Celiose Cole
http://img72.imageshack.us/img72/4374/celiyoyseywh6.jpg
Our Brave Generalissimo.
| http://www.kupopolis.com/kupopowiki/images/meta.gif | Meta•Fact: Though not acknowledged in Kupopolis canon, Celiose once died and was brought back to life with a Resurrection Potion. This potion was acquired by using Relm to sketch Intangier 888 times wearing the Cursed Ring, and defeating the mythical Tenth Dragon using X-Zone with Umaro in your party |
Celiose Cole is the Generalissimo of the Grand Army. His victories protected the Web in several wars, establishing his reputation as one of the greatest military minds of all time.
Contents
Fast Facts
Born 4 WR, in Albrook, to Locke and Celes Cole.
Became commander of the REF at the age of 17(!).
Five feet, nine inches tall.
Blonde hair, gray eyes.
Married to Shana Cole, early 25 WR.
Known for his distaste for politics, politicians, and the media.
Once had a stuffed chocobo named Napoleon the Figgy. (Once, Kefka attempted to impersonate Celiose, and revealing that this stuffed animal was on the honeymoon bed was how the real Celiose proved his identity.)
When he fights on the front lines, he can do so either with his sword, Illumina, or his Seraphim, Archangel.
Also, a terrible singer.
Early Life
Celiose was born in Albrook, in 4 WR. The son of two of the Fourteen Against Kefka, Celes and Locke Cole, Celios already had a heroic parentage. Born shortly after Albrook joined the Tasnica Republic, Celiose was born a Tasnican citizen, and though the Tasnicans are quick to 'claim' him as 'theirs', Celiose seems to have had little affection for the Republic outside their military traditions.
Growing up, Celiose was a prodigy. He learned to read at a young age, and excelled at several subjects at school. Some historians have opined that in more peaceful times Celiose may have grown up to be a great scientist, but in the years of the Great War, it was inevitable that any bright young man would focus on the military arts. Celiose was very much a 'mama's boy', taking after his mother, the former imperial general Celes. His father, Locke, still did solo adventuring, and was often away from him. This contributed to much resentment from the young Celiose.
Celiose lied about his age to join the REF as an artilleryman. In fact, his very first surviving military writing is a table of artillery ranges. He almost certainly would not have been accepted if not for the Republic Expeditionary Force's disaster at the Battle of North Viper in 14 WR; Tasnica needed people to fill its ranks as fast as it could.
The Great War
REF Service
Celiose rose quickly through the ranks, as his intellectual and theoretical understanding of war was well ahead of his contemporaries. Celiose emerged as "the brains" behind the restructured, reborn REF, emphasizing co-operation between all arms, thorough professionalism, and the importance of supply. Celiose's paper Supplying War is still required reading in almost every military academy in the Web. All this earned the attention of Rhodes Palmerston, who decided to gamble by promoting the young man to General of Artillery and putting him in charge of the REF.
This was a highly controversial move. Celiose was still very young (17), and although he had seen some small skirmishes, he was an untested commander. Although everyone acknowledged his brilliance and potential, the REF Officer Corps preferred an officer with more experience and grit. Fortunately for Celiose, he formed a friendship with Burzmale Julian, a more experienced officer who helped "sell Celiose". Burzmale was probably one of the only close personal relationships Celiose would have in his life.
The Ticonderan Legions seized the Ice Country in 21 WR; the following three-year campaign made Celiose's reputation. While previously he had been mostly behind the scenes as an organizer and theoretician, on the battlefield he grew into a commanding, charismatic figure with an unparalleled 'grip' of the battlefield. The Ticonderans first opposed the REF's "re-conquest" at the town of Todoburg. Celiose's ability to maneuver his artillery around the battlefield to deliver accurate fire caught the Legions off guard. A well-timed cavalry flank netted the REF a multitude of prisoners. This was the first "Celiosian envelopment", a tactic which he would repeat time and again during the Great War, even as tanks replaced cavalry.
