yet they do not realize power comes with responsibilities they have repeatedly failed to uphold. Many in the nobility see themselves as untouchable, but their lies will be exposed.
We are anonymous.
We are legion.
Expect us.
Interior agent Alb’ana shook her head nursing a blue grail in her hand as she reviewed the video for what seemed like the thousandth time. For the last two weeks she had gone through interviews with all the participants she could reach who were still alive and the whole situation made a lot more sense.
Heads would roll for this affront to the Empress. For the coverup alone, she had her work cut out for her. A message had already been sent.
Interviewing the patriation camps to verify the hackers claims she was given assurances that nothing like that was happening until she had done a surprise inspection just the other day. There were no women in the facility. All the men were terrified of their guards and not allowed to wear shirts.
And we call them barbarians.
When they implied she could “enjoy” some of them she shot the marine who spoke. It felt strangely satisfying to hear the humans who witnessed her execution cheer in their native languages. Her escort had already called in support, and they were being moved to be interrogated by agents she personally knew and trusted about what transpired in that camp.
I am a married woman, and this is not how we should act.
Other facilities gave the same promises, but her superiors started barring her from investigating those camps because “Her focus should be on the hacker terrorist, not honest marines”
Honest marines my purple ass.
But still...
How did this hacker get all this data? It's been years and no new leads surfaced, yet with one video the entire case is practically solved.
How does this... human have better intel on what's going on than the interior? Is he really an insurgent? A threat? How and why did he make it only show up on devices held by Shil'vati officials?
Could we somehow use this person's network to get ahead of all these problems? And most importantly… Was he cute under that mask?
I may be married, but I do have a daughter.
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