NationStates Jolt Archive

The Residence of Luinthelë nos Ancalimë, Vinyandor, Duat.

The family room of the large house was characterised best by its large windows, facing into the woodland down the slope of the hill, all set in a sizeable estate in the C’tan province of Vinyandor. On this particular morning it was comparatively full, with the various ‘adopted’ family of its owner sitting, or lounging about.

As Luinthelë tended to prefer her ‘daughter’ to her ‘son,’ even if for entirely irrational reasons, Fëaelen sat beside the fire place, her ‘mother’ opposite her, in another comfortable chair. Fëaelenion and Elendan, the sons of Fëaelen, though they could also be called brothers, albeit younger brothers, occupied two other seats in the comfortable room, sitting up on a dark green couch, the latter toying with a steaming mug of coffee.

It was hard to imagine that this particular scene of (wealthy) familial bliss was actually the meeting of some of the most important people in the Necrontyr empire. Or rather, the most important people. Luinthelë’s role was perhaps the hardest to exactly pin down. Without official posting or influence, through her various ‘adoptive family’ she was able to control many aspects of the policies of the Empire, in a generally benevolent way – her most recent act having involved a financial scam of sorts resulting in thousands of foreign slaves being freed – and there was more than one reason for their willingness to put up with that.

For Mephet’ran, it was that she was a more genuinely kind and generous person than he, even in his feminine persona as her daughter, could ever hope to become. For the others it was perhaps easier. Luinthelë knew things. She never said how, but her advice was usually in some way prophetic. It was her secret, something she used neither rarely nor overtly.

It was a secret she would not explain for some time to come.

“Fëaelenion dear,” she said with a knowing smile, the same one he’d seen many times before, the one that indicated that the surprisingly young elf was up to something devious, “how’s your wife?”

He blinked, “She’s happy enough, as far as I know.”

“Good,” Luinthelë said, taking a sip from a more exotic drink, “How’s her nation?”

That one caught him a little more off guard, “Well, they’re busy with some trade reform or something, last time I checked…”

She put her glass down and clapped. “Good!”

“Good?”

“Oh yes,” she said with, more tellingly, a telltale twinkle in her green eyes, “I’d like you to pay a visit. A quiet visit.”

He frowned, many of his memories of Thelas weren’t exactly pleasant. “Why?” he asked.

“Why, to investigate Thelas for the company,” she of course, referred to the massive Lossë-Elen Corporation, of which she managed the controlling stake that technically sat in Fëaelen’s name, “of course. I’m thinking of doing a little investment.”

“Fine,” he said, somewhat resigned, “keep your secrets then!”

The elf smiled, “I always do.”

“Shall I take Ithenril?”

Luinthelë shook her head, “No, best to leave her behind. She can stay here with me for a while.”

Fëaelenion sighed, she was definitely plotting something. “Oh!” Luinthelë added, “Don’t forget to go quietly. Not incognito, just quietly, take a company ship to Mars, say, then go on to Axara on a passenger liner or something.”

There was no doubt that she had some ulterior motive. But all present had learnt to trust those motives…

A Day Later

Fëaelenion was stronger now, than he had ever been before. Not simply because of his improved skills, most of which, in a divergence from the talents of the rest of his race, had been focused around medicine, he had spent his time learning how to make organisms function better, how to heal injuries and destroy infections – but because of simple growth he had experienced. Evidently Mephet’ran was anxious about his trip.

The Nightbringer had recently been destroyed, and though the ‘family’ had all rejoiced in his destruction, Mephet’ran dearly loved his ‘offspring-brothers’ and had no desire whatsoever to see them go the same way. For that reason Fëaelenion carried within him a portion of the power that had previously been his ‘father’s.’ He had been relieved to hear, after the transfer that Mephet’ran would replenish it quickly, in the grand scheme of things.

Two days later…

The Lossë-elen heavy load class super-lifter Atlas sat on a massive landing pad on the Tebat-Neteru-Set Spaceport, in the province of Velyshaa. It was one of several that made the routine trip between this massive industrial city and the Sentinel Two colony on Mars. And it was, frankly, massive. Even Fëaelenion was slightly awed by the vessel, a monument to capitalism and commerce if ever there was one.

Stretching out in all directions from the narrow walkway where he stood, below which massive freight containers moved, the immensity of such vessels became apparent in a way one could never appreciate in space, or aboard, without reference to see. Here he could see it, standing almost four hundred meters from the massive landing legs that gave it ground traction to the peak of its pyramidal top, and an entire kilometre from end to end, the massive cargo ship seemed like an entire mountain that had chosen to land at the outskirts of the city.

It was dizzying to think that warships were often even larger. The ship’s captain stood at the end of the walkway, where it connected to hatches in the vessel’s side, and smiled. “Welcome to the Atlas sir,” he said, and offered his hand. Fëaelenion took it graciously and shook vigorously.

“Oh there’s no need to call me Sir,” he said, “I’m just an ordinary passenger…”

Three Days Later…

Well, this is a miserable place, Fëaelenion thought to himself, looking around the cheap locale of Pandora, the Thelasi Mars colony. It wasn’t all as bad as the area he’d picked of course, but he wanted somewhere where one wouldn’t expect to find a former Prince Consort, if one were looking for him, Now, where to find low cost space flight… He picked at his low quality business suit, truly an illusion of living metal, and adjusted his tie as he looked.

As soon as he was on his way and he could bury himself in one of the various medical textbooks (and to his shame, corny crime novels) inside his suitcase, he would be much happier.

A small shop sat in the street, an old holosign flashing it’s offering of “Cheap Flights” and “Comfortable Prices.” It was seedy enough, that was for certain, although nothing in the gleaming underwater city was truly “seedy” it was seedy enough compared to the great crystalline towers rising above Feaëlenion’s head.

Inside the shop were several people, some sitting around drinking what appeared to be coffee, others simply chatting as they sat against the wall, obviously, this was usually a coffee shop of sorts. On the far wall was an odd symbol, a star, with an eye in the center, somewhat familiar, but Feaëlenion couldn’t quite place it. The man at the counter smiled, “Sir, welcome to my humble establishment. Would you like something to eat, drink?” He smiled slightly, nodding to a back door, “Or maybe something else?” The elf chuckled, leaned back against his barstool.

If Feaëlenion had eyes in the back of his head, he would have noticed that the several people in the shop were paying him particular attention. It wasn’t often that a stranger walked into this little shop.

Fëaelenion decided he didn’t want to know what particularly, and indeed, none too well hidden, dubious organisation this establishment operated as a front for. He leaned forwards on the desk and smiled. Despite the fact that he actually did in a sense at least, have eyes in the back of his head, he wasn’t interested in looking that way, and so didn’t notice such attention.

“Yes,” he said, “I’d like to book passage to Axara,” he said, “You do that sort of thing, yes?”

The elf nodded, “Yes of course Sir, that will be two hundred credits, a bargain.” After Feaëlenion had paid the man at the desk, the manager just nodded to a back door, “Down there on the landing pad. She’s leaving in five minutes, and is the last flight to Axarra this week.”

Feaëlenion boarded the craft, which would be an exaggeration to call a “bucket of bolts,” and found his seat quite easily. There were only seven other people on the flight. The row his was sitting in was unoccupied, except for one elf next to him staring out the row’s one window.

The flight went fairly normally, a bit of turbulence on take off, but nothing major. After about an hour into the flight, it would have been shorter, but a convoy had been given higher flight priority and the small transport was left in the holding pattern, the elf next to him spoke softly, “The Empire does need you help, Lord Feaëlenion.”

Fëaelenion seemed to find this form of travel particularly frustrating and slow, he wasn’t used to the way the flight seemed to be delayed for no appreciably reason. He walked around restlessly for about a hour, finally being stopped by the elf next to him. It wasn’t as if he’d been travelling under an assumed identity per-se, so it didn’t come as a great shock that someone should know his name, or indeed, his title.

