Date point: 8y 8m 2w BV
Capital city of Sordit
Great temple of Lauta
Within a conference room of the subclergy
With the door shut firmly behind her, the Excelsum took a greater interest in the floating coffin than she had when she’d first entered the room. Reaching into the depths of her memory, she thought back to that time so long ago. At first she had thought those experiences and the revelations they brought to be her curse to silently bear. Now, she was beginning to see them in a new light. A shadow of a plan was beginning to form within her mind. A daring plan. An exciting plan. Care was a necessity in what she was about to do. She gave a dry laugh at that – when was care not required in her actions?
Deep in thought, she circled the coffin – no that wasn’t right, what was it they had been called . . . oh, that’s right – she circled the stasis pod. She was the only one who knew, the only one that had been taken – as far as she was aware, at least. But she would need the guards to be in the room, at least initially. The matter of the fact was, she knew nothing of the creature inside the stasis field. It could be completely docile – useless to her if what she was considering was possible – or psychotically violent – an equally useless characteristic. There was nothing to do but to disengage the field and leap blindly ahead. She despised relying solely upon her instincts.
“Guards,” she snapped, “Stand at the ready. We do not know anything about this god”. She noticed several nervous glances in her peripherals. “The gods do not inform me of everything, Custos Scaan,” she said wearily without turning around. The Custos jumped, eyes wide with disbelief and confusion, doubtless wondering how she had known the thoughts that had so clearly been written on his face. If the rest of the guards were as easy to deceive as Custos Scaan then perhaps this wouldn’t be so difficult after all. “Even I do not know all things concerning the gods,” she continued, “And so I believe it would be prudent to be careful, don’t you agree?” Nodding hastily Custos Scaan lifted his heavy javelin, ready to strike at a moment’s notice.
Moving closer to the stasis pod she looked once again at its occupant, by all appearances merely looking. Using her body as cover, her paws felt over the edge of the stasis pod, searching for what she knew – hoped – must be there. After several long moments she found it – a button, disguised as part of the side, which would allow her to disengage the stasis field – at least, she was almost certain that’s what it did. She paused before pressing it.
“Wake,” she intoned dramatically, depressing the hidden control. For a moment nothing happened. Her confidence began to falter, but she didn’t let it show. Despite her control honed over many years it was still difficult to conceal her relief as she felt more than saw the stasis field deactivate. The ‘god’s’ eyes snapped open – revealing small, wild orbs, which locked immediately upon her face. With a deep bellow it vaulted out of the pod, looking frantically about, instantly registering that it was surrounded by beings with spears and superior numbers.
It was starting to look like her fear about its temperament being unsuited for her needs were true, but she refused to give up before she was absolutely certain. Either way she needed to intervene. The guards had been momentarily stunned by the creature’s sudden outburst, but she didn’t want to wait for one of them to overcome their shock only to attack in fear. Accidentally killing it was the last thing she wanted.
“We do not intend to harm you!” she rarely shouted for a reason – it hurt. Gods she was getting old. Her yell had come not a moment too soon. The creature had just drawn two long blades from a double sheath on his back, wielding them with his hands, of all things. Most alarmingly the ends had burst aglow with a bright, hot light. At her words it stopped, whirling about to glare at her. She swallowed – they were not friendly eyes. They were the eyes of a predator: hard, unforgiving, unmerciful, unloving, without compassion. And they were on fire.
“Yeah?” it snarled, “Then what’s with all the soldiers?”
At its words she felt a small victory – they were able to communicate! – she had thought that would be the case, but a small worry had been growing in the back of her mind. What if they had taken it out? She glanced at the guards and felt the victory go stale. The guards were staring in shock at the ‘god’. Not in the confusion of those who hadn’t understood the ‘god’s’ words, but with the confusion of disbelief. They had understood it – somehow – and that wasn’t how it was supposed to happen. The gods only spoke to her, after all. She cursed inwardly, keeping her face impassive – she hadn’t lost yet, she just needed to up the stakes. Turning to the senior guard, Captain Infelix, she swished her tail to grab his attention. “Captain, would you and your men leave us, please? Go to my personal consulting chambers and wait for me there. Do not speak to anyone about what you have seen here, I will be along presently to explain everything.”
