“Your reaction is unexpected.” The hovering drone followed me smoothly through the opening, watching as I trailed the cable behind me. “Were you aware of me?”

“The Seal Lock in its chamber above is absolutely free of dust. Not a mote is allowed to land upon it. If you think I could not guess it was psionically-empowered, you gravely underestimate me. Psionic empowerment coupled with pre-Imperial computing technology fairly screams of the existence of an intelligent data network. That you haven’t had a massive meltdown and taken out the city means you remain uncorrupted.

“Thus, you are a self-aware computer network that has been isolated by the Foundation, probably without you interfering with their overt maneuvers. Now, I believe you had the means, probably telekinetically, to re-establish contact with the data network, but you sensed Warp influence in it, realized the long-term harm it would do to you, and effectively sequestered yourself.

“My actions here are basically to prepare you to resume normal duties. We can talk about isolation and preservation protocols after events unfold.”

“Resuming normal duties?” the drone repeated, and I could hear the arching tone. “You speak as if-“ It was interrupted by a beep, and fell abruptly silent, snapping around to look at the thumb drive in my hand.

“The Celestial Tribute!” it finally exclaimed in a halting voice. “It...It has been found?!”

“And a new Duke Corunsun has been claimed by the Ducal Seal and Signet. Details within.” I held it out in my palm, and waited.

Micro TK plucked it off my open palm, spun it around, and a crystalline port formed on the drone’s surface. The drone sat there in midair as I returned to hooking in data cables to various ports and areas of interest, leading to some systems that would be crucial to further events.

---

A not-so-remarkably short span of time later, the drone zipped up to me considerably more quickly. “The identity of the Tribute and codes have been verified and accepted. You are the Duchess-in-waiting, Sama Rantha, the beloved of the Duke Briggs Corunsun. You are here to facilitate the return of the dynastic wealth and authority of the Corunsuns to its Duke!”

“That is correct.” I plugged in another superconductive data cable. “I trust you have sleeper programs in all the systems of the Foundation?”

“Of course.” I detected a subtle difference in the hum of the dense stacks of computer hardware around me, and diodes blinked up... and went quickly dark again...

“Wonderful. The Duke will be visiting after you can assure me that transfer of properties to His name will be accomplished. He will place the Seal upon the Lock, and take the Ducal Seat, and begin the process of establishing Himself here.

“However, He is in the middle of establishing a kingdom on the other side of the Great Rift right now, and will be unable to remain here.”

“You will be serving as his agent in the Empire. Understood.” The Psionic Intelligence began to calculate quickly. “It would be best if I infiltrated their systems further. These data connections are a good first step. It would be best if I re-established my primacy first.”

I snapped in the last cable, which led into a minor terminal that had to deal with tax revenue storage numbers... which naturally would have to connect to something giving current tax revenue, and where those funds came from, and went to.

“What do you need? I should be able to get it to you.”

--------------

Once the true Foundation, who I promptly dubbed Founding, was moving, things began to adjust.

Taking over the cyborgs who maintained the computers down here in the sub-zero chill wasn’t actually all that hard, once Founding was in the systems. A combination of downloaded program updates through their own local Boole and artful insertion of dataplugs into them with drones and TK did the job fairly smoothly.

It basically shifted their orders to coming from Founding instead of the families ostensibly running it, and rather quickly, Founding’s ancient systems were hooking into the newer and considerably less sophisticated systems added over the years by the families to replace it.

He was pleasantly surprised to find out I had access to programming and certain levels of technology even more sophisticated then he was, and started hinting at upgrades almost immediately. I demurred until Briggs had arrived to claim His Seat, naturally. I had no authority to upgrade or adjust the system until then, which Founding acknowledged with a sigh...

------------

Getting Briggs into the Foundation’s Royal Hall wasn’t all that difficult. After all, he looked like an appropriately brutal bodyguard. We sauntered in quite openly; my identity was confirmed, and we were shown personally on a tour of the Royal Hall by a plastic-smiled guide happy to natter on about the legendary loyalty of the Foundation Families to their Duke.

Briggs barely looked around, and of course nobody realized the significance of the Signet Ring upon his finger. Him Ar Dumb Broot, Him Ar.

We entered the Hall with its breadth and shiny murals of ancient history, unchanged for millennia. The field about the Dais of Enthronement was unchanged, and would not go down save to the wearer of the Signet, of course.

The guards were purely symbolic androids, of course. There was nothing to destroy or steal in here... the images could be restored by the same nanotech that preserved them, and it would take atomics to breach the Field about the Dais.

Which didn’t mean the jaw of our guide didn’t drop when Briggs strode unconcernedly towards the Dais.

“Sir, Sir!” Pirvin shouted excitedly. “Contessa Rantha! Your bodyguard! If he touches the field, he-he will... will...”

Briggs stepped right through it, the energy screen playing over his body visibly as he stepped through, and reached up to his neck to remove a certain medallion there.

“He... what is he...” stammered Pirvin, and I grabbed his arm.

“It may be worth a LOT of money if you record this,” I noted to him. He looked at me, back at Briggs as that massive ham of a fist held up the much smaller medallion. Pirvin’s eyes got very wide, indeed, and his optical recorder almost shimmered as he kicked it up to very high resolution.

