This is Lord CMDR Ian Dane of the Empire, commanding the Cobra "Descending Axe".
I made my first visit to Sagittarius A* today, and decided to celebrate the moment, by brewing that last cup of Ceremonial Heike Tea, that I had been saving for a special occasion.
I said "Hi!" to another CMDR in an Asp who dropped by briefly while I sat there sipping my tea, and wondered grimly if my two beam lasers still were in peak condition, after nearly a month in deep space.
But, as my visitor disappeared as quickly as he had dropped in, I sat back, relaxed, and slowly drank the last few drops of tea from the bottom of my genuine antique Old Earth Clarice Cliff tea cup. I then put the cup down, with a sigh, and gazed thoughtfully out the cockpit, into that distorted veil, drawn around the greatest object in our galaxy.
I knew, in a cold intellectual way, that the entire Milky Way was held together by the gravity of that hidden object right there in front of me, but even so, I didn't feel anything near the awe, that I had expected to feel.
Perhaps as an Imperialist, I'm just used to basking in a much greater greatness, I thought wryly. And right there, with that thought, it dawned on me why I had made this long journey. What the subconscious question was, that had driven me all the way out here.
Sagittarius A-star here in front of me was in many ways like the Emperor. A faded, dark veil of power, hiding a dead nothingness. Not the bright light that ought to be present, at the very centre of everything.
How can you call yourself an Imperialist, if the Empire you love revolves around a faded nothingness?
An Emperor worth following should be a bright, shining star, not a withered, hiding corpse.
I took a long, hard final look at Sagittarius A*, and then, with a new sense of determination, I plotted a course that would start my journey back. It would take me another month to get back, but I didn't mind that. I would give me time to think.
To think about who would be worthy of my fealty. Who would be worthy to be...
My Emperor.
