Kahless - Michael Jan Friedman [20]
The muscles in Kahless’s jaw tightened. He wished he had Olahg’s scrawny neck in his hands, for just a minute.
Ss He would repay the initiate tenfold for the damage he had done.
Regaining control, he saw the doors to the central chamber were just ahead. Kahless resolved not to glance at anyone else along the way, but to keep his gazed fixed on the entrance. Remember who you are, he told himself.
Remember and be proud.
He didn’t pause at the doors, as other Klingons did. It was his right as emperor-even one who wielded no political power-to come and go as he pleased. Laying a hand on either door, he pushed them open.
Gowron was sitting in the leader’s seat at the far end of the chamber, conferring with one of his councilors. When he saw Kahless make his entrance, he paused for a moment, then dismissed the councilor with a gesture.
Kahless stopped, allowing the echoes of the man’s footfalls to become lost under the dark, vaulted roof.
Gowron sat back in his seat and assessed his visitor, his eyes giving no clue to his emotional state.
The emperor grunted softly. Gowron was very good at that, wasn’t he?
“What do you want?” asked the council leader, his voice-like his eyes-as neutral as possible.
Kahless straightened to his full height. “I would speak with you privately, son of M’rel.”
Gowron considered the request for a moment. Then he looked to the guards who stood at the door and made a sweeping motion with his arm. Kahless didn’t look back to see how it was done-but a moment later, he heard the heavy, clanging sound of the doors as they were shut.
It was quiet in the chamber now. The only sound was that of their breathing-until Kahless spoke up again.
“I believe there is a conspiracy,” he said, seeing no reason to be circumspect. “A plot against you and your regime-and therefore, against me as well.”
Gowron’s brows met over the bridge of his nose. He started to smile as if it were a joke, then stopped himself.
“And who do you believe is conspiring against us?”
Kahless told him about the incident in the dining hall.
About Lomakh, and the things he had seen Lomakh say.
And, finally, he told Gowron what he thought it all meant.
The council leader stared at him. “Why them?” He tilted his head. “They have always been among my greatest supporters. Why would they see fit to turn against me now”…”…at
“One might look at a thranx bush for seven years,” said Kahless, “and conclude it was incapable of flowering. But if one came back in the eighth year, one would see a vast profusion of flowers.”
Gowron scowled. “In other words, they’ve been nurturing a plot against me for some time? And I was simply not aware of it?”
“It is certainly possible,” Kahless agreed. “The question is-what are you going to do about it?”
Gowron’s scowl deepened, his eyes like flat, black stones. “I will do nothing,” he replied at last.
If this was humor, the emperor didn’t appreciate it.
“Nothing?” he barked, his words echoing around him.
“Against a threat of this magnitude?”
The council leader leaned forward in his chair. “If there is a threat,” he rejoined. “I have seen no evidence.
All I have to go on is the account of a single individual an individual with a great deal on his mind right now, who may have perceived a conspiracy where none existed.”
Kahless could feel the old anger rising inside him. It was all he could do to keep from challenging Gowron to combat.
“You doubt my word?” he seethed. “You think I’ve made this up?”
“I think you believe what you believe,” the other man responded, leaning back ever so slightly. “However, under the circumstances, your beliefs may not be grounded in reality. And I cannot accuse my right hand of clawing at my throat until I have seen its fingers reaching for it.”
Kahless felt the anger bubble up inside him, refusing to be denied. “I saw what I saw!” he thundered, until the rafters shook with it. “And if you will not defend your Empire, I will!”