He swept his brown hair back behind one ear and, sitting, leaned over to him, “Oh?” he asked, doing his best to sound amused.

“Oh yes, excuse the drama, but I needed to get your attention.” The elf was talking in a fairly normal voice, still turned towards the window. As they talked, the entire flight seemed to fall silent, the other six passengers very subtly rearranging themselves to watch, “You see, we, or rather, I, need your help on this matter.”

The man slowly raises his hands and rests them on the armrests of the seat. One the top of the black gloves he is wearing is that same symbol, a star, with an eye in the center, but with one more addition, an eagle above the star, with a smaller star above it. Incidentally, the stared eagle is the same symbol that was emblazoned on some of Ithenril’s old clothing; the symbol of the Thelasi Imperial Throne.

“It is very fortunate that you have been sent here to Thelas, Lord Feaëlenion, and most fortunate that you chose that particular shop to buy your flight, and almost most fortunate that I would also be on this flight.” He shifts a little, the hilt of a sword visible from between his seat and the shuttle’s wall, “You see, this is a somewhat urgent matter.”

“I see,” he said, “So, which group are you then?” he asked, thinking back to what Luinthelë must have doubtless intended by sending him there. It felt like the weighty crush of destiny bearing down on his shoulders, “The Icharvita perhaps? Oh,” he added, “The rest of you can stop pretending not to be with him now.”

He doubted the man had exposed the weapon accidentally, and found the idea of his being threatened in such a haphazard manner quite bizarre, “Anyway… feel free to continue, please…”

The elf laughed, “No sir, I am not threatening you. I had merely hoped you would recognize me.” He turned to face Feaëlenion, and Theallas smiled, “Yes, they are Icharvita. We weren’t trying to be too stealthy because we knew that we would have to make contact with you eventually.”

“So this of course leads to the question about why we wanted to make contact. Well, here it is. As you know, Thelas has been operating without an Emperor for quite some time. As Ithenril might have told you, the Emperor must be of one of the special blood lines. She herself is the last member of one of those lines, and usually, you would not be eligible, but, because of the way that this magic works, it is also transmitted by marriage. In other words, Lord Feaëlenion, you are in line for the throne of the Empire.

Now, I of course could take the throne myself, but I have no wish to. I like being relatively obscure, my continued existence unknown to the general populace, and it would be ruined if I were to take the Imperial throne again.

And Ithenril also has no interest in taking the throne again, so that leaves you. Of course, you’ll need help, if you walk in and say, ‘I’m the last of the line, I am your ruler’ they are highly likely to have you shot. The Icharvita will help you, and pave your way. If you do choose to try and take the throne.”

Fëaelenion leaned back in his chair and sighed. Stuck in a small transport with the most singularly idiotic being ever known to have graced the Solar System and whatever insane cronies he had located. This was turning out to be an all-round bad day. He covered his eyes with a splayed hand and sighed, trying to come to terms with this offer. It was clear that he’d been sent there to accept this offer, annoying and stressful though it would likely prove to be.

“Right,” he said, “and what precisely would you get out of this little arrangement then?”

Theallas smiled at the question, “I get the peace of mind, knowing that for the next little while I won’t have to do anything government related. Also, you’re probably a more competent civilian leader than any of the Force Commanders, so it’s good for the nation.” He shrugs, “So I do gain quite a bit from this little deal; the reparation of my nation’s reputation, some peace of mind, a competent civilian leader, and a closer alliance with the Necrontyr Empire.”

Peering intently at Feaëlenion, he fiddles absently with a thin cord attached to the hilt of his sword, a small nervous tick of the former assassin, “So, do you accept my offer?”

The C'tan frowned, "We'll see. Tell me more of how you plan to achieve this miracle first," he said, sounding skeptical of Theallas' abilites as well as his motives. Fëaelenion didn't like to rush into anything this important without considering all the angles he could find.

The Thelasi chuckled, “Alright. Quite simply I’m going to get Namirin to surrender his office, and then as his final act, have him appoint you as the successor to the Imperial Throne, made legitimate by your marriage to Empress Ithenril.”

He leaned back, “And you want to know more detail? Very well then. To place it simply, Namirin knows that I could remove and replace him quite easily if I wished, so it’s in his interest to step down and be guaranteed his old place as a Force Commander, which he’s actually good at.

If things go awry, most of the military can be brought under my, and thus your, sway. See, the key to this entire plan is the legitimacy of your marriage with Ithenril.” He pauses for a moment, “She was willing, correct?” Chuckling, he shakes his head, “Sorry, that’s a silly question, of course she was.”

Theallas looks out the window as the shuttle begins moving forward again, “Well, that damn convoy finally got out of the way. I think it was a cargo group going to re-supply the Thelasi forces on Pandora.”

Fëaelenion sighed, "Very well," he said at last, looking out of the window, "Ah, endless military buildup. The famed hallmark of the Thelasi - anyway, I'll go along with your plan then. What will you be planning to do when we arrive?"

He drummed his fingers on the seat in front of him, and sighed.

"Don't be too judgmental. There's a war going on up there in space. A war that your Empire is fighting. Plus, the Aumani have an even less impressive record than we Thelasi do, and we also have Illithids on our northern border. So I dare think that a couple units up there might be good." Theallas sighs again, “I see your point, we really don’t have an impressive record, but we’re not as bad as is made out by many people. As to what I plan to do? I have to get the Icharvita set up and contingency plans in place incase Namirin isn’t as intelligent as I think. As for you, I suggest that you take some time to tour around the capital, get to know the people you are going to lead.”

Fëaelenion sighed and leaned back in his seat, deciding to relax for the trip, contemplating the people he was intended to lead. He closed his eyes, but did not sleep.

After several minutes of hurtling away from the gravity field of the small planet, the ship lurched as it entered slipstream. For another minute or so, colorful blue streamers of energy danced around the outside of the shuttle as it took twists and turns through a seemingly endless field of paths and tunnels.

Finally, the craft existed slipstream at the edge of the Thelasi home system. After some finagling through the security gates at one of the few entrances through the dense asteroid shield, they entered one of the large trade lanes that provided superluminal travel inside the small system.

Another couple minutes later, they arrived at Axarra, and Feaëlenion was politely shown off of the shuttle at the star port. Theallas also debarked the shuttle, and disappeared into the crowd, in effect, Feaëlenion was on his own for a while.

Fëaelenion took the time to walk around the Thelasi capital, examining its people and their comings and goings for a time, until finally, out of boredom and for want of anything better to do, he straightened his clothes, now a far more expensive looking set of red and gold robes and booked a place on a tour, intended for casual tourists, of the Thelasi city.

The tour was fairly standard, some tourists from Menelmacar, a few from Aelosia, some more from other nations. The tour guide pointed out the landmarks including several statues to heroes of the Empire, a line of statues of the Emperors and Empresses, Theallas being notably absent. Also there were several statues to the sacrifices of soldiers and spacers, and another statue honoring the SATO soldiers who died in the Shadow War.

A few monuments later, Feaëlenion began to notice the crowds that walked around the city in detail. The people who walked there had assured strides, they felt safe in their cities, and had pride in their Empire. The Thelasi were a well educated people, college education being guaranteed to all native born citizens, and were generally intelligent.

The capital was bustling with activity, with transports and cargo craft flying around the open cityscape, and most Thelasi were going about their daily business without too much concern. The city itself was odd, the tall towers that housed the living areas were beautifully crafted to appear like great crystal spires which twisted and turned as they rose up from the ground.

The air around the city was clean and pure, with the barest hint of pollution among the towers. After nearly an hour of touring around the city, complete with the standard “Please take a moment to visit our gift shop” promotions, the tour arrived at it’s destination; the Imperial Residence itself,

“And now ladies and gentlemen, please disembark from the bus. The Residence is currently open to visitors, as no Emperor is currently on the throne. The tour will return every hour, and a standard bus arrives here every fifteen minutes and connects directly into Primary Transport Hub One.”