The Captain started at her without understanding. He jerked as though coming from a trance, realizing what she had said. Still looking shocked and confused, he jerked a salute with his tail, “Yes Excelsum,” then motioned for his men to follow. As they left she saw a momentary glimmer in the ‘god’s’ eyes – a flash as the spinning inferno within them dimmed as it looked at the guard’s heavy javelins. It continued to look about, focusing on a the torches, her clothes, and even the stone walls. The door closed firmly behind the Captain and his men. Locking it, she turned once again to look at the creature, clearing her throat to regain its attention.
“Now do you believe me?” she asked imperiously as it focused on her, twin fires bursting alight once more.
“Sure,” it snapped impatiently, “I don’t know how it is that we’re able to talk, but I don’t care right now. Tell me where I am and where the other one like me is.”
That hadn’t been expected, “‘Other one like you’?” she asked.
“Yes, the other one like me!” it repeated with a shout, “The other escape pod, the cyborg, the dismembered freak that was only a few minutes ahead of me, heck maybe you’d think it the other ‘fallen angel’, whatever you call it, where is he?!”
So there was another one out there? One that the simple anikeeper who had found this one hadn’t seen. She wondered ruefully if that ‘god’ wouldn’t have been a little more stable than this one. If she was to have any success with this creature she would need it to be calm.
Voice as level as she could manage, she stared flatly into its eyes, “Shouting incoherently will not make answering your questions any easier. Please, gain control over yourself.”
Its eyes bulged in rage, face turning red, but it didn’t move. After several tense seconds of being sure she was going to die, it breathed, muscles relaxing, though the furnace of its sight never wavered. Voice tight with the effort it was expending to keep control of itself, the creature asked her again, “Where am I?”
“That,” she said with a slight smile, “I can answer better than most. You are on the planet Drakas, in the city state of Sordit, in the Great temple of Lauta, within a conference room of the subclergy.”
It looked about, scowling, “I’m on the planet?” it spoke quietly, almost to himself, “But the moon was orbiting a death world, how could that be unless –” its eyes widened, “Another death world race?” Falling quiet, it looked sharply up at her, peering closely, the fires wavering once again. Silence reigned for several long moments.
She cleared her throat, “If I interpreted your previous ravings correctly, you are looking for another such as yourself?”
The furious inferno returned. “Yes,” it said in a hoarse whisper, “You know where he is?”
“Why do you want to find him?” she asked, ignoring his question.
“To end him,” it replied, stating the obvious. She had already assumed the answer to that question through its actions, but she had still asked it to ensure its complete understanding of its position.
A smiled touched her lips, “And what would you do to find him?”
“Anything.”
Her smile widened, “Then I believe I may be of assistance.”
“Assistance?” it echoed, scowling, “I don’t need assistance, especially from an oversized kangaroo rat who, from the look of those guards and this room, probably doesn’t even know what electricity is. Heck, I bet you think the world’s flat. If you can’t tell me where the other one went then I can find him myself. I don’t need anything from you.”
She was getting excited, the moment of truth approaching – when she’d discover if her insane idea might actually work. She started hopping like a youth, filled with nervous energy. “I believe,” she began, “That you do not fully understand your situation. You are correct in saying I do not know what ‘electricity’ is – although only the most ignorant or isolated of our kind still believe the world is flat – but what I do know is that you cannot simply stroll from this room and begin searching this planet for your ‘other’. To answer your question,” she began as it opened its mouth to ask why, “It is because you are, as I think you already suspect, an offworlder on a planet that does not know mortal offworlders exist. If you were to leave this room, all who saw you would either believe you to be a god, or a demon. Scouring the land would be impossible with hordes of disciples or exorcists following you.”
