by Neal Jones
"Here," Larewyn said, settling onto a nearby bench. "My feet have swollen so bad that I can barely wear shoes anymore."
"Well, then, let's give them a rest, shall we?" Persys knelt to remove the lady empress' slippers, and then she took off her own as well. The two of them leaned against one another as they splashed their feet in the warm water.
"So..." Larewyn said after a bit. "Were you sufficiently honored with tonight's celebration?"
"Oh yes, it was lovely. And you were right. I shouldn't have had that glass of wine."
"Feeling a little woozy, are we?"
"Oh, Lare," Persys sighed, laying her head on her friend's shoulder. "I'm so happy for you."
"Well, I'm glad someone is happy."
Persys sat up, turning to Larewyn. "Lare...what's wrong?"
Larewyn shook her head, suddenly overcome, blinking back her tears. "No. It's nothing. I'm fine."
Persys gripped her sister's shoulders. "Larewyn Valayne, you be honest with me. I haven't seen you for three years, and this is not the girl that I left in Darshon."
"Oh, Per, that's just it! I wasn't kidding earlier when I told you that I would give up every gusitt that I own just to go back to that summer house on the lake. No courts, no squabbling nobles, no servants, no palace – just me! Me and my peace!" She was sobbing now, and she embraced Persys, weeping into her shoulder.
"It's all right," Persys murmured. She waited patiently for the sobs to ebb, and then fetched a cloth from the inner pockets of her dress for Larewyn to dry her eyes.
"Thank you," the lady empress gulped, wiping her face. "I just ruined your lovely dress."
"Oh, don't be ridiculous! They're just tears." She leaned closer, examining her friend's expression in the lamplight. "Larewyn, talk to me. Tell me what's wrong. Is it just the pressures of the court, or of being lady empress?"
"Yes. It's all of that! I never see my husband. He's always busy with the senate or the meetings with his advisors, and sometimes he's away all night. I know he has a mistress hidden somewhere in the palace or the Hall of State. He's disappointed that our firstborn is a girl, and he's already planning to put me aside – I know it!"
"Larewyn!" Persys seized her sister's head, turning her face into the light. "Stop this! You're frightening me!"
Larewyn took Persys' hands and kissed them. "I'm sorry, sister. I'm all right, I promise. It's just..." She trailed off, staring into the pond and the moonlight reflected on its surface. "I never told you how fast it all happened." She looked at Persys. "One day I was out riding by myself in the fields behind our summer house, and the next thing I know he's riding beside me. There was over a hundred of his nobles with him! A hundred!" She gave a short, hysterical laugh. "I couldn't believe it was actually him, and then he wanted to dine at my house! My house! My mother about had a heart attack when I came back home with his entire court behind me." She laughed again, and Persys smiled.
"You said it was like a dream."
"It was, oh, it was! I thought I was the luckiest girl to be sitting across from the lord prince in my own supper hall!" She smiled wistfully, sadly. "And then, just a few days later, mother says I'm to be lady empress. She was more excited about it than I was. And it was only two months after that we were married. I didn't even plan the wedding. My mother did most of the work, and I just went along with all of it. And now..." She sighed, turning back to the water. "I hate the palace, Persys," she admitted quietly. "It's so damn big and silent, and it's not just the servants who creep about on tiptoe. All of us act like we're not supposed to be here – well, except for my mother, of course. She's oblivious to everything." Larewyn shook her head, inhaling deep as if to clear away her troubled thoughts. She looked at Persys again. "I'm sorry about this." She smiled, sheepish. "I sound like such a spoiled girl don't I?"
Persys shook her head as she embraced her sister once more. "No. You sound like someone who's about to be a mother for the first time. I would be scared to death too."
They leaned into one another again, splashing their toes in the warm water, and listening to the occasional ha-caa of the nightbirds.
