IMPERIUM INSECTUM

“We’re here.”

A familiar-looking mansion loomed into view.

“It looks huge at night.”

“Sure does look bigger at night.”

I placed my hand on her back. “ we can always turn back.”

“No, I said I was gonna do this.”

I smiled as

Our coach driver drove up to the main entrance, where a gate guard was waiting. There was a brief muffled exchange between the driver and the guard before he came to our window. He tapped on our window, signalling for me to lower the window.

“I take it you are Lady D?”

I nodded.

“Excellent, before I let you in, I need to see some form of Id before I let you in. The lady Mentioned you may not have gotten one  yet, so I can alwa-“

“that won't be necessary.” Appolinaris chimed in. She quickly opened her purse and handed the guard our brand-new ID cards. The guard quickly looked them over before handing them back to us.

Without further word, he went back to his post, and the black metal gate swung open.

“Well. No turning back now.”

The carriage slowly trundled up the long rocky driveway until finally coming to a stop at the mansion entrance. I looked out the window and was dozens of different carriages parked and waiting. The driver hopped off his seat and opened our Door. I took the lead, with Apollinaris following closely behind.

“Diva.....”

“I know. Just stay calm. These people have no reason to be hostile to us. Just stay close to me.”

We walked towards the main entrance, where an usher awaited us.

“you must be Lady D.”

I nodded.

“Ahhh, perfect; Miss Ashdown has been waiting for you. Please, follow me.”

 We exchanged a glance before entering a mansion, and OH boy, was this a mansion. The walls were a mix of white and gold. The rooms were illuminated with bright floating lights, and judging from the energy I could feel from them, they had to be running on mana. We continued following the usher down the halls. The halls were immaculately clean and were dotted with loads of paintings of people I kind of recognised from the books I had read.

“Breathtaking, isn't it.”

We snapped our heads to the usher.

“Yes, it is.” Appolinaris chimed in. “How old is this place?”

“Fantastic question! The Ashdown estate has been here as long as this town existed. So if I had to guess, we are looking at around 250 years, and it doesn’t look like a day over 10. Truly a shining beacon of empire craftsmanship. Did you know that every stone used to make this mansion was sourced right here in the border and that-“

On and on he went. Jeez, if you love this building so much, why don’t you marry it? Scratch that; let's not suggest it to him; he probably would.

“Also, the stone was forged by sir-“

“That’s fantastic,” Apollinaris politely interrupted. “But is it possible you can tell me more about the Ashdown Family?”

“Ah, yes, the Ashdown family. Well, they are the family that has been in charge of this piece of land since Emperor Odatis the 3^rd was in charge, I believe. They are the official keepers of this land and the ones who manage everything from local taxes and general management to defence.”

Well, imagine my luck. The second group of humans I meet turn out to be the big shots in charge. I sighed internally. I'll have to be careful around them.

We continued walking down the halls until. Finally, we arrived at a large set of brown doors. The usher went to the side of the Door where a long ornate golden rope was attached to the ceiling.

“Please enjoy your night.”

The usher tugged on the rope, and a soft mechanical clanking noise could be heard as the Door swung wide open, and our eyes and ears were assaulted with bright lights and music.

“Wooah” Apollinaris's jaw had nearly hit the ground, and I couldn’t blame her. In front of us was a large ornate ballroom pulled straight out of a Disney movie. A mix of Classical and fantasy music filled the air alongside the chatter of hundreds of people. Even though I don’t want to admit it, this place is pretty cool.

“Apollinaris!”

And now it's been ruined. My blood curdled as I saw an annoying blonde kid run up to us.

“Istevan!” Appolinaris stretched her arms out as the child dove into her for a hug.

“Nice to meet you. How have you been?”

“Great! Look what I can do!” The boy stretched his hand out, and water came from it. The water twisted and turned briefly turned into a crude shape of a cube before disappearing into nothing.

 “Oh, that’s wonderful!” Apollinaris said with a smile on her face. “Keep practising, and you will be as good as me soon.”

A bright grin appeared on the kid's face before he violently nodded his head.

“I will! Follow me. I'll show you where Mom is.” Before Apollinaris could even respond, the child took her hand and pulled her into the crowd.

*sigh*

“I guess ill follow them.” I followed the Brat and Apollinaris closely. The room was filled with loads of people. I didn’t know any of them specifically. One thing they all had in common was that They were rich, like stupidly rich; 2000 dollars is “Walking around” money type rich. This definitely wasn’t an event for the poor and destitute.

“Mom! Look who I found” The lady was in the middle of a conversation when her son dove into her legs.

“ISTE- Lady D, apollinaris, how nice of you to come.”

“A pleasure to finally meet you,” I said, giving her my hand

Mrs Ashdown looked at me, shocked, before regaining her composure.

“A pleasure to finally hear you as well, Lady D.” She said whilst shaking my hand. “Come,My husband has really wanted to meet you.”

Mrs Ashdown quickly said goodbye to her friends before beckoning me to follow her.

