Read Online Fighting Gravity by Leah Petersen - Free Book Online

see how he would respond. He didn’t. He acted as if nothing had been said about him at all. I didn’t like that. I felt like he should have said thank you or something. It was reassuring to have some of my unflattering preconceived notions about people in high positions confirmed.
    The lunch that was served outshone any meal I’d ever had. Wine was served at the head table, though it was only lunchtime. The emperor was given wine even though I—the other fifteen year old in the room—never got so much as a sniff of an alcoholic beverage. Not with permission, that is.
    When lunch concluded we all stood in place as the emperor left the room and then we followed him back into the great hall. Everyone else went to re-form their rows but I hovered near the emperor’s servants. One of them indicated that I should join the director and the heads of departments. I did, but hung back as much as possible.
    Though I felt awkward and conspicuous, at least the afternoon wasn’t boring. I was close enough to hear everything now. The emperor studied each display. He asked questions about each one—interesting, thoughtful questions on every subject. And while it was obvious he was more educated about some disciplines than others, he knew enough about all of them to be able to carry on an intelligent conversation.
    About mid-afternoon we came to my fourth display. As soon as he read the name on it he gestured for me and I approached, bowing again just to be safe.
    “Your Excellence.” He nodded in acknowledgement.
    “Tell me about this, Mr. Dawes,” he said, gesturing toward the display.
    So I did. As before, he asked questions. I got caught up in the science itself and found myself standing level with him. He either didn’t notice or didn’t mind, but I tried to slide back without drawing attention to my movement. After a couple more questions he thanked me and moved on.
    Near the end of the exhibit he came to my last display. We stood side by side as I presented, explained, and answered his questions. We hadn’t been at it long and he was just starting another question when the dinner bell rang. There were still two more displays to go.
    “This has been very interesting Mr. Dawes, and I have more questions for you. You can sit by me at dinner to continue this discussion.”
    I gaped, but he was already moving on. I shuffled through the next two displays in terrified shock. I was going to sit at the head table with the emperor? It was one thing to present my work to him within the exhibit, and quite another to face the prospect of spending an hour right beside him. What would I say? What was I supposed to do? What was I supposed to not do? I was trembling by the time I followed them toward the dining room.
    The servant behind me indicated I was to follow the emperor when he went into a lounge just outside the dining hall. I looked back for Chuck and Kirti. Their expressions begged for an answer. I just shrugged.
    In the lounge there were goblets of wine and hors d’oeuvres sitting out and the room was filled with fresh flowers. The emperor took at seat and began to talk with the man who had been walking with him throughout.
    Unlike most of the emperor’s attendants, functionaries, servants and guards, this man was not wearing some version of a uniform. He did have the Imperial crest embroidered on the sleeve of his jacket, and I guessed that he was some high ranking administrator.
    I slid closer to a servant and asked who the man was. He called him Lord Sifer, the emperor’s Head Minister, and told me that he was the man with the most authority in the palace after the emperor. He looked stern and uncompromising. I decided I was afraid of him.
    Entering the dining hall with the emperor was a very strange experience. I was already nervous, and the room full of eyes on me was almost a physical weight. I’d stood before this exact group on more than one occasion presenting my work, but this was different. Then there had been