A Calm Before The Storm

Lady Lilla Snooper stood in the balcony overlooking a field and watched as her three daughters played with the newly hatched hippogriff foals. During the wake of the Don's threat towards the Republic, she felt uneasy at the thought of a crazed droid destroying everyone and everything in the galaxy. Although Thylaia had since evolved into a prosperous and well-balanced kingdom following the introduction of modern technology and culture, Lilla never trusted droids; the "Skinless Demons", as they came to be called, were a constant subject of cubhood horror stories and cautionary tales that came up after the Sith occupied the planet. They were strange metal beings who could kill anyone it sees with a single glare, crush a person's body as easily as one would do to a piece of paper, and tear heads off from their victims' bodies in one fell swoop. So when she saw the real Don of Eclipse for the first time, she was beyond mortified.

Thankfully, today she decided to keep her cool for the time being. There was no way Thylaia would be going down without a fight; if anything, the Eclipse posed nothing more than a harmless threat, but if the Don was truly serious about cleansing the entire galaxy of "organic scum", Lilla wouldn't have any of it. It had gotten to the point where her people began to doubt the benefits of advanced technology, with half of them calling for all Thylaians to return to their old way of life, and half being decidedly stubborn enough to refuse. Now there were two separate factions she had to deal with--the traditionalists (anti-technology) and the modernists (pro-technology).

Lilla couldn't be able to manage the oncoming political turmoil on her own. The Don's threat caused quite a messy schism that threatened to tear Thylaia apart, coupled with fears that the "Skinless Demons" and their leader could destroy them and their world. Where was the brave and noble Baron Galleth Snooper when you needed him, to put the dissenters in their place?

"Lilla?"

She turned to see her older sister Kara walking towards her. The Thylaian princess was heavily pregnant with her second pup; she had been the first of the two princesses to marry during the royal family's lengthy exile to the Keycheri mountains. Her husband, Sir Terrad Woodbark, was one of the knights who led the family to safety following the Sith invasion and chose to stay with them for the remainder of their exile. He was Baron Zeno's favorite out of all the other knights in the group, allowing him the privilege to officially court and marry Kara. But the sad thing is, he was among the many Thylaian Guardians who had lost their lives in the Battle of Mobaz; all that he left behind, besides his legacy, was a beloved wife and a four-year-old son.

Kara said, "I've received word that Galleth has returned, and it appears his father has accompanied him. They have some rather...disturbing news to share with you."

"Is it about the Don?" inquired Lilla.

"Yes, but it's much more worse than that."

"How can it be any worse than our people arguing over whether the modern technology we have should be banned? The Don is a droid, further cementing all fears of a possible mechanical uprising. I've had trouble trying to convince the elders..."

Kara reassured the tense queen. "Go to your husband. He will explain everything to you. In the meantime, I will look after the girls and make sure no harm comes to them."

Lilla looked back out at the field. The firstborn of the trio, a fox pup with reddish-brown fur and brown hair, was attempting to ride the hippogriff foal. The pup's name was Maeve Snooper; she was the boldest and smartest of the triplets, eager to try new things and do the impossible...such as riding the hippogriff foal that hasn't even learned how to fly yet. She was her father's daughter, all right, but Lilla feared that her impulsiveness could endanger her and her sisters.

The second littermate was Lea. With her fur the color of sun-kissed hay and her hair a brighter shade of brown than Maeve's, she was one curious fox pup. Her big green eyes took in the wonder that was the outside world, yet there were some things (like bugs) that spooked the poor toddler into hiding behind the stable's wall. Therefore she was the cautious type, and Lilla prayed the fox pup wouldn't run into any trouble with the droids.

As for the last of the litter, a snow-white kitten she named Glacia, she mostly kept to herself and preferred to sit in the grass and enjoy a cool breeze. She loved nature as much as her mother did; however, the one thing special about her is that she was half-Pfeffa, meaning that she was born with not only the rarest fur color in the tribe but also ice powers attributed to them. Being only two years old, Glacia was far too young to gain control of her powers, so the very best thing Lilla could only hope for is wait until she was older and more responsible enough.

Finally, she nodded and went to meet Galleth and Snooper in the castle's foyer. Despite her being relieved her husband made it back home safe and sound, the grim expression on his face suggested something was wrong...terribly wrong. She muttered, "You look worried."

