Admiral Ko-tus Vang stood at attention before the only man in the entire Empire that Vang considered more important than himself. He was the Supreme Commander of the Zahnian Legion after all. If there was a threat to the Ethian galaxy whether it be from the outside or inside, his standing orders were to discover it, eliminate it, and ask questions later. So it was quite a shock, when Vang received his new orders from the Emperor.
“You have something to say, Admiral?” The Emperor asked as he peered at the Supreme Commander from the behind his massive white metal-ore desk. Those stone blue eyes colder than the white filled room Vang stood at attention in.
Vang’s mind whirled, trying to find a way to say what he wanted without offending the man before him. He realized that there really wasn’t one, but he had also known the Emperor a long time. They had been through much together over the years, and the Emperor usually appreciated Vang’s candor. Surely, he would understand since this was such an odd request.
“Excellency, forgive me for saying so, but is there not someone else that would be better to complete this task?”
The Emperor raised a cold and calculating eyebrow. “You think this task beneath you, Ko-tus?”
“Quite frankly, yes, sire.”
The other man sat back in his chair and sighed in a rare moment of disquiet. “Perhaps you are right, Admiral, but this matter is important to me and to the future of our Empire, and I wish for it to be you to see this through for me.”
Vang licked his lips as he decided how best to word his concern. “You just signed the Quazot Sector over to the Fazha, and in exchange they gave you the location of your lost son, which is something we haven’t been able to figure out ourselves for twenty years…” He found himself trailing off, not sure how to continue.
“Is there a question in there, Ko-tus, or do you just like repeating to me what I already know.”
Vang could feel the sweat starting to form on his brow under the hard glare of his superior, deciding that perhaps this had not been a wise course to take. The Emperor could be tolerant, but only to a point, even still, Vang would have felt he was coming up short in his duty if he kept his concern to himself. Vang quickly formulated words he hoped would convince the Emperor of why he brought this to his attention.
“Forgive me, sire, it just seems like the wrong time to be sending your Supreme Commander away from Ethia when those in the Fazha Rebellion are making power plays. They would expect you to go after your son. It is probably why they used that particular information to buy the succession of Quazot.
“We need to be ready, because I fear that this will only be the beginning of a bigger trouble for us. Perhaps, I can send Commander Setner. He excels at retrievals.”
The Emperor shook his head gravely. “This isn’t some renegade needing to be handled or lost magistrate I want retrieved, Ko-tus. This is my son, and while Setner might be capable of the task, you are the only one I completely trust in this matter. I need you to bring back my Heir. The future of the Empire will be determined by the success of this trip, so in truth, it is one of the most important tasks you will ever do for me.
“And I understand your concerns over the succession, I have them too. There is already a major backlash over this from the Kings. I’ve received an unending amount of hostile calls from the noble houses since I signed the new treaty with the Fazha. And despite the Fazha’s assurances, I think we both understand this treaty won’t end our trouble with them.
“But there are others who can be at the ready while you are away. I know you would prefer to be at the helm if anything should happen, but you have trained your men well, they will rise to the occasion if need be.”
The Emperor’s words did little to assuage Vang’s concerns. In the end, he supposed it did not matter. He would do as his Emperor commanded him. But Vang took his job quite seriously, and the last thing he wanted was to be on a fools errand when his presence would do more good in the Empire.
“Have you considered that it could be bad information. What if your son is not even there? It’s a long way to go to be wrong.”
The Emperor gave Vang a slow smile. “Come now, Ko-tus. You really don’t think I haven’t already considered that?”
Vang felt his face redden at the rebuke. Of course he did. There wasn’t much that got past the Emperor, especially with his Perception Dome-ni that helped him comprehend and see connections that ordinarily alluded others. Vang supposed he really was just coming up with excuses not to go.
Or it could be the fact that the whole treaty with the Fazha didn’t sit well with Vang in the first place. It wasn’t like the Emperor to bow to the demand of others. Certainly, the treaty came in the guise of a peaceful resolution to the decades of unrest among the Fazha population, but Vang knew better, so did the Emperor. The only thing that happened when you negotiated with zealots, was more strife and conflict. All the treaty did was delay it for a little while, or it could very well be a tactic to make a unexpected move against the Empire, and that worried Vang the most.
The Emperor tapped a finger on his desk like he normally did when he was half speaking and half in thought. “I very much doubt the Fazha would be stupid enough to give us bad information. They know what would happen once I learned the truth, and it would certainly be an end to a treaty they have put a lot of blood and effort into making a reality.”
