“How much in tribute or tax would we need to support the empire at the present level of expense?” There was discussion and after some debate they estimated probably half the taxes the people were paying at present would be sufficient.
Rebekka then asked, “How much wealth have each of you acquired since you have become part of this cabinet?” Everyone’s mouth dropped open and they looked at each other until Rebekka asked pointedly, “Chan Quon, what is your net worth in wealth?” He stuttered and made some noises until Rebekka stated forcefully, “I asked you a question Chan, so do answer.”
“Three billion,” was his answer. Rebekka had discussed the monetary system and values extensively with Elise until she was sure she understood the value and currency of the Empire.
“How about you, John Martin?” Rebekka asked.
“One billion,” he answered flatly.
“Esther?” Rebekka continued.
“Seven hundred million,” she answered.
“Charlotte?”
Charlotte Frank frowned in thought and then stated, “Almost a billion I believe.”
Then Rebekka turned a serious stare toward Max Bane, “Well Max, your turn.”
Max turned red faced and exclaimed, “I do not see what any of this has to do with a press conference. Our net worth is not important to the functioning of this cabinet.”
“Max!” Rebekka said in an icy tone, “I am sure Layton Teal knew all about this but I do not, so answer my question.”
Max paused for a moment and then said, “Six billion.”
“And what is my net worth occupying Layton’s place in the empire?” Rebekka asked everyone.
Max scoffed, “The empire is yours, all the money collected from the taxes is at your disposal, it comes from whatever you want to squeeze from the people.” Rebekka nodded, already realizing this, but having it stated vocally was part of her plan.
“It seems we have all gotten quite wealthy off of the people.”
“What about Chancellor Elise?” Esther Smith asked.
Rebekka looked puzzled and said, “You all should know that Elise has no real net worth at all, she has an expense account with the empire, that is all.”
“We did not know,” John Martin stated, “Layton never revealed his arrangement with Elise to us.”
“I do not think anyone will object to the arrangement staying as it was under Layton,” Rebekka said without waiting for an answer.
“Now to get to the heart of the matter before the press conference. What do you think would make the people most happy in the realm?” Everyone looked at each other and not one put forth an answer to her question. Rebekka could see that the welfare of the people really had never been an agenda before in the cabinet meetings.
“Come, come now, someone in this cabinet must know of something that would make the people happy.”
Charlotte Frank cleared her throat nervously and said, “Reducing the peoples tax burden would make everyone happy.” As she said this she began to laugh as if it were a joke. The rest of the cabinet joined in laughing except John Martin who just smiled.
“That is exactly what I propose we do.” Everyone quit laughing when Rebekka said this.
Max Bane then stood and said, “You must be crazy, Layton would never stand for this!”
“Sit down Max,” Rebekka said with such steel in her voice that Max obeyed immediately without thought. “Just yesterday Max you said that you would cause me no problems, and now you show up late for our meeting and oppose my decision. I could have you killed but that would be too easy. Instead I will fine you one billion dollars payable to the empire’s treasury by tomorrow at this time.”
Everyone’s mouth dropped open except for John Martin who had an amused look on his face. And once again Max Bane had turned very pale at Rebekka’s words.
“You, you can’t do that,” he stuttered.
“Oh, Max,” Rebekka said smiling, “I can too. If that money is not deposited by tomorrow morning it will be two billion, and if that is not paid I will come knocking at your door and strip you bare and then kill you, Is that clear?” All Max could do was nod.
“Good,” Rebekka stated. “Now do not be late for another meeting.” John Martin watched this whole drama unfold with amusement. His confidence in Rebekka had been restored with the punishment she had inflicted on Max. The rest of the cabinet now had much to consider when their own fortunes might be at stake.
“A cut of tribute, I mean taxes will not affect your wealth at all, only mine,” Rebekka continued, “and it will be good for the people.”
Chan Quon nodded knowingly, “It will make you very popular with the people as well, he stated.” Rebekka just smiled in response to his statement.
“Well now, we have a press conference to host,” Rebekka said, “so Blastion should invite them in.”
Blastion took this as his cue and left hastily and soon returned with the press and cameras following. Once the equipment was set up the conference began with Blastion calling the conference to order and explaining that a matter of great importance was to be announced to the empire.
And with that introduction he turned and said, “Chancellor Elise will explain the situation and the changes that have come for us all.” With that Blastion bowed respectfully, “Chancellor Elise,” he said as he backed away from the spotlight.
Elise stood and began: “Layton Teal has decided to take a long leave of absence from the rigors of his empire. Do not make the assumption that he is dead just because he is absent, for he is very much alive. In his absence he has chosen someone to rule his empire in his place. Someone who is not from our time, she is from our far past. She was queen of a kingdom in that other place and time and has made a great sacrifice to come to ours and rule. She has left her family, her home, and even now carries the unborn child of her husband within her womb. I know that she will rule us well, and she has my support and that of the cabinet to do so.”
