Thomas Calderon

Thomas Calderon
Thomas Calderon
Character Profile
Born 2981[1]
Died 3056[2]
Affiliation House Calderon
Position Protector
Profession Noble
Parents Zarantha Calderon (mother)
Spouse Katherine Calderon
Children Edward Calderon
Janice Calderon[3]
Ian Calderon
Felix Calderon
Jeffrey Calderon

Thomas Calderon was the Protector of the Taurian Concordat in the first half of the thirty-first century.

History[edit]

Thomas was the eldest son of Zarantha Calderon. He was a man of medium build with black curly hair. During his childhood he lost his left eye in a hunting accident which was replaced with a cybernetic eye.[1]

Early Years of his reign as Protector[edit]

In 3017, Calderon succeeded his mother as Protector. He set on building up the aerospace forces of the Taurian Defense Force as part of his passion to protect the Concordat from attack. He arranged a treaty with the Outworlds Alliance to enable Alliance instructors to increase his pilots' training. As part of these efforts, he opened two universities set outside of the old borders of the Hyades Cluster.[1] Thomas saw the colonization efforts of the Far Lookers as a potential security risk, and he felt that the enlarged Concordat was vulnerable to attack. After the Fourth Succession War, he began to shift colonization funding toward his military to bring them to point that invasion would be rebuffed if attempted.[4]

Thomas had been a borderline paranoiac going back a decade,[1] notably with a heightened concern of an imminent Federated Suns attack. His mental state took a turn for the worse in 3034 when his son Edward was killed in a DropShip accident.[5][6] The loss of his son, who had been one of his most trusted advisors and had been willing to open trade relations with them, affected the whole realm. Thomas' paranoia worsened and he took a dangerous political turn, abolishing the tax credits that helped fund the colonization efforts of the Far Lookers the following year. However, unknown to Thomas, members of the Trade and Colonization Ministry had been embezzling money to guarantee funding for group's future efforts.[6][7]

In 3037, Calderon launched an investigation into why his crash course to develop ferro-fibrous armor from the ruins of an Star League Defense Force depot on Celano had not succeeded. The investigation instead turned up the Far Lookers' embezzling scheme. Infuriated by this, he ordered the arrest of the entire Ministry of Trade and Colonization and seized the assets of those involved. The scandal would derail his efforts to have high-tech armor developed in his life time.[7]

Tensions increased on the Federated Suns/Federated Commonwealth border. A series of accidents and rogue raids in the 3040s led to him ordering the Concordat's defense forces to go high alert in 3049. He became convinced that FedCom's war exercise Future Victor 39 being held on border worlds was staging points for invasion of the Concordat. His surviving children save Jeffery would in turn be unable to remain heir apparent to take on the title of Protector.[3]

During this time, Taurian Guard Corps' commanding officer Marshal Hadji Doru began voicing his political opposition to Thomas's policies. In citing that efforts to maintain a constant red alert was bad for the nation's economy, a standing alert status was preferable in order to ease the nation's strain while still maintaining a strong defense.[5]

Later Years as Protector and his Removal[edit]

During the 3040s and 50s, Jeffrey Calderon had secretly developed a strong friendship with Hadji Doru while serving in Taurian Guards. Jeffrey discreetly began to set the framework to strengthen the Concordat and ultimately end in Thomas' removal.[8] Marshal Doru continued to question Thomas's policies, which he ignored.

In 3055, members of the Ministry of Trade and Colonization disturbed Thomas's meeting with his advisers, demanding the end of conscription of civilians for military construction projects. They threatened him with court action, accusing him of violating the civil liberties of citizens of the Concordat. Soon after this confrontation, Thomas ordered Marshal Doru to arrest the ministers for their "treachery." However, Doru refused and had him placed into protective custody of the Taurian Guards' Second Battalion. Soon after, Doru announced that Thomas was unsuited for Protectorship of the Concordat. He then reported what he had done to the Calderon family, which in turn convinced Thomas's 29-year-old son Jeffery to take on the office of Protectorship. A year after his removal, Thomas died in his bed.[2]

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The Periphery, p. 84: "Personalities"
  2. 2.0 2.1 The Periphery, Second Edition, p. 14: "The Final Straw"
  3. 3.0 3.1 Handbook: Major Periphery States, p. 47: "Years of Misfortune"
  4. Handbook: Major Periphery States, p. 46: "Politics of Fear - The Taurian Concordat"
  5. 5.0 5.1 20 Year Update, p. 75: "Taurian Concordat"
  6. 6.0 6.1 The Periphery, Second Edition, pp. 12–13: "Trouble Brewing"
  7. 7.0 7.1 Handbook: Major Periphery States, pp. 46–47: "Politics of Fear - The Taurian Concordat"
  8. Handbook: Major Periphery States, p. 58: "Laying the Foundation"

Bibliography[edit]