“When you invited me to meet your husband, I imagined it would be a small affair,” I said

“AHAHAH, My bad, it turns out that whilst I was gone, my husband had organised a meet and greet with all the merchants. A way to drum up business in the town.”

“I see”

“Yes, I apologise for the confusion, but as a merchant, isn't this the best opportunity to make inroads in our town.”

“Yes, it is, thank you very much..”

“No, don’t thank me. I would still be stuck on the road if it wasn’t for you and your servant.”

“Yes, also, if you don’t mind me asking. Why were you travelling by yourself with no security? I can't imagine that’s safe.” I mean, I was minding my own business, and I still got jumped, and my kids were slaughtered by that bitch and her stupid human friends. Gahh, just thinking about that makes my blood boil. Calm diva, calm…

“Yes, It isn't very safe, but I like to travel light, and besides, I'm not as frail as I look. I can handle myself.”

So don’t fuck with her till I know how strong she is, got it. We walked through the crowds of people until we finally arrived at a man where a silver and light blue suit sat at the table.

“Henry dear. Look who I've found.”

The man looked towards us, and I hate to admit it, but this man was very good-looking Blonde hair, blue eyes well, and chiselled and honed features. This man had won the entire genetic lottery. He looked towards us and smiled.

“Ah, you must be the masked lady D. my wife was raving about” He held out his hand, and I shook. He turned his gaze to Apollinaris.

“And who could forget “The amazing water witch” Apollinaris” He let out a small chuckle. “I'm sorry my son hasn’t stopped talking about you since yesterday. You sure lit a fire in his spirit, and I thank you for that. I’ve never seen the boy work so hard.”

“Ahhah. Thank you”

He nodded and took a sip of his wine.

“Now, if you wouldn’t mind. Could you please follow me to my office? I want to discuss your reward. I assume you would like to discuss that with less prying eyes and nosey ears.”

I looked around to see several people staring at us and several more trying and failing to not look like they were eavesdropping.

“That would be preferable.”

He smiled and signalled for me to follow him.

“ill be a few minutes, honey.”

She smiled and gave him a peck on the cheek before returning to the crowd of people. 2 guards followed behind us as we went upstairs. The music faded as we walked down a long corridor to a set of large oak doors.

“And we're here! Sorry for the trek, but I like my office away from all the noise.”

We walked in, followed by the guards. Mr Ashdown gestured to 2 wooden seats. Apollinaris gave me a look before we finally sat down.

“Now, let's get to business,” he said, sitting in his chair.

“I'm not sure if I've told you this, but Thank you for helping my wife. I always tell her she should take more guards to help in case this happens, but she is quite stubborn.”

He poured himself a drink from a glass bottle on his desk.

“Now, your reward. What would you prefer to get?”

“what would we prefer? Usually, it’s the one giving the reward who chooses the chooses reward, is it not?” I said.

“Usually. But I’m just curious what would a woman of your calibre desire. You don’t strike me to be the same as the merchants down there.”

Ahh, so he’s trying to get a read on me, figure out my motives. Well, two can play at that game, but first, what should I say? I could say money, but he’s probably assuming I’m already rich and won't need more money. Damn, what could I..... Actually…

“How about giving me some properties around the town.”

“Property?”

“Yes, you see, I’ve taken quite a liking to this town, and a place I could call my own would be nice. Unless such a thing isn't possible.”

His face frowned. “I assure you, Lady D, such a thing is very possible.” The room suddenly felt a few degrees colder. “In case you didn’t know, I am the highest authority below the king in these lands. What I say or do is final.”

 So he's quick to anger when his authority is questioned. Could he be a narcissist? No, he seems too well put together. Insecure? Possibly alternatively, Maybe his position is currently being challenged by an unknown 3^rd party. Possibly. Must investigate further at some point.

“I'm sorry. I didn’t mean to disrespect you. I'm not really familiar with how the laws of the land here work.”

He stared at me briefly before finally before sighing. “Sorry, that was on me. I overreacted. Now if we get back to what you asked, yes, It is doable, easily, but I noticed you said properties plural. What buildings are you after.”

“Ah, you caught that. Well, besides a house to call my own, there is an abandoned warehouse I had an eye on.”

“Which one”.

I quickly told him about the warehouse where my “Friends” were staying.

“Oh, that one. We have been looking for a buyer recently. If it isn't rude for me to ask, what would you be storing?”

“Nothing. But I plan to lease it out for the time being.”

“I see.” He sat back and contemplated for a while.

“What you ask for isn’t impossible, but don’t you feel like you're overreaching? All you did was repair a wheel.”

“Maybe I am. But what of it? You asked what I wanted, and I’m telling you.”

“Dont you care about the opinions of other merchants? Some people may think lowly of you for asking for so much for so little.”

“I dance to my own tune Mr Ashdown. The opinions and thoughts of others are of no concern to me. When I set my mind on something, I take it no matter what.”

He stared at me for a while before finally letting out a small chuckle

“I like you. You’re not like most merchants. Most would have denied the gift in the hope of earning a favour from me or asked for my daughter's hand in marriage to try and get in my family but you...... you didn’t do any of that.”

