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“You’ve been summoned.” The soldier of the Reiksguard, the elites of the provincial forces said simply.
Seraphiel popped another berry into her mouth. “First of all, as I’m not a subject, the word you’re looking for is politely requested.” She flicked away the stem of the berry. “And secondly, you’re going to have to be more specific. Who, what, where, when, why?”
“Your employer,” The Reiksguard ground out, clearly not pleased to be talking to a mercenary. “Just you and heads of several other similar groups, right now, at the palace, and you’ll find out.”
His attitude wasn’t exactly surprising. The loyal soldiers of the Empire were not pleased that their effort was deemed insufficient to protect their land and faith. It wasn’t that they had anything against the mercenaries specifically, although there were also some of those in the bunch as well, the racist sods, but that their effort was undervalued in their opinion. They hadn’t been given a sufficient chance. Only in defeat would they understand their lack of power. Understandably, most of the normal soldiers weren't aware of the full severity of the situation.
“I assume finishing my breakfast is not going to go over well.” She posed, mostly in jest. She was trying to see how the man reacted to being pushed.
“I have my orders. If fulfilling them requires me to drag you to the palace by your hair, that’s what I will do.” The man said stoically.
“You mean you’d try and fail. We both know you’d fail despite all your bravado. That’s why we’re here after all.” She popped another berry into her mouth and was tempted to flick the stem at the man, but that would’ve been childish. “But I’ll spare you the indignity. As fun as it would be to see you try, I am curious what the emperor-to-be wants.” She allowed a bit of golden light to cover her hands, cleaning and cleansing them. Handy how Skills could be used for mundane things if you just knew how.
The guard didn’t like the answer, but he’d basically gotten what he wanted, and on some level realized that a fight between them would not be advantageous to him, so he just turned around and led the way.
She'd only been having breakfast, so she wasn't wearing her armor, instead opting to wear casual clothing that looked and was, relatively expensive, but nothing too showy. She would've fit right in at the wealthy districts of the city, though perhaps a bit cleaner as the dust and dirt seemed to be almost avoiding her. She wasn't causing that on purpose. It was the effect of her Charisma. At a certain point, the stat meant that mundane things like that just stopped affecting you, because they would tarnish your looks. And someone with high enough Charisma couldn't have that. She'd asked the System when it had first happened, and apparently, it was something that the gods had decided, mostly for their own benefit. Only, her Charisma was already so high that she was reaching a similar point.
That was an interesting tangent. The gods of this universe were supposed to be just that, gods, but unlike Father and Mother, they weren’t gods in the same sense. They were simply very powerful beings that worked under a different set of rules than most. Except, when brought to this universe, some of those rules applied to them as well. And for all their allusions to the contrary, not all of them had super high stats. And since stats only affected what was already there…well, let’s just say she was rather confident. There were still plenty of gods with higher Charisma than her. Heck, there were plenty of “mortals” that did, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t already enjoying some of the benefits from “godly” Charisma.
The palace of Altdorf was a strange mix of opulence and practicality. As the frequent capital of an empire constantly at war, the palace was built like a fortress, yet at the same time, it was an elaborate construct where differing architectural styles weren't just at odds, but in outright conflict. A fitting symbol for the Empire in a way. It was a hotbed of political intrigue, social maneuvering, and hedonistic frivolity, at best of times. Yet, it was also home to the infamous Reiksguard, and a functioning military hub.
In a nod to the latter, the guard led her to a side area of the palace that seemed more like barracks and proved to be some sort of war room as soon as she entered, with maps spread everywhere. She was apparently among the last to arrive, and perhaps less shockingly, she recognized almost everyone present.
General Kuren, the large Draenei Paladin, was obviously among those gathered, and was perhaps one of the least familiar people present, seeing as they’d only met a couple of times in the recent months. He was obviously here to represent his people and nodded to her in respect. The Draenei were well aware of all the progress her group had accomplished in the time they’d been here.
A particular white-haired youthful-looking man wearing the black shihakushō of a Shinigami covered by a white Captain’s haori was representing the Shinigami interests. Seraphiel knew that looks were deceiving in this case, as the white-haired Captain, was in fact one of the older Shinigami still alive. Jūshirō Ukitake was luckily one of the most level-headed and intelligent Captains. One of the downsides of the whole organization was that leadership was mostly decided by power and not by any sort of competence for being a leader. There were reasons for that, but she’d always thought it a bit of a waste. The Captain nodded to her happily, instantly recognizing her, which wasn’t surprising at this point. He’d always been an affable man.
On the other end of the scale was the man wearing all black, except a silver sword pin on the left collar and a gold-and-red dragon on the right. The man was Logain Ablar, a grizzled-looking, roughly early middle-aged man with curling dark hair all the way to his broad shoulders. A dangerous man, although with a different kind of intelligence to Ukitake. He looked at her sharply, and recognition could be seen in his eyes as well, even if he tried to hide it. She had not interacted with the man too much during her visit to their world, but they were not unfamiliar. The man in almost all black made a sharp contrast to Ukitake who was showing mostly white despite his black shihakushō.
