Galactic High

“The High Matriarch has ordered us to halt any current, petty feuds. And yes. That means the Outsider, as much as I loathe to say it. For now, anyway,” Izadora continued as she addressed the seated nobles, officers and enforcers of House Mal’Kar. Svaartal knew he should feel uncomfortable on being one of the only non-drow present, as he did during his first meeting with the leadership, but he somehow felt a slight sense of belonging on seeing the approving looks some others around the table gave him as they all took their places. On Soren’s insistence he sat next to the suave Slayer, opposite Kravel who could not help but sneak looks at the Nirah while Izadora was addressing them all.

Svaartal guessed he should probably be flattered by that.

“We must also take advantage of this chaos.” Izadora concluded. “The High Matrons have demanded displays of strength from the Houses, and we will be no exception. The defeat of Devil’s Daughter by our beloved Sigilus is already an acceptable display, but I want to demonstrate our superiority over all. I have a target in mind, and we will strike soon once the timing is right, so rest up appropriately, and remain ready for me to call upon you for some fun.”

With that the meeting was adjourned, as Izadora called Dextra to her for a private conversation. Svaartal awkwardly left the meeting trying not to bring any attention to himself, to no avail.

“Do you really have it?” Kravel asked Svaartal excitedly as the House Wizard approached him outside. “I need to take a look, come with me!”

“Of course.” Svaartal smiled politely at the sorcerer. “I was going to ask for your expertise anyway once the meeting was adjourned and we had a moment.”

Kravel led Svaartal to the Arcanum, with Soren following close behind with idle interest. The magical chambers and facilities were the best Svaartal had ever seen by far, and whenever he got the quiet opportunity to do so he often browsed the many rare tomes and tested theoretical spells. Often he had done so alone, as Svaarti was nervous to socialise with the other spellcasters, often taking tomes and scrolls to her meditation chamber instead, and Svaartal himself preferred a quieter environment to conduct his craft.

In the first few days, the prickly Kravel had not taken kindly to the two Nirah being brought into the fold, the House Wizard seeing it as a personal slight. However, he at least developed a healthy respect for Svaartal over the past week, and no longer saw Svaarti as a threat due to her being a non-combatant. Indeed, after several theatrical displays to maintain face among the rest of the family, he had concluded that their hiring had been an excellent choice by Izadora, praising her efforts in hiring spellcasters with differing skillsets than the rest of the house, while maintaining that his prowess as House Wizard clearly made him superior.

“Glad to see you two finally getting along,” Soren purred as he leaned against the wall of the main Arcanum hall with a smile. “Maybe you two should spend the night? It will do you both some good.”

“Merely growing pains,” Kravel snarled back at the mocking Soren. “This Nirah at least has proved his worth, and together we shall unlock the secrets of Devil’s Daughter’s staff.”

“I think I’ll watch you two have fun.” Soren grinned. “I’ve always wanted to get a shot at Devil’s Daughter myself, perhaps you can give me some insight? The kill wasn’t confirmed, and if she’s alive she will definitely be coming after our dear friend for a rematch.”

“As you wish,” Kravel growled. “YOU!” he snapped to one of the slave-girls in attendance. “Bring us two bottles of Zaphra wine and three of the fine crystal glasses. If you don’t do so quickly…”

The Ure gave a little squeak of acknowledgement before rushing off.

“Don’t spoil that one,” Soren told his brother lazily. “You need to learn to be more tender with the herd, and even Izadora is getting sick of having to replace them after your tantrums.”

“They need to understand fear, brother,” Kravel whispered back. “Without fear there is no discipline. With no discipline there is no control. Without control, our superiority is brought into question. You should be far less lax with the livestock, brother.”

They heard the sound of quickly rushing feet and the tingling of glass as the slave quickly returned with the requested drinks, placing them on a side table.

“You were too late with our wine, slave!” Kravel roared in anger as Soren rolled his eyes. The House Wizard took a menacing step towards the slave before Svaartal thrust an arm out, summoning the staff of Devil’s Daughter right in front of the sorcerer before he could harm the slave.

