K ris was hoping to make it back in time to see the kids after school. However, she had a posse of engineers to listen to as soon as she got back to the embassy.
"We took the opportunity while you were talking to the Emperor to examine the strength of the Domm palace basement. It is quite over-engineered. Four and five-foot-thick walls. It is planted on the bedrock and had no problems supporting seven stories. There are no pilings under it. We're 99.9% confident we can move the thing to the desert, assuming we provide the necessary supports when we make the lift."
"That's good enough for me," Kris said.
"We'll start drilling the holes for the lift cables tonight. With any luck, we should be in a good position to lift the palace out tomorrow before noon."
"And the high-rises across the street?"
"We haven't finished examining them, but we don't expect any problems. Everything the Iteeche built is constructed to last a thousand years."
"That is their way of doing things," Kris told him.
"About the lifting dirigible. Do you see them having any problems?"
"It comes down to providing sufficient lift to get it up, but not too much lift to shoot it for the moon. The jet turbines should give us all the control we need to lift the assembly up or point it down. If worse comes to worse, we can vent hydrogen or expand the bags and get more lift."
"Okay. Keep me informed. Remind everyone as we do this that this contraption is not to go anywhere near the Imperial Palace grounds and I really don't want to drop a brick on any Iteeche heads."
"That is understood. Safety is our first consideration. We are in no hurry. We have time to do anything over if we think we need to."
"Good. The longer this takes, the longer I have an excuse to hang around my kids," Kris said, grinning.
"Very understandable, Admiral," the engineering general said and took his leave.
That left Kris just enough time to get out of her monkey suit and into undress khakis before the kids came tumbling through the door.
"Let's go swimming!" Johnnie yelled, with all the enthusiasm of his years.
"Again?" Kris whined cheerfully.
"Where else is there to go? I don't understand what you adults see in the holo deck. It doesn't smell right," Ruth said.
Kris couldn't disagree with that. Despite several efforts to get the scent system working, it still smelled off. The trees weren't quite right, and the ocean surf didn't get the right amount of salt water in the air. Oh, well.
So, Kris let her small people tow her down to the pool and joined an impromptu staff meeting taking place as the adults watched the kids have all sorts of fun.
"I'm really surprised," Jacques said, "that you pulled that off today. I thought for sure they'd have a million problems with your idea."
"General Konga," Kris said, "is going to be a good ally. I think the young Emperor may see us as a more reliable ally than some of his clans."
"That doesn't take a lot," Jack said, dryly.
"The clans have their own agendas," Jacques said, "clan against clan. Our problem is going to be how do you stay out of some clans’ pockets. Whether you like it or not, Kris, you are now a player, and you will either play or be played."
"Tell me something I don't know. Abby?"
"You called, boss?" Kris's former maid said. She'd been watching her two hellions, as she insisted on calling her kids, wage a water fight against Kris's kids and Kitano’s daughter who had been on the first run down the "repaired" beanstalk.
It seemed well balanced and unlikely to end anytime soon.
Which, in a manner of speaking, wasn't very different from the Iteeche Empire. No clan could not achieve a knockout blow, even when three arrayed themselves against two. No one really wanted to see any clan knocked out of the game for fear that another clan would get too much in the dividing up and become stronger than the others.
Very likely, the Domm clan would be back before too long, or some other clan would be promoted up to the big five, even if Kris had taken their place in the inner ring.
No, Kris had only done what had to be done. She'd saved the Emperor's young life from the political machinations of the Imperial Capital. She had yet to put an end to the civil war being waged out among the stars.
Nothing was finished. Like a good Longknife, she'd have to keep muddling along, doing what had to be done.
Still, maybe, whenever she got a chance, she could leave something behind here that was better than when she arrived.