Metal Swarm - Kevin J. Anderson [183]
‘I like your music,' he said, ‘but I wish you knew some happier songs.'
‘So do I.'
One hundred and twelve
Prime Designate Daro'h
After his father left for Theroc in his ceremonial war-liner, the Prime Designate struggled to carry out the functions of the Mage-Imperator. While Jora'h and Nira were healing wounds with the human government, Daro'h would shoulder the rest of the Ildiran Empire. Acting Mage-Imperator.
He was just a figurehead. One day, however, he would become the real Mage-Imperator and draw all the to him, just as his father had. At the moment, Daro'h stood on the dais in the skysphere reception hall, feeling lost as he gazed up into the overarching prismatic domes. He could not bring himself to sit in the expansive chrysalis chair. He did not belong there.
Daro'h had just begun to fulfil his other responsibilities, mating with numerous approved females. It should have been a joyous duty for him, but the grave and indefinable danger he sensed throughout the Empire robbed him of nearly all pleasure. And the feeling must be far stronger in his father. Something was definitely wrong in the .
Adar Zan'nh had left for Dobro, taking the humans from Cjeldre to join the Burton descendants in building a viable colony. A fresh start. In spite of its dark history, in spite of the threat from Designate Rusa'h and his faeros, Daro'h missed that bleak world.
Osira'h stayed with the Prime Designate in the intimidating chamber, adding to his confidence just by being there. His little half-sister had shocked him on Dobro by leading an uprising among the human breeding subjects and forcing him to see the error of what the Ildirans had done for so many generations. Now the girl sat on the polished dais steps, sensing his troubled thoughts. ‘Don't let yourself feel so overburdened, Daro'h. I went down into a gas planet to see the hydrogues, and I helped defeat them.' She chuckled. ‘If I can do that, you can handle the Mage-Imperator's duties for a few days.'
He sat down by his half-sister on the hard, cool stone and put his arm around her. ‘When you put it that way, how can I disagree?'
As if she had finished what she wanted to say, Osira'h got up. ‘I have to go back to my brothers and sisters. We've discovered a very interesting ability, and we get better every day. Even Kolker doesn't understand it all.'
‘I certainly do not understand it,' Daro'h said. ‘I'm surprised you did not wish to accompany your mother to Theroc'
‘My mother and my father. And, yes, I did want to go with them. We all did. But I needed to be here more. Important things are happening.' Practically skipping, she left the audience chamber by a small doorway behind the chrysalis chair. He would probably never understand his strange sister.
Outside the smoky-glass doorways of the main entrance, Daro'h saw pilgrims, courtiers, and bureaucrats lining up to pass before him, to seek an interview, or just gaze upon the Mage-Imperator. He could sense their unsettled confusion and worries, and he could not assuage them. If he had indeed been the centre of all the , their emotions would have seemed like shouts in his mind.
Ildirans were a historically stable people, but all the recent changes had resulted in confusion and fear. Every kith was troubled by the social upheaval Jora'h‘s changes had produced, and the magnified their uneasiness, creating an ever-worsening feedback cycle. Daro'h did not have the power to stop it; he could only try to show stability for the rest of the Empire.
Before allowing any pilgrims to enter Daro'h‘s presence, Yazra'h cautiously circled the broad chamber with her three cats, making sure that she and the threatening felines were prominently visible. She was there to protect the Prime Designate with her life, just as she would have guarded the Mage-Imperator himself.