**Author's note: My views are still completely busted, but I'm submitting this early anyway because why not. Authors on this site (not just me) are not currently seeing any views on their stories because of a glitch.**
With Alberich at my side, I whistled happily as I walked through the palace. The two military guards walked beside me, and I could definitely feel embarrassment through their souls. It felt as if they were actually concerned for me, and I noticed that one of them even kept glancing my way, amazed by the strange light of my Corona.
You seem confident, Alberich telepathically observed as he walked beside me.
Yup, I replied. Just feeling better, I guess!
After the Harlequin performance, one of these escort guards explained to me that people were now busying themselves with filling ballrooms and dancing the night away to very proper live music being performed by small bands stationed in various places through the palace. He explained all of this with a strange awkward sadness, but when I asked him what had made his mood so obviously dark, he could not answer.
After entering one of the ballrooms a short time later, the two guards unlocked a large door at the rear of the space, and I was led down a dark hallway to a small study somewhat off the main wing of the palace. Immediately visible (and somewhat strikingly displayed), a very tall portrait of a beautiful dark-haired woman wearing a jeweled choker and a blue dress hung on the back wall next to another door, and before it, a long solid desk with a red leather chair made up the majority of this small space. The space was actually somewhat cramped and strange, and not the kind of place I would expect to speak with any sort of important personage. Alberich and I went to sit down in the two high-backed leather chairs facing the desk in this room until the beastman was instructed that this meeting was only for me.
I'll wait outside, my leader. I believe you can handle yourself, but call upon me if there is a problem, Alberich said to me in mind.
You got it, buddy, I replied with a smile and a flash of my Corona. One of the guards fought an urge to kneel before leaving, and now, I was alone in this study. The door closed heavily behind me.
I took a moment to observe this little space. It was somewhat small, only a few meters squared, and most of the space was taken up by the desk. To my left there was a heavy bookcase filled with ornaments and various books, and to my right, a large ovoid silver mirror hung on the wall. Behind the desk, another tall solid door stood closed to the right of the painting. Strangely, I now noticed that it was utterly silent in here, with no hint whatsoever of large party with music being played nearby. This room was soundproof, I noted with worry. Above, a gold and crystal lantern hung from the ceiling, casting a warm radiance through the room that did nothing to soothe the chilling suspicion I felt from being in this situation.
My eye was drawn again to the painting. The striking portrait of the woman in the blue dress behind smiled with an enigmatic knowingness on the wall behind the desk. This painting was about as tall as I was, and its presence was almost threatening. The woman in the painting stood before what appeared to be some kind of roaring big cat, and she fearlessly held a jeweled dagger in one of her hands to the throat of the animal. I noted that, even though this was just a painting, the dagger appeared somewhat similar to the diamond dagger that I had found back at Evanora's manor back on Levant. The whole atmosphere in here was off-putting, and I felt that I was in danger.
Observing this small space, I studied the bookshelf to my left. My breath caught when I saw a very familiar painted portrait in a frame, and then, I became even more unsettled.
The small portrait was of me.
Or more correctly, the painting seemed to depict Evanora. She was painted in an unsmiling formal pose with her head turned at a slight angle. This seemed to absolutely confirmed that Langwidere and Evanora knew each other well, especially if Langwidere had portraits of Evanora in her private studies.
On the opposite side of the wall, the flawless mirror offered creepy ambiance, and my intuition informed me that this wasn't a simple mundane object. Curious, I began to examine the mirror, but my observations were cut short when the far door finally opened, and an unexpected figure appeared.
Instead of Langwidere, I watched as Mombi breezed into the creepy silent room in her white slip dress. She appeared somewhat messy with her blonde hair done in a haphazard bun, and her clear green eyes seemed upset. Mombi glanced at me, and her eyes narrowed.
"I thought the governor was coming to see me?" I asked fearlessly, trying to ignore my danger sense. "Am I in trouble or something?"
