"Excuse me, empress."
Shaugn raised a brow. "Minister Prakha?"
Minister Prakha cleared his throat and stood up straight. "I beg your pardon, empress. Could you perhaps, answer the question? Let's go with the assumption that some people think that others are born more noble and therefore more important than others."
Shaugn stood in front of them and glanced around the room. Though they'd been insulted, their shiny curious eyes blinked back waiting for his thoughts on the subject. Allowing them to see he was an ally and not just a ruler would go a long way in helping him win their loyalty.
Knowing a few things about ancient armor, he instructed Radagar and a few other guards to stand in the middle of the room for all to see. To everyone present he touched each guard's shoulder and gave a light squeeze before walking around the room fanning himself.
The ministers looked at each other in confusion. Wasn't the empress going to answer?
Voice unhurried, Shaugn broke out his instructor voice. "All societies naturally have a hierarchy of its citizens. There are workers, the military, merchants, officials, peacekeepers, doctors, emperors, and so on and so forth. Despite what anyone person thinks," he paused in his steps and looked around the room. "They all need each other. The loss of any one layer can cause the society to fail."
He spun on his heel and snapped his heels together. With his hands at his sides, his eyes darkened. "Present arms!" he commanded.
Hearing a voice as domineering as their emperor, the guards around the room snapped their heels together and held their swords in front of them with both hands on the handle.
The ministers jumped as they glanced around the room at all the guards bearing arms.
Shaugn walked through the crowd and approached Radagar. He tapped him on his shoulder with the fan and Radagar's armor separated at the shoulder. There was a small gasp. When Shaugn tapped the second, third, and fourth guard, the ministers began to talk loudly amongst themselves.
"The armor is broken!"
"How?"
"What did the empress do?"
"Was it already flawed?"
"So many? Impossible."
The guards stared in shock at the exposed uniform of their comrades. Radagar touched the place where the empress squeezed his shoulder and felt the small clasp there. Somehow it had come undone. Shaugn walked back to his seat and sat down.
The ministers quieted and sat down. Shaugn instructed the guards to stand down before speaking.
"Each of us is one piece of a larger machine. When one part fails-" he looked over at the guards who looked distraught and ashamed. "-we all fail."
A guard by the door couldn't contain his excitement. "Empress, how did you do that?"
Tilting his head, Shaugn glanced at the guards. "As long as you know your enemy, you can exploit their weaknesses. If we have a drought, none of us can eat. If we don't eat, we starve. If our soldiers starve, we have no defense which means we can be invaded. Merchants and businessmen make money which helps offset taxes from the farmers and soldiers. The money people make pay for doctors, carpenters, potters, so on and so forth."
"So you're saying no one is more important?" Minister Midas snorted.
Shaugn chuckled and propped his cheek with his fist. "Welllllll, maybe one person."
"Who is that?"
"The emperor, of course. The emperor is the leader of it all. He has to take all the laws, policies, and so on into consideration. He relies on ministers to give him the information he needs to ensure the people and empire are taken care of. Failure or deception on any level can doom an empire and cause us to fall."
Several ministers nodded. The empress was wise.
Seeing he had them where he wanted them, Shaugn sat up and tapped his palm with his fan. "There are minor things that need immediate attention before they turn into catastrophic ones."
"Can we do that with just us?"
"I have others assisting. I just need help within the court."
Minister Ruten, Minister Shifob, Minister Prakha, and Minister Guo stood and put their right fist over their hearts.
"The minister is at your service, empress."
Minister Masato and General Kor also stood and saluted. General Kor had remained silent through the entire gathering. Aside from a few changes in facial expression now and again, the man remained the silent and upright.
Shaugn smiled. "That's all for today. I will summon you all in a few days. Although, nothing we do is detrimental to the empire and doesn't break any rules, we need to maintain secrecy. I don't need irrelevant people meddling in our work."
"Yes, empress."
Shaugn stood and walked out with his entourage. A few ministers stayed behind and chatted amongst themselves.
"What do you think he wants us to do?"
"Do you believe the emperor has given his approval?"
"How do we keep this from the others?"
"By keeping your mouth shut."
"Hey!"
General Kor sat quietly in his seat and drank another cup of tea. Minister Midas sat beside him and leaned in close.
"What do you think, general?"
"The empress has guts."
Midas raised a brow. "You think he can really get anything done?"
General Kor narrowed his eyes and turned his head. "He thinks he can."
"I bet he can't." Midas snorted and downed a cup of tea in one gulp. "He's not that powerful."
"We'll see."
-----------------------------------
At an inn three day's ride from the capital, three men dressed in black outfits with black masks on their faces entered a secret room one by one. Though underground, it was dry and warm. Candles and torches made the room almost as bright as day. There were paintings on the wall of various nature scenes. One wall was filled with bookcases with books and scrolls – some in good condition and some one breath from disintegration. There was a long table on another wall used for eating meals. An "L" shaped sitting area with pillows occupied the last two walls leaving the center of the floor open.
A playful flame lit in one of the men's eyes as he looked at the other two and pointed. "I got dibs on that spot."
One of the other men with eyes as deep blue as sapphires, rolled his gem colored orbs and shook his head. "How old are you?"
"How old are you? Stuffy old man."
"Classy. You sure you guys aren't imposters?" The one with green eyes flopped down on the L shaped sofa and began taking off his hood. A few black strands escaped his bun and framed his face.
"Boring." The man with amber eyes took his hood off and shook his loose hair. It came out of its binding and hung down in waves over his shoulders. He scratched his goatee and snickered. "You gotta lighten up, Xoan. One would think you're fifty-six instead of twenty-six."
A deep laugh filled the room as the man with blue eyes took his hood off and shook his wild curls. Flame ringlets stuck out in every direction making him look like a shaggy lion. "That's not very mature, your majesty."
"Whatever." Khyezar flopped down next to Xoan and sighed. "Why are we here?"
Xoan gave a shrug and looked around the room. "It must be important if we were summoned away."
"They need to hurry up."
Qwayne picked up the water jug on the table and poured a cup of water. "What's your rush?"
"My consort is pregnant."
"Okay...and?"
Khyezar gave a mysterious wink. "It's one of them."
Blue eyes widened in surprise. "Ohhhhh."
"That makes five." Xoan tapped his finger on his thigh. His brows furrowed. "Does it seem like we're finding them faster and faster?"
"Maybe something happened." Qwayne handed the two men a cup and returned the water jug to the table.
"Have you found yours yet, Qwayne?"
Qwayne ruffled his unruly hair and sighed. "Not yet. My...father has been consulting the oracle more often."
"You've figured it out on your own, I see."
The three stood as four cloaked beings surrounded in white light materialized in the center of the room. The three men bowed and sat down. The four cloaked people removed their hoods and Xoan saw a familiar face.
Faizan stood behind a woman with a brown pixie cut. He stepped forward and shook the men's hands. "It's good to see you again."
*Xoan reappears with friends!😁😁😁😁
**Pronunciation
Khyezar :Kai-zer Qwayne : Wayne with a Kw