Greg shifted uncomfortably, adjusting his new suit over and over again as he tried to make it more comfortable, failing every time. The thing just felt so restrictive! Too much fabric, too many buttons, too much everything. How something like this became the standard formal outfit was beyond him.
"Would you stop fidgeting?!?" Andrew grumbled, smoothing down his own suit nervously. "Just looking at you is making me anxious."
"I'm not anxious, I'm uncomfortable!" Greg complained.
"I didn't say you were anxious, I said you were making me anxious." Andrew retorted, his expression twisting. "If you can't even handle a suit, how are you going to handle the freaking Emperor!?!"
"Same way we handle everything?" Chris shrugged. "Poorly, but irresistibly."
"That's my point!" Andrew exclaimed. "This isn't some minor authority figure, this is the Emperor of half the freaking world! This isn't something we can just bullshit our way through!"
"Not the world…" Thomas muttered. "The continent, maybe. Honestly, they haven't done much to really explore, now have they?" He'd seen a few maps and the known area was vaguely North America shaped, though South, or at least Central, America was missing, and it was quite a bit larger than it was on Earth. It didn't seem like anyone had managed to find a way to cross the oceans yet, though, so that was all they had. Though, now that he thought about it, the oceans in this World were probably terrifying.
Andrew pinched the bridge of his nose. "You know what I mean! We're dealing with one of the most powerful and influential people here! We can't scare him into going along with whatever we want!"
Chris paused. "Huh… is that what we've been doing?"
"It's definitely what we did in Obleck." Greg commented. "I'm pretty sure Lithmara has nightmares about you."
Chris frowned. "Why would she have nightmares about me?"
"That fact that you don't know is part of the problem." Andrew groaned. "Look, we can't- if we mess this up, we could turn the entire Empire against us! Do you guys want to be at war with the Empire?!?"
"I suppose not." Chris shrugged.
"It would make things awkward with Gloria…" Greg muttered.
"I actually think Annie might appreciate it." Thomas cocked his head thoughtfully. "Still probably not a great idea though."
"That's the best I'm getting out of you guys, isn't it?" Andrew grumbled, before letting out a sigh. "Look, all I'm saying is that we should at least try not to offend anyone today, alright? No random interjections, no ignoring everyone while we go off on a completely unrelated topic, no laughing at people, and definitely no explaining how easily we could fuck everyone over or how little they can do to us! We want them to like us, not fear us!"
"I dunno… I think they should at least fear us a little." Greg retorted. "Hard to get respect if people don't think you're a little dangerous."
"Just enough to engender a healthy level of respect." Chris nodded in agreement.
"Guys, come on!" Andrew threw up his hands in frustration. "They already fear us enough! If they didn't, they wouldn't have rushed the meeting so much! What we need to do now is make it clear they can work with us!"
Greg paused. "Well that's fair." He agreed with a shrug. "So… how do we do that?"
Andrew hesitated. "Well… don't do all those things I said earlier, to start. Then… I dunno, focus more on how we can help? How most of us can help anyway…"
"Dude, explore your damn ability." Thomas rolled his eyes.
"I'm working on it!" Andrew snapped.
"Alright, so minimize the scary stuff, emphasize the helpful stuff." Greg nodded. "I think I can do that."
"I may need a list of what's scary and what's not." Chris frowned.
"I think we should just have you not talk again." Thomas sighed, patting him on the shoulder. Chris shrugged and gave him a thumbs up. "Unless someone asks you a direct question… we don't want people thinking you're ignoring them. Think you can pull that off?" Chris frowned, before wiggling his hand at him.
Andrew shook his head. "Let's just get this over with."
*
Monroe led the four of them into a grand throne room with eight large columns, four on each side, a guard standing at attention by each one. Behind the columns, a small crowd mingled, eyeing the four of them strangely as they arrived and stood waiting for the Emperor to arrive. "All kneel before the Unified Emperor, Richard Licenster!" A man announced loudly, the entire court kneeling as a man in ornate robes entered, striding towards the elaborate throne sitting on a dais.
"He said kneel!" A guard snapped, glaring at the four who hadn't even budged at the announcement, except Andrew who had shifted awkwardly at being the only people standing. Monroe began to sweat as he kneeled next to them.
"We don't kneel." Chris replied simply.
"You kneel or we make you kneel!" The guard retorted as he and another guard stepped forward threateningly.
Chris glanced at Andrew. "They're threatening us. Can we threaten them back?"
"No!" Andrew exclaimed. "Just- is it so bad to just kneel?"
