As Isha stepped out of the fortress for the first time, surrounded by Custodians, the first thing that hit her was the air. It was incredibly toxic, though that didn't bother Isha, at least not physically. Her body easily filtered and purified the pollutants she was inhaling. Yet she couldn't help the pang of sorrow in her chest as she tasted the poison, and saw the dark grey skies clouded with dust and ash. This world was not beyond healing, but it was in dire need of it.
There was a time Isha could have cleared the skies and air across the entire planet with a snap of her fingers. Now, even if the Emperor were to remove the bracers constraining her power and allow her to try...well, she thought she could perhaps still clear a large part of the local continent, but certainly not the entire planet.
Looking around, Isha could see that they were on a vast platform extending out of the fortress's upper floors. There was a veritable fleet of airships of all shapes and sizes everywhere, as well various towers and stations clearly meant to be manned and maintained by people receiving and seeing off airships. And, Isha couldn't help but note wryly, most of the vessels and buildings were designed rather ostentatiously and painted bright gold. There were also grand symbols in bold crimson and black across the platform, on the various towers and ships, but also on proud flags, the most common being an eagle, likely the Emperor's personal sigil, or the symbol of the Imperium as a whole.
Isha suspected the platform was normally a hub of activity, but at the moment, there was no one around except a few dozen Custodians standing guard. And beyond that, the entire platform was cloaked in the Emperor's power, with vast, potent wards layered around the entire area.
Clearly, it had been specially prepared for her arrival. How delightful.
And there was the Emperor himself, striding out of the largest tower and towards them.
"Isha." The Lord of the Imperium greeted, stopping a few metres away from her. "I hope you are prepared for our trip."
"I am, your majesty." Isha responded politely, though the way the Emperor's eyes narrowed ever so slightly made it clear he had noticed how she neither bowed nor inclined her head as she had on previous occasions. And he wasn't the only one. Isha could feel the subtle bristling of the Custodians around her, deeply buried as those emotions were under their conditioning.
The Emperor didn't comment, however. "Then it is time for us to depart." He said instead.
"Of course." Isha nodded. "Which ship is ours?"
The Emperor's lips twitched slightly as he clasped his hands behind his back. "We are already on the ship."
As he spoke, there was a thunderous roar as the engines of what Isha had initially thought was just a landing platform sprang to life. With the impossibly sharp eyes she had shaped for herself, Isha saw four massive turbines emerge from the sides of what she now realized was a massive airship and begin spinning. With a slight tremor, the ship detached itself from the side of the Emperor's fortress, gradually but steadily picking up speed as it began to move away.
"Come, we have much work to do. " The Emperor said, striding back towards the tower he had emerged from, a slight but undeniable aura of smugness emanating from him. Isha followed, even as she had to stop herself from rolling her eyes at his theatrics. She doubted that he had been trying to impress her, exactly, but he was apparently just as incapable of not making a performance out of everything he did as Asuryan had been.
Entering the tower which she marked most likely to house the central command station, Isha was faintly surprised to see that it was not as garish as the outside. It was luxurious, yes, with wide, well-lit corridors and rich, red carpets that hushed every step, but the walls were painted a much more subdued shade of yellow and mostly bare of any ornamentation or paintings.
The Emperor led her deeper into the vessel for several minutes, until they finally arrived at their apparent destination. Stepping inside the room, Isha immediately realized this would likely be her new dwelling, the design similar to the rooms she had inhabited previously, with the notable difference of a fairly large window, albeit one with wards over it.
The Emperor turned to face her, his hands once more clasped behind his back. "As I'm sure you've already guessed, these will be your new chambers." He said matter of factly. "However, unlike at the Bai-heng hive, you have my permission to freely move aboard this vessel for the most part, though there are some restricted areas under guard by the Custodes, who will turn you away if you attempt to enter."
"I understand." Isha replied, wondering if this was the Emperor's attempt at a peace offering. "May I ask when I am to begin work?"
"In a few hours." The Emperor responded, confirming her suspicion this was probably an attempt at smoothing things over after their last conversation. Ordinarily, she'd have expected him to insist that they begin work immediately. "I have other matters to attend to, but in the meantime, you may explore the vessel as you wish."
"Of course."
The Emperor nodded briskly. "Then I will see you soon." He left, not shutting the door behind him in a probably deliberate gesture. After a moment's thought, Isha decided to go back outside. She had spent long enough trapped inside a building, and even if this was almost certainly part of some scheme by the Emperor, she had no cause not to take advantage of it.
Humming to herself, Isha walked through the corridors, idly noting the presence of several monitoring devices, as well as the Custodians posted at various strategic positions, clearly meant to keep an eye on her. Perhaps she should have been angry, but even as irritated as she was with the Emperor right now, it seemed petty to resent him for such simple precautions.
Emerging out onto the top of the ship once more, Isha looked up, appreciating the sight of a sky for the first time in years. Polluted and toxic as it was, it still felt good to have something to look at which wasn't the ceiling of the Emperor's fortress. And besides, she had seen far more revolting and terrifying sights than a dark grey sky.
Wandering over to the edge of the ship, Isha peered down, seeing the vast city that surrounded the Emperor's fortress, feeling the thousands, millions, of sparks of life scurrying within it.
At this height, a human or one of her children was unlikely to have been able to make out any fine details, but Isha could see that the city was heavily fortified, as well as a strange mish-mash of various designs and architecture that added a certain vibrancy to the entire city. The two uniform structures across the city that she could see were the paved roads, and a network of artificial beacons, clearly meant to act as a replacement for the sunlight that could barely penetrate the clouds.
Isha liked it. Even from this far above, the city felt vibrant and alive. She could sense the joy and passion of many people in it, all of them determined to make something of their lives even upon this broken world. It reminded her of the first cities her own children had built in the days after the Krork had been broken. When secure fortifications were important, but no longer the sole priority, as her children had begun to live again and cast aside the exhaustion of the War in Heaven.
If this was the Emperor's attempt at a peace offering, it wasn't a bad one, Isha mused. She almost felt guilty for disobeying him and carrying out her plan just before they had departed.
Almost. It wasn't as if it was actually going to hurt him or his plans after all.
Author's Note: This chapter is shorter than they've been in a while, but I'm experimeting with dividing chapters into shorter chunks to see how that works out. If it doesn't go well, I'll go back to longer chapters.