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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 2498172" data-attributes="member: 10079">Chapter 266: Changes to ComeShadow had spent a chaotic and long hour trying to figure out what to do with the Empire. She wanted to avoid it...but it wasn’t something that could be avoided, especially after an attack on Alraxia and the death of her mother. But at least most Alraxians were alive and, generally, well. But now they were no longer hidden. It was obvious now that the coordinates for their homeworld would no longer be hidden from the Mrrakesh as it had been for thousands of years before. And it meant they were vulnerable...and so the people looked to her right away for something that she didn’t know how to provide: safety.    At least the Palace was nearly clear of those war droids now. The Tam’day’u were at the lowest levels now, and slowly the reports were seeping through the network of their exploits. It was at least doing something to improve their image among the ‘normal’ Alraxians, though many were still obviously terrified of the idea of trained killers running free in the Palace...even though they didn’t know that the new Empress was one of those trained killers.    And she had made some important decisions. Shadow was proud of that, but at the same time wasn’t completely sure how they would go over with the people of the Empire. And then, rather conveniently, she ran into Jyren’s father. Or rather, he ran into her.    For a half second, the older Alraxian looked like he was going to apologize, but when he realized who it was he’d nearly barreled over in the hallway, he stopped and grabbed her arm rough enough to cause the guards following Shadow to start reacting. Shadow nearly reacted violently, too, but when she caught something in Navik’s expression, she quickly waved the guards back and let him drag her to a more private section of the hallway.    “You were looking for me?” Shadow asked slowly, glancing down to where he was still gripping her arm. Not that it hurt, of course.    Navik Keros nodded before releasing her arm, “I am...sorry if you’re busy.”    “No,” she said shaking her head, “I could use a break. How do you do this all day?”    “You get used to it...” he responded with a shrug. He was an ambassador, yes, but that was close enough to what she was doing to be worth asking questions like that to. But instead of him saying anything about why he was looking for her, Navik went silent. In fact, she did, too. Both had a few thousand things to say but neither could think of what to say or when.    Finally, Shadow spoke up, “Listen, I wanted to ask you a few favors.”    “A few?” Navik raised an eyebrow and his ears swivelled around slightly.    She nodded, “You are a diplomat and uh...the only one I know. I want to ask you for some help on some important things we’re going to need to do in the wake of what’s happened today.”    A very neutral, or rather, diplomatic, expression passed over the older Alraxian’s face. For a long moment, he studied her. Then, finally, said, “You are going to leave, aren’t you?”    Shadow was stunned, so much so she wasn’t able to hide the look on her face. He hadn’t even used the Force for that. She’d have noticed that! Then how...? No, that didn’t matter. And so, Shadow slowly nodded, “I...I am not ready to be Empress. And Jyren is not ready for this either...we also...have something we must do in the other part of the galaxy.”    “So what do you need me to do?” Navik asked after another moment. He seemed to accept her reasoning without any questioning at all, but of all people, it wasn’t too surprising he seemed to understand. She barely knew him, to be honest, but she could tell he wasn’t completely daft.    “Obviously, I’ll still be Empress even if I’m not actually here...but...” Shadow paused a moment to try and find a good way to explain things before giving up, “The one person that would sit here in charge in my place I refuse to allow to rule. She has...already betrayed us enough to get that power and I will not give it to her willingly. You know the leaders of the other species within the Empire...I...I want you to set up a Council.”    That got a reaction from Navik. His eyes widened and there was a look of surprise plainly obvious before he said quietly, “You know that what you are saying sounds very much like the old prophecies and stories, yes?”    Shadow nodded and couldn’t help a slight grin, “That’s where I uh...got the idea.”    Navik smiled and laughed slightly, “It is a good idea, and I will do what I can. But that still does not solve all of the problems. I hear the Mrrakesh know where this planet is...you know as well as I do they will hunt us down unless...”    “Unless I marry their Prince,” Shadow grumbled, “Yes, I know.”    Silence. Navik stared at her as he waited for her explanation as she most definitely had a plan to get out of that...he could see it in her eyes. And finally, Shadow glanced back to the guards who were staring from a distance with questioning gazes before turning back to Jyren’s father, “We need more Knights...and they need to be more than simply border patrol.”    Navik Keros caught on to her train of thought immediately, “The Curs—...the Tam’day’u, yes? You are suggesting we build an army?”    “No!’ Shadow snapped suddenly, “No army! I...I know it will sound like that, but it cannot be. You know that as well as I do. The Tam’day’u can easily train Knights in combat techniques necessary in defending our people from the Mrrakesh. Building a defense force is something we can’t ignore at all. Especially not now. They will come.”    “So you don’t plan to marry their Prince?”    “Of course not,” she responded immediately and then calmed her tone, “I’ve found a loophole...I will...Jyren and I...”    When she trailed off and shuffled her feet while turning a slight red colour, Navik smiled and reached over to put a hand on her shoulder(which made the guards nearly jump), “From what I have seen, the two of you will be fine...you shouldn’t be embarrassed.”    Biting her lip, Shadow very slowly nodded as she stared down at her feet, “Well um...the Mrrakesh, as I think you probably know...they wouldn’t have a problem with that. They’d just ignore it and move on. Jyren would be thrown aside or simply killed and I and the Empire would just become property of the Mrrakesh. But if Jyren and I...if we ah...before the Mrrakesh arrive...our people will not allow anything like that to happen.”    Navik’s smile grew. She was right. The Mrrakesh had no problem with Shadow already having a mate at all. That situation was easy to deal with, as Jyren could be killed or Shadow could simply be taken away without any trouble. And, in fact, they likely would have been able to do it while her mother was still Empress. But now Shadow was the Empress of the Alraxian Empire. She was the figurehead, and the Alraxian that all the others in the Empire looked to. And Alraxians did not have more than one mate. It was why Kato fought so hard to get Jyren. If Shadow and Jyren were publicly married and the news was spread across the Network right away, it would be impossible for the Mrrakesh to do anything without causing an incident...and, amazingly enough, they would likely want to avoid such a thing as much as the Alraxians...especially if the Alraxian Knights were better trained and armed.    “You will make a strong Empress one day,” Navik said, squeezing her shoulder softly and nodding, “Until then, please just continue to be a strong woman like your mother and keep my son safe.”    As he spoke, he extended metallic object in his other hand to Shadow. She looked down to see Jyren’s lightsaber and then gave Navik a confused look, “That’s...Jyren’s, right?”    He nodded, “He gave it to me, yelling that he didn’t deserve to have it. He is so much like his mother...I...I know when not to fight that stubborn attitude. If that is also any indication of how much he is like her, then I can promise you he’ll be wishing he had this later...so I think it might be a good idea if you held it for him.”    That brought a smile to Shadow’s face and she nodded as she took the hilt of the lightsaber, “That sounds like Jyren. I’m sorry that he acted like that to you...I don’t know what to say to him.”    “Just talk with him,” the older Alraxian said quietly while nodding past her in a very unsubtle way, “As I said, Jyren is...is just like his mother. Its amazing how much of her I see in him. He acts just like her. If you just go and talk with him plainly he’ll probably tell you what’s wrong.”    “Tell him plainly?” Shadow asked, raising an eyebrow very slightly and tilting her head, “Tell me his mother didn’t have as thick a skull as he does?”    Navik laughed and nodded, “Sadly, he got that from me.”</blockquote>

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