From then on, Celiose was well accepted as a leader to his men. Even though he was a charismatic presence and steely professional, the underlying core of his popularity was simple: he won battles.
Still, Celiose could, at times, get a little too confident in his own abilities and plans. After training special ski troops to launch a surprise encirclement at the Battle of Frozen Bay, the Ticonderans almost broke out. Celiose, desperate for more men to plug the line, went to the military hospital and asked the wounded for volunteers. Torstensson Lenart, crippled with Tuvin's Syndrome, responded: "I am old. I am infirm. But I will lead this defense!" Enough men stepped forward to plug the line, and most people regard this as a heroic episode for Tasnican arms. This was key to containing the Ticonderans on top of a large chunk of ice. Celiose then lit up a huge artillery barrage, and drowned the last remaining Legionnaires in the Ice Country.
Generalissimo
The Ice Country campaign came at a critical time in the Great War. It secured the Mana Dimension and the Tasnica Republic against aggression. It was also a severe defeat for the previously invincible Ticonderan Legions. Rhodes Palmerston used this opportunity to try to form an alliance: the Grand Army Charter. It is unlikely that Rhodes would've gotten the support for such an initiative if there was no obvious leader. Celiose's reputation made the Grand Army possible, and he was given the title of Generalissimo in 24 WR. For the rest of the war, Celiose would be the undisputed "head strategist" of the war effort. Only a handful of other people in the Web have ever had to direct a war on this scale--and Celiose was the only to win.
Only shortly after being appointed Generalissimo, Celiose demonstrated the political callousness that would mark his entire career. He appointed follow Tasnican Burzmale Julian as his second-in-command, much to the objection of the House of Lords, which desired a more diverse command team. Celiose refused. Celiose had an adamant confidence in his own ability to recognize military talent. Burzmale Julian and Torstensson Lenart were invaluable in forging the multinational hodgepodge of forces into a single, unified army. Celiose recognized the importance of air and naval operations in the context of the larger strategy, and choose innovative thinkers like Gage Rizett and Howe Lingane to lead the Luftwaffe and Kriegsnavee, respectively. At first, the GA's intelligence operation was shoddy, but the addition of Praxer Riose in 25 WR would eventually create on of the Web's most formidable intelligence agencies: the Celpo.
Celiose initially structured the forces of the Grand Army along REF lines. He was, perhaps, a little too enamored of magitek armor and undervalued traditional infantry. Celiose was a military innovator, but it would take time and experience in the field to determine what worked.
Celiose's first campaigns as leader of the Grand Army were against the NeoEmpire, based in the Esper Dimension. The NeoEmpire provided very tough opposition as they had their own magitek armor. Progress was initially slow; Celiose was able to win battles, but the Grand Army lacked a decisive victory that could put the NeoEmpire out once and for all. The addition of several dwarf-made tanks transformed the battlefield. Celiose used armored spearheads to encircle and destroy a large Imperial army outside of NeoVector. Celiose then assaulted NeoVector itself, with the help of several freelance adventurers such as Kusaku and War Moogle.
Celiose had a run of success, winning victory after victory. With the help of Kusader, he attacked Zeromous with the new technology of Ultima missiles.
When Chrystalis returned from her self-imposed exile, she met with Celiose, at Kupopolis. This partnership would transform the war effort as they participated in high adventure around the Web. Celiose would meet many other key figures, and Winlan, Hyrule, and even Ticondera would all join the Grand Army Charter. Celiose met Shana Goldmoon, the woman he would later marry. A woman brainwashed into the service of Ganon, Shana was struggling to overcome her past deeds. Celiose was taken with her apparent vulnerability, and she was taken by his apparent fortitude. Celiose realized Shana had great depths of strength, and Shana realized Celiose was concealing some personal weakness. Ganon tried to abuse this relationship by re-asserting his mind control over Shana, but Celiose invaded his castle and killed him.
