Carlos awoke in his council chair. He had nodded off for a while, but awoke to find a room filled with empty chairs, and a memo from Ximen sitting on his console in front of him. He glanced at it, and then using the console, perused what had been said while he was asleep.
What he saw shocked him. Elders, former friends, old rivals, all taking advantage of his state of unconsciousness to land accusations, questioning the honour of both him, and his family. He tapped a broadcast code into the console, and began to record a video- message that would be sent across the sector, to Corsair elders at home and abroad.
"I read what has been said, and I find myself filled with sorrow, anger, and an overwhelming sense of betrayal". The voice that entered the reciever was cracked and quiet, the verbiage of a man very unwell.
"I have been accused of harbouring Bounty Hunters in our space. Let me assure you that I have never invited such scum into our midst. I take great pride in purchasing as many Bounty Hunters as I can, that find themselves part of Crete's slave-trade, and seeing to it that every one of them meets a fitting painful end".
He motioned toward a strap across his chest, upon which where fastened some thirty heat-deformed rank tabs from Bounty Hunter uniforms.
"I read that a topic on the agenda has been that Benitez are a dying family, that we can no-longer protect Crete. I dont give a damn what you think of us. Over the past month, an assassin, or group of assassins have killed at-least 5 of my very best men. 2 killings took place as they slept, in their homes in this very city. Bodies of the other men have not been found.
Little support has been given to us from the rest of you, and from what has been said, it is becoming to seem apparent to me that the Brotherhood of Crete wish to drive away all allies wishing to defend Crete, in order to gain favour with the Coalition Revolutionary Army, to whom they clearly show more value."
"The Omega Pirates Guild has left us. If a conflict had have arisen between them and the more recognised Corsair nation, I would have sided with my brothers and the democraticly elected representatives that help make this nation great. The commitment the Benitez and TBH made to eachother was intended to be withheld in both good times, and bad times. As it stands, I feel increasingly isolated from the nation, as if I and my family are being forced out. I feel as if I am just awaiting a notice from the Council majority, notifying me of my expulsion from the Council"
"I have been anticipating such action for a while, and so am making preparations for an exodus of my family and anyone else who wishes to join us to a new homeland in a system discovered by our scouts. It is hoped that with the space a new home will provide, our family may yet grow again. Hopefully, any such exodus is not necessary, and we can reduce the scale of the operation to construction of a simple outpost, but that greatly depends on the political climate at the next council meeting."
"I apologise for the intrusion by Mr. Ximen, who I'm afraid has taken my absence as an opportunity to push forward his own independent ambitions and plans that are not in keeping with the family's. Any Battleship requisitioned by him for the Omega Pirates Guild was not cleared by me, and therefore I accept no responsibility for it.
The Battleship Talos was moved to Sigma-13 against my will, and I may send it back to defend Crete (the purpose for which it was constructed) in the next few days. I am still to commit my family's involvement to the war in Rheinaland, or submit my opinion on it. For the time being, my family has far too many internal issues to battle with than we can cope with whilst fighting a full-scale war too. For this reason, the Benitez will not be participating in this war until other issues are resolved, and until I can be sure that the Benitez family still have your trust, respect and friendship."
ooc:
For circumstances beyond my control, I cannot be in-game, or even on forums from Monday-Friday. Before I am accused of being uncommitted, when others manage to do their duty while holding down full time jobs, i'd like to clarify. From Monday morning to Friday night I am living in basic accommodation 30 miles away from my home with no internet access.
Id like to hope that you could be supportive, and try to help us rise out of this slump in activity, rather than condemning us.
We are looking into purchasing a home system of our own, and as I said in my In-character speech, if we are made to feel unwelcome, make no mistake, we will up-and-leave Gamma.
If the Benitez are a dying clan, so be it. Highlighting the fact really isn't helping.
![[Image: H1mZW7e.md.png]](https://iili.io/H1mZW7e.md.png)