“Because I have no need for such things.”

“I can tell..... Fine, I will give you what you want.” He gestured to one of the guards, who quickly disappeared and returned with a large black binder.

“This is all the available estate in Doonvatel.”

He quickly opened it and flicked towards the end.

“I’m assuming you want something high-end?”

“Of course.”

“Well, we currently have......”

We talked for a while as we discussed the ins and outs of the home I wanted. Eventually, we settled on a place.

“Whew, we finally got there in the end. Are you happy with that?”

“Yes, how about you, Apollinaris?.......Apollinairs?” I turned around to see her fast asleep on my shoulder.

“APOLLLINARIS!”

“HUH…..WHO…..WHA…. What's going on?”

We both laughed  “I'll take that as yes” he said.

“yes, it is.”

“good sign here”

I quickly read through the fine print and signed my name on the document.

“thank you.” He placed the document in the binder and passed me the deed.

“I'll have one of my servants tell your driver about your new living arrangements. They will take you to where your new home is once the ball is over. You will meet my secretary, who will hand you the key to the house.”

“Thank you”

 “The pleasure is all mine, oh and one more thing.” He quickly reached underneath the table and tossed me a small brown bag. From the sound, I could tell it was a bunch of coins.

“What's this for”

“Oh, it's only for a show for the people down there. Don’t want weird rumours to spread about us” He stood up and quickly downed his drink. “Now, enough of this boring stuff. Let’s go enjoy the party.

That’s something we can agree on.

5 minutes later……

“Well, have fun, you two.” Mr Ashdown said as he disappeared into the crowds. I made sure to flash the gold bag of coins before quickly passing it to Apollinaris.

I turned around and put my hand on Apollinaris's shoulder. “You okay”

“Yeah…. Sorry, usually when I meet high-class people, they usually treet me like crap. It was weird being treated…..

“Like a person.”

“Yeah.”

I briefly pulled her into a hug

“Look, Apollinaris, why don’t you go out and enjoy yourself.”

“W... what?. I mean…. what am I gonna do.”

“I don’t know, drink, dance, socialise with people your age.”

“But what if..... I wanna be with you.”

“really? Why me? I’m not at all that interesting. Surely you want to be around people your age.”

“Diva, I like being around you. I feel......safe. So please just let me stay.”

She wrapped her hands around one of mine and held it to her chest; Damn it, I can't say no to her when she does that.

“Fine, let's go talk to some merchants.”

Before I could turn around, Apollinaris ran up to me and linked her arm around mine.

*sigh*

What am I going to do with this girl....

We walked hand in hand with each around the hall.

“What sort of merchants are we looking for?”

“the unsavoury and scheming kind. From previous experience, these sorts of high-class events attract some of the worst people. IM looking for them. They will help us get in.”

“Into what?”

“A while ago, I said I wanted to get into the criminal underworld of this town.”

“if that’s the case, why are we here, not on the streets? I'm pretty sure there are plenty of criminals out there.”

“Oh, Apollinaris, the most dangerous criminals don’t live on the street. They wear nice suits and drink champagne with politicians. Trust me, they are here. We just need to listen in to the right conversations.” At that moment, I discretely released a dozen or so flies into the room to eavesdrop for me, and almost immediately, they found what I was looking for. Several, in fact. But let's go with the safest. We casually walked over to one of the balcony windows and started listening in.

“Dammit! Curse, That stupid blonde Fag, isn’t playing ball; at this rate, we're gonna end up in prison or worse.”

Oh, now this sounds interesting.

“I know, and keep your voice down! We really need to get the Ashdowns out of the picture. I can’t move my “organic produce” with him in charge and cracking down on imports..”

Ah, just the conversation I was looking for. I think I should go introduce myself.

“I know. This is bad. They need to be made compliant or be removed. At this rate, I won't make it to the end of the year. We need to do something.

“Yes. We do. I'm organising a meeting with the other leaders sometime now. We can continue there away from so many ears.”

“Oh, But the conversation was just getting interesting. Why would you stop so suddenly?”

I walked around the corner and was met with 4 men 2 of them was big and burly with faces that had seen better days, and the other 2 men were complete opposites of each other one was a short fat man with a handlebar with a grey beard and moustache whilst the other was tall and thin so incredibly thin that If I stared hard enough, I could probably break a bone or something.

“ You should mind your own business, girl.”

As soon as he said the words, their guards got ready to fight.

“Easy, easy.” I said with my hands up in surrender.

“I’m just a fellow merchant who heard an interesting conversation.”

They eyed me with suspicion. No turning back now.

“You see, I’m looking to start selling my goods in this town, and I was looking for someone to give me a way in....”

“Look, lady,” the lanky one said. “we're not in the sort of business you think we are in.”

“Oh, I highly doubt that. You are exactly the sort of people I am looking for.” I moved a little bit more, causing one of the guards to pull out a dagger that was hidden in their clothes.

“Apollinaris show them thing”

She ran up to me and opened her purse, and placed something in my hand

I raised it for them all to see.

“What the hell is that.....”

“This gentleman will blow your mind.....”