If anything it looked more confused, yet its response was quick. “If that were true, then why don’t you believe the same thing? You can’t tell me I’m on a planet that doesn’t know offworlders exist after naming me exactly that only seconds ago. And if everyone would think I was a god or some other ‘divine being’, then what about you?”
“I,” she paused, choosing her words carefully, “have the advantage of an alternate perspective.”
Its eyes narrowed. “Explain.”
She had assumed her story would be necessary. Knowing that wasn’t going to make telling it any easier. Suddenly feeling weak, she sat, tail curled around her feet. “Many years ago I was on a pilgrimage as a part of my final journey to becoming the Excelsum, or highest of the priests, the voice of the gods. I was required to travel to the headwaters of the Nahura river as part of my final initiation. On foot, there and back, it is a journey of [9 months]. On the journey there, a light illuminated the sky – one far brighter than even the moon.”
She shivered, “What happened next I still do not completely understand, and that which I do I wished I did not. After the light I awoke to find myself in a room with iron walls, on an altar, looking up at –”
“You can skip this part,” it interrupted impatiently, “I know the drill. Little grey bipeds, tried to kill you, probably kicked them to death. Get on with it.”
Now it was her turn to be confused, and annoyed. No one interrupted her. “I do not know what you’re referring to, but my experience was nothing like that. There were no ‘little grey men’. The only beings in that place had iron skin, and no two were shaped the same. And they never tried to kill me, though sometimes I wish they had. Also, kicking had no effect against them, I was not strong enough.”
At her dismissal of her own strength it began to appear disconcerted. Looking to the ground it gave an experimental hop, barely getting [8 centimeters] off the floor. After its jump it started to look worried – and perplexed. For a moment she marveled at her own understanding of its body language and facial expressions, but then they were just another part of language. Why wouldn’t she be able to understand them?
“The beings of iron towered over me, even more so than yourself,” she gave its height an appraising glance, “And I was powerless against them. My kicks only moved them, but never broke them. They didn’t even try to stop me when I struggled, merely waiting for me to exhaust myself. But I am getting ahead of myself. When I woke upon the altar one of them spoke to me – it was the only one that ever spoke. It asked if I understood. I did, though the sounds that I truly heard from it were not of any language I knew. It told me it had given me something that allowed it to communicate with me. I asked what it was and where it had taken me. In answer, it asked me to follow it, removing the restraints that held me to the altar. That was when I learned my kicks were ineffective and useless. When I had tired myself so much I could hardly hop, two other metal beings lifted and carried me to wherever the one who spoke was leading. They took me to a room of windows that showed me I was right outside the entrance tunnels to my city of Sordit. But most shockingly I was far above them, floating in the skies. It was the first marvel it showed me.”
“From there it took me further away – completely off the planet, and showed me the heavens as I’d never seen them before. And there it told me. I didn’t understand what I was seeing, or how it was even possible, but it made me understand. It told me how nothing it did was unexplainable, and how what I saw was not the power of the gods nor some other foul magic or dream, but merely the use of machines so advanced they were beyond my understanding. It even said that it was not truly alive, but rather a conduit, a ‘drone’ through which a consciousness spoke. Its name was merely a number, for that was all the world, the gods, everything truly was: numbers.”
“But worst of all it showed me the ‘gods’. It traveled to them and showed me that the divines I had so long beseeched with my prayers and praised with my thanks – dedicated my entire life to – were nothing more than lumps of rock orbiting the sun; the sun which was nothing more than a large fire floating in the dark. Fire, something we learned to control and bend to our wills long ago. I was broken. Everything I believed in, everything I had once held as fact ripped away, creating a void and filling it with nothing. I asked the iron being what I was supposed to do, but it did not answer. I asked it why it was telling me these things, and it said it wished to learn about me. Learn how I thought, how vital my beliefs were to my ‘physiological processes’, how my ‘system responded to shock’, and the ‘hormonal and neurological minutia of my conscious mind’, something for which my ‘consciousness and understanding had been necessary’. Even now I do not know all of what it meant, but I remember its words, because they tell me that there was at least some purpose to what it did.”
