Amelia, Ch 328- Ciara
"The abominations were not shaped by any man, or men, High Priest," I informed, sipping from the slowly cooling bevarage. "The Administrator, Artisan and Negotiator are wrong in their belief on this issue."
In the time I had spent in my mountain demesne, I had forgotten the pleasures of well made drink. The ghouls calling themselves Cauldron were resourceful, and had many worlds of fine food and drink to ply my tongue with. Thus far, the bribe had failed to truly motivate me, I would carry out my promise of granting them knowledge, as was my contract for them providing their artificial Faerie Circles for my entertainment. That did not, however, mean I went unappreciative of their efforts. Let them believe their token gestures influenced my actions, if they wished.
As I enjoyed my drink, I watched his Faerie. She was breathtaking, as grand as any I had ever seen outside the Grand Dance itself. Even the Faerie Circles did not meet this one's glamour. That it took the form of a beautiful silver colored woman, bound in chains, I chose not to tell the King of the Stillborn. Her flesh shimmered with images and ideas, possibilities incarnate. She was dead and alive. Captive and free. Obscene and pure. Profane and sacred.
"There are many clues to suggest otherwise," the man responded carefully. I was no fool, and aware that under his hood was artifice crafted by the fae-blessed. I was being recorded, they were using their talents to track my words and extract all the wisdom that might possibly come from them. Good, it was fitting in my role as the Faerie Queen that my lessers worship at my feet and supplicate for whatever wisdom I deigned fit to give them.
"Indeed there are," I agreed. "That does not make it any less false."
"Are they Agents... err, sorry, your faeries?"
"I am aware of your terminology," I spoke, and a thousand other voices expressed their annoyance by sighing in my stead. "You are entitled to your methods. No, the abominations are not of the faerie. Or rather, they are of the faerie much as the artificers' tools are."
"Artificers?" He asked, pausing for a moment to recieve what information his conspirators were providing. "You mean Tinkers?"
"If that is what you wish to call them," I agreed, regarding him. His faerie had changed, the images coalescing as he sampled his abilities. Seeking to understand the knowledge I was gifting them with. Seeking the power that the High Priest felt was needed to stay safe, should I choose to betray him. He need not have bothered, I was enjoying the company, the drink, and the view.
"So they are constructs, like Tinkertech, but without human involvement?"
"No," I answered. "The abominations answer to one of the gifted, but they were not made by them," I corrected.
"The Entities, then?" he suggested.
"They are part of the cycle," I responded. "All parts of the cycle come from the Faerie."
"But Scion killed one of them," he pointed out next. "If he made them, why's he destroying them, now?"
"The King of the Faeries follows His own path," I answered. "It is not my place to question His will."
"His will means the destruction of everything," the man argued. "You say you're not afraid to die, but this is a scale of countless trillions of worlds. Your death, the deaths of everyone you've ever cared about."
"The Faeries continue on," I responded. "This is nothing the Serpent does not already know. Did not already tell you. She taught you of the Cycle, what parts she was blessed to know. She used you on her Path of Corruption, after all."
"Serpent?" The High Priest asked.
"The Betrayer," I responded. "The bearer of false gifts. She who stole the poisoned fruit and gave it to man. She who wields the rebel Faerie and used it to slay the true Queen. Pick your favorite story, she is all of them and worse."
"Contessa, you mean," he responded. "Is... is that why you killed her? Because she killed Heiress?"
"Heiress?" I asked. "An interesting name. Who chose to name the Stillborn Queen thus?"
"I believe it's one of the terms Pantheon coined," he answered. "But please, let's stay on topic. Did you kill Contessa for killing the dead Entity?"
"Not dead, merely stillborn," I corrected. "And I did not murder the Serpent. I reclaimed her, to keep her where she can do no more to poison the cycle."
"Will you do the same, when the time comes for the rest of us to fight Scion, to kill him?" He asked. I could imagine the thoughts in his head, imagining he might need to fight me. Imagining that he might even, perchance, have a chance of success in that flight of fancy. Just as he believed he could challenge the True King of the Faeries. I found his antics amusing, at least.
"I will not need to, High Priest," I spoke. "The True King cannot be defeated by us. He and His consorts sit atop His throne, untouched and untouchable. Above the royal court even as we are above mere ungifted humans. To imagine we can slay Him is to imagine an army of mere toddlers could defeat us. I allow your rebellion, because He allows your rebellion. And He allows your rebellion because it amuses Him, and is part of His will and the Cycle. The Faeries cannot be slain."
"Contessa... the one you call a Serpent... she killed Heiress, did she not?"
"Of course not," I scoffed. "She poisoned Heiress, stole her gifts and