Chapter 2 – Revelation

Felix Albatross - Imperial Palace midnight

Felix walked through the corridors of the imperial palace in the dead of night towards Prime Minister Honest room. He was supposedly sent here to meet with the man to discuss events revolving around the north-west of the capital as there have been reports of a revolutionary base. Yet Felix true objective is to deposit a sleeping drug into the pig's tea and make sure he docent have any surprise plans for tomorrow morning.

Felix arrived at the room and knocked as he entered. "Ah, Felix come in" Honest chirped as he arrived. Felix nodded graciously and sat down at the sit in front of Honest's desk.

"Prime minister, you wished to discuss the north-western rumours with me?" Felix probed.

"Ah yes about that," the man replied as he shifted forward in his chair "that was not the main reason I invited you here today, but still relevant to our discussion."

Felix raised an eyebrow at this curiously asking, "and what might our true discussion be about?"

The Prime Minister suddenly smiled wickedly, a smile Felix did not like at all, "well I've decided to deal with the rats of this city and how to… clean the slat so to say"

Felix as curious as ever cautiously asked "are you referring to the revolutionary spies within the capitol or perhaps something else…"

"Ah, Felix as quick as ever I see, yes the spies have been a thorn in my side for quite some time but no I was thinking of the conversation we had early today and thought. It's time to purge the 3rd circle and have some fun watching them burn. Even let the soldiers have some fun with the women and children that don't get to burn"

Felix was in shock at his statement. In fact, he was disgust at the mention of it but most importantly he was furious. What right did this man have to take away the lives of so many? What right did he have to even say something so atrocious? So, vile? Those are people's lives that you are talking about not your goddam toys! Hell, most of them are in their position because of your greed and you want to kill them all? For fun! Felix thought. He was more than furious he was tempted to kill the pig right then and there. But he calmed himself and replied.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea." Felix replied with a smile, he then got up and walked to one of the many cabinets in the room and pulled out some of the Prime Minister wine and said, "I think that even deserves a toast wouldn't friend."

The Prime minister cackled loudly and said, "Of course it does, it's a wonder I haven't done it sooner I've already gotten the paperwork done I was so excited."

Great written proof even more for tomorrow's act Felix thought as he poured the drink for himself and Honest. Without the man noticing he poured a white powder into the drink and gave it to honest. "A toast my friend, for the Empire"

"For the Empire," Honest said sarcastically as the clinked their cups together and drank the whole thing in one gulp.

The young Emperor Constancious 'Connie' Augustus the 23rd – Imperial throne room the next morning

The young Emperor had awakened in his room with a servant gently wakening him, "my emperor" the maid gently said, "it's time to get up you have an important meeting today."

A meeting? he thought to himself I don't remember having anything scheduled today.

"Maid, I don't remember having anything on today" he mumbled as he tried to go back to sleep.

"My emperor I'm sorry but the meeting involves the Prime Minister," she replied. Oh, so the Prime minister organized this, well I better get going I do not wish to be there long if it's him rambling the whole time he thought groggily to himself as he sat up.

He looked around for a moment and saw the maid was already prepping his cloths. He sighed to himself as he got up, got changed and then head to breakfast. As he ate a quick meal of jam toast he wondered to himself I wonder what this meeting about? It's probably not too important if I forgot but still did they have to get me out of bed so early?

The young man approached the throne room and noticed that it was vacant, either than the guard. Nevertheless, he shrugged and walked forward towards the throne and sat down, he then asks one of the guards for the Prime Minister.

"He will arrive shortly my Emperor" a voice stated, as a Mr Albatross walked into the throne room. "Good morning Emperor, I'm sorry for the inconvenience of not telling you of this meeting before this morning but there is a certain man I think you would be very interested to meet." The boy raised his eyebrow in curiosity at Felix's words.

"Good morning to you Mr Albatross, I would love to meet this acquaintance of yours sometime but I have currently had a meeting with the Prime Minister right now and I would prefer that he would be here if it is official business." The young man replied as he began to relax with the presence of Felix of whom he sees as a good man.

Felix then stated, "I assure my Emperor this will not last too long and is actually partly the reason why we are having this meeting in the first place. So, with your permission may I welcome our guest?" Connie sat in thought for a moment, I suppose since this man is related to the meeting and if Felix says it's all right. "Very well Mr Albatross bring him in."

Felix bowed and then looked at the guards at the door and nodded, the guard nodded back and opened the door. A man stepped through in a cloak with a hood covering his face, the man continued to walk towards the throne and the Emperor was curious and a bit frightened at his appearance. Yet as he approached he stopped taking his hood of revelling a golden helmet covering the man's head. It's beautiful the Emperor thought while gazing at the fine craft helm, he noticed the engravings of dragons surrounding a tree and thought of how detailed they were.

"Emperor Constancious Augustus the 23rd, it's an honour to meet you," the man said as he kneeled "but I do wish it was during more happy times."

The Emperor still staring at the helm in awe regained his composure and replied, "Greetings stranger, what brings you to my court this day?"

The man not moving from his position spoke up "The emperor I came here today to report the many injustices committed by members in your court. I ask that you take action against these people who have committed horrendous crimes to the ever day citizens and you my Emperor."

