CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

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Imperial Palace

Kilrah

"You wished to speak to me, my Lord."

Thrakhath nar Kiranka stood at the base of the dais leading up to the throne. The Emperor was not seated there, however. Rather, he was standing at one of the windows next to it, looking out on the barren and tumultuous wastes of Kilrah. Without moving, he spoke. "I wish to speak to Prince Thrakhath alone." The bodyguards took the hint, and started to file out of the room.

It was only when the last one had departed that the Emperor turned around to face his grandson. His features were neutral and very difficult to read. "I assume you have been paying attention to recent… developments."

Thrakhath inclined his head in a nod. "I have."

The Emperor took a few steps forward to the edge of the top level of the dais, his gaze never leaving the younger Kilrathi. "Then I am sure you have heard about your father's recent failure in the Corellian system."

Again, Thrakhath tilted his head. "I have," he repeated.

The Emperor hummed. "A most unfortunate setback. With Centrepoint Station under our control, our potential for conquest would have been unlimited. Instead, it slipped through our grasp, thanks most likely to your father's foolishness." He paused. "Still, he has paid for his folly with his life. Had he not perished with the Station, then I am sure I would have bright him back here to be executed regardless. No, I am certain that his fate was sealed the moment he chose to activate the weapon."

"I would have to agree with your wisdom, my Lord," Thrakhath intoned.

"Indeed." The Emperor walked down the flight of steps to the bottom of the dais in slow and measured paces. He stopped when he came level to his grandson. "I am sure you understand what this means for you. For all of us. With both your father and your brother both dead, you are the only heir that I have left. When I pass from this life, the duty of leading our Empire shall fall to you." He set a piercing gaze upon Thrakhath. "Do you feel you are up to the task?"

Almost instinctively, Thrakhath dropped to his knees in supplication. "I take the burden and responsibilities offered to me, my Lord. Should you find me unsuitable, then I offer you up my life." Here, he tilted his head up, exposing his neck. It was a gesture often employed by the Kilrathi when in supplication to a superior. Should the superior find them unacceptable, they would use their claws to rip open the individual's neck.

The Emperor did no such thing. Instead, he allowed the ghost of a smile to grace his features, and raised his clawed hand. "Then arise, Crown Prince Thrakhath." His grandson did so. "I have foreseen great things in your future."

The new heir to the Throne of Kilrah kept his face neutral, though one could not deny the ambition in his eyes. "Though I must admit, my Lord," he said, "it aggrieves me that this has happened after we suffered a great defeat because of my father."

"Perhaps," the Emperor admitted. "But perhaps that is not the case. In all likelihood, the battle at Centrepoint Station may be considered a victory of sorts."

Thrakhath frowned in confusion. "My Lord?"

"We may have lost a potential weapon, but we also deprived our enemies of it as well. This rebel group, the Five Worlds Liberation Front, may also have become a nuisance over time, but that is no longer an issue. And not one, but two planets of our enemies were completely destroyed in a way that nobody could have foreseen! Despite your father's muddling and incompetence, I would still consider it a victory. A pyrrhic one, of course, but a victory nonetheless."

Thrakhath's face softened in comprehension. "I… suppose there is truth to your words, my Lord."

The Emperor nodded in satisfaction. "Very good." He turned and walked back up the dais, Thrakhath choosing to follow him. "Our enemies have been greatly shocked and demoralised by recent events, and we can use that to our advantage." He reached the top of the dais, and returned to the window, looking out of it once again. "We must take some time to gather our forces and replace our losses. I feel it is now time to step up the fight against our enemies. When the time comes, we will once again strike and spread across the galaxy like a fire, consuming one world at a time."

The Emperor breathed in deeply, and smiled. "No, this war is far from over. If anything, it is only just beginning."


And that is the end of New Blood Rising. I was rather proud of my work when I finished a decade ago, and obviously it is a real bummer that not many people read it online. I'm not trying to dump on anyone who is reading; it's just that after all this work, a little bit of appreciation would be nice. Still, all things considered, it was probably a good thing I never wrote the second and third stories of this trilogy. But for what it is worth, those would have introduced old friends, new enemies, and would have inevitably resulted in victory for our heroes.

To those who have taken the time to read this, I hope you enjoyed it, and please drop a review here and there if you can.

Until next time.