“Shall we begin?” Svaartal asked Kravel innocently, as Carrow appeared on his shoulder to stare the startled drow down while Soren stifled a laugh.

“Let’s.” Kravel nodded in agreement, refusing to show fear or acknowledge the display from the Nirah as Soren poured the wine.

*****

“Heavy igneous rock influences,” Kravel muttered to himself. “Similar to Izadora’s staff, but a different composition. Volcanic glass is usually more a style choice, but has been known to be applied to staves of great power. There is other, stranger material within but I cannot tell what it is at this stage.”

“The runes glow red when activated,” Svaartal pointed out as he willed the staff into an active state. “Obviously tailor crafted with classic Devilspawn sorcery in mind, but there’s definitely much more.”

“Note down the runes and identify the language,” Kravel snapped to two other drow wizards that he had summoned to assist them as he walked around the artefact that was floating vertically. The script itself was almost microscopic in nature, and Svaartal had no doubt that there was far more than what could be read.

“Whatever the magical core is, it must be highly potent,” Svaartal said unsurely as he contemplated the staff. “Though what it is currently eludes me.”

“Then the script will clue us in.” Kravel sighed as he walked away from the staff to pour himself more wine, leaving the wizards to write it all down.

“Careful not to touch it, there’s a contact-based curse,” Svaartal called out to the two, who nodded in acknowledgement.

“So what was it like?” Kravel asked after several minutes of silently sipping wine. “Facing the Devil's Daughter?”

“Difficult,” Svaartal admitted. “Up close and personal I had the edge with my sword, but I can tell she was skilled in close range as well. She is very powerful, but I got the impression she lacks the versatility that I have.”

“You should not forget how Clan Bharzum allowed it all to happen,” Soren added, having ordered some food as well. “If she had killed you they wouldn’t need to pay compensation. What have they even promised you for a reward?”

“Nothing yet.” Svaartal sighed. “They claim they’ll get something together as an appropriate compensation, but for now the only thing they’ve offered me is long-term medical treatment and therapy, which I’ve already declined.”

“Therapy?” Kravel asked with a snort of laughter. “What are you? A woman?”

“I must agree with my brother, they are clearly slighting you with that accusation of weakness,” Soren added. “Besides, a pointless conversation for several hours is hardly a suitable reward. I will notify Izadora. Some suitable threats should end that foolishness.”

“Perhaps that is all the filth can offer,” Izadora’s voice called out from the entryway next to them. Svaartal noticed something next to him, and shifted back in stifled shock to see Ull, the huge drow having silently appeared next to them. “Far too weak for us to bother with right now, for House Mal’Kar has greater targets in mind. Our superiority was thrown in doubt by the Outsider, but you have displayed our strength with the defeat of Devil’s Daughter.”

A movement to the side alerted Svaartal, as Ull brought his thick, muscle-bound arm out for a handshake which Svaartal took, trying not to show his fear, gripping Ull’s wrist as the huge drow did the same to his.

“Well done,” the drow said simply, with a proud look.

*****

“Holy shit!” Sephy exclaimed.

I had no idea! Chiyo gasped.

“Huh,” Jack commented.

“Cool!” Nika grinned.

“WHAT?!” The others rounded on the Kizun.

“What?” The Kizun shrugged her shoulders with a grin. “That means Alora’s probably got some good real estate hidden away somewhere, maybe even a holiday home!”

Jack gave a little snort of amusement, realising that Nika was just trying to cheer Alora up, and indeed the Eladrie smiled softly at her antics.

“So how do we break this curse?” Sephy asked. “You said you could do it.”

It’s a form of long-distance link that can be broken a multitude of ways. Chiyo pointed out. We learned about these types of bonds in class, they’re often used by basic practitioners to remain connected with their families. I would recommend a ritual of some kind, but I assume Alora has a plan?

“You would be correct.” Alora smiled. “It will involve a ritual to break the curse, but if I can learn and discern the full nature of the spell as well without my family knowing, it will grant me an advantage in dealing with them when they inevitably respond.”

“Will we need to move out?” Nika questioned. “This place does belong to your family after all.”

