Though it was not fitting for a proud soldier in His Imperial Majesty's Army, General Hickham was highly conflict-averse. He liked that the overwhelming power of the Empire could win their battles without ever fighting. Who needed the waste of blood and treasure? If the Palatinians had come to see the good sense in this, it would be better for everyone.

He was grateful to General Adeen for getting results so quickly, or perhaps he needed to thank the king of Byrandia. From the reports he had heard, King Charles was an exceedingly reasonable man who grasped the situation immediately and worked to negotiate an amenable arrangement for all parties. Supposedly he had been preparing for this very occasion ever since that incident with the Waldsängerfink-308. It was probably one of the first times that premature contact actually worked in their favor.

His orderly was going over his uniform with a lint brush. He had an audience with King Seleuceus and needed to be looking his best. Of course, he was supposed to be looking his best whenever he was on duty, as was befitting a proud soldier in His Imperial Majesty's Army. Honestly, he needed to look sharp when he was off duty as well. It could get tiring, but he had worked hard to get this far and there was still farther he might go. Hoping for peerage was perhaps a little too ambitious, but if he could get his family elevated to a hereditary Equestrian status, he would be remembered fondly by the generations to come.

When he exited his room, his aide-de-camp Oberstleutnant Kleinmann was waiting for him. He saluted and said, "Good morning, Herr General. Are you read to go, sir?"

General Hickham returned his salute and replied, "Yes, let's be on our way. We wouldn't want to keep the King waiting."

It was official policy to not acknowledge any titles that were not issued by the Emperor himself or one of his authorized agents. However, General Hickham felt that a little consideration could go a long way. Until a person had sworn fealty to the Emperor and renounced his titles, he had some right to be called as he would. The only thing was that General Hickham would never acknowledge anyone as emperor save the one true Emperor. Fortunately, he had not had to deal with any self-styled emperors so far.

General Hickham, along with Oberstleutnant Kleinmann and a quartet of bodyguards, made their way to the throne room. The throne room was an impressive work of Gothic-style rib vaults with marble cladding and gilded accents, a sharp contrast to the simpler construction of most of the other parts of the palace. It very much resembled one of the ancient cathedrals back on Earth, only instead of an altar, there was the throne. To General Hickham's knowledge, the kings of Palatinia were not deified, but they did not seem to be above giving that impression.

It would have been easier to conduct their business in a smaller council chamber, but King Seleuceus clearly wanted to cling to the trappings of his glory for as long as he could.

General Hickham approached the throne, gave a slight bow and said, "In the name of His Majesty the Emperor and the Lord Admiral, greetings, King of the Palatine. To what do I owe the honor of this audience?"

King Seleuceus was a lean man with high cheekbones, piercing eyes and a goatee that was styled to a fine point. When sitting on the throne, he wore an ermine cape of reddish purple over his white military uniform bedecked with oversized medals. Honestly, he looked like the sort of villain you would find in a children's story. His eyebrows in particular seemed to be permanently arched in such a way that you expected evil from him the moment you laid eyes on him. That being said, he had so far proven himself to be a well-mannered if somewhat cold and distant host. They do say you are not supposed to judge a book by its cover.

A bemused half-smile crossed the King's lips and he stroked his goatee as he said, "If you think you are going to be with us in the long term, you ought to learn more about our people, our culture, our history. You have been here nearly a month and you have not seen even half of what this palace has to offer."

The King rose from the throne and said, "Come, General. Let me show you something."

Although his curiosity was piqued, General Hickham remembered his responsibilities and asked, "What of the business of this audience?"

The King was making his first truly friendly gesture and it would have been exceedingly impolite to refuse. The General's work would be all the easier if relations warmed between them, so it could be said that it was his duty to be a gracious guest.

The King withdrew to a chamber in the back and General Hickham and his entourage followed. When the General entered the chamber, a servant was taking the King's cape to put it away. King Seleuceus may have been a little ostentatious, as you would expect of a nation's king, but he also had a practical side to him. Walking around the palace in the cape would be a little much.

They exited the chamber into a hallway and as they were walking, the King said, "With all the new construction and renovations over the years, this can scarcely be called the same palace that was built some two hundred years ago. It was actually the third palace to serve as the home of the King. It was originally the summer palace of the Paulus family—most of the major houses summer here in Capitolinus, you see. King Paulus was raised in this city and when he was crowned, he chose to remain here instead of moving to the Valentian Palace.

