Fourth Vector Ch. 41

If he was going to go up against Easterbrook, Java had to control the skies.

It was an interesting admission--the die was already cast, and Bancroft knew that with his recent actions, Easterbrook would be forced into declaring war against him. It was a conflict that didn't need to be as serious as the last war against the Occitanians and the Ruthenians.

After all, Easterbrook was just a rebel with some Fourthie forces at his disposal.

Against him, Bancroft could command the forces and resources of all the three original vectors combined. Against such a threat, Easterbrook would be nothing but a bug that needed to be squashed, but Bancroft wasn't as confident to imagine that Easterbrook would go easily.

No, Bancroft would make sure that he levied every advantage against Easterbrook to bring that next war to a very quick and decisive victory.

"Not a bad show, was it?" said Clark from Bancroft's side, bringing him back to reality. The planes had circled the airfield several times and were now landing once again, skidding to a stop not far from Bancroft.

Bancroft snorted. "It was an amazing show. One that will ensure our enemies will soon feel the power of those airplanes coming down on them. It's the future of warfare, Clark. And it's going to be extremely deadly for anyone that stands in our way."

"I'm not sure about that," replied Clark, offering a brave contrary opinion. "I see their use eventually, but in this current form, how can ten unarmed planes make such a difference on the battlefield?"

Bancroft gave him an incredulous look. "How are you this stupid, Clark? Honestly? Have you lost your wits after all this time? Think of those planes dropping bombs on our enemy. Think of great armadas of airplanes blacking out the skies. There's so much potential you don't see here. Really, Clark, you need to use your brain more often."

Clark turned red in the face and didn't say anything else.

Bancroft could only shake his head in disgust. The relationship between the two men had been disintegrating lately, even to the point of how sour it reached after the execution of the innocent Admiral Henrik. Bancroft wasn't sure what Clark's problem was. The man had been increasingly combative lately, but it was combative just for the sake of being combative.

Even when Clark had a dissenting opinion, it usually wasn't a good opinion.

To fix that mess, Bancroft had resorted to ridicule but it was starting to strain the relationship between the men, which had already been tense ever since Bancroft became emperor.

Bancroft hoped that the problem would fix itself soon enough. He still liked Clark even if he didn't like his behavior and the last thing he wanted to do was to remove another admiral from a position of command.

That particular thought brought Bancroft to Admiral McKenzie, and once more he was filled with disgust. McKenzie had been a friend of Bancroft's at one point in time, when they were both nothing more than senior admirals. McKenzie had even become the most important officer in the navy after Bancroft ascended to the throne, but his recent behavior had caused his fall from grace.

It all started when McKenzie refused to become the viceroy over the conquered Occitanians, much in the same way that Nick Reynolds now occupied the position for the Ruthenians. McKenzie's protests revolved around the fact that he was just a naval officer--not a politician, and he thought the authority was beyond him.

Bancroft was annoyed by the denial but he could have looked beyond it had McKenzie not continued to do stupid things that got under his skin. For that reason, Bancroft finally had him removed from the navy totally and put under house arrest in his home outside of Lockhaven.

It was an unfortunate end to a naval career that spanned almost four decades but Bancroft was tired of dealing with the man. With the war over, he had no need for so many admirals in active service, and so McKenzie was the first to be sacrificed.

If Clark didn't get his act together soon, he would find himself becoming the next victim.

Bancroft returned to the palace with just enough time to grab an evening meal. Like most evenings, he took that meal in his study as he worked on the numerous affairs of state that kept his attention during the waking hours. As the sun began to set, Bancroft looked forward to his nightly routine, which was made all the more rewarding by the appearance of his favorite girl.

The clock had just struck ten o'clock when Jade made her first entrance into his study. Like usual, she was wearing a beaming smile while carrying a cup of his favorite tea. Bancroft couldn't help but grin like an idiot when he saw the supple young woman.

"There's my favorite girl," he said as she set the tea on his desk. "How are you this evening, Jade?"

"I'm exceptional tonight, Your Imperial Majesty," said Jade, the coy smile never leaving her face. "And how is Java's most exceptional emperor doing tonight?"