"Bad precedent. Not doing it." Chris shook his head. The guards' eyes narrowed as pressure began to spread from them, attempting to force them to their knees.
"Enough. All may stand." The Emperor spoke in a soft voice that carried through the room, the guards immediately retracting their Domains and returning to their positions. "Please, approach." The Emperor waved for them to come forward. The four shared a few looks before doing so, stopping just before the dais. "It is a pleasure to finally meet the Eternals we've been hearing so much about." He greeted them with a smile. "However, before we begin, we believe one of you has our son?"
Chris nodded, opening a portal to his world. "I'm not- oh, Father!" The fourth prince immediately kneeled the moment he noticed the Emperor.
The Emperor sighed. "Henry, why have you insisted on remaining in this man's world? We know he has provided several opportunities for you to leave."
Henry coughed awkwardly. "Father, I- this space is- the laws are so clear in here! My understanding of space has grown by leaps and bounds!"
"Is that so?" The Emperor raised an eyebrow, before shaking his head. "Be that as it may, you've spent enough time away from court and you have responsibilities to attend to. Once you have handled your duties, you may request permission to return to this world for training if you wish."
"Yes, Father." Henry sighed, stepping through the portal and giving the Emperor a bow before leaving.
"Now," the Emperor began, refocusing on the four of them, "we believe you have some concerns you wished to address?"
Thomas nodded. "That's a good way to put it. We accidentally discovered an abandoned base that had been testing a new weapon capable of devastating amounts of destruction. Clearly something people would desire to use on the monstrous races in an attempt to eradicate them. However, we believe that the use of such weapons would do more harm than good, even disregarding the environmental impacts. The monstrous races can't cease their raiding of nobles, which means peace is not an option. As such, by introducing a potentially existential threat, the monstrous races will be forced to respond in kind by developing their own weapons, or disregarding the Line all together and invading your land in their totality. The Line only exists as long as both parties are satisfied with it. If you push the monstrous races too far, they will push back."
The Emperor nodded slowly. "Yes, our 'peace' with the monstrous races is predicated on the mutual agreement to respect the Line and avoid total war. Any particularly threatening acts on our part would threaten that agreement. An unfortunate state of affairs that some in our Empire cannot seem to remain satisfied with." The Emperor sighed, shaking his head. "Some cannot stand the idea that they are subject to loss in any way, even if that loss is required for the benefit of another."
"So… you agree with us?" Thomas asked hesitantly.
The Emperor nodded. "We do. However, our agreement is only part of what you need to avert the use of this weapon. If enough senators agree, then our hands are tied, despite our reservations."
"Right." Thomas nodded. "Well, that's all we had then, isn't it?"
"Pretty sure." Greg scratched his head. "Man, seems like a waste of all this build up… I expected at least a little pushback."
The Emperor let out a small cough. "Gentlemen, we still have our concerns to address. Namely, the fact that your influence, while currently minor, has the potential to grow beyond any other force in this land, including our own. This is… a concerning situation. Particularly since you have remained relatively unknown up to this point, and have demonstrated a staunch resistance to falling within the existing authority structure."
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Thomas's expression twisted, remembering the last time an authority figure had an issue with how large his influence was growing. "And what do you propose we do about this?"
"For one, we believe there would be a benefit to an increased level of interaction between you and our officials." The Emperor replied. "Simply a matter of communication, of course, keeping us abreast of your actions and the… consequences thereof. This would also allow us to communicate any situations which would benefit from your unique capabilities."
Thomas blinked. "We could do that." He nodded tentatively. "Anything else?"
The Emperor shifted uncomfortably. "We would like to discuss how to address any… conflicts which may occur between you and our people. For example, a certain prominent businessman has been rather vehemently petitioning us to address the matter of you… abducting his son. There's also the matter of the people you… recovered from the base in the Northern Wastes. You must understand that allowing you to simply act as you will among our people would put us in a difficult position, but as we are to understand, we would have difficulty extracting any sort of recompense for those who believe they have been wronged."
"We abducted someone?" Greg frowned.
"I think he's talking about Damselia." Andrew whispered, his expression twisting slightly. They had essentially kidnapped her… well, Chris had. Fuck this could go badly.
"If you would be amenable, there is a system we already have in place for matters such as this, when certain individuals who have garnered high enough levels of power that their existence is too beneficial to subject to the normal avenues of justice." The Emperor continued. "Instead of being sent to prison, we ask these individuals to perform certain services for the Empire free of charge. Eradicating dangerous dungeons, cleansing Ruins, clearing danger zones, patrolling the Line, or anything else the Empire may have need of."
