Thanks to the power of Trisagion, two grand palaces stood in the new world. One of these was the new Novarista Castle, and the other was meant to be the new Isfaphan Palace. That creation made Matin smile, as it was just as luxurious as Novarista Castle, the way a ruler's home should be. And poor Queen Aldilla hadn't had it. Now she would.
People and Zeta were coming through to the new planet, and through the efforts of the Zeta's magic and some of Matin's, homes were appearing. Meanwhile, Matin sat in her new throne room before an assembled council of advisors. She already had Agiona, but it seemed only right that some new people take charge of leading Noigllado.
Alongside Agiona, Nox stood before Matin, as well as Hannes and Adhuk. Matin thought they had fair and just hearts and so would do Noigllado a lot of good. Sigma was there too on behalf of the Zeta, as Matin wanted to make sure their lives were happy.
Finally, her friend Lien stood at the end of the line. When Matin had escorted him and his mother to the new world, Sigma had revealed a shocking secret: Lien was half-Zeta.
"But how can that be?" Lien had asked. "The Zeta are a brand new race."
"You have human parents, of course," was Sigma's reply. "But you must know that your mother works at the microquasar."
It was because she had done so while expecting Lien that he had been influenced by the microquasar's power, affecting his biology.
"How else could you be so brilliant?" Sigma had said. "You are a perfect transcendental being. You can understand this universe better than anyone."
Upon hearing this, Matin had immediately appointed him as an advisor.
Today she was having a meeting with them and with Queen Aldilla and Shamshir. She wanted to negotiate the fair distribution of fertile soil, and a plan to make sure no one became impoverished. It was going well, except sometimes Matin thought she saw Zalieri frown. But before she could ask him what was wrong, he was smiling just as always. Was it just her imagination?
After the meeting, the members of Agiona were told to escort people to Aria te'Laria. Thus, Hannes was surprised when Zalieri walked right up to her.
"Can we talk? Alone?" he asked.
Hannes couldn't imagine what the matter would be, but she accepted nevertheless.
"Listen, Hannes," Zalieri said in somber voice. "We can't let just anyone enter this world. Some people are…bad. Sinful, you might say. Their hearts are corrupt."
"What?!" Hannes replied in shock. "No! We can't exclude people! Empress Matin is doing this for everyone on this ship. She wants to make their lives better!"
"Exactly," Zalieri replied. "Which is why we can't let in people who would incite warfare. If that happens, people will die. Crops will be destroyed. Poverty will rise, and a famine may even happen. Empress Matin's hard work would end in failure. The situation might become even worse than it was on the outskirts of Noigllado.
"But worry not, child. Agiona has been working on a way to purify their souls so they may come to this world one day. You saw the Flask Sea on your way to the microquasar with Prince Nox, did you not? It is there to purify the sinful souls. If they rest in there long enough, they will lose their evil impulses."
"Have you told Empress Matin of this?"
"No, child. She would disapprove. She does believe anyone could have an evil heart. Which is why, sadly, we must never ever tell her. But I will need you. If you could see into people's heart, we can make sure only the worthy come in."
Hannes thought, but in the end, she believed Zalieri must be right.
"I'll do it," she said.
"Thank you," said Zalieri. And as he walked away, he made sure Hannes couldn't see his smirking face. The plan was working just as he'd hoped; she'd believed him. The only obstacle left was convincing the Wills of the planet.
The new world was flooding into L'erisia's memory as she walked across its ground. Fresh grass, blue sky, warm winds – she had known and lived it, and here it was again.
In the distance, she saw someone walking toward her. It was a pale-skinned girl with blonde hair in a bun, who wore a black dress. As the girl drew closer, L'erisia saw that her eyes were the same green as the grass upon which she stood.
"Hannes Farrugia?" L'erisia asked. Being the Will of consciousness that she was, L'erisia knew anyone's name.
Hannes looked troubled, which saddened L'erisia. There should be no reason for sorrow now, she thought.
Then she noticed that behind the girl were two members of Agiona. One man had grey hair that fell to his shoulders, and his pale face was adorned with a pair of glasses. The other had long blonde hair and wore a mask that covered half his face, which was also pale.
L'erisia knew their names. They were Rouven and Lyudmil. And she could feel a dark aura coming from them both.
And then Hannes spoke to L'erisia.
This was all about something Zalieri had said, L'erisia learned. She heard talk of sinful people who might ruin the new planet but could be purified. The two men were backing Hannes up, but L'erisia sensed that they seemed angry and wanting for something, unlike Hannes, who had not a single feeling of that nature. Was there something else behind this? L'erisia knew all too well how corrupt some could become, and it was for this reason that she was wary of Rouven and Lyudmil. But she also knew that anyone's feelings could change in the blink of an eye.
Matin Catorce trusted them.
At last, L'erisia spoke.
"Very well. I will give you this, Hannes. With it, you may see what is in the heart of a person. I do hope it is only used for a just cause."
With that, the Will of the planet waved her hand and a black sword embedded with a magenta gem appeared, floating in front of Hannes, who claimed it.
Hopefully this wasn't a terrible mistake.