CHAPTER FOUR.
 

Sivya walked in first, a slow, measured pace appropriate to such solemn moments.  She made it up onto the raised area without passing out from the weight she was wearing or from her nerves.  She was amazed at herself for not doing so, and that took her mind off the vision of thousands of people who had come to watch this event.  She stared out at the star field, noticing the myriad ships floating around as well.  She noticed one was a military cruiser and glanced at her husband, who squeezed her hand.

The Crown Guardians walked up and stood in front of her, one of them moving to take the crown and put it on her head.  He stepped back, watching as the crown wiggled.  Everyone held their breath.  If the crown would not stay on her head it was a clear statement that it had been coerced into choosing her.

Brast noticed the problem since he was slightly behind her.  He reached up and removed a hairpin, handing it to a guardian.  "It was stuck."  A few of the crowd gave him horrified looks for getting near the crown.  A few gave him speculative looks.  A few who knew who he was were all-but passed out for the heresy of him being in such a position and nearly touching the crown.

The circlet settled itself into place with one last wiggle to get comfortable on the mass of hair.  Then it took over it's Holder's mind for the first time, making the official proclamation. "I do not know why everyone insists on so much hair on my Holder's head.  It is not that cushioning for her," it said through Sivya's mouth, making her voice a bit deeper and richer.  All assembled bowed to them, acknowledging the crown's choice.  "We must talk," she said, raising a hand.  Everyone stared at her.  "There are things that have been bothering me, yet I could not do much about them until now.  Now, things will be happening that are meant to be happening.  Things are changing rapidly and heading down a path I and the other Crowns have seen in the past as other civilizations failed.  We are even now working to stop such occurrences.  This will be uncomfortable for some.  For others it will be a change they hail.  Anyone who bothers my Holder over what *I* say is necessary will be wasting your breath.  The longest civilizations have all had certain things in common and we will start bridging this gap now.  Know also that I have set up reasonable limits.  I do not expect immediate change.  Within twenty years Central Time, all changes will have to take effect."  The crowd gasped.  For some peoples that wasn't enough time to make a single change and the crown was talking like it was making many big changes. "It will be hard.  There will be dissent.  If this does happen and happen well, then this civilization will run on, like it was before the Troubled Times we came out of eons ago."

She lowered her hand.  "For now, there are a few things that must be done.  The others should flow from those first steps.  The first is that men, by the Laws governing the Empire, are still equal.  Even though we do not treat them as such, they do have rights and responsibilities.  Even those who do not like the idea have the right to vote, to have a representative in court, and to have a career.  Even if they do not use it, they have the right to it.  That means that men are allowed to serve in the Military, even in the elite Space Marines.  They are allowed to be my Holder's guard.  They are even allowed to have command and decision making positions.  The second is that some planets are disregarding the few laws we set down to protect all.  I know there are only seven of them, but there are some peoples who ignore six of them.  All must follow them.  Even though their cultures are based on some of them, the time has come to join the Empire fully in its protection of certain things or to go back to Watch status."  A few people gasped.  "Yes, I am aware of how much that would change things.  As of this moment, the planets Draven, Criava, Traddela, and Sol 3 are officially on Watch status.  That last one needs help so we are moving it ahead.  Their population is too massive to support and this will allow some of them the right to emigrate to farming worlds."  She sighed and slumped a little and Brast grabbed her by the arms, but she looked at him.  "We like you," the crown noted.  "You will have your work cut out for you."  He looked a little shocked, but regained himself quickly enough.  "You will find many adventures and much fighting soon enough.  Guard my holder and yourself."  She straightened back up.  "As for the Ki I want, I have already chosen.  This First Husband has a daughter that Sivya will be taking into her family soon enough.  That daughter is my choice. Constantine is my choice for the heir and Ki."

Brast choked.  "You're kidding?" he demanded.

She looked at him.  "Do I seem like I joke?"

"No," he admitted bitterly.  "I will have any and all family brought up and presented to her for her choice of inclusion."

