A strong, rhythmic clack spreads throughout the otherwise silent hallway, the sound of Prince Octavian’s heels hitting the stone floor with every step. Twenty guards stand equally spaced on either side, prostrated on bent knees, gazes focused downwards on the ground. None dare to raise their eyes in the presence of one of the Imperial Family.

Each of the warriors is a powerhouse capable of destroying any of the Champions of the lower waves or even the Imperial traitors, but their battle hardened desire for combat and blood is suppressed in the presence of the Prince. They don’t bow to his level or his Skills. They don’t cower before his combat ability. Their only fear is the retribution that would come of angering or displeasing him. To disrespect the Prince would most assuredly bring the wrath of the Emperor himself.

The Emperor takes care of his own before all else.

Their effort is wasted, as Prince Octavian doesn’t even notice their presence around him; his mind is focused on considering all of the implications of his new role. As he continues his march forward, a slight coughing noise brings him out of his thoughts and causes him to return his focus intently on the moment. He silently admonishes himself for his mistake.

Misplaced focus is the quickest way to die in the Imperial Court.

The noise originated from a pillar at the end of the hallway. Standing next to it with ramrod posture is his elder sister, Princess Aurelia, and her eyes stare intently at Octavian, ignoring the guards around them as if they were nothing more than room decorations. She wears the grey and yellow uniform of the Imperial Army, foregoing all fashion trends in her pursuit of power, and her ceremonial sword is attached to her hip. The hilt of the sword is adorned with a red star surrounded by a golden laurel, denoting her position as both Brigadier General and member of the Imperial family.

Of the different people he had expected to approach him first, Aurelia was definitely the last person he had thought to find waiting for him. Her presence most likely indicates that he has caught the attention of members from the upper ranks of the Family, generally considered a dangerous event for someone of his rank.

Adopting his court persona, Octavian smiles in his practiced charming and foppish manner, bowing to his sister to recognize her higher status as the older sibling. “Well met, Sister. To what do I owe the undeserved honor of being approached by one so much greater than myself?”

Her face remains completely still, not at all amused by his prodigious charm. “Stop with the genuflecting, Brother, I find it annoying and pointless. You know exactly why I’m here.”

Maintaining his smile, Octavian cocks his head to the side and scrunches his face in feigned confusion. He’d been perfecting his persona for a decade, hiding behind fashion interests and societal gossip, and he had no intention of letting Aurelia break though all of that hard work now. “I must claim ignorance, Sister, for I truly have no idea.”

His words only seem to infuriate Aurelia, her eyebrows furrowing in a surprising display of emotion. Octavian can only just keep the surprise off his face. Her time away from court has obviously lessened her self-control. Such an obvious reaction is the sign of a novice courtier. Well… that or the sign of someone who has grown powerful enough to disregard any norms of society. He maintains his facade of ignorance and lets himself become slightly more cautious, considering her next words carefully, as well as all of his possible responses.

“You idiotic dandy, I’m here about your appointment. Tell me, why did the Emperor appoint you as the Ambassador of the Merchant Caravan to the 11th Wave?”

Interesting. He’d known that news of his appointment would spread quickly, but her presence suggests that she had been previously informed of the decision, before the official announcement. The only people who knew about his appointment before the actual meeting would have been those present in the room when the Emperor assigned it to him …

His mind races as he considers the implications of this obvious leak. He begins to quickly review the list of potential suspects. Had Aurelia aligned herself with Marius, Commander of the Military? Their personalities and goals were similar, but Marius is known for his dislike of the Family’s involvement in his army. He had been opposed to her promotions in the past, only to be overruled by the Emperor, and Aurelia was known to hold long grudges. After another moment’s consideration, Octavian rules out Marius.

What about Livius, the Prime Merchant? He and Aurelia may have drastically different visions for the Empire’s growth but their alliance would create a faction capable of rivalling both Red Sun and Endless Day. Had they somehow managed to compromise on their differences in their pursuits of power? While Octavian had no difficulty imagining Livius selling out his own mother in his quest for influence and wealth, he could not envision a single scenario where Aurelia would be willing to compromise her own values. Her entire career was built on her steadfast devotion to the military. Octavian had long suspected that she only paid minor respects to Endless Day for the sake of political expediency. He removes Livius from the mental list of his sister’s potential allies.

That only left Marcella the Blind, the head of the Empire’s espionage network. Octavian had always been perplexed by her, never truly understanding her personal goals or the direction that she wanted the Empire to go. It frustrates him immensely because his strength lies in understanding the motivations of all the powerful individuals within the empire, mapping out potential conflicts and predicting the victors. This understanding had allowed him to rise from the lower ranks of the Family and into the middle ranks.

