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Post by StaolDerg on Jun 4, 2024 23:31:55 GMT -5
It felt strange to be back in the Kesternrim Citadel. There was a divorce of events that existed in the privacy of her memories of this place, from the point where she’d been a child and been raised within the fortress’s walls, interrupted by her military service, and then continued as a prisoner for eighty years.
She hadn’t even been gone from the Citadel for more than a week, in the freedom that Kesternrim’s streets afforded her. Yet now she was back already, back in the wash of cold morning air and a dim sun that filtered through dense clouds and the slits of shutters over the windows.
Ceremonially, the throne room was the best place for a meeting of her ministers: it was the traditional way for court to be held, with long tables, appropriate courtesies, and all the decorum that their stations demanded, the way her mother had done things.
But she wasn’t her mother.
Her mother was a woman who, although inherited the broken remnants of the Sanshan Empire, still retained the absolute authority and stature that a Empress or Emperor would possess, even if her title was now only a Queen. Such respect by her subjects, whether they be an officer or commoner, was no simple symbol of deference: it was a designation, exemplified by generations of policy by the rulers of the Alpla Dynasty before her, whose policies and victories alongside purges and punishments provided Akel I with an iron fist to keep her own in line— a final gift from their ancestors.
But the fluttering banners of the Sanshan were long decayed now, their proud threads now delicate and fragile in museum display cases, and with it, at least Palki’s ability to command unquestionable respect from her own cabinet members. These individuals were no doubt students of the old Imperial Court, scheming, skullduggerous fiends out for their own goals with no limit to their schemes. No gold here was enough to satisfy their deep pockets, no title grand enough to fill the empty hearts and dispel the machinations that their egos mustered.
The throne room was good for a person who still had the respect of the old Imperial Order— for someone divorced from the present for eight decades, she was alone already unqualified in her heart for that dark, raised seat. She needed something modern, where she could present herself as more than a yammering child in an expensive dress demanding attention from the seat of long-dead betters. She wanted to make herself clear to these usurpers: ‘I am the one you answer to— not Kumosenkan, not yourselves: Me.’
She briefly wondered if she was overthinking this, all this work to justify moving her main meeting place to a repurposed office quarter in the eastern section of the Citadel complex, quite the distance from her own quarters in the main Northern Building built into the mountain summit. But in her defense, this was the first meeting she’d ever properly had with her own cabinet.
There were other concerns, too. The army still had essentially zero to no unity for some reason (and they labeled themselves as belonging to one of three formations, yet only one answered to her orders addressing the royal army. All the reports on the nation’s bureaucracy were in total shambles, and the moment she’d assumed power, all of said bureaucracy’s complaints they had been receiving from Communities redirected immediately to her instead in a deluge of conflicting, single-issue, and often poorly worded letters from every single possible corner of the realm. Those were only what stuck out from the top of the pile of disasters she was now dealing with.
Palki sat at the head of the long table her House staff had set up. That morning her head butlers and household staff had received permission from her to go into the city and recruit as many verifiable former household staff of her mother’s. Granted, the humans of the original staff were largely already in the earth of old age, but if nothing else, some of the former staff who were able to be found in the span of a few hours by word of mouth brought along members of their community who could be brought on as junior members of the staff. It wasn’t an ideal arrangement given many an overheard mutter from the maid to another about a newbie, but it took some of the burden off her staff’s shoulders at the very least.
Most of them had resigned themselves to the idea of a quiet existence upon Kesternrim’s secluded mountain top once the Queen had reclaimed her authority. Instead, they’d perked up at the idea of some proper action when the Captain had revealed the idea of hosting court within the Citadel once more. With gusto they’d completely renovated the floor: whole walls removed, tables installed, even a whole banquet slow-cooked the evening prior in case the meeting stretched longer.