John Martin then stood and said, “We have all been convinced that Rebekka should rule in Layton’s place. For public record, all of the cabinet will give their support publicly to Queen Rebekka. Chan Quon, do you give your support and loyalty to Queen Rebekka as ruler of this empire?”
Chan stood and said, “I pledge my loyalty and support to Queen Rebekka our ruler.” One by one the cabinet stood and pledged loyalty to Rebekka until at last it came down to Max Bane. Having been caught off guard by the previous meeting, he could think of no alternative but to stand and pledge with the rest of the cabinet.
After that was finished, John Martin said, “May I present to the empire, its temporary ruler, Queen Rebekka.” Rebekka then stood and thanked John Martin and the rest of the cabinet for their support. She then began to speak to the empire in the accent of their forefathers.
“As you now know, Layton Teal is no longer ruler of this empire. There will be some changes under my rule, hopefully for the benefit of all the citizens of this great empire. The first thing I propose as the new ruler of this empire is a fifty percent cut in the taxes that businesses and individuals are paying.” There was stunned silence in the room as Rebekka let this announcement sink in.
“I would also like to see individuals have more freedom without the fear of state reprisal. In order for you to believe that this is true I lift the ban imposed by the state to control the number of children any married couple desires to have.” After another short pause Rebekka said. “Do not mistake this generosity as a tolerance of evil. Any crimes that are committed in this empire will be punished swiftly and justly. The penalty for murder, kidnapping, and rape will be public burning at the stake. For lesser offenses that result from intentional injury to another, grand larceny, and extortion will be punishable by hanging. Petty theft will require the thief to labor until he has restored four-fold back to those he has stolen from. Do not test me in these matters for I will be unwavering in their enforcement. Thank you, and may the empire prosper.”
Max Bane left quickly after the press conference was over, he did not want to stay a moment longer than he had to in that woman’s presence. Layton Teal had been hard enough to tolerate, but at least Layton never dipped into his personal fortune as a form of punishment. He could be slowly drained of his wealth by this woman, and that he could not allow. There is only one way for this to end, the woman must die. He continued home at a frantic pace in order to begin planning Queen Rebekka’s death.
John Martin stayed after the press conference to speak with Queen Rebekka. As he watched he saw how fast Max Bane left and knew the reason why. That is what he wanted to speak to Rebekka about. After the others had left and Rebekka, Elise and Blastion Astmos were the only ones there he said flatly to Rebekka.
“You will have to kill Max Bane.” Rebekka did not flinch from this statement and only waited for John Martin to finish. John Martin went on, “I admire your bravery in punishing Max in a way that Layton never did, his pocketbook. His fortune is more important to him than his own life so he will now try and kill you for what you are doing to him. I suggest you kill him before he finds a way to assassinate you.” Rebekka waited for a moment to see if the others would say anything before she spoke.
When no one said anything more she said. “I know that past habits die hard. Layton cured any problems by executions. If I start down this road I will be no better than him. No, the people need to see that I am different if we are to bring the power back into the people’s hands. If we can hang on a little while we shall be rid of Max Bane. I want to hold a public election and let the people choose their cabinet members. Evil Max will then be voted out of office and loose his power base, since the power will be transferred back to the people.”
“And what of the assassination attempts that surely will come from him before this election can take place?” John Martin asked.
“Attempted assassination,” Rebekka remarked, “is a hanging offense. But we cannot hang Max without convincing proof before the public or they will think it is politically motivated. To be successful, we must convince the public that we are different politically than Layton Teal. We cannot go killing off the opposition as Layton did and think the people will see any difference.”
John Martin nodded at Rebekka’s wisdom and only said. “I hope you live long enough to accomplish your goals. By the way, how long do you plan to remain as ruler of the empire?”
Rebekka smiled, “To give the people back their empire is all I want, and after that I will resign.”
As John Martin left he thought, she is a queen that cares for the people, I will gladly be her subject.
The people of the empire watched the press conference with great interest. Nothing this interesting had happened for a long time. At first, most thought this a ploy or joke by Layton Teal pretending to be gone. But as the press conference progressed they began to hope that perhaps it really was true. No one was willing to bet that the tax cuts would really take place, but it was a good thing just to hear it even proposed.
The next day at the palace, Blastion Astmos brought word to Rebekka of the empire’s condition. The fine against Max Bane had been paid into the treasury as Rebekka had demanded. But to her dismay, public executions of criminals, both burning and hanging were taking place all over the empire. In all of her years in Glenfair she had never witnessed a public execution, so the amount of crime the empire had, greatly disturbed her.
Her only comment was, “Evil leadership spawns evil practices by the people it rules.” This went on for almost a week before the people who were inclined to commit these crimes were convinced the practice would continue. After this crime began to drop sharply in the empire. Quick painless execution was one thing, but no one wanted to suffer the terrible, painful death of burning. Rebekka was glad that executions for crime had dropped to less than a fifth of what they were and were projected to drop much lower than that in another week.
Blastion was discussing the coming tax collection in two months time with Rebekka when there was a call from the palace security.