Vang nodded as if this was something he had not considered, but of course he had. It was his job, after all, to consider all the possibilities of threat to the Empire. Granted, the Emperor was far better equipped to do that with his Dome-ni, but that didn’t mean that Vang didn’t put time and effort into the matter, especially when it concerned the Rebellion.
The Emperor was right, the lesser races of the Empire might be violent and unpredictable, but they would never put the newly signed treaty at risk. The Fazha collective had worked too hard to get it. But there was another angle that he had considered that could give the Rebellion plausible deniability if things didn’t go as planned in retrieving the lost Prince.
“Or something could happen and we never make it back, and they’d just say it wasn’t their fault and that anything could happen on a journey across the void. Also, the information the Fazha gave us is twenty years old. Your son could have moved on to a different planet, or even died, and again they would claim it wasn’t their fault.”
The Emperor nodded as if he was seriously considering all the things Vang said, but he knew better from all the decades of working with this man. As far as Emperor Ghar Zahn was concerned, this conversation was over. The only reason he allowed it to play out was to appease Vang so that he would feel better about temporarily leaving the protection of the Empire to his underlings while he completed the Emperor’s task.
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A pensive look came across the other man’s face. “I’ll be honest. I had lost hope of ever finding him long ago. When the Fazha first said that they knew the location of Adar, I was quite skeptical, figuring they were trying to use a painful old memory against me.
“But you saw the source origin of their information yourself after they surrendered it per the agreement with the treaty. You know it is as legitimate as it gets, and even if Aragon, Leeta, and Adar are not on that planet when you get there, I am sure they left traces as to where they may have went.”
Vang nodded. Yes, he had seen the recorded communication from the one who had been bold enough to kidnap the young Prince and take him away from the Empire––the one who had caused such an uproar twenty years ago, the infamous Aragon Remeer. Vang had to admit that capturing that traitor and bringing him back to the Emperor for the justice he so richly deserved was the most appealing part of the task he had been given.
“This new information has given me the real possibility of finding Adar and bringing him home––at long last,” the Emperor continued.
There was an inflection of hope in the other man’s voice. It was something Vang hadn’t heard or seen in the man in recent years. It softened Vang’s resistance more than anything else at this point, as he understood his superior on a far deeper level.
The success of this mission was personal for the Emperor. He had endured a terrible injustice when his youngest child had been taken from the White Palace so long ago. This was about not just righting that wrong, but bringing home a lost son. And what was more, the Emperor was putting his absolute trust in Vang to make that happen. That made Vang stand a little taller.
“But even if you come back empty-handed,” the Emperor was still speaking. “I will at least have an answer to what happened to my son. Twenty years is a long time, Ko-tus to live with such an uncertainty.”
Indeed it was. He had not yet stepped into his role of Supreme Commander at that time, but he had certainly been a part of the frantic search for the little Prince when he had disappeared right from his room without a trace.
Vang remembered the rage of his Emperor. He remembered the desperation of the people in his command as they scoured the far reaches of the Empire for years to only fail at finding the lost Prince. It had been a bad time for them all. It had been a hard failure to swallow.
Vang supposed that the task set before him was not completely without merit. It would allow him to settle the feelings of failure he had for not being able to return the Prince back to his father years before.
“Yes, it is, Excellency.” Vang blew out a long breath before continuing. “But if this is what you ask of me, then I shall do it.”
The Emperor’s face softened. “Thank you, my friend. That is all I can ask.”
“When do you want me to leave?”
“It will be a long trip and the sooner you get back the better. The Empire needs an Heir, and if it won’t be Adar, then I need to be considering the alternatives.” He sighed heavily at the last word.
Alternatives. Vang knew what that meant. There were three of them, but for different reasons, over the years the Emperor had found fault with them all. Vang supposed it might have been the disappointment that none of his others sons, except Adar, had presented with the Emperor’s Dome-ni of Perception.
In the Emperor’s eyes, that meant the other three were lesser and only adequate candidates to succeed him––not what he really wanted. It had created a lot of animosity between the Emperor and his other sons to the point that they were all barely on speaking terms. It would take a lot of effort on the Emperor’s part to smooth those old hurts if it was even possible. Vang supposed that at this point bringing back the lost son had a far better chance at success in producing a true successor to the throne than anything else.
