Crossover - Michael Jan Friedman [22]
“Knowledge,” Eragian countered, “is your province,’: Lennex, So tell me—what should I expect from this upstart Tharrus?”
The Tal Shiar shrugged. “A certain determination. A penchant for survival. And a cleverness, unfinished as it may be, that would not be out of place on the floor of the Senate.”
The proconsul cursed beneath his breath. It seemed he had no choice but to resign himself to the situation. “Then he’ll seek to make something out of this? To gain a name for himself?”
“More than likely,” Lennex replied. “As you know, his sort hungers after power the way Ferengi hunger after latinum. And now, he has the means to satisfy his hunger. Tharrus will keep the prisoners—I have no doubt of that.”
“And try them himself?” Eragian asked, not at all happy at the prospect.
“Yes, Proconsul. He will attempt to demonstrate, to the people if no one else, that he is every bit as effective as the homeworld leadership.”
Eragian didn’t conceal his resentment. “You almost sound as if you approve of him, Lennex.”
As usual, the Tal Shiar was unmoved by the proconsul’s pique. “Not at all,” he responded. “As I said, I merely give him his due. What’s more, if he does not falter along the way, he will probably succeed in gaining some portion of his objectives.
“Of course,” he went on, “from the Empire’s point of view, his actions will be deplorable. Clearly, the Tal Shiar are the ones best qualified to obtain information from the prisoners. By shutting us out of the process, Tharrus is showing that he is more interested in his own gain than in crushing the unificationist movement once and for all. His first allegiance is not to the Empire—and that is dangerous.”
“The question then,” said the proconsul, “is what do we do?”
For the briefest moment, Lennex let his feelings register on his face. For perhaps the first time since Eragian had known him, the man let slip that he was uncertain about something. Finally, Lennex shook his head.
“I do not believe there is an easy solution, Proconsul. If you eliminate Tharrus or order him to turn over the prisoners, the leaders of many of the outer worlds would see that as a threat to their power.”
“But the planetary governors serve the Empire” Eragian protested.
“True,” Lennex remarked. “But they also want to protect their provinces and their own influence. And the outer worlds are becoming very well represented in the Senate, Proconsul—as you yourself have no doubt observed.”
Eragian knew his advisor was right. Things had changed a great deal in the Empire, just in his own lifetime.
A generation ago, all citizens had taken their orders solely from the hierarchy on the Romulan homeworlds. Now, the number of Romulans who lived on colony worlds rivaled the number that lived on Romulus and Remii.
In large part, the Romulan dream of conquest had been fulfilled. However, the growing Empire constantly found new difficulties maintaining order in an increasingly fractured sphere of influence.
More and more, each of the outer worlds was coming to consider its own self-interest as well as the interests of the Empire. As proconsul, Eragian often found himself in the uncomfortable position of living with compromises that his predecessors would have scorned.
But such was the price of victory and the price of conquest.
Where will we be a generation from now? Eragian wondered. Where will we be when there are many more Romulans living on the colony worlds than on the homeworlds?
Where will the allegiances of those Romulans lie? And where will we be if any of the native inhabitants of the subjugated worlds ever win their bids for full citizenship?
Two decades ago, such an idea would have been unthinkable. Two decades from now, who could tell?
“Do you know the story of the Rodarh’vna?” the proconsul asked.
Lennex shook his head. “No, though I have heard of it, A children’s story, is it not? An old one, I believe.”
Eragian shook his head. “More like mythology.”
Lennex