Realizing that Marcella is the most likely of the options, Octavian lets out an internal sigh of relief. She had been known, on occasion, to pass along pieces of information to interested parties but, to the best of his knowledge, had never entered into an actual alliance with any member of the Family. This was probably a one-off favor that she did for Aurelia in return for some unknown favor. Octavian quickly makes a mental note to investigate Aurelia’s recent and upcoming actions to try to determine what that favor was, hopefully gleaming some shred of enlightenment on Marcella’s motivations.

Octavian’s thought process takes only a few seconds, Aurelia watching him with impatient eyes as he reaches his conclusion. He can tell that she is just about to erupt when he responds. “Oh, you heard about that, Sister? I was just as surprised as everyone else but I am eternally grateful to the Emperor. I have no idea why he chose me and all I can do is strive to fulfill his expectations.”

Delightfully entertained by her facial expressions, Octavian watches as Aurelia reacts with disbelief to his statement. The best part is that the statement is actually true; he has no idea why he was chosen for such an important position. While the Empire thrives in their role as the most powerful merchant group of the Universe, other civilizations are always nipping at their heels to try and take away from their trade and influence. An Ambassador to a new wave is a position coveted by all since it allows the individual to establish connections and contacts among entirely new peoples.

“Don’t play with me Brother, you must have done something to attract the Emperor’s attention.”

Anger and frustration clearly visible on her face, she holds up her hand to stop Octavian’s reply. She takes a deep calming breath, and regains some of her own self control before continuing.

“Regardless, that is not why I am here. I am here to ‘request’ that you include one cohort of legionaries in your expedition, led by myself, with the purpose of neutralizing the powerful talents of the 11th Wave.”

For the first time since Octavian joined the court over a decade ago, his façade breaks and genuine, unplanned surprise appears on his face. He can barely believe what he is hearing! Not only is she suggesting that they eradicate all the talent of this nascent wave, but she is doing so with the understanding that such an action would be labelled as a crime by her own party, Endless Day. The political fallout of such an action would rock the Empire to its very core and create further division in this already divisive time.

Still unable to hide his shock at her blunt statement, Octavian’s true personality slips out with his response. “Sister, why would you request this? Such an action would cause untold conflict within the Empire and would no doubt cripple the 11th Wave. They would have no defense, and would most likely be subjugated by another of the lower waves. This action would break the ceasefire!”

The moment he finishes speaking, he curses at himself internally for misstep, rationalizing it behind the need to understand the request. This action is something that only he or the Emperor himself have the authority to permit and the potential crippling of a wave is far more important than rumors of his intelligence reaching the Court.

Aurelia is taken aback by the sudden insight and understanding in his voice. With the realization that she is seeing the real Octavian for the first time in her life, her mood lightens and a smile breaks out on her face as she considers him anew, seeing his potential as both an ally and as an enemy. “Let us just say that certain parties are involved and you’d be safer not knowing. All you need to know is that there is a powerful faction within the Empire that has determined that the 11th Wave represents something … new and dangerous to Imperial rule.”

Octavian’s shock is wiped quickly from his face but he allows his true perceptive nature to remain as he responds to her vague answer. “That isn’t good enough for me, Sister. I will not condone the destabilization of the Empire or the eradication of an entire Wave’s talent over the implication that some unknown faction has determined they are dangerous. What do you know? What does the 11th Wave represent?”

Aurelia’s smile is wiped away at his response, frustration burning inside of her. He may not understand at the moment but her actions are intended to protect her younger sibling, to keep him away from powerful forces beyond his understanding. Unfortunately she has no choice as the final say in this matter falls to him alone. “Here is what I can tell you. A powerful faction, led by the more … loyal, and powerful, members of the Empire, has intercepted letters from Bine the Lesser that seem to suggest he has employed resources into investigating the talents of the 11th Wave. We’ve decided that his interest is not conducive to Imperial goals. We intend to take matters into our own hands.”

Octavian is overwhelmed by the sudden revelation. Bine the Lesser, the Imperial Counselor who had gone rogue and been exiled so many centuries ago. An almost mythical figure, a haunting specter whose purposes and goals remain unknown. His research, which was the reason for his banishment, was considered so dangerous that it was destroyed by the Emperor. But despite these preconceived notions of who Bine is, Octavian is still too uneasy with the request. There is a very high probability that Aurelia, who is no longer experienced in the cutthroat politics of the Court, is being misled or even outright lied to. Without direct confirmation of the evidence and the subsequent conclusions, Octavian cannot agree.

Shaking his head slightly, Octavian begins to walk away from Aurelia. “I’m sorry, Sister, but I cannot permit your request without more information. You cannot just throw around a name like Bine’s and expect me to grant you what you seek.”

Sensing her impending outrage, he raises his hand to hold her off. “That is not to say I have closed off my mind entirely. Go back to your … ‘faction’ and persuade them to show me hard evidence. If they can convince me that it is in the Empire’s interests then I will reconsider. Until then, good day.”

Walking away, his mind races along the possibilities. His role as Ambassador has just become significantly more interesting.