"It's not just the baby," Larewyn murmured after awhile.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm afraid for everything. Mother says I shouldn't watch the news feeds so much, but I can't help it. There's nothing to do all day except look at paint samples for the nursery, or cloth samples for my gowns, or eat my meals in big, empty halls and listen to mother go on and on about her stupid gossip. And now Doctor Grund wants me to go on bed rest, but I told him I was fine as long as I didn't exert myself too much. And, of course, mother takes his side, so I have to listen to her nag me all day when she thinks I'm on my feet too much, which is about every five seconds." Larewyn gave a rueful laugh and shook her head. "So, most of the time, I have nothing to watch but the wall screen."
"Oh, Lare, your mother's right. There's so many other shows on besides the news. What was the name of the movie we used to watch when we were girls? The one about Lady Princess Shaness?"
Larewyn sat up and turned to Persys, gripping her hands. "Tell me, Per, what's the fighting like on Cyrinaad? Is it really as violent as they say it is on the news? Are the Drigald really behind the insurgency?"
"I..." Persys appeared flustered, and she pulled away from Larewyn. "I don't know. I never asked. We never went anywhere near the military zones anyway. Why do you care so much?"
"Why don't you? The Emperium is in a state of crisis, Per. There have never been this many uprisings against the military or the senate in a thousand years. What if this –" she threw out her hands to encompass the gardens and the palace behind them "- is all gone tomorrow?" She leaned forward, her eyes wide and bright, and she whispered earnestly, "I hear the servants whispering. Some believe that the Drigald have over a million followers, and the bombings in the major cities are only going to get worse. Do you think it's true? Surely you must have talked to somebody in your escorts near the military zones!"
"Larewyn, enough!" Persys stood, reaching for her shoes. "You shouldn't talk about such things!" she whispered. "You have no idea who could be listening!"
Larewyn nodded, dejected. "I know. You're right. I just..." She trailed off, shaking her head again. "Never mind. Hand me my shoes?"
Persys complied, forcing a smile. "May I sleep in your room tonight?"
"Of course," Larewyn brightened. "Eren is off homeworld on some secret envoy."
"What's he like?" Persys asked, taking her sister's arm as they started back towards the palace. "Besides good looking."
Larewyn giggled, but her laughter faded quickly. "Yes, he's handsome, but..." She shrugged. "He loves me, I think. He's always giving me little gifts every now and then – jewelry, headdresses, new gowns. The baby's crib is made from some special wood that's not even from the Emperium. Eren had it imported secretly from somewhere in the Federation."
Persys nodded. "But..."
Larewyn sighed. "He's temperamental, like all men. And no, he's never struck me, and he's only been angry with me once. I accidentally interrupted an important meeting with his private council because I wanted to surprise him with the news of my pregnancy. But mostly he loves me, treats me like a lady empress." She smiled wistfully. "For a month after we were married we made love every night."
Persys giggled. "Is he..."
"Oh yes, Per, he's more than enough. Although he does get a little...temperamental in the bedroom too."
Persys' eyes widened. "He's not into anything...kinky, is he?"
"Oh, lords no!" Larewyn laughed. "He just occasionally likes it a little...rough."
Their laughter echoed off the high ceilings of the palace corridor as they made their way back to Larewyn's chambers.
( 2 )
The sun had almost set, bathing the eastern horizon in bronze and emerald fire, when Senator V'Ruk's hovercar arrived at Senator Ossias' sprawling estate outside of Gtheldron. An attendant opened the door, allowing V'Ruk and his wife to step out, and
then motioned to the walkway leading up to the house from the landing pad.
"Senator Ossias is waiting in the parlor for you, senator. Please follow me."
V'Ruk merely nodded and fell in step behind the attendant, his wife slipping her arm into her his. Behind them, the pilot was already lifting off, guiding the hovercar to a hangar in the fields beyond the estate. Saan glanced around at the spacious gardens and neatly manicured lawns. The lujit trees were in full bloom, their gloriously colored blossoms adding an explosion of rainbow to the twilit landscape. The last rays of the dying sun glinted and shimmered off the tall, glass windows of the stone and brick mansion, making it appear as if one side of the house was ablaze.
"Lovely place," Lizella murmured to Saan. He nodded distractedly.