Mombi sat down, and said nothing. I could feel a curious mixture of both resentment and jealousy radiating from her soul as she glared at me wordlessly for a few moments. There was something extremely unsettling about this woman, I noted again. After meeting her at the pool, I had noted that the Sinclair brothers actually appeared to be frightened of her. Mombi had a fearsome presence, and I was definitely now on guard. Feeling my stomach drop, I also remembered that she was also the one that had suggested to Evring that he give me that palace tour that ended with Ven Tristan trying to kill me. Crap. I'm definitely in trouble now, aren't I?
After a few tense moments, she finally spoke. "Well now, you seem to have made quite a splash this evening. So much so that some would actually have you killed for your efforts to upstage our beloved governor, you know. You have committed grievous social improprieties at this party, and now the guests are upset. They say that they have had dreams and visions of you as a literal Empress, so whatever you did to cause that was disgusting! Some guests are now even leaving, convinced that this world is in danger," she growled at me. Her features flashed with great anger, and then relaxed. "But, despite your heinous actions this evening, I now understand that you could be useful to the people of Evna, Tar Vigaz, and all of the Conglomeration of Ev. In your short time on this world, you have caused immense upheaval. I've been told that Traveler creatures such as yourself can do that, but I'm not entirely convinced you are such a thing, or even if they exist. But, in any case, Erika or Evanora, your ability to cause that sort of upheaval in a short amount of time signifies potential. And, in my point of view, potential like this could be useful."
"I already told you. I'm Erika, I promise," I insisted again. "Where is Langwidere?" I asked the advisor impatiently. This situation now felt incredibly dangerous, and I was now on guard. "I thought she wanted to see me, so why am I here with you instead? Either tell me what I did wrong or let me go have fun back at the party."
"Patience, my lady," Mombi replied, almost spitting the word lady and angling her chin upward at me in defiance. She swallowed and gritted her teeth before speaking again. The advisor calmed herself. "Be you either Evanora or Erika, the useful energetic potential is very much within you. While it is tremendously rude to upset a party so quickly and with such devastation, I see that someone like you can be useful. You certainly resemble a female representation of a particularly golden Imperial figurehead, and your charisma has beguiled many. Those in Langwidere's personal court even knew Evanora's face and held a familiarity with her. Even with that, somehow, some of these exceptional people have been mystically convinced of your so-called divinity. Even I can admit to that being impressive. Whoever and whatever you are, you've managed to influence and disrupt so much in such a short time."
What was this woman going on about? I cocked my head at Mombi. I watched as she shifted her weight, and leaned forward to me. I spied her right hand slowly moving under the desk...
Seeing this, I took a breath, and braced myself for a conflict. Mombi smiled mirthlessly, and drummed the fingers of her left hand on the desk. She wore a small red key on a gold chain on that wrist, and it clattered against the desktop with her motions.
"We only have a short time before the party sees that you are missing, so I'll make this short. I wish to use you as a new figurehead to influence the masses. Through our seers, we have discovered that our world may soon face a grave danger, and our government is doing everything it can to subvert any future peril, even if the actions may appear somewhat unsavory to ignorant outsiders. On top of this, the Sinclairs seek new invigoration in their leadership, and I believe that having a figurehead with your appearance would be a grand addition to this state. Something to inspire the people, you see. That's where you come in. Wouldn't you want to help a world facing danger? A world where Evanora's old friend Langwidere is asking for help?"
This was really strange, but I tried to stay calm. "So you want to use me for a coup, is that what you're saying?" I asked dubiously. Could I grab the Nemeses Argentum in time if I needed it? The cloak was somewhat bunched up beside me, and I realized that I could not.
The strange tension began to rise in this room. My intuition was drawn to Mombi's right hand, which was still hidden under her desk. A nearly-silent click was heard, and as my sense of danger continued to rise, I began to feel a migraine begin to bloom, and my breath became slightly shorter. I began to lightly cough. What was going on? Was I going to need to kill Langwidere's advisor now too?
"What is going on?" I asked immediately, letting my halo dance across my crown.
Whatever was making me cough apparently was not affecting Mombi, and she continued to smile. The advisor quickly answered: "You see, you will be rather attractive as a figurehead. With a make over, perhaps some cosmetic surgery, and some new manners, you could be very useful instead of disruptive. Not at all beautiful you understand but you have a certain aura of power I cannot deny. It is different than all other figureheads, and I intend to own it."
