The Inaugural Address

PART III - CHAPTER VII

7.

"This can't be real, that isn't Philip," Brock shouted from across the table inside one of the conference rooms at the Taupo Control Center. He was watching the beginning of a live-streamed video from Blenheim, where Alexander IV and Philip appeared side by side, joining forces in attacking the Ariesan fortress. The two men stood on a small stage, which itself was staged in front of the walls of the Ariesan fortress at Blenheim. Behind the stage stood a dozen or so generals, all of which served under Alexander IV.

Accompanying Brock in the conference room was his usual team – Leo, Valerie, and Kaster. All three watched in on the livestream as well, silent. Valerie was clearly on edge, as was Leo, though Leo was hiding his anxiety in an attempt to comfort Brock. Kaster, the most relaxed of the four, looked on attentively, awaiting the upcoming speech by Alexander IV. Kaster lifted his hand to assure the silence continued as Alexander IV began speaking.

"Here, at the walls of Blenheim, I call on all subjects of the Commonwealth to join me in denouncing Alexandria, the weakest ruler our nation has ever seen. Despite only holding office for 3 months, she has destabilized our culture of tradition, sacrifice and restraint; offering only the most offensive, falsified information regarding what you, the people of the Commonwealth, truly want.

"In contrast, beside me stands a hero to the Commonwealth's traditional values – Philip Sangra – a modest archer from the Sagitarrian district, a hero of which Alexandria falsely declared as deceased in her disastrous Inaugural Address. In it she claimed to have been in correspondence with Philip throughout the rebellion's tour of the territories. Accompanying the supposedly letters Philip sent were also falsified accounts of fraud and injustices, all of which Alexandria claimed to have come from my administration. All of these claims are baseless, and I have Philip here – who has never taken part in any noteworthy rebellion – to assure you of that.

"Throughout my time as your Emperor, I had the pleasure of creating optimal policies built specifically to protect our values. This duty was the greatest honor of my life. In tandem with that pleasure, however, came the displeasure of watching my work be jeopardized by the immaturity of my successor – your current Empress, Alexandria. Her disastrous time in the highest office of the land ends now, and my reign will continue, whether it be peacefully attained or regained assertively through force.

"Now I shall give Philip a moment to speak before we continue our quest here at Blenheim to take back the Commonwealth for the good of the nation. Alexandria, I hope you're watching this. You have made life a dangerous place for people like Philip, and my loyalists and I plan to make yours just as dangerous if you refuse to renounce your place as Divine Ruler. Without further ado. I present to you Philip Sangra. Philip?"

The former Emperor then stepped aside while Brock and the rest of those watching with him took a moment to focus closer in on the live stream. They watched as Philip stepped forward, his expression solemn and minimal. He slowly pulled out a folded sheet of paper from his pocket as he approached the podium with the microphone. He glanced over slightly toward Alexander before he began to read his own speech.

"My– my name is Philip Sangra, a hunter-gatherer from the Sagitarrian Territory. I am in no way related to Empress Alexandria and have never attempted any form of communication with her, despite what she may have claimed in her Inaugural Address. I wish to not be involved in any political matters, not only because it is not the place of a Sagitarrian to be involved in major political decisions, but also because I have no personal interest in political power or appointment.

"Alexandria has made my life increasingly difficult because of her claims against me. Her address has forced me to flee my home in order to protect it's safety as well as my own safety. I have had to seek the protection of Alexander IV and his loyalists. If not for them, I may not be here today. Citizens of the Commonwealth..."