I made a call to the governor of Talossa Colony that day, after I returned to Olympus City. He was an elegant and courteous person, and I was almost sure we could solve any problem by just talking to him.
"This is Frans Jalmari, governor of Talossa Colony. It is a pleasure to hear from you, Mr. President. Oh, and sorry I couldn't attend to the commemorations... but, uh... you can be sure Talossan spirits are with the rest of the Martian people."
"It is good to hear, and that's just what I would expect from Talossa." I said. "Mr. Governor, I am sure your hands are full since you couldn't make it to the commemorations, but there is something we need to discuss right away."
"Of- of course, what would that be?"
"During the commemorations, a group of young people have... been involved in some sort of incident - your citizens. They have detonated an explosive device in an open area near a crowd, and proceeded with their illegal protests of - I don't think you would believe it - the idea of an independent Talossa Colony."
"Independent what!? Is anyone hurt?" The governor was shocked.
"Luckily, no one got hurt."
"Did you get the protesters?"
"GET the protesters? Oh, yes, we GOT them good." I said. "They have caused lots of problems, but nothing our police couldn't handle."
"When may we get them back for trials?" he asked.
"Before that, Mr. Governor, there is a more important issue." I said. "These criminals happen to be students in Talossa University of Natural Sciences."
"That is possible." he said. "But what of that?"
"You see, the Republic is now a Federation member... Any such movements are not going to be welcomed - and they might push us to act on it harsher than we would like to."
"It will be taken care of, Mr. President."
"This is not only four our sake, but also for yours. I hope you understand. We have a friendship contract since the years of the Old Republic, after all."
"When are we getting the... the criminals back?"
"As soon as their initial interrogations are complete." I said.
"I thought we were going to handle that." the governor argued.
"What you will do after the criminals are sent back to Talossa is up to you. Meanwhile, our security forces will do what they need to do."
"With respect, this is not what we agreed on." the governor said.
"Perhaps... it is time to revise the agreements between Talossa and the Republic, then." I said.
"Fine." the governor said. "Have it your way, just send the criminals after you are done. I might be more tolerant towards these minor things, but once Talossan people hear this and get angry, I will have no say in that matter."
"Your citizens will be treated with utmost respect, Mr. Governor." I said. The communication channel closed.
Another channel was opened without losing much time. This time, I was conversing with Republic police.
"How is it going? Give me another report."
"It is almost done, Mr. President." an investigator picked up the call. "One more interrogation and we will prepare to transfer them to Talossa. We've got enough information to keep the Feds satisfied of our investigation."
"I don't care about what the Feds say, what do those guys say? Tell me."
"An independent Talossa, as you are already aware of."
"Nothing else?"
"They state that Talossa's autonomy was to the People's Republic of Mars, and NOT the Republic of Mars as it is today. They claim that the Republic can not pull them under the Federation's umbrella without the consent of Talossa, and therefore they want to be independent."
"So it is the Federation that troubles them." I said.
"Looks like it, but this might not be a real protest." the investigator said.
"What do you mean 'not a real protest'?" I asked.
"Like... With respect, sir, this is way too stupid to be a real protest, and not just a distraction from something else. And..." he paused for a moment. "...why would you detonate a bomb for a protest? That's an extreme overkill, if what they wanted was simply to be heard."
"But... What else is there to be distracted away from?" I asked. "What were they trying to protect from our focus?"
"I don't know that much about politics, that part is not up to me." he said. "This is just a suggestion."
"I understand." I said. "Keep up the good work."
"Aye, sir."
After all these stressful conversations, I leaned back on my chair and sighed. I got up, moved my arms and walked around the room for some exercise and relaxation. Finally, I stopped in front of my office's window.
Shuttles were landing and lifting off one after another, workers and robot arms were working hard to load lots of material while they were on the ground. Most of the noise was not making it into the office thanks to the good insulation.
Those people had an important job. As Obsidian City (cultural capital of the Old Republic) and Cydonia (actual, official capital of the Old Republic) were being rebuilt, government buildings and offices were slowly moving back to the latter as they were during the Old Republic. Of course, that included the Presidential Palace as well (which was actually a converted museum). This wasn't really necessary, but it was a good show that signified the 'Martian resurrection' after a lost war. And besides, even if that wasn't the case, Olympus City (temporary capital) also had our military command centers; and for strategic reasons, we wouldn't want government buildings to be so close to them.
While I was looking out of the window full of thoughts, I received a call.
"Give me a break, damn it!" I said inside. Having to deal with a thousand problems at the same time, and with no break in between... This was infuriating, but of course, it was also a natural part of leading a multi-planetary state.
I looked at the caller, but it was not one of the people who I thought it could be. The transmission was from Low Martian Orbit.
I picked it up.
"This is Admiral Mei of Outer Expedition Fleet Alpha, currently in command of XS Lodos II."