Chapter 31
Zungher Dol sat in his desk chair mindlessly flicking his thumbnail with his index nail. His lap cradled his device, on which showed the pasty visage of Saw Yatha flaunting his pride outside the courthouse. Saw was busy responding to the Department of Communication representatives about his testimony. This event was being framed as a high achievement for the prowess of Merlain in all of the realms. However, Dol saw a threat.
Saw was already a loose cannon, already he’d abandoned his post to pursue his own ends, already he’d proved that he needed to be banished to the hinterlands to maintain the necessary equlibrium which held the realms together. And now this. Dol’s experience told him, that unless he moved quickly, this taste at public glory would blossom into an insatiable desire for it. Dol called for his assistant.
“This is for the underground channels,” Dol said in hushed tones to his assistant as he waved the dutiful drone to come closer. “You must work quickly, and if word of this gets out, I will not be happy. Are we clear? Good, lad.”
Moments later the assistant exited the office and started working the “underground channels,” and before the hour was up, the assistant was back in Dol’s office telling him a transport was awaiting him in the bay.
“My ususal transport?” Dol asked.
“No, Chieftan,” said the unflinching assistant, “one secured for the assignment. It will be destroyed later tonight.”
“Good. Good,” Dol sang. “Let’s be off.”
It did not take long, but carefully longer than necessary, to carry the Supreme Leader from his office of power to the bowels of the prison, but one could never be too sure where snooping eyes my be lurking. The transport left the government building and too a serpentine route through the major streets until it landed, finally, at the rear of the prison complex.
The guard was shown the necessary clearance materials at the door and, true to his word, the assistant had ensured that the path for Zungher Dol was devoid of onlookers. Soon his was standing at the door of the woman who should be his nemesis, but perhaps…. Dol punched in the security key code and the door opened.
Sitting on a bench on the far end of the cell with knees up and eyes closed sat Princess Lillian. She opened her eyes and without moving her head, shifted her gaze to her visitor.
“Chieftan Dol,” she said. Her voice betrayed a hint of weariness.
“In the flesh.” Zungher put on a polite smile. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it? May I?” Zungher pointed to the opposite end of the bench and sat down. Lillian turned and placed her feet on the ground.
“Odd that this is the place where we should have this chat, don’t you think?” Zungher scanned Lillian’s face for the slightest trace of friendliness. He could not make any guesses as to what lay behind her eyes. But, then again, he never could. He decided to forge a path forward regardless of feedback.
“Yes. Well. I hope you can see that we are treating you as fairly as possible. Given the circumstances, I’m sure you can appreciate the restraint I’m employing to make my case to the rest of the realms.” Still nothing. “Why am I here? Yes. Good. Regardless of my reputation and the ugly way I was treated by your father, I think we can both agree that I am now a sovereign ruler in my own right. All of the realms, save Coellum, are under my care, and I believe that has earned me the ability to speak with you ruler to ruler, so to speak. As one realm’s representative to another. It’s true that for me to get to this place and maintian order there has needed to be a, and I admit, extended time of war. But I am, as you can see, older, much older than I was when last we saw each other, and I desire the time of war to be at an end.
“At the same time, I can’t see a way forward where Coellum is allowed to thwart my authority. All that would do is erode the unity and cohesion I have worked so hard to acquire. No, I can’t let you go free,” Zungher turned his knees to face Lillian, “but you don’t have to die either.” He thought certainly that would get some kind of reaction from her, but she remained stoic and unresponsive. Zungher stood and began to pace the cell.
“I’ve looked into this, what I’m about to propose to you, and I’ve given it a great deal of thought. I don’t know if this is the best way forward given our history with each other, and if you agree, it will take a lot of doing for my Department of Communications to sell it to the public, but I see it as a way to end the fighting and get back to living in this new era. Just get to the point, I can imagine you thinking. Yes, get to the point. I’ve rarely been efficient with my words, even when I had an audience with your father.
“The point, I guess you could say, my proposal, is this: I declare a deal has been struck between Merlain and Coellum, and you will be set free. In exchange for sparing your life, for allowing you to see your father again and grow old in your home realm, all I ask is for tribute to be paid and that no treaties or trades be made with other realms without my government’s official approval. Obviously, I’d need to establish some military posts and other infrastructure to maintain the cohesion I mentioned earlier. How does that sound?
“Now, before you answer, let me address the unanswered question: Why would I do such a thing? Why would I, the sworn enemy of Coellum and specifically your father, want to offer to spare your life? Why not continue on the track we’re on, execute you, stab my nemesis through the heart? Well, I think it’s clear that I’ve won this war. Coellum is the only realm resistant to my authority, and the only reason Coellum hasn’t already been taken by force is that deep down, I’m a merciful man. I’m distrustful, yes, even suspicious, but this is how, I’m sure your father is at least somewhat this way, this is how one leads one’s people. The good leader sees troubles coming and prevents them from materializing. Yes?
“So, I do a good turn by letting you live, and you do the same by willingly coming under my authority. No more killing. No more war. Just peace, quiet, and cohesion.”
Zungher let the offer hang in the air for a moment. He looked in vain for a blink, a nod, any indication that she would fight or accept it.
It had been a while since he studied her. Really took her in. She was unquestionably beautiful and her beauty was not passing. The longer he stared at her the deeper and richer her beauty showed itself. From her eyes of crystal blue to her graceful jaw to her cascading golden hair, Lillian was the definition of regal grace. And Zungher admitted that this was not a simple beauty that would dissapear with age, this was a beauty that was almost an extention of her character, her will, her very soul. He never kidded himself that he was the superior leader to her in those attributes. But he exceeded her in force of will.
Yes, he thought, his will was stronger than hers. His drive was unbreakable. In an instant, he saw everything much more precisely. She had almost won him over with her beauty, her charms. It was as like as not her womanly giles that had clouded his thinking momentarily, that wielded its way to make him feel sorry for her and spare her life. She was using her beauty to hypnotize him, to distract him from finishing what he started. He saw that if she won at this, she would eventually win the whole thing. That could not happen. That would not happen.
Zungher stood up suddenly. He laughed. “I see this was a mistake. I see now that you and I will always be at odds, that our people are incompatible, and the only way forward is the complete annihilation of your race. Your father kept me under his thumb for too long and now look at the leader I have become, the leader he never thought I could be. It will be his final regret to never know the kind of future Colleum could have attained if he had only had more faith in me. But now, regret is all he will know. I will see you terminated. I will see your people salute me. I will see your father dethroned and destroyed. You almost fooled me, but as you see I’m still superior to you.”
He pressed the key code. “And so, Princess,” he added, mockingly bowing, “I bid you farewell. The next time, the last time we meet will be on your execution day in the termination chamber.” The cell door opened, and Zungher Dol rushed out and headed straight for his transport.
To his assistant he barked, “I want to see Saw Yatha in my office at the earliest possible moment. I have a new and urgent assignment for him.”
