Succession has always been a problem, whether it’s Uriah DeVol, Franklin D. Roosevelt, or Ghengis Khan. A great (in both positive and negative applications of the word) leader must one day shuffle off into memory, leaving what he has built to another. Sometimes there is nowhere to go but down. And down. And down.

 

This is where, in a lesser nation, revolution comes in. In our more reasonable and enlightened society, there is a better way. Thanks to Uriah DeVol’s foresight, Albanites need not fear revolution, but can be assured of a peaceful transfer of power to a more successful name. The downside? The downside is that we have to watch the old name continue to beclown itself with increasing levels of desperation.

 

You’ll no doubt recall Aldous DeVol’s infamous “Hare Coalition” which he tried to use to shoehorn himself back onto the Lugus board. Not since Clarence "Waldo" Willis made mud and called it cake have we seen such a naked display of facepalming political folly.

 

His only son, Marcus DeVol aims to outdo him.

 

What else are we to make of his sudden departure from the Intelligence Office to take up the noble calling (some would venture sacred) of Astro Navy officer? “My son is a man of many talents, as all of us are,” the senior DeVol said this month. “This fantastic new venture is a much needed change and a better fit for his abilities than trivial analysis. Marauding corsairs are a clear existential threat to our nation and its business, and Marcus will be at the forefront of the effort to wipe them from our system.”

 

Marauding corsairs? Pirate activity in Hudson has been at a lull for the better part of a decade. Prize payouts are at an all time low and continuing to fall. I’d suspect the DeVols of being less than forthcoming if there were any grounds to expect they were capable. Tier VII Lugus executive Douglas Schiffer put it simply enough: “They’re broke. Really and truly broke. Aldous DeVol’s continued extravagance and refusal to live within his means has finally caught up with him. More gifts to his paramours is only going to make it worse.”

 

The rumors of Marcus’ engagement to Lydia Arkwright only play further into this. To be fair, those also remain unconfirmed, but at this point, the junior DeVol is out of options. Swatting in-system pirates is not going to pay off his father’s colossal debt, which, by most reasonable estimates, is now roughly comparable to the gross domestic product of North Italy. Marrying into the space mafia might save him from insolvency, but would never get Aldous close to returning to the board. The name is dead. The younger DeVol would do better to stay in the IO, where he has a chance to make his own way, but instead he’s running away to sea to seek his fortune. It’s like something out of Melville.

 

Alas the ship has already, quite literally sailed: sources tell me that Marcus cast off three weeks ago with no publicity and has not reported since. Perhaps this is for the best; slipping quietly away secretly in the dead of night. The fact that it took three weeks for anyone to notice is telling.