Book 5, chapter 25

The war council went on for what felt like hours, where the emperor and then the other high-ranking members of staff stood in front of the assembled group and spoke. They covered everything from gathering supplies to logistics and ship arrangements. It was a large-scale invasion, with the descendants and their followers taking up only a small part of it.

Throwing in the whole conscription thing across hundreds of planets added a whole other level of complexity to the problem. The staff had to figure out how to supply, arm, and train all the recruits. Over the coming hours it was made quite clear that the Emperor and Fleet admiral Litesa had planned this beforehand. Not just them either.

Most of the other high-ranking staff had already taken steps to make accommodation for a huge influx of recruits. They were conscripting for every position, from flight crewman, and front line foot soldiers, to spatial cultivators to help opperate the incredibly complex arrays aboard the battleships.

All across the empire, recruitment stations would be opening up, and all the able-bodied cultivators in the E grade and above were being brought in. They were bringing in everyone, from tailors to make uniforms, to chefs, to feed the soldiers.

And like any wide scale conscription, they were doubtless to run into a lot of problems. Like making sure the new recruits could be trained up to the bare minimum to be useful. Dealing with war criminals and deserters came up, upon which Glendale kindly offered his services.

Normally, during a time of war, criminals and deserters would be sent to a war tribunal and executed as an example. Instead, Glendale proposed that they hand over all the people sentenced to death to the Terlashar. 

They could be awakened as revenants, upon which they could almost immediately be sent back to the front lines. After some arguing, his request was tacitly approved. Then Glendale offered the same for the troops fallen in combat, which was vehemently refused.

Zee was more than a little relieved. 

Half the general staff and most of the empire would revolt if such a policy was enacted. Still, that didn't mean such a thing wouldn't happen. Judging by the brief glances shared between a few of the staff in the back rows, they would find a way to profit off other people's deaths. 

Zee made note of said people. The fact they were even here was appalling. She was gradually starting to wonder if Glendale was the real monster here? Spreading the corruption of miasma was in his nature, but the other high-ranking staff who clearly sought to profit off such a thing had no such excuses.

If she ever was forced into the role of empress, she would get rid of those bad apples first.

The war council dragged on most of the night, passing well into the early morning. There was a seemingly endless list of problems to be covered. From raising taxes to support the increased strain on the imperial coffers, to quelling the inevitable riots.

Given that public favor for the invasion was at an all-time high after the attack on Draug, it wouldn't be necessary now, but public sentiment was a fickle thing. Over the duration of the war council, she got a new respect for the emperor. He chose his high-ranking staff for their competence at their jobs. They were all very good at weeding out future problems and finding out ways to fix them before they even happened. 

The only problem was that some of the staff had obsoletely no morals.

One in particular stood out as a truly despicable human being. He had a constant sneer on his ugly face, seeming to look down his nose at everyone in the room.

His latest suggestion cemented her less than stellar assessment of the man.

"May I speak, your eminence?" he asked, standing from his chair beside Draveroc, who seemed to worship the ground the man walked on.

"What is it, Lord Byron?" Farsaic asked, his tone carefully neutral. The emperor looked calm, but she could sense the slightest bit of annoyance in his words.

This was the third time Byron had interrupted the meeting, and the emperor appeared to be losing his patience. Byron cleared his throat, not seeming to notice the emperor's narrowed eyes. Or maybe he just didn't care?

In either case, Byron spoke aloud addressing the room. "With the destruction of the mines and the processing facilities on Draug, we do not have the supply of Eridian we need to properly supply the navy. I have a cheap solution to that problem. The Eridian mines across several planets in my domain have more than enough ore in the ground to supply the navy. The issue is that we do not have the manpower to extract it. I suggest that we acquire said manpower, either as prisoners of war, or our own petty criminals." Byron said in a hotty tone.

"That sounds dangerously close to slavery, Lord Byron," the emperor replied evenly.

Byron flinched but was undeterred despite the clear warning in the emperor's tone.

"It is nothing so barbaric. I like to think of it as getting our money out of them. They are doing nothing of import as it is. The criminals would be released after their time is served, as for the prisoners of war, they would be returned once this war is over," Byron replied.

The emperor didn't look convinced, in fact, he looked quite irritated.

"So you say…. Lord Treasurer, you recently did an investigation into Lord Byron's holdings. Did you find anything that would be important to this meeting?" the emperor asked casually.

