It's been half a decade since we lost you, and yet the strangest thing has happened. Even without their sun, all planets remained in orbit: sticking to the same roles they had when you were here.
Charon's attempted takeover at Stark Mountain was a failure. As soon as I saw his wrinkled old face on the 6:00 News, I made an official statement that the corporation had nothing to do with him. He acted of his own accord and did not represent us in any capacity. I even went so far as to file a defamation suit, just to get the point across.
Jupiter and Mars, I forgave. They probably thought that following Charon would somehow lead them back to you. They had two leaders to choose from: one who wished to clean up Team Galactic's image and one who wanted to continue with more of the same. They chose the more appealing option and I can't fault them for that.
My legal department placed a few calls and I hired the best defense team your money could afford to get them back. I hope you don't mind.
I have given Mars more opportunities to represent us in Public Relations and Marketing. She has final say in what goes into our commercials, how much we should invest in online ads versus radio and television spots, and which charities we should donate to each year for the tax break. If anything hits the proverbial fan, she's the first line of defense.
Jupiter has become the face of Operations. Once a month, she and I go over the performance metrics to see how we're doing. I'll send her off to audit our suppliers and ask for her input on whether or not we should do business with other companies. Everyone has to be AS9100 certified, for instance. That's near impossible for most manufacturers to maintain.
We're talking about opening a satellite office in the Hoenn region. If that happens, she's looking at another promotion. I haven't mentioned it to her yet, because the whole thing will be moot if we don't win the Mossdeep contract.
…but enough on that. Let's talk about why I'm here.
Every year, I take this day off. I go into our old command center and lock the door behind me. I pick up my old headpiece, turn it on, and send you another transmission…but this year is special.
It's special because I'm now the same age you were when we lost you.
I caught a glimpse of myself on the way in here and had to do a double-take. I'll never be as tall as you, nor will my delicate frame ever manage to cut as intimidating a figure…but I have your eyes now. They're every bit as sunken and tired. I even managed to perfect your leer. You know the one. You used it on me when I lost to that child.
We're about to break ground on a new project—one I think you would have approved of—and I'm terrified. I've gotten quite good at hiding it, considering people are looking to me to lead, but there are so many ways it could go wrong.
I get by on minimal sleep. Half my meals are supplemented with caffeine pills, just to keep me alert enough to function. I'd rather stay up until the crack of dawn because my more innovative ideas come at night. Come morning, I review my work and pick it apart.
I have to play both roles now, you see. You aren't exactly here to tell me why something won't work.