Ethiopia. Addis Ababa. Imperial Palace.
Clint, immersed in the neural interface connecting him to the satellite, sat calmly at the table, his eyes slightly closed. Before him lay a picture of the deployment of troops who had rebelled against the legitimate Emperor of Ethiopia, Ahma Selassie. This carefully thought-out plan had been brewing for a long time, ever since Szarekh liberated Kenya from British rule. Then, imperial ambitions had spread to Ethiopia, ruled by a ruler whose rule resembled the tyranny of a typical Goa'uld: plundering his own people, accumulating billions in Swiss bank accounts, and brutality as the primary method of governance.
The death of the previous Emperor paved the way for Clint to ascend to the throne. He was no figurehead or puppet of the Tok'ra. Instead, he was a clone, the result of painstaking work, where brain scans controlled the body. Hydra, an organization with its own hidden interests, learned of the impending plot against the Emperor and decided to exploit the situation. Asfaw Vossen, a prominent figure, was kidnapped and replaced by the Tok'ra (his true identity, hidden behind the Emperor's guise). The Tok'ra themselves, having gained access to the conspirators, managed to lure them to their side, promising to assist in the assassination of Haile Salassie during his overseas assignment, making it appear as if he had died naturally.
Clint, using persuasion and generous bribery, secured the support of his allies. His primary motivation was the prospect of inheriting his "father's" colossal assets, access to which would be guaranteed only if his innocence in his predecessor's death was beyond doubt. Furthermore, the Tok'ra provided a ready-made reform plan, including legislation, bylaws, and, crucially, a detailed strategy for the rise of some clans and the decline of others.
At first glance, governing a distant state on the brink of a civilizational leap might seem like a utopia. However, for the Tok'ra, this was merely a rehearsal for their impending seizure of control of the galaxy from the Goa'uld. They needed leaders capable of stabilizing the galactic regions, and Ethiopia became a testing ground for their governing skills.
"Emperor, rebel troops have surrounded the capital," reported the commander of the guard, Mengystu Nõuai.
"Everything is going according to plan," Clint replied calmly. "All the enemies of my rule have come to light. Keeping them quiet would have been counterproductive. Now that they've come to light, we can give them a fair trial."
Clint grinned, though this trait wasn't typical of his prototype. He understood Szarekh—the feeling of a mouse caught in a carefully laid trap, unaware of the danger. Hydra, having used chemical agents during the Emperor's medical examination in Switzerland, had provoked his death, attributing it to a heart attack. Thus, Clint ascended to the throne and immediately began to stir discontent by announcing a reform program that included agrarian reform, industrialization, and investment in education. These "socialist" reforms alarmed the United States. The Tok'ra were perplexed why the overseas superpower supported a de facto Goa'uld but was thrilled by the idea of handing over land to peasants (after all, in monarchical Ethiopia, all land belonged to the Emperor). They had to appease the United States by promising significant orders to American companies for equipment supplies.
Clint began by declaring that if Eritrea desired independence, they should hold a referendum, and he would gladly grant it freedom, avoiding a bloody war. He legalized multi-party politics, authorized the formation of a representative assembly, pardoned political prisoners, and took numerous other steps designed to anger his own family, clans, and conservative elite. The rebellion erupted within a month, a fact that Clint took particular pride in: rousing so many people to revolt in such a short time required remarkable talent. Half the army, incited by the wily bishop who had once crowned him, spread rumors of demonic possession within the Emperor. The remaining army units adopted a wait-and-see attitude, something Clint would surely hold against them. Ten thousand rebels, supported by artillery, a tank company, and air force, marched against him, demanding his abdication. His personal guard numbered 4,500 men, and he still had some aces up his sleeve.
After some time, Clint addressed the people on the radio:
"I am your Emperor. You swore allegiance to me, but for the money offered for mutiny, the troops abandoned their Emperor and their people, who suffer under the mismanagement of local officials. Now these officials pay the army, demonstrating true loyalty. Those who think they have already won by surrounding the capital are mistaken.
All the traitors have crawled out of their holes and have turned against me. But the Lord God Almighty will protect me from my enemies and grant me victory." Clint deliberately cited the Bible, lending his impending victory a mystical air. "Let God's judgment descend upon the traitors. Every bullet will strike a traitor accurately and will not kill an innocent. The citizens of the Empire have nothing to worry about: I will never abandon my post, never betray my homeland and my subjects."
He had barely finished his speech when the enemy commanders' field headquarters exploded. Hidden snipers began firing at the rebels using specialized weapons. The ammunition and fuel depots mobilized by the rebels were blown up, along with an entire tank company. Hydra acted efficiently and harmoniously.
