Over Powered

Chapter 13

Alaina knew she only had a small amount of time. She wiped away her tears and went to her room. She changed her cloths, and packed her things. She took one last look in the mirror. She still had her blonde hair, her grey t-shirt, black pants, with her charcoal combat boots.

It felt so wrong, leaving with no information for the tribe. She had failed her mission. She would go home and continue to be treated as a child. How could she go home that way? How could she face Cathy?

"Unless..." She muttered to herself.

Alaina had an idea, a suicidal idea. She grabbed her bag and rushed out the door. If she was lucky she could find the room where Alex was meeting the Emperor. She ran out of the room and down the hallway.

She turned one corner, then another. She soon lost track if where she was, what she was doing. She only knew that she was running, that her lungs and throat burned. Soon she came to the end of a long hallway. There was only one way out, the way she came. At the end of the hall, a single door.

She walked forward slowly and gazed upon the large door. It looked heavy, oak maybe, and elegant. There was a crisp coat of paint on the door. White, like everything else the Emperor made.

Alaina heard voices behind her. She didn't think, but pushed the door open and slid inside. Looked around the room at the shelves of books. A study. This must be the Emperor's study. The voices were getting closer to the room.

Alaina ran down to the end of the room and ducked under a large round desk. She hit her head on the edge of the table.

"Ow-" she said as the door on the other end of the room opened.

"-I'm just saying I don't agree." Said the first voice.

"I don't think you are seeing this from my point of view." Said the familiar voice she had come to love.

The two people walked towards the desk and sat down. Alaina crawled as close as she could to the center of under the circular desk. She squeezed her limbs into a tight knot and sat quietly waiting.

"Son," said a voice that Alaina assumed was the Emperor. "You have to understand what this marriage will do for our kingdom."

"Father," Alex started. "I understand how this marriage can help our country, but don't you think our country is big enough."

"The thing you should understand, son, is that an empire is never big enough." The Emperor explained "It always needs to grow. Look at the ancient people, the people Mageten, even the rebels. They all expanded their empires for one thing. Do you know what that is?"

Alaina couldn't see him, but she could almost sense Alex shaking his head.

"Power." The Emperor hissed. "Without power, a country can't function, without fear there is no power."

"Fear, father?" Alex asked.

"Fear, my son." The Emperor snickered. "That is how one runs a country. For if it's people do not fear it's leader, a country fails."

"I don't fallow, sir." Alex said.

"A man is easy to scare." The Emperor explains. "Simply take away his rights, his property, everything. Strip all his belongings down so he can't make a penny more then the man next to him, make sure he knows he is beneath you and can't raise above you."

The Emperor paused. Alaina held her breath, waiting for the Emperor to continue. She saw the Emperor's chair move and he stood. He began to pace the room. Trying not to be seen, Alaina crawled over to the edge of the circular desk.