Jack of Harts

The Kingdom of Hawaii sailed into the new world after the Second Great Depression ended with a confidence few others matched. They built new islands, founded new colonies in space, and ultimately colonized the stars. They finally named themselves the Star Kingdom of Hawaii and have made a reputation for themselves in the centuries that have followed. Hawaiian merchant ships follow the trade lanes throughout Western Alliance space, and while their navy is small, it is capable. Hawaiian sailors are born to leave the land and are some of the best to make their way in the black. They are taught as children that the ocean can kill them at any time. They learn that there are very few old, bold sailors when they are young, and they take that bone deep knowledge into space with them. They learn to be cautious and observant, and that is often the difference between life and death in the unforgiving vastness of space. Hawaiian shipmasters are in high demand throughout the Alliance, and the best of them can demand salaries only the richest of families can match. I grew up with an Hawaiian shipmaster in charge of my personal spacecraft, and she never failed to live up to every bit of their reputation.

One of the more interesting events to happen in Hawaii during the Second Great Depression was the arrival of the last free fleet to escape Fallen Asia. The new Empress of Japan had been evacuated during the Fall of Japan and her ragtag fleet, composed of ships from most of the Asian nations now under Chinese control, stopped off in Hawaii on their way to the Los Angeles. They performed repairs and refueling, and many came ashore to visit the island paradise. The Hawaiians were ready and willing to give the survivors a few days to relax, and both Governor Mahana and Admiral Nakamura presented themselves when the Empress stepped off her transport to “get leid in Hawaii” as the old saying goes. They walked the beaches with her and her retinue, and spoke for many hours as the refugee fleet streamed into the harbor. What exactly they said has never been made public, even after all these years, but I have seen the transcripts. The public synopsis is accurate. The Empress truly did tell them that the time for her people to stand alone was gone. That they all had to stand together in the face of Chinese expansionism, and that anyone who attempted to stand on their own would fall in time. And yes. Governor Mahana and Admiral Nakamura were in full agreement with the Empress.

Pearl Harbor was the reason ambitious politicians overthrew the Kingdom of Hawaii. They knew America could control the Pacific from that harbor, and so they took it. And the American military that still used that harbor during the Second Great Depression was not in favor of turning traitor against their country and going native when Hawaii sought to go its own way. They remained fundamentally American with a stubbornness that is admirable, and their chain of command all the way up to Washington was mostly intact. Which was why Admiral Nakamura knew the supplies they had in Hawaii’s supply depots were all they had to survive on. He also knew China was expanding and Pearl Harbor was the lynchpin of American defenses in the Pacific. It had to remain standing. So Washington ordered him to support Hawaii and the people at anything short of outright rebellion, but to mind the ultimate duty to defend America at all costs. That forced the admiral to perform a rather delicate dance between that duty, and cooperating with a growing sovereign movement in Hawaii. It was a good thing for everybody that Admiral Nakamura was an accomplished dancer.