Chapter 12
Doing Your Dirty Work for You
8th of Sixthmoon, 6 Charles 9
Saintcharles, Merice Province, Kingdom of Byrandia
One of the junior officers in General Adeen's entourage—Unterleutnant Kovachev if the King recalled correctly—was making adjustments to a disc placed in the center of the table in the King's Study, speaking in Imperial as he did. It would seem that he was communicating with their fleet to set up the connection. King Charles wondered what sort of technology he was using to communicate over such distances that was so small you could not easily see it. Perhaps he was using the plane that brought them as an intermediary. If that was the case, the technology seemed more feasible even by Miravellan standards.
Sometimes the King wondered about why he kept trying to analyze the Imperials' technology. It went well beyond idle curiosity. Was he just trying to adjust his mindset to the new standard or was it something else? Was there some rebellious part of him that sought to resist the Empire and was eagerly searching for any weakness he could find? If the latter was true, he was going to have to fight that impetus with every fiber of his being. There was no hope in resistance. He knew that. The Palatinians were ably demonstrating that to the world this very moment. And that was the reason he was sitting there now.
Kovachev said something to General Adeen and a green light began blinking on the disc. The hole in the center of the disc glowed brightly and an image appeared. It was a middle-aged man in a more austere service dress version of the Imperial Navy uniform. He had deep-set eyes, a broad nose and extremely close-cropped hair that seemed to be usual for Imperial officers but was probably intended to hide the fact that he was going bald.
The moment he appeared, General Adeen shouted, "Admiral on deck!"
The King did not spring to attention like a new recruit, but he did rise, prompting those with him to do the same. He did not know if Imperial Navy protocol was the same as the Royal Navy's, but he assumed that it was and did not salute as they were indoors and uncovered. General Adeen was not saluting, so it would appear that his instincts were correct.
"Herr Admiral, Charles of Byrandia," the General said.
"Good morning, Herr Admiral," the King said. "Thank you for taking the time to speak with me."
"Take a seat," the Admiral said. "Let's make this quick."
So the challenge for King Charles was to make his case before the Admiral's patience wore out.
"In that case," the King said, "Herr Admiral, allow me to get right to the point. King Seleuceus of Palatinia has acted foolishly against you and his people are suffering for it. If it were only a matter of a single nation rising up, I would be inclined to not interfere. However, it would appear that Palatinia's allies in the League of Six are rallying to his banner and others may be joining them.
"If you will forgive my bluntness, Herr Admiral, your reputation precedes you. You repay insults to your Empire a thousandfold, even ten thousandfold. If the situation gets further out of control, you would not hesitate to burn this world. That is what we have been led to believe and I have no reason to doubt it.
"As King—though I will not be one for much longer—, I cannot allow such a fate to befall my people and as a Miravellan, I do not want to see the innocent many swept away with the wicked few."
"Not everyone is so keen to save their own skin," the Admiral replied, "or else we wouldn't be in our current situation."
"The more you enrage, Herr Admiral, the more you will rage."
"Are you looking for a future as a poet?"
"It seems to me that the only way to save the world is to put down this rebellion as quickly as possible and at minimal cost to the Empire."
"You have an actual plan?"
"I do. Rather than risk your own units to suppress the rebels, I propose that the matter be dealt with internally."
"Internally?"
"Yes, Herr Admiral. Allow us the opportunity to demonstrate our loyalty to His Majesty the Emperor while taking responsibility for our own."
The Admiral scowled and said, "You're a smooth talker. I hate smooth talkers, especially the ones who think they can dress up their ambitions looking all respectable."
"I have presented myself exactly as I am, Herr Admiral," the King countered. "There is no hidden agenda here."
"And you expect me to believe that?" the Admiral balked.
"What would you have me say, Herr Admiral? Do you want me to say that I want this planet for myself? That I'm planning on trading my crown for the title of planetary governor and I'm going to do it by stealing your glory to magnify myself in the Emperor's eyes? Would that satisfy you?"
With all the weight you would give to ordering a coffee, the Admiral said, "Somebody shoot this man."
General Adeen's bodyguards promptly raised their weapons and trained them on the King. The Watchmen responded in kind, aiming not only at the bodyguards but also the Imperial officers in the room.
Losing his cool for the first time the King had seen, a panicked General Adeen exclaimed, "Herr Admiral!"
"Hold your fire!" the King shouted and through some miracle, everyone did. Keeping his tone level, he then told the Admiral, "You're about to have a room full of dead men and a planet in full-scale revolt. Is that what you want? You have our willing cooperation. Half of your work is already done and you'd throw all that away in a fit of pique? Surely not, Herr Admiral."
The Admiral continued to scowl, but after a moment he waved his hand and said, "Belay that order."
The Imperial bodyguards pulled their weapons back and with a nod from the King, the Watchmen held their carbines at port arms.
"Men like you are dangerous," the Admiral said. "But I'm not making you into a martyr. No, I've got something better in mind. I'm going to drag your name through the mud. You're going to be the most hated man on the planet for a hundred years. You want this war? It's yours, but you'd better produce results or we do things my way."
"Understood," the King replied.
The Admiral stared at King Charles for a while, as if he was searching out any cracks in the facade. He did not strike King Charles as the sort who had a good poker face, so if he found any sort of weakness he thought he could use to his advantage, it would no doubt be plain for all to see. The fact that he still had the same scowl on his face said otherwise.
"I'll send some staff officers your way to coordinate your operations. God willing, I won't have to speak to you again, but if I do, it'll be once you're ready to serve up this planet to me on a fucking silver platter. We clear?"
"Crystal clear, Herr Admiral."
The Admiral moved his hand and the connection was terminated. General Adeen had mostly regained his composure, but the sweat was still beaded on his forehead. Everyone else in the room, Byrandian and Imperial alike, were still on edge.
The King had admittedly taken a risk in the way he handled the Admiral, but it was a calculated risk. Based on what he had heard, he had a decent grasp on the man and it did not take much time speaking with him to confirm his suspicions. He was dangerous, volatile and violent, but he was also easy to manipulate. He was no fool but not half as clever as he thought he was. If he had a weaker sense of self-preservation, it would be suicide to bait him as the King did, but he also would not have survived so long nor gone so far in his career.
It was still like walking a tightrope, but thanks to the Admiral himself withdrawing from direct involvement, the situation would be easier to manage. Now if he could only get the rest of the scenario to play out like he planned...
Looking to the people gathered in the room, he said, "Come now, gentlemen, surely you're not going to let one little near-death experience rattle you. We've got a lot a work to do. The Lord Admiral wants his platter."