Meanwhile, two hundred members of the Golden Legion appeared behind enemy lines. Adopting SAS tactics, they began to wear down the rebels with swift, lightning-fast raids. Their vehicles, resembling those on Earth, were constructed from advanced materials, powered by non-petrol engines, and boasted improved armor protection. Each vehicle carried four soldiers, each an excellent marksman. The driver wore augmented reality goggles, enhancing the accuracy of their assault rifles and machine guns.
The Ethiopian army had never encountered such tactics or their masterful application before. Attack vehicles appeared from all sides, struck the enemy with precision, and then immediately retreated. Small rebel units, numbering up to twenty men, were overwhelmed and mercilessly destroyed. Clint knew he needed to show his ruthlessness now, and the best target for this was the rebel army. Mercenaries were hired to fulfill the Imperial Guard's specific tasks.
The Golden Legion, superbly equipped, used German World War II-era weaponry, including grenade launchers. Thanks to global communications, the legions were controlled in real time. This level of coordination was unimaginable to humans. The Golden Legion, composed entirely of symbionts, could communicate via neural interface, spending fractions of a second coordinating their actions. This was unfair to their opponents, but wars are rarely fair, especially when the aristocrats who opposed the new Emperor's rule began to perish.
A ruler must inspire both respect and fear. The brutal purges he carried out prevented anyone from considering him weak—enemies or allies. Asfaw Vossen, despite his reputation as a liberal, belonged to the same family as his predecessor. If the Tok'ra hadn't intervened, nothing would have changed. To Clint, all the "riches" these people prized were a joke. On the planet Urvashi, he had more opportunities for a comfortable life than even the wealthiest earthlings. Therefore, he viewed any resources accumulated by the previous Emperor through the plunder of his own people as mere resources to be put to use. He would do so without hesitation. First, he needed to get rid of the "garbage."
After the death of the rebellion's leaders, their forces began a rapid retreat, disintegrating into separate groups. At this point, Clint contacted the leadership of the "neutral" units, warning that if they failed to follow his orders, their commanders would suffer the same fate. Clint gave the order to eliminate anyone wearing an army uniform without the identifying white stripes on their arms. The Imperial Guard and the Golden Legion had already carried out this order.
The military commanders were shocked by the order to destroy half the army, but Clint acted decisively. Cruelty should be applied selectively, not as a constant tool. A military mutiny was the perfect pretext for the required level of brutality. Anyone involved in the revolution would be shot upon discovery, thanks to well-established intelligence that had identified all those who had sworn allegiance to the revolution.
"Not a single rebel will be forgiven. Every last one will be exterminated," he broadcast over the radio. "The citizens have nothing to fear. I am cleaning out the trash left behind by my father. The leeches who latched onto his rule and stole from the people and the Emperor. Therefore, their lives have no meaning."
Having completed another radio broadcast, he turned to the commander of the guard:
"This is how we deal with traitors. Continue to trust me, and we will lead the Empire to greatness."
"Yes, my Emperor."
"Good. This uprising has taken a heavy toll on our country. We need to reform the army and begin rebuilding the economy."
He intended to put his vast resources to good use, beginning with reforming the country and its institutions. After the tyrannical reign of the previous Emperor, much needed to be corrected. However, even in his position, things were far more stable than in his "colleague" in Somalia. That country, stitched together from former Italian and British colonies, was in complete chaos. Unlike Ethiopia, there was no trace of the wealth accumulated by his predecessor, so Szarekh had to secretly allocate additional funds. Perhaps in the future, his kinsman would have to exterminate the local elite dissatisfied with his policies.
The Ethiopian elites, it seemed, had succumbed to some kind of demonic temptation, for they now vied with each other to claim ignorance of their previous actions and were ready to repent. They begged for forgiveness, claiming they had acted under the influence of some kind of delusion. Clint, surprised, wondered how they were still able to call him, with assassination teams on hand. And how had the situation changed so quickly? Was this some kind of "political sixth sense"? However, their pleas for forgiveness were short-lived—the assassination teams eventually got to them too.
He inherited everything: Ethiopian gold mines, Indian railways, controlling stakes in French and British enterprises, and seven billion dollars. Now these colossal assets will be used to aid the people of Ethiopia and strengthen the Tok'ra's power in the region.
There have been precedents of people using Szarekh's resources to successfully reform Latin American countries without possessing even a comparable share of the wealth. Using his vast wealth, Clint will invest every cent in his subjects. He, the Emperor, cares nothing for his family—let them achieve everything themselves, through their own labor. They will receive no inheritance. If they attempt to resist and bring assassins with them, the Golden Legion will destroy them too. Five thousand years later, the galaxy once again saw the Goa'uld soldiers, whose first use took place on a distant, wild planet.
The Golden Legion will now guard all of Szarekh's most important assets. Their duties will also include protecting their Mother, Egeria. A situation in which she could have been captured or killed will never happen again. No one will allow it. Never again.