To say the Emperor was shocked was an understatement, as his face melted in fear and then change to rage. How dare this man approach me and say there is corruption in my court?! Wait did he say that he committed crimes against me and the people? But who would do such a thing? But then he calmed himself and remembered what his father said; Remember Connie always hear what others have to say and then make a judgment. "What proof do you have? And who do you specifically accuse of wronging the empire?"

The man spoke again "Emperor your own military has no leash and do whatever they wish without a thought of the people they serve, the navy and the army supposedly under your command do whatever they want without consequence. General Esdeath, her army and her Jaegers are prime examples as they run around doing whatever they please with her protection. But the one who committed the most crimes and killed your parents was in fact your supposedly closest ally Prime Minister Honest!"

The room went silent after that, the emperor in distraught as he heard the words. The look on his face was pure betrayal and fear; mama and papa were killed by… Why would he do this I thought he respected my father to a fault and saw him as a brother. The Emperor stood up and screamed "your lying! Why would Prime Minister Honest do something like that?!"

"Honest never cared about your father or your mother. He was only and is still obsessed with power and his own greed. Everything he did was for himself he never cared for anyone either than himself" the man said while finally standing and looking at the scared boy in his eyes.

"Look into your heart boy, you know it to be true," he said gently as the emperor started to panic. Look into my heart? The boy thought as memories of his father and mother came rushing back to him. He felt sad. He felt betrayed. He then thought of the memories of Honest and thought about some of the decisions he had made. Yeah some of them were questionable but I just thought he knew something I didn't.

"What proof do you have of this? Why should I believe you?" the boy said in his last line of defence for the Prime Minister, even though deep down he had doubts.

"I will not lie to you emperor, I am not really a stranger to this place, I have been in the capital for about a year now gathering information about the Prime minister and his allies. I have seen first-hand the corruption of the empire in and outside the capitol" the man said as he looked into the emperor's eyes. "I am from the north-east of the empire, from my village normally it would take about two weeks to get to the capitol. But it took me two years to get here since I had to clean up the mess the empire has made of the outer regions. The military has completely abandoned the smaller villages and towns leaving them defenceless to danger beasts, outlaws, and bandits. Do you know how many villages I passed that had been ransacked or in some cases destroyed by humans or danger beasts? The refugees had nothing left and nowhere to go, most of them died of starvation or killed as they had neither the energy nor weapons to defend themselves. All this suffering and pain because you have been used emperor by your own subjects, you have been used by murderous criminals that have made themselves seem like good men and finally, you have been kept in a cage surrounded by the people who harm your empire, your home."

"Stop, please stop" Connie cried as tears started to flow from his eyes. I wish I never meet this man. I wish I never got out of bed this morning. I wish I didn't attend this meeting. I wish mother and father were still here. I wish never of this happened! The boy began to crawl up into a ball on his throne as he cried. He then felt something soft touch his head as he looked up he saw a golden hand on his head.

The man had come up to him and said, "Kid I know this is difficult to hear and I wish that I never had to say these things at all, especially to just a kiddo." The man knelt and hugged the boy, Connie was in shock, no one had hugged him in years no one had even asked if he was feeling ok as a person instead of the Emperor. Let alone hug him, yet this stranger who just appeared out of nowhere and accused the people who he thought he could rely on of killing his parents and committing crimes against the empire had just given him one. He should feel offended, furious even but strangely he didn't feel any negative emotions to this man at all in fact. All he felt from him was love and kindness something he hadn't felt in a long time. So instead of pulling away and demanding to let him go he hugged back and cried. He cried all the tears he should've cried for his subjects, he cried as he realized he had failed as an emperor but most importantly he cried like a boy who had never really acknowledge his parent's death and how much he misses them. They stayed there for a while with all the world to see, yet neither cared as the man knew that this boy needed this more than anything else he could offer right now and the boy knew that he needed someone to cry to as all this time deep down he knew. He knew that the empire was corrupted, he knew he had done nothing as an emperor for his people, he knew that he didn't know anything of the people inside and outside the capitol and how they suffered. He knew and he felt regret.

"Stop right there! What are you doing the emperor!?" a voiced boomed out. The voiced came from Prime Minister Honest who came running out towards the emperor but he stopped as the armoured turned around and stared into him. The entire rooms nature changed in an instant as the Prime Minister stopped and started shaking as the man stared down at him in disgust and rage. The guards who had remained silent all this time had finally moved as some had been scared off from their post.

It's as if God was staring down at them, the emperor thought yet he did not feel the effects of the stare.

"You!" the man roared as the prime minister jumped back in fright "you have no right to speak here!" he roared again as Honest stared shakenly at the man.

"W-w-What do y-y-you mean?" Honest asked in fear "who a-a-are you-u-u?"

The man walked towards him said "who am I?" he said, "I'm just a guy who sees the filth you are and I am not afraid to call you out on your crimes!"

Honest had the nerve to laugh "HA what crimes? I have committed no such thing. Isn't that right Emperor" Honest barked as he looked past the man to supposedly look at his puppet yet when he did he did not find the scared boy he thought he would? No, that boy was gone the emperor thought it's time for me to start acting like an emperor!

"Prime Minister Honest" the emperor said "you have been accused of high treason against the empire and her people, your crime being the exploitation of your powers for personal gain and the assassination of the previous emperor and empress my father and mother. What say you in your defence?"