If there was one thing that everybody always got wrong about Monarch, it was the origins of his Tacname. They'll say "Oh, they call him Monarch because he's the King of the skies!" or "He's called Monarch because he's the bastard prince of some far-off Kingdom!" There were also the theories that he named himself, which was obviously bullshit, since there has never been, and will never be, a pilot who picks their own Tacname.
The truth, known only to a handful of people, was far more innocuous. Simply put, there was no "grand secret" or distant royal blood running through Monarch's veins. The real reason that he was called Monarch…
This is a bunch of bullshit. Peter "Diplomat" Kennedy thought as he stared down at the chessboard. While he pondered his strategic dilemma, Monarch watched him from across the table like a Falcon, looking for the slightest hint of hesitation. I should have known better than to play Chess with Monarch of all people!
…Was because while Monarch was the Ace of Aces in the skies, he was also a massive, massive Chess nerd. Just as he had never been defeated in the skies, so too had his namesake King never been captured.
"Do you know what this play is called?" Monarch asked him.
That was a bad sign, Monarch speaking was rare enough, and he only ever spoke when he had something important to say, or when he was talking to Prez.
"Don't you-" Peter began, but Monarch was already giving the answer.
"It's called the 'Dust Mother Reprisal'." Monarch explained. There was no pride or callousness in his voice, only the gentle tone that a schoolteacher would use when talking to their students, which seemed worse; somehow. "You can use it when-"
"Monarch, please dude, I know this is your thing but…"
Monarch stared at him with that unmoving, blank expression. Honestly, it was like the dude had half of the muscles in his face frozen at any given time. Still, he was a close friend, and pissing him off for no good reason would be unreasonably rude. Even so, the last thing that Peter wanted was to hear in excruciating detail how his defeat had been planned since before they had even broken out a chess set.
"-For me, this is just for fun!"
Monarch frowned, he wasn't angry, but perhaps a bit disheartened and confused. "But I am having fun."
"...Well, that's great! You have fun by preparing all of these complex plans and strategies, but I like just kind of… going with the flow, you know?"
To his surprise, Monarch actually nodded. "You like to make your own strategies on the fly, I get it."
Oh thank god, that's a much better excuse. Peter thought, endlessly grateful to his friend for giving him such an easy out. Now that's why we call him our "Wingman".
"Yeah, exactly."
After much deliberation, Peter finally made his move, and immediately, Monarch responded with his own move with a Bishop. "Check."
"Oh goddamnit! How the hell do you know all of this stuff?"
"I memorized it." Monarch answered. "Do you want me to teach you?"
It was a genuine offer, Peter knew. Monarch would be truly happy to teach anybody his chess strategies, even if it took them a lifetime to learn.
"I'm good, Monarch, thank you."
He considered what he could do to escape Monarch's trap, well aware that Monarch was probably counting on him doing something foolish to get his King out of check, even if it meant sacrificing pieces. However, against all odds, a golden opportunity revealed itself.
"Ha!" He declared, eliminating the offending Bishop with a Rook. "I'm pretty proud of-"
Monarch moved his own Rook. "Checkmate."
Peter felt the energy leave his body as he slumped back in his chair. He didn't even bother double-checking for a way out, he knew there was none. "Man, I hate this game."
Monarch gave a good natured chuckle, and began putting the pieces away. "You know, my challenge still stands. Anybody who beats me can have my Tacname."
"Aw Monarch, you know we could never do that to you. Besides, it would be really confusing for you to just… have a new name."
Monarch gave a grunt of acknowledgement, and that's how Peter knew the conversation was over. Monarch had stopped talking, and therefore, he had nothing left to say.
I wonder if his reputation would be any different, if the Federation knew why we called him Monarch. Peter thought. To the Federation's soldiers and pilots, Monarch might as well have been a living, angry hurricane. But to his friends, he was just a quiet savant, and a man who never let his talents cloud his ego. Eh, probably not.
Author's Notes: Played Project Wingman for the first time and this idea wouldn't leave my head. I might publish more little one-shots like this, maybe not, idk.
