The wait for Ultimecia was agonizing.
He wasn't sure what she meant by 'rally the troops.' Were Kefka and Exdeath already ready and waiting and she only had to go and retrieve them, or would she have to find them both? How much time did they need to prepare, if they weren't already? They'd also have to seek Rosa out in the meantime, and she could have been anywhere if she wasn't in Sanctuary. He had no idea how much time had already passed before it occurred to him to watch the clock. If Rosa put up any kind of fight, that would prolong her destruction.
The minutes crawled by, to the point where he had to occupy himself. He created some manikins and escorted them to their positions in the floors of the Pandaemonium gateway. He procured a cloth from his personal stock of items and cleaned and buffed his staff until it shone.
He quickly ran out of things to do.
When Ultimecia appeared there in the top floor of Pandaemonium, he all but leapt out of his throne.
"Is it done?" he asked her, uncrossing his legs and sliding to the front of his throne.
"It is."
At last, he was rid of her. For a moment, the nasty relief he felt at the thought of her brutal demise bubbled in his heart and lifted his spirits and brought the smallest ghost of a smile to his face. He would never have to see her face in the world or the cycle ever again. She'd never be able to humiliate him ever again. Almost as soon as it came, however, a small worm of doubt wiggled through his thoughts. "She's lying," it told him, and it killed his mood quickly.
"I need proof," he told her. He didn't put it past her to only say that Rosa was dead in order to claim her reward, then allow her to pop up on him later.
Ultimecia rolled her eyes. "I knew you would. Will this suffice?" She held out her hand and he saw a familiar knife. A familiar gold handle and silver blade, with multi-colored jewels in the crosspiece and pommel. That very knife had been jammed between his ribs if he remembered correctly. Ultimecia's hands and claws were covered in blood, and she had stained the knife with it.
He wanted it to suffice for his own sake, but that last shred of doubt once again prevented him from believing her. He needed one last test for her. He decided to question her, hoping to pick a lie out of her body language and facial expression.
"May I?" he asked, gesturing for the knife.
She shrugged and shuffled it in her hand, and he lifted it with his magic, drawing it over to himself. He snatched it out of the air and turned it this way and that, pretending to inspect it so his question did not appear so judgmental.
"I hope she did not give you too much trouble," he said, and he looked up suddenly, watching her face.
"Not at all. She struggled, of course, but no more than you would expect." If he didn't know any better, he would have thought there was a dig in there. A subtle but well-placed jab that implied that Rosa had struggled, just like she did against him, and yet Ultimecia had been able to do what he couldn't. She didn't deliver it any differently than he said anything else, with that tilted-head, smirking tone, so he decided to let it be.
He finally allowed that emotion to build again, and what he would call joy, something he hadn't felt so purely in a long while, allowed him another smile.
"Excellent. I . . . appreciate you taking on this task." They weren't the right words, but it didn't matter. It was over and done with, and he didn't have to be bothered with any of it again. Not Ultimecia, or Kefka, or Exdeath, but more importantly, not Rosa.
He assumed Ultimecia would know that was her cue, but when he returned from his reverie she was still standing there, staring at him. He stared back, to the point of awkwardness until he finally asked, "Yes?"
"I know payment can only come in due time, but do not think I've forgotten our agreement."
"Nor have I." He leveled a hard glare at her. Not this again.
"You'll forgive me if I'm not quick to be at ease. You lie well and you lie often, Emperor. I expect it. You have a savvy for politics and I respect your mind for the manipulation of events. However, you'd best not lie to me. This is one debt that will not go unpaid. I will see to that."
'Debt.' Interesting choice of word. The Emperor could not recall if he ever shared his philosophy about debts with Ultimecia, but either way her use of the word was strategic. It was a very obvious reminder that he owed, and the next step was collections. It was also a word that lowered him beneath her, reminding him once again that she had done what he was unable to do.
His nose crinkled into a sneer. "I'd rather not use that nasty word."
"No? Then what would you call it?"
" . . . Investment. A commitment to see my plan brought to fruition, and a commitment to also deliver on your portion of it."
She raised her eyebrows, impressed with his turn of phrase, nodding slowly. After a moment her face fell. She deadpanned, " . . . Call it whatever you want. To me, it is a debt."
He sighed, crossing his legs. "Very well, if you intend upon difficulty."