Fëaelenion walked to the ticket stand, and waited in
line for a while.
Eventually the line filed through, the clerks passing
people along quite rapidly, and the automated clerk addressed him,
"Fifteen Menelmacari Credits..." after the transfer, "Thank you, enjoy
your tour. Your guide is at gate three." The palace itself was just as Feaelenion remembered it, tall, Elvish to the core, and beautiful in it's twisting spires and
columns.
He took his ticket, and left, rather surprised that
they didn't have any live ticket clerks, and walked around, looking
for the appropriate entrance.
After he found the appropriate gate he was forced to endure
another wait, this time as the somewhat tired looking guide waited for
the rest of the tour to arrive. Finally, they began the tour. Starting
in the front hallways and proceeding back through the rest of the
large building.
Fëaelenion walked around with the rest of the tour
group, listening intently, interested to hear about the 'residence's'
history.
"This palace is actually a direct copy of the original
palace that was located on Thilis. The old palace was built first as a
military base, with the Emperor's headquarters located inside. Once the
Empire stabilized and became unified, the military portion was
removed, and the "palace" was born."
"Emperor Theallas, was known for not using even an eight of
the palace, and to this date, most of it houses the governmental
offices that support the Emperor"
He nodded unconsciously, listening to the other
tourists as well as he walked.
Most of the other tourists we nodding, several of the Menelmacari shaking their heads at the mention of the, less than popular, Emperor. The tour guide continued, "Ithenril also did not spend
very much time here through most of her reign. Although near the end,
she spent much more time here, possibly because her fiancé, Lord
Feaelenion of the Necrontyr Empire, took to visiting the palace."
Fëaelenion grinned, and, stepping behind someone
else, asked, "could you elaborate on that please?"
The tour guide smiled, "Well... they were engaged to be
married, and I would take this time to note that Lord Feaelenion's bed
was... rarely slept in"
Feaelenion chuckled, unable to resist, "Are there any
interesting stories about him?"
"We try not to pry too deeply into the private lives of the
Emperors and Empress. But yes, they do say that he loves her dearly,
and that he went mad with grief at her supposed death at the hands of
rogue elements of the Tirn..."
He frowned, "Quite... not my best moment."
The tour guide blinked, "Sir... what did you just say?"
He promptly stepped out where the guide could see
him, "I said that's true. I was hoping for something more outrageous
though."
The tour guide nearly drops his flex pad, "Ah... Lord
Feaelenion... what a surprise to see you here. And no, we try to only
represent the confirmed facts
He smiled, "Well, very good of you, please, carry on."
The tour guide simply nodded and continued, "As I was
saying, Lord Nosirin greatly expanded the private areas of the palace
and actually spent a lot of time there, more time than governing some
contend."
The 'Prince' nodded and took sidelong looks at some
of the other tourists, interested in their reaction to him.
As they continued through the building, the tour guide
continued talking, relating some of the different design ideals that
went into the palace, and explaining what the different rooms did,
"This room here" she pointed to one room, "Was the Empresses room. And
the next door along was Lord Feaelenion's room, as he no doubt
recalls." she smiles at him.
The other tourists are generally taken aback, the
Menelmacari and Thelasi more than the others--most likely because they
have heard more about him--the other are merely surprised
He nodded, and stepped through the door, having a
brief look around, then stepped back. The tour guide was about to say something about, 'how the
hell' but remembered that this was a C'tan they were talking about,
and declined to comment
"Hum. Good. Much the same, please carry on," he
said, glancing at the Tirn in the group.
The two Tirn simply smiled, while the tourists all,
Menelmacari, Thelasi, or other, stared, "Alright then ladies and
gentlemen... let's move on."
He smiled, and went along with the group again,
deciding not to do anything else so dramatic.
The tour continued as a fairly normal tour, showing some
very imposing pieces of artwork, some of the inner workings of the
government that was still quartered in the palace, and some of the more
public rooms where the leaders of Thelas conducted public business.
Finally at the end, they wound up back at the entrance, "Thank you
ladies and gentlemen... I hope you enjoyed your tour."
Fëaelenion smiled, and pointed out at one point,
'and that's the secret passage the Tirn use' while pointing to a
random piece of wall, just to try and get a rise out of them.
The two Tirn smiled slightly, talking busily to each other
as if they were surprised tourists. The tour guide simply sighed, "Lord
Feaelenion, I appreciate your humor, but the Tirn have no business
putting a passage here... and I'm sure there are better places to put
passages"
He tutted, shook his head, and decided that he would
have been best to point out a real one.
As the tour ended, and the different people slinked off,
Feaelenion heard a voice in his ear, Theallas, "Lord Feaelenion...
Namirin and the council will relieve themselves of their leadership as
soon as you step up to take the throne."
He sighed, "And when - and how - do you propose I do this?
"Just let the flow of events pull you along, Lord
Feaelenion. If you excuse me, I have a net to cast, and snares to
lay." And he slinked back into the crowd, he wasn't wearing any dark
cloak, just standard street clothes and a hat common in Thelas.
Fëaelenion sighed, and practically snapped his
fingers in glee as he finally settled on a way of keeping Theallas out
of future mischief...
He worked his way to the nearest equivalent of a
public-call-box, and spent a few minutes working out how to place an
international, interplanetary call.
Ironically, it wasn't placing a call that was the issue...
mostly it was finding a payphone to use--with the popularity of
satellite based "cell phones" call-boxes were hard as hell to find.
He spent the next few minutes making what seemed to
be a social call, and inviting someone to join him shortly.
Like all calls sent through the Thelasi networks, the
message was intercepted, picked apart by the Electronic Awareness
systems that managed most of Thelasi Military Intelligence and then
sent on it's way as "normal"
Faintly aware of this, he contemplated introducing
the Thelasi to privacy laws.
At any rate, it was about lunch time in the city, and the
crowds were already swarming around the seedy food cars, not so seedy
fast food joints, and highly upper-class restaurants.
This gave Feaelenion another chance to observe the people
he would come to rule. They were orderly people, and fairly polite to
each other, although obvious foreigners did receive a few odd looks
when they tried to speak the Thelasi dialect; a strange mix of Quenya
and Sindarin. Feaelenion wasn't too out of place, some of the people
were wearing traditional robes, others were wearing business suits,
and a few middle class citizens were wearing jeans with
sweatshirts, it was fall in the city.
Fëaelenion decided not to bother with eating, and
sat back to watch the Thelasi go by.
There was a broad spectrum of people, from business men to
construction works to students, and even the odd off duty soldier
would walk by. Above the crowd a police bot would float, it's many
cameras and sensors watching the crowds as biometric scanners checked
all the faces in the crowd to the government's database, even under
this obvious scrutiny, the Thelasi paid it no mind.
To alleviate a little boredom, he amused himself by
nudging the bot around telekinetically for a while.
The poor bot was only semi intelligent, and was quite
confused by suddenly being nudged and pushed off of it's patrol path.
Eventually, and stopped dead on the ground, and spoke softly, but with
a voice that carried, "Please be informed, tampering with a police or
military patrol bot is an Imperial offense..."
Feeling rather guilty, having felt that it was on
remote control, rather than possessed of its own - admittedly crude -
intelligence, he let it go. He felt almost as if he were the kind of
deviant who pushed cats off a wall to see them land.
The patrol bot returned to it's hovering position, floating
around the block it was temporarily assigned to. A little while after