The crown had Sivya pat his face and move closer, withdrawing so she was kissing him.  Sivya came back to herself and found herself pressed against her husband's body.  "Now is not the time for this," she said quietly.  "We can talk later, after we have escaped those with weapons in the outer chambers."  She looked at the crowd again.  "The crown has ordered me to appoint a new judge to sit on the High Court.  It has also bid me to make one of my advisors a male, one who does not want these rights so I can hear both sides.  I am fair, I am open to hearing complaints and plans, but she is right.  Before the Great Trouble happened, this Empire had much more equality and much more in the way of generosity with each other.  The crown wills it that we get back to something similar, without the problems we had that led to the Great Trouble."  She took her mates' hands.  "That is all she has said."  She looked at each of them, getting a nod from Pisha and a confused look from Brast.  "The palace will be moving within weeks.  The next site will be the old palace in Alesar.  I have found them generally pleasant, interesting, and a good place to work out the first year of the crown being worn by me.  May you all enjoy your trips there."  She took off the outer robe and handed it to the Guardians, who would put it in the hall where it belonged.  Then she was led away by her mates, back to the safety of the ship.  She found one of her top generals waiting on her.  "There will be a ship in the hands of a male within the year," she noted.  The woman looked stunned.  "You didn't hear?"

"I did, but we don't have anyone near that level, Empress."

She shrugged.  "Then we'll figure it out.  I am not a warrior so I will listen to good advice."  The general smiled.  "Can we go?"

"Of course we can.  We are heading to my ship to head to the new palace in Alesar.  The Ferganis ambassador and the cub are already on there and your staff has been busy packing up your things to go with you. By your leave?"

"Go before they come out and kill us," Brast suggested.

The General looked at him, then at the Empress.  "At least you picked a pretty pirate."

"He encourages me to be myself, yet to play nice and to dress up for the other members of the Court.  He has been very helpful and has kept me calm and sane," Sivya admitted, taking a seat.  "Otherwise we would see only the High Priestess I used to be.  He makes sure I see more widely than that."

"She was a bit sheltered," Pisha agreed.

Brast looked at her.  "Alesar?"

"It's safe, it's a calm world, and the family groups there could use the business," Sivya admitted lightly.  "It was a good choice."

"It's a dreary world."

"Which means that we won't have much to do in the way of getting out and blessing things," Sivya noted.  He sat down next to her, Pisha on her other side, Henri behind Pisha.  "Trust me, it is a nice place and they do appreciate those who want to be prettier.  The miners and jewelers create some of the most beautiful work there is.  They're also very fierce and protective peoples.  We won't bother their way of life and they can ignore the court until they're ready to sell.  At which time, they'll make more than they have traveling all this way to sell their wares.  I almost moved us to Palas, but the current growing season would make me sneeze."

He shook his head, holding in his laughter.  "They are good reasons.  Of course, you'll have to dress like they do when meeting with their representatives."  She nodded.  "Have you seen what they wear?"  She nodded.  "You can really wear an all-encompassing cloak?"

"If I must.  I won't have to live in it like they do, but I don't mind so much."  She smiled at him.  "They are so far off from the center of the Empire that it will cut down on the needless petitions."

The General nodded. "Hopefully.  It is a very calm, dusty, boring world."  Their ship took off, heading for the larger battle cruiser.  "Your rooms have been made back in one of the small landing bays with the doors locked, Empress."

"If we are to work together, you may use my name when not in a formal situation," Sivya offered.  The General gave her a long look.  "I hate titles.  My priestesses got very tired of me retorting when all they called me was High Priestess."

"That's fine, Empress Sivya.  Thank you."  She looked at her ship.  "We are not the biggest, but the second fastest in the fleet.  The first is with the Watchers on Sol 3.  Were you serious about letting more of them up?"

