Foundation's fear

Benford kicks off exploring the beginnings of the Foundation
itself and its creator, Hari Seldon. Seldon is working on a project to
ease the inevitable collapse of the universe- spanning Empire and the
Dark Ages that will ensue. But the current emperor has other plans, like
appointing Seldon first minister and thus thrusting him into a world of
political intrigues and assassination attempts that ultimately will
bring him up against future history's greatest threat.