She controlled her voice, dulling the anger that had seeped through her defenses, “And then it left me. Put me back where I had first seen that bright light. Apparently it would have killed me out of convenience if it hadn’t been for its final desire to learn the ‘long term effects’ of its actions. To ensure I did not try to pass off its existence as an extended fever dream, it left me with this,” she lifted the headdress she was rarely seen without, revealing a spiderweb of scars on her temple that were far too patterned to have been natural, “With this gift,” she replaced the headdress, “It left me in the desert to complete a pilgrimage to honor gods who wouldn’t know of my efforts. A pilgrimage so I could become the voice of rocks. Looking upon reality with new eyes, I wandered. Unfortunate events were no longer punishments for my ‘sins’, but merely happenstance or my own idiocy. Favorable occurrences were not rewards, simply luck or my own ingenuity. There were no ‘faithful’ or ‘heathens’, ‘forsaken’ or ‘blessed’, only those who turned the numbers to their favor and those whom the numbers worked against. Only once I realized that did I know what my purpose was.”
“I had been freed from the artificially created constraints of the ‘gods’ and their arbitrary rules. They only existed in the minds of those who believed in them, and I – primed to become the ‘voice’ of objects that wouldn’t care if I said it was their will that every man, woman, and child killed themselves – was in a position of unimaginable power. I could change my numbers. Armed with that knowledge I finished my pilgrimage, took up the staff, and ruled with the full authority of floating stones behind me.
“That,” she said with emphasis, “Is why I can speak to you as another mortal being, rather than a deity to be revered. But I am the only one – so far as I am aware – with this knowledge. Were you to wander aimlessly in search of your ‘other’, you would find nothing but fear and trembling. Regardless of how you responded, your every step would be hampered by those who wished to stand in the presence of a god or those who wished to cleanse the land of your blasphemy. Both would ensure the fruitlessness of your search.”
“But it doesn’t have to end like that. On your own you could not find him – there only being one of you and for the reasons I elaborated – but with my help and resources, he would be found within [a year] at most. You need my assistance – all I ask is yours in return.”
She waited, breath held as she stared intently at its face, searching for any hint of its thoughts. It deliberated for what seemed a lifetime – a full one of which she didn’t have.
“Answer me this,” it said after far too long, “If your authority is so absolute, why do you need my help? What can I offer that you can’t already make happen with your multitude of willing servants?”
The anger within her began to rise again, but now for a different reason. She grimaced, “Because my power is far from as absolute as I would have wished. The people’s faith has waned, over the years. They do not listen to me as they once did, with rapturous attention, but more with kind suffering, as though they listen to maintain appearances, rather than from any religious devotion. I had hoped what I saw was merely my senility beginning to appear, but my fears were confirmed when the people began talking of forming a republic. They would still follow the gods of course, but the gods pay little attention to the details of everyday life. In order that the daily needs of a growing city are fulfilled, they will take matters into their own hands. I assume the end result of the people’s work will be an oligarchy rather than a true republic, but regardless of the method, the result will be another decrease of my waning power. I need something to remind the people of how foolish it would be to place their trust in any less powerful than the gods. I need something tangible, hence my need of your services.”
“Alright, let’s say I believe you, what do you want me to do?”
She had difficulty restraining herself from jumping off the low [3 meter] ceiling in her excitement. Instead, she allowed a smile to once again grace her features. “That is simple. You are to do nothing without my permission and everything I tell you. I will never order you to harm yourself intentionally, but if you are to truly help me then I need a god who I can command,” she could see its distaste at her response growing the moment she said “permission”, and so hastened to finish, “By doing this you will give me absolute power and incredible resources, both of which I can use to find your ‘other’ more quickly. You do not have to follow my orders. But know that the closer you follow my instructions, the faster I can see to your needs.”