Byron's face went as white as a sheet as the pudgy treasurer stood.

"Of course your eminence. I have discovered some very interesting things," Kurt Bernstron said, with some glee in his voice. He reached under his suit that strained to contain his bulging gut.

"Would you like the report now, or later?" the treasurer asked.

"If it suits you, I would like it now," the emperor replied.

The silence was deafening. You could hear someone's heartbeat across the room as the treasurer shuffled a thick stack of papers around.

"Ahh, here it is! Concerning the holdings of one count Byron Fensta. Over the last two years, I have done a careful audit of the twenty planets under your domain. I discovered some very interesting things. Namely, discrepancies in the mines you previously mentioned. Based on my estimates, your three Eridian mines haul out about twenty million Ether crystals worth of raw ore annually. 

That is quite concerning as you have only claimed fifteen million worth of ore in your annual tax reports. This is not for just one year, the discrepancy encompasses the past ten years.

You seem to be missing out on," he shuffle the papers around," Ahh, here it is. Yes! Your reports are missing an estimated fifty million in profits. Rounding up, and adding in for inflation, as well as compounding interest, you owe the imperial treasury seventy seven million, eight hundred thousand and twenty-two ether crystals to be paid by year's end," Kurt said.

With his report done, the Treasurer sat. Byron looked physically sick. Zee had never seen someone in peak D grade look so pale before. The emperor smiled.

"Thank you Kurt. Now, if there are no more interruptions let us continue," Farsaic said.

Zee could only watch on with morbid fascination.

Bending the rules was one thing, but the emperor just made quite clear that breaking them was not acceptable.

Her respect and awareness for Farsaic grew, well, and so did her respect for the food loving treasurer.

At least there were some lines Farsaic wouldn't cross. After his display, the council proceeded smoothly. Eventually, everything was covered, at least in a general sense. The formal section of the council ended, and that is when the meeting split up into groups.

It was time for the officers to meet up with their aids, to discuss and iron out the nitty-gritty details.

There were only about fifty members of the general staff in attendance. These were simply the highest ranking officers in their respective branches.

Each no doubt had hundreds of junior officers that they would need to disseminate the discussed information too. Just considering the logistics gave Zee a headache.

Rubbing elbows with the members of the war council gave her new respect for running a war.

Allison had been right, there was no way one person could run a war, much less an entire empire by themselves. Delegation was the key to success. It clearly also had its pitfalls, like lord Byron, who had left in a huff as soon as the council was officially over.

Over the next hour or two, she did her best to converse with people of interest. Making idle chatter wasn't her strong suit. After getting politely asked to leave a few groups, Zee found herself without anyone to talk to.

The groups hadn't outright asked her to leave, but their glances and uncomfortable small talk made it heavily implied. It was clear that they might tolerate her because of her position, but they didn't respect her, at least not yet.

To make things worse, several people looked like they wanted to approach her. Some even tried to on several occasions, but those were the ones she wanted to avoid. Namely Draveroc. The annoying princeling had already slunk off, when refreshments were brought out. She could see him gulping down an entire bottle of wine in the corner.

With her attempts to network having fallen through, she turned her attention to the one person to keep the circling vultures at bay.

It wasn't hard to find the treasurer. He was near the snack table, enjoying the delicacies on display.

Glendale was also nearby, though the bone lord didn't look very enthusiastic about the food on offer. 

"Not enjoying yourself? Zee asked, her question directed towards the bone lord, as she sidled up next to the refreshment table.

"There is nothing edible here. It's all food for the living," Glendale said unhappily. 

"I was unaware that bone lords ate," Zee said.

To her other side, with one hand in a bowl of grapes, the treasure listened curiously. 

Glendale shrugged his massive shoulders.

"Our bodies require sustenance just like yours, though it is preferable that the meat I eat is infused with miasma," Glendale replied.

"Isn't that cannibalism? Eating other undead I mean," Zee asked, curiously."No.. The same way it's not cannibalism for you to eat the meat from other living creatures," Glendale said.

"Huh, well, I learn something new every day." her eyes gleamed as a thought came to mind.

"That reminds me. Something about the undead just doesn't make sense. How come there are stupid undead like zombies, and smart undead like the revenants? What's the difference? 

Both were once human, and yet one is smart after it was converted, and the other is as dumb as a board," Zee said.

