The next day, Nordhi-sha’s parents and Bel-mar’s mother arrived at the royal estate. King Bel-mar waited until they settled into their rooms and ate before calling them to the council chamber. His son played quietly in a playpen in the corner.
“Mother, thank you for returning. Duke and Duchess, I beg your apologies for taking you from the comfort of your home, but I need you here. Before Rangpu was born, Nordhi-sha and I promised we would do everything in our power to raise our son ourselves. Recently, I have come to accept that I cannot do it alone.”
Duchess Charanpa-sha’s eyes welled up as she replied, “With Nordhi-sha gone, our home has grown too quiet. Your mother and I will happily help raise our grandson.”
Bel-mar tried to sound regal, but the tightness in his throat betrayed his emotions. “Thank you both. As much as I want to spend every minute with my son, my duties to the colony will require most of my attention. Only now do I understand why my father was absent so frequently.”
Turning to the Duke, he said, “Father-in-law, I know you have been retired for a few years. However, I need your expertise for the construction projects I have in mind. My ambitions are grand, and my timelines are aggressive. I can only succeed if someone with your skills is managing the projects. Will you join me?”
“Gurneet-sha has been nagging me about getting out of the house and I do admit I miss the hustle and bustle. When can I get started?”
“Today.” Bel-mar turned toward the door and shouted, “Artee, we are ready.”
The door opened and in marched Artee with a platoon of city planners and design and construction specialist androids.
King Bel-Mar addressed the expanded council. “Before we start the meeting, it is my duty, and humble honor, to formally thank all the android staff members here and throughout the colony. During our darkest days as illness and floodwaters ravaged the colony, they performed their duties without fail. I also want to thank our Minister of Security, Artee, for his steadfast devotion and unwavering confidence in me even when I had lost confidence in myself.”
After a round of applause, he continued. “During my cousin’s attempted coup, he accused my family of not doing enough to address the needs of the colony. Given recent events, I am sure others in the colony feel the way he does.”
This statement caused some murmuring among the council members before Bel-mar waved them to silence. “To tackle my most ambitious plans, we will need the full support of the people. Therefore, our first project needs to be visible and address a major problem, the roads. Repairing the flood damage is not enough. I want to expand them to make commerce between towns easier. Duke Binder-mar, I would like to hear your thoughts.”
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The Duke stood, cleared his throat to interrogate the council members. “Safety must be priority one. Minister of Health, what is the latest on the illness that has plagued the colony.”
“Good news. The spores are only contagious during extremely dry weather. The heavy rains seem to have knocked them out because we have seen no new infections. Additionally, research has discovered that fatalities were mostly in individuals with anemia or iron deficiencies.” The minister hung his head. “King Bel-mar, I only wish we would have known this before the queen’s passing.”
“Thank you,” said the Duke before pointing to the Minister of Transportation. “How badly did the floodwaters damage the roads?”
“Unimproved roads were the hardest hit, but they are also the easiest to fix and locals have already started. Almost all paved roads suffered cracks due to subsidence. A few bridges were washed out completely or will need to be repaired.”
Bel-mar spoke up, “How long do you estimate it will take to perform the repairs?”
“Well, your highness, I consulted with the Minister of Energy before the meeting. He regrets being too unwell to attend. In situations like this, we combine our work crews to repair roadways first so that power lines can be restrung. This results in faster repairs, but with the extensive roadway damage we are facing it could take our crews nine months or more. If we have a harsh winter as well...”
Disappointed groans filled the room.
The king asked, “What if we replaced the roads altogether instead of repairing them? Duke, when I was a boy you and my father took me on a tour of the colony ship. I remember you led us through a secure door to the museum warehouse where all the automated machinery used to build the colony is stored.”
The Duke’s face lit up. “The 3D construction printers! They can do in days what would take us weeks. All they need is their batteries charged and their resource bins filled with construction materials.”
A surge of optimism spread throughout the room like an electric current. Soon everyone was identifying and proposing solutions to issues the project might experience. When the meeting ended, Bel-mar picked up Rangpu and took him to the nursery.
The converted adjoining bedroom had become a permanent nursery, equipped with changing stations and a small kitchen for producing baby food. Bel-mar even asked the android repair technicians to install recharging bays for the nanny androids. The on-duty nanny-droid met Bel-mar and accepted the sleeping Rangpu.
“Thank you,” Bel-mar said, dropping the diaper bag. “I changed his diapers less than an hour ago. He has not eaten in three hours so will need to be fed when he wakes up.”
The android placed Rangpu into his crib. “I have green beans and applesauce already prepared. How has he been sleeping at night?”
With a yawn, Bel added, “He wakes up crying almost every hour. It has been hard on him and me as you can see. Any recommendations on how to get him to sleep for longer?”
“Has your majesty been picking him up every time he cries?” The nanny handed Bel-mar a clean diaper.
“I have,” Bel-mar replied while discarding the soiled diaper. “He seldom desires food or drink, so I do not know the reason for his crying.”
“Wait one minute when you hear him cry. If he stops, let him sleep. Picking him up every time teaches him to cry for attention.”
“I shall do that. Thank you for your expert advice. I will be in my study if you need anything.”