The other council members repeated the gesture, turned, and stepped backward toward the door. It was against the law to show your back to the emperor at any time.
At the door, Slak said, “Would you like me to send in your entertainment for the evening?”
My “entertainment” was an exotic creature, brought in from the farthest reaches of the galaxy. She didn’t know I was the Titan emperor and most powerful being in the known universe. I had learned people acted differently when they didn’t know who you were.
Nothing happened that the creature was not in control of. I never forced myself on them. I was genuinely interested in their histories and cultures. They would tell me wonderful stories about their heroes and the adventures they went on. They were similar to our mythical figures. I wondered what it must be like to go on such adventures without anyone ever bowing to you.
But today, a cloud of melancholy swept over me. It happened sometimes when I had an uneventful week. Titans were born warriors. We weren’t exactly built for sitting around.
I shook my head.
“Not tonight,” I said.
Slak bowed again and left my chambers. As he passed through the door, the head of my honor guard, Garrick, entered the room. He bowed and approached my desk. He protected me, just as he had protected my father. He was grey at the temples, distinguished and resolute. He didn’t approve of everything I did, not that he would ever voice such an opinion.
“How do we look tonight?” I said.
“All quiet, my lord,” he said.
I got up from my desk and felt far more relaxed in his presence than with Slak.
“How is the recruit training going?” I said.
Discussing everyday activities in the palace always held interest for me. Hundreds of lives passed in and out of the palace without my knowledge, all for my benefit, and yet, I very rarely saw them.
“Very well, Your Grace,” Garrick said. “You’re more than welcome to inspect them.”
“If I inspect them, I would end up fighting,” I said.
“Not one of them would dare lay a hand on you.”
I arched an eyebrow at him.
“Then maybe I’ll go in disguise,” I said.
“Not under my watch, sir,” he said disdainfully.
“Then maybe I’ll go while you are sleeping.”
Garrick stiffened. I always enjoyed winding him up. He was so stiff and regimented I really couldn’t imagine him doing anything other than the job he did.
I placed a hand on his arm.
“Don’t worry, I won’t take any unnecessary risks,” I said.
But rather than take any comfort from my words, frown lines deepened on his already wrinkled face.
“What’s wrong?” I said.
Garrick snapped to attention. His mind was elsewhere.
“Nothing, Sire,” he said.
The chief losing his attention for any amount of time was highly unusual. His was an iron will, his focus second to none. Something must be troubling him.
“What is it?” I said.
Garrick peered at me and his shoulders relaxed.
“Really, it’s nothing, Your Grace,” he said. “Only my instincts playing games with me again.”
“What are your instincts telling you?” I said.
He eyed me, unsure if he should share it.
“It’s nothing, Your Grace,” he said. “I probably just ate something that disagreed with me.”
But his expression said otherwise. He was troubled by something.
“You think something bad is about to happen?” I said.
He nodded.
“Do you have any idea what?” I said.
Garrick never worried about nothing. More than once, his instincts had picked up on something, and within a few hours, something terrible did happen. Some people were more sensitive to the galaxy’s stirrings, I guess.
“I can’t pinpoint exactly what it is,” he admitted. “Only that things… don’t quite feel right.”
I considered the empire and was happening in it. It was so large there was always something happening somewhere that was unfair or unjust.
I placed a hand on Garrick’s shoulder.
“I’m sure it’s nothing,” I said.
The chief nodded but didn’t look convinced.
“You need to relax,” I said, “sit back and enjoy life for a change. Have a drink with me. Within minutes, your instincts will calm down and you’ll realize you were worrying about nothing.”
“I can’t drink,” Garrick said. “The guard will change any minute and I need to be there to oversee it.”
They changed multiple times a day. I doubted if the guards were capable of making a mistake.
When something played on my mind, I liked to sit, think, and do nothing. Garrick’s way of overcoming problems was taking action.
“Then have at it,” I said.
Garrick clicked his heels together, saluted with a fist to his chest, and reversed out of the room.
“Atten-hut!” he barked.
The guards in the room stamped their feet. They bowed at precisely the same time and stepped sideways toward the door. They bowed once more at the door before shutting it behind themselves.
I always hated the sound of the doors slamming shut each night. The thud boomed and echoed about the sparsely furnished room.
The emperor had dozens of palaces spread throughout the empire. Every time we expanded to a new solar system, another palace was built in my honor. I would go, enjoy it for a little while to show my appreciation, and then I always returned to this, my favorite palace.
It wasn’t even the biggest one. It was one of the smallest. My father used to bring me here during our breaks and holidays. It reminded me of my childhood and simpler times.
Lately, it hadn’t offered much in the way of peace. Each day, when Slak and Garrick left me alone, a deep sinking sensation burrowed deep in the pit of my stomach. I wondered if it was very different to what Garrick felt when he complained about his instincts playing havoc with his senses. The worst part about it was not knowing what it was in reference to.
I moved to a window and peered down at the palatial grounds below. There was a swimming pool, a sauna, and other sports facilities.
Beyond it, the expansive palatial walls. I could just about make out some of the distant town’s soft yellow lights. Ordinary people living ordinary lives.
My
