Kaolin Empire: Planet Kaolin

Kaden wiped the sweat from his brow and clasped his hands behind his back as his glassy eyes stared nervously through the viewport. The planet looked majestic from the window of the imperial dreadnaught, but Kaden was not deceived by the beautiful blues, greens, and swirling clouds that would otherwise excite someone who had never been planetside. Below lay a giant red continent; the Kaolin Empire's capital city; a place of supreme cruelty that no one in their right mind would want to end up.

Kaden shook his head and ordered his implant to inject him with a stimulant. He had been working at the SB56 top-secret lab when the order to report to the Emperor came through, and the subsequent trip had been hours of nonstop jumps through warp space, which had left his already tired body feeling nauseated. He had to get his thoughts together and his cover story straight if he wanted to survive the next few hours. The loudspeaker blared, "Kaden to shuttle bay one, your ride is about to leave."

The ride down to the planet was bumpy, and the view nonexistent as this part of the planet's atmosphere was controlled by satellites and engineered to rain blood. The Emperor's creation and the ultimate statement of cruelty lay below; a garden stretching hundreds of miles filled with tortured individuals kept alive through regenerative nanites. If a passerby got close enough for their eyes to pierce through the blood mist, they would see automated blades skinning chained prisoners. The blood would flow into fountains that would shoot a thousand miles into the air before raining down. The victims' screams were nonstop as the nanites repaired their bodies just as fast as they were mutilated. Some of the people tortured in the garden had been there for hundreds of years simply because the Emperor never forgot a grudge.

The entry from the shuttle pad was covered, so Kaden couldn't get blood on him, but he could still hear the horrible screams. It was unnerving, fear-inducing, and caused bile to rise into his throat. Kaden shivered and quickened his pace. He had always dreaded this moment but knew it would happen someday. He was one of the lead scientists at the Future Ubiquitous Control Kinematics Base, and the project he was researching was of the utmost importance to the Emperor. After thousands of years of research, the project was finally complete, and the Emperor wanted to see the results. He had every planet in the Empire supporting the research effort, and the other lead scientists from the intergalactic research team should already be waiting below.

Kaden took one last look out at the bloody mists before turning to the doors of the imperial palace. His stomach had finely settled, and a feeling of peace overtook him as he suddenly knew what he had to do. He couldn't let the Emperor get his hands on the product of the research. This evil, insidious Emperor must not be allowed to become fully immortal or take his merciless cruelty to the rest of the multiverse. He stepped through the colossal platinum gilded doors and resigned himself to death.

As Kaden entered the throne room, screams reverberated off the walls. Kaden averted his eyes and tried not to flee in terror as the Emperor finished cutting off the last of the scientists' fingers before atomizing him with his blaster. "Well, I hope you have better news than the rest of the garbage," said the Emperor. He turned his nose to the vile smell emitting from the puddle of human sludge that had been a well-educated and respected scientist and proceeded to beckon Kaden over to him. "Come come! I have been waiting for you. As far as I can tell, all these other people don't know anything! Perhaps you will have better news for me?" Kaden bowed low and said in a quivering voice: "With all due respect, your majesty, these scientists only had compartmentalized knowledge about their specific research areas. We had intended to give you a full rundown of the status of everything in a united briefing. I don't have all the information either. However, if you allow me to take these people's access codes, I can have my artificial intelligence unit present us with the full project and all its details". The Emperor chuckled, "of course. I simply don't need these people anymore. I'm cutting loose ends and the like. Hmm, don't worry. I have you to finish the project and provide maintenance for any ongoing issues. It's a very long-term position. You like your son Brian, don't you? Yes, I think you do. He will have the best of everything as long as you serve me well. Here come over to my table and have some food." Kaden shuttered at the veiled threat concerning his son Brian and made his way over to a large table covered with heaps of expensive foods and condiments. Automated bots whirred behind him as they cleaned the pile of human goop that represented the last of his colleagues.

The food was Nothing short of amazing. A nude female slave delivered course after course of exotic dishes to the table, but Kaden couldn't help but taste ashes with every bite. The Emperor rubbed his hands on his belly and smacked his lips, "That was simply wonderful. I always get a bit peckish after some good murder. Ahh. It's wonderful to be Emperor! Now, I'm sure that your A.I. had enough time to compile the other scientists' data while we were eating. Give me the rundown, will you? You are now the primary scientist and point of contact for the entire project!" The Emperor rubbed his hands gleefully as Kaden prepared the holoprojector and began the report.