Mombi's hidden hand then reached forward like a serpent, displaying the jeweled dagger I had seen in the portrait! With a very fast swipe, I managed to reflexively dodge as the dagger sliced the air where my throat had been a split second before. My Corona fully ignited with light, protecting me by bending time itself to my will.
She had moved with a speed that even rivaled my own!
Time staggered to a more normal speed as I bellowed "I believe you will not!" in my powerful voice as the advisor recovered, and Mombi's eyes blazed with surprise! She then immediately went after me again, reaching over the table! I noticed that she moved with preternatural quickness, much faster than any normal human!
I recoiled from her second strike, feeling the wind from her dagger push against my chin and neck. She was very clearly going for my neck again! The chair I had been sitting toppled to the side as I jumped to my feet, and I began to fumble for the Nemeses Argentum. Not missing a beat, Mombi leapt over the desk to charge at me like an angry wildcat! With a coughing breath, I summoned my strength. Something was also making me dizzy in here, I realized. I could barely breathe! Despite that, I was able to summon a blaze of power to surround my right hand. Before the advisor could move to lunge a third time, I punched Mombi square in the face with my right hand before she could attack again. My strike landed powerfully, shattering the advisor's nose with a violently loud crunch! I reeled back defensively, and went to finally reach for the Nemeses Argentum, but before I could remove it, I gasped in surprise at the scene before me.
Looking down, I then saw that my angry punch had actually somehow decapitated Mombi, completely removing her head from her shoulders, and causing her body to fall limply to the ground! I had also hit her so hard that her body and head had also struck the creepy painting behind her, causing it to rip and fall to the ground!
"What the fuck!?" I cried out in my resonant voice! I staggered backward, completely stunned by what had just happened! I was still wheezing and disoriented as I dared to look over the desk. Yeah, I had just fucking killed Langwidere's advisor!
While I did not have much firsthand experience in decapitating people, my basic knowledge of human anatomy dictated that any such action would be a bloody, messy affair. Mombi's head lay on the floor, and while it had a bloody nose, there was absolutely no blood coming from her neck. Her body wasn't even bleeding either! What the fuck was all this about!?
Examining further with chattering teeth, a blazing Corona, and a burgeoning headache, I discovered that Mombi's neck was actually mechanical under her choker. Small sparks were now buzzing in the air of the study from the advisor's neck stump!
She was an android? I wondered in horror. What the fuck, man? I also then noticed that the Key around my neck had not reacted, and I had not drawn any soul into myself. This made absolutely no sense, as I had easily perceived emotions from Mombi's soul. What exactly was this woman? What just happened?
Are you well, my leader? Alberich asked me from behind the door. His psychic voice was somewhat distant. The two guards took me back to the party! There are now many guards watching the door we went through.
"That crazy bitch tried to kill me!" I audibly rasped, dazed.
I coughed again. My headache was getting worse and I felt as if I could not breathe at all! Something was definitely wrong with the air in here, I finally realized with certainty. Wheezing and dizzy, I quickly summoned the magic air shield spell that I had learned from the consumption of Nabopolassar's soul. Soon afterward, I was breathing normally, and my wits came back to me. The click I had heard earlier, I suspected, was probably Mombi flicking some switch to fill this sealed room with some kind of gas, and since that bitch wasn't entirely human, she knew it wouldn't hurt her. It still didn't explain why her soul wasn't devoured. Maybe I had been mistaken in what I had felt earlier?
My leader, tell me that you are safe! Alberich pleaded to me again.
No! Mombi just tried to kill me! I just killed her but... I hastily replied to the beastman as I looked at the decapitated remains strewn on the study floor. How would I even describe this? Something is really fucked up with this world, Alberich! Stay right there and don't let anyone take you anywhere! I've had it with these people!
I angrily looked down at the bloody head of the advisor. Her neck was still lightly sparking, but at the same time, her nose was bleeding. I took a few deep breaths, and found that I was now furious. Another assassination attempt! The insult of this all, I thought with a hiss! How dare she!