this incident, one of the large holoscreens that populated the largest
square in the city crackled to life, "This is TINN reporter Healish
Veusa reporting from the Government Center. We have been told that a
major announcement will be released soon. Please stay tuned for
further updates."
An elf sat down next to Feaelenion on the bench, "We should
be leaving soon, you know."
"I take it that little message is related to me?"
"Oh yes. They will be resigning soon, and you, with the
approval of the council, will rise to be the new, restored, Emperor,
and begin Thelas' first Imperial restoration." Theallas smiled, having
completely changed his outfit, and even hair style for that matter
within the time he had been away.
"Hum. Very well," he said, standing.
"Follow me, I have a hover car waiting." Theallas led
Feaelenion through the crowds of people, finally coming to a parking
platform, and motioning him to enter the car, the elf slid in right
after him.
He relaxed a little inside the car, and let his
'patron' do as he wished.
Theallas leaned back and smiled, "You better start thinking
up an acceptance speech... by my time, you have about two hours." he
handed him a flex pad, "In case you C'tan don't have photographic
memories
He sighed, "Joy," he said, "not my field of expertise..."
Theallas chuckled, "You'll make a fine Emperor." And the car
continued to speed through the airlanes. About halfway through their
journey, three Thelasi Military cars pulled along side and switched on
their sirens, barely audible through the skin of the vehicle, and they
continued their trip
"Is that really necessary?" he asked.
Theallas sighs, "Trust me, I wish we could dispense with
it, but it's protocol. In an hour and thirty minutes you will become
the Emperor of Thelas, and on the bright side, we don't have to deal
with traffic"
"You know, anyone planning to assassinate me is
almost certainly wasting their time..."
Theallas chuckled again, "Yes, but I'm more concerned about
the image... and as I said, protocol. Not to mention, you might
survive, but I have a damn soul stone in the back of my neck..."
"Oh?" he asked, seeming interested.
"Thank your... father. I was imprisoned on Duat for a
time. He installed a soul stone in the back of my neck..."
"Ah, interesting."
"Yes... apparently he didn't want me returning to life if I
get killed again..."
"And do you plan to?"
"Depends on how good I've been. If I feel I can go the
normal way, and return to life like most elves, sure. If I get held in
the Halls forever... no. I'm not spending eternity with Fëanor, no
offense to your new mother"
"I'm sure he's mellowed a bit by now."
Theallas looks at Feaelenion, "I'll believe it when I see
it, which will be when I'm assured that I won't spend eternity there"
"You want that thing off?" he asked.
"Aye... it's a constant worry for me."
"Have you not just tried... cutting it off?"
"I decided against it when the doctors informed me that my
head was bugged by your father..."
"I can't blame him for not trusting me"
"Oh that's easy enough to get out... Well. For me at
any rate."
"If you did, I would greatly appreciate it, Lord Feaelenion"
"I'll consult someone else who's visiting on the
soul stone thing though."
"Oh? Who?"
"Lady Airaheri, Mephet'ran's magic advisor. She
probably prepared the thing in the first place."
"Oh fun... asking her to come here to advise you?"
"In a way."
"Crap... speaking of Magic... I need to give you the fast
briefing on how the heck Thelasi magic works..."
"Please do."
"Alright, as you might be aware, Thelasi magic comes in six
variations. Light, Nature, Fire, Darkness, Air and Shadow. Shadow is
the mix and source of all of the other types."
"Yes," he says.
"The five variations are only found naturally on planets, or
planetoids. You won't find a lot of nature magic on an asteroid, but you might find a lot of fire, light and darkness, or death. We think that magic and gravity are somehow linked up, all we
know is that something about large objects distorts and warps natural,
shadow, magic."
"Wait. Death isn't one of your six."
"Death and darkness are the same, as is light and life, I interchange them"
"Now, Thelasi mages naturally absorb magic of their sphere
and store it within them to be released later as spells. If they're
desperate, they can draw magic forcibly from the land, but this can
backfire and result in the mage quite simply being turned into a soup
of different magic."
"Extremely powerful mages, the High Council, can in fact
generate magic on their own and easily draw it from the land without
the normal risks, hence their power. For instance, Shadow magic rarely
occurs naturally on a planet, but I generate a field of this magic
around me, hence why to some people, I feel colder than normal."
He holds up a hand, "One moment," he says, closing
his eyes. "Right. Speech written. Where were we?"
"Oh yes. About how you're a cold person. Right," he grins.
Theallas chuckles, "Well yes, continuing. Each being cannot
survive without all of the six present in them. The specific balance
varies; Elemental creatures have very little of the other schools,
humans have a good balance but almost no shadow magic, elves have more
shadow and nature within them than humans, orcs have more fire and
death in them than humans, and so on."
He nods, resisting the urge to make an electronic
noise and say 'that's my bull detector going off, ignore it...'
"Now, down to hard, factual magic, each school also has
particular properties that group it with others. Life, Nature and air
are defensive or non combat oriented schools, not to say they don't
have offensive spells, but those that they have are not as numerous or
as powerful as the others. Fire and death are the opposite, with shadow
having aspects and spells from all of the other schools."
He nods.
"A mage of a school also tend to have interests aligned
with the school they belong to. You for instance... well, what are
your interests?"
"They vary. Medicine mostly."
"Eru knows I'm not an expert on testing people, but you
probably are a life mage." He shrugs, "Think it over for a little
while. As a C'tan you probably can choose any of the schools. A couple
minutes more till we reach the government center"
"You're not actually expecting me to learn this
stuff are you?"
"No. There are plenty of books in the library if you ever
feel like actually learning the magic. And Ithy knows a lot too."
"You'd be surprised, but being the Emperor gets boring as
hell some days."
He raised an eyebrow, "Right..."
He chuckles, "And no, those are not days when we start wars"
Fëaelenion metaphorically bites his tongue before
saying 'maybe it's a boring job because you delegate all your
responsibilities.' He instead says, "I see. So why do I have to pick a
title?"
"You're Emperor. And yes, very little of the day to day
decision making is in your hands. The system usually runs its own when
dealing with internal matters, you're mostly required to make
international decisions. The three houses will handle most internal
matters, but you will have to appoint the Governors every ten years,
and please try to respect the public opinion, because the people have ten more years to write you a ton of angry letters. The Nobles are appointed automatically, and the
representatives are elected every five years. Any questions?"
Fëaelenion sighed, "Why every ten years?"
Theallas shook his head, "I don't know... there was some
reason back on Thilis, but I don't remember it. You can change it if
you want, the other houses won't mind. Although, I suggest doing it
right before you appoint the next group, otherwise you get to live
with a House full of governors who want to make your life miserable."
he sighed, "What can I say, they’re politicians?"
He mocks being offended, "You know, I'm a politician too."
Theallas laughs, "Yes, but you're not as bad as they are...
after about four years, they seem to believe it's their right to be
reinstated"
"Anyway. Tell me about the military, and the Tirn,
and all the other various groups you've got."
"Oi... okay. So here's the fast list of armed forces.
Morchant Tirith who are the standard all purpose group troops. Thelasi
Star Imperial Navy I don't need to explain. Militia are your
specialized troops, they are trained to fight in odd and unusual
terrains. Tirn are your shock troops and commandoes, they are the guys
you send in to cut through hordes of enemy troops like a knife through
butter.
Each Emperor chooses the number and specific personnel who
go into their units of Tirn. The retired troops and old Tirn, carried
over or not, become the Icharvita. The Icharvita are usually commanded
by the retired Emperors, which happens to be me, Ithenril forfeited
