Inquisitor's Promise (Act Two, Chapter Fourteen)
Aeneas has to keep his promises. His father's mission will be completed. And while he's at it, he will become Galatea's lord and Inquisitor. But love and politics are an explosive combination.
Chapter Fourteen: The Emperor of Christendom
The City of Texarkana was a beautiful city. The buildings were adorned in a gothic style architecture. However, the most interesting part of the hive city were the numerous fields that could be found at every level. These were the famous urban farms of Texarkana where large parts of the Imperial yeomanry made their living.
At the moment, Pep and Giulia were standing at the front yards of the Imperial Palace. The Palace stood at the center of Texarkana’s hive city, overlooking both the hive city and its satellite cities.
As Pep saw the breathtaking view of the Imperial Capital, he knew that this was as best of a time as any to confront his beloved.
“What’s holding you back, Giulia?” Pep asked.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Giulia answered angrily.
“You and me, that is what I’m talking of,” Pep said. His fist was clenched to emphasize his point. “I know you love me, and you know I feel the same.”
“You fool!” Giulia snapped. “It’s not that simple.”
“How is that so?”
“My papa wished me to be with Captain- I mean Aeneas.”
But Pep was not impressed, and his eyes narrowed. “Aeneas has a woman of his own, surely you know of this?”
Giulia looked away, not wanting to see Pep in the eye. “I do. Lady Galatea de la Mancha. But San Felipe…”
“That doesn’t matter!” Pep interrupted. “The point is that Aeneas has no shortage of girls who want him. Lavinia, this Galatea girl, and now the Princess Omaha. Surely you see where this is going?”
In all honesty, Giulia knew exactly what Pep was talking about. She was getting tired of having to compete for Aeneas’ heart. Deep down, she knew it was a futile endeavor for quite some time. However, …
“It’s not that simple,” Giulia cried. “Look at us, Pep! If you see two people like us together, a Lektros and a Terran, what comes to your mind?”
“A man and a woman.”
Meanwhile within the Imperial Palace, Aeneas found himself to be in the audience of Emperor Hannegan of the Texarkana Imperium.
The Inquisitor was currently kneeling. To his right was Princess Omaha, to his left Lavinia. Aeneas had made sure to pick his retinue in a way that would made the best impression to the temporal ruler of the Holy League. Even if said position was theoretical at the moment.
Aeneas studied the man in front of him. Old enough to be respected but young enough not to be pitied, Emperor Hannegan exuded a command presence that those around him couldn’t help but respect. Whether it was the man himself or the Imperial robes that he had on, it didn’t matter. No one could disrespect this man and expect to get away with it.
But the same could not be said for the Crown Prince who was sitting next to him. Also named Hannegan, the prince sat pathetically. His head was tilted to the left, seemingly unaware of what was going on around him. The face, once handsome, was disfigured.
“Sir Aeneas,” Emperor Hannegan said as he motioned for Aeneas and his cohort to stand. “We are very grateful for your help in taking down this rebellion.”
Aeneas stood up and looked at the Emperor of Texarkana in the eye. “Your Highness, I am…”
“HE IZ VERY GRATEFVL!”
The scream came from Prince Hannegan. Everyone remained silent for this was an all-too-common occurrence, including Aeneas who was aware of the Prince’s condition. Ignoring the interruption, he continued on.
“I am only doing what was necessary for the good of the Church: to unite the Holy League so we can fight the Grey Globe,” Aeneas said calmly.
“Of course,” the Emperor responded. “But perhaps sometimes what seemed good to a man might not be so to another. And it is a mark of a rash man not to think of the consequences of his decisions before he commits to them.”
Aeneas carefully considered his next words. He was sure that was the Emperor was insulting him. However, resisted the urge to fight fire with fire.
“I don’t claim to know all of the consequences of my actions. All I can do is live by the moral law,” Aeneas said in the most dispassionate way that he could.
“In your case, what do you consider to be living by the moral law?”
“For one thing,” Aeneas began. “You never lie. Each Inquisitor had pledged to never lie and to always keep his word. When I make a promise, I keep it.”
“HE KEEPS HIS PROMISES”
Ignoring his unruly son, Emperor Hannegan looked calm as ever. “An admirable sentiment. But a naïve one, nonetheless. There will be time when you have to break your promises, perhaps you might even have to break one promise so you can keep another.”
But Aeneas shook his head. “With all due respect, I will do all I can to keep my promises. If circumstances beyond my control prevent me from doing so, then so be it. But it will not be on me.”
Before Emperor Hannegan could respond to Aeneas, his son suddenly started shrieking and fell down.
Aeneas grimaced, shocked at what had happened the Crown Prince. He said nothing as he saw several servants taking the prince someplace else, presumably somewhere private.
With that done, Emperor Hannegan then turned towards Aeneas and his cohort.
“I apologize that you had to see that. I assure you that the Imperium stands with the Holy League, and we will do what you desire of us in all your efforts against the Grey Globe.”
Aeneas knelt down once more. “Thank you, Your Highness.”
Having stayed silent during the conversation, Omaha decided to interject. “Papa, I believe that it would be beneficial for us to lend them our finest troops.”
“Indeed,” the Emperor replied. “And I think I know who is the most fitting to command this Expeditionary Force. My daughter Omaha.”
“P-Princess Omaha!?” Aeneas exclaimed. “Are you sure about this?”
“Indeed, Sir Aeneas,” Emperor Hannegan said. “It would not be too much of an exaggeration to say that Omaha is the best commander in the Imperial Family right now.”
