[Lauchenoiria]

Chief Advisor Jared Hashemi was in a meeting of the King’s Council, sans King, when everyone’s phones began to ting. Irritated, he pulled it out, and almost dropped it onto the table when he saw the notifications.

“Chief Advisor?” one of the others in the room hesitantly piped up. “What is this?”

He looked at Mina’s livestream in horrified silence. Her introduction had since finished, and now Navid was speaking. He could only imagine, with the sound turned off, what he was saying. He decided and his head snapped up so that his eyes could pierce every member of the King’s Council.

“I will remind each and every one of you what you owe me,” he said calmly. “You all know where you would be without me.”

He paused to allow it to sink in. Indeed, each member of the council owed Hashemi either their fortune, their power, their freedom or their life – and most of them more than one of these. With Shapur a mostly-absent ruler, Hashemi had been able to hand-pick the council, and Prince Bahman had been too young and foolish to realise what was happening right in front of him. The Prince, thankfully, was not in attendance that day.

“Now,” Hashemi began as the assembled King’s Councillors all shrank back in horrified realisation. “I move that this is evidence that Shapur is no legitimate King.”

“So… Navid is King still?” Amir, the corrupt treasurer whom Hashemi had rescued from certain execution, once upon a time, asked.

“Of course not,” Hashemi replied, still calm. “Someone who is legally dead cannot be King.”

“But if Navid is dead then Shapur is King, and if Shapur is illegitimate that’s because Navid is still alive?” one of the others asked.

“You misunderstand me,” Hashemi said sharply. “One simply cannot allow this state of uncertainty to continue. Therefore, it will be necessary for the pre-appointed Regent to hold power until such a time as the matter is resolved.”

“You planned this all along,” accused Amir.

“Are you supporting the Pretender?” Hashemi asked, all wide-eyed innocence.

“I don’t even know which one you’re calling a Pretender!” Amir yelled, standing up. “This makes no sense at all; you’re as mad as he is!”

Hashemi did not respond with words, but instead gave a signal to one of the guards – all, naturally, on his direct payroll since Shapur and Bahman dropped the ball – who stepped forward coming up behind Amir. The councillor rolled his eyes, knowing he was about to be arrested, and began to open his mouth to object when the guard pulled a dagger and stabbed the unfortunate Amir in the heart. His eyes went wide as blood soaked his clothing and he fell back against the guard, sliding to the floor as the life went out of his eyes.

The other King’s Council members began to speak over one another when Hashemi cleared his throat in such a threatening manner that the room fell to silence.

“Detain the Pretenders,” he ordered the guard. “And their family. Secure the palace and contact the military. We are implementing Contingency Three immediately. I shall now be in charge for the foreseeable.”