Glendale's sunken orbs for eyes glared down at her.

"Have you ever considered not asking certain questions? Knowing certain knowledge could get you killed," Glendale replied evenly.

Her face lit up at his words. "I knew it! So it is a secret?" Zee asked.

The bones covering his ghastly face twitched.

Zee knew she was walking on thin ice, but this was an opportunity.

"What do you think you know?" he asked in a guarded tone. 

"Nothing much.. But theoretically, let's just say I found a certain soul-transferring ritual in a book written by the scoundrel Tarnival. Would that be valuable?" Zee asked innocently.

The way Glendale stiffened was more than answer enough.

"Such a ritual does not exist." he paused for a moment. "But theoretically, if it were to exist, certain parties like myself would be beholden to the one who refrained from sharing such knowledge," Glendale said.

Zee beamed up at him.

"I guess it's a good thing no one has found such theoretical information. It would be quite unfortunate for you to owe said person a favor in exchange for keeping said knowledge hidden," Zee said sweetly. 

Glendale looked like he wanted to rip her limb from limb, but refrained. He nodded ever so slightly at her words, before turning on his heels and practically storming away.

Behind her, the treasurer stopped pretending like he hadn't been eavesdropping. He walked up beside her as she watched Glendale leave the room.

"I don't know whether to be impressed, or mortified," the treasurer said.

She cracked a smile. "I am sure he will get over it," Zee said.

"Are you sure it's a good idea to blackmail someone like that bone lord? He is the second in command to the empress of the Terlashar," Kurt said.

Zee let out a soft laugh. "Of course, it's not a good idea to blackmail him. But, that bony bastard threw me into the death chasms for two years. I almost died like a hundred times. I think a little blackmail is more than warranted," Zee replied.

The treasurer could only shake his head at her audacity. "First the emperor, and now this? Being associated with me might deter others, but it won't protect you from reprisal for your actions," Kurt said.

"You knew?" Zee asked, surprised.

He laughed, resting his pudgy hands in his gut.

"I guessed as much. Why else would you linger in my presence? As you can see, I am not the most popular person in the council chambers," he said, gesturing at the lack of people near them.. 

Zee couldn't help but smile at that. "I don't know, you seem nice enough. Besides, I am a bit of an introvert, so this is preferable to me. Listening to your rants about food is more than acceptable if that means keeping the circling lizards at bay," Zee said.

He let out a chortling laugh.

"Well said. Perhaps we could actually get together sometime?" he asked.

"Of course. Are you free later this week?" Zee asked.

"I might be able to clear my schedule, as long as your partner is willing to cook up a few delicacies?" he asked hopefully.

"Bastion would be delighted to show off his cooking skills," Zee said.

"Excellent, I can't wait," Kurt said.

The rest of the council went with little incident. It was mentally exhausting, but Zee managed to get through it without any large blunders.

All things said and done it was ending quite well. With the emperor having left, she was planning on leaving. Zee was sneaking out when Draveroc finally cornered her. Her attempts to completely ignore him had sadly been futile. 

She had the wall to her back, with Draveroc blocking her path back to the main room.

"Where are you going?" Draveroc asked with a slur to his voice, swaying heavily on his feet.

Zee eyed the mostly empty glass in his hand, then across the room to the two completely empty bottles.

"Draveroc, how can I help you this fine evening?" Zee asked with a fake smile.

He sneered, downing the remaining amber liquid in his glass with two large gulps.

"I will tell you how you can help me. Why don't you explain to me how a country bumpkin like you is the heir apparent?" he demanded gesturing at her with his empty glass.

"You are drunk. Perhaps you should go lie down," Zee suggested.

He sneered. "You think you're so special, don't you? Well, let me tell you this, you are nothing... You're a trumped-up peasant with visions of grandeur. You will never be as good as me. I am the son of a duke and duchess, while you are the offspring of dirt farmers," Draveroc said.

Zee didn't care if people made fun of her, but making fun of her parents was another matter altogether.

"What do you know about my parents? You are just a spoiled noble who can't change his diaper without help," Zee replied with foe calm.

Swaying, his voice rose above a whisper, drawing the attention of a small crowd of people behind him.

"Do you think that you will be spared in the upcoming war? The emperor has gone senile, sending all of his descendants on this invasion. We could all be killed, and it's all your fault," Draveroc accused, his voice much louder than he probably intended.