Sivya leaned closer to her.  "That small planet is as small as Central World, where the Central Palace is.  It has over six billion people on it."  The General looked horrified.  "Even if the population isn't as sensitive as we are to others being that close, they must get tired of it."  Henri nodded.  "We do have some underdeveloped farming worlds.  They have farmers who are going out of business due to mechanicals.  I have no problem offering them and those who do not have a home of their own the chance to come up and work on the farms and to provide the necessities to those worlds.  I would even be willing to broker agreements so they could bring back some of their hard-won gains to their home world for sale.  I simply cannot see children growing up like that.  They have violent, over crowded cities that are horrible to live in from what I was told during my briefing and my Second Husband has said that they glossed over much that would not be to our liking.  It can only help those people."

"Plus they could bring information back to their friends and maybe my planet would get inclusion faster," Henri offered.

The General looked impressed.  "You did pick for more than beauty."

Sivya blushed.  "I'm a scholar at heart.  I picked those who could either help, like my First Wife, or those who could support me, like Henri.  Brast is one who does both," she said at his opening mouth.  "Plus, he talks *to* me instead of at me like so many men I know have done."

"It's good you know what you need, Empress Sivya," the General said, looking very pleased with her.  "You find information and ask opinions when you need them, you find mates who will help or support you, and you don't expect everything to be done in a year's time.  Hopefully these trends will continue."  Their ship docked and she opened the door, letting them out into the landing bay.  Her crew saluted.  "Stand down," she ordered.  Her First Mate stepped closer.  "This is the Empress, her First Husband, First Wife, and only Second Husband," she announced.  "See that they are made welcome on our way to Alesar."

The First Mate nodded and led the way out, having to wait while Sivya shook hands with the crew and talked to them.  She looked at her General, who rolled her eyes.

"Sivya, they need to get back to their duties so we can leave," Brast said gently, taking her by the arm.  "Have you been on a ship before?"

She shook her head.  "Not like this one.  I was drugged when I was brought to the Central Palace.  Rethna made sure I couldn't whine at him.  Which I'm fairly thankful for.  I would have probably tried to get off the ship in the middle of the trip otherwise.  My other trips have mostly been short, and while I was asleep."  She looked at the First Mate as she joined her.  "Is there some way we can take a tour once everything is under way and we're away from the mad people?"

"If you wish, Empress.  Yours is a relatively small party and *some* of you know your way around our ships."  Sivya looked at Brast, who at least looked sheepish.

"It is better to know the outlay of your enemy's defenses than to be struck blind when they pull up weapons you didn't know they had," he admitted.  Sivya laughed, giving him a gentle pat on the arm.  "Thank you, Sivya.  Come, let's rest. You must have a headache after the crown used your mind."

"Not really," she admitted as they walked off.  "I've had to link with higher Thinkers before and they never really bothered me.  I don't get the stupid headaches some do."

"The ship's Thinker needs that skill," the First Mate shared.

"It comes from practice and being near the level of those you're linking with," Sivya explained.  "The one time I linked with the Top Thinker, the one at the academy, I had a reaction headache for days.  I nearly struck myself in the head to bash my own skull in.  Once I was linking with those near my own level it was much easier."

"I'll share that with her," she promised, opening the door.  "This is your chamber until we reach Alesar," she said, letting them inside.  "If you need anything, I'm sure your First Husband knows how to contact us.  Call me directly please."  She left them with a small bow and a salute.

Brast walked them inside, helping Sivya out of her jewelry since she was starting to scratch underneath it.  "You rest," he ordered, helping her into something to sleep in.

She pulled him closer, making their faces nearly touch at the nose.  "Do I have to write any pardons?" she whispered.  He looked offended.  "I simply thought, since everyone here seems to know what you've done, that it might be a good idea to ask.  I know you're smart enough to not do something dumb that got too much of the wrong attention."

He grinned, a wicked smirk.  "I might have one or two but I doubt anyone would dare enforce them now, my dear.  You rest and I'll share some of my adventures with you later."  He covered her up and gave her a gentle pat on the stomach before going to help Henri and Pisha with their things.  He noticed a low ranking officer among the helpers and gave her a long look.  "Auditioning for Second Wife?"

"No, I simply decided that you needed the help.  The General wanted to know if we needed to stop at the shopping planet."

