"Your examinations are going to start tomorrow." Derran gathered all of them together in the cantina. Less than four hundred candidates were still left in the program, thirty-seven from his own group. "I am very proud of all of you…that is why I want you to go to you barracks, relax tonight and fall asleep early. A big day is waiting for you tomorrow, and I want all of you to have the best possible chances of finishing the program and become the very first group of emperor's investigators."

After finishing that short speech, Derran decided to answer the call he received earlier from the council. They wanted to see him in private in the large meeting room in the office building. Surprisingly all eight were there, in person, all dressed ceremonially in their long black robes again, not taking their stares of him.

It all made Derran feel very uneasy.

After declining their cup of steaming herbal tea, one of them stood up and started to talk. It was the only woman on the council, the emperor’s mother.

"We wanted to talk to you before the events of tomorrow are to take place," she started in a very cardinal tone. "Almost a year ago, we selected over two thousand possible candidates to train for the position of a new division of law enforcement. We are very pleased to see that so many of them are still present here today.

“Even though they are supposed to have their big exam tomorrow, they have actually been tested on and off during their stay with us. That is part of the reason why so few of them still remain with us.”

“That was our plan from the start…To create an isolated environment where we could get to know them, where we could teach them as well as constantly monitor them and continuously grade them in the area which we consider important for the duties they are to perform later.”

Derran picked up a cup of tea and set down. He figured, by then, that the meeting might go on for a while.

“So, the subjects have been undergoing testing ever since they came here. We were particularly interested in the following areas:

“Number one was intelligence. Most were screened before they came, but they were also repeatedly tested on their basic intelligence and how well they can remember information and interpret that information. They were also tested on how well they can conduct themselves when the unexpected situation arises, how well they can manage situations with no established patterns to guide them through it. We consider that the purest test of intelligence, how well a person can adapt to the changing environment.

"The second area of interest was naturally physical elements. What kind of endurance they have, can they learn the skills necessary to defend themselves or subdue the threat when it emerges? And how do they manage the power, limitless power, once they acquire it? Does the power intoxicate them, or do they yield it according to the principles of justice and fairness?"

Derran wanted to say, 'They are still young, learning… Can't expect them to go from spoiled brats to cold-blooded assassins in a matter of weeks.' But the sternness in her eyes said that no commenting would be appreciated, so he just let her talk on.

“But those were just the basic testing. What we wanted to know, is their moral fiber. So we also tested them, as much as we could, on moral integrity, honesty, basic human principles… I do not think I need to explain those very much to you, and why they are so important for the job that we are preparing them for.

“We kept on scoring them from 1 to 10 with 10 being the top grade, giving them scores as each of the opportunity presented itself. For example, when one subject found out he could order three lunches on his card which was supposed to be programmed to permit only one, how did he react? If their behavior during the selection process didn’t provide enough ground for grading, then we created special situations for them…

“So, in a way, this time they spend during the training wasn’t as much about training them for the final exam as much as it was used to select a few that we thought had enough dedication and integrity to become one of the most promising new members.”

“So, it was all part of a lie?” Derran finally interrupted.

“Yes, you are absolutely right.” Senator Sulivaro answered it. “I mean, we wanted to train them. They had classes in ten different subjects so far, and they will continue to receive even more education, ranging from engineering to economical modeling. But we thought that testing them without them knowing they were being tested was the most perfect way to do it all.”

“So tomorrow…?” Derran still asked.

“All of them have already passed. Their test scores in the subjects have only orientation value. You do not think that we would trust the future of our empire to an outcome of a single test?” The iron lady tried to explain.

“Yes, they all passed.” The senator added. “Otherwise they would not be here…but their education has to continue…”

“You could see it for yourself on Vazz. They are not ready.”

“Well, a few of them are more prepared than others…the age difference also plays a big role here.” Derran tried to defend them

"It's not about that… They and their families will start to earn compensation from the program as of tomorrow. We know a few of those kids are from very well-off families, but mostly they come from extremely economically-challenged backgrounds, and the reason they are here is because of their financial situations. They will be happy to hear that, we know. Their families can depend on it."

“That is good…At the time when unemployment is so high…” Derran was saying, “And it is only fair.”

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Everyone nodded their heads, many sipped on their teas, and a short moment of silence Derran used to start adding things up.

“We have actually called you here to talk to you about something more than that.” Senator Sulivaro stood up again, slowly sipping the hot tea, waiting for the tea as well as words to sink in. “Actually, the students were not the only ones being tested here. We also wanted to select people who had experience and see how they would fare… We placed them in authority-filled positions, such of drill sergeants and subject teachers.”