"Thylaia's in danger," replied Galleth. "The Don has escaped and, according to President Batoski of Bacuu, he and the rest of the syndicate are headed straight for the Outer Territories. This planet is among a handful of homeworlds targeted by him."

"It is just as I feared. I knew the Don would attack our home someday."

"I'll have the guards increase security for every town and village on this planet. We can't let the Eclipse take over Thylaia!"

"What of your twin sister's homeworld, Madrisia?"

"Angel and Mom have gone there for practically the same reason."

Snooper added, "We're here to not only warn you, but to provide assistance whenever needed. You're my daughter-in-law, and I only want the best for you and Galleth; so far you've both done well governing the affairs of Thylaia."

Lilla shook her head. "Not so much with me. The people are torn over banning modern technology, due to the droid scare. The Don's threat caused a large divison between those who want to return to the old ways and those who want to move forward."

Galleth and Snooper looked at each other. She continued, "And now with the Eclipse gearing up to attack our planet, I'm afraid things will be much worse from there. We must do something quickly if we are to ensure our people remain united long enough to resist the assault."

"Fighting over banning technology is a waste of time," said Galleth. He looked outside to see a group of villagers setting fire to a nearby holotech shop. He groaned; just because the Don issued a threat doesn't mean they'd have to resort to going back to the Dark Ages to protect themselves. Fear makes you stupid, as the old Earth adage goes...but Galleth had a plan. To unify the Thylaians and overcome a cultural split, they'd have to make a compromise: a steady balance between the old ways and the new ways. "But I do know how I can put a stop to it. I'll need to have a word with the elders, so I can put the plan in motion."

Lilla placed a paw on her husband's shoulder. She said, "Whatever you decide to do, keep in mind that the Don is virtually impossible to defeat through conventional methods. Meanwhile, Thylaia needs protection and guidance."

"Well, what kind of king would I be if I didn't thunder-punch that walking heap of scrap metal to smithereens?"

Lilla chuckled and gave her husband a peck on the cheek, before allowing him to walk straight to the council room. With even a small amount of luck, the anti-technology rebellion would soon be quelled.

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"...while the Don has a greater amount of troops to demolish a planet, the only thing he doesn't have is experience. Madrisia has had a long history of involvement in wars; it was not a relatively peaceful planet to begin with. I believe we can use its past to our advantage by combining the military strategies of Irelandisians and that of ours. If successful, we can push the syndicate back out of the Outer Territories and crush their chances of invading the Republic!"

Cheers erupted from the town square in Khalo. Angel decided to give a public speech shortly after her arrival on Madrisia; accompanied by her mother, her husband, and Prime Minister Arturo Vallenti, she announced that the Don had avoided being captured and is now well on his way to conquer the Outer Territories and all other areas in the Republic. But she also reassured them that Madrisia will NEVER fall while she is in charge.

She continued, "As you can now plainly see, I've come to embrace my Irelandisian heritage through my mom, the leader of the Galactic Republic. For that there will be a few new cultural changes to be made as soon as the war with Eclipse ends..."

"There is a reason why the Madrisians love her," whispered Colin. "She's resourceful. And determined."

Prime Minister Vallenti added, "Not to mention brave."

Jenny nodded. She said, "With added security, the Eclipse syndicate won't stand a chance. Balancing Guardian and royal duties won't be much of a problem for Angel, unless something happens that could impede her ability to rule...stars forbid if the Don assassinates her in the midst of the war."

"Then what will you do?"

Jenny looked up towards Angel, who was now stating her intentions to improve the planet's constitution. Madrisia's government was a democratic constitutional monarchy, similar to that of Britannia's, with the ruler serving only as a figurehead (the parliament are the real people behind the political affairs of the planet), though here the Le Furr clan's roles had expanded beyond that. Angel was hailed as a heroine for coming up with reforms to fix the mistakes Prime Minister Cortero and Princess Sirena made prior to Guardian intervention; it would be a shame this new Golden Age would be marred by the syndicate's forthcoming invasion.

Gripping her blue lightsaber tightly, Jenny replied, "Like any mother would do, I will protect my child...and her kingdom."