During this time, Celiose also met Christian Cole, his half-brother. Christian was the illegitimate son of Locke Cole with Zelda Goldmoon. Celiose wanted nothing to do with Christian, at the time a young boy. He represented his father's unfaithfulness towards his beloved mother. The simmering frustration Celiose had with Locke exploded, and although Celes Cole did her best to smooth things over the lingering animosity between the two would last for years to come.
Nonetheless, this phase of the war was problematic for the Grand Army in many ways. It could take territory, but struggled to hold it. It became clear that the Grand Army would have to grow even more and take over the lion's share of the warfighting throughout the Web. It was also clear that this would be a potentially painful transition. The Light Gods again departed the Web, further limiting available resources. This would permanently embitter Celiose to the gods; he cared little for any apparent divine plan and came to believe that the fate of the Web would be settled with "blood and iron."
Celiose's war
The Grand Army was now firmly bearing the brunt of the war effort. Ironically, it was a victim of its own success: they had proven they could win so often, it was expected to be able to fight everywhere. The transformation from a single multinational task force to a web-spanning army was a painful one.
Burzmale Julian, perhaps one of Celiose's only personal friends, betrayed the Grand Army for the Dark Wrath. Although outwardly he showed only his customary cool calculating countenance, in private (to Shana) he was furious. Burzmale's betrayal was probably the only moment where Celiose's confidence in his own ability to direct the war was thoroughly shaken. His typical disdain for political niceties caused a schism with Emperor Camilison of Ticondera at a critical moment, and a vast GA army was lost to Burzmale. Attempts to fight back and launch counterattacks, at Wisdon among other places, all floundered. Celiose realized that the GA had to go on a prepared, strategic defensive. He did, however, greenlight Gage Rizett's strategic bombing campaign as a way to fight back. There was enormous political pressure on Celiose to do more, to free people suffering under the Dark Gods' yoke, but Celiose's plan was to defend and break the back of the Dark Wrath's military power before launching a major offensive.
For the rest of the war, Celiose was never able to find a satisfactory replacement for Burzmale in the post of Lt. General. His first pick, Kuance Lero, proved to be a major disappointment. This represents an uncharacteristic blemish on Celiose's otherwise superlative record for recognizing military talent and putting the right people in the right job.
Celiose recognized that although the Dark Wrath had the upper hand, the GA was far from beaten. He expected the Dark Wrath to seek a decisive battle someplace the GA would almost certainly have to defend, probably in a dimension where they already had a foothold. Celiose felt Hyrule, Winlan, and Eblan, as important member states in Dark Wrath-dominated dimensions, were the most likely targets.
Celiose correctly guessed what Burzmale would do (invade Hyrule) but did not anticipate what Torak would do (attack Albrook). Celiose prepared for Burzmale's invasion of Hyrule by increasing the GA presence there and placing one of his ablest commanders, Torstensson Lenart, in charge. Torak's attack on Albrook would've caught Celiose by surprise simply because it was a "wrong" thing to do, but Celpo spy efforts alerted Celiose to the possibility of invasion. Albrook was already heavily fortified and was a GA staging area for operations throughout the Web; it was very easy for Celiose to rapidly concentrate a large number of forces there. In a decisive, month-long battle, Celiose roundly encircled and destroyed a large Dark Wrath army. Along with siege of Trianable, this victory was a major turning point in the war.
After Albrook and Trianable, Celiose took the rare step of calling a full meeting of virtually the entire Soldierly Council to plot strategy. Celiose sensed that this was the moment to seize the initiative and destroy the Dark Gods' armies once and for all. Possessing a battle-hardened, well-equipped army, Celiose decided to "go for the throat" by invading Transbaron rather then try to reclaim Ticondera or liberate Dragon, where the terrain would greatly favor the defensive.