Briggs placed the Medallion upon the Lock, and the Seal shimmered with light. Psi-active matrices locked into unique crysto-metallic patterns shone and shimmered with liquid light.

There was no flaring of light, merely a withdrawal of it. Briggs calmly withdrew the Seal and hung it again about his neck, this time on top of the massive suit wrapping his thick body.

“Greetings, Duke Corunsun,” a voice spoke up, as the Lock upon the Crown Pillar receded like falling water into the floor. The very expensive Orion Marble flowed and rose up, forming into a great throne, gleaming with veins of raw gemstones in spectacular fashion.

Just the perfect size for him, too.

“Please seal the Foundation, and Summon those who work here to the Hall.” The actual headquarters had long been moved from this ceremonial heart to a new tower on the Crownspire of Corun long ago, so the most senior members of the Families weren’t actually close by. “Begin the transfer of assets and titles to my name and the accounts provided to you.

“Oh, and bring up The Corunsun.”

Pirvin swallowed hard at the rumbling bass of Briggs’ voice, carrying power, assurance, strength, and determination that was trashing every image he ever had of Ancients. Sitting on that throne, the Ducal Seal glittering on his chest, he indeed looked like a great nobleman...

Part of the dais flowed aside, and a stand arose. On top of it rose a great gemstone, a multifaceted, multicolored corundum jewel the size of a man’s head, brought up from who knew where.

The Corunsun...

Briggs’ pale violent eyes fell upon Pirvin, who fell helplessly to his knees beneath their weight.

“Long ago, the vassals of Corunsun swore their fealty to the family and its Duke upon this, the jewel for which the family is named.

“I am sure it is a mere formality, for are not the families of the Foundation known for their loyalty? Pirvin Skymander, you are invited to be the first to pledge yourself to the Ducal Seat of Corunsun in six thousand years.”

Pirvin swallowed again, staring at the glittering red, blue, and topaz gemstone, glowing there with real power. “A-and if I don’t?” he had to ask.

“Making a mockery of loyalty to the Corunsun name?” Briggs inquired, very softly.

Pirvin almost lunged for the gemstone, slapping his hand down upon it. “I-I,” he stammered.

“I, Pirvin Skymander,” I supplied him helpfully, and he repeated blankly, “do swear life, loyalty, and limb to the Seat of the House Corunsun, and He who sits upon it, His Grace Briggs, the Duke Corunsun!”

He got it all out, his knees shaking so hard I was basically keeping him upright.

The light flashed in his eyes as the Geas took hold. A Raised Geas, and applied with technopsi, too. This could not be broken without at least a Sixteen working on it... and the Duke would know if the Oath Corunsun was broken, as the heart of the Seal and the stone upon his Signet both came from the Corunsun.

“Welcome to My service, Master Pirvin,” Briggs greeted him with a cordial nod.

“Your Grace!” Pirvin hyperventilated a few times, calming himself down. Now that he had Sworn himself formally to the man he was supposed to be loyal to anyways, he started to adjust. “How may I be of service to Your Grace?” he asked automatically.

“Sama, give him a sidearm. Pirvin, you will be given several chances to prove your loyalty shortly.”

“Yes, Your Grace.” He accepted the compact laz I gave him, switched off the safety with the attitude of someone who knew how to use it, and stepped off to the side, near me. “Uh, my lady, if I might ask-?” he inquired softly.

“Fiance,” I replied calmly.

His eyes got very big again. “Yes, My Lady,” he said, properly capitalizing things this time.

------

It didn’t take long for the first workers in the Hall to be shuffled inside, having been ordered to assemble here by the computer networks. They came into the long hall, and started at disbelief at the huge Ancient waiting there on a throne, with a glittering Medallion on his chest, and the glowing twinkling of the Corunsun gleaming there, just like it looked like on the walls.

There were protests in back as the security bots hurled the recalcitrant and reluctant within, and suddenly things for some 1,247 Foundation Family members were rather quiet.

“Greetings, Families of the Corunsun Foundation. I am Briggs, the Duke Corunsun. Long have I heard of your legendary loyalty to My Seat. Before you lies the Corunsun, upon which the vassals of the Dukes swore their loyalty long ago. I offer you now the chance to confirm your loyalty, and retain your status with the House Corunsun.”

There was a pregnant, fearful pause for them to digest that.

“If you do not wish to confirm that loyalty, there are sixteen different death traps in this hall designed to kill the holder of the Ducal Seal, placed here by your families. You will be allowed to test the efficacy of your ancestors.

“Camer Totsko, will you come forth and swear to this Seat?”

The florid, red-faced man flushed even deeper at Brigg’s deep, mild voice. “I do not believe this! You cannot be the Duke! The Seal would never permit an abhuman to claim the Seat!”

There was a whine and flash of light, and the florid man’s head exploded, showering the pseudo-nobles about with blood and brains.

Privin calmly lowered his pistol back down. “Your Grace, he refused,” he added politely.

Briggs nodded slowly, pale violet eyes steady. “Then, I shall be more direct. In order to spare your fellows a cleaning bill, perhaps everyone who does not wish to uphold your famed loyalty should stand against the west wall...”