Victor Liao

Victor Liao, after killing a Terran Alliance ambassador
Victor Edward Liao
Character Profile
Born See notes
Died 2240[1]
Affiliation House Liao[2]
Position President[2]
Profession Noble
Parents Elias Jung Liao (father)
Cynthiana Liao (mother)
Siblings David Paul Liao
Carmen Liao
Margarette Liao
Children Irenna Liao[3]
Julliette Liao[3]

Character Description[edit]

Victor was a man of Asian descent, who stood five foot five. Victor was known to sport a beret and Highlander kilt with an eastern blade. He was also known for his ambitious traits[4] and suspected to be slightly paranoid.[5]

History[edit]

Vincent Edward Liao was the eldest son of Cynthiana and Elias Jung Liao, a controversial figure in Terran history. Elias Liao was of mixed English/Nepalese descent and a citizen of the Hong Kong Free State; Elias fled to Nepal with his children to shelter with his wife's family following the annexation of the Free State by the Republic of China. Elias was portrayed by Terran history as a terrorist responsible for a wave of bombings and atrocities, while Capellan Confederation historians portray him as a simple family man and businessman. What is clear is that in 2188 Elias and his family were attacked by government forces in the Himalayan village in which they were living, and Victor's mother and his two sisters[6] - Carmen[3] and Margarette[3] - were killed. Elias, Victor and Victor's younger brother David Paul[6] (sometimes referred to as Paul David)[3] survived and fled in an attempt to escape the reach of the Terran governments.[6]

Elias settled a world that he named Cynthiana after his wife; Elias helped to open Cynthiana up for colonization and development before dying in 2202 at the age of sixty-one, exhausted from the combination of the hardship inflicted during his years of hiding in the Himalayas and the difficulties of opening up a new world. Having founded the Liao Republic - sometimes referred to as the Independent Republic of Liao - Elias was succeeded by Victor.[6]

Governor of Cynthiana/Liao[edit]

A decade after Elias's death, Victor began to institute a diplomatic dialog with Cynthiana's neighbors. He also renamed Cynthiana to Liao after his father[7] following a citizen referendum calling for the change, which both Victor and David Paul had opposed.[6] As a component of his economic strategy, Elias had conducted trade without the use of Terran currency, instead creating an exchange. Using this exchange, Victor was able to monitor fluctuations in the market in order to get the maximum return for Cynthiana. As part of exchange, other planets used tracts of vacant land as payment for livestock and other goods received. In one case, a landowner from Genoa, who, through betting on horses incurred a debt of land, was threatened with death for not paying up his lands to Victor.[8]

Victor brought in immigration to Cynthiana, however he was known to raises prices of the land he sold to them. Using this influx of cash, he was able to bring in needed technology to Cynthiana along with other resources such as iceships and weaponry.

In 2236, the Terran Alliance ordered all colony worlds to provide a levy of troops for service in its army. Victor, who felt that the order was unconstitutional, refused like most Alliance worlds. After Victor refused to send troops, the Terran Ambassador met with Victor to press the issue. However, once he was let into his office, Victor ignored the Ambassador for the entire appointment. As his rage grew over this slight, he moved closer and closer to Victor to force him to acknowledge his presence, without success. Eventually, the Ambassador's anger got the better of him and he drew a dagger to attack Victor. Victor's daughter, who had been in the office for the entire encounter, watched as her father defended himself and quickly beheaded the Ambassador. With this, Victor sent a message to Terra that they would not be supporting the Alliance call for armed forces to fight their wars.[9] After sending the body of the Ambassador back to Terra, he was quoted as saying;

Terra should never think to easily reclaim its abandoned colonies.

[10]

Four years after cutting ties with Terra, Victor died in 2240. His eldest daughter Irenna succeeded him as the leader of Liao.[11]

Family & Legacy[edit]

Victor was credited for severing ties with Terra and with building Liao's fortunes and independence prior to the Terran Alliance's collapse.

He had two daughters: Julliette Liao, who died at age 5,[3] and Irenna[3] who went on to rule the Liao Republic after his death.[11]

Character Notes[edit]

  • House Liao (The Capellan Confederation) mixes up Victor's heritage, referring to him intermittently as Elias's grandson rather than his son. This includes the House Liao family tree at the end of House Liao (The Capellan Confederation) which lists Victor as being the son of Paul David Liao and gives his date of birth as 2199 and date of death as 2240,[3] despite the text stating that he became ruler of Cynthiana in 2202 following the death of Elias Liao.
  • House Liao (The Capellan Confederation) lists the four children of Elias Jung Liao as Rufus Liao (2163-2202), Paul David Liao (2170-2206), Carmen Liao (2178-2187) and Margarette Liao (2180-2187). No mention is made of Rufus Liao anywhere in the main text; Handbook: House Liao describes Victor and David Paul as the sons of Elias,[6] and it is therefore presumed that the existence of Rufus Liao has been retconned in order to clarify or correct mistakes relating to the time period and family. As Handbook: House Liao is the later source and states specifically that Victor was the eldest son of Elias and survived the attack that caused the Liao family to flee Terra, the detail in Handbook: House Liao has been used in this article when resolving inconsistencies.

References[edit]

  1. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation) p. 10
  2. 2.0 2.1 Handbook: House Liao, p. 12: "Cynthiana"
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), foldout (pp. 163–164 in PDF): "The Capellan Confederation's Line of Succession and Partial Liao Family Tree"
  4. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), p. 10: The Old Handicapper - Nathan Montmorency tells the tale of meeting Victor Liao
  5. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), p. 9: Changing Times - Note of possible paranoia led to his preparation for collapse of Terran Alliance
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Handbook: House Liao, p. 11: "Elias Liao"
  7. Field Manual: Capellan Confederation, p. 7: House Liao - Victor Liao renames the planet for Elias
  8. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), p. 10: The Old Handicapper - Nathan recalls his scary encounter with Victor Liao
  9. House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), pp. 9–11: Victor Liao actions as governor and his daughter witness of his "message" to Terra
  10. Field Manual: Capellan Confederation, p. 8: Volatile Foundations/House Liao - Quoted words of Victor Liao from field manual, regarding declaring Liao's independence
  11. 11.0 11.1 Handbook: House Liao, p. 13: "Liao and Capella"

Bibliography[edit]