The last person in the room was the biggest surprise. She’d not heard of the High Elven mage’s arrival in the city, and the lanky High Loremaster didn't look nearly as imposing as he perhaps should've, a result of a curse she could still sense on his person. The elven mage looked up at her arrival, and the sheer shock in his eyes was visible for all to see, which caused Ukitake to burst into laughter. "Why am I not surprised that everyone knows you, Seraphiel? It's good to see you. I heard you've made a reappearance. Did Yoruichi find you?”
“She did. I wonder if Kenpachi is still looking for me?” She tossed a question back.
“No, Ichigo managed to wrangle him back with the promise of battle when they couldn’t find you. They are on another mission.” Ukitake revealed with a smile. “I’m not surprised Yoruichi decided to stick with you. I have a feeling we’ll need to find a new Captain to replace her. Probably someone to replace Rangiku as well soon enough.”
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
"Seems you keep making waves everywhere you go," Logain commented, not saying anything further.
“Seraphiel? Is that really you?” The High Elven mage asked incredulously. “I thought you died.”
“Just disappeared, Teclis. How are you? How are things? I see even being in this universe hasn’t managed to remove that curse from you.” She inquired.
Teclis grimaced. “That obvious? This world has been good to me, in that at least I can remedy the issue somewhat, but the curse is what it is.” The entire line of Aenarion, one of the greatest High Elves to have ever lived, bore a curse that manifested in a myriad of ways. It was said the entire line had been cursed by the Elven god of murder, Khaine, for taking up the god’s sword, the Godslayer. Curses given by gods were hard to dispel, even with the powers of this universe. And in Teclis’ case, the curse made him physically weak and feeble, while his brother Tyrion was prone to dark moods, his curse mostly mental.
“I may have an idea concerning that, actually.” She revealed. “I know of someone who can take the curse away from you. Whether she will do so is another story.”
“You’d do this for me?” He asked, clearly surprised.
“Not for free.” She grinned. “But for a reasonable price. Besides, I feel somewhat bad about your role in past events.”
"Alarielle still hasn't forgiven you, by the way," Teclis revealed. "If she found out that you're here…"
“Bah! She’s a cunt and has no legitimacy to complain. She’s the one who was married to the Phoenix King while making googly eyes at your brother. She should thank me, really.” She shot back.
“Incidentally, my brother is now the Phoenix King. Finubar was lost at sea. And Alarielle is still the Everqueen. You know what that means.” Teclis pointed out. The Everqueen traditionally married the Phoenix King.
“I bet that went over well, considering she’d already been married to the previous king, and there were already unsavory rumors of her fidelity concerning your brother. By all rights, he should’ve married her daughter, but as the paternity of that child is a little bit questionable…” She poked fun at the elven intrigue, her words drawing scoffs from Logain.
“Yes, it is as you surmised. The union was not exactly welcomed.” Teclis shook his head wryly, aware of the bad blood between Seraphiel and Alarielle. “But that was a long time ago. A lot has changed since then.”
“Well, let’s see if we can do something about that curse.” She changed subject and crossed her fingers in prayer. ‘Mother, if you would?’
"Well now, I don't often get such direct requests from you." The voice of Charlotte Richards echoed in the room, her sudden arrival causing both Logain and Ukitake to jump, as they had not sensed her at all, and as usual, she didn't exactly radiate a divine aura or anything. To their eyes, she'd just appear out of thin air.
She took a look at Teclis. "Ah, I see." She nodded. "I can deal with it if you want. It's not a problem. Feeling kinship towards another cursed?"
Teclis’ head turned to Seraphiel. “Cursed? You? I would not have you use your opportunity to get rid of your own curse on me.”
“That’s a little different.” Charlotte interrupted. “Unlike the rest of you mortals, my children self-actualize. If they think they are and deserve to be cursed, they will be. There’s not much I can do about that without infringing on their free will. Stomping on the fading power of a pretender god on the other hand…” She just snapped her fingers, and everyone present could see the health returning to Teclis’ face. In mere moments, it looked like he grew in height and width as well, his form filling out to what it should’ve been without the curse. He was still an Elf, which meant lithe, but he no longer looked like a starving and sickly one.
Her deed done, Charlotte just vanished again. “Who was that?” Logain asked suspiciously.
“That…would take too long to explain. Suffice to say that she is The Goddess.” Seraphiel said simply, everyone being able to sense the capitalization. “And I am Her Paladin.” She said simply.
“A fellow Paladin! Well met! I knew I sensed the power of Light within you!” General Kuren said in a booming voice. “Your name also reminds me of one of your greatest heroes! She was also a Paladin of great might! This is an auspicious meeting!”
Ukitake only barely managed to hide his snigger, more aware than the rest.