"Like community service?" Greg asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Precisely." The Emperor nodded. "This would allow those you have wronged to seek justice, while you may still retain your independence, and the Empire may still retain your services."
"What if we don't agree we did anything wrong?" Chris asked, unable to stay silent at the thought that someone would actually insist he deserved to be punished for handling Derrik. That man was a stain and he deserved to be wiped away.
Andrew let out a small groan as the Emperor grimaced. "If you insist on forcing our hand, then we would be required to judge you as criminals, placing bounties on your heads. The enforcers of the law would be required to eliminate you on sight. Our Empire would be at war with you. This is a situation we would rather not see occur, as it would only cause strife and sorrow, with no true justice done."
"Chris, he's honestly not being unreasonable here." Thomas interjected. "You can't have people who disregard the law just running around. That's anarchy. So he needs some way to punish us, and if we don't agree to something reasonable, then his only option is to fight us. Do you really want to fight the whole Emperor over some dick?"
Chris grimaced. "No… but I at least want a trial."
The Emperor nodded. "Of course. You will be afforded the same rights as any of the Empire's citizens."
Chris grunted as Thomas quickly moved the conversation along. "So, we've dealt with communication and justice. Anything else you need to address?"
The Emperor sighed. "We suppose it is time to address the largest of the sticking points between our mutual interests. Namely, this 'Eternal Army' of yours."
Thomas's expression twisted. "Yeah, I figured that was going to come up."
"It would be unreasonable of us to ask that you cease recruiting, or to prevent anyone from willingly joining this organization." The Emperor continued. "However, we cannot simply allow this organization to function within our borders without any oversight, therefore we propose you officially form the Eternal Army as a guild. You will be required to provide a complete member list, as well as an accounting of any activities your guild undertakes. In return, your guild will be granted a Senate position, you can apply for guild land in any major city in the Empire, and you will be granted certain official authorities which our administrators can inform you of later."
"Wait… guilds get senate seats?" Thomas asked incredulously.
The Emperor blinked. "Of course. It would be ridiculous to allow such an overarching organization to exist without giving them the requisite representation."
Thomas just stared at the man for a moment, before turning to the others. "I don't have an issue with that. You guys?"
"As long as I'm not the one who has to deal with politics, I'm okay with it." Greg agreed.
"Same." Andrew nodded.
Chris shrugged, but gave Thomas a nod. He wasn't exactly excited about the idea of being under the authority of the Empire in any sense, but he understood the necessity of it. He paused for a moment, wondering where this growing resistance to others' authority was coming from. It wasn't because he wasn't willing to recognize authority… he'd been through boot camp and willingly placed himself into the authority structure of the Scouts with little to no issue. He supposed it was more about the idea that people might think they could force him to do things when they clearly couldn't. It just seemed ridiculous to act like things were different than they actually were.
Thomas turned back to the Emperor. "Then that's that. The Eternal Army will be a guild."
The Emperor released a sigh of relief. "Wonderful." He stood to his feet, stepping off the dais to the gasps of the surrounding crowd. "May we have a long and productive partnership." He smiled, holding out his hand to Chris for a shake.
Chris raised an eyebrow, before taking his hand. The Emperor then moved to Thomas, then Greg, and finally Andrew. However, as Andrew took the man's hand to shake, he paused, frowning as he stared at the man's core. There was something… different about it. Like- well, kinda like Narita's core. "Are- you an Immortal?" Andrew asked, and the Emperor froze.
"Pardon?" He asked nervously. "Why would you think I'm an Immortal?"
"Well, I've only met one other Immortal, but your core looks just like hers. Like your true aura is caged inside." Andrew pointed out.
"I- I don't know what you're talking about." The Emperor shook his head.
"Hey… where'd your 'we's go?" Greg asked, narrowing his eyes at the man.
"I- we- this is ridiculous, an Immortal wouldn't be able to use the System as I- we do!" The Emperor protested.
"And how do you know that?" Thomas growled.
Chris placed a hand on his shoulder. "Calm down. Not all Immortals are assholes. Like Narita."
Thomas hesitated, before grunting in acceptance. "True. But he has some explaining to do."
"How dare you question the Emperor!" One of the guards exclaimed, stepping forward angrily and releasing their Domain.