The attendant led them down a long hall and paused at the entrance to the parlor. Antique tapestries adorned the walls of the corridor, and the thick carpet muffled their footsteps. Saan glanced through arched doorways as he passed them, peering into rooms that were decorated with antique furniture and statuary of various height and size. The whole place seemed more a museum than a place of residence, and it seemed the attendant was the only staff present that evening.
Ossias turned from the fireplace to greet his guests. "Saan! Lizella! I'm so glad you could come early. I trust my impromptu invitation wasn't too much of an inconvenience for you."
R'Mot's wife, D'Vina, resplendent in an evening gown of shimmering silver and emerald, stepped forward. "Lizella, so good to see you again. Let's leave the men to their wine and politics. I want your opinion on the appetizers. Our chef is trying a new recipe."
The attendant closed the doors after the women, leaving V'Ruk and Ossias alone.
"Your invitation was more of a surprise than an inconvenience," V'Ruk observed warily.
Ossias smiled, nodding, as he poured two glasses of wine from the sidebar. "I understand, and I do apologize. You and I haven't seen eye to eye on many things." He handed a glass to his guest.
"That is an understatement," Saan replied, sipping his wine. "You and I are political opposites, R'Mot."
"Yes, we are. And yet, we both serve the Emperium, and I know that you treasure the ideals of the Old Republic as much as I do."
"What is the purpose of this dinner tonight?" V'Ruk asked, cutting to the point. Verbal swordplay was something he had never developed a tolerance for, much less reveled in the way that R'Mot always seemed to.
Ossias smiled and nodded again. "Yes, of course. Very well." His expression turned sober as he continued. "I think it's time that we began discussing the future."
"By 'we' you mean the Imperial Senate?"
"Some of us, yes. The other guests tonight will be Farran, Tasitan, Nyrix, Lansa, and Brathev. It's time for us to put our differences aside and discuss what is best for the Emperium."
Saan took another sip of his wine and glanced around the parlor.
"I'm a Sholm'Ryy, Saan, same as you. The Talik'Jhor have no eyes and ears in my house. There are ASD fields active at all times in every room, just to be sure." Ossias motioned to a pair of armchairs near the tall windows that looked out on the northern grounds of the estate. "Sit. We only have an hour before the others arrive."
Still wary, Saan accepted the invitation, balancing his wineglass on the ornately carved arm of his chair. "I sense a conspiracy working in that calculating mind of yours, R'Mot. If you're implying what I think you're implying, then you and I are treading on dangerous ground."
"It is not treason to serve the ideals and the honor of the Emperium; the Old Emperium, I mean. The Republic that once existed for two thousand years. The one that our current lord emperor, his father, and his grandfather have allowed to decay and fall into ruin." The elderly senator leaned forward, his tone earnest. "Tell me, Saan, when did the laws change to allow the Talik'Jhor to possess an entire star system? Why do they suddenly have the power to command soldiers to conduct mass arrests of civilians? And when was the last time that a lord emperor served as an executioner?" He paused, watching V'Ruk's expression, waiting for a response.
Saan shifted in his seat, staring into his wine. After a few moments he looked at Ossias. "You're right. What Erengaar did last year to Senator Koden was unconscionable. He had no authority or power to do what he did."
"I agree. And yet, was there a special tribunal convened to bring about charges? That is the law, is it not? The lord emperor has never been above the law, and Erengaar would not be the first in the last thousand years to be deposed because of his unlawful actions. So why has the law in this instance been abandoned?"
V'Ruk sighed, tapping a nervous finger against the rim of his glass as he gazed out over the darkening landscape. "Is that what this is about, R'Mot? You want to convene a tribunal to bring charges against the lord emperor?"
Ossias sighed and shook his head. "No. It's too late for that. If only for the fact that you and I would be the only ones voting for it."
Saan looked at him. "This is a constitutional monarchy, R'Mot. The senate holds the power, not the lord emperor. We should have nothing to fear from him."
