The citadel. 1,4 km high; strongly defended by FLAK turrets, anti-missile laser systems, and countless other defensive measures; constantly patrolled by UAVs and helicopters; consuming more energy than a small city. Residence of a hospital, multiple research facilities, the Feniexian High Council, the Administration, the Royal Guard, and the House of Cordre itself.
::Imperial residence, 345th floor
Through the wide window, the Emperor watched over his city. Rain was coming down the dark sky; however, it was rather clear this night - there was almost no fog. Lythia was prosperous; every day, milliards of Sharrays were earned and spent by it's citizens; cloudscrapers reached to the sky, the MagRail trains transported thousands of individuals to their destinations; airships were delivering resources and travelers to locations all over the world. Safety was ensured by a complex system of screening and tracking combined with regular police patrols. The house of Cordre and their predecessors, the house of Clairis, had indeed created a nation unique by all means.
It was already late in the evening. A short view at the telescreen at the wall revealed that it was 01:24. A day full of hard work was behind Nathaniel Cordre. Unlike other nation's rulers, he was pretty much of what most people would call a workaholic. If he was not leading his nation, he was working in the Citadel's laboratories together with the leading minds of the scientific world, or inspecting the training of the Royal Guard. He was often told that he should better hire some high-ranked civilians to do some of his jobs, but he always refused. Reigning a nation should be done by it's leader himself, not by a bunch of corrupt bureaucrats.
While he, as a Feye, a member of a human subrace, was gifted with outstanding mental abilities, he was also cursed with a rather weak body, and with a such, he needed sleep. Coffee could keep him awake for some time, but now, he was slowly drifting into a deep sleep. His evening cleaning already two hours behind him, he decided to finally go to his sleeping chamber.
He felt lonely without Miray at his side. He could still remember the blood on the hands of the medics, his wife's life fading away, her eyes closing, her lungs taken a last breath, the EEG device showing a flatline. He still felt so much hate for the assassin. Too bad that he was murdered in the recent attack on the Citadel. Although the rarely used death sentence was not painful or unpleasant in any way, it would have been satisfacting to see the one who killed the Empress die, his life taken away by Feniexian law.
As he went to entrance room of his quarters, he saw Fay Celen still working at the bureau located next to the imperial quarters. Through the half-closed electronic door, he looked at her for a short amount of time. With the death of the Empress, she had become only surpassed in hierarchy by himself. If he died too, the rule over Feniexia would pass to her. He shivered as he remembered that he was the next on the death list of the organization who killed Miray. Shortly, he wondered, if Fay Celen was also a possible target.
"Time has come for Us to end Our day...Mrs. Celen, a little sleep would not be too bad for you either." he said. His voice was a bit sleepy, and so, it sounded a bit less "official" as it usually was. The Administrator of Feniexia turned her face toward the speaker, and nodded then, before she finished the sentence she was writing on her laptop, turned it off, and rose from her chair.
"Indeed, Imperial Majesty." she said, before slowly moving in the direction of the floor's main elevator. "Well, I hope his Imperial Majesty will sleep well...tomorrow will be a busy day."
"Well; as Our day will be busy, so will be yours, at least, if it will be like yesterday. We also wish she will be able to sleep well..."
He managed to set up a weak, polite smile; she returned it; then, both turned away from each other, Celen moving to the elevators door, Cordre locking his door via the small console at the inside wand of his room. He slowly headed for his bedroom. Suddenly, he heard the sound of glass shattering.
"What the...?" he almost shouted out. What could have caused something breaking up here? Maybe an dysfunctional patrol UAV crashing into a window? Or just something in his residence's kitchen? He ran over to the nearest alert switch as he heard strange sounds at the electric door he just had closed before.
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