The Galactic Enquirer

Interview with the Empire's Finest - Today: Admiral Piett!

Firmus Piett first worked as a junior Officer for Grand Moff Tarkin on Jelucan before successfully commanding special operations at every level. After 30 years in the Navy, he was recently promoted to Admiral and is now in command of the notorious `Death Squadron´.

Galactic Enquirer: First of all, congratulations on your promotion.

Firmus Piett: Thank you. But before we start, I would like to point out that Lord Vader is in command of the `Death Squadron´, not me.

Galactic Enquirer: But you are the Fleet Admiral?

Firmus Piett: That is correct.

Galactic Enquirer: I see. Well, since we are already on the topic, I bet many of our readers would like to know how it is to work for Lord Vader?

Firmus Piett: Intense.

Galactic Enquirer: How come?

Firmus Piett: His Lordship demands success.

Galactic Enquirer: And the other commanders don't?

Firmus Piett: I did not say that.

Galactic Enquirer: But you implied that there is a difference.

Firmus Piett: Have you ever work for a Sith Lord?

Galactic Enquirer: No.

Firmus Piett: If you did, you would know that there is a considerable difference.

Galactic Enquirer: Would you consider that difference good or bad?

Firmus Piett: Both. There is no better fleet in the universe than the `Death Squadron´. My men are extremely loyal and competent and that, to no small amount, is due to Lord Vader. His presence is inspiring on many levels. But having the Emperor's right hand on board can also instil fear, which sometimes leads to questions unasked and making mistakes under pressure.

Galactic Enquirer: Is that fear, by any chance, related to the unusually high death rates of officers working on the `Executor´?

Firmus Piett: Death is part of every soldier's life - a Star Destroyer is not a cruise ship and you have to keep in mind that the `Executor´ is much larger than the average Star Destroyer.

Galactic Enquirer: You did not answer the question.

Firmus Piett: I did.

Galactic Enquirer: Alright. I'll be honest with you, people say Lord Vader kills his officers if things don't work out.

Firmus Piett: People say a lot of things. Mostly about topics they don't know anything about.

Galactic Enquirer: But isn't it true that you were promoted after Admiral Ozeel died?

Firmus Piett: It is.

Galactic Enquirer: Do you know how he died?

Firmus Piett: It was probably a result of the Hoth campaign. We all know it did not end well.

Galactic Enquirer: But he was not part of the battle, right?

Firmus Piett: He was, but not fighting in a live-or-die-situation. He was in charge of the attack.

Galactic Enquirer: So what you suggest is that he died of normal circumstances?

Firmus Piett: I'm not a doctor, but it looked a lot like a heart attack. He had difficulties breathing and then collapsed on the deck, in front of hundreds of soldiers.

Galactic Enquirer: Did that surprise you?

Firmus Piett: When one of your colleagues suddenly collapses on the bridge that is always a surprise. But, objectively speaking, Ozzel was close to retirement, overweight, always had a temper and the job is no walk in the park. So, no one who knew him should be overly surprised to hear that he collapsed.

Galactic Enquirer: Thank you for clearing that up. And now that you are the Admiral are there things you would like to change?

Firmus Piett: On a purely technical level I would like to improve the shields. But what is even more important, in my opinion, is to improve the public opinion about the Imperial Navy. We are often seen as the bad guys who arbitrarily start orbital bombardment if the planetary government doesn't fall in line and that we enjoy inflicting harm on others. But, in fact, nothing could be further from the truth. The Imperial Navy is the executive arm of the Empire. The first duty of a government is maintaining law and order, so that life and property are protected. We do just that. Without us, there would be no justice.

Galactic Enquirer: But many people say that in the Empire there is no justice.

Firmus Piett: Tell me one place where people are content with their government. There is no such place because a utopia doesn't exist. If everyone could do as he or she pleases there would be anarchy. To avoid that the individual must make sacrifices to live in peace. People may not like it, but they sure as hell would like it a lot less if the Empire would not punish those who disregard the law.

Galactic Enquirer: That sounds all good and well, but what about Alderaan? The Rebellion has grown largely after that and now they have a public face too: Princess Leia.