that when she renounced her citizenship. The Icharvita are sworn to
protect Thelas, whatever that means."
"The Icharvita are also much more stealthy than the Tirn
are, less blowing stuff up, more stealth. If you want some one
assassinated, call the Icharvita."
"And lastly, you have the Imperial Air Command. They at one
point commanded the planetary air force, but over time have become the
Thelasi Strategic Service or TSS. Again, I don't need to explain
them."
He resists the urge to say something derogatory, and
continues to listen.
"Oh yes, almost forgot the Star Marines. They are Morchant
Tirith trained for 'hot' landings."
"And that's it."
"And Thelasi Military Intelligence you probably already knew about"
"Right... Why aren't the marines part of the Tirn?"
"There are only two hundred Tirn currently. There are...
many Marines"
Once more he has to hold back from 'ah yes, these
are the guys who snoop into your people's private lives.'
"Why so few Tirn?"
"Cost of keeping them operational. And the training that is
required is extensive. The Tirn are the top one percent of the
Morchant Tirith and Marines. They are given training in all of the
Militia divisions, and also some training unique to the Tirn."
"And still they couldn't fight their way out of a
paper bag?" he asks.
"No... it's sort of hard to survive nuclear blasts below
your feet. Namirin got a reprimand for that one... They're good
warriors, but that was a unique situation, Namirin was not expecting a
trap of that magnitude, and in fairness to him, few leaders would
sacrifice their country. Most would attempt to regain it."
Fëaelenion sighed, deciding not to push on that
topic any further. That wasn't actually the event he was thinking of.
"Right. So, why call them shock troops? They seem a
bit rarer than that."
Theallas looks out the window, "He smiled, I guess they're more than
that." he watches the scenery for a time, "We're here. Follow me
again, please." Theallas stepped out of the car. They were at a back
entrance to the government center and as they entered were flanked by
two Tirn, their armor painted white with gold and red edging. After
about a minute of walking, some of it spent on an elevator,
they arrived at the entrance to a balcony. Theallas halted
in the shadows with Feaelenion and the two Tirn as Namirin finished
his speech,
Fëaelenion sighed, and waited, watching Namirin.
"I have been a caretaker for this time, waiting for my time
to be released and one to come to take the throne. It is with the
greatest happiness and honor that I, and the council, step down from
our role of leadership, and welcome a new Emperor. My hope is that he
will do more than the council ever could. It is with this hope, that I
official step down."
Namirin stepped to the side, saluting as Theallas nudged Feaelenion forward
True to his style, Theallas remained well in the shadows of
the doorway, out of the sight of the media below, and the two cordons
of soldiers at either side of the courtyard
Fëaelenion adjusted his clothes again, to something
more regal, in white, crimson and gold 'thread.' Stepping forwards, he
stood behind the podium and took a brief moment to look over the
crowd.
The crowd was a crosssection of every one in Thelas, from
the soldiers--Tirn with the same white, red and gold color--to the few
standard citizens who had been lucky enough to pass through the
security cordon before the square reached capacity. Each and every
one, excluding the soldiers whose black visored helmets made it
impossible to tell where they looked, had their eyes and cameras
focused on Feaelenion
He began by fixing his gaze on the holocams and
press he could see, and took a deep 'breath.' "For those present who
don't recognise me, I am Fëaelenion nos Ancalimë, Ithenril's husband.
I find myself both honoured and proud today, both honoured by the
opportunity which I have been presented, and proud of my new homeland,
and more importantly of her people... I know that some of you may be
distrustful of me, as an outsider, but I do not distrus
but I do not distrust you... I trust the Thelasi
people to, in my reign, grow to prosperity and dignity unknown in the
long and illustrious history of the nation...
He took a short pause to gague reactions.
The a few continued to look at him somewhat scepticly, and
a few still untrustful, but most nodded, and a fair few clapped
"I am aware also, that some of you may consider me
to have been sent here to act against the national interest of Thelas,
or to promote the interests of the High Church of C'tannism over those
of the rest of the nation. Both of these, I can assure you, are
untrue. I will, from this day forward, commit myself to serving all
the people of the Star Empire equally, without predjudice or favour,
to the best of my abilities.
He paused again, once more watching, curious.
More people nodded, and this time a great deal of the
assembly began to clap, the media simply taping and broadcasting
"In my first years as Emperor, I intend to work
ceaselessly to restore the position and respect of Thelas among the
international community to give this nation the credit and trust it
deserves. I intend to continue those programs aimed at enhancement
of the capabilities of the military, and at the same time reduce the
operating costs of the armed forces. I also intend to increase the
funding of the Star Empire's education system."
More clapping ensued and then died away, the people waiting
for him to continue his speech
"Even though, as some of you know or have heard
rumored, I am not an elf, I will devote myself tirelessly to serving
the people of Thelas, to the limits of my abilities. But I do not
intend to do so from a position of ignorance. I intend to, upon taking
the throne visit each and every permanent military outpost of the
nation, and then, every significant school and hospital in this great
nation." This may sound ambitious, but he does indeed
intend to see it through, and is certainly capable of doing so.
The people nod, no clapping this time, because most of the
people are busy listening to him. They are not taking him badly, for
sure, but many are still undecided, waiting until they see his
actions
"I do not ask for your trust or approval, but rather
I offer you mine, and hope to earn reciprocation through my actions. I
will, no later than one decade from now," he stabbed the podium with
his forefinger, "call a referendum on my leadership. If a majority of
the people do not support my actions, I swear to vacate the throne."
There were nods, and a great deal of applause, the idea
that an Emperor would put their rule on the line was almost
unthinkable.
A message scrolled across the data display of the podium,
"Please press the green button when you're done..."
Consenting to be stage-managed, and mildly pleased
by the mental image of Theallas glaring at his back, he continued, "It
is not the role of the people to serve the ruler, but of the ruler to
serve the people, and the ultimate judges of that are the people. I
thank you for your time and attention," he added, and punched the
button telekinetically.
Theallas was, in fact, quite pleased with Feaelenion's
speech and pledges, but didn't let that show, keeping his calm
expression. As the thunderous clapping continued, Theallas waited for
Feaelenion to vacate the podium--and step back into the shadows.
He did so, waving and smiling to the crowd.
The assassin turned leader turned puppeteer smiled and
extended his hand, "If they don't love you, they certainly don't hate
you, Lord, or should I say, Emperor Feaelenion. Now, do you require
any services of this old warrior?"
"You may tell me what happens next..."
"Well... you will be taken by open roof motorcade to the
palace. After that, you get about a week to settle in, and then, you
begin managing the country. Depending on your popularity abroad, you
may or may not have to sit through long meetings with foreign
leaders."
"No official 'crowning' ceremony then?"
"Partially that's what the two week period is for. You get
to plan it, if you want it. If you go ahead and do it, I recommend it
at the end of the two weeks to give time to prepare, and also settle
in. Not to mention time for Ithy to get comfortable, sorry, excuse the
nickname, it's an old habit of mine. Empress Ithenril."
"Be as informal as you like."
He shrugs, "So... off with you for your motorcade, and as
for me, I'm off to spend some nice, quiet, relaxing time at my estate
in the country. If you need me, the address and holophone numbers are
here." Theallas hands him a card, and once more, slinks off.
The future Emperor strode off in the opposite
direction.

