His Favored Empress

Secret Meetings

"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."