"Look what happens when you fight against me, foolish heretic," I bitterly snarled in my resonant Empress voice as I kicked Mombi's head across the study floor, easily caving her cheek in. It bounced off the wall with a satisfying thud. Not stopping to think about why I had called Mombi a "heretic", I then turned around, and went to open the door to leave. Not terribly unexpectedly, it was now not only locked, but hermetically sealed! Wow, the advisor had definitely planned this! Because the room was soundproofed, no one would hear me scream. If I had been a normal human, or even a normal average psyker, I realized that I would have been doomed. Even with my ability to bend time around, crazy Mombi had been so fast that she had almost succeeded in killing me!
I reached inside my cloak, and removed Word Bear's handy skeleton key. With a heavy click, the door opened. Air rushed in, and I then realized that this wasn't poison gas, but that the advisor had simply removed much of the air in the study. Mombi had intended to not only stab me, but suffocate me into submission!
The reasoning behind this new assassination attempt didn't make much sense, I contemplated as I walked through the door. Mombi's musings about needing a new influential "figurehead" were confusing, and I had initially thought that she wanted me to help her with a coup, but that was proven wrong when she started trying to literally cut my head off instead. Maybe the advisor was just a machine that had simply gone crazy, or maybe Langwidere just didn't want to bother with getting her hands dirty in dealing with me?
I closed the door behind me, and it locked itself. What was I going to do now!? This was the second attempt on my life at this party, and now, I had killed two people! And Mombi wasn't just some drunk Navigator nobody with a grudge against me, but an important state advisor! Her absence would definitely be noticed.
I didn't bother to lower my Corona as I strode down the darkened hall back to the party. The experience had somewhat energized me, and I was filled with indignation. I could sense that Alberich was now trying to get the guards to let him through to me. A mental image from the beastman illustrated that there were four guards standing before the door. The guards all shook their heads at the beastman, denying him passage.
As I quickly made my way down the hall (and probably looking like an angry human torch), a strange rush of emotion and terror then struck me like a heavy blow to the chest! I paused, needing to catch my breath again, and gripped my heart. Something terrible had happened nearby, and it felt as if my Warp sense had perceived it. While I couldn't pinpoint what had caused this strange emotional whiplash, the echo in the Warp was very powerful. Many human souls had cried out in indelible horror before expiring in agony! I stood breathing deeply in the hall for a short time before coming back to myself. Worry about that later. I've got enough on my plate right now.
Alberich stood angrily before the guards as I used my skeleton key to open the door. The guards turned around, deeply surprised! I sneered as I felt their souls shine with fear!
I pinned each of these guards with my gaze, knowing that I was extremely intimidating at the moment, and closed the door behind me. "So boys, the meeting with Mombi is over. I'm afraid it didn't go so well. There's just so much stress at this party that the advisor lost her head from all the stress, so we weren't able to have a good conversation!" I growled at the guards, who recoiled from my angry presence. One guard even involuntarily fell to his knees, and began to tremble before me.
The gold light of God! She will kill us all! Retribution! the kneeling guard repeated in his mind with great fear. While this part of the ballroom was somewhat hidden in a far corner, I could still tell that I was very visible, and that my Corona was still fully and furiously ablaze. So much for trying to not draw attention to myself, I thought with cold amusement. Honestly, I didn't care that much about my own visibility right now, but still, having these guys as witnesses to what I had just said wouldn't be too smart. And so...
You never saw me here. Tell Langwidere you couldn't find me. Go away,I psychically commanded the guards, reaching into their minds and scorching the last ten minutes from their memories. I then withdrew my light as the four men scurried away.
What did you do? Alberich asked me, his ears down in worry. Looking over the beastman's shoulder, I saw a handful of partygoers talking and gesturing toward me. Some were laughing, but more than a few seemed to radiate fear.
Is she... is she the Emperor's sister? someone nearby worried.
"Is there a problem?"I growled angrily, crossing my arms ahead of me, and tapping a talon of my lightning claw against my arm. "You folks want to be purged for heresy? Take a picture. It lasts longer."
The souls of the people standing around shimmered with fear once again, and quickly retreated from this corner of the party. At least no one was laughing at me anymore, I thought with morbid satisfaction.
