From the complaint department to the emperor of a planet by D.A. Sanford - HTML preview

Confrontation and confirmation

Jack is a man that I would not want to be on the receiving end of his inquiries. Even though it was not made public. The inquiry report was now in our hands.

Jack already went through it but does not want to comment on what it says until we have read it. It turns out that the only one they interviewed was the regent. That sounds my shit smell alarm. Without seeing the original notes, it seems like he wrote it himself. Just to set the record straight but his version of the record.

The report said that the emperor said that evening that he was not feeling well. He told everyone that he was going to bed. The staff looked in on him and found him dead in bed.

They went to the regents room and woke him up. He confirmed that the emperor was dead.

He then told the staff that it was the emperors wish to be directly placed in the vault.

Again, this is all one sided. Almost all of the night staff have been replaced. Why? I need Jack to track down some of them.

The only obvious thing would have been poison. He had the body immediately placed in the royal crypt. Why? There should have been some type of state funeral. Some medical examination but nothing. Put into the vault so quick, what is being hidden?

Donna, the princess, the emperor's daughter, my wife, had desperately pleaded to see her father for one last time. The regent said that with his last breath, it was the emperor's dying wish that no one saw his dead body.

Wait a minute, didn't the official report say he had passed in his sleep in the middle of the night and that the regent was awoken to give him the news of the death? How could he have heard a last breath wish if he was asleep at the time?

I said, "The regent had to have been responsible for the emperor's death. He told Donna that it was, with his dying last breath, that the emperor asked that no one see his body. He was asleep and then was awakened up find the dead body.”

Like a revelation, Donna then says, “Unless he was there, he could not have heard that.”

Fred looked like he was trying to figure something out.

I explained my feelings with the inconsistencies in the hastily prepared report.

"What evidence there is just circumstantial. They could by explained as misstatements, misunderstandings due to the urgent nature. How do we prove our suspicions? we need to talk to people inside the palace."

Fred suddenly speaks over me, "I'm hungry! I need to eat flowers."

"Fred, it's not the time. If you are that hungry, go out to the garden."

"No dad, you don't get it" he says with an urgency. " I'm hungry! I need to eat flowers. Our flowers are not good enough. I want the flowers that are in the slime garden at the palace."

I think I see where this is going,

"Why the palace garden?"

"They have good flowers. The smart slimes go there. Better protected. I want to talk with them.

We see everything."

Donna realizes where his is going with this.

"Fred could ask the slimes is they saw or heard anything."

"But Fred, you'll be recognized. They know you." I say to him.

To my amazement Fred reverts back to his former blob shape. Now I understand but the dumb side of me couldn't help itself.

"I forgot that you could still do that."

Donna speaks before Fred "He is like that every time he sleeps. Haven't you noticed that?"

"I guess I didn't, sorry Fred"

"I want the driver to let me out blocks away from the palace. I will bounce over there like other slimes. No one will ever think twice. Just another slime. I will talk with others and then return to the spot I was dropped off. You can come but not get out."

Donna, like his mother, tells Fred to be very careful

"Chad needs his older brother."

"I'll be careful, mom"

She hugs the slime.

Plans are set so about the time Fred felt that the others would be at the palace garden, we let him out in his blob form. Even though I hate to, we drove off and parked where we could see the drop off point. We, I sat very uneasy. It seemed like forever but then we saw a slime bounce over and stop at the drop off point.

"Wait a second, " I caution as we pull up, "That may not be Fred. It looks bigger than Fred when he left us."

Looking at it, wondering if it was Fred

"Are you going to open the door for me?" That's Fred.

We let him in. "What did you learn but first Why are you so much bigger? Eat too much?" He starts to take his familiar Fred shape. While he says

"Found out something" As we watched Fred divide. There next to him was a copy of him but with two chest bumps.

"Is this the nice people you told me about?" the other one asked Fred sheepishly.

"Yes they are. This is David and Donna, they are my parents. I have a younger brother Chad but he is not a slime."

