An Open Letter to the Freedom Fighters of Lugh
Greetings
I am Patron Roshni Narang of Emerald, Matriarch of the Narang family, and the master of Inga Stevenson.
I have been watching the events in the Lugh system with great interest, ever since my granddaughter Devika first brought the matter to my attention. It is inspiring to watch a people rise up against the tyranny of the Federation and the corporate oligarchy that rules it. Liberty is highly valued in the Empire, the freedom to make your own way through the galaxy, and it is up to every one of us to nourish it whenever it takes root.
It may seem odd for the Empire, long villainized by the Federation for the institution of slavery on our worlds, to be the bastion of Liberty in the galaxy. It is an issue that has long been debated in the Empire, a debate that I doubt will ever be truly end.
We console ourselves that each and every slave on our worlds has chosen to enslave themselves of their own free will, for a variety of reasons. Some choose it to fulfill a debt to another, having lost everything but their most priceless possessions: Life, Liberty, and Honor. Some do it to make restitution to someone they have wronged, or to pay their debt to the society they've preyed upon. Some, like our own Inga, do it to advance in life, to get opportunities that would never be available if they had remained free.
We pat ourselves on the back that our slaves have most of the the other rights that other citizens of the Empire enjoy. That we treat them with far more care and respect than unregulated slaves outside the empire, or the so-called "free" corporate employees in the Federation. That we are bound by honor, duty, and law to see to their needs are met, and that they are neither neglected nor abused.
But the sad reality is that there are unscrupulous individuals in the Empire who violate the laws in place that regulate the institution slavery. They abandon the duty they owe to their slaves, and their own honor, to exploit those they should be caring for. We are well aware of slaves kidnapped from the Empire, often by their own masters, and shipped outside our worlds to live a short life of hardships, misery, and despair. Daily we hear of new scandals, of men and women abused by their masters. And each time we find slave owners acting less like Imperials, and more like Federalists, the debate begins anew.
Inga Stevenson was the one who first brought your plight to our attention, and requested permission to help. Devika, who has been managing Inga's duties for several years, was more than willing to give that permission, much to my great surprise. Lately, Inga has been requesting permission to take a more active role in your struggles. She felt that doing simple delivery missions would not be enough to liberate this system from the Federation. She reminded us that the Tree of Liberty must not be watered by the blood of Patriots, but the blood of those who would see that tree cut down. But like all honorable slaves, she took good take care of the property of her owners, which included herself.
Unfortunately, we feel we cannot honorably order a slave to engage in active combat, no matter how willing she is. Self defense is one thing, but ordering her to risk her life, which is her property and not ours, is another. So we must, reluctantly, decline our slave's request to "unleash the dogs of war" upon the Federation and their supporters. Furthermore, the time has long past when Devika should have withdrawn Inga from the Lugh system. The recent struggle to free Balandin Gateway, plus the civil war in Sesuang, indicate that the situation is too dangerous to allow a slave in our care to remain in the system.
And so I would like to formally apologize to you on behalf of the Narang family, Inga, for allowing you to remain in danger for so long. I had expected Devika to withdraw you at the first sign of actual warfare, but it is none the less my responsibility for not steeping in much sooner. I should not have allowed Devika to take advantage of your willingness to remain in that system. As such, I am ordering all slaves of the Narang family to withdraw from the Lugh system, and return to Emerald.
And now I must apologize to you on my behalf, Inga. Check the ID you got at the completion of your mission near Eranin. It is not a fake Imperial ID to allow you to operate outside the Empire freely. It is your actual Imperial ID, and as of December 7th, 3300, your contract with us had been registered as completed in full. The sidewinder and 100 credits you received after delivering the Cobra to our agent there are registered to you. Everything you've made since then is yours to keep. You have more than fulfilled the spirit of my father's terms, even if you have not completed the actual time my father snuck into your contract. I feel I cannot honorably profit from your labor any further. It is time to allow the Stevenson family to regain its place in the Empire, and to once again be one of our most valued allies.
I had intended it to be a surprise for when you returned to Emerald on December 16th. I wanted to see your expression when I told you that you'd been working for yourself on the way home. There was going to be a party. I had a cake ordered and everything! But Devika allowed you to go Lugh instead. You've flourished there, and I have no doubt you'll continue to do so. Once you've decided you've helped the people of Lugh enough, feel free to return to Emerald if you want to. I could use the help of a woman of your talents.
And I have a cake in stasis I would really like a slice of.
Good luck, Inga, and Sic Semper Tyrranis!
