Hounds of Orion

The tension in the king’s office was tense as he and Logan entered. They practically marched through the entryway with loud, heavy footsteps that echoed off the surrounding walls. This was further punctuated by a loud boom that vibrated the walls as Logan slammed the door shut, his rage boiling over before the latch had even clicked.

“Are you fucking insane?!” He bellowed, staring daggers at Augustus who was matching Logan’s furious glare with one of his own. “Cause the only explanation as to why your throwing your son into a squire combat assessment has to be that you’ve lost you goddamn mind!”

“First of all,” Augustus began, speaking through gritted teeth while sitting down in a plush leather office chair. “Lower your voice. Regardless of our previous relationship, and your lack of citizenship, I am a noble of the planet Ketris and a proxy of the mother planet. I will not be shouted at like a misbehaving toddler. Second, yes, Cameron is my son. However, he is also the future Seneschal of the planet. His duty to the people, outweighs my duty as his father.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it.” Logan growled. “It takes guard cadets a year at least of study and practice before they’re ready to take a combat assessment. You know this! Throwing Cameron into one after only two weeks isn’t just incredibly harsh and shortsighted. It’s incredibly stupid as well. Hell, if you want him dead so badly, I’ll give you a rail pistol and you can go out there and do the job yourself instead of wasting everyone’s time.”

Augustus looked at Logan for a moment, studying him in silence before reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose as he expelled a weary sigh. “I know that you’ve been away from politics for a long time Logan. But please try to use your brain in this situation.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Logan said, looking at Augustus like he was crazy.

Augustus simply responded by motioning for Logan to take a seat. He did as requested and watched as the King reached beneath the desk and brought up a decanter of whiskey and two crystal glasses, pouring a generous amount of liquid in each. After handing one glass to Logan and taking a long drink from his own, draining nearly half of the alcohol from the glass, the king finally spoke.

“Do you know why, out of all three planets in this system currently colonized, that Ketris is the richest and most developed?”

Logan honestly couldn’t answer. He’d heard stories of the state of Makir and Amreith but had never felt the need to investigate for himself. He slowly shook his head, and watched as Augustus leaned back in his chair, exposing a window behind him, and pointing out it towards the star-port off in the distance.

“We possess the only intersystem port. Without Ketris, food, supplies, and luxury items from throughout the galaxy could not enter the system.”

Space travel had existed since the mid twenty-first century, but early pioneers were limited to staying within their own system. It was only with the invention of the Rail Engine in the 2250’s, that inter-system travel was possible. But it was a finnicky process, still within its infancy even six hundred years later, with strict classifications and rules in place regarding density and volume ratios for the engine to work properly, and as such, large ports such as the one on Ketris were few and far between.

“Without Ketris,” Augustus continued, “Three kingdoms fall. And the other rulers know this. They know how much money and luxury our port brings in, how important it is to our planet.”

“Okay? And?” Logan said, still struggling to make the connection.

Augustus sighed heavily, before giving Logan a stern look, “They also know that they don’t need a Ketrisite ruler controlling the trade.”

It clicked for Logan then, the mental puzzle pieces falling in place as his eyes went wide. He looked from the port then back to Augustus. “You tax them on every import they bring in, don’t you.”

The king nodded, “As is my right as planetary ruler. I will not be shamed for giving my people a prosperous world to call home.”

“So you’re essentially holding two planets hostage and pissing off the two people who’s egos rival your own.” Logan said, taking another sip of his drink, his eyes settling on Augustus again, who’s face was turning a bright shade of pink from irritation.

“In a manner of speaking…” Augustus growled through gritted teeth, “Yes.”

“Then that makes even less sense.” Logan shot back, cause a wave of confusion to flash across Augustus’s face.

He blinked, looking at Logan for questioningly, an eyebrow slowly raising. “Explain.”

Logan drained the rest of his whiskey, setting the crystal glass down on the desk with a heavy thud and leaned back in his chair, speaking as he stretched.

“Why don’t you simply just pull a veteran guard and make him seneschal? There’s nothing wrong with that. Unless breaking tradition is too taboo for you.”

The king had a surprised look on his face that swiftly morphed into confusion, before settling on an amused smirk. “Is that why you think I haven’t done just that? Tradition?”

Logan gave a sheepish look, raising an eyebrow. “Well… Not if it makes me sound like an idiot.”

Augustus gave what must have been the first genuine smile Logan had seen since the day he landed, then, the king gave a heartly laugh. “No, Logan. It’s not your fault. I wouldn’t expect you to think the way a royal does. That’s not an insult either. I wish I had your outlook. Strength and ability. That’s the world you live in, whereas I live in the world of perception.”

“Meaning what exactly?” Logan asked, feeling a little less embarrassed by his ignorance.

“Meaning that, in my world, as well as the world all monarchs and nobles belong to, perceived strength is just as if not more important than actual strength. If I were to simply take a veteran and promote them to seneschal, that would solve my problem of actual strength yes. But it would also be seen as a weakness. A tradition of over four hundred years, done away with just like that?” Augustus asked, snapping his fingers to emphasize the point.

“Every noble in the system would see this as a weakness. They’d assume that I have no faith in Cameron, and as such, no faith in Miranda either. My offspring would look weak in the eyes of the interplanetary stage and would be beset on all sides by aggressors and usurpers, throwing Ketris in a conflict, simply because I tried to do the right thing by son.”

Silence fell over the room, followed by a thick air of tension. Logan felt a heavy weight settle on his shoulders. A weariness that mentally exhausted him. He sighed, bring his hands to his face, running them over it and up across his bald head. “So,” He began, his voice an even, drained tone. “It’s not that you’re demanding Cameron do this because you want to punish him. It’s because you have to.”

Augustus nodded, looking sad and shameful, yet determined at the same time. “I love my son. And I wish nothing but success for him in this endeavor and throughout his life. But, he is one man on a planet of millions. One man, with a very important role to play in the coming days. I have faith that he can pull through and pass this exam. Perhaps not unscathed, but certainly pass. But should he fail… It will be in service to Ketris and her people. In short, if he dies, he dies. We will carry on with the next Seneschal down the line.

Logan ground his teeth, feeling his anger rise up again from the King’s callousness. But he couldn’t fault his old friend. He was responsible for the safety of an entire planet, and Logan believed that Augustus would do anything and sacrifice anyone including himself if it meant securing that safety. Logan on the other hand, only had one person to look out for and that was himself. Even so, he’d started to grow attached to Cameron in the past few weeks, and that meant something to him.

“Fuck this.” He said, voice cold and sharp as he turned away and walked towards the door, the gears in his head turning as he formulated a plan.

“Where are you going?” Augustus’s voice rang out behind him.

“To prep him.” Logan said flatly, turning the nob and throwing open the door. “I already taught him how to pilot a mech. Now I’m going to show him to kill with one.”