The Dying Worlds: Archeron's Quest - Book One by Scott Spangler

Author:Scott Spangler [Spangler, Scott]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-08-02T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

It was entirely unbefitting for a king to desire nothing more than to choke one of his subjects, but that was exactly how he felt at the moment. All he could think about was his fingers curled around Nived’s neck and squeezing until the man’s eyeballs popped out. It would be satisfying to see that tongue gagging and sputtering. That was far preferable to the wagging it had done all day long during the council session. To say that the man was insufferable was a gross understatement – akin to saying that the Galaverse was a bit troubled as opposed to completely disintegrating before their very eyes. Archeron had little patience for politicians in general, but Nived took that dislike to a whole new level.

Thankfully, none of the man’s more idiotic resolutions had passed – at least not the ones most direly opposed to the king’s own interests. But the adversarial politician had gained momentum. Every cycle he added supporters while the crown seemed to lose them. He had managed to implement policies that had failed in the previous several cycles. And now there was no doubt that Nived and Brachus had allied. The old man had added his cronies to the ranks of the former, creating a hostile faction over which the king and his allies held only the slimmest margin. If things continued to progress in the same bleak manner, then Nived might very well hold the majority when the next cycle rolled around. And that would mean disaster.

First and foremost, he seemed determined to completely recall the armada, thus declaring its vital mission an abysmal failure. And while admittedly it had successfully completed very few of its objectives, there was little good to be done in the Kalorin System. The answer, if any, to the woes of the Galaverse lay somewhere out there. It had to. And perhaps most disturbing, he wished to abolish the power of the crown in general. It was an idea that would have seemed absurd not so many years prior, but now sadly was almost within the politician’s grasp. It was a frightening thought, but Nived found it preferable for the Advisory Council to assume a more parliamentary role with himself, of course, acting as chancellor. He would trade a monarchy whose very existence was to serve and protect and provide for the Kalorin people, for a scheming hive of corrupt politicians whose greatest priorities were their own self-interests. Archeron would rather see Kalorin perish with the rest of the Galaverse than to sacrifice its soul. But that’s the direction it was heading, and he seemed powerless to stop it.

Weighing most heavily upon his mind, though, was one little comment made by Nived during one of his longer diatribes. It was an offhanded remark inserted in the midst of two dozen similar ones and probably uttered inadvertently. It was a wonder that Archeron had even picked up on it as he typically tuned out the politician when he rambled on like that.

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