She appreciated their work. Eighty years, if nothing else, left her a little attached to the lives of those stuck with her all this time, and it heartened her to see that even if her whole cabinet turned out to be a bunch of vipers, she didn’t have to worry about any poison being slipped into her tea or a bomb in a briefcase. The young Queen wished there was more that she could give them, but beyond awarding bonuses and leaves on the worst of the occasions, they’d long ago turned down her offers for another raise or even so much as moving them to the stately guest quarters that once belonged to nobles staying the year near the western part of the complex.
Her thoughts turned back to the table in front of her.
In total, eight seats were assembled before her: four to either side, neatly arranged with small plaques of each government member’s name upon them. Three smaller tables flanked the surrounding walls, behind the seats: two of these were for the government ministers’ aides and secretaries, with the far table that directly faced her on the far side of the room meant for the transcribers and bureaucrats monitoring and recording the meeting. A good old-fashioned court, and to the liking of the Captain, whose semi-relaxed posture betrayed her satisfaction with the number of House Guards staffing the room.
And now all she had to do was wait and see.
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Post by StaolDerg on Jun 17, 2024 16:58:23 GMT -5
“Where you are strong, feign weakness. Where you are weak, feign strength. From hidden roots under soil does strategy grow.”
Palki’s eyes tracked the entrance of each government minister as they entered— some with the flourish of former nobility, others with the composed grace of court politicians, and a handful with the dignified posture of military service. A strange assortment to have as government for certain, she mused to herself, eyeing the way each of them entered the room and made their way towards their respective seats.
The first that caught her eye was also the most assertive of the lot, sitting first at the spot of Kapira Vakeri— Minister of State. She dignified Palki’s presence with a bow, but other than that she wordlessly took her spot at the table, with the thinly-veiled expression of an adult that was dealing with an uncooperative toddler, seemingly ignoring everyone else in the room. Palki resisted the urge to give the older inselni a scowl in return, but she needed information right now, and the worst thing she could do right now would be to antagonize the only people who could deliver her that. Instead, she turned to the Captain with a low whisper.
“Do you know her, Captain?”
“Unfortunately I do, and not much is good.” The Martial muttered. “She was one of I think six people vying for the position of Prime Minister at the time of your mother’s death— was the deputy minister of the civil service. Immensely competitive, struck me as paranoid. Lifelong bureaucrat from the Aizhong Community, but disavowed from the Community the moment she went into professional politics. I’m surprised that she’s the Minister of State: At least eight others were ahead of her in the political scene before we were locked in the Citadel. I would be careful around her and matters of managing the bureaucracy and civil service.”
The Queen nodded, seeing the Minister of Work taking her seat. The plague before her read ‘Peis Vo,’ but her hardmarks indicated a life of nobility: she saw at least a countship and ownership to five different counties upon the scales by her left horns. Her suspicion was raised— hadn’t her mother executed the majority of the nobility after the civil war?
She shook her head. Too much needed to be done. If this was who had been in charge of the Ministry of Work, then so be it. If she was competent, great. She could stay. If not? Exile or execution was just a signature away.
“Well met, Majesty.” Greeted the Minister of Knowledge, receiving the Queen’s immediate attention with an acknowledging nod.
“Minister…?” Palki asked cordially, noting down the woman’s Librarian hardmarks.
“Autari Zayfen, Your Highness. Community Ansheng.”
“Then well met, Minister Zayfen. We have much to discuss today.”
She would’ve liked to analyze the rest of the officials, but the rest of the ministers were now seating themselves and she felt compelled to proceed with the meeting.
“I have summoned this meeting as the first royal conference in eighty years to determine the state of the nation, and then formulate a course of action to repair and resolve conflicts and situations that have arisen with judicious authority.” She announced, looking from face to face. “As Ministers of the Regency, your tasks were to develop Elenria under Kumo authority and assistance, in agreement with the treaty signed eight decades ago. Even if I set aside your malfeasance in interfering with my right to rule, I have been bombarded with endless independent and official reports that lament a most deplorable state of Elenria.”
