Shadows of the Sun CHAPTER 1

Earth, Sol System

          "…Mr. William T. Thompson, you are hereby elected President of the Sol Dominion, and are expected to defend it from domestic and foreign enemies, as well as commit to the economic and social perseverance of this great Dominion—do you accept?"
          "Most definitely."
          "I present your First Couple, William and Marcelle Thompson!" the former Minister of the Interior exclaimed.
          President Thompson and his wife were escorted away shortly after, at the end of the ceremony and to the Presidential motorcade, where they entered into a private limousine. Many lined the streets, and men from the Solean Guards kept watch from rooftop vantage points and from behind the emplaced barriers on the sides of the street. As soon as the doors closed, the sound was decreased significantly, and the noise of the engine was unobtrusive.
          "William! It is great to see you, congrats! How are you?! Marcelle, you look amazing as usual!"
          "If it isn't Matthew Smith—thank you, and I'm well!" he said to his long time friend, currently in military dress, with his black hair slicked back, "you look fit to be Commander in Chief."
          "Thank you also, might I say your uniform suits you well," Marcelle returned.
          "Ha ha ha, I appreciate it."
          "Good, because Matt, I would like you to be the first Commander in Chief of the Dominion's Forces"
          "You want me to be the CINC of the Dominion's forces…" repeated Smith, with his right hand stroking his clean shaven chin, wondering in amazement.
          "Matthew…"
          "Right—I accept."
          "Thank you, there's no doubt you will lead our forces to victory. You did excellent work with organizing the men and support—not to mention those training centers." Thompson attributed, temporarily turning some of his attention to a dropdown mirror through which he inspected his parted brown hair and slightly tanned white face. Next he adjusted his opulent watch.
          "About two Regimental Corps of Naval Infantry, and another two Regimental Corps of Naval Infantry Guards, and then about two Regimental Corps of Solean Guards last time I checked…that's twelve Regiments all together. You probably noticed some of the Guards here. As for the Navy, I count fifteen battleships of varying rates, ten battlecruisers, nine carriers of different types, and around thirty cruisers and frigates."
          In the years following expansion, the Dominions owned no ground force which could fend against possibly hostile alien attacks, save the rail guns, laser arrays, and other surface-space defenses. Just a few months prior to President Dashwood's resignation, the new "Naval Infantry" and "Solean Guards" had been approved.
          "Thank you, Matt, its good to know you've done your homework."
          "So, who are you assigning to the other positions?"
          "Well, with you out of the way," Thompson began with a smile as he looked out the window, "I have decided to appoint Stefanie Clausen as Minister of the Interior, and Dario Zagorec as Minister of the Exterior. Then I can leave the decisions of Officers of the Economy, Dominion relations, and all that to the Ministers, with my approval."
          "Very good," agreed Smith.
          "I must agree that those two are excellent choices, Will," Mrs. Thompson stated.
          "Mr. President, we have arrived at Solean Hall," announced the driver.
          "Thank you—Matt, I appreciate your surprise appearance as it had been some time since we both last met you. Go with the other Minister candidates, and remember that you're not the Commander, and that they won't be future Ministers," he said with a wink at the end.
          "It was what I could do as a friend; I won't tell them anything."
          Their limousine was in a small parking lot (compared to the main lot) with vehicles only for the Minister candidates. A pair of sharply dressed Presidential Guards from the Solean Guards stood at stolid attention just outside the door, which was opened by one Guard. Matthew Smith stepped out of the limousine first, returning a perfect salute, and President Thompson followed, also giving a similar salute, while Marcelle stood to William's side. Though the exterior areas of the governmental hall that were visible to the public were more grandiose, the private rear was relatively modest, and the sunny weather complimented the architecture.

Solean Hall, Earth, Sol System

          The tradition for Solean Presidential inaugurations was first a public acceptance of the position, and then the appointing of the Ministers at Solean Hall, which was the seating of the Dominion's government—a banquet would be afterward.
          President Thompson was backstage with his wife Marcelle, rereading his speech. They were in the west wing of the hall, which was cleared for such an event every time it occurred. The building's west wing held hundreds of finely dressed guests who were socializing and drinking at round tables. The white tablecloths would appear to create a polka dot pattern on the red carpet, from the ceiling. The most noticeable guests were Kaar Kristoff, the President of the Dominion of Attica, President Andonis Petrakis, the President of the Dominion of New Byzantium, and of course President Theodore Featherstone, President of the Phoenix Confederation—the mutual union of defense in which the Dominions were apart of. To gain membership in the Phoenix Confederation, a system must obtain Dominion status by becoming rather self-sufficient, as well as be able to contribute naval ships to Phoenix Space Command. The fellow Presidents were arrayed on the left side of the stage, with Featherstone on an elevated seat; Kristoff and Petrakis flanked an empty chair below and in front of the Phoenix President which was meant for Thompson. Finally, the time came.
          The new President and First Lady walked out of the right side of the stage. They both took long glances at the crowd and at the leaders as they approached the distinguished podium. President Featherstone was already out of his seat and coming in their direction—William noticed that the black haired, elderly President was about as tall as Marcelle and him, and strode confidently. Both Presidents shook strong hands.
          "William, I always knew you'd be shaking my hand."
          "Uh," Thompson started and then quickly compensated with a clearing of this throat, "Yes sir."
          The Phoenix President turned to his right and straightened up in front of the podium, switching on the microphone.
          "Ladies, gentlemen, I welcome you to this significant event for our Confederation. I have had pleasure in observing President Thompson's political ventures, and I must say, he is a strong communicator, and clearly a most viable candidate, as you have demonstrated in your support, but enough of me—this is about him…" he said with a gesture towards Thompson and a move away from the podium.
          "Mr. Featherstone—I thank you for your compliments. I would also like to welcome you here and thank you for your support and attendance. Now the Ministers of the Interior and Exterior, as well as the Commander in Chief of the Solean Forces must be revealed. I can wholeheartedly say that making the decisions, based on their records, person, and other factors, was difficult, and each candidate for each Ministry could be a substitute in a Jiffy!" he exclaimed with a sprinkling of short laughs from the crowd.
          "Ms. Stephanie Clausen," the President continued in a valiant voice, "you have been nominated Minister of the Interior of the Sol Dominion, do you accept?"
          "I accept," Clausen said from a standing position from the Minister candidate section of the seating.
          "Mr. Dario Zagorec, you have been nominated Minister of the Exterior of the Sol Dominion, do you accept?"
          "I accept."
          "Finally, Mr. Matthew Smith, you have been nominated Commander in Chief of the Solean Forces, do you accept?"
          "I accept."
          "Excellent!" President Thompson commended with applause, then, after the applause died down, "now may we enjoy this feast!"