“I’m getting to be an old man, Ko-tus. One day, my reign will come to a close,” the Emperor lamented.
Vang shuttered at the thought. The Emperor had managed to keep a tight reign on the vast number of star systems and governing bodies within the Ethian galaxy. Vang had an inside view of all that it took to maintain that authority over increasing hostility from the Rebellion and others over the past few decades. Even with a proper Heir, Vang wasn’t sure the future vitality of the Empire was guaranteed.
That led him to one last thing that had been gnawing at his consciousness throughout the conversation.
“He will be a grown man by now. This may complicate things. We do not know what he’s been told or how he was raised,” Vang said as gently as possible.
The Emperor’s face clouded as Vang expected it would. A long moment passed before the Emperor was able to speak.
“I would rather not speculate on what Aragon has done to influence my son these last years, but you are right Ko-tus, we have to expect the worst. I’m sure that man has poisoned my son against me in case they were ever found. One last parting shot at me, no doubt.
“Evaluate Adar and see where his is and give him basic instruction so that he has some idea of what to expect when he gets to Ethia. Also, take a Mind Bender with you to assess what damage has been done. You can be sure Aragon used his Dome-ni on him. The rest I will deal with when Adar returns.”
Vang nodded suspecting that this last part weighed the heaviest on the Emperor. It was far easier to mold a child than a grown man, especially with the abilities Adar had shown before he had been taken from the Empire. Vang wondered as he was sure the Emperor did, if the Prince would even be capable of being trained to become the Empire’s successor. Only time would tell, he supposed. First, he had the find the Prince.
“What are your orders concerning Remeer and the Prince’s mother?” Vang already knew the answer, but in this, he needed there to be full transparency. These two had brought about the greatest disturbance the Empire has seen in quite some time, and they needed to be dealt with properly.
The Emperor was quiet for a moment before he responded in a low voice vibrating with anger. “Bring them both back here for trial, but Aragon does not need to be in peak physical condition for that. Leave Leeta to me.”
That made Vang smile inwardly. Remeer had reached far beyond his station in life, and it would be satisfying to personally be able to deliver some overdue justice.
He was also glad the Emperor had absolved Vang of handling the Prince’s mother. He did not feel comfortable dealing out any sort of justice to her. She might be a traitor, but she was also technically still the Empress since the Emperor had refused to enter any more union contracts after his son’s abduction by his mother and her lover.
“But Ko-tus, I want to be absolutely clear on something.”
The hard tone in the Emperor’s voice caught Vang’s complete attention. He knew that timbre well and also knew that whatever came next was of the utmost importance.
“I do not know what you will face, or what you will find once you reach the planet’s location given to us by the Fazha. I will trust you to act as you see fit. But the single most important objective of this mission is to return Adar safely to Ethia, and if possible, in a cooperative manner. This is your greatest priority, even more than returning the traitors. It pains me to say that, but there it is just the same.”
Vang nodded gravely. He understood. He didn’t like it, but he would do as was asked of him, though secretly he hoped to bring all three of them back and present them before his Emperor. That would be quite the accomplishment indeed.
“Then see to it, Admiral. I expect a speedy return.”
Vang bowed low as he was dismissed. “And so shall it be,” he replied. He then straighten, turned on his heels and briskly marched from the Emperor’s office.
His mind whirled as he mentally considered all the things he would have to do before he left. He wasn’t sure how long he would be gone, but he also needed to make sure he planned for the unthinkable such as not returning at all. He was about to set out beyond the borders of the Ethian galaxy. Besides Remeer, the young Prince and the Empress, no one had done so in several millennium.
He had the coordinates of the planet, so at least he had a location to head for, but there could be any amount of surprises or unknowns he might encounter. There was a reason the Empire had closed its borders so long ago.
Vang discarded those thoughts for now. There was enough to worry about as he made his preparations. Besides, Remeer had made it to this planet without too much trouble. Granted, from the communication the Fazha had given them, it seemed Remeer’s ship had been damaged, but his ship was far inferior to the battle cruiser Vang would be helming for the trip.
The Admiral marched through the corridors of the White Place with a sense of optimism he hadn’t felt it quite some time. Now that he was committed to the mission of bringing back the Emperor’s lost Heir, a feeling of excitement came over him. He would do this task for the Emperor and perhaps then he could not only bring back the lost Heir, but bring about the justice of one of the Empire’s most wanted traitors. That put a bounce in Vang’s step that hadn’t been there for quite some time.