Victory
During the last phase of the war, Celiose wore several different hats. He was still, as Generalissimo, responsible for overall direction of the war and equipment of the army. He was also in charge of the GA's contribution to the Transbaron campaign, ('A' Expeditionary Force, or AEF), which eventually comprised four GA armies. He also assumed command of GA First Army. One cannot help but wonder if Celiose would have been better served with a little more delegation. Although his conduct of operations was excellent, it was far from flawless. He tended to treat his men as if they were indestructible. His crossing at Arderine Pass was extremely bloody, and was only salvaged by crushing firepower. Although most of the fighting in Crystal was dominated by a series of sieges and fortification-busting, Celiose did manage to fight one more large mobile battle in the Damcyan desert, in a victory that destroyed most of the Dark Wrath's best remaining troops.
Celiose's daughter with Shana, Erdeny Cole, was born and her growth was hyper-accelerated along with Valsu and Jade Saizer. The three were known as "the Shining Ones", and although during the war they played a key role in a few battles, the fact Erdeny basically skipped her childhood made it hard for Celiose to relate to her. (Celiose is not the most relatable guy on a good day, anyway.)
In the last months of the war, the Grand Army commanded such enormous superiority in all areas the final battles in Baron itself were borderline anticlimactic.
Although analysis of Celiose's generalship during the Great War has filled many tomes, and much can be said of his positive qualities as commander, most historians believe that it is his ability to see and manage the 'big picture' that really sets Celiose apart. He had a vision for how a vast, multi-national army should look and act, a vision which incorporated several other military innovations. And he had a strategy for how that army would win the war; he remains the only commander in history to successfully wage a full-scale, webwide conflict.
After the Great War...what now?
Celiose Cole had spent his whole life fighting the Great War. Although he firmly believed that the war was winnable, and he was the one to do it, he gave little thought to what a post-war Web would look like. Immediately following the Great War, the GA was still on full war footing; after all, the Dark Gods had come back from near-defeat before, they could certainly do so again. Many of the Web's nations were almost completely ruined. Crystal and Dragon were in shambles, Esper was as politically divided as ever, Ticondera was moving towards revolution, and Tasnica had to spend the next several years paying off a huge war debt. Celiose was not only the web's military leader but its political leader. However, he failed to treat the two tasks differently. He regarded all developments as a potential threat to GACA, and treated them as such, even as he prepared more terrifying weapons with the stated goal of deterring potential aggression. This policy would ironically lead creating more threats to the Grand Army. It was the brutal policies of this era, and of the Great War, that give rise to Roland Boderick's faction of the Omnisent.
Celiose's personal disconnectedness destroyed many of the relationships he had forged in the war. When the Light Gods appeared again in the Web, Celiose confronted them. He was enraged at the gods for having 'done nothing' even as millions of people died ostensibly in their name. Celiose was as big a legend as the gods themselves. He told the Light Gods that their active interference in mortal affairs would have to end, and they sadly acquiesced.
Celiose began to become more alienated from his wife. He simply did not know how to live; he needed war to find his peace. Never naturally empathic or personable, Celiose became increasingly remote and distant, even to Shana, the only person able to reach him.
KMT War
Kuvalla-Medina-Ticondera were an unlikely alliance, all of whom had their own reasons for opposing the GA. Medina opposed the GA simply because Guardia had aligned with the GA; Ticondera believed that a webwide communist revolution would sweep the 'capitalist artifice' of GACA aside. Kuvalla, though, was almost a personal matter. Kusader was a hero of the Great War who had fought beside Celiose, but feared what the Grand Army was doing in the post-war world. He cast his lot in with some dubious allies, perhaps well aware his stand was doomed, but determined to make a statement nonetheless.
The KMT war was quick and brutal. The GA's victory was never in doubt, and its brutal methods gave fodder to the growing Omnisent. If Celiose had been more a diplomat, and less inclined to solve every problem with force, its possible that the war could have been avoided entirely.
Omnisent Movement
The OmniSent had early existed as a covert, anti-Dark Wrath movement; it was in 28 WR, after the KMT War, that Rudra Tairen revealed its existence to many Web heads of state. The OmniSent were a far-flung spy network; their motto was "Knowledge is Power". Rudra herself was an idealist, who believed that if all the nations of the Web shared all their secrets, a lasting peace could be attained.