Her words had the desired effect as it thought over them. Several more moments passed before it looked her in the eyes with a gaze that promised retribution if she was lying. “You just got yourself a god. What do you need?”
When would she ever stop smiling? “I need you to make a grand appearance, but at the moment merely wait here. I need to take care of some guards who are waiting in my personal consulting chambers.” She hopped to the door, unlocked it, then paused before opening it. “By the way, your name is now Selvim.”
Date point: 1y 7m BV
Capital city of Sordit
After delivering his chilling news, Fratep had refused to say any more regarding his revolutionary goals, promising to explain everything once they were somewhere safe from prying ears. With that he’d bounded off into the night, leaving Eallva to follow him in silence, thinking frantically of what she’d heard.
Killing Selvim and the Excelsum? Why would he want to do that? Both were ordained by the gods, one is a god, how can anyone think of challenging their leadership? Fratep’s even a temple guard. Surely he knows all these things.
She would have no answers until Fratep stopped at wherever he was leading her. After a small time she realized he was taking her back home. Her mind immediately told her it was too dangerous, in case someone was following, but then she realized that if they were being followed, they’d probably already doomed their family. The thought didn’t particularly fill her with joy. The trip home passed in a blur.
She once again became aware of her surroundings when she jumped straight into Fratep, knocking both of them to the ground. She looked up, dazed, and saw that she was in her family’s burrow’s largest room. Fratep regained his feet with a grunt and a muttered curse, dusting himself off. Making himself comfortable on the dirt floor, he sat across from her, looking expectant, waiting. She realized after several moments that he was waiting for her to ask the first question. There really was only one.
“Why?”
He nodded, having come to the same conclusion of her.
“It’s complicated,” he responded lamely, “But I guess if it weren’t then it wouldn’t need to be explained,” he took a deep breath, pausing a moment to order his thoughts. “I suppose the simplest explanation is that we believe that Selvim and the Excelsum are the true rulers of Sordit and the allied cities, not the gods.”
If anything his explanation made her even more confused. Not ruled by the gods? Selvim was a god. Fratep seemed to see her growing confusion, and so continued without her prompting.
“I mean, not any gods that we would want to worship.”
Was that supposed to make it any clearer?
“Okay, here, look, you know we’re still fighting the Vilctun Barbarians in the North, right?”
She hopped in affirmation of her understanding. How could she not know, that was why her Father was somewhere other than home.
“Right, so tell me, why are we still fighting?”
She scowled, not quite understanding the question, but answering nonetheless. “Because they threaten our freedom and our very lives, and so we must protect ourselves.”
He hopped, having known what her answer would be, “Good, now tell me this: why are they still a threat?”
She opened her mouth to answer, but nothing came out. She couldn’t remember ever being asked that question. They were a threat because they existed, perhaps? But his question seemed to have a different purpose, so she remained silent, waiting for him to explain. He quickly obliged.
“The point is that they’re not,” he stated matter-of-factly, “The Vilctun’s power was broken over [7 years] ago. We beat them. We utterly annihilated them. The few of them left are in camps so small that using an entire army to hunt them down is ludicrous, so why are our forces still fighting up in the North? It’s because Selvim and the Excelsum need the war. It’s what put them in power, it’s what brought the sister cities together under their rule, and it’s the main reason we need Selvim, right? He came to help us drive the Vilctun away. But if the Vilctun are gone, then why do we need him? We’re fighting a war that doesn’t need to be fought because without it they would lose power. Does that sound like something a god would need to do? Would a god need some mortal war to remain relevant?”
