Dinner at the Fulvion estate was an exercise in opposites. The opposition being between abnormality and sanity.

Nine souls sat at the table, including myself, and I had mixed feelings with all of them. Everyone in theory was supposed to enjoy a single-course steak meal with sides and a wine pairing, but substitutions had been made.

The four I had deemed sane were the ones who had gotten a normal meal and had chosen wisely to eat it like ordinary human beings. I was not amongst those lucky four; amongst Pollixa, Thirteen the Larua, brutish Andarias Fulvion who held a fork like a toothpick in his giant hands, and Lady Fulvion.

The four that were certainly insane were Lord Fulvion, his sons Caias and Quartias, and Antonias. Persias and Quartias were eating steaks that were barely cooked. Wolfish Caias, spliced in part with canine genetics, was devouring one cold with his bare hands. Antonias had ignored everything besides a glass of blood that he sipped.

And finally there was me, the ninth soul, all in a category of my own. Given madness without choosing to take it up. On my plate lay a human heart.

“What’s this in front of me, friend Persias?” I said, flashing a smile without any warmth behind it.

“A heart.” He replied after wiping his mouth.

“I can see that. Why is it being served to me?” I said.

“It was torn from Theseas Claudion’s corpse for you. I wanted to literally serve up the hearts of your enemies to you.” He laughed.

I didn’t find the joke funny.

“It’s symbolic, Great Lord.” Persias soothed. “We’ll take a video and some pictures for propaganda purposes for the masses and then the servants will replace it with something more to your taste.”

A Copper Imperator holding a shoulder mounted video camera approached, almost touching the tablecloth. Lady Fulvion made a sound and the cameraman hastily moved back a step.

“Ask him if they’re recording you now.” Alsig said to me.

Why?

“Just try it for me.” She said.

“Are you rolling?” I asked the cameraman.

“I am now, sir.” He said.

It was such an odd experience that House Fulvion created with their refusal to use lesser Paths as servants and workers out of mistrust. Like seeing kings doing yard work or barons washing windows.

Well, Alsig? The man is recording. I thought.

“I think you should eat the heart-“

No.

“Just a bit-“

No. I’m not eating human flesh. That’s vile. I replied, trying to make the feeling of the thought louder to her.

“You don’t have to. I wasn’t going to make you really. You’re Golden, before it passes your lips twist the genetic code and inner structure into another kind of meat. It will seem like you did it without shame on your part.” Alsig said.

Why do you want me to make the planet and this room think I’m a cannibal? You were the one that was judging me for doing insane things and not caring about the ripple effects in others who watch me. I said.

Our conversation was happening at lightning speed, but I could tell Persias was beginning to sense something was off.

“I’ve moved on. You’re beyond anything in the Apollonian solar system in strength and nothing will change your true nature. The two Golden Imperators will be here soon and either we will be ash and nothing will matter or you cast them down and head to Terra forever. And then nothing here will matter.” She said to me.

Nihilism can justify many things to one who already wants to do them. I thought in response. I don’t want this. Make a better argument or I’ll have a copy of me keep you occupied.

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”Persias Fulvion does worship you, but he’ll always try to control everything around him. He still sees you as a child.”

He already thought of me as impulsive. This would be childish and gross to him, not impressive. Like a child licking a doorknob on a dare. I replied to Alsig.

“Then make him think you did it out of cold calculation not pride or savagery or boredom.” Alsig said. “Make madness into greatness, insanity into sanity. A god can do anything, define morality itself if he wishes.”

“Everything alright, Great Lord?” Persias asked. To the others, only the briefest moments of time had passed while I had a conversation, but Lord Fulvion was clearly sharper.

“Yes,” I said to Persias. “As I understand it, this little stunt is to convince some allies of Theseas’s family that are too important to kill, yes? You don’t really care about the public seeing it when they’re already bought in.”

“Indeed, Great One. It was a scheme designed to expertly-“ Persias said before I cut him off.

“It’s a poorly thought out one.” I said.

“I think you’ll find if you spoke to our marketing department you would find clarity.” Persias said.

“Deities have marketing departments?” Alsig asked me.

