It took him about half an hour to travel to the Imperial Palace on horseback through the crowded city. He went on horseback because it was less cumbersome and noticeable than a carriage. When he arrived at the palace he was granted immediate entrance through the main gates and as he was just handing his rains to a waiting groom the royal Chamberlin came to greet him.
With a slight bow of greeting the man bid him to follow without delay. Tate was led through familiar hallways and passages. He was finally led to the small council chamber and the door was opened by two guards at the sight of his approach.
Tate nodded at the men as he passed and they returned the gesture of respect. In the small council chamber, his father and the Emperor were seated side by side in deep discussion. A few other nobles were present as well and their faces wore various expressions. A few looked bored and indifferent, a few looked amused, but most looked angry.
His father and the Emporer were in such deep discussion at the end of the table that they didn't even notice him come in. The nobles did notice and their looks unanimously turned to confusion.
"Why are you here Tate Delmont?" Asked Lord Kiln one of his father's biggest rivals.
Tate stopped and bowed to the men in greeting. He was trying his best to be respectful even though he wanted to say something back to the man. He didn't know why he was here either thank you very much!
His father and the Emperor stopped talking at the outburst and looked at him. "Ah, Tate you are here." The Emperor greeted.
"Son." His father acknowledged pulling out a heavy chair that was next to him, indicating that Tate should sit down. Tate took a deep breath and tried to walk casually to the offered chair. It was very hard to appear confident and unbothered when the atmosphere of the room was so tense.
Once he was seated the Emperor addressed the room. "Now, that Lord Tate is here we will go over the details and move on with this matter." The Emperor glared at his Lords as if to dare them to try to argue with him.
In the Lya Empire, the Emperor's word was absolute. He kept this small council as a matter of course and to hear various ideas, but they did not make decisions for him. Nobles also held no other title than "Noble." Tate had encountered other kingdoms in the war that used various titles to differentiate power levels among the noble class, but they were irrelevant here. They were also irrelevant in those places now since they had been conquered. If there could be "additional power" from being a noble it depended entirely on your family's wealth and influence in society. For that reason, different families rose and fell often in the changing generations. House Delmont for example had been of low power for the last three generations. Their wealth was not the problem, but their family lands were not in the capital and their ancestors had never had much interest in influencing their peers. One thing his family could traditionally claim was that the Delmont family had long been entrusted with the Dragon Eggs which were kept locked away in their vaults.
Their current position was solely due to the fact that his father and the current Emperor had been the only noble sons of their exact age. Were there ones a year older or a year younger? Yes. However, the two had bonded as boys by sharing the closet age, their interests, and their temperaments were similar. In short, they understood each other as people very well, perhaps even better than their respective wives did. It wasn't a term fitting of such aged and distinguished men but in the eyes of the world they could be classified as nothing less than "best friends."
The Emperor looked Tate in the eyes. "First, off thank you for your hard work these last weeks. I could tell how much care and preparation you took in presenting the eggs for The Choosing. I know it is not a task fitting of a decorated veteran like yourself, so I appreciate you taking it on so seriously and without complaint. I would have sent your father but he was needed here."
Tate nodded because he'd already known his father and the Emperor were in the middle of some kind of political maneuvering and he'd been glad to do it, it had taken his mind off things and given him a small break from his tedious teaching job. "I thank the Sun of the Empire for trusting me, if it's for you no task is beneath your servant."
The emperor nodded and his father reached under the table and squeezed his knee once in approval for a well-spoken response.
"I'll cut right to the chase, Tate. The reason I have called you here today is to give you a new task. We have discussed many options and I think the plan I've come up with makes the most sense." He glared at the Lords.
"The child from yesterday was a shocking turn in the festivities, but now that a dragon has chosen her there is no going back no matter what some people want to believe. She is for better or worse a part of our world now and will ride with my Corps one day."
Tate could tell several of the Lords were literally biting their tongues in anger or frustration but the Emperor continued on. "What do you think of the rider Jillian?"
Tate was so startled by the sudden question he blurted out, "In what way"
Is father sighed and spoke for the first time. "As a dragon rider, son, as a swordwoman to be more specific."
"She's one of the best." He said simply, now understanding the question. For a split second, he thought they'd wanted to know what he thought of her as a woman and he'd been flustered.
The Emperor nodded. "As I thought, I've heard nothing but good things about her from her superiors over her time in the Corps, but she has long requested to be transferred." He trailed off for a moment before making eye contact with Tate again.
"You will quit your post at the Academy today."
Tate was stunned. "Your majesty?"
"I want you to take this girl and her dragon and get them out of the capitol. You will take them to a place that only you and I know the location of. The servants provided will be under a binding spell to prevent information leaks."
Tate was more than a little taken aback. He thought he understood what the Emperor was saying and why he was saying it but he asked for clarification anyway.
"Are you saying that you want me to take her and train her? It is really necessary to remove her from the capitol, and for how long?"
"Yes, I want you to train her and the Dragonling exclusively, in all aspects. There is no one better suited to teach her the art of being a Dragon Rider than the Empire's most prized veteran. This is a job much more suited to your abilities and befitting your status and contributions. You will be responsible for her education and security. This leads me to your next question. I've thought about it all night and I do believe it necessary to remove her from the capitol for a time. Here she is too vulnerable to outside interests. We do not know what the future holds for her but it is not unreasonable to expect assassination attempts by both noble and common folk alike. The other side to that same coin is she will be a celebrity to some common and noble folk alike as well. Death or a mobbing are what will await her as she grows. She needs to be taught in a safe location away from all of that. It will decrease distraction at the academy itself and will also lessen the security risk she might pose even unintentionally for the capitol."
Tate nodded in understanding but a feeling of foreboding was slipping over him it had not escaped him that the Emperor had not addressed the last question.
"Not to be impertinent, your majesty. I am greatly honored by your trust," he tried to force as much forced sincerity into his words as possible as he continued, "and look forward to carrying out your will but I must ask how long will we be away? Due to the nature of the situation, I am assuming not even my family will be able to see or contact me and vice versa?"
The Emperor and his father looked at each other and then it was his father who addressed him with a hint of sadness in his eyes. "Five years."