Many of the nations of the Web, including Guardia, the nascent Esper Union, and others found the Omnisent's agenda threatening. Celiose, in stark contrast to his earlier behavior, was dismissive of the threat. He famously described the OmniSent as "a bunch of reporters". To Celiose, the idea that such an organization could pose a threat to the largest and most fearsome military machine in history was laughable. In private correspondence with Rudra, he was even surprisingly candid about his own failings and struggles. Celiose confessed that the rule of military force was the only thing he really understood, that he had difficulty negotiating the more delicate politics of peacetime, and even that he was estranged from his wife. Celiose and the Grand Army took no action against the Omnisent.
A rogue faction of the Omnisent tried to assassinate Doan, King of Guardia and one of the Omnisent's most vocal opponents. His son, Derik, assumed the throne as regent for a time. In a brash course of action that earned him the nickname "the Firebrand", Derik demanded the Grand Army attack the Omnisent. Celiose refused. This prompted Derik to do the unthinkable and ask the House of Lords to sack Celiose. Travin Rumanski of the Scandian League supported the movement, perhaps angry that Celiose had decided to bomb his country during the Great War rather then liberate it. Indeed, Derik had tapped into a well of resentment against the politically tone-deaf Generalissimo. The House opted to replace Celiose with Jomini Benedek, an aging Doman who was much more politically malleable.
Celiose was pretty sure he'd be back in the saddle sooner or later, and spent most of his "time off" in Albrook, staying abreast of all things military. Rudra, posing as River Aurora, gained employment as Celiose's serving girl. With this persona, she befriended both Celiose and Shana. Rudra helped reconcile the couple from their recent 'icy spell'.
Hivan War
The Hivans were extradimensional space insects that invaded the Web in 30 WR. Their Hiveworld arrived in the Crystal Dimension, and they launched several colonizing forces throughout the Web. The Web was collectively confused and shocked by this encounter with something completely alien to their experience. Jomini Benedek, still Generalissimo, was slow to mobilize the Grand Army's response. After a major GA defeat in Baron, the House of Lords recalled Celiose to duty.
Celiose was again in his element. He restored confidence and 'grip' at the top of the GA as he served as strategist and overall manager of the war effort. Again, Celiose displayed a knack for matching the right people for the right jobs; Model Steinmetz, in particular, proved an inspired choice to lead the defense of Zenan Bridge. After the Hivans initial suprise was blunted, Celiose was able to organize a web-wide counter-offensive. Celiose's return to service was as much a turning point as any particular battle.
The House of Lords awarded Celiose his third Hero of the Grand Army as a way to apologize. Celiose's military talents were indispensable. Somewhat chastened by his experience with Rudra, Celiose and the Grand Army tried to play a smaller role in Web politics as the modern Great Powers began to emerge in pre-eminence. Even during the Imperialist War, Celiose was reluctant to use the vast might of the Grand Army to intervene on the behalf of one member state over another.
OmniSent Conflict
By 32 WR, Roland Boderick had all but eclipsed the idealistic Rudra as leader of the Omnisent. Roland had nearly been hanged by the Grand Army, as a former Dark Wrath Lord General. Though he had no love for the Dark Gods, he had a bitter hatred of the Grand Army. With Roland in charge, the Omnisent became more aggressive. He enslaved many Arythian magic users, and used his Cylinder weapon to launch attacks against Geno Dome, Centwerp, Toroia and Thamasa. Roland's ultimate coup was to be a mark on Albrook itself with his army of enslaved Arythian Tanes. Celiose declared martial law, and evacuated much of the city. Roland's Tanes were a thread on the first few days of the battle, partly because their holders were willing to tax them beyond their limits. Celiose blithely ended the battle by detoning an Ultima missile underneath the city (other missiles being moved to a safe distance so as not to destroy the whole planet.)