Then Fred, with the biggest smile I've ever seen. Ear to ear, I mean really ear to ear being a slime. It is funny but a little creepy. "I have merged. She is now my mate and wants to be Freda." He pronounces it to sound like he is saying Fred ah but she corrects him it's Freeda

"Welcome Freeda, congratulations to the both of you."

"Now that we know that you are a happy couple, did you find anything?"

Freeda tells us "A few darks ago, I saw two that were your shape meet by our food. They talked and one of them handed something to the other then they went away. Later one came back and threw this away"

Freeda proceeded to spit out a small vial.

"This is what he threw away I got it when Fred asked"

Carefully I pick it up to run a DNA screen and content analysis. It came back as extremely deadly poison that kills within seconds. The DNA came back as the regents, we got him.

"Donna, as princess of this planet" Jack tells her "you have the authority to call for a special meeting of your fathers ministers. All you need is to write a proclamation and have it delivered to them. It is this planets law." Jack shows us the law on his tablet. He also prints out the proclamation and gives her a pen.

We go into the palace to the office of the ministers. Donna delivers the proclamation and tells them that she wants the proceedings to be in the throne room today. They would need a few hours to prepare and gather the people needed to be an official witness audience. The regent will be notified. "Make sure he knows that I, have demanded this and his presence is mandatory. He cannot cancel this even though he will try.

As we enter the throne room, there is a large crowd. At the front are two rows of chairs one set on one side and an exact match on the others. The big surprise was the throne. There sat the regent but in almost full emperor regalia. Donna remarks "That looks like one of my fathers royal clothes." Our group consists of Donna, Jack, Fred with Freeda his new mate, myself and of course our son Chad.

The regent speaks, "I am acting emperor here, I declare that these proceedings are not with in our laws. Before I end this, I am glad you have brought the heir apparent. I as regent will now take custody of the heir to be raised in the palace until he is of age to take his rightful place."

The anger both Donna and I are feeling is visible. Jack steps forward and addresses the ministers, ignoring the regent. "Honored ministers, these proceedings were rightfully called by the princess, daughter of the late emperor, not by the regent." He gives them the section of their law that allows any of the royal family to call for formal proceedings and thus be the official in charge. "The spokesman for the ministers confirms the law.

Donna then steps forward, "I have demanded, as princess of the planet and as the sole family member of the late emperor that his body be removed from the crypt. That has been done. It is being examined by the medical personal that I have assigned."

"You cannot do that!" Yells the regent, "I forbid that"

Now it is my turn to interrupt him.

"Two things I'm going to say. The first is I accuse you regent of poisoning the emperor. I now have physical evidence that you killed him." I have now set the bait.

As predicted, he takes it. "I did not leave any evidence."

"So, you did not declare your innocence but declared that you left no evidence."

Back peddling he says "You're twisting my words. The emperor was not killed."

"You said that you heard his burial wishes as he drew his last breath." "

Yes, I did."

I now give the ministers the report saying that he was asleep in his own bed, per his own statement

"How could you be at his death but asleep when you were told about his death?"

Next the evidence. "How do you explain this bottle of poison with your DNA on it?"

"Where did you find that?" Now he is starting to panic.

"I don't know how you got my DNA on that bottle but it isn't mine."

Time to start reeling him in.

"I would like to present to this distinguished group Freeda. Freeda was just this morning certified as sentient by some members of the audience that certified Fred. She is also now Fred's mate."

Freeda comes forward next to me with Fred on her other side. "Freeda saw two men the night the emperor died by the palace slime garden. She saw, why don't we have her tell you what she saw."

I had asked her before we started this if it was okay if I asked her to tell what she saw and point out the man who received the bottle and then threw it away. She said she would.

Freeda tells what she saw. How the slimes are always watching for safety reasons. "We have good eyesight even at night. I saw two men one gave this bottle to the other then the other came back and threw it away."

I ask Freeda" Is the man here. If so can you point to that person." She looks around then points but not at the regent but to one person in the crowd. "That person gave the bottle to that person" as she then points to the regent.