His complaints echoed around the council room, drifting to more than one curious ear. It was like he was digging his own grave, at least politically speaking. Such a shamefully public display of childlike behavior would doubtlessly ruin his already tarnished reputation. 

If Zee was a better person, she might have tried to stop him, but she wasn't. So she just stood there, giving a half-committal grunt, which seemed to be enough for him to continue. Inwardly, she sighed. At least the other descendants had the dignity to refrain from such a humiliating diatribe. 

Red-faced, and not seeming to recognize the danger, Draveroc continued his borderline treasonous tirade.

"The empire will not stand for this! I am clearly a far superior choice than you. Just look at you! You are so frail-looking, a gentle breeze would be enough to knock you over. You are as curvy as a board, and your hair is just hideous. If you ascend the throne, the empire will collapse in days due to your inadequacies," Draveroc said.

"If you don't like the emperor's choice, why not prove yourself in the war?" Zee asked, watching as the crowd grew behind Draveroc.

The drunk princeling scoffed at her statement. "Why should I have to? The emperor is a fool. He shouldn't have started this war in the first place, much less be forcing me to participate," Draveroc complained.

"We do not have a choice but to go to war, in order to defend our homes. The blood gorgers attacked us first, destroying Draug. Do you care nothing for all those people? They were our people, Lorocan's just like us. If we just sit around on our hands, the blood gorgers will attack again. What if it's Lorcos next time?" Zee asked.

Draveroc waved a dismissive hand. "Who cares about a border planet? Draug was an unfortunate loss, but we have hundreds of planets in the empire," Draveroc said.

Zee vehemently shook her head, noting Julian and Glendale joining the crowd behind Draveroc.

"That is where you are wrong, Draveroc. No planet is inconsequential, just like no person should be thrown away like trash. I do not agree with some of the emperor's policies, but I do agree that we must protect the empire with everything we have," Zee replied firmly.

He snorted loudly. "What is a farm girl like you going to do in the war? Are you going to hit them with a rake?" Draveroc sneered.

Zee had been doing her best to remain calm, but that hit a nerve. She really didn't like people making fun of her family's profession, no that was her job.

"Listen here, you spoiled princeling.." she took two steps forward, getting right in his personal space. "I was conscripted to fight in a god forsaken war when I was only sixteen. I didn't speak the languages, nor did I understand what I was even fighting for, and yet I prevailed. For years, I fought with everything I had. I have killed hundreds of people, narrowly escaping death dozens of times in that pointless war.

 All the while, you sat in your plush chairs, in your fancy robes, eating your refreshments." She stabbed a finger into his chest, and he staggered back.

"I won't even mention being inside a planar space when it collapsed because of an Eldridge abomination from the Null that was ripping it apart." 

"You are a liar," Draveroc said, only now seeming to realize there was a crowd watching them.

Zee took a deep, calming breath.

"I am not lying, Draveroc. I have seen more death and gore in the last five years than you will see in your entire life. I have fought in at least four wars, been conscripted twice, and fought a Celestial grade cultivator and survived. The fact you actually think you have experience is appalling.

You are like a baby bird who hasn't even left the nest. You have been given everything and yet have done nothing with it.

I am honestly disgusted. The empire has given you everything, and yet, when the empire needs you most, all you do is complain. You insult our emperor, you question his decree. It is despicable."

He opened his mouth to speak, but she pushed him again, continuing before he could speak.

"You are a disgrace to the empire. You are a selfish, spoiled brat who doesn't even have the balls to fight for your own home. I may be the daughter of farmers, but at least I am willing to fight to help protect our homes," Zee said.

Draveroc looked stunned by her words, his jaw opening and closing soundlessly. With a look of disgust on her face she pushed past him, leaving him behind as she walked towards the crowd.

They parted as she approached, and she noticed a few familiar figures watching. Tavza had an unreadable expression, while several of the other descendants looked thoughtful.

As she passed through the crowd, she met Julian's eyes. He gave her the barest nod of approval.

That was more than enough to convince her she had made the right choice. 

With a straight back, she confidently strode away, not looking back even once. Her exit was a bit of a spectacle, but it wasn't all bad. Such a public argument should be in her favor for the future.

Now all she needed to do was find a way back home. She pulled out a comm crystal hidden in her dress.

"Bass, could you come get me at the palace? I need a ride home," Zee sent.