"No, we'll do that in a few weeks," he decided. "We'll schedule a tour, a trip to some races, and the obligatory shopping all around the same time."  The officer smiled at him.  "She doesn't think she needs it," he noted. "She can be quite stubborn."

"She also threatened to send us to Riven for our first year," Pisha offered.

He gave her a horrified look. "Riven?  That planet where they only wear flowers as jewelry and nothing but their hair to cover them?  That place where people copulate in public without even a curtain so no one has to watch?  That planet where pleasure is found first and then spread through the Empire?"  She nodded, smirking at him.  "Dear Lord Argoness.  Is she a pain-lover?  They would give her a headache from the nudity."

"She said it would be better than having to wear too many clothes, like they do on some colder worlds, or having to wear fur like they do on Ambassador Thran's world."

"I can't imagine her living with the nomadic men who live with their horses and worship only their skills with swords," Brast pointed out dryly.  "There's nearly no entertainment there."

"There is," Pisha argued.  "It simply is more about skill and ability with your weapons than it is about speed and technology.  They do have contests and festivals throughout the year."

"I'm sure, but they are also not very forward-thinking on the subject of women.  I suppose it's because that's where all the men removed from their home worlds for having violent thought were sent, but still."

"Sivya hated that episode during the Great Troubles," Henri said happily.  "She thought they overdid it by removing nearly all the men from their homes and sending them away to live in peace."

"Good, it means she won't do it to us," Brast said firmly, making Henri laugh.  "Who's kidding?"

"I would never do that to you," Sivya called.  "I'm nicer than that."

"Sleep, wife," he called back.  "You'll wish for a nap in a few days."

"Yes, dear," she said patiently.  "I can't sleep though."

Henri walked back and laid down beside her, holding her so she could fall asleep comforted by another being.  She snuggled into his arms, resting her head on his chest.  He looked over when he felt Brast staring at him.  "She needed it," he said quietly.

"She did," he admitted, letting him stay there, but he was keeping an eye on the human.  Humans were not known for their delicate sensitivities to other's feelings. Most rumors had them being fierce, violent creatures who were only soft to their families and some animals.  He would have to watch that one to make sure he did not hurt their wife.  Then he stopped and thought.  Yes, he was protecting her, but why was he acting *jealous*?  That was not how he usually was.

Pisha nudged him gently.  "It's because you see her as less than able to take care of herself," she said quietly.  "I have that same feeling of wanting to smother her with attention and care while keeping others away from her.  She seems to draw protective people to her.  Look at how Rethna acts around her."  She went back to sorting outfits, finding something for her wife to wear when she got up.

"Give her the blue and black one," he offered, sitting down to watch and think.  "She is like a child in some ways."

"Sivya was never a child.  Her scholar's soul led her to knowledge that even the other scholars had given up long ago.  She admitted to me that she was reading the chronicles of the Great Troubles when she was newly an adult at twelve."  He looked stunned.  "No one said anything.  They thought she might end up a chronicler herself."  She pulled out the requested outfit.  "Are you sure?  It's very fancy."

"She appreciated it when she saw it," he offered. "It should be fine.  We'll do a large trip to the mall soon enough."

"Good. Plus we are heading to the one place to get very good formal jewelry.  She could use that as well."  She closed the box and laid the outfit on top of it.  "Will that be appropriate on the ship?"

"It should be," the officer offered.  "We don't have guest or consultant clothing rules in the military."  She saluted them with the standard fist to the middle of her chest and a small head bow, then left them alone to report to his General.  She'd want to know.

Pisha looked at Brast.  "Just think," she said quietly.  "She is a bare slate for fashion, jewelry, and fun.  You can teach her everything you ever wanted in a wife and then make sure she follows it while you're around."  He grimaced.  "Then again, she may just butt heads with you over it and tell you that you're being a Tua'ath goat."  She grinned and went to curl up beside Sivya's free side.  She liked napping with her wife, she was very cuddly.

Brast shook his head and looked up.  "Lord Argoness, Lord of Pirates and Treasures, why did you hand me this treasure to guard alone?"
 

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