The regent now goes ballistic "How dare you take the word of some slime over what your acting emperor says, guards seize all of them. Take the heir and the remainder are to be expelled from this planet."

The guards do not obey him.

The minister's spokesman has heard enough. "There is enough doubt as to have this counsel of ministers to remove you from your position."

He again yells "I order you guards to seize that heir!"

I now have had enough of him so I yell back to his command "The second item I want to bring up is that you touch our child and you won't live."

He now charges me with a sword drawn. I can only dodge his charge. I don't have a sword. It is only a matter of time until he lands a killing blow. I suddenly hear Fred's voice.

Seeing what is happening, he went over to a guard and took his sword. Fred yell to me

"Father, catch." as he tosses me the sword.

As I am trying to catch it, the regent takes the opening and lunges at me. Next thing I see is Fred being run through with the sword.

He saved me but at what cost.

I thrust the sword through the regents body. A killing shot. He drops his sword then falls to the floor.

My attention is immediately on Fred who is in his blob shape.

"Why did you do that? You took the sword so I would not. You can't be dead." Suddenly the blob beginning to shake and then I see Fred reshaping.

"Sorry to scare you but I needed to go to my blob shape to repair"

I'm so relieved.

I then hear the regent gasping. Everyone knows that he will not last much longer The ministers tell me that they have decided that since I beat the regent and am father of the heir apparent, They will recognize me as emperor. They will plan the coronation. That will be in a month.

The dying regent spews his last words, "You will never wear that crown. I curse it so that at the coronation when it touches your head you will disappear." he mumbles some words then died.

Having been proven that he killed the emperor, the regent’s body was transported beyond the barrier and thrown into the grabber’s pool.

The kings body was dressed in his royal finest and given the proper state funeral. Unlike where the regent placed his body, the emperor was placed in the same mausoleum where his wife was laid to rest.

Donna and I were there. Left alone with the exception of my son Chad, Fred and Freeda.

“Now you can properly rest father. You are with mother.” Donna tells him. “You don’t have to worry. I have David and Fred to watch over us. Sleep well.”

We all leave.

Fred knows death. He has said that he has many a friend that was killed. In a totally unexpected tone, he comments.

“I wish there was somewhere that we could be when we die.”

“Fred, you and Freeda will be with us.” Donna tells them. “We will have one of those built for us. We will even have put a small door that your kind will be able to bring their loved ones there to be at rest. It will be our place of rest. Family.”

Both of them are now happy.

Preparations are being made. It is unfortunate for Donna but the law here is that only a male may rule. I tell her that one of the first things I will decree is that a female can rule. She is happy but tells me.

“I have no intension of ruling. You are my husband, my emperor.“

Now, everything has been done, everything is in place. It is time. The procession has filled the hall. Each guest had to take their place in the procession in seating order. They filed in and stood in front of their seat. This went on until I was announced. Donna was following me holding Chad. Fred and Freeda followed her.

I now was seated on the throne and was being blessed. After being asked all the formal questions about my duties to the planet. It was time for the actual coronation. The crown was held over my head, then lowered.

Just as the emperor’s crown touches my head, for a brief moment I remembered the regent's curse. then I hear a voice...

"Are you paying attention to me! It looked like you fell asleep. I said I want to return this shirt. I want a refund."

Oh shit I did fall asleep. What a dream. It was good but it was just a dream.

I point to the sign "All sales are final. Look at the sign. Next"

The radio does not work.

I point to the sign "All sales are final. Look at the sign. Next"

Look at the time. Despite the line I flip my counter top sign to "out to lunch" and leave.

The vending machine is a seconds also. PBJ is almost a safe bet. I go across the street to a small park bench to eat. No luck this time the bread is hard and stale. It's all I can afford so I crunch through it.

As I am crunching, A young child around ten comes up to me

"Excuse me sir, I'm lost. Would you please help me to get back to the hotel that my father and I are staying at? We are staying at the Imperial Hotel."

I say to myself this time no crown. Never touch the crown. Put all the crowns into that crypt.

Maybe I should ......