“Is that so?” Aeneas asked skeptically.
“She would have been the second, but you had just taken care of the first,” Emperor Hannegan said. A hint of bitterness was in the Emperor’s voice, though it was clearly being suppressed.
“What will happen to him?” Omaha asked.
“We will court martial him. He will most likely face the death penalty,” the Emperor answered with a note of sadness in his voice.
However, Omaha shared no such feelings. “Good. If that bastard had gotten his way, the Imperium would have been plunged into the worst Civil War since 7001. There’s no way the people will accept the son of a Bracilian farmgirl to ascend to the Imperial throne!”
“I knew you’d say that. You’d rather have a Nepolian Inquisitor to ascend to the throne instead,” Emperor Hannegan commented.
“No! That’s not it at all!” Omaha shouted in frustration. “Hannegan, my real brother is the true successor, and you are going to like it!”
Being the topic of the conversation made Aeneas uncomfortable, but he remained silent.
“Be reasonable, my daughter,” the Emperor said as he shook his head. “It is unlikely that your brother will live long, nor will he have an heir. As you know, only a man can ascend to the Imperial throne…”
“… and a woman can claim the throne only if she has a husband to give it to,” Omaha completed. “I know our laws of succession, papa.”
Emperor Hannegan nodded at Omaha, somewhat satisfied. “I know you do. I had hoped for Tsar Nikolai to be that successor, but I’d take the good Inquisitor here too.”
Up to this point, Aeneas had been content to maintain his silence. But he could do so no more.
“With all due respect, Your Highness. I am not an option here. My heart had been promised to another woman,” Aeneas declared.
But the Emperor remained calm and impassive. “I am well aware. I have done my research. You have a pact with that girl from San Felipe who wished to be your knight.” The Emperor chuckled smugly before he continued. “I thought it was a joke at first. Could imagine that paraplegic girl protecting anyone? But I suppose being unreasonable is something that this newer generation are apt to do.”
Aeneas seethed in silence. It took every bit of his restraint not to lash out at one of the most powerful men in the Holy League.
The Emperor chuckled once more. “Nevertheless, the offer still stands, should you change your mind.”
The rest of the conversation was uneventful. It was mostly a discussion of logistics given that the Texarkana Expeditionary Force was going to be a part of the Lepanto. Afterwards, Aeneas and Omaha said their farewells to the Emperor of Texarkana.
Aeneas had planned for his army to spend a few more days in the Imperial Capital as the Texarkana Expeditionary Force under Omaha entered into the Lepanto.
But at the moment, the Inquisitor was currently at the Imperial Sky Port of Texarkana with the Imperial Princess, making sure that things were up to par.
“I don’t think I’ve said it yet. But I’m glad to have you on my team, Princess Omaha,” Aeneas said warmly. The Inquisitor truly meant that from the bottom of his heart; the Imperial contingent had added much needed firepower to his army.
“Think nothing of it, Sir Aeneas,” Omaha answered with a smile on her face. “Ever since I’ve learned that you are on a mission to unite the Holy League, I’ve been waiting for you to come here.”
“Really? Why is that?”
“I tire of my papa, Sir Aeneas. Surely you notice how he had been acting towards you. Surely you know something was amiss.”
Aeneas thought of his conversation with Emperor Hannegan. He could not help but feel some sort of hostility from the man.
“I do. But I couldn’t quite tell what it was,” Aeneas answered.
“Hmph,” Omaha said haughtily. “I had thought you would have figured it out, but I suppose you are just too innocent. The truth is that the rebellion was staged by my father.”
“Impossible!” Aeneas cried. But then he thought of the situation once more. “Though I suppose it made sense how the whole thing seemed ill-thought-out to begin with.”
“My father and Duke Robert thought that they could force the Imperial Senate to approve a change to our laws of succession which currently barred bastards from ascending to the throne by marching on Texarkana,” Omaha explained.
“And that’s why you asked for my help,” Aeneas stated.
Omaha nodded. “Yes. And when it became clear that the whole thing was collapsing, my father was quick to distance himself from the rebellion. First by helping us during the battle, and now by making sure that Duke Robert is silenced.”
“You’re telling me that I shouldn’t worry about it anymore,” Aeneas said.
Omaha shook her head. “No. Instead you should worry about what spurred them on to take this course of action.”
The Princess then took out a series of letters in black and handed them over to Aeneas.
“Letters?”
“I suggest you read them later, Sir Aeneas,” Omaha said. “They detail some correspondence between my father and some unknown group.”
Aeneas then remembered of his conversation with Doge Norberto back in Veneto. Could the same group who had assisted Senator Grimaldi’s plotting in Veneto be also responsible for spurring Duke Robert to launch an ill-thought-out coup?
Aeneas knew that there was one group who was usually most associated with shadowy activities and plotting, especially against the Church. However, it would be irresponsible to point fingers without any evidence. For the time being, he would just have to put this issue aside.
“What is our next destination, Sir Aeneas?” Omaha asked.
“Pacifica,” Aeneas answered. “To have a word with Duke Caius and bring the Proletarians to our side.”
“Lavinia’s papa,” Omaha mused. “This should be interesting. I am looking forward to how our adventure will unfold, Sir Aeneas.”
Omaha turned from Aeneas, she looked to be walking away from the Inquisitor. But suddenly, she turned back. She rushed towards Aeneas and took him by his head.
And she kissed him.
It's too late, Aeneas should have run while he had the chance. Between Omaha and Lavinia and Galatae, and the tsundere, he's in trouble.