At this, the entire table began to erupt in talking, but the Captain slammed her halberd against the floor, shouting. “Speak when spoken to!”
Quietly appreciative, Palki continued in the silence. “I will deign you eight— for now—- the right to make your own reports and explanations on the behavior and performance of your respective Ministries. That is why you have been allowed to bring your staff to help. I will not, however, accept anything except for the most genuine of truths. Should any purposeful mistruth or embellishment be found, you will be found responsible. But speak truthfully and openly, and I will grant assistance and favor. Allow me to make this one thing clear: this is not a tribunal. This is a discussion between ministers and the sovereign to collaborate in uplifting the nation.”
She folded her arms and sat back in her seat. “A final thing. I am reinstating the system of Imperial Martials, given the disorganized and chaotic state of the current civil service. They will be granted total authority to act on my behalf until the country is stable enough to act without direct rule from Kesternrim. With that out of the way, we will begin this conference. One by one, you will tell me the outstanding situations in your departments. We will start with the State Ministry, who according to my reports had up until my return been the primary executive party in policy making.”
All eyes turned to Vakeri as the woman stood up, refusing to make eye contact with anyone. “Well, then. To begin, outside interference in State Ministry affairs by the Army and Internal Ministry has caused crippling damage to the civil service. Law enforcement, economic investment, and basic bureaucratic processing of licenses and certificates alone cannot be guaranteed to be of good quality except for a handful of cities, mostly concentrated in the east of the country.”
Ah. Palki realized quietly to herself. I should’ve expected infighting.
“There furthermore has been quite serious malfeasance by the military in refusing to train units of the Internal Army—”
“Hold on.” The Queen spoke up, inciting a brief flash of annoyance across the face of the State Minister. “What do you mean, ‘Internal Army?’”
“I mean, Majesty, the Army of the Interior, raised to defend the country from uprisings, rebellions, and dissent against your will.” She just barely strained the word, but Palki could hear the stress on the word, practically forced through the inselni’s voicebox.
“Is that not part of the Army?”
“Of course not. The Army cannot be trusted to conduct internal reviews and audits, when it itself is rife with corruption–”
“The Internal Army, Anti-Rebel Army, and Territorial Army are all separate, Your Highness, with only the Territorial Army belonging to the proper military commands, and the rest being… provisional volunteers ostensibly raised by Takpoe as a whole, but in truth only answers to the State Ministry.” the Minister of the Interior suddenly interrupted. “And if you would pardon my interruption, but it was the Internal Army who held you within the walls of your own home.”
The Minister of State’s face flashed with anger. “Such is a necessity, and would not have been necessary if the Territorial Army had not monopolized the entire military training expedition sent by Kumosenkan to train and equip troops, both at the Takpoe’s start and the Franerre Incident! Youth makes for poor leadership–”
But Palki stood up and waved the Minister to sit down, backed by a glare from the attending guards. “First of all, both of you sit back down and stay silent! Why are there three armies, and moreover, why is each one competing for resources? Why do they answer to a department other than the Army? How many other ministries have their own levied troops?!”
The looks the Ministers gave her told her all she needed to know. Her brows furrowed in pain, and she squeezed her eyes shut while her hands gripped the table like she was going to collapse out of frustration or disbelief. Maybe both.
“For heaven’s sake, no wonder nothing gets done!” Palki muttered under her breath, her exasperation outweighing her fury. “Is that all that has been accomplished these last decades? Varying degrees of progress in the name of infighting?”
She held the bridge of her snout, muttering. “Okay. First thing first, no more separate armies. Formations will combine resources, whatever—” She threw a look at the Captain, who immediately leaned in to listen.
Palki whispered hurriedly. “I’m not good with this military stuff—”
“Standardize forces. Have the most experienced army teach the less-experienced under a single banner. Force the formations to train and quarter together, but most importantly purge the ideological and divisive agitators from the ranks.” The Captain muttered back, casting the faintest nod toward the Army Chief of Staff.“ Army soldiers belong in the army, therefore unify all formations under the Mix the lowest basic units to get the footmen in good spirits with one another while isolating troublemakers. Officers will be similarly scrambled together.”