I think they usually use a different name for them.

“Fine, we’ll go ahead.” I said, miming being about to dig in corpse flesh. No doubt it looked ridiculous, but that was the point. It was exactly the strange taunting that was so common on this damn planet amongst the nobility.

“Say something like, thus always to tyrants.” Persias recommended.

“I am above the laws of gods and men.” I said, staring dead into the camera lens before sawing off a chunk of flesh with my knife and bringing it to my mouth. It was transformed from human to cow meat before it even touched my tongue, but no one at the table knew that.

Pollixa gasped. Antonias raised his wine glass of blood like a salute.

“Cut the camera.” Persias snapped to the cameraman.

“What’s your name, my child?” I said to the Copper who ironically had at least a good decade on me.

“Cut the camera!” Persias said, before trying to use telepathy to shut the machine off.

Telepathy I blocked with my own as easily as shifting an infant aside.

“Your name?” I asked again.

“Tarkias, your majesty.” He said.

“Tarkias do you know what game the Great Houses and their lovely little marketing departments are playing when they have me do something as stupid as this?” I said, still looking at the camera lens.

“No, sir.” He mumbled.

“Don’t worry, I was barely even exposed to this kind of thing until I went to the Scholarium. It looks silly, you must think to yourself as anyone with eyes and ears would. Yes?” I said.

“Yes.” Tarkias finally got out, no doubt fearing for his life. I’d protect him from Persias’s wrath though.

“It’s not pointless, which I’m sure some would assume I believed because to them I’m either a devil or a brutish conqueror. I know why it is done and it’s because the message is not meant for most people.” I said.

“Who’s it for?” Tarkias asked with more life in him. I had already partly answered this before, but clearly the Copper Imperator had something of a journalist in him. Everyone who watched the recording needed to know the whole story.

“It’s entirely for people who despite their incredible wealth and physical power, they have lived all their lives utterly impotent under people like Theseas Claudion and me. The members of Great Houses. Order cannot allow for the aristocracy to burn half of Iulius down whenever they feel like it, and so they’re forced to find ways to compete. The rankings of their children if they enter the Scholarium, duels when Theseas bothered to let them happen, whose wedding was bigger, who wears the latest fashion trends.”

Lady Fulvion looked like she was ready to strangle me.

“These Imperators live long lives with longer memories and like anything addictive like winning, you have to keep exceeding not only your rivals but your own past efforts. What do you think happens then, Tarkias?” I said.

“A breaking point?” He answered.

I nodded.

“A breaking point. Not of metal pipes but of dignity. Pretending to saw into a dead man’s heart when everyone knows you aren’t going to actually do it is clownish.” I said, taking another bite and transforming it subtly to spare my own conscience.

“The exaggeration is the point to them, like flipping someone off in a hovercar to make another driver angry magnified ten times. To everyone normal on this planet, mockeries like this are garish. Because they are garish. It is the way of a few families that will shake your hand while they wait for an opportunity to slit your throat."

I ate another transformed bite. Persias looked intrigued.

“For me personally, I’ll either slit your throat or shake your hand. You are with me or against me. None of you are my rivals and the only game I’ll play is how many bodies I have to put in the ground before you realize I’m not joking.” I said. “When I come to shake your hand, remember that you cannot have me as both a friend and enemy. Choose wisely.”

Nodding to Tarkias for him to cut recording, I stood up and stretched.

“Four things. The video gets broadcasted everywhere. Neither Tarkias nor the video will be damaged in any way. Someone needs to arrange meetings between me and these dissidents once the footage airs. And Persias, you will need to come outside with me.” I said calmly before teleporting out of the room.

He flashed next to me a moment later.

“Interesting.” Persias commented, without any tension. “Why have you asked me here though?”

“I thought I would start experimenting with my powers.” I said, flexing my diamond scaled fingers.

“I’m far from your equal.” He said.

“You said you don’t feel fear.” I replied. The real reason I was doing this was to show people exactly what I could do to Silvers, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t about to enjoy this.

“Not a flicker in my life.” He said proudly with honesty.

“Let’s see if we can change that. A little fear can be educational.” I said, before punting him into the sky.