Chapter 2 - Part C

Turning away Fernum looked out into the heart of the universe, towards the imperial planetary system, “We never had a chance to try new ideas when we were system rulers, we always had to follow their Law. They’ve made the whole universe follow their Law. They’re never open to suggestion about how the Law could be changed to make things better. Some of the laws are so trivial, why is it important to keep a law about desire? I’ll tell you why, by making a law that says ‘Be content with what you have” They ensure that no one will ‘rise above their place’. There will never be anyone to challenge their so called superiority. So we spend thousands of cycles doing the little jobs, running their errands and they make it sound so grand by calling it a mission.” Fernum glanced back at her, the pitch of his voice had risen slightly and taken on a hard edge, moderating the pitch to a lower more resonant sound he cleared his throat, “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to belittle you, I’m sure the mission they have offered is very important” He sighed and swung around to face her “it’s just that I get so irritated by the stratagem they use to keep us busy, to keep us from questioning their so called wisdom.” His voice retained the hard edge but other wise was indistinguishable from Mykal’s as he mimicked the prince ‘Do this, do that! It’s essential to the smooth running of the empire…and be happy while you do it, don’t reach for more, stay in your place, don’t call us we’ll call you.’ Fernum sighed again, “All I wanted was one place where I could try my ideas, to prove that they worked” He faced her, eyes direct, open honest and filled with a deep sadness, “was that so much to ask? When you consider how much there is out here” his arm motion took in the whole sweep of the starscape, from edge to edge and into the universal core with its light pulsing out illuminating the heavens.