Bancroft felt his heart flutter at her flattery. "You're always exceptional, Jade. There's never a time when you're just ordinary. And you certainly know how to make an old man feel young again."

That she did. If Bancroft wasn't so caught up in the flattery of youth, he might have recognized that Jade was constantly buttering him up for something big. However, Bancroft's ego was too large to ever consider that possibility, and he was most content with the simplest explanation--the girl was attracted to his paternalistic qualities and strength.

That view of the situation was about to come crashing down.

Jade reappeared in his study every hour until one o'clock in the morning, the typical time that Bancroft began to ready for bed. As he put aside his working materials, he couldn't help but lean back in his chair and take in Jade's features for the thousandth time.

She was simply gorgeous. A lovely creature such as her had never existed before in Java--of that he was quite sure. She was just so ravishing. She had a glow about her tonight, one that he couldn't quite put his finger on. Jade was one that would laugh at every witty comment he made while letting a lingering touch last just a tad too long--enough to send a message.

Of all evenings to make a move, this one was the best of them. Bancroft had visions of Jade occupying his bed. He thought of undressing her himself and running his weathered fingers over her smooth and taut skin. He thought about entering her and listening to her squeals of pleasure as her legs wrapped around his waist.

Why shouldn't he have her tonight? Was there ever a better time?

As Bancroft entered his main chamber, he kicked off his boots and removed his doublet, readying himself for bed. In the process, Jade brought over a glass of water while she fluffed his pillow, part of the usual nightly routine. The only thing he had to decide was what to say to her? He couldn't just order her into his bed. No, it would have to be sincere. The girl deserved as much.

Yet just as Bancroft was opening his mouth to extend the invitation, Jade beat him to the punch.

"Your Imperial Majesty," she started as she fiddled with the helm of her skirt. "I have something I want to talk to you about. Something important that I wanted to ask you."

Bancroft shut his mouth as a smile grew on his face. This was it! She was going to come out with her feelings. He wouldn't have to ask her into his bed. She would ask it of him!

"Of course, sweetheart," replied Bancroft as he patted the open spot on the bed beside him. "What's on your mind?"

Jade only sat down hesitantly and she purposefully kept some space between them. Bancroft realized the girl must have been anxious. Perhaps she was a virgin who'd never been penetrated before. He vowed to make her first time worthwhile.

"Go on, tell me," he urged, putting his arm around her shoulder as she struggled to find the words. "You can trust me."

Jade gave him a nervous smile and took a deep breath.

Here it comes, thought Bancroft.

"I wanted to ask you something very important," began Jade after a long exhale. "Something that you might not expect. I want to leave the palace. I no longer want to work here as a servant."

Bancroft blinked several times before he could comprehend what she said. "You what?"

Jade nodded her head. "It has nothing to do with you, Sire! I promise you that! I just want to leave and start a new life somewhere else. I want to move to a new phase of my life--"

Bancroft held up his hand. "Where is this coming from? I thought you were happy here. I thought you were about to say something else."

Jade lowered her eyes and refused to meet his gaze. "It's just that... that..."

"Out with it!" snapped Bancroft, his patience all but spent. "What is it?"

Jade met his eyes. "I'm in love, Your Imperial Majesty. I'm in love with a man and I want to start a new life with him. I want to move away from the capital and get married to him."

Could it be, thought Bancroft.Could she be talking about him?

"What man?" he asked quickly. "Of whom do you speak?"

Jade assumed a distant look. "The best of men, Sire. A man who is strong and kind and thoughtful. One who loves me in return and wants to spend forever with me. That kind of man. And I want to spend forever with him. When he holds me, it's like nothing else matters--"

Bancroft's heart snapped. "Wait a minute. When he holds you? You've been intimate with this man?"

Jade's cheeks flushed. "Well, yes, Your Imperial Majesty. We are intimate all the time."

That single statement took all the spirit out of Bancroft's soul. At that moment, he was utterly and totally crushed. How had he read this so wrong? How had he been so mistaken about Jade's affections? What had he misread?