“Will this fix the army?”
“It is a start, if nothing less. New officers and soldiers will take time to be found and promoted, and the utter chaos in the ranks will take time to be properly addressed. With the civil service in shambles, the best we can do right now to influence reorganization would be to dispatch Imperial Martials to oversee reforms. At least this way we can control and oversee progress at a basic level.”
“Fine.” She turned back to the table. “All dedicated militarized units are hereby transferred to the Army Ministry. Those who are not dedicated soldiers are to disarm immediately and dedicate themselves to their station. I will dispatch an Imperial Martial to oversee the reforms.”
“What of the rebels?” Shouted the Development Minister from the other end of the table. “They’ll capitalize on the organizational chaos and raid settlements, rob banks, and attack officials!”
“I’m not disbanding the armies, Minister. I’m merging and standardizing our existing formations so they don’t need to compete for resources, nor exist as units wholly differing in quality and equipment. Units being disarmed will have their places filled by the regular military, now that we can hopefully put an end to this physical infighting. The rebels will remain contained.”
She waved a hand at Vakeri. “What disputes you hold with your fellow ministers, you will bring up at the tail end of the meeting.
Now continue, and be more specific. What is the state of the civil service? The lower departments of the State Ministry: census department, liaisons to the Kumo office?”
A visible wisp of dark smoke wisped from Vakeri’s nostrils, but the minister seemed to weigh her choices between further bickering with a brick wall, as opposed to maybe getting the upper hand in a different way. “...In poor, deplorable circumstances, Majesty. I will not pretend to be uninvolved with the failures of the civil service, but I can attest with the totality of my being that I did attempt to reform the civil service into a more centralized form that would make policy implementation more thought-out and thorough. Three times— once in 1872, again in 1893, and a third time in 1919.”
The Queen let the Minister rant. Even if it was biased, some information was better than none. “The first time was stymied by a series of rebellions caused by internal corruption, and thus was canceled in light of greater issues. I raised on the second time an internal police force to clean our corruption within the ranks of the bureaucracy, but in time they became much too partisan to politics and became ineffective in their original role. The third and most recent time, I brought in the Internal Army to try and prevent malfeasance from any outside groups. It remains… in progress.” She cast a side eye at the Internal Minister, as if pointing at her. “With these interferences alone, how could it reasonably be expected that other departments would not be molested by the touch of misdoers? No, with a civil service that barely runs at all,
“I would like to see a report of what specifics you have planned for such reforms,” Palki said. “With that said, I would rather–”
There was an explosion of commotion at the front door, and though everyone at the table kept their eyes on the Queen even as Palki’s eyes snapped towards the entrance herself, their ears shifted with hers.
The guards were arguing with someone, though the words were spoken in short sentences, and often interrupted by interjections by both parties. Palki was in the process of turning to the Captain, ask her to see what was going on, only to realize the old martial was already halfway across the room to meet the guards.
She watched them speak, only for the Captain’s pauldrons to seize up as they conversed with someone. In a moment she’d turned around and broken into an uncharacteristic run across the room towards the Queen. Palki frowned, standing up from her seat.
“What’s wrong?”
“Majesty. We are at war, the reason why we know not. A messenger from one of the army units to watch the southern border arrived in the city some two hours ago, and according to his own words, nearly a month late. We are being invaded, and from multiple places. Community fishermen have delivered word of foreign warships– non-Kumo, mind– landing soldiers off the subcontinent, and a large-scale invasion taking place from our southwest. We’ve already lost a major military base in the region, several units, and if the courier’s report is to be believed, many of the outer satellite towns and settlements outside Yalfen have been ransacked by murderous invaders. Moreover, the city itself is now believed to be under threat of invasion itself…”
The table exploded with shouting, eight voices all shouting over each other.
