The sky was crystal blue on the morning Emperor Artem Maryy was summoned. Birds sang and played in the bushes of the Imperial Palace gardens. Fire Elementals roamed about with their keepers, warming the stone paths and melting the night's snow. A woman in a pure golden mask stood in the center of the gardens, near an ornate fountain depicting an ancient High Daughter of the Queen of Fire. The oil lamps on the statue had not yet been lit, but the water was flowing freely at the base. Standing directly behind the Matron of the Light Crystal was a corrupted white portal. It was foggy and glowing with the mother-of-pearl light that the Emperor had grown to hate over the decades.

Without ceremony, he walked through the portal to the Elemental Plane of Light. It vanished behind him.

He stood upon tiles of various shades of blue and teal, made from stones laced with intricate patterns, polished to a mirror shine. They were chaotic shapes, fractal in nature, interlocking with obsidian instead of mortar. They spread out below the Emperor, forming a vast blue ocean. Brown, green, white, and tan tiles formed continents on either side of that ocean. A perfect map of the world, crafted by masons in the real world and exported to this Elemental Plane. What the world was like in that ancient time, Artem did not know.

Great diamonds of the finest crystal, themselves the size of continents or even planets, floated in a foggy void of pale light. This sky was pierced by the immaculate Golden Tower, dominating the horizon and drawing his eye. He stood on the common landing platform for humans entering into the realm, which was fixed in the center of a flat, round crystal, lined with jagged walls, like a massive, inverted chandelier. He made his way across the map to the shimmering bridge at the end.

Down he went across crystal chandeliers and bridges, down and down again before finally reaching the island city. The buildings shared a uniform and beautiful architecture. They were all constructed from interlocking polished glass windows and no other visible material. The base of the Golden Tower awaited in the center of the city, at the end of a crystal road. Dark figures watched him from the shadows, wearing two color masks and robes. They tried to hide in vain.

The interior of the tower was remarkably dark. Gone was the pale light of the outside, replaced instead by a lightless void, broken only by the occasional gap in the structure that allowed spears of light inside. Looking up, these spears of light spanned the void at every angle without crossing. At the center of the tower, a Light Elemental stood tall with a sword and shield in her hands.

"I will take you to the Queen," the Elemental said. She placed her hand on his chest and the darkness shifted around him. In an instant he stood upon the platform at the top of the tower. The platform was made from blue stone, polished and set perhaps by the same masons who made the world map below. The Elemental vanished, leaving him standing in the dim blue light of the platform. In every direction was darkness, except directly ahead. Four shadows loomed against the backdrop of the open sky.

He stepped toward the shadows and then knelt on one knee before the tallest of them. The Queen of Light regarded him. Her too-human face was youthful and beautiful, but her eyes held no life. The blinding light from the outside danced along the curves of her tight black dress. Her golden hair seemed to glow.

"You have answered my summons at last," the Queen of Light said. She seemed to have two voices speaking simultaneously, one of them calm and high-pitched, like wind chimes. The other was dark and serpentine.

"I do what my honor requires," the Emperor said. "Though the hour is still early."

"Early for you perhaps," the first man said. Rodrigo Rosalia was the youngest of the three, young enough to be Artem's son. He wore a neatly trimmed beard and his dark hair had not yet begun to thin with age. His perfectly-tailored striped suit and golden ornaments betrayed his family's financial background. His breath smelled like beer. And while he spoke a different language, the Queen of Light was doing something to allow them to communicate with meanings, and thus Rodrigo's voice, and indeed the movement of his lips, gave the illusion that he was speaking unaccented Imperial.

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Amadeo Yorath was the oldest of the three men. He looked tired, though he wore a stately military uniform decorated with a variety of medals and signs of rank. His face was cleanly shaven, as was his spotted, bald head.

Elio Demetra, the final of the three men, was somewhere in between in age. He wore a pilot's uniform, complete with a leather hat and brass-rimmed glass goggles. His face looked determined.