"Stop!" The Emperor stepped in front of him, releasing his own Domain to protect them. "Enough! After all we did to avoid war, you wish to spark one anew over a minor insult!?!" The guard stepped back, going pale. "Take this man from my sight! I- we will consider his punishment later!" The Emperor turned back to Andrew with a bitter expression. "I can see I've been caught…" He began, using his Domain to smother any sound leaking out to the crowd. "Shall we adjourn to a more private location to discuss this in more detail? I would prefer to not air my secrets before the entire court."
They all shared a look before nodding in agreement, wondering just what they'd learn from this new Immortal. The Emperor quickly dismissed the court and led them to a private room, activating an enchantment for privacy before turning to them again. "First, I would like to say that whatever problems you may have with any other Immortals, I am not involved. I've spent the last four thousand years in this World, and the only other World I've been in is my own."
"You've been here for four thousand years?" Thomas asked incredulously. "Why? Did you ruin your own World or something?"
The Emperor's expression twisted. "It- depends on what you mean by ruined. Does it still support life? Yes. Are there people and cultures? Absolutely. But- it is no longer my home. Everything that I knew and loved is gone from that place. A living monument to what I've lost, and what can never return."
"Oof, heavy." Greg grunted.
"So what, you just left and started over here?" Thomas asked, raising an eyebrow.
The Emperor nodded. "What else could I do? In my World, my actions no longer mattered. I could change anything with a twitch of my finger. Erase mountains on a whim. But to what end? To whose benefit? The only problems that existed were problems I created. So I left and found a World with actual problems. I've done what I can to stymie the conflict between the noble and monstrous races, guiding them towards the closest form of peace they can possibly know. It has been the work of millenia, and I have suffered more deaths than you can imagine in pursuit of this. I have existed on both sides of this conflict, played the monster and hero both, until I finally reached this point, and could settle down to reap the results of my efforts. All I wish now is to rule well for as long as I can."
"Huh… good for you." Greg gave him a thumbs up.
"Wait, so how can you use the System then?" Thomas asked. "You're right, as an Immortal, you should be stuck with the abilities from your own World."
The Emperor chuckled. "It is an ability from my World, actually. I can connect to others and sync my abilities with theirs. I connect to a person here, and voila, I have the System. It's actually not all that uncommon an ability among Immortals. Any World with abilities inevitability spits out one that can copy others."
Andrew grinned slightly. "Yeah, I have an ability like that in my original World."
"Dude, your whole thing is stealing other people's abilities. That's what you do." Greg rolled his eyes.
"But with the ability, I can do it without killing people!" Andrew retorted.
"The one in my World still needs you to kill people." Chris frowned. "But it's also permanent, so there's that."
"Wait, I think Tessa's dad has an ability like that…" Greg suddenly remembered. "It's super weak in my World though."
"Is it weak, or has it just not had time to grow?" The Emperor asked, raising an eyebrow. "I know my ability was nothing special when it first started out. It only gave me the ability strength, not the physical strength, leaving me at a disadvantage in most fights. It was only after I realized my ability could take in any core that its power began to truly grow, my growth quickly outpacing my enemies. I became an overlord, fending off twelve entire tribes on my own!" He announced proudly, only to pause as Andrew stared at him wide-eyed. "What?"
"Are you- you can't be- Long?" Andrew asked hesitantly.
The Emperor froze. "How- how do you know that name?!?"
"That- that's my World!" Andrew exclaimed. "You- it has Beasts? Bonded? Earth is a pocket dimension and then there's the Outside where all the Beasts live?"
The Emperor got progressively paler as Andrew continued to describe the World. "How- how- how?!? You- there can't be a second Immortal in a World!?!"
"We aren't Immortals. We're Eternals." Chris commented.
The Emperor hesitated. "Isn't that just the name of your group? You're just a group of Immortals who travel together, right?"
"Nope. We're something completely different. No Worlds, but we're out here all the same." Greg replied with a grin, turning to Andrew. "Did we seriously just find your great grandfather?"
"No, he- you're supposed to be dead!" Andrew exclaimed. "The ritual to create the Bonded… it consumed everyone and spit out us!"
The Emperor shook his head. "No, I consumed everyone. The ritual… it failed. Everyone was just consumed by my ability, propelling me to the peak of the World in power, initiating my connection with the Core and my birth as an Immortal. The Bonded- the Bonded were my attempt to make things right. I created them, to try and replace everyone I lost… it didn't work. They- they weren't my people anymore. Just a monument to my sins." He finished bitterly.
Andrew just stared at him for a moment. "So… our history is a lie?"
The Emperor nodded. "It's what should have happened. All of them should have lived, and I- I should have died."
"You know, I'm starting to see the family resemblance." Greg muttered. "Y'all're both such downers."