The emperor, or Emperor Vran Goula III as he was formally named, stood before him surrounded by guards. As is custom of the imperial family he was dressed head to toe in warm colors. The darkest of colors were a dark brown that was almost black, the lightest of which was a flush of pink thread of the embroidery on his fine silk tunic. The buckle at his right breast was that of deep gold and even the ornate sword at his hip was of that color.
But despite all the finery of silk and gold that decorated the emperor’s body, Camaz couldn’t help but think the man himself was quite average looking. If it wasn’t for his clothes, his plain looks would make him lost to the crowd of middle class folk or even commoners. Perhaps that wasn’t fair - it wasn’t a requirement to be handsome to be an emperor. However a part of Camaz thought there should be at least something different to set apart the most powerful being in the empire. It didn’t even have to be something visible. The uncomfortable truth was that the emperor simply didn’t have that much of a presence.
He didn’t have much of anything. His involvement in the empire seemed cordial at best, only showing up to significant events like the new year or during the celebratory week of his birth date. His decrees were usually relayed by officials and he never gave public speeches beyond the ones expected of him. It seemed to Camaz the emperor was content lounging away in his palace with not a care in the world. As his policies and decrees didn’t step on anyone’s toes, nobody gave a flying shit about it.
Except at that moment, it seemed that Emperor Goula III had a lot of presence with what was happening right over his palace.
“Can we speak plainly?” Camaz asked. “So I may ask questions and get no deceptive answers?”
“I don’t quite understand why the man they call the ‘spymaster’ requires answers in the first place,” the emperor said pointedly.
“Fine. If we’re to speak plainly. Spymaster wasn’t really a title for me to have. Your court thought it would be useful for my interrogation abilities and staffed me here for easy access,” Camaz said. He stared back at the emperor. “Now your turn. You knew about the Gates and the Bringers, didn’t you?”
“It would be remiss of an emperor to not know about his empire,” the emperor said.
“So you knew and you let it happen?”
“Have you forgotten your Sekrelli ties so easily, Camaz? I am not the highest power in this world.” The emperor looked pityingly at him. “Perhaps your time with the Caelisians have convinced you otherwise, but we do have gods and they do rule over us.”
“And you’re fine with Gates opening and monsters slaughtering innocent children all around your domain?” Camaz pointed at the dark line floating above the Heart. “You’re fine with whatever this catastrophe is about to bring to your home? You’re fine with a god that brings this to your people?”
“It isn’t about what we are ‘fine’ about,” the emperor snapped. “It is a holy decree. Even someone such as I know it’s hubris to defy it. Much less someone like you?”
Camaz recognized the note of reverence in the emperor’s voice. It was the same kind of heated belief that warmed Moulu’s voice back out east. “She got to you too,” Camaz murmured in realization. “Mind. Did you speak with her?”
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“Of course. Such is my privilege,” the emperor drew himself up to full height. “She spoke of many things that you will never have the luxury to know, like how the world used to be. Of how things would change for the better. So don’t presume you know of her will, professor, because you don’t.”
“What can she have possibly said to you that would convince you to offer up your entire nation?” Camaz demanded. He gestured again at the dark line over the capital. “If that is anything like a Gate… your highness, you realize she’s about to do something drastic, don’t you? If that is like a Gate, we are all going to die.”
“That is the start of the finale,” the emperor insisted. “The final work of our god. We will return to the days when every child will be born blessed with powers beyond our comprehension. Gaians will no longer be stunted. Our people will no longer be powerless. ”
“Powerless? What in Part’s name are you talking about?”
“That information isn’t locked away at all. The fact that Gates were previously opened to bring equilibrium to the Great Solvent that surrounds us.”
Camaz has heard of this. In recent years, that has receded to being the footnotes of Gates as nobody cared anymore why they were brought to the world in the first place. The theory was that Solvent varied in density throughout the world - areas with higher levels of Solvent yielded a population more prevalent in abilities. The story was that the first Gates were opened to transfer Solvent from high density areas to low, therefore giving the chance for everyone across the empire to be blessed with abilities. Of course, that did not go as planned. Research on Solvent density had been halted to Camaz’s knowledge because of the Gate crisis. “So you’ve agreed with your god to open Gates to encourage this change in your people? Why did you not confer with the Academy on this? Plenty of academics would jump at the chance to study this and do it properly.”
The emperor laughed. Camaz exchanged a look with Yepla at the sound. He also saw that Professor Gardlo had elbowed his way to the front during the course of their conversation. “Why would I ask the Academy to do anything when the god herself tells me to do it?” the emperor asked.
“How could you possibly think this is a good idea?”
The emperor sobered a little while thinking of the answer. “The generation I rule will go down in history as the weakest,” he said finally. “Not one of my heirs have anything more than passing manus abilities. Furthermore the Academy has been reduced to scholars and bookkeepers content to doodling runes and pretending they are anything close to the solvent manipulators of old.”
Camaz could almost hear the unspoken part of the emperor’s spiel: Emperor Goula III himself was devoid of any notable abilities. It was a point that was notably glossed over in any official books or documents. “Consorting with a Part in the hopes of gaining abilities never ends well,” Camaz said. “I know that first hand.”
“It’s something you will never understand,” the emperor said heatedly. “It’s a price I’m willing to pay. It isn’t something you can refuse for me.”
“You actually think this will work,” Camaz surprised himself by sounding entirely condescending despite being completely terrified with everything his emperor had said. “You think you and yours will be spared. She’ll come for you too. This chaos you are submitting your empire to, it will come for you.”
The emperor drew himself up again in indignation. “No, I am a child of God.”
“You? She doesn’t give a single shit about you,” Camaz laughed. “And I think you know that too, or else you wouldn’t be here.”
Camaz saw the emperor’s hands clenched into fists and felt the fury ripple through the Great Solvent - a sensation he felt even in his stunted state. It wasn’t until he felt the Librarian’s insistent tug on his sleeve he really felt that he’d finally said too much. Something changed in the emperor’s eyes, like a light that turned dark.
“Get him.” The emperor gave the order and the sound of over two dozen guards rushing him filled the air.