Firmus Piett: In my opinion, the destruction of Alderaan was a terrible mistake made by an old and bitter man.

Galactic Enquirer: Governor Tarkin?

Firmus Piett: Yes. He shouldn't have been in control of the Death Star in the first place as it was a military station. Politicians do a lot of things just to save their face and their position.

Galactic Enquirer: So you disagree with the Emperor's choice?

Firmus Piett: I do, which, in contrast to what many people say, is not a crime. However, starting a rebellion, killing thousands of men, who do their job to protect the citizens of the Empire, is.

Galactic Enquirer: How was destroying Alderaan protecting citizens of the Empire?

Firmus Piett: You are not making this easy for me, are you? As I already said, it was Tarkin's mistake and, in my opinion, it should never have happened. But how did destroying the Death Star make it any better? Now there is more hate and bad blood on both sides.

Galactic Enquirer: But the Death Star is gone.

Firmus Piett: Yes, it is.

Galactic Enquirer: A loss?

Firmus Piett: It cost over one trillion galactic credits, that is a substantial financial loss. A loss with which we could have strengthened our shields and could have built many more ships. We lost 1.7 million people that day. Colleagues, friends and loved ones. A loss that cannot be measured in credits.

Galactic Enquirer: Do you think there will be a new one?

Firmus Piett: No.

Galactic Enquirer: Well, now to some lighter subjects. Here we have some questions sent in by our readers. Ready?

Firmus Piett: Shoot.

Galactic Enquirer: How much does do you earn?

Firmus Piett: *laughs* That is no secret. Actually, you can look it up on the HoloNet. Roughly 200.000 credits a month.

Galactic Enquirer: What do you do in your free time?

Firmus Piett: I have no free time. But when I have holidays, I usually visit the family and I like to read.

Galactic Enquirer: What did you do to become the right hand of the supreme commander of the Imperial Forces, the great Lord Vader?

Firmus Piett: I can perform under pressure and have a pretty good service record. But to be honest I really don't know. His Lordship is in the habit of discussing his reasoning for promotions with the crew.

Galactic Enquirer: Why were you never married?

Firmus Piett: Because I saw too many marriages fail.

Galactic Enquirer: Is it really that bad?

Firmus Piett: Worse. You are never home. It usually ends in tragedy.

Galactic Enquirer: Did you ever regret joining the Navy?

Firmus Piett: Yes.

Galactic Enquirer: Yes? Would I get an answer if I would ask why?

Firmus Piett: Probably not.

Galactic Enquirer: Where do you live?

Firmus Piett: You don't honestly think I would answer that.

Galactic Enquirer: Do you think there should be more women in the Navy?

Firmus Piett: Absolutely.

Galactic Enquirer: Can you ask Lord Vader for an autograph for me?

Firmus Piett: No. I don't think he does autographs.

Galactic Enquirer: Do you think there should be a subscription?

Firmus Piett: No. I think, however, that it would be good if everyone would do his part to make sure this government works. It does not necessarily have to be in the military. And not everyone is cut out for it.

Galactic Enquirer: And now the last one: Do you think the Navy does enough to create a healthy work environment for its men?

Firmus Piett: That is actually a good question. It is challenging. There is often sleep deprivation with the shifts and the drills and our troopers do suffer after a battle. People often see these black and white uniforms and forget that there are Human beings underneath. When you kill someone, it does affect you. When I became Captain, one of the first things I did was making sure that everyone got six hours of sleep. I know there are Commanders who see it differently, but that is their prerogative. There are three ships' councillors onboard each Star Destroyer and good doctors. Could we do more? I guess so, but that is also a political question as it would require large sums, which are, at the moment, needed otherwise.

Galactic Enquirer: Chasing the Rebellion?

Firmus Piett: That and other things.

Galactic Enquirer: Well, it was a great honour to talk to you. Thank you.

Firmus Piett: And thank you.

THE END

A/N: Hmm. It thought this could be funny, but it turned out a lot more serious than intended. In general, I think the media should have a larger role in Star Wars. It is the Fourth Estate of a government and influences the public opinion much more than political talks. It just has a lot of power (for good or bad). Twitter for Palpatine! ;)