She didn’t answer, she didn’t know how to answer. Everything he said seemed to make sense, and yet it also seemed so wrong. “So what if Selvim needs the war to stay in control?” she protested, “His leadership has brought nothing but prosperity to us, if he needs to drag a bloodless war out so that he can more easily help us, then what’s the harm in that. What detriment has he ever been to us?” Even as her words left her mouth she knew that she did not believe them. If Selvim was in fact prolonging the war, then he was keeping her father from her. A niggling of doubt wormed its way into her mind, and she had to remind herself that the war her father was fighting in was necessary. Despite her self-reassurances she was flustered, and Fratep was immediately back on the offensive.
“Has he truly helped us so much?”
She knew the answer to that, “Of course! Even if you discount the Vilctun, he cleaned up the city, lowered trade barriers, provided education, turned the Temple guards into a peacekeeping force. How can you say he hasn’t helped us?”
“Do you really think all those things were done for our benefit?” Fratep shot back, “No one has benefited from the lowered tariffs more so than the Temple. It gets its money from the people so the more money we have, the more it gets. He didn’t just provide education, he provided an education that he could control. Look at yourself, shocked because I’d even suggest that maybe Selvim’s leadership hasn’t been in our best interests. Sure they teach you how to read and write, but they also take the time to elaborate on how much better off we are under the thumb of the gods. And they don’t teach you everything. If you want to learn more then you have to join their personal army, the Temple guards. They make sure that anyone armed with real knowledge is safely under their watch and command. How easy do you think it would be for them to arrest any knowledgeable dissenters by charging them with negligence at their post? He cleaned up the city – that’s true – but anyone with the resources would have done that. This city’s name literally means ‘filthy’, and [7 years] ago it deserved that name.”
He paused for a breath. Eallva opened her mouth to argue each of his points, but he held up a paw, halting her words. “But even if that doesn’t persuade you, then what about the Challenges? What about the Ring? It just doesn’t make any sense! How could a fight to the death reveal a ‘great leader’? Being a great leader doesn’t just mean you’re strong of body – gods, you don’t even have to be that. A great leader would be someone who puts the best interests of the people above their own. They wouldn’t set up a government whose succession was based off of publically slaughtering the previous ruler. It would reflect the people’s wishes, and its sole purpose would be to serve the public. Right now, it’s the public’s job to serve Selvim and his loyal dog the Excelsum.”
Date point: 8y 8m BV
Dear Journal,
4 months
I slept fitfully in the spare chamber that was my home until the new ones were finished. Vancil – or the Excelsum as she liked to be called – had told me that they would take some time to build, and that hopefully they’d not be needed. At least we were in agreement when it came to that point – I did not want to be here any longer than was necessary. I had been so close. One more thrust and he would have died. He wouldn’t escape, he was probably still in stasis. He would be found. Tomorrow would determine how soon that would be. Tomorrow would put Vancil in power, and the search would begin. Filled with nervous energy, I had trouble sleeping. As I finally felt the first tendrils of drowsiness creep into my mind, a question popped into my mind, completely uninvited.
“Why are you doing this?”
Between the waking and sleeping world, I answered without hesitation.
To give Vancil the resources she needs to find the Mutant.
Happy with my answer I tried to return to sleep once more, but the question refused to allow me such.
“What will you do when you find him?”
Once again I answered instantly.
I’ll finish what I started.
I waited on the precipice of glorious unconsciousness, waiting in case another question was asked. It was.
“What are you willing to do to have that chance?”
Growing impatient, I could almost hear the growl in my mind as I answered.
Anything.
The question left, leaving me to sleep.
Council chambers of the thirteen cities, Sordit
“I demand 50% of all your trade as tribute, and no less. I believe, given the circumstances, such a thing is not too much to ask,” pleased with himself and in no way trying to hide it, the head representative of the city of Ghil leaned back in his chair, awaiting the response. It was almost instantaneous as every delegate from Imnact leapt to their feet, shouting in outrage at the exorbitant price required to secure the military aid of only a single city.