"She must be powerful indeed to be able to so casually remove a curse that has spanned generations and was laid by the gods," Teclis commented.
"That's an understatement." Seraphiel just murmured in response.
Their shenanigans were interrupted by the arrival of Karl Franz, the prospective emperor. “Be seated.” He gestured as he sat down, assuming the reason why some of them were standing to be out of respect.
The others just gave each other knowing looks before taking seats around the table. “The help all of you have already provided has proven invaluable and we will reward you in kind. There remains much more to be done, but there is a more urgent matter at hand.” He gestured at Teclis. “Our erstwhile Elven friends have made us aware of a situation that prevents them from sending us aid that we desperately need. High Loremaster, if you would?”
Teclis, still feeling overwhelmed by his newfound health, cleared his throat. "The northern Ulthuan has been invaded by a host of Demons. This in itself isn't a surprise. Ever since our world arrived in this new universe, the Demons have had a much freer range of our world than before."
In the past, one of the main reasons Chaos hadn’t taken over the entire world was because the Demons couldn’t really hold their manifestations in areas with lacking mana. The Demons had been just about to take over the world, but the High Elves had created a vortex that drained most of the magic from the world, forcing the demons to limit their activities to the very north and south where their power was at their height, and working through mortal agents. Having arrived in this universe, and becoming a Core World at that, had greatly increased the passive mana in the world, thus allowing the demons more access again.
“We have prepared to defend our home from these Demons, and would already be forcing them back, except for some reason the power of Slaanesh has risen greatly in the last few decades, and their minions have been similarly empowered. One in particular, N’kari, is quite successfully resisting any of our attempts to kill him, and has always taken a special interest in our kind.” Teclis’ words elicited a shocked reaction from Seraphiel.
“Sai’lantresh is alive?” She asked while frowning, using the old Aeldari name for the god. One of the first things she’d done after being exiled was to kill the god hungering on the souls of the Aeldari.
“Why would it not be?” Karl Franz asked in confusion.
Charlotte’s voice could be heard again. “Because my daughter killed Slaanesh so many years ago that it is hard for you to fathom. It is how she acquired her curse.” The Goddess clearly still being present and paying attention, even if not in sight.
Teclis looked at Seraphiel sharply. “You killed Slaanesh? Why have I not heard anything of this?”
Charlotte appeared fully behind Seraphiel. “Because she did not kill the Slaanesh of your world, but the one in another universe. I believe this requires some clarification by someone who knows the how and the why. The god Slaanesh that the inhabitants of this world know is alive, though not exactly well. She…he…it, was weakened when their other version was slain as they are somewhat connected even if not one, but not completely. As different gods bearing the same name and identity are brought into this universe, they are combined into a single entity. The same happened with the Gods of Chaos, although on some level they were always one already. You, my daughter killed the Slaanesh that preyed on the souls of the Aeldari, so their people are out of Slaanesh’s reach, but the deity still exists here. Unlike the other Chaos Gods, Slaanesh didn’t get to unify with their counterpart, so they’ve been weaker. Until recently that is.”
For some reason, even Karl Franz didn’t question Charlotte’s presence. Something about her made that impossible. “Why now?”
“Why indeed?” Charlotte asked in a voice that implied she knew the answer but wasn’t telling, before vanishing again.
The timing of Slaanesh regaining some of her power was…coincidental to say the least. Teclis had placed the timing right around her birth, and thinking that to be an accident might not be the smartest of ideas.
“What is wanted from us then?” Ukitake asked, bringing things back to the topic.
"We need the Demon N'kari dead," Teclis said firmly.
"You of all people should know that's not really feasible," Seraphiel stated.
"Why? I would imagine that with everyone in this room alone should be able to accomplish it. I find it unlikely that a single Demon that's not even a Champion could be that much of a threat." Logain argued, and not without reason. Unfortunately, he wasn't familiar with the Warp.
“Because Chaos Demons work a bit differently to any other Demons you might’ve run into. When you kill one of them, they just return to the Warp and are remade. Depending on how hard you kill them, and how badly their god wants them back, it might take them longer to revive, but they always do.” Seraphiel explained. “Teclis and his brother have already slain the Demon at least once.”
"Balefire," Logain said simply.
“Against anyone else, in any other universe, you might be right, but Chaos Demons work differently. They are pure manifestations of the Warp. They aren’t even really here, just manifesting a part of them.” Seraphiel shook her head. “And this universe specifically prevents you from destroying someone’s soul.”
“So, what then?” Logain asked. “There must be some plan, or this meeting wouldn’t have been called.”
“Well, Seraphiel has a point, but your answer was essentially correct Logain. We need to kill N’kari hard enough to make sure he doesn’t come back for a long enough time to affect this war. Balefire is the best solution, though not the only one. I know the Shinigami also have methods that could work.” Teclis proposed, and Ukitake and Seraphiel both nodded at that.