Varossi Enterprises.”
“Yes. The sisterhood hates it and I'm receiving daily communication from Illya stating that she would like to meet me regarding the matter. She even sent a group of sisters to the palace without an escort to speak with me.”
“I hope they were killed.”
“Their remains were delivered personally to her.”
Antoni laughed, though it was mostly humorless.
“What I'm trying to do here is control the means of production so the sisterhood can't implant devices in the robots, but in Sisterhood to do that I have to make it look good to the public or it might cause a revolt. The sisters are already beginning to bring up the subject in their homilies, and it's starting to become a dangerous affair.”
“Can't you do it anyway?”
“Yes, but I'm afraid they'll have the people take up arms.”
Antoni was confused. There didn't seem to be a way to continue on as they have been. If the sisters wouldn't allow it, it was too dangerous. “Have you found a way?”
“We'll see. Come to the Varossi party with me this evening. We'll drop in unexpected and speak with the family.”
“Is it an appropriate occasion?”
“Oh, yes.”
Antoni was starting to understand his father's logic, and he was also building a sense for strategy. He couldn't find solutions the way his father did, but that would come with time. What he was able to do was speak on his father's level, and ask the right questions so he could continue learning from the man. He didn't have very much experience, nothing like the Emperor, but he was starting to learn valuable lessons.
The galaxy wasn't the perfect Utopia he expected it to be. It was a patchwork grid of systems held together by a fragile thread, and the ruler must take into account any number of factors if he wanted to hold the country together. First and foremost the people had to be happy. Once they were happy, they could be persuaded, and the ruler could have room to make changes if he wanted to. Invading forces and rebel groups had to be held at bay, and also given some lenience in Sisterhood to avoid fueling the fire. The ruling bodies within the galaxy were the biggest issue. The Jihadis, though they were a simple group, had to be given their incentives, booze women and riches. Otherwise, they wouldn't want to fight. The local governors had to be made to feel important, and they had to have enough to believe they were in charge of things. The sisters were a different matter altogether. When two ambitious groups with equal power clashed, a fire started, one that could easily destroy the Empire if both sides weren't careful.
It was all about balance. A single speck of dust, one wrong move or gaff could easily tip the scales and send the Empire plummeting into chaos. Antoni was beginning to understand just how difficult his job was going to be.
Chapter 9: Saccharin
Antoni found himself standing, covered in sweat, wearing a black crushed velvet cape with a white tuxedo. This was the first time in more than a year that he'd had a chance to enjoy an event like this and he was anxious to get a good drink.
Stellarus was a beautiful planet, green and filled with a diverse ecosystem. The continents moved slowly there, so the plant and animal life evolved separately over a period of millions of years. This allowed them to develop a wide range of forms and abilities.
The planet also featured a rare phenomenon called crystal castles. The ship they were in folded space just outside orbit so that they could enter the atmosphere and get a view of the crystals. They were glowing structures as big as mountains that jutted out from the ground displaying a stunning spectrum of pastel blues, pinks and violets that moved up and down their surface in waves.
The local sentients, a species that had long since died off, dug into the sides of the crystals in order to build their houses, and when they flew down to the Varossi estate, the tiny grooves could be seen from the landing
“Yes. The sisterhood hates it and I'm receiving daily communication from Illya stating that she would like to meet me regarding the matter. She even sent a group of sisters to the palace without an escort to speak with me.”
“I hope they were killed.”
“Their remains were delivered personally to her.”
Antoni laughed, though it was mostly humorless.
“What I'm trying to do here is control the means of production so the sisterhood can't implant devices in the robots, but in Sisterhood to do that I have to make it look good to the public or it might cause a revolt. The sisters are already beginning to bring up the subject in their homilies, and it's starting to become a dangerous affair.”
“Can't you do it anyway?”
“Yes, but I'm afraid they'll have the people take up arms.”
Antoni was confused. There didn't seem to be a way to continue on as they have been. If the sisters wouldn't allow it, it was too dangerous. “Have you found a way?”
“We'll see. Come to the Varossi party with me this evening. We'll drop in unexpected and speak with the family.”
“Is it an appropriate occasion?”
“Oh, yes.”
Antoni was starting to understand his father's logic, and he was also building a sense for strategy. He couldn't find solutions the way his father did, but that would come with time. What he was able to do was speak on his father's level, and ask the right questions so he could continue learning from the man. He didn't have very much experience, nothing like the Emperor, but he was starting to learn valuable lessons.
The galaxy wasn't the perfect Utopia he expected it to be. It was a patchwork grid of systems held together by a fragile thread, and the ruler must take into account any number of factors if he wanted to hold the country together. First and foremost the people had to be happy. Once they were happy, they could be persuaded, and the ruler could have room to make changes if he wanted to. Invading forces and rebel groups had to be held at bay, and also given some lenience in Sisterhood to avoid fueling the fire. The ruling bodies within the galaxy were the biggest issue. The Jihadis, though they were a simple group, had to be given their incentives, booze women and riches. Otherwise, they wouldn't want to fight. The local governors had to be made to feel important, and they had to have enough to believe they were in charge of things. The sisters were a different matter altogether. When two ambitious groups with equal power clashed, a fire started, one that could easily destroy the Empire if both sides weren't careful.
It was all about balance. A single speck of dust, one wrong move or gaff could easily tip the scales and send the Empire plummeting into chaos. Antoni was beginning to understand just how difficult his job was going to be.
Chapter 9: Saccharin
Antoni found himself standing, covered in sweat, wearing a black crushed velvet cape with a white tuxedo. This was the first time in more than a year that he'd had a chance to enjoy an event like this and he was anxious to get a good drink.
Stellarus was a beautiful planet, green and filled with a diverse ecosystem. The continents moved slowly there, so the plant and animal life evolved separately over a period of millions of years. This allowed them to develop a wide range of forms and abilities.
The planet also featured a rare phenomenon called crystal castles. The ship they were in folded space just outside orbit so that they could enter the atmosphere and get a view of the crystals. They were glowing structures as big as mountains that jutted out from the ground displaying a stunning spectrum of pastel blues, pinks and violets that moved up and down their surface in waves.
The local sentients, a species that had long since died off, dug into the sides of the crystals in order to build their houses, and when they flew down to the Varossi estate, the tiny grooves could be seen from the landing
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