The Excelsum watched from her seat as one of the minor advisors to the representatives of her own city of Sordit. [1 week] ago she would have been in the grips of seething rage as she watched the idiot representatives squabble amongst themselves. Now she only looked on in bored resignation. The Vilctun Horde was nearly on their doorsteps with numbers so great that even a fool could see no single city state could hold against them unaided. This council had been called so that the cities could begin to work together to repel the invaders through unity and cooperation. That was until every city started demanding compensation for their aid from the three city states currently under the greatest threat: Imnact, Qin, and Sordit.
Compensation was hardly the word for their demands – they were asking that each city sell itself into slavery: economic, military, political, and even physical in one case. There was no point in repelling the barbarians when victory would in some cases be more painful than defeat. At least the Vilctun didn’t starve you before they killed you. And so here the representatives sat, shouting at each other and destroying any chance of cooperation, spelling death for themselves and the others through their own ani-headed short-sightedness. And this was the form of government her people wanted to emulate. Pitiful. As the Qin delegation hurled their own barrage of angry words and noise against the Ghil representatives, the Excelsum allowed a sly grin to crease her weathered features. Today was the last day of their useless infighting.
No sooner had the thought crossed her mind than the spectacle she had concocted over [2 long weeks] began. A colossal boom echoed throughout the council chamber, silencing the whining politicians far more effectively than any words could. All eyes turned to the source of the commotion, then widened as they beheld what had made it. Selvim, heaving with obvious effort, was opening the massive wooden doors that ensured the privacy of any meeting between the cities. What was astonishing was how he was doing it. The doors were intentionally dense, far too heavy for one to open it by nudging it with one’s head as with any normal door – at least not without injuring oneself. Two specially trained guards were required to work a mechanism hidden within the wall that would turn the enormous double-doors upon well-oiled hinges.
Despite his substantial size Selvim was still dwarfed by the twin portals, yet he stood, unassisted by the wall-mechanism, slowly pushing his way through into the private meeting with an incredible strength. She knew that it was only because of the leverage his particular physiology afforded him that he was able to manage it, but it didn’t keep her from being impressed. He may have been slow of reflex and absolutely dismal at jumping, but the strength of his arms and the pushing power of his legs was sizable. It was certainly enough to shock the delegates into silence.
They remained quiet as Selvim strode to the center of the chamber, his gliding steps eerily similar to those of a predator. Even though she knew he was under her tentative control, she still felt uneasy as she watched him. Neither his movements nor his oddly shaped weapons were those to inspire calm. The hush was one of unease. After an eternity he stopped, surrounded on all sides by the delegates, each holding their breath. He placed his long, mirror black staff before himself, looking through the crowd of faces, searching. Delegates shifted uncomfortably in their seats as his eyes passed over them. Then he saw her, and their eyes locked. Shifting his feet, he lifted his staff with one arm, pointing judiciously towards the Sordit delegation, particularly at a minor advisor, the Excelsum of their priesthood.
She had been waiting for this, yet she still felt a small shiver run down her spine in excitement of what she was about to do, at least she told herself it was excitement. Selvim was under her control. She stood, the brush of her fur against the stone seat as she rose unbelievably loud in the perfect stillness. All eyes turned to her, and she felt the usual calm she always felt when speaking before a crowd. After all, she had given many sermons before she’d been raised to her position. Still, none had been like this before. Resisting the urge to clear her throat, she spoke calmly, words echoing throughout the hall.
“This,” she said in introduction, “Is Selvim, messenger to the gods and chosen warrior of Ceades. He appeared to me during prayer, while I was beseeching the gods to guide us during these troubled times. I asked them to send us a great leader, one to whom they spoke, to show us the way. No sooner had I asked for these things then a bright flash of light all but blinded me. Once I could see again, Selvim stood before me. He told me that the gods heard my pleas, and were saddened. They were saddened because no such great leader existed amongst the people. Saddened because there were none devote enough, none dedicated enough for them to call upon. The minds of the people and their appointed leaders are too closed, they said, for them to use. Knowing this, and being merciful, they sent their emissary, a warrior for this time of war, to guide us until such a leader could be found.”