“Common embellishments from the Border Army, as usual. Rather bold of you to make such a severe ruckus, General.”
“Oh, is that so, Minister? How come I recall it was your department forging documents for the Queen to read? This wasn’t us, you bellend!”
The Queen waved her hand, and the Ministers finally fell silent.
“We don’t have time for this.” She snapped, trying desperately not to let the slowly growing panic inside her show. “This meeting is now an emergency war council. Take your departments, and make ready for general mobilization.”
“With what civil bureaucracy?” Minister Vakeri asked. “Your Majesty, I implore you to think deeply about this. We are under the protection of Kumosenkan. What nation would be foolish enough to wage war on Elenria under the protection of one of the great empires astride the globe?”
“And what happens if we are under invasion, Minister? What if this is no fluke?”
“Then the Kumo Elenria Army will move in, of course. Our concern is not this. Our concern for domestic defense comes a century or two in the future, when the Kumo are tired or satisfied with their gains in Touli, and depart to leave us ascendant once more. Our cause is simply to preserve our autonomy and interests until then, as our ancestors have done before, and those before them.”
“And if they don’t?”
“They will. It is expected, inevitable.” The Minister folded her arms clearly sure of herself. “You know the saying as well as everyone, Majesty. ‘Empire is three millennia at the most.’”
“I thought the whole purpose of your movement was to prevent Kumo interference in Elenrian affairs, Minister!” Palki suddenly retorted. “Why is it that some lofty, faraway idea of Elenria’s autonomy comes first at the cost of her ability to perform basic operations of state, while in practice we are effectively crippled by internal division and discord?” She cut off the Minister before Vakeri could respond. “Actually, I don’t care what explanation you have: I have already heard too many accounts from the Communities of your inaction because you suspected rival activity. If this is a fluke, I’ll have whoever’s responsible dangled from the gallows like a macabre, unlit lantern like on New Year's.”
She glared at the table, continuing. “I may be new to this, but rest assured: you are here on my mercy. I may be new to politics, but I am not new to discipline. You are infinitely more replaceable than any foot soldier in the army, and I’m certain there is no limit of people willing to take your places if you try anything like eighty years before. You will take your orders from me, and I alone. No backroom deals, no negotiations, and no talks without my knowledge and word. Fuck up, and I won’t hesitate to send you in private’s fatigues straight into the front yourselves.”
The table was silent. For once, it seemed she’d finally struck a chord.
“I am dispatching my House Guards as Imperial Martials to conduct a mobilization of the country. I expect dossiers on our production facilities that may be converted for military use from the Ministry of Development, a report on all available military units and resources by the corresponding Ministries who oversee them, and from the Ministry of the Economy a comprehensive projection of our economic capacities to sustain an armed conflict. The Ministry of Knowledge, and by extension, Minister Zayfen, as liaison to the Imperial Libraries, will begin streamlining the training of students necessary for the war effort, whether it be technical school graduates for factories, or recruitment of officer candidates.”
“For the Ministry of Work, I want a report on all available options for immediate mobilization. I want from the Ministry of the Interior to begin going through the citizen registry for eligible draftees. And finally the Ministry of State is to deliver to me a thorough report on the minute difficulties of our existing bureaucratic landscape, so we can begin to study the reforms needed to fix this country’s sorry state. Ministry of War, General Api? Move the Territorial Army towards the west and north at once. Review our arsenals and warehouses for what equipment we lack, and dispatch to me a full list of equipment we have in deficit.” She turned to the Captain.
“Send Imperial Martials to both regions claiming to be under invasion. In the case we truly are under attack, they are armed with my total authority to do as the situation sees fit. Keep me updated by whatever means of communication is available.”
“At once, Your Majesty. I’ll brief the others.”
“Thank you.” Her voice was curt, but they shared a short look of sincerity before the Captain turned and began hurrying to the door. The Queen turned back to the Council.
“This meeting is adjourned. Now get out.”
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