The Emperor could not leave the Palace and its extensive grounds, while Demerzel could range the Galaxy if he wished. The Emperor was always on display, always accessible, always forced to deal with visitors, from the important to the merely intrusive8. Demerzel remained anonymous9 and never allowed himself to be seen inside the Palace grounds. He remained merely a fearsome name and an invisible (and therefore the more frightening) presence. The Emperor was the Inside Man with all the trappings and emoluments10 of power. Demerzel was the Outside Man, with nothing evident, not even a formal title, but with his fingers and mind probing everywhere and asking for no reward for his tireless labors11 but one--the reality of power.
It amused the Emperor--in a macabre12 sort of way--to consider that, at any moment, without warning, with a manufactured excuse or with none at all, he could have Demerzel arrested, imprisoned13, exiled, tortured, or executed. After all, in these annoying centuries of constant unrest, the Emperor might have difficulty in exerting his will over the various planets of the Empire, even over the various sectors14 of Trantor--with their rabble15 of local executives and legislatures that he was forced to deal with in a maze16 of interlocking decrees, protocols17, commitments, treaties, and general interstellar legalities--but at least his powers remained absolute over the Palace and its grounds. And yet Cleon knew that his dreams of power were useless. Demerzel had served his father and Cleon could not remember a time when he did not turn to Demerzel for everything. It was Demerzel who knew it all, devised it all, did it all. More than that, it was on Demerzel that anything that went wrong could be blamed. The Emperor himself remained above criticism and had nothing to fear--except, of course, palace coups18 and assassination20 by his nearest and dearest. It was to prevent this, above all, that he depended upon Demerzel. Emperor Cleon felt a tiny shudder21 at the thought of trying to do without Demerzel. There had been Emperors who had ruled personally, who had had a series of Chiefs of Staff of no talent, who had had incompetents22 serving in the post and had kept them--and somehow they had gotten along for a time and after a fashion.
But Cleon could not. He needed Demerzel. In fact, now that the thought of assassination had come to him--and, in view of the modern history of the Empire, it was inevitable23 that it had come to him--he could see that getting rid of Demerzel was quite impossible. It couldnt be done. No matter how cleverly he, Cleon, would attempt to arrange it, Demerzel (he was sure) would anticipate the move somehow, would know it was on its way, and would arrange, with far superior cleverness, a palace coup19. Cleon would be dead before Demerzel could possibly be taken away in chains and there would simply be another Emperor that Demerzel would serve--and dominate.
Or would Demerzel tire of the game and make himself Emperor? Never! The habit of anonymity24 was too strong in him. If Demerzel exposed himself to the world, then his powers, his wisdom, his luck (whatever it was) would surely desert him. Cleon was convinced of that. He felt it to be beyond dispute.
So while he behaved himself, Cleon was safe. With no ambitions of his own, Demerzel would serve him faithfully.
And now here was Demerzel, dressed so severely25 and simply that it made Cleon uneasily conscious of the useless ornamentation of his robes of state, now thankfully removed with the aid of two valets. Naturally, it would not be until he was alone and in dishabille that Demerzel would glide26 into view. "Demerzel," said the Emperor of all the Galaxy, "I am tired!"
"State functions are tiring, Sire," murmured Demerzel.
"Then must I have them every evening?"
"Not every evening, but they are essential. It gratifies others to see you and to be taken note of by you. It helps keep the Empire running smoothly27."
"The Empire used to be kept running smoothly by power," said the Emperor somberly. "Now it must be kept running by a smile, a wave of the hand, a murmured word, and a medal or a plaque28."
"If all that keeps the peace, Sire, there is much to be said for it. And your reign29 proceeds well."
"You know why--because I have you at my side. My only real gift is that I am aware of your importance." He looked at Demerzel slyly. "My son need not be my heir. He is not a talented boy. What if I make you my heir?"
Demerzel said freezingly, "Sire, that is unthinkable. I would not usurp30 the throne. I would not steal it from your rightful heir. Besides, if I have displeased31 you, punish me justly. Surely, nothing I have done or could possibly do deserves the punishment of being made Emperor."
Cleon laughed. "For that true assessment32 of the value of the Imperial throne, Demerzel, I abandon any thought of punishing you. Come now, let us talk about something. I would sleep, but I am not yet ready for the ceremonies with which they put me to bed. Let us talk."
"About what, Sire?"
"About anything.--About that mathematician33 and his psychohistory. I think about him every once in a while, you know. I thought of him at dinner tonight. I wondered: What if a psychohistorical analysis would predict a method for making it possible to be an Emperor without endless ceremony?"
"I somehow think, Sire, that even the cleverest psychohistorian could not manage that."
"Well, tell me the latest. Is he still hiding among those peculiar34 baldheads of Mycogen? You promised you would winkle him out of there."
"So I did, Sire, and I moved in that direction, but I regret that I must say that I failed."
"Failed?" The Emperor allowed himself to frown. "I dont like that."