"Really? Is that truly what you have witnessed for the last twenty years that you've been serving in that Hall? Because that's not what I've seen. Five years ago, when Emkai became too ill to sit on the throne, we should have convened a tribunal to declare him unfit to rule and crowned Erengaar. But there was no tribunal. The option wasn't even suggested. We simply allowed Broen to sit in place of the lord emperor. And now, ever since the loss of the assault legion, have we voted against any of Erengaar's tax measures? Have we explored other measures for economic relief besides more taxes?"
V'Ruk stood angrily, pacing to windows, his back to Ossias. The older senator allowed him to fume quietly while sipping his wine. After a minute or two, Saan turned to his colleague. "You're right. The senate has lost its power over the lord emperor. We have also lost much of the respect and power that we had over the people of this empire. If you think it's too late to convene a special tribunal, then what is your answer for all of this corruption and cowardice?"
R'Mot stood, closing the gap between them, and lowering his voice. "We need to depose Erengaar. You and I, and the others I invited here tonight, are the only ones whom I believe capable of carrying out this act. A tribunal will never work, because the majority of the senate will vote no. Most of them are either too scared or simply content to let the lord emperor run rampant."
"Or they all believe that the problems facing our empire from within and without have become so great and so many in number that it's too late to do anything about them."
"Is that what you believe, Saan?"
V'Ruk scowled, saying nothing.
"Why are you so afraid?" Ossias challenged him.
"Because what you are suggesting is going outside the law! The very thing that you are accusing Erengaar of doing! It's treason, R'Mot! What makes our actions right and his wrong?"
"Because ours are for the good of the empire! He – like his father and his grandfather – is acting selfishly, focused only on the conquering of the other empires around us and nothing else!"
"And that's what you believe has caused all of our current problems? The Third Emperium was what it was because we conquered the worlds around us, R'Mot! We invaded planets, subjugated their native races, and built an empire on the backs of slaves and greed. How is any of that different from what is happening now?"
"You said it yourself the other night during our special session," Ossias countered. "We no longer have the military might to keep those worlds under submission. You're right, we have built this Fourth Emperium by military might and force. But when Nejra discovered that alien gateway, S'elrim and his progeny became too greedy. They insisted on pouring all available resources into the assault fleets, without any thought to the consequences if that legion should be lost!" He turned away, calming himself, and then continued quietly, "I am not saying that the senate is blameless in all of this. We allowed S'elrim, an
d Emkai, and now Erengaar to lead us down this path, and now our only choice is to overthrow the monarchy and gain back our power before it's too late."
"Which is the aim of the Shouk Drigald, is it not?"
R'Mot turned to his friend. "It is. But I don't agree with their methods. Nor do I agree with their leadership. Galoret Ain has no morals or scruples. He sees nothing wrong with sacrificing innocent civilians for his cause, nor does he seek a peaceful redress for his grievances against the monarchy."
"And you do?"
"Yes!" Ossias insisted. "You and I have known each other for twenty-two years, Saan! Do you honestly believe that I would endorse violence the way those kaln do?"
"I don't know, R'Mot! Both you and the Drigald want a new lord emperor on the throne! What difference does it make if the deposition is peaceful or violent?"
"If you have to ask, then you are even more blind and naïve than I thought," Ossias replied bitterly. He sighed, turning back to the window.
V'Ruk shook his head, fearful. "No, R'Mot, I can't be a part of this. Treason is still treason, even if it is for the right reasons. We must take the risk of calling for a vote of a special tribunal."
"And what if the majority votes no?"
"How do you know they will? You said yourself a moment ago that those of us here tonight are the most influential in the current Hall of State. What if instead of trying to talk them into treason, you talk them into voting for the tribunal? They, in turn, will use their influence on the others. You and I are Sholm'Ryy, R'Mot. Let us use that influence and power to get a tribunal convened. Then we will see what happens when we formally present the charges of murder. There is another execution besides Koden's that Erengaar must answer for."
"Yes," Ossias nodded. "I haven't forgotten about Doctor Rimshar." He sipped his wine, frowning thoughtfully.