"All are present," the Queen of Light said. The two voices seemed out of harmony. "As is required by the Precepts of the Framers, all must be in agreement to release Titania from her prison."

Amadeo Yorath gasped. "Why the hell would we want to do that?"

"Keystones have been stolen, and I know not who has taken them. A portal to the Elemental Plane of Wind has been opened. My eyes in that realm have relayed this fact to me. To close the portals, we must claim the keystones using one of my High Daughters. In my current state of exalted perfection, I am unable to create such faulty beings, thus we must rely upon those that were created before my ascension. Who among you has the courage to offer one of my daughters to this endeavor? Who among you wishes to risk the livelihood of your banks?"

"I get your point," Rodrigo said. His sharp eyes glanced around at the others rapidly. "Who opened the portal?"

"It was opened in the Empire of House Veronika, now controlled by a petty man who has named himself King."

"Ayaru," Amadeo hissed. "I should recall my light crystal immediately!"

"For what purpose?" The Queen asked. "Would you offer this crystal to our efforts? Our enemy is unknown. It is possible that they have become bonded to the creation of the False Queen Ashe, the arrogant being that names herself Firstborn."

"Unlikely," Elio Demetra cut in. "The Firstborn comes with a curse of bad luck. Nobody can use the, uh... False Queen's power without suffering the curse."

"Yet who can lie to a Light Elemental?" the Emperor ventured.

"A voice of reason at last," the Queen of Light said. "The Scion of House Maryy speaks true. Titania was created to counteract the effects of the Firstborn. It is why my mind drifts to her release from imprisonment. I am perfect and my judgment is perfect. You must choose a Scion of House Veronika to wield her counteracting power."

Artem glanced around at the pure darkness of the room and shivered. She thinks she is perfect? Goddess of Dreams, help us all.

"There are tens of thousands of Scions of House Veronika," Elio said. "The minor noble family, House Nadiya, has been breeding those savages for hundreds of years. How are we supposed to pick one?"

"Might I add," Artem said, "that a unanimous agreement is required for Titania to be released. There can be no doubt in our minds. All four of us must be in agreement."

"Taisia is in a military alliance with the Heylin Empire," Elio snapped. "That is your Empire Artem. Giving Titania to a member of House Veronika is the same as giving the crystal to you directly."

"An astute observation," Artem replied. "I admit that any transaction here greatly favors myself and my family. Perhaps we can come to an agreement that involves certain restrictions, limitations, and other changes to the contract?"

The other three men nodded in agreement.

"Titania's power will be unavailable except for the purpose of closing the portals," the Queen of Light said, her two voices discordant.

"In addition," Artem said, "she can never be commanded to harm myself or the other men here. Finally, all four of us have priority. Even her mundane capabilities cannot be used to harm us. In fact, she cannot kill anyone unless that person has malice against the wielder. Only her defensive capabilities will be available."

"I agree with Artem Maryy," Amadeo Yorath said. "But how do we pick? There are, as we mentioned, tens of thousands of candidates."

"A second portal has been opened," the Queen of Light said. "You must choose quickly."

"Who is the closest to the portal?" Amadeo asked.

"There are many, many candidates in the city below. However, the portal is high in the sky above."

"Are there any nearby candidates flying in fighter jets or other airplanes?" Elio asked as he pointed to his brass-rimmed goggles. "A fighter pilot would be ideal."

"There is such a pilot nearby," the Queen said, "though she has little experience. She was placed upon the front lines as a sacrifice by her commanders, and even now she fights for her life. My eyes fly with her, and guide her."

"I agree to this, send Titania to her," Artem said quickly. "Be done with it."

"I agree."

"I also agree."

"Do it."

"It is done," the Queen of Light said. Artem shivered.

"Good work lads," Rodrigo said. "The bankers can sleep easier tonight. Or... this morning. Who wants a drink?"