A Battle Unseen

[Doc]

Wilson House, Kaliburg, 4:30 PM

Her Imperial Majesty, Empress Carolina I Ananto sat at her desk, going over a briefing in a manilla envelope.  There was a knock at the door, and then the door slowly opened.  Outside in the hallway stood two men, one with a dark suit and a blue tie on, the other wearing a tan linen suit.  The man in the dark suit entered the room, and standing the customary 15 feet from the Empress, bowed his head reverently.

"Please Mr. Hemple, be seated," said the Empress.

"May I ask Her Imperial Majesty where the Chancellor is?  It is normal that she be at audiences like this and her absence is curious."

"Mr Hemple, there is no time for that right now.  We need you to tell us if the situation is as dire in Kundrati as the press is making it out to be.  We find that though we are quite firm on our position with regard to the Kundrati Legion, we don't know much at all about what they are actually doing."

"May I request that Her Imp..."

"Oh Stop it, please.  Speak to me directly."

Hemple was shocked.  Until this moment, his gaze was averted, but the Empress' frankness put him back on his heels.  "I uh...  Might I, uh... have some water?"

"Help yourself, but do please stop stalling."  The Empress motioned to a pitcher of water.  Hemple rushed over filled with nervous energy, poured himself a glass of water, gulped it down and found that his mouth was still incredibly dry.  So he poured a second glass and gulped it down too.  He was about to pour a third when the Empress said, "Mr. Hemple are you quite alright?  We are worried about your kidneys."

"No...  I  uh...  Your Maj...  I...  I'm just very thirsty for some reason."

"Please sit down, Mr. Hemple.  Our time is limited and it is precious.  So kindly do us a favor and stop wasting it."

"Y..yes Your Imperial Majesty...  I just..."  Hemple slowly made his way back to his seat, placed the glass shakily on the table, and sat on the edge of the cushion, afraid to sit back, worried about how it would look to the Empress.

"Good lord, We thought you spooks were made of stronger stuff than this.  How is it you became IBSI director?"

"Your majesty?" asked Hemple.

"Never mind.  Your briefing on Kundrati please, and don't leave out any details.  The things you say will help us to determine how far we need to push this matter on our side."  The Empress looked directly at Hemple, and he couldn't be certain, but after a moment, he thought he heard the word, in the Empress' voice, but... not... that said "Talk."

"Your Majesty, there are...  some things, you probably should know...  I don't know how much I can say because classification... is...  uh..."  He realized how stupid he sounded the moment he said the word, and Her Imperial Majesty confirmed it with an unimpressed smirk.  After that point, Hemple regained his composure.  He felt a calm and presence of mind come over him as he sat up straight, and kinda felt like a new man.  He fully briefed the Empress about the progress of the ODEN plan, the reactions that Kalistan had drawn from its movement of the fleet, and some inside intelligence that very few people even knew, and even fewer understood regarding several moving parts in the ongoing Kundrati struggle.  

The briefing lasted for a half hour, as The Empress went over the meaning of several intelligence reports she had in front of her.  The IBSI director clarified and illuminated every point freely, all the while never once sitting back in his chair, never moving closer than 15 feet of the Empress, and never ever touching his glass of water.  He spoke frankly, thoroughly, and honestly, and when information was sketchy or unconfirmed, he freely admitted that, attempting to provide nuance to a fairly black and white picture.  When IBSI did not know, Director Hemple admitted it.  When IBSI was sure of something, Director Hemple also noted that.  Thinking back on his life, he did not remember a time when he had been so forthright and honest with anyone, including Her Imperial Majesty, and it actually felt good to be able to be absolutely candid for once.

When the Empress was satisfied with the information she was able to draw out, she dismissed him, asking him to take his untouched glass of water back to the table so it wouldn't leave a stain on the lacquer.  He did as he was told, and, returning, he gave a customary bow.  The Empress nodded in acknowledgement, and the Director backed out of the room.

Once he was outside of her office, the Doorman met him and said "How did it go Director?"

Hemple felt like he was waking from a gentle dream as he stepped out into the bright window-filled room that was in golden hour illumination.  "I...  I think something happened in there.  I am not quite sure what it was...  but it felt... different somehow..."  The Doorman nodded.  "Her Imperial Majesty is different indeed.  But, perhaps it was just the sun?  Could that be?"

Hemple scratched his head, looked at the door man as if he was about to ask "Who... are you?" but opted not to, looked back at the closed office door, and then took his leave, convinced that something unusual had just taken place, but he was not really quite sure what it was.