The Emperor's Legion (Watchers of the Throne #1) - Chris Wraight Page 0,8
when any of them ask me.’
‘Understood.’
‘But you’re aware of the debates.’
‘Perfectly.’
‘And that matters in the war are reaching a critical juncture.’
I suspect that no one in the entire Imperium knew that better than us.
‘The Captain-General stated his opposition to taking a seat on the Senatorum Imperialis fifteen years ago,’ I said. ‘His views have not changed.’
‘But the seat must be filled,’ Tieron said, quietly.
He was an effective performer. I have seen men and women enter into blind panic when confronted with one of our kind. The chancellor was afraid – that was natural – but he was neither foolish enough to hide it, nor craven enough to let it master him. He clearly knew what the settled position of the Adeptus Custodes was, yet must also have known that our master had come close to accepting the honour following the death of Speaker Iulia Lestia of the Ordo Malleus, fifteen years ago. Now that Chancellor Brach was gone too, another chance presented itself.
‘Is there unanimity in favour?’ I asked.
The question was superfluous – we knew the positions of all eleven remaining High Lords – but I was interested to hear Tieron’s response.
‘I’ve served the Council for eighty years,’ he said. ‘I’ve never known it to be unanimous about anything.’ He leaned forwards in his seat, cupping his hands. ‘When Dissolution was last proposed, the vote was split evenly, six for each motion, and thus no action was taken. I can’t help but think that matters have become more desperate since then. The proposal here is simple, shield-captain – to place the question into your hands.’
‘That is, if all the Lords cast their vote just as they did before.’
‘A safe assumption.’
‘Nothing in this galaxy is safe, though, is it?’
‘Hence the need to consider this.’
I smiled. I liked this man.
There had been a time when I despised mortals. In the early years of my service, when my physical perfection had been achieved but I knew little of the deeper truths of the universe, I saw them as irritants, impediments, ever apt to stray into corruption or futility.
It was Navradaran of the Ephoroi who changed my mind. He has spent more time outside the confines of the Palace than most of us, and his counsel had a great effect on me. In these darker days, I see humans as essentially children, which is not intended to belittle them. They have the potential to be so much more, but we, their guardians, will never lead them into that future if we concentrate exclusively on their inescapable failings.
All fail, even the greatest of us. We, perhaps above all, ought to remember that.
‘You are troubled by Cadia,’ I said.
He nodded earnestly. ‘Nothing troubles me more. I read the dispatches, I have nightmares. Real nightmares, ones that keep me from getting the sleep I need. That’s the background to all this. That’s what’s changing.’
‘It is one world.’
‘It’s the Gate.’
‘One of many.’
He shrugged. ‘You’ll know more of that than me, but I’ll tell you truly, the High Lords have never been as anxious. They think we’ll lose it.’
‘Tell me this, then – what difference would Dissolution make?’
‘I don’t know. I’m not a member of the Council. My only task here is to set the options before those who’ll decide.’
I regarded him carefully. As we had been speaking, I had been making my assessment. He was clever, that much was certain. That cleverness was damaged by a degree of ebullience, which may well have been over-compensation from some deeper-seated sense of doubt. The Imperium as it exists rewards the strong and the savage – this Tieron was clearly neither, and so had been forced to develop other strategies for survival. I could not blame him for that.
My masters would want to know if he could be trusted, though. My initial feeling was that he could. It is hard to deceive us, even for the most subtle of souls, and I doubted Tieron would bother to try.
‘We are not a part of your Imperium,’ I said. ‘We involve ourselves within it only if we deem His will demands it. Do you really think, chancellor, that your proposed audience with the Captain-General could have any influence on his final judgement?’
This was the question. This was where he lost or won it. I waited for the reply with some interest, and was pleased to see that he did not hesitate.
‘Not to be impious,’ he said, looking me in the eye, ‘but yes, it most certainly could.’