Fëaelenion sighed at the state of the Thelasi Emperor’s residence’s office. It was spacious enough, but they’d clearly not used the damn place much since the reign of 'that fool' Theallas. "Do you people ever actually use this place?" he asked. Theallas laughed softly, "Well... yes, and no. I hated being in here, usualy there was paperwork up to the ceiling and it reminded me of a prison cell more than an office." He looks around, "So, why am I here?"

"We're cleaning," he said, "all of this junk up and throwing it out."
Sighing, he looks around, "Alright... so, you want me to explain to you what these things are?
"No," he said, "I just need a dogsbody," and flung a few flexis from the desk at Theallas.
Theallas grabs them each in succession, "I'm assuming that's a joke"
"Yes," he says. "I want you to tell me what all the stuff in unlabelled boxes and so forth locked away is meant to do."

"Well..." He selects a box at random, "This appears to be a bunch of memos detailing all of the projects that Namirin commissioned..." he opens up another, "hm... it appears that he kept a list of personal enemies..." Theallas picks up the piece of paper, "It appears to have belong to Nosirin..."

"Bin it, I don't care for that," Fëaelenion ordered, prising open the desk drawers.
Theallas throws away the list, "Yes, this appears to be a complete list of the people sent to the work camps"

Fëaelenion gives him a glare, "Fine keep it. Were those your idea by the way?"
"No... well... not in the way Nosirin used them. When I started them, they were purely for criminals who were in prison for minor crimes to do menial labour in decent conditions. Usually we had them leased out to work for private industry in various forms to get them trained for a return to society."
"Good. You're only stupid, not retarded," he said, and jerked the drawer out, tipping it onto the desk.

Theallas sighs, "Watch it... I don't know what the heck Namirin might have had in his...." Theallas ducks as a energy bolts hits the ceiling where his head was, "...desk"
The new Emperor examines the device, "Paranoid little freak wasn't he?"
"He's a former soldier, what do you expect? Hell, I slept with a pistol in my nightstand... although I never left it charged.... with the safety off. Okay, so he is a little paranoid"

"You're all mad," he says, sighing.
He laughs again, "Well yes, what do you expect?"
"Is there anything of any value in this pile?" he said, shoving it over to Thelas.
"Probably only to the biographers"
Fëaelenion sighed, and opened another drawer, "Go get that waste paper bin will you?"
Theallas walks off and comes back a minute later with a basket, "Here ya go."
He sweeps more rubbish, keeping a few pens, into the basket.

Once again, he picks up a box and sets it one the table, and opens it, "I think I know what this is..." He takes out a orb covered by a velvet cloth, "A palantir... here take it." Theallas quite quickly almost shoves it at Fëaelenion
"And you keep it?" he says, taking the object slowly, "in a... box..."
"Yes... well... as you know, I'm not exactly the most popular elf among the Valar"
"I don't know, actually," he said, putting the orb reverentially on the desk, "but I can imagine."
"I've used it a couple times, but not that often. So" he says as he continues to clean the office, "Who was that person you asked to come here?"
"Among others Ithenril and Airaheri, whom I told you about before," he pats the Palantir, and adjusts its coverings a little, "she'll be thrilled with this thing."
"Airaheri? No doubt. We probably should be introduced, for some reason I'm still the shadow mage..."

"Oh, no doubt," he says maliciously, wandering over to the book-case.
"And what is with that tone, may I ask?" He takes out another book, "So that's where my coppy of the 'Tales of the Third Age' went"
"You will see," he says, plucking a book out of the 'The Literary Chronicle of the Kingdom' and examining it.
Theallas looks over, "No clue what that is. I managed to read all of these at one point."
He frowned, putting the book back he noted to get some expensive looking covers for his cheap novels.
Theallas looks over, "So what do you tend to read?"
"Never you mind," he says, "I'm thinking about getting a giant holo-projector for the centre of this room."
"I used to have one, but I think Nosirin didn't like it. There's a small one built into the desk. The controls and screen are both projected
"Insufficient use for megalomaniacal laughter," he said, "I need a bigger one."
He barely contains his laughter; "I suddenly have an image of you in doctor's scrubs laughing evilly over a patient"
"You know, I'm not just a doctor, that's mostly a hobby. Quite appropriate for this nation though."
"Indeed. But still, it is a funny image." He throws away another concealed pistol, "How many of these things did Namirin have? I know I'm a sword nut, but I kept those in my estate..."

"I have half a mind to just throw everything in here but the Palantir out and start from scratch," he says.
"Might be a good idea... all of my stuff has been removed
After about an hour or so of cleaning, and discovering four more concealed weapons, they finally had weeded through the entire room. "Finally. Done."
At this particular moment, Fëaelenion's guests finally arrived, Airaheri, notable for her red hair, dressed in a grey-green cloak over more green robes, with a sindar whom Theallas probably doesn't recognise, dressed a little less elaborately, and Ithenril, in a dark blue cloak.
Theallas turns and smiles, "Ah, Ithenril, wonderful to see you again" Ithenril smiles, "Theallas, it's wonderful to see you again, I hope time is treating you well?" The younger assassin turned emperor smiled, "Somewhat." He turns to Fëaelenion, expecting introductions
He smiled a little at Ithenril's politeness, and introduced Theallas to 'Lady Airaheri...' followed by several other names in the vein of all Noldor. Despite the title, she doesn't go by a 'nos' as it would only look silly to be of her own house.

Almost immediately disregarding the numerous titles, noting that if he wanted to, he could just do a search for her in the databanks, Theallas bowed, "A pleasure to meet you in person, Lady Airaheri"
She smiled, "Charmed, I'm sure," she took a case from her assistant, "This is Galloriell, my assistant," she added, setting it on the table.
Theallas nodded to the assistant, "Pleasure to meet you. And to both of you, welcome to Thelas. I hope you find your stay enjoyable."
"I'm sure I will," Airaheri says, "if I can avoid the locals," she adds caustically.
Looking vaguely offended, Theallas shrugs, "So, that leads to the question of why are you here if you dislike the Thelasi so?"

She slides her hand over the locks on her case, muttering something, then she unlocks it with keys, "Why, I'm here because I was asked here," she says, turning to look at him, and giving him a rather amused smile.
Theallas look at Fëaelenion oddly, "And why were you ask here?"
"To examine some of your artefacts on behalf of Fëaelenion, and to deliver his effects." Fëaelenion gives an exasperated shrug.
Nodding, he motions to the palantir, "Well, here's the centrepiece... formerly packed away in a box..."
Galloriell sidles over to Theallas and whispers into his ear, "She's not always like this," she lowers her voice even more, "She just feels like locking horns with you."
Theallas whispers, "Thanks for the tip... I don't really know a whole lot about her, all I know is that I can feel that she's a powerful mage in her own right."

Airaheri meanwhile, sets up a ring shaped stand of sorts under the Palantir, takes out a compass, and turns it this way and that, leaving the cloth draped over it.
Ithenril takes this point to hug Fëaelenion and watch Airaheri
The elven mage also watches Airaheri, not being versed in Palantir magic, and knowing quite well that it is a school in its own right
The elven mage also watches Airaheri, not being versed in Palantir magic, and knowing quite well that it is a division in its own right
"So, Lady Airaheri, are you skilled in the use of the palantir?"
She leans back, kneeling on one knee, her head level with and about three feet from the stone, and glances at Theallas, "I have learnt something of its use and countering from Sirithil," she says, "have you ever used this one on this world?"
"Never on this world. I did use it on Arda, once or twice. I make my best effort to avoid it"

She whips the cover off, revealing the dark stone, and waves her hand over it turning it a little with her fingers, until the vision snaps into place. "Excellent," she says, clearly pleased with herself.
Continuing to watch, "I managed to use it, although with quite a bit of trial and error. It's slightly difficult when you don't have any one to teach you."
"Well, I think I can do a little better than that," she says, shifting a little one way, then the other on the floor.
"I have no doubt." Rather than disturbing her, he silently probes her magic, trying to feel how powerful she is
She's considerably less powerful here than she is in her own land, but even so she glances toward him after a moment, "Do you mind?"
He chuckles, "Sorry, I couldn't resist" Theallas is quite comfortable in the fact that he is a tad more powerful than she is, although she does have more training in the less practical matters of magic
"Well," she says after a time, standing and brushing her hands off, "At least we know it still works,"
"I could have told you that, if you had asked."
"I'm not inclined to trust those who've spent months chained to one of Mephet'ran's beds without even the slightest pleasure from it," she says with a malicious grin.
Theallas raises an eyebrow, "If you had told me, I would have exchanged that position with you quite gladly."