"And you want my permission to leave, is that it?" he asked sullenly. "You want to leave me here?"

Jade pivoted to face him. "I want your permission to let him leave too. I want your blessing as much as possible. I was hoping that our good relationship would be enough to allow this to happen."

So there it was. There was the rub. At that moment, Bancroft fully understood. She was buttering him up for this. It wasn't about sexual attraction.

Jade was using her feminine wiles not to get his attention but to allow her and her boyfriend to leave the palace for good.

Bancroft had never felt more used in his life. He'd never felt so rejected.

And he never felt so angry.

The anger surprised him. Perhaps it was the fact that he thought he was finally going to get what he wanted. Perhaps it was that he felt on the cusp of victory only to have it yanked away so suddenly to reveal total defeat.

Maybe it was the fact that this young twenty-year-old woman had just crushed his heart.

Whatever the reason, the anger soon had Bancroft blinded with rage.

Why shouldn't he take what he'd always wanted? Who was she to make such a request of him?

He was the emperor of Java. No one could manipulate him in this way!

Bancroft felt the emotion pulsing through his veins. He felt his hands start to move as his more rational mind gave way to primal instinct.

He would not be denied.

Bancroft pushed Jade back on the bed and pinned her hands above her head. He was breathing severely and his eyes were filled with murderous rage.

Jade's cool confidence disappeared, only to be filled with something new--fear.

"Your Imperial Majesty?" she squeaked.

Bancroft wasn't sure why he did it. For some reason, he held her hands above her head with one of his while his free hand smacked her mouth.

Jade groaned in pain as her eyes flashed with utter fear.

"You fucking tease," he growled as Jade squirmed under him. "You used me."

Jade started to shake her head.

"You used me!" roared Bancroft, striking her again. "You belong to me!"

Jade whimpered and began to cry after the next strike. Her beautiful face was soon marred by the red marks where his hand had struck. What should have ordinarily turned him off instead made him harder than any time in recent memory.

He would have her tonight. He would make her his for all time.

Bancroft yanked at her clothing, ripping the servant's uniform in several places while Jade sobbed. At several points, she tried to defend herself. She tried to squirm her way out from under him but it was no good.

She was right where Bancroft wanted her.

"Please don't!" she whimpered. "Don't do this!"

Bancroft struck her again, causing her to go limp.

"You belong to me," he roared again.

This time, Bancroft's erection lined up to just the right spot. Jade gasped in alarm as she felt him penetrating her most private spot.

"You're mine forever," he whispered in her ear as his body thrust inside hers.

There was nothing else she could do but cry.

*****

Michael looked at the time the next morning and a confused look appeared on his face.

Jade was late.

Her shift had already ended more than twenty minutes ago. It wasn't like her to be so delayed. Usually, she was exhausted by this time and more than ready for rest.

Michael tried not to be alarmed. He thought it was more than likely she was just held up. As he waited for her, he wondered whether she had brought up to Bancroft about the possibility of them leaving? What would be the reaction? Was Jade as persuasive as he thought she was?

Michael could only smile as he thought about what a future with Jade looked like. He thought about getting some job far away from here, and how it would look like coming home to her every day. He thought about having a family with her, and what Jade would look like with a big pregnant belly. She would still be the sexiest woman in the entire world to him, and no doubt there would be many children in their future. He didn't intend to ever keep his hands off of her.

However, even his daydreams couldn't last forever when it was nearly forty-five minutes after the end of her shift. Michael was indeed worried by this point and went looking for her. The thing that was most alarming was that none of the other servants had seen her after one o'clock, which was nearly the middle of her shift.

Where had Jade gone?

For the next half hour, Michael searched half the palace trying to find his girlfriend. He finally found her sitting in an empty room, looking out the window absentmindedly.

"There you are," said Michael with a sigh of relief. "Your shift ended over an hour ago. What are you doing here, Jade?"

She didn't respond to him. She didn't even move. Jade continued to look out the window without any kind of reaction.

Michael instantly knew something was wrong. He moved closer toward her, choosing his steps carefully so as to not alarm her. Even the smell was off. Jade usually smelled wonderfully but there was something foreign about her. Something that wasn't so feminine.