Derran didn’t like where this conversation was suddenly heading, and a frown on his face clearly showed it. He looked at all of them and saw all their eyes on him, waiting for his reaction as he took it all in.

“Your scores… they are off charts, by any psycho-physical model, by any pre-set testing standard we used.”

"And we used many…" one of the other councilmen joined in.

“You scored off the chart in almost every area…Far better than anybody else we tested here and elsewhere,” the senator was blunt. “We want you.”

"We were actually hoping to get you even before the program started... You were on top of our list. But we needed to make sure you were the right man for the job, really sure." Derran thought about the assassin he killed only a few weeks ago and was not so sure.

"You have to understand, with your credentials, history...”

“Your judgment is impeccable-”

“And so is your moral compass-”

“The way you protected those kids-“

“…that’s what the empire needs, someone to clean it, but with enough…”

“…kindness and empathy to protect the weak and innocent…” Suddenly all of them were talking at the same time, excited voices rising on top of each other.

“We have nobody that is as good as you, not even close…”

"And how could we expect some 20 years old to be able to complete some of the toughest jobs that space can throw at them?"

"They are good kids, really good kids!" Derran tried to defend them, but he knew he didn't have to. It was not about the kids. It was about him. Still, his voice stopped them, and he had himself a moment to think about it all. Still, the numbers did not add up correctly.

"Yes, but they are just kids...Most of them didn’t have to face a serious responsibility in their lives before they came here. They need a guiding hand, they need you." Senator Sulivaro said seeing how hard it was for Derran to start processing it all.

“Your pay will be off the charts as well. If you want to, you can actually suggest it yourself, and we will consider it… “

“You would be the first Emperor’s Chief Investigator, with the power to investigate anyone, judge anyone and prosecute them at the same time…just like you did with Siritus Faraz, the man who planted that bomb which killed Virkle.”

“You know about that?”

"Sure… we tracked every second of your life as soon as we considered you for this post, long before you even came here."

Derran was not sure he liked it, but Sulivaro offered a smile and mild words, “You see, you are already a CEE, you just didn’t know it yet.”

It was all very flattering, but the whole realization was very much troubling him.

"Now, if you need time to think it over-"

"If I need time to think it over..." Derran interrupted the councilman, "...then this job is definitely not for me."

The councilmen, hearing his words, exchanged glances, hopeful glances as if they were drafting the top dog for their team. It did not go unnoticed by Derran.

“So what kind of assignments you want me to do?” He asked them after a long minute of silence, testing them.

“Actually, your assignments will be tough… You know your life will constantly be in danger.”

“Yes, but what would be the first one you would want me to look at?” he pushed.

Senator Sulivaro exhaled a long breath before he continued. "First of all, we want you to find out who was leaking information. The kidnapping of the children on Vazz, that had nothing to do with us. Leaking that you were here working with us… only a few knew about it. Somebody leaked the information that was very restricted."

“Maybe the Army?” Derran asked.

"No, they didn't have that information. Also, there was another leak. Some of the children knew there were being tested. That is why they raided your office when the bomb exploded. Nobody, besides nine of us and the emperor himself, knew about this. It is obvious that someone had released the information that we were conducting grading during the training process...”

“I didn’t know about this, and I am pretty sure no instructor did... If they did know, I would have known as well.”

"Yes, we know that... Nobody was supposed to know. It was supposed to stay a secret. Clearly, it did not."

"Yes, that will be your first mission, see which one of us messed things up, find out which one of us broke the code."

"The real question here is…" Senator Sulivaro walked over to him, and stood face to face next to him, putting his hand on his shoulder, "whether you are ready to stop being a soldier and become something more than that. Are you prepared to become an CEE who will have the power to prevent future wars, who will permit that the empire never needs another soldier to begin with? Are you ready to do that, and do that right because, you as I both know that the job will probably cost you your life, sooner or later."

Derran took his eyes off the senator's and looked through the window. He was certain that the gunshot he could barely hear came from somewhere from outside. Then another one, and another one…

He let senator’s words hang in the air as he moved toward the window, his eyes racing toward the barracks nested by the edge of the forest, racing just in time to see the far-out guard tower being blown to pieces in a large fireball explosion.

The ground shook. People’s screams could already be heard.

“Is that part of your testing as well?” He asked Sulivaro, but as he saw the confusion and fear wash over his face, he knew the answer before Sulivaro shook his head in denial.