She laughed, "I've also been asked to remove that keigh thing from your neck..."
He nods, "I would be quite grateful if you would."
She covers the Palantir again, reaches into her case, and extracts a rather sharp looking knife.
Theallas blinks, "I'm hoping that it's a little more complex than that"
"Kneel down, face away from me."
He sighs, and does so, hoping that this is for show more than anything else
She brings the back of his collar down a little, "I presume you're fairly good at painkilling, yes?"
"Hm hm..." He silently mutters such a spell, "And couldn't this be done in say, a hospital?"
She spends a few minutes examining it, and Fëaelenion, in a wonderful show of bedside manner, asks Theallas 'not to bleed on the carpet.'

Theallas glares at Fëaelenion, a definite 'I am going to kill you' expression on his face
She finally completes a few inscriptions on the surface of the stone, and then unceremoniously prises it off his skin with the knife. It's not actually an implant, so much as something that fuses with the skin.
Theallas cringes, "That... hurts... like... hell..."
Airaheri grins, "I could have given you a shot if you'd wanted, but nooo, you had to claim to be pain proof," she smoothes out his hair, and passes him the dull stone, apparently made of a red tinted amber, "care for a souvenir?"
Theallas blinks, and looks at it, "Eh, sure. And usually I can, but that really hurt."
She drops it into his hand, and walks around in front of him.

Theallas stands up slowly, rubbing the back of his neck
"Feel good?"
"Yes, thank you."
"The explosives are still in there by the way, but they won't go off because of the stone's removal."
"Ah, that's good to know... can they be removed?"
"Not by me..."
Fëaelenion looks away.
Theallas again glares at Fëaelenion, "I mean, by a doctor"
"I don't think it would be wise to try," he says.

"I'll take your advice on that one. And thank you a lot, Lady Airaheri." He looks around, "Anything else you wish to take a look at"
She smiles, "What else do you have?"
"Well... artefact wise?" He takes out his sword and lays it on the table, "You could always have a look at that. Nice piece of magic... remade due to being shattered by a very... annoyed elven queen"
She smiles, but doesn't touch it, "Anything special about it?"
"Well... it's bound to Axara by it's forging. It also has shards from my first blade inside of it. So it may or may not have some of its abilities, I don't really know"
"So what happens if you take it off world?"
"It really doesn't loose any power in the short term. Instead it subsists off of my energy, which I can draw from Axara, as long as I'm within the same dimension..."
"Humm, interesting," she says, "but not exactly what I was looking for."
"Oh? Then what were you looking for?" Theallas leans back against the desk and watches her
"Palantirs, that kind of thing. Interesting and unique items you might have stashed around here."

"There are not many, Siri has most of them, unfortunately" there is quite a note of bitterness in his voice
"Oh?" she answers.
"She's made a point of collecting things, so there isn't much left for us to find." "Ah yes, it's a very nice collection, mind you."
"Not that many Thelasi can see it"
She smiled, "It's still very nice."
"That I won't dispute"
"So, anything in specifics you would like to see? A tour maybe? I have nothing better to do with my time"
"As you wish," she says.