Although he won the (second) Battle of Albrook, the OmniSent conflict must stand as a low point of Celiose's tactical acumen and strategic judgement. Many have wondered if Celiose could have won the battle WITHOUT resorting to a weapon of mass destruction. Indeed, Celiose's decision to defend Albrook at all is somewhat dubious--the OmniSent did not have the manpower to control large swaths of the Web. Albrook held purely symbolic value; Celiose himself said that "The Generalissimo does not retreat from Albrook." The Grand Army played only a small role in the following battle ofAtlantis.
Nonetheless, the slaughter of thousands of innocent Tanes induced a bit of a crisis for Celiose. They became emblematic of the vast numbers of people Celiose had killed (one way or another) during his career. He was confident that the decisions that caused those deaths were necessary for victory, and was all too aware that he was probably the only person who could make those kinds of decisions, but he was still haunted by nagging doubts. Celiose had, perhaps, sacrificed a bit of his soul or humanity in the name of saving the Web. Conflicted and troubled, Celiose receded into the background of Web affairs for a few years; after all, there were no major wars for the Grand Army to fight.
Celiose and Shana celebrated the birth of their second child, a boy, Amitam. Although Celiose loves the boy, he struggled to know what to do with him, or even spend time with him. Expressing affection is not something Celiose does well; he manages with Shana, who can read his freaking mind.
Finding himself in Aryth
In 35 WR, Celiose decided to take a long overdue sabbatical. We and his wife planned to vacation in Aryth, one of the few places in the Web they could 'get away from it all'. With Rudra herself intermittently serving as their guide, the couple were probably closer in Aryth then they had been at any time since the war. Probably for the first time in his life, Celiose was able to explore a part of the Web without being at the head of an army. The primitive state of communications in Aryth meant Celiose was isolated from any news of the Web--indeed, that was part of the appeal.
Celiose, however, probably made a major lapse in judgement when he scheduled the Duelist Exercise to coincide with his vacation. The Exercise involved almost all of his most senior generals--Torstensson, Model, Rimmel, and the rest of the most prestigious members of the Soldierly Council. The Grand Army lacked any of its most respected and decisive leaders as the lingering tensions in the Web exploded into the Leviathan War.
Celiose was ignorant of the War for nearly a year; as he traveled deeper into Aryth, he outpaced the arrival of news from the rest of the Web. When news of the war finally got up to him, Celiose was furious. He was angry at the Great Powers for launching a war 'while the babysitter was away', angry at himself for this brief break from his duties, and angry at Shana, for convincing him to go on vacation. This outburst prompted to Shana to submerge herself in the mystical River Tyme, the "River of What Might Have Been", near the Source to try to see where the couple had went wrong. In the river, Shana was haunted by visions of alternate paths she might've taken, including staying with Ganon or driving Celiose to suicide. When Celiose and Rudra found Shana again, Shana was terrified and shaken by her experience in the river. Celiose apologized for his earlier outburst, and the couple reconciled. They were less then thrilled about the prospect of returning to a Web at war.
Celiose returned at the end of 36 WR, and arrived in the aftermath of the destructive Second Battle of Hosluftgrad. Surrounded by dead soldiers and destroyed vehicles, Celiose raged, "I hope you're happy, Travin and Hannibal. You got your fucking war." The Leviathan War once and for all seem to prove that the Web was still dependent on the Grand Army--and Celiose--for a measure of stability. Celiose planted his flag in between the Scandian army of Halder Skalice and the Esperian army of TO Halberg, and demanded that they stop fighting. Both countries had all but exhausted their material resources, and both generals knew better then to attack Celiose. The two powers negotiated a peace.
Old Soldiers Never Die
Celiose Cole was an old man before he was forty years old. Forced into responsibility at a young age, and holding a vast weight on his shoulders, had seemed to prematurely age him. Nonetheless, he remained indispensable to the Web; his reputation alone, it was joked, was worth at least six regiments. Shortly after Aryth Celiose told Shana he planned to retire. However, events, and the lack of a suitable replacement, conspired to prevent him from doing so. This lead eventually lead to another cooling of their marriage.
