Chapter 6

The Governor’s office was large but sparsely decorated. A wooden desk that had probably been around since before Kal’s imprisonment dominated the center, a sitting area to the side consisting of a few chairs that showed significant wear and some personal items belonging to Sylla.

Kal looked over the room with dissatisfaction. If even the planet’s Governor had to make do with such conditions, it spoke volumes of the current state of affairs. Sylla gestured to a chair before taking a seat in the one across from it.

He raised an eyebrow at her lack of etiquette, typically, one would wait until a noble sat first before taking their own chair, but he chose to ignore the slight. He had much bigger problems than people not adhering to social norms in his presence.

Ignoring the offer, Kal walked to the large windows, taking in the view from the fifth-floor administration complex. The worn, tiled flooring was cold under his bare feet but manageable, especially after being on that frigid Starship. In the distance, he could see the transport leaving, quickly fading from view as it returned to wherever Sylla had hired it.

Behind him, he heard the Governor settle into her chair while an aide poured tea for them both, leaving the steaming cups on the table in the center of the sitting area. Kal waited for the door to close, leaving them alone, before speaking.

“I accessed the Net while on my way home. Even my worst nightmares were tame in comparison to this.” Kal said, turning his head to look at the Governor, his expression icy and his eyes hard. Rage filled him as he thought about what had happened to his home.

He was too restless to sit but too tired to stand after the long journey, so he settled for pacing, pushing his weary body to move.

Sylla watched him warily, like observing a wild animal that could turn on her at any moment. The Governor was terrified he would take his displeasure out on her, that he would place the blame for Caledon’s current state on her fragile shoulders.

Before she could respond, Kal took a deep breath, taking control of his emotions and forcing himself to sit in the chair across from her. He picked up his cup and drank the hot tea in a single gulp. It was bitter and cheap, with a slight staleness that spoke of the time it spent in storage.

By the time he set the cup back down, he was in complete control again.

“Tell me everything.” Kal ordered, leaning back in his chair.

He could see the nervousness in Sylla, the fear of his reaction. It was to be expected. Things were terrible, and it would be normal to find someone to criticize and condemn. Sylla thought he would place that burden on her, but Kal knew the truth. It was his fault, his responsibility. The failure belonged to Kal alone.

“Where would you like me to start? If you accessed the Net, you know we’re at rock bottom.” Sylla said, her voice resigned to suffering his displeasure. Kal quirked an eyebrow at the woman. It seemed that he would need to be upfront with her, to build trust before they could cooperate.

“Let’s start with your administration. How many staff do you have?” Kal inquired.

“Nearly 300. Mostly administrative employees, a handful of security officers for the estate.” Sylla responded. Standing, she walked to her desk, pulled an outdated Datapad from a drawer and returned to her chair. She had compiled a report for the Baron, which painted a bleak picture.

Kal winced at the number. Only 300 staff to oversee a planet! When his grandfather was alive, the city of Caledonia housed tens of millions, a significant percentage of them being staff and their families to help govern the thousands of planets in their fiefdom.

“Financials?” He ventured, already dreading the answer.

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“Dismal. To be blunt, your government is bankrupt. What revenue we generate is legally entitled to be given to the Imperial Bank as debt repayment. We have some reserves, mostly from a recent loan, but it won’t last the year. The interest alone is crippling.” Sylla explained.

She pulled up her report on the Datapad before handing the oversized and obsolete piece of technology over to the Baron. Heavily scratched and battered, the words onscreen were barely visible through the cracks, and it appeared to be older than he was.

To her surprise, he read it. She had expected him to ignore her hard work, glossing over her concerns as he ‘took charge.’ It was an image she had built of Nobility, too proud to mind the details, too concerned with ‘appearance’ and ‘elegance’ to dirty themselves with worrying about money and budgets.

The more she interacted with the Baron, the more her view of him shifted from a caricature of Nobility to a genuine person who seemed serious about doing whatever he could to help.

As he scrolled through the report, his lips moved slightly, parting and twitching as he read. Sylla saw a crease form between his brows, deepening as he read. The document was very meticulous. Kal saw that tax revenue was low, most of the businesses and organizations on Caledon had unpaid taxes, a majority for consecutive years, but the government had not done anything about it.

Reaching the end of Sylla’s report, his eyes widened as he saw Caledon’s current debt. It was an astronomical sum that would have been outrageous even at his planet’s height of power. There was no way they could repay this amount, even if they tuned the economy to perfection.

His frown turned to a snarl of anger as he saw the interest rate. It was robbery, pure and simple. The Imperial Bank had taken advantage of his absence to gouge his government. Kal had to restrain himself from leaping from his chair, closing his eyes to calm down again.

“Do you now understand the financial problems Caledon is struggling against?” Sylla asked, only speaking when she saw the redness drain from Kal’s face, his emotions settle.

“Yes, I do. We have two major concerns regarding the economy. Uncollected taxes and the Imperial Bank.” Kal summed up, placing the Datapad onto the table between them, careful not to damage it further.

“Correct.” Sylla agreed, nodding her head at his words. “Many people on Caledon feel they don’t need to pay their taxes since we provide minimal services and we are powerless to collect on it if they are past due.”

“Valid concerns,” Kal said, nodding. “You have 300 staff for an entire planet. You cannot ensure that people receive necessities like food and clean water. You can’t even enforce the law. It’s a surprise they pay any taxes whatsoever.” Kal finished, turning to look out the window once more, thinking for a moment.

“Most businesses pay the bare minimum, enough to keep the government from collapsing. They don’t want the rest of the Empire turning their attention here, shining a light on their activities. For some of the less reputable organizations, Caledon is a paradise. Cheap labour bordering on slavery, no government oversight or law enforcement. They give us enough in taxes to function but remain ineffectual.”

The silence stretched as he formulated a plan. Kal needed time to get a stable hold on this planet. He hadn’t expected to return to a situation this dire when he had gone to stasis, but he had prepared for it, just in case.

“We need to lessen these debt repayments. Set up a meeting with the Imperial Bank as soon as possible. You have a representative here on Caledon that you have been dealing with?” Kal asked.

“Merrick Tan. Loathsome toad of a man. The Imperial Bank has a branch in Cosa, and they treat the city like their own fiefdom. I’ll tell Tan that the Baron wishes to meet him in the morning. He may show up, but I can’t guarantee it. I doubt he thinks you have much to offer him.” Sylla replied, shrugging her shoulders while making a note on the Datapad.

As the fourth largest city on Caledon, Cosa was famed for its beaches and warm weather. It was a travel destination filled with resorts and hotels catering to tourists, now exclusive to the Imperial Bank and its employees.

“He’ll be interested in what I have to say, just set up the meeting,” Kal said. “Regarding taxes, there isn’t much we can do without improving our hold over Caledon. We need to be able to enforce the law, and reduce the stranglehold others have over my cities.” Sylla shook her head at his words.

“That will be impossible with just our current staff, and we lack the funds to hire professionals. I have less than a dozen security officers armed with centuries-old lasguns and basic body armour from before the Rebellion. They can stop a random person from wandering onto the estate, but against some larger criminal organizations? They would be worse than useless.” Sylla explained.

“If we got them better equipment, could we recruit more soldiers from amongst the locals?” Kal asked, already knowing the answer.

“Anyone worth recruiting would already be on the other side. What’s left are people too old to care or too young to know better. We only retain control of the estate because everything of value was looted centuries ago.” Sylla responded, shaking her head at the suggestion.

Kal nodded sadly before standing once more. He knew where to get help, but he had hoped not to drag anyone else into his family’s mess.

“Do you have a secure communications terminal capable of transmitting off planet?”