Chapter Two

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Silas, Second Planet of the Gala Star System

C.E. 10,165

As Adrianna waited outside the large burnished metal doors that lead to the viewers' gallery, she could not help but feel the dull aches behind her eyes and curse Andrew lightly for keeping her up so late last night in the Archives. Her more vehement curses were reserved for the Archives themselves and their surprisingly lacking amount of information on the Tylax System and the Tylaxian mercenaries that come from there. The only holo-file they had found of any substance had been an account of a devastating civil war that tore apart Armageddon's Dawn, the mercenaries' home world.

Adrianna felt woozy and wobbled in place a bit and so she leaned against the wall to keep herself from falling over. She was not sure of it was just from being tired or from the record setting heat. It was the height of the summer now and the Eastern Provinces where the Imperial City was were famous for their hot summers. Her clothes were not helping either. While many of the people in the small crowd outside the door wore more weather-considerate outfits, duty and tradition meant that Adrianna was wearing the olive green uniform of a Royal Guard cadet, which was made out of a thick, non-breathable material. She could already feel the light undershirt she had underneath it all soaking up sweat.

Thankfully, the large metal double doors opened and to Royal Guards in full ceremonial armour motioned for the crowd to enter the gallery. As she walked past the two figures in their white ornate armour, she nodded politely to them. Most of them had been over to her family's quarters in the palace for dinners and, while their helmets obscured their faces, it never hurt to be polite.

The doorway led to the gallery itself, a large sixty feet by thirty feet rectangular room that ran parallel to the Royal Court itself. The gallery was designed to allow members of the Court that were not involved in the day-to-day running of the empire to still see what was happening. However, it was mostly just a lounge for lesser nobles to mingle. There were circular marble tables dotting the room with two to four large padded seats arranged around them. Adrianna took a seat at a table with only two chairs at it; an indication that she wished to be left alone for the proceedings. She removed her duty cap and let herself sink into the thick, plush padding of the chair and relax. Servants came around a few moments later with food and drink menus. Adrianna ordered a plate of roasted pork belly and a salad with nuts and fruits and a large glass of sparkling orange juice.

While she waited, Adrianna activated the small view screen on her table. The camera feed was from inside the Court, and she could switch between the various angles available with the press of a button. She set the viewer to her personal favourite angle, just off the right side of the throne. She was hoping that the microphones would be able to pick up any faint conversations near the throne. She was mostly hoping for that when the Tylaxian mercenary showed up again.

A banging sounded echoed throughout the hall three times: the ceremonial signal that the Royal Court was now in session. Adrianna looked at her screen and saw a procession entering the hall. At its head was Aiden Garissa, Emperor of Silas. Following closely behind him was Gregori Tygart, Andrew's dad and Imperial Advisor, and Andrew's older brother, Maximillian. Behind them was a line of about fifteen other members of the Court, mostly high nobles. Bringing up the end of the line was an easily recognisable figure. He was tall, easily one of the taller people of the Court. A ceremonial helmet was hooked under his one arm and in the other he carried a halberd. His hair was golden, like hers. Michael Zephyr: her father.

As soon as her father entered the hall, the large doors leading into the hall closed. Now, those that sought an audience with the Emperor would be brought in one at a time. A few moments later, one of the doors opened enough for someone to enter. Sure enough, here he was. Clad in combat armour with a grey and black digital camouflage design, a helmet hooked under his arm, a tell-tale tattoo ran up the one side of his neck and end just before his cheek bone. The Tylaxian mercenary she saw yesterday.

It was odd. The herald normally announced who the person was, but she remained silent as the mercenary walked towards the Emperor's throne. The heel of his boots were digging into the floor, echoing each step. He strode right up to the Emperor, and no one made a move to stop him. Gregori had a look on his face as if he had swallowed a sour lemon, and so did Maximillian. But the Tylaxian mercenary kept walking until he reached the throne. Emperor Garissa did not even get up to meet him eye-to-eye, he just sat there and waited for the mercenary to lean down and whisper something in his ear.

Adrianna cursed the microphones in the hall. They were supposed to be able to pick up the faintest sound, but she could not hear a damn thing the mercenary was saying. Just as suddenly as he entered, the mercenary left walking just as purposeful as he had come into the hall. As soon as he left, the next one came in and the daily cycle of audience seekers began again.

It was much like yesterday. The Hanoverian representatives came in. They asked for their answer regarding the trade agreement which was, just as Andrew predicted, a no. The scout team commander reported in that her team had not sent any information from Epsilon II, which was expected but not received well. The southern nomads came in earlier than normal, and way more positive as well. They conceded several outstanding issues in return for an equal number of reparations from the Imperial government—mainly the designation of 'nomadic' areas and guaranteed trade with merchants. Many people outside of Silas did not actually realize that the southern nomads were descendants of colonists who chose to live in the southern regions and only just started to try to interact with the Imperial government after millennia of self-imposed silence. They seemed to be doing well, from everything Adrianna heard.

After them, it was just another session of appointing nobles to new positions and reviewing laws and administrative business—stuff that did not really grab Adrianna's focus. The Court session lasted another three hours, during which her food arrived which she ate with much gusto—realizing that she had in fact skipped dinner last night having been with Andrew in the Archive's all night. She left shortly thereafter, as the other Court members began ordering after meal drinks. Believing she had seen all she could, Adrianna got up and left through the large chamber doors.

As she left the viewing hall, Adrianna could not help but feel something was off. There was a pit forming in her gut, and it was not from hunger. Something was missing that she just could not put her finger on.

I'm beginning to think like Andrew she thought with a laugh, trying to find details within details and over-thinking it all.

As she put on her duty hat, she stifled a yawn. She resolved to head back to the wing of the palace where her family lived and take a nap. She quickly pulled out her personal tablet to check her schedule. She had nothing until this evening—the bi-weekly dinner her family had with the Imperial family. Checking her chrono-keeper, she saw that it was still mid-morning, giving her plenty time for a nap and to get ready. As she walked down the hallways of the palace, nearly blinded by the bright morning sun coming in through the large crystal glass windows, she decided to go through the garden again today. Part of her hoped Andrew would be there. The other knew he would be in his family's wing of the palace sleeping. He did not have to go to the early morning Court sessions.

She made her way down a marble staircase towards the window door that led to the garden. Heading through the door into the warming afternoon sun, Adrianna saw that Andrew was not in the garden this morning.

And then it occurred to her.

The reason she had felt like she was missing something.

The talks with the Ragusan delegation were supposed to have ended today. The delegation never showed up.

And that was when the entire world around Adrianna exploded into fire and smoke.


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