At War Again
Only a year after the Leviathan War, Celiose had to take the field again, against the New Wraith. Celiose's role was relatively minor; most of the 'heavy lifting' against the New Wraith's 'Freedom Alliance' was done by Halder Skalice and TO Halberg. However, Celiose did demonstrate his mecha piloting skills with the Archangel in the giant finale over Alter.
Similarly, Faith Weist had already fought the key engagements of Ayrth's East-West War. Celiose was saddened by the deployment of a GA force into Aryth; he seemed destined to fight everywhere sooner or later, and destroy whatever he touched.
Budget Battles
After the Leviathan War, Rhodes Palmerston began a series of policies he called the New Peace. At the center of the New Peace was the reformation of the Grand Army Charter Alliance, adding a full-time Alliance Congress to provide the continuous oversight and interchange that the House of Lords could not. Celiose treated the new body with the same indifference he treated the old House of Lords. Indeed, in his intermittent search for a possible successor, he ignored the fact that the House of Lords appoints the Generalissimo, taking it as a given that his personal recommendation would sway the vote.
In 40 WR Celiose--and the rest of the GA--was hit with a rude awakening. Sakura Shiawese, the dynamic Member, Alliance Congress from Eblan, proposed dramatic budget cuts. Celiose was caught completely off-guard; his submission of the 41 WR operational budget was supposed to be perfunctory, and now he was facing the reduction of almost half his forces. Celiose took the cuts very badly; he said that they have 'eliminated' more GA regiments, ships, and aircraft then the Dark Wrath, Omnisent, and Hivans put together. Even as Celiose struggled to continue funding as much of the GA as possible, he and the Soldierly Council came under fire for lacking in military innovation while being married to 'outdated' air and sea power. Celiose insisted that the Kriegsnavee and the Luftwaffe still had a key role, and he was not about to create a mecha program just to 'look pretty'.
Most of Celiose's Great War 'team' also took the changes badly; after a few years, only Celiose, Torstensson Lenart, and Praxer Riose remained. Celiose responded to the situation by throwing himself even further into his job, lobbying for this or that program, while trying to find innovative ways in tactics or technology the GA can make up for its diminished (but still vast) resources.
Celiose made a slight staffing change, acquiring Lucas Oldshire as his personal assistant. Lucas was more of a bureaucrat and administrator then a soldier, but in the age of budget cuts, his services to the GA were invaluable.
Ironically, Celiose's reputation as a military genius is sometimes used as a justification for the budget cuts. If Celiose is so good, shouldn't he be able to figure out how to make do with less?
Family Struggles
Celiose's beloved mother, Celes Cole, long suffered from a rare strain of Tuvin's Syndrome. Celes's medical problems recently rapidly accelerated, causing memory loss and requiring her to be permanently hospitalized. Celiose, never one to admit defeat, rallied resources to try to help her, going so far as to ask the Goddess Rainere, (who was Celes's friend Terra in mortal life) for help. His father, Locke Cole, took a more accepting view. This caused one more great clash between father and son, but Locke was right; no methods offered even the faintest hope for Celes. Locke and Celiose, realizing that Celes would not want them to fight, began a slow, grudging process of reconciliation. It helps that Locke gets along quite well with Amitam. Celiose loves his son, but doesn't 'get' him.
His marriage to Shana continues to run hot and cold. While the two deeply love each other, that's not necessarily sufficient for a happy marriage. Celiose was, however, very supportive of Shana when she told him about Rachel Garvey, her child with Ganondorf Dragmire (after his initial freak-out of 'we've been married HOW long before you mentioned this?')
Kupopolis Neo
Celiose dies of old age at the very beginning of Neo, and the Second Great War begins immediately afterwards. Shana outlives him by a bit. Celiose is the grandfather of Avarael Cole.
Trivia
Has a hard time buying groceries.