Theallas motioned Airaheri and Golloriel inside the relatively large house, and then showing them into the living room. "So, are we Thelasi as barbaric as you first thought?"
Golloriel smiled a little, "I'd say that it was about what I expected. Though I never particularly expected barbarism..."
Theallas nods, "What did you expect then?" He says as he motions them to a couch. He sits in a large wingchair facing the couch
Strange people who like being observed far too much," Aira says, taking a seat slowly, "and a lot of Menelmacari style architecture."
Golloriel suppresses a snigger as she sits.
Theallas smiles a little, "Well yes. Historically, the Thelasi are from the same area as the Menelmacari, so we do share a fair bit of cultural... interests. In terms of observation, I think it becomes part of the background. You stop noticing the drones and such when you grow up with them."
"If you say so," Airaheri says, shrugging a little and looking around the room. Golloriel meanwhile, looks at Theallas. He is slightly disconcerted as Golloriel watches him, but makes an effort to not show it. Finally, he rises slowly, "I'm being a damn awful host, do you want anything, tea? I have some lembas... I think"
Airaheri sniggers, "You've spend far too much time thinking of military things... Lembas indeed, at home?"
Theallas shrugs. "I wasn't expected guests" he says quietly, looking over his shoulder, "So, anything?"
“If you have nothing else," Airaheri consents as Golloriel nods, a little.
Theallas smiles and turns, absently pushing a stray lock of his long black hair back over his shoulder as he walks away into kitchen. He comes back in a minute or two, balancing a tray with three cups of tea, and some lembas that he hands to Airaheri and Golloriel. He then sits, "So, now that I've given you a bit of a tour, mind if I ask some questions about Duat? Last time I was there, I wasn't exactly in a positon to look around"
"Certainly," Golloriel says, giving Airaheri a pronounced nod at something...
Theallas decides not to ask, "What is it like, in general? Like Earth? Fertile? Barren?
“Fertile, I'd say, we could show you if you want."
"Oh?"
Airaheri nods, "Come here."
Theallas sets down his cup, stands, and walks over, "Hm?"
Airaheri reaches out and lays her hand on his head, producing an vision, in Quenya, olori, a combination of memory and imagination, with the clarity of reality, of the C'tani capital.
Theallas smiles as the vision finishes, "It's a beautiful world, I have to say." he looks around, "Very similar to Axarra I guess"
"You're welcome to visit if you like."
Theallas smiles and nods "It would be a pleasure."
Theallas turns to sit down, "When would be a good time?"
Airaheri nibbles some of the lembas bread, and seems to consider, "Whenever you like, really."
Theallas chuckles, "Well, any time is good for me really. I don't have much to do know." The lembas bread is actually quite good, much better than expected
Airaheri sighs, "Very well then, now?"
Theallas leans back, "If I don't need to pack anything, fine."
"Well, do you need anything in particular?"
Theallas shrugs, "Not off the top of my head"
“Very well then, we can leave now if you want."
Airaheri takes a bite of the bread and stands, "Very well then."
Theallas looks over at Golloriel, who has remained quite quiet, "So, do you have a shuttle? Or should I book one?"
"We have a vessel with us," she says, offering her hand for Theallas to 'help her up' with a mischievous grin.
Theallas gives her his hand, and helps her to rise.
She rises, and follows him out to whatever vehicle he used to get here.
Theallas leads them to a small hovercar, that takes them to the starport. Airaheri sits down, having instructed the borrowed assault shuttle to return them to Duat, and observes Golloriel, who seems to be watching Theallas intently.
Theallas looks over at Golloriel, trying to figure out why she seems to be watching him so intently, "Is something wrong, Lady.?"
"Nothing at all is wrong..." she says, "Plenty is right."
Theallas feels his body tense, and blinks a couple times, trying to convince himself that he misheard her, "What do you mean?"
Golloriel smiles enigmatically, "Interpret as you will."
Theallas sighs rubbing his eyes. He has an odd feeling that the next couple days are going to be interesting, to say the least
Theallas looks back and Golloriel and then turns to stare out the window, "So, Lady Airaheri, what is your job as the leading mage in the Necrontyr Empire?
"Not much really," she replies, "A lot of research and analysis..."
"Ah, not too much actual casting?"
"You could say that..."
Theallas nods, looking back over at her, and then Golloriel, before nodding and closing his eyes for the rest of the flight
"I don't know what you're up to," Aira says after a moment, "We'll be landing now."
Theallas opens his eyes, "Just thinking." He looks out the window again at the planet
The overwhelming impression of it is mountainous. The main continent, inhabited by the C'tan, is essentially a massive lowland between two mountain ranges, at the north and south.
"Interesting... I've never seen geography like this before. So, is skiing popular?” He says jokingly
"To an extent. The Menelmacari like it, thus, it's imported somewhat here... Though most necrontyr aren't fond of the idea."
"I wonder why." He looks at the cities, "How densely populated is it?"
"They don't like the cold," Aira replies automatically, "Approaching six billion two hundred million, by which time, Garm should be terraformed..."
"Ah, well that's interesting. How long untill we land?"
"A few minutes," she said, "Doesn't do to rush around now does it?"
Theallas shakes his head, "No... it doesn't do at all" The main reason he's impatient is that Theallas is quite uncomfortable around Golloriel right now, her comment earlier has unsettled him, to say the least
Airaheri giggles suddenly, and tells Theallas to sit down, her tone suggesting she's up to something...
Airaheri giggles suddenly, and tells Theallas to sit down, her tone suggesting she's up to something...
Theallas shrugs, and sees no reason not to. He sits down as she asked
Golloriel exchanges a pointed look with her teacher, and sits opposite him, crossing her legs and giving him a demure look as Aira leaves to attend to the cockpit.
Theallas leans back and watches Golloriel, trying to figure out what she's up to.
Golloriel smiles shaking her head, "You're not the brightest knife in the drawer are you?" she says after a while, "You're the very image of puzzlement."
Theallas tilts his head to the side, "Sometimes puzzlement can serve as a screen, to prevent another from gauging feelings or emotions. And sometimes it can be genuine. And then sometimes, it could be both"
Golloriel sniggers, and waves dismissively, "Very well then, what do you think I'm up to?"
Theallas sighs, "I have my suspicions, but I'd rather not beleive them"
Golloriel frowns, "That's not very flattering now, is it?"
Theallas smiles, "Flattering? Maybe it's flattering that I'm considering it as an option?"
Golloriel raises an eyebrow, "Only to yourself," she says.
Theallas chuckles, "Maybe, but my sense of vanity isn't that strong. To be honnest, it isn't that unpleasant an idea, but odd in my mind
Golloriel smiles, "That's better. You're not exactly an expert in seduction are you?"
Theallas shakes his head, "I'm no expert on being on the receiving end, that's true. On the other end, I'm a little rusty"
Golloriel laughs, "Well, this is the ninth age, or some such. You should expect to be on the receiving end..."
Theallas shakes his head, "I've sort of lost my practice since I was an assassin."
"Clearly you were the wrong kind of assassin then," she says with a wink, "Oh, you may feel tired now... We're coming into Duat's magical-adjustment range, and you are a mage of sorts..."
Theallas shudders as they enter the field, "Yes... a mage would be a good term. But, in terms of assassinations..." He merely smiles
"A caution. Harder magics get harder, easier ones get easier on Duat, essentially."
“So, levitating a small thing is relatively simple, but casting a powerful spell is hard?"
She nods.
Theallas watches her, "Why are you interested in me?"
“You are an intesting piece of living history," she says.
"Hm... interesting point."
Theallas watches the planet coming closer, at a loss for words right now
The ship coasts across an awesomely large plane of green forests, fields and grasslands, finally coming to rest near an obsidian tower at the coast.
Theallas looks at the tower, "I'm assuming that Lady Airaheri is one for symbolism"
"Heh. There's actually a reason it's built like that, but I doubt she'd like me telling you..."
"Oh? Now I'm curious."
"And you'll have to remain that way, for now," she says, "This is where we get off..."
"And you'll have to remain that way, for now," Airaheri says, returning "This is where we get off..."
He shrugs and stands, "That's your tower then?"
"Yes," she nods.
Theallas looks back at Golloriel and then back at Airaheri, "So, what first?"
"I suppose you would enjoy a tour of sorts..."
Theallas looks at Golloriel and then back at Airaheri, "So, what first?"
"I suppose you would enjoy a tour of sorts..."
He nods, "I would."
Airaheri smiles, gesturing expansively over the woodlands as the shuttle takes off to return to its nest in the cold north.
"This is all my quiet little retreat," she says with a grin.
He nods, Looking around at the expansive vista.
She nods, "There are some nice cliffs up to the north too, if you prefer 'rugged' terrain.
Theallas nods again, "I like the forests personally; nice and quiet"
She shrugs, "So, what would you like to see about the planet then?"
"Well, mostly I'm curious about your tower. Golloriel piqued my interest.' prosecution
She turns and walks towards it, "Very well then," she says with a mischievous grin.
Theallas follows her, thinking to himself 'What the hell is up with these elves. Golloriel is making no effort to conceal the fact that she is after me, and Airaheri seems to be her accomplice in crime'
The inside of the door is a surprisingly large and airy courtyard that seems to take up an entire floor, and has a false sky within in it. Elaborate crystal fountains create intricate water-sculptures that seem to perform impossible feats.
The inside of the door is a surprisingly large and airy courtyard that seems to take up an entire floor, and has a false sky within in it. Elaborate crystal fountains create intricate water-sculptures that seem to perform impossible feats such as remaining in the air as a thin disk of water that only falls at its edge.
Theallas looks up and around him, somewhat breathless, "This is amazing... magical?"
"Oh yes," she says, "stand under it and touch it..."
Theallas steps forward, and touches the flow, half expecting it to be an illusion, and half expecting his hand to come away soaked
The entire thing collapses for an instant, and falls down onto him, then snaps back up just before it soaks him. Golloriel sniggers a little.
Theallas glares over at Airaheri for a second, "You might have warned me that would happen"
"What would be the point of warning you about the little pranks?"
"Point taken. What's next?” Theallas says, looking at her warily.
She smiles, ducking under one of the fountains, idly gesturing towards a pair, one on either side of the room, of ornate metal trees, gold and silver, bronze and tungsten beneath, not that it's clear both of which shine with inner light, "I'm particularly proud of these," she says. There's clearly a theme of sorts in this chamber.
Theallas nods, recognizing the theme immediately, "You've certainly taken a lot of care in designing this room."
She wanders over to a wall, white tiling with lavender edges that has a sort of strange crystalline quality, brushing her hand across it makes a part of the wall disappear, fading from view over the course of several heartbeats, revealing a stairway of black stone that spans the tower's circumference, here at least.
He blinks as the wall disappears, and follows her, continuing to look around the tower, and somewhat covertly probe it's magic. Truth is, Theallas wants to figure out the properties of this unusual little tower
As the younger sindar passes through she closes the aperture behind them. The lighting, such as it is, is certainly magical, seeming to flow out of the inner wall.
Theallas turns to watch the door seal, and then turns to follow Airaheri, also looking to see where Golloriel went
She follows him up the stairs. On the inner wall are various hexagonal inscribing that radiate light into the stairway. Airaheri does the same at the 'top' of the staircase, about a quarter of the way around the tower, opening into another large room, this one a dining or meting room of some sort, with a great table at its centre made of lebethron wood, and crystal windows dominating the south wall.

Theallas looks at Airaheri, "So you were saying that this place dampens more powerful spells, while at the same time making simple tricks easier?"
"No, that's the planet. This particular place makes it quite easy to do anything, that's why I'm here."
"Interesting. So what would happen if I tried to cast a spell?"
"Here, without my permission, you'd probably find very little would happen."
"I see." He continues to look around the place, feeling a little bit uncomfortable as he realizes that Airaheri can limit most of his defenses. He spares a quick glance to Golloriel, and then looks back at Airaheri, "So, what's next on this little tour?"
"What would you like to see?"
"I've heard much about the basement..." He says, his curiosity finally getting the best of him
Airaheri grins, "Have you now?"
He nods, becoming more and more unsettled
Airaheri retraces her way to the steps, and begins leading down.
Theallas follows her, looking over to see what Golloriel is doing
Golloriel smirks mirthfully as they descend, and Airaheri finally opens a door before them.
Peeking around the corner, Theallas stays one step behind Airaheri
The door is dark, and Airaheri waves him through.
Theallas steps through, letting his eyes adjust
She quickly slams the door behind him, leaving him in the darkness of a labyrinth, and cackles wickedly, "I think we'll let him out in about an hour," she says to her companion...
He starts swearing, starting to feel around in his surroundings, "Goddamnit, I'm going to kill her...