I took a deep breath, and sat down on a nearby chair that stood against the wall. Consciously withdrawing my radiance, I sighed. I felt a small nosebleed begin to emerge, but it wasn't that bad this time. I was somewhat surprised that I actually did not feel that perturbed from this encounter. Mainly, I felt annoyance and indignation. I was just so done with this bullshit city. Alberich stood nearby, curious about what had happened to me.
"What... what did...?" the beastman started to ask.
"Mombi, the governor's advisor, just tried to kill me in a soundproof room. She went on and on about wanting a new figurehead, whatever that means, and then she tried to shank me. I punched her head off, and found out that she might have been an android or something. I do not understand what is going on here. None of what she said made any sense," I said, shaking my head. "And, I also felt... I-" I thought back to the large negative psychic echo I had perceived in the Warp. "I also just sensed that something really bad just happened completely unrelated to all this. A lot of people just died. Visions of smoke and fire."
Alberich gasped. "You punched...?"
"Yeah. She tried to cut me with a dagger first, so it's her fault. The room you saw was sealed up, and she even pushed a button to remove the air so I'd get weakened, I think."
The beastman paused, and I could tell that he was completely shocked. After a short time, he turned to me, and said in mind: Perhaps speaking of this audibly is not the best course of action.
"I don't know, man," I groaned wearily. "After all the shit I've been through, I'm just completely done with caring about dumb shit and being afraid, but you're probably right. But seriously, I still have to talk to the governor, so I'm thinking I'll just sit around here and wait for her to come find me. I don't feel like socializing much anymore."
"I can entirely sympathize," the beastman replied, leaning his body against the wall as he watched the partygoers pass by. It appeared as if he was guarding me through his body language.
I stretched my arms as I sat, secretly pleased at how hard I could now hit. Not only could I dent living metal inside an eldritch spaceship, but I could also punch people's heads off, so good for me. This was definitely good for my confidence. If my usage of Sight ever let me down, I could always just cast the magic spell of "Fist" to win battles. I turned to Alberich again, and said, "Yeah, so, after I finish with that little chat, I'm thinking we should get the hell out of here."
Do you think Langwidere just tried to have you killed? Alberich then cautiously asked me in mind as he watched the rest of the party pass by. Even if you committed a social faux pas, overt murder is quite the overreaction. Perhaps a rogue action?
Not sure, honestly. I'm still really confused as to what happened, but I still need to talk to Langwidere in person. I made a promise to a bunch of people that I would fix her and make sure that cult gets arrested.
Alberich nodded again as we both watched the groups of wealthy partygoers dance and socialize. The beastman then bowed his head at me, and spoke in a low, serious tone, "Wherever you go, and with whatever you do, my oath holds true, meine Führerin. My honor is my loyalty."
"Whatever," I replied with a sigh. I was just so done.
After sitting around for a few minutes staring into space and waiting for the governor to find me, I watched as a guard wearing a very formal officer's outfit walked up to the mezzanine above the ballroom. He made some sort of gesture, and the music stopped. The dancing partygoers all halted, and looked above, curious.
"My friends, we would like you to remain calm. But, we regret to inform you all that there's been an incident," the guard said into some kind of small microphone on his wrist.
"Oh shit," I whispered to Alberich, who stood next to me. Did they find Ven Tristan or Mombi? Was I in trouble already?
A soft worried murmur rushed through the hall like a dark whispering wind.
"Honored guests, we'd like you to remain calm and present in this room. Governor Langwidere will be here shortly. She is going between ballroom to ballroom, and will be here to attend to you all momentarily. She has an announcement to make."
That sounds bad, I thought. I blinked, and in a strange flash of intuition, I again sensed an area of great smoke and fire somewhere. People were hurt and screaming! Many human souls were dead, dying, or gravely injured! My intuition reached further, searching for the song it sang in the Warp, curious as to what happened. I closed my eyes, and focused my Sight, letting it point me in the right direction like a compass. I followed the trail of emotional devastation as it fed daemons with a feast of human suffering.
Terrorism... I felt and saw the word in explosive agony. Somewhere in Evna, there had been a terrorist attack! And the culprit, I immediately knew, was the goddamn Family of Liberty!