Bral Ranyr chapter 4

         The Thogos was physically imposing; there was no denying that. Only thirteen ships of its kind existed, one assigned to each of the thirteen Grand Admirals of the Imperial Fleet. Fifteen thousand meters in length, fifty-eight hundred across at its widest point, and packed full of weaponry and shielding, the Command Class vessel was designed to win not just battles, but wars.

         While the battle specs were enough to occupy anyone’s attention, Bral found that the Thogos had something of far greater use to him at the moment. Each of the Command Class ships possessed a local copy of the Imperial Record. This gave him access to nearly every record that the Empire kept, updated to within the last cycle before the Thogos left Naldel. With such an opportunity presented to him, he felt it only proper to learn what he could about what he might be getting himself into.

         He did not know where to begin, so he took a general approach. Based on his own experience, he knew that smugglers tended to disguise themselves as Alliance units. That took him to a search for reports on smugglers, which was tricky in its own right. Smuggling was illegal both by Imperial law and Corporate Alliance regulations. Legally, the Empire could not profess any knowledge about the methods of smugglers without being subject to charges of not upholding the law. Most of the “research” was treated as hearsay, and it took extra work on his part to piece together one thing with another.

         He was helped in his search by the Thogos’ Fleet Intelligence liaison, Commander Ashin Dreisath. Dreisath proved quite flexible in searching for information, if not downright clever at times. Together, they made a good team: when one seemed to hit a dead-end, the other was able to come up with a new lead. Between them, it took about three hours to produce a solid base of material.

         For the first time, though, Bral felt the added weight of the Flag. Dreisath was a sharp and capable man, but he was trapped by the system. Fleet Intelligence was very good, but they were constrained both by Fleet Code and Imperial Law from doing everything that was necessary to get the best results. Intelligence was a good start, but they could not get to the bottom of what Bral needed.

         Which brought him face to face with Executor Rerenel. Bral was not even sure he was still on the Thogos, but his presence indicated that the Emperor was still here as well. It was unclear to Bral what Rerenel’s exact duties were, but the Emperor had revealed to him that Rerenel belonged to the Udari, the elite Intelligence service that reported directly to the Throne. Executor was not even a rank, apparently; Rerenel plainly stated that he liked the sound of it and it seemed to impress the “Fleet types”, but that it was only a word and could be changed at need as if it were some kind of shirt.

         The existence of the Udari was frightening, the more Bral thought about it. He had never heard of them until the Emperor directly revealed their presence to him after Court. Udari were the personal servants of the Emperor and were not constrained by any law. They could even create laws at need, or interpret the law to their benefit. Nobody in the Fleet knew about the Udari unless they wore the Flag, and few even in the Imperial Government knew about them. They were the eyes, ears, and hands of the Emperor, able to do with one operative what a well-sized and well-equipped team of Fleet Intelligence personnel could not. If Bral wanted to get the whole picture, the Udari were the ones to get it assembled.

         Rerenel would not admit to knowing anything personally, but the Emperor did. Bral found it odd that the Emperor was taking such a personal interest in him, but was not about to say anything about it. He never had to, it turned out. One of the Emperor’s most amazing abilities was that he seemed to be able to read people like books.

         “It bothers you that I am helping you in this,” he said.

         “My Lord?”

         “It bothers you that I take interest in what you are doing, doesn’t it? That the Emperor himself would not only take notice in a newly promoted Admiral, but go so far as to help him.”

         “It does, my Lord.”

         In that moment, he really did seem to be the boy he was. He actually smiled. “It is very simple, Bral. My Udari do what your Fleet Intelligence cannot, but you can do something I cannot.”

         “I don’t understand, my Lord.”

         “Of course you don’t. And please, you do not need to call me ‘my Lord’ at every single breath. I know that you see me as just a boy, and it demeans us both every time you say those words. Tell me, do you know much about the Military?”

         Bral was about as familiar with the inner workings of the Imperial Military as he was with the inner workings of the closest star. Less so, actually, since he had once walked by an astronomy classroom at the Academy. “No, sir.”

         The smile turned into a smirk. “You Admirals and your bloody formality. My name is not Sir. It is not My Lord. It is Leren. You’ll address me as such.” He fell silent, waiting for a response.

         “Yes, si-- Leren.”

         The Emperor nodded. “Nobody knows much about the Military except that they’re crazy and they like to fight. But I know that they are not obsessed with rank or formality like the Fleet. What rules them is respect. In the Military, leaders do not get promoted. They simply lead, because they show they are the best for the job. Only one soldier out of all of them has an actual title, and that is only because the Imperial Throne requires such formality. Respect is not given by soldiers; it is earned from them.

         “Which brings me back to one of my points. Your Fleet training has ingrained respect for rank in you. But tell me something. You’ve met a number of Admirals in the last half cycle. How many of them do you actually respect as people, and not because they wear the Flag?”

         “I suppose only one, sir. Admiral Santos.”

         “And why not any of the others?”

         “Because I don’t know them.”

         “Then you see my point,” the Emperor said. “Respect is earned. I don’t want you calling me ‘my Lord’ or ‘sir’ until you respect me, and I don’t care if it means you don’t speak to me.”

         He could do nothing but nod.

         “I had another point buried in there, Bral. I am taking interest in you because you’ve already shown plenty of promise, and you can do what I cannot. Your crew respects you, Admiral, and I am tempted to order Admiral Arca to leave you on the Trikin. I can send you places where people won’t see the Throne’s agenda.”

         “But you can just do anything you want anyway. Can’t you?”

         He laughed. “It isn’t that simple, Bral. There are certain…appearances that must be maintained. If I order someone around, it will be a Grand Admiral. Emperors do not order around newly promoted officers. You, on the other hand, can go places that Grand Admirals cannot. I’m sure that you have noticed by now the differences between the Trikin and the Thogos.”

         “It had occurred to me.”

         “You may not see it now,” he said, “but you’ll see it soon enough. And as it turns out, the Udari are quite familiar with this mystery of yours.”