She began to hear rumblings in the crowd as the initial shock of Selvim’s entrance wore off, mutterings that she did not want to hear. Not every city in the hall worshiped the same gods as Sordit. If only they knew that their gods were only numbers. Numbers and stones. Their whispering would soon be silenced. “Most importantly, he said all your lives were forfeited,” now they definitely had something to mumble about. She pressed on quickly so they did not shout her down before she reached her point. “He said that your fighting amongst yourselves when death is upon us would have doomed our people were in not for his intervention. Your selfishness would have killed us all, and so he said he would destroy you. I, however, pleaded against this, and he relented. He said that so long as you follow his leadership – through me – your lives will be spared, and you will be allowed to remain in your positions of leadership amongst your people, under his rule. You shall be second only to him, and myself, for I am his voice. Resist him, though, and the consequences are entirely on you head.”
Once again a hush fell over the listeners as they mulled over her words. For herself, she was waiting patiently, wondering who the example would be. Her first guess turned out to be correct, as the head delegate from Imnact stood heavily to his feet. He was overweight, his fur soft and bushy. He was also a fool. That, however, was her own opinion, and one she kept carefully to herself. The people of Imnact, apparently, believed him to be a great man of the people and a keen politician, which showed precisely why the people should never be given the choice of who governed over them.
“Vancil, what is this?” he called loudly from his seat in the first and lowest tier of the chamber. She flattened her ears at the use of her name and not her title, but remained silent as he continued. “Have you found some poor beast to stand mutely before us as you tout its divinity? What proof have we of anything that you have said? If it’s truly a messenger to the gods, then let it speak, if it can understand us at all.” He finished with a final huff, glaring challengingly at Selvim. She had to stifle a laugh at the spectacle of the pudgy seed-eater staring down an obvious predator. Selvim responded exactly as she had told him to in this situation. She just hoped it wasn’t necessary more than once.
With soft, measured steps, Selvim approached the fluffy Imnact politician, never once breaking eye contact. The delegate’s low seat combined with Selvim’s height allowed him to look down upon his prey, until he was nearly within arm’s reach. As the entire hall watched, Selvim deliberately raised the butt of his staff until it was level with the representative’s forehead. They stood frozen in that pose for a breathless moment. The representative’s body violently jerked as a long black spearhead, edges blazing with the light of the sun, suddenly appeared at the end of the shaft pointed at the unfortunate delegate, punching through him with a sickening crunch and sizzle of cooking meat and fur.
The delegates nearest to their recently silenced brother shrieked in alarm, jumping away from the body and into those around them. Shouts echoed around the chamber, even louder than when those present had been squabbling over the lives of their constituents. Amidst the chaos Selvim calmly recalled the dark, glowing blade with the same suddenness with which he had summoned it, allowing the body to slump unceremoniously to the floor, fur still smoking. Even she was surprised by his actions, having never seen him do that before, and not having known what his staff was capable of. She had told him to kill any dissenters, but she had assumed he would have used one of the blades he carried on his back.
Still, his actions were, if nothing else, effective, for which she was grateful. Convincing him to kill dissenters rather than just “persuade” them had been an unusually difficult task. He’d seemed squeamish over killing those against whom he didn’t have a personal vendetta, an unusually moral sentiment from one within whom she had assumed no morality existed. In the end she’d needed to take her best five guesses as to whom the dissenters would be, and then tell him of how much each deserved any misfortune that fell upon them. She may have embellished upon some of their crimes, but if it worked then what was the harm? Ultimately she was saving countless innocent civilian lives by seizing control out of the hands of these idiots.