“No,” Alora replied simply. “Even if I haven’t taken full control of the Myrial to protect us along with all of our active defences that’ll destroy anyone that tries to enter with hostile intent, this is our home, and I won’t give it up without a fight.”

“Does your family have any other holdings nearby?” Sephy asked curiously. “If they had this district covered by some Eladrie woo-woo stuff that stopped anyone getting to it for a long-ass time, maybe there are other places too?”

“Not as far as I know,” Alora answered unsurely. “Though logically, if my family laid claim to one district, there may be more, though if there are I wouldn’t even know where to begin looking.”

“Well…here?” Jack spoke up. “Is there anything that was left here that might tell you anything?”

Sephy, you explored the district in detail in the past, have you seen anything? Chiyo asked.

“I have, but there isn’t much to look at,” the Skritta pointed out. “No offence, Alora, but it’s all abandoned with nothing there, though I guess maybe shifting some of the debris will find us something?”

“We could always take some time to go together and have a look?” Jack reasoned with a smirk. “It’s not like it’s far away or anything…”

“You’re right, but it's a lower priority.” Nika nodded. “Honestly if there’s usable scrap among the debris we can use it for fixing up the shuttle. Before the party, I honestly expected that’s what we’d be doing tomorrow morning.”

Pretty sure it’s ‘tomorrow morning’ right now. Chiyo pointed out. All of us need to rest and get our energy up.

“I can’t even think of sleeping after what happened,” Sephy finally replied after several moments of silence. “We survived, but it’s been much worse for everyone else.”

“Yeah,” Jack agreed, remembering the horrors he had seen that night, and the friends that had been hurt. Worst of all, he remembered how he was willing to end his own life to take Dr Grine with him.

That was a secret he would take to the grave.

“We will need to try,” Alora finally replied with an understanding expression. “Our friends need us to be at our best.”

“Yeah.” Nika sighed as she got up, but immediately cursed in pain as she dropped to one knee.

“I’ve told you to stop pushing yourself!” Alora cried out in worry as she rushed over to the Kizun, who was waving her off.

“I’ll be fine, I just need to get to bed,” she stubbornly replied as her friends gathered around to check on her.

“Need a lift?” Jack asked, offering an arm. “I can carry you if you want.”

“I’ll take it!” Nika responded with a grin as she allowed Jack to scoop her up. The thin strands of her pink fur were incredibly soft against his bare arms as he carried her bridal style to the garage-like area the Kizun claimed as her quarters.

“Want to tell me how bad it is now that the others can’t hear?” Jack asked with a smile.

“Tail and right leg are hurt. Happened before, but not at the same time, so movement feels really weird. Alora should be able to help fix it, but I won’t allow it when others need the healing more. It might mean I’m sidelined if you decide to go for Rayle and Zayle’s stuff.”

“Nah, I’m sure you’ll be up by then,” Jack replied to reassure her but Nika shook her head.

“Don’t know, but we can hope. Someone will need to stay behind for Vanya, I’m not leaving her alone unless Alora stays to do that, but she might be held up helping the medics. Worst case scenario, you’ll need to take charge if it comes to it.” She looked to Jack to show she was serious.

“I don’t want us to split up when we’re going into something sketchy,” Jack whispered back as he nudged open the door to Nika’s room. “It never goes well, and after everything that’s happened I don’t want to tempt fate.”

“Yeah, I understand that. Might not have much choice in the matter, though. We’ll talk to Zayle tomorrow and see if they can give us specifics on any threats.”

“Sounds good.” Jack sighed as he placed the Kizun down on the bundle of cushions, grabbing a blanket nearby and handing it to her, who quickly wrapped herself up. He turned to leave before he felt her hand gently grab his arm.

“Forgetting something?” She grinned as she pulled him in. “I’d say turning the tables on the Klowns deserves a reward, no?”

Jack didn’t answer as Nika’s warm lips pressed against his. It was a moment of warm and soft bliss that made them both forget for a moment the horrors of the night before they both pulled back.

“Thanks,” Jack replied after several moments, not knowing what else to say.

“You could always stay?” Nika pointed out with raised eyebrows, knowing it was unlikely.