When he finally saw her face, he knew something was terribly wrong.

Tears were streaming down her face but that wasn't the only thing that was wrong. Her entire neck was black and blue. Spots on her face were marked as well, like she'd just gotten through sparring with someone three times her size. Her clothing was ripped, and Michael could even see part of her nipple exposed.

Something was terribly wrong.

"Jade, what happened to you?" he exclaimed loudly as he rushed forward. He sank to his knees and looked at her eye to eye.

Jade only began to sob more.

"Who did this to you? What happened? Please tell me!" Michael felt tears stinging his own eyes. "Who assaulted you?"

Jade only managed to say one name as she cried.

"Bancroft. Bancroft raped me."

Michael's entire world came crashing down. At that moment, he tried to embrace her to push away the pain but Jade nearly screamed when his arms went around her. She wiggled free and walked toward the other side of the room.

"Don't touch me," she sobbed as she put her hands against her face.

"It's okay, I'm not going to... I'm just trying to hug you, Jade," said Michael, thoroughly confused.

"He held me down, Michael," she sobbed. "He held me down and wouldn't let me up. He put himself inside me and didn't stop until he came. Do you have any idea what it's like? Do you have any idea what it's like to have someone not stop when you say no repeatedly?"

Michael tried to come forward slowly but Jade held up her hands again, stopping him in his tracks.

"What am I going to do?" she cried. "I'm nothing now! I'm nothing! I'm broken!"

"No, Jade, you're not! We'll get through this. It's going to be okay," he said consolingly, even if he had a hard time believing his words. What were they going to do now? Had she even talked to him about leaving?

Was this the consequence of such a conversation?

"I'm broken!" screamed Jade as she fled the room, leaving him alone.

Michael didn't dare chase after her. What else could he have done?

What else was there to do now?

*****

"What the fuck are they waiting for!"

Emperor Avila smashed yet another porcelain vase against the floor, spilling soil and shards all over the floor. He stepped over the mess, immediately charging down the hall, no doubt to repeat the process while his servants rushed behind him to clean up the mess.

Avila didn't bother to look behind him. His path was clear and his mind was set in his destination.

It was the fifth week of the siege. Five straight weeks of Dagobern being kept in a noose was starting to have an effect on everyone still left in the city. The granaries were nearly empty. The summer harvest was due and there was no one inside the city that could get out to reach the fields.

Not that it would have helped anyway. The Galicians and their allies would have long since scavenged those fields to feed their men. There would be nothing to feed the people of Dagobern besides spare dogs and rats.

It was here that Avila finally grasped the Galician strategy. What they couldn't gain by attacking the city, they would gain by starving out its people.

It was the strategy of losers. A strategy of those that couldn't take what they wanted by force so they would fight the dishonorable way.

Avila ached for a set-piece battle. He wanted one more decisive contest that would see the Galician force shattered upon the city. It was only then that they would be able to call on a decisive outcome for the war. He ached to see his soldiers (and only his soldiers since the Swabian Navy had long since deserted him) win a final battle against his ancient foes.

Yet, that would never happen. No matter what Avila did, the Galicians would not come out to fight. No matter how much he tempted their forces with attacks on their defensive trench lines, the Galicians wouldn't respond.

It all begged the same question.

Just what were they waiting for? What would make them bring this conflict to its conclusion? Would they not call the war over until everyone in Dagobern starved to death?

Was there nothing honorable left in the Galicians after all?

If they wouldn't attack him the usual way, Avila needed to find another way to resolve the conflict while the city still had its strength. If they continued to wait, they would have no chance of victory.

Starving corpses hardly made for good soldiers.

No, there would need to be another way forward. A way that wasn't for the faint of heart. A way that would earn the respect of all the ancient Swabian emperors.

That was why Avila had made his way to this room. Some would say it was the most important room in the entire Swabian palace. It was the only location that contained the Swabian crown jewels. Glistening rubies and diamond crowns caught the light from every portion of the room. There were even scepters of unlimited value.

That wasn't why Avila was here though. No, there was something much more important in this room.