by Jon Gerrard
Chapter Nineteen
I was left alone for nearly an hour. A medical team appeared at the suite shortly after I first arrived. They took a small blood sample, swabbed the inside of my cheek for skin cells and even took a few hairs before they locked me in again. I used the time since then to shower and change. When I emerged from the shower I found that the suite had been supplied with an assortment of clothing in my size. I selected a simple pair of charcoal slacks, a plain top and a pair of black shoes. When I was first brought before the Senate it was important for me to give the appearance of a wild, desperate criminal. Sebastian had to be off guard for my maneuver. Now that my identity had been revealed I wanted to look the part when I returned.
Apart from cleaning away any dirt on my face I had also washed and combed my tangled mop of hair. I dared not shave or get a haircut as my new face would only serve to confuse matters. Admiral Magnus assured me that the Order had surgeons standing by to restore my face–the same ones who had originally altered my appearance. When I appeared in public after today it would be with the same face that people remembered.
After cleaning up I sat flipping through the local net stations, following the news coverage of the day’s events. Most of the stations were trying to stay neutral about whether they believed I was who I claimed to be or not. I personally found their interviews with various Senators to be especially interesting. A recess had been called to await the results of the DNA tests and the reporters had descended on the Senators like a coven of ravenous vampires. Senators I remembered as being fair and honest, while remaining carefully neutral in their responses, also seemed cautiously optimistic, hinting that changes would be coming to the kingdom as a result of the day’s events. It was mainly the hopeful looks in their eyes that told me what they were thinking. They were right. There were indeed changes coming.
More interesting than this however were the statements from those Senators I knew to be in Sebastian’s back pocket. Like rats deserting a sinking ship they were each trying to distance themselves from Sebastian’s policies. But no matter what they claimed, their actions over the past few years were on record. I planned to carefully review what each of my politicians had been doing during my absence. Those who had fallen in line with Sebastian’s policies were going to receive my special attention.
One channel I came across was broadcasting a replay of the sword fight on the floor of the Senate chamber. I made myself watch it through once, then changed the channel when they announced that they would be running the recording again. I had been there and felt no need to relive events which had almost ended my life. The knock on the suite door came as I was wondering who would actually want to watch that fight over and over again. Then I thought about all of the people who had been suffering under Sebastian’s rule and I understood the appeal.
Switching off the screen I looked up to see Admiral Magnus standing in the doorway.
“Your Majesty,” he said, bowing formally to me. “Your presence is requested in the Senate hall.”
I got to my feet as he stepped aside and gestured toward the door. The Marines who had come with us from the shuttle were with him, drawn up into two lines in the corridor. But this time they were not a prisoner escort.
“Your honor guard, Sire,” Magnus announced.
I allowed myself a half smile. “I take it the DNA tests were favorable.”
Now it was the Admiral’s turn to smile. “Two independent teams of doctors tested each sample twice. There is absolutely no question about Your Majesty’s identity.”
“And how are they taking the news?” I asked, tipping my head in the direction of the Senate chamber.
“For the most part quite well, although there seems to be a little bit of tension in certain quarters.”
“No doubt,” I chuckled. “Some of them are going to have a lot of explaining to do over the next few days. Come on, Admiral. Let’s go watch the show.”
I strode into the corridor and Magnus fell into step one pace behind my right shoulder. As we started between the facing rows of Marines they snapped to attention and saluted smartly. Emotion rose in my throat as I returned the gesture. As a unit they turned and fell into step behind us.