“Can’t right now.” Jack smiled. “Even if we do work out what we are and how it all works, I’m meant to be keeping an ear open for Dante and Vanya.”

“Maybe when things calm down.” Nika shrugged, but then grinned. “Though I wouldn’t be surprised if we pick up some more tenants at some point. We might need to share!”

“How many more do you think?” Jack asked curiously.

“Hard to tell at this stage,” Nika thought. “We don’t know the full extent of the Klown’s rampage. Many people will have either lost their homes outright or will at least have lost the security. There’s a bunch of people you haven’t met yet, and as good as Clan Bharzum has been, they might not be able to maintain their board. We’re more fortified than most, so we’ll probably need to prepare for something. It’s Alora’s call though, but it might be worth buying supplies just in case, especially with a bunch of currencies losing value.”

“Something to sleep on,” Jack reasoned as he gave out a yawn. “Though I have no idea if I can.”

“Same,” Nika admitted. “I left a pot of the good stuff in the kitchen. That’ll wake us up for real in the morning.”

“Well, I’ll see you then.” Jack sighed. “Good night!”

“Night!”

Emerging from Nika’s room, Jack slowly walked back to the living room, his muscles aching badly as his pain and injuries flared up like a wave, the last of his adrenaline for the night completely gone.

“Can you take me up to my room like with Nika?” Sephy called him with a grin, as the other two giggled at the Skritta’s tomfoolery.

“Maybe next time.” Jack smiled as he leaned against the wall before his expression sobered up. “Unless you guys are too hurt?”

“Nah, I am a little bit sore but I should be alright.” Sephy sighed as she started making her way down the corridor to her room.

I’m completely drained of power, I’ll meditate and alert you if I detect anything. Chiyo added as she floated down to the basement.

“Thanks, Chiyo!” both Jack and Alora simultaneously called out after the Ilithii as they made their way upstairs to their rooms, careful to keep their voices down in order to not wake Dante or Vanya, even though it was unlikely that either of them would be affected.

“So…” Jack started with a grin. “A Princess, huh?”

“Oh stop it!” Alora sighed back. “I’m not sure how monarchies work where you’re from, but there are many Eladrie royal families in existence that have their own slices of the pizza, with the noble houses having their own smaller pieces within that slice, or externally as petty rulers.”

“I think you’re using the expression wrong,” Jack pointed out. “Slice of the pie.”

“It’s close enough and you know what I mean,” Alora retorted. “I blame you and your strange Outsider expressions!”

“So there are multiple royal families, but you mentioned the throne of your people?” Jack asked curiously. “How does that work?”

“Because at the top there is the position of High Monarch,” Alora answered. “However, it hasn’t been held in my lifetime, and only in our ancient history. The High Council rules us in practice on a species and interstellar level when dealing with foreign powers. Externally, my people are quite powerful so nobody messes with us, but internally we’re heavily fractured and disunited, constantly caught in power plays and noble warfare.”

“Sounds like a lot of corruption,” Jack pointed out. “But if you have a claim for the seat of High Monarch…”

“Why haven’t I gone for it?” Alora asked with a sad smile. “Because candidates in the past have been murdered before they build up their power and get the chance to seize praxis. Do you really think the High Council wants anyone getting on the throne?”

“So…how…” Jack began, trying to approach the subject delicately.

“How have I survived?” Alora shrugged. “I kept it hidden and didn’t tell anyone I got marked by the Mother Tree, and I accepted exile as soon as I got the opportunity. I wasn’t going to do anything at that age, and I still don’t know if I want to. Who would back me?”

“I would.” Jack smiled weakly as he patted Alora on the shoulder. “Maybe we can work on our battle plans tomorrow morning?” he joked.

“Hah, maybe!” Alora giggled. “Goodnight, Jack!”

“Goodnight, Alora,” he replied as he closed the door.

He sat on the bed clutching his knees and waited several moments until Alora’s footsteps went away before every negative emotion he had bottled up poured out at once. As his mind flashed back to the events of that night he began shaking back and forth, clutching a pillow as hard as he could as it muffled his sobs of distress.