"It's only semantics. I don't want there to be any kind of misunderstanding as to the nature of our deal."
Another presence appeared in the bottom floors of Pandaemonium, and the Emperor knew the presence immediately. Though Garland had a distinct spirit, he spent so much time around Chaos that he was beginning to blend with him.
"I have a visitor," the Emperor said, waving his hand. "You are dismissed."
She cocked her head to the side. Is that how you plan to address me? The unspoken question hung in the air, and the Emperor rolled his eyes, deciding to indulge her. It would only look better in the long run, offering her a sincerity no matter how surface-level.
" . . . Thank you," he tacked on to the end. The words soured in his mouth. He didn't mean it.
The corner of Ultimecia's mouth quirked up into her version of a smile. She bowed her head and opened a portal, stepping through it to leave.
Garland climbed the floors of the Emperor's gateway slowly, no doubt reveling in the destruction of the manikins and gateway fragments. When he finally arrived to the top floor of Pandaemonium, he walked through the barrier and dragged his sword in behind him, scraping it on the purple crystal floor. The Emperor noted it with a tilt of his chin.
"Enjoying yourself?" he asked.
"No." Garland said. The Emperor shrugged.
"Well, the strongest manikins wander the world outside of gateways. If you're looking for a challenge I'd seek those ones out. Or, you could perhaps make a target of our opposition-
"I am not here to idle, or chat. I am here on Chaos' business."
"Whatever could he want with me?" the Emperor snarled, instantly angry. He was actually in some semblance of a good mood, and the fact that Garland stomped in to his throne just to mention one of the worst moments of his entire career in the cycles did not sit well with him. He slapped his palm against the armrest and stood from his throne. "He made his point quite clear if you recall, and I've made myself scarce since! He should have nothing more to say to me!"
"You scheme against him constantly! As he said before, we are not oblivious. And yet you act indignant now? Your sights are far too high, set on him. Even if Chaos was to fall, you'd fall victim to the cycle along with him over and over again, lowly emperor. We are watching you and Ultimecia both. We know she is involved somehow, as she always is. Tread lightly."
"Well thank you for your message, little dog. I'll be sure to tell Chaos how well you barked his message to me, so he may give you a treat. Perhaps even an extra scratch or two! And you may take this message back to him: I am doing nothing out of turn. I did entreat Ultimecia, Kefka, and Exdeath to dispose of a specific Cosmos warrior-"
"Which warrior?"
"That new girl, Rosa. Our associations end there, entirely. If destroying a warrior we oppose has become somehow frowned upon between now and when Chaos . . . reprimanded me, then I will await your return with that addendum. Until then, I gleefully adhere to my duty."
"Ensure that you do. One mis-step . . . If we even suspect you of treachery, you will answer to me and by extension to Chaos. This is your last chance. Prove your loyalty without question, or be destroyed with the turn of the cycle. In fact, I task you with it. I'm sure Chaos would not object to a test of loyalty."
"Of course, I would expect nothing less from Chaos and his pet. Now run along home to your master."
Garland turned away, but paused halfway as though an extra thought occurred to him. He turned back and said, calmly, gravely, "He is your master as well."
He disappeared with that.
The Emperor sighed out his breath and sat back down on his throne. So, it was to be a task, was it? And it could not have come at a worse time. He'd have to put his ultimate plan on hold, and to do so would put his payment on hold. It would not endear Ultiemcia to him.
At least Rosa was dead. He allowed her to side-track him for too long already. He took her knife in his hand and turned it around, inspecting the jewels on it. Now he could focus on other things.
He needed a new plan. Something that would satisfy both Chaos in the short-term, and his goal in the long-term. Something just violent enough against Cosmos that Chaos would lay off, and something insidious enough that Chaos would rot from the inside out.
He needed to make it big. A large to-do that many people knew and saw him working on. It needed to be obvious, like a parade or a show. Large events always overshadowed and distracted from the smaller deals. He could use it to cover up additional preparations for his eventual goal. In the meantime, he would lie low. He could not risk anyone's wrath while he worked, least of all Chaos and Garland's. He was oddly excited for it. He had a talent for manipulation, as Ultimecia pointed out, and these kinds of plans were his specialty. He lived for planning, and now that Rosa was dead he could use his talents for better pursuits.
He leaned back and rested his back against the throne. He would need time, and now that Rosa was good and dead he felt as though he had it.