The Quest For Iscanter

by eternalsquire

Dessler's Decision

Three shifts later, Nova was again preparing to retire for the night in her stateroom aboard the EDF Missouri.

Being a captain is never easy, even when the ship is small, Nova thought. That was the central point of the first lecture her Command School class received by the retired EDF admiral who was their instructor. He related the tradition that any person in command of a ship is called Captain, even though the actual rank would be less. That tradition was shorthand for the maxim he just stated: no one should ever consider themselves of less regard simply because thier ship was less famous or crewed by less people. Every man and woman everywhere in the fleet was expected to do their duty, he said.

Derek and herself had numerous long talks regarding the upcoming direction of their family, during her pregnancy, along with the details of that direction. Nova could tell that the years of war had been wearing hard upon him, but the decisions were easier now that their world was at peace. Her eyes misted over as she recalled one such conversation.

They were visiting her parents house in Colorado for Christmas. Nova was in her second trimester, very clearly showing, and so was taking it easy on the sofa. Her husband was sitting on the floor beside her, using the sofa to support his back. She was gently running her fingers through his dark hair, playing with it, as she knew it was calming to him.

Derek was undergoing medications and treatment for post-traumatic stress. He had so many losses: his family, his father figure on board the Yamato, and many of the men and women under his command. A grateful Earth was allowing him to use his year's worth of leave accumulated over the past five years, and Derek was grateful in return.

"Nova.", Derek said, eyes closed in pleasure over her caressing his hair, his face completely tranquil.

"Yes, darling?", she replied. Tears silently ran down her cheeks out of overwhelming gratitude to God to see him like this.

"I could stay on Earth and care for the baby. It's peacetime now. I won't be needed in space, and I think for all you've done you deserve a chance to move up the ranks. I have a letter from Commander Singleton himself recommending you for Command School. He's also inclined to promote you from Lieutenant to Major once you graduate."

"Are you sure, Derek?"

"Absolutely, dear. Remember how shortly before the Yamato was destroyed, Captain Avatar himself ordered me to start and keep a family with you? I'm determined to follow those orders the best way I know how."

Nova was stunned by the way he made this decision on his own initiative. What a gift! His was a love supreme!

It felt like she had only laid her head on the pillow, but at 03:00 hours, ship time, midway during her regulation six hours of sleep, the communications officer hailed her quarters, waking her in the process. "Incoming message, Captain!", he said. "Encrypted. Your eyes only."

"Thank you, Sparks!", she replied, as she sat up in her bed and walked to her desk. The data packet was already being decrypted. It was a text message, accompanied by several yottabytes worth of compressed video. She read the text. It said:

From: His Majesty Albrect Dessler the First, Emperor of the Galman Empire, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera...
To: Major Nova Forrester Wildstar, currently commanding EDF Missouri.
Re: Childrens' reaction to recent losses.

My dear Nova,

I am finally glad to hear from you and your family once again. It has been a long while, but I knew you and I and your husband have all been busy.

There is no need to make supplication to me in the formal manner. You and Derek are at least a couple of my dearest friends, I would be happy to provide anything within my power to give, simply out of gratitude for the two of you showing me a better way to live and to rule.

To business, then. Because I had been raised in a martial culture, it was hard for me to understand loss from a child's point of view until I visited a few orphans at the age you suggested during the past day. I suppose children become sufficiently hardened by the death of the people who fought for me, that they in turn would resolve to fight themselves, and so repeat the cycle. I understand that this part of my culture needs to be dismantled. It will have to be done slowly.

I'll be certain that My Little Pony is distributed throughout the media offices of all the subject worlds. That will be the first step. The second step, which is something I have the intuition you were hinting toward, was a creating of a My Little Pony adventure where the characters of that story act out at least a child's understanding of the unfortunate events..

Please also find attached various ships logs and camera contents from various of those ships which had been defeated by the Yamato on its way to Iscandar. You will find that my men were fighting for what they thought was a noble cause, and their depiction if any in the animation does require the respect it deserves.

You have my complete blessing to do this, so as to help not only your culture, but also mine, learn to share a universe in peace. Not as Emperor, but as friend.

Yours Sincerely,

Albrect.

Nova stood straight up from her chair and raised her fists over her head. "YES! YES! YES!", she shouted, exhultantly. It's a good thing my cabin is soundproofed , she thought, otherwise people might suspect my husband was with me. Little do they know, with him I'd be even louder!