"The West Wing is the oldest part of the palace and indeed it was a palace unto itself, as was the East Wing, until the two were merged with the construction of the current main hall during the reign of King Corvinus, though the construction was not finished until the time of Julius III. In other words, this is not one palace but three."

Although in the grand scheme of things, this would not even merit a footnote in the official chronicles of the Empire, General Hickham was fascinated by all the little histories of these Lost Worlds. From their perspective, the canvas seemed so much larger.

There was something that caught the General's notice and it continued to distract him as he was trying to pay attention to the King's story. King Seleuceus only had a single attendant and a bodyguard accompanying him. Normally he had no fewer than four bodyguards around him at all times and at least as many servants. Was this meant to be a gesture of confidence? Perhaps the King was a warmer and more intimate person than first impressions led him to believe and the progress on the diplomatic front was allowing that side to come out.

They stopped at a door that the attendant had to unlock. When the door was opened, General Hickham could see a narrow staircase leading down. The attendant produced a flashlight and led the way. The King and his bodyguard followed, then General Hickham and his entourage after that.

The basement chamber was some sort of dungeon, exceedingly narrow and cramped with a mere four cells. General Hickham had to resist the urge to hold his nose. The smells seemed to be soaked into the rock. You could flood the chamber with bleach and even that probably would not be enough.

"I mentioned Julius III earlier. He really was a fascinating figure. They call him 'Julius the Gardener'. Do you know why that is, General Hickham?"

"This system became increasingly complicated as the family grew. The more distant branches would marry into the elder branches in order to gain a chance at the throne. The Gardener was no different, but that was not enough for him. He wanted to clear his way to the throne and ensure it would be passed down through his heirs, so he took up his shears and did some pruning on those troublesome branches. The young, the old, women, children, even little babes... All trimmed up nice and tidy."

Did King Seleuceus take pleasure in this story? Was it a source of pride, an example to be emulated? Or was he just treating it as some boogeyman story like what you would use to frighten children?

The King chuckled.

This was getting out of hand. General Hickham did not want to let this morbidity play out any further. As much as he wanted to humor the King, he had reached his limit. There was no other political officer who would have put up with so much, and was this the General's reward for being so generous? No wonder people like General Adeen were so strict.

Still trying to be diplomatic, the General said, "Well, this has been fascinating, but I really think we should return to our business. Perhaps we can continue another time."

The moment he said those words, the doors to the cells swung open. The pathway was so narrow that when the doors were open, the way was blocked entirely. General Hickham and his aide-de-camp were hemmed in between two doors, separated from the bodyguards. Two or three figures rushed out of the farthest cell and went for the bodyguards. The General did not get a good look at what followed because there were people lying in wait in the cell opposite to where he was standing as well.

Rough hands took hold of him. General Hickham could not believe what was happening. It was impossible. He was a soldier in His Majesty's Imperial Army, a general in the Political Officers Corps. This could not be happening. Not here, not like this. It could not be happening.

His uniform jacket was stripped away along with shirt under it. However, they did not have as much luck with the skinsuit under that. With their technology level, they would not easily figure out how the fasteners worked. After fumbling with the suit a little, they started cutting it away. It would take a tungsten carbide blade or something similar to cut through a skinsuit and even if the Palatinians had the technology, why did they have it at the ready here?

Kleinmann's voice helped bring the General Hickham back to his senses.

His words fell on deaf ears. While he was still being held down, he heard the hum of some sort of electronic device that started to give off this whining screech. He then felt a sharp pain around his shoulder blade that radiated out as it felt like someone was digging around beneath the skin. It did not take him long to realize that they were looking for his tracker and had just extracted it. How did they know about it, though?

There was a dull crunch.

Strangely, the more dire his predicament became, the less panicked General Hickham felt. Yes, he was scared, but there was something like a sense of resignation that came over him. More than that, there was the understanding of what would come of all this.

Cooperate? What exactly were they hoping to get out of him? Unless they thought he could conjure up a fleet to match the 483rd, there was not a thing he could do to hold back the coming storm. King Seleuceus' threats paled in comparison to the hellfire that the Lord Admiral was going to rain down on them.

If his words came from someone with a little more iron in them, they would come across as a grave threat. From the General, though, they were simply a statement of fact. Even so, King Seleuceus did not seem to understand.

General Hickham could not speak for anyone else, but he knew that he regretted coming here. The destruction on the horizon was no consolation to him, however. How many people were going to have to die for the foolishness of a few? May God have mercy on their souls.