"Nor I, Sire. I planned to have the mathematician be encouraged to commit some blasphemous35 act--such acts are easy to commit in Mycogen, especially for an outsider--one that would call for severe punishment. The mathematician would then be forced to appeal to the Emperor and, as a result, we would get him. I planned it at the cost of insignificant36 concessions37 on our part--important to Mycogen, totally unimportant to us--and I meant to play no direct role in the arrangement. It was to be handled subtly."
"I dare say," said Cleon, "but it failed. Did the Mayor of Mycogen "He is called the High Elder, Sire."
"Do not quibble over titles. Did this High Elder refuse?"
"On the contrary, Sire, he agreed and the mathematician, Seldon, fell into the trap neatly38."
"Well then?"
"He was allowed to leave unharmed."
"Why?" said Cleon indignantly.
"Of this I am not certain, Sire, but I suspect we were outbid."
"By whom? By the Mayor of Wye?"
"Possibly, Sire, but I doubt that. I have Wye under constant surveillance. If they had gained the mathematician, I would know it by now."
The Emperor was not merely frowning. He was clearly enraged39. "Demerzel, this is bad. I am greatly displeased. A failure like this makes me wonder if you are perhaps not the man you once were. What measures shall we take against Mycogen for this clear defiance40 of the Emperors wishes?"
Demerzel bowed low in recognition of the storm unleashed41, but he said in steely tones, "It would be a mistake to move against Mycogen now, Sire. The disruption that would follow would play into the hands of Wye."
"But we must do something."
"Perhaps not, Sire. It is not as bad as it may seem."
"How can it be not as bad as it seems?"
"Youll remember, Sire, that this mathematician was convinced that psychohistory was impractical42."
"Of course I remember that, but that doesnt matter, does it? For our purposes?"
"Perhaps not. But if it were to become practical, it would serve our purposes to an infinitely43 great extent, Sire. And from what I have been able to find out, the mathematician is now attempting to make psychohistory practical. His blasphemous attempt in Mycogen was, I understand, part of an attempt at solving the problem of psychohistory. In that case, it may pay us, Sire, to leave him to himself. It will serve us better to pick him up when he is closer to his goal or has reached it."
"Not if Wye gets him first."
"That, I shall see to it, will not happen."
"In the same way that you succeeded in winkling the mathematician out of Mycogen just now?"
"I will not make a mistake the next time, Sire," said Demerzel coldly.
The Emperor said, "Demerzel, you had better not. I will not tolerate another mistake in this respect." And then he added pettishly44, "I think I shall not sleep tonight after all."
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1
galaxy
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| n.星系；银河系；一群(杰出或著名的人物) | |
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2
intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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feigned
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| a.假装的，不真诚的 | |
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throbbed
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| 抽痛( throb的过去式和过去分词 )； （心脏、脉搏等）跳动 | |
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5
varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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babble
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| v.含糊不清地说，胡言乱语地说，儿语 | |
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lotion
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| n.洗剂 | |
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8
intrusive
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| adj.打搅的；侵扰的 | |
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anonymous
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| adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的 | |
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emoluments
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| n.报酬，薪水( emolument的名词复数 ) | |
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labors
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| v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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macabre
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| adj.骇人的，可怖的 | |
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imprisoned
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| 下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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sectors
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| n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形 | |
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rabble
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| n.乌合之众，暴民；下等人 | |
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maze
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| n.迷宫，八阵图，混乱，迷惑 | |
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17
protocols
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| n.礼仪( protocol的名词复数 )；（外交条约的）草案；（数据传递的）协议；科学实验报告（或计划） | |
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18
coups
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| n.意外而成功的行动( coup的名词复数 )；政变；努力办到难办的事 | |
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coup
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| n.政变；突然而成功的行动 | |
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assassination
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| n.暗杀；暗杀事件 | |
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shudder
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| v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动 | |
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incompetents
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| n.无能力的，不称职的，不胜任的( incompetent的名词复数 ) | |
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inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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anonymity
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| n.the condition of being anonymous | |
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severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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glide
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| n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝 | |
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smoothly
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| adv.平滑地，顺利地，流利地，流畅地 | |
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plaque
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| n.饰板，匾，(医)血小板 | |
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29
reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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usurp
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| vt.篡夺，霸占；vi.篡位 | |
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31
displeased
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| a.不快的 | |
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32
assessment
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| n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额 | |
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33
mathematician
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| n.数学家 | |
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34
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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blasphemous
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| adj.亵渎神明的，不敬神的 | |
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insignificant
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| adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的 | |
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concessions
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| n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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39
enraged
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| 使暴怒( enrage的过去式和过去分词 )； 歜； 激愤 | |
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40
defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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41
unleashed
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| v.把（感情、力量等）释放出来，发泄( unleash的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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42
impractical
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| adj.不现实的，不实用的，不切实际的 | |
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43
infinitely
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| adv.无限地，无穷地 | |
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44
pettishly
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