“This is Sherman Templas Queen Rebekka, there is an android here to deliver a gift to you.”
Rebekka looked at Elise, Pi, and Blastion before she spoke, “Has the android been thoroughly checked as a security risk?”
She heard a chuckle from Sherman as he said. “Everyone knows that an android cannot intentionally harm a human, but yes we checked him for bugs and weapons nonetheless.”
“Then send him in,” Rebekka stated.
Pi rose from her place to meet the guest and to escort the android into their presence. When Pi returned she was followed by a well groomed young man carrying a package.
The android stepped forward and said. “This present is for you, Queen Rebekka.” Rebekka took the package out of his hand and began to open it, but then paused.
“Who sent this package?” she asked the android.
“I do not know,” the android stated, “I have never seen the man before. I asked my master and he suggested I bring the package to you.”
“Who is your master?” Blastion asked.
“George Trundle,” the android answered.
Blastion left immediately to find a computer terminal to research George Trundle. Meanwhile Rebekka opened the package to reveal ornately decorated crab cakes with a note inside which read: “I hope you enjoy this delicacy as much as we are enjoying your reign.” Rebekka smiled, for she had received little gratitude so far for what she was trying to do for the people of this realm. She began to reach inside for one of the cakes when Pi snatched the whole box from Rebekka and placed it on the table.
“What are you doing?” Rebekka asked Pi.
“Just a minute,” she said as she took a crab cake out of the box and placed it on a small plate.
She placed it on the floor and called out, “Simon, Simon, here kitty.” There was a winsome meow from the palace cat and soon it came rushing into the kitchen and over to the crab cake that had been set on the floor. The cat sniffed only once before digging into the delicacy.
“See,” Rebekka said to Pi, “there is nothing wrong with the food, Simon loves it.” At that moment Simon growled, his fur and tail stood strait up and he fell over dead.
Everyone was shocked for a moment until Pi said unemotionally, “We will need another palace cat.”
Elise swung quickly around to face the android and said, “That food was poisoned, you could have killed Queen Rebekka or us.”
Pi yelled “No Elise,” at her words but it was too late to undo the damage. The android made some garbled noises coupled with contorted facial expressions and fell over and was still. Elise tried to rouse him but he remained still.
At that moment Blastion came barging into the room and yelled, “Don’t eat any of that food!” Then seeing the dead cat and still android asked with a bewildered expression, “What happened?” Pi took charge since it seemed Queen Rebekka and Elise were still perplexed about the events that had unfolded before their eyes.
“I tested the food on Simon and it was poisoned. Before I could stop Chancellor Elise she accused the android of trying to poison the queen and overloaded his circuit imperative causing him to shut down.”
“Oh great,” Blastion said, “now we will never get to the bottom of this assassination attempt.” Elise gathered her senses back together and asked Pi what had happened to the android.
“You really don’t know much about androids, do you Elise?”
“No, I guess I don’t,” Elise said.
Pi uttered what seemed like a sigh and continued, “They are programed with an imperative not to intentionally harm any human. Even a supposed accusation of harm such as this causes the imperative to short circuit and shut down any android. He must be sent back to the makers to be repaired and reprogrammed. His former life and memories are now gone.”
“You mean he died?” Elise asked fearfully.
“In a sense, yes,” Pi answered.
Pi, seeing Elise’s distress over the incident added, “But unlike humans, this android had no emotions and felt no pain or sorrow in his positronic destruction. He will be repaired, reprogramed, and will live again in the service of another.”
Elise looked at the still android feeling remorse, and then at Pi and said, “Can that happen to you?”
“I am programed with a similar imperative, but with broader parameters for interpreting harm. That was the goal of my original programmers, my emotions were an unexpected byproduct of that programing. Your statement would not have had the same affect on me if I were in the same situation. There was no real harm done to any human so your accusation would have little effect on me.”
Blastion moaned as he realized the only lead they had to the attempted assassination was lying on the floor with its memory erased.
“Whoever did this knew the android would shut down erasing any evidence.”
Rebekka frowned, “I thought androids could not harm humans?”
“They can’t intentionally harm,” Blastion corrected. “This android did not know the food was poisoned. This smells of the kind of deed that Evil Max would do. I ran a security check and found out George Trundle is a fictitious name a person used to buy this android just yesterday. It has all been very well covered and would take a great deal of money and effort to hide identities this well in the purchase of an android. There is a very limited supply of them in the empire.” After he said this Blastion went over to communication device and called up Sherman Templas.
“Sherman, get up here right away, someone’s been poisoned by that food you sent up.” In a very short time a shaken Sherman appeared in the kitchen and beheld the still android and the lifeless cat on the floor.
“Sherman,” Blastion said, “it is your responsibility to protect Queen Rebekka from this sort of thing. You assumed an android could not harm the queen, you were wrong.” Sherman was speechless and pale. Layton surely would have him executed for such a lapse as this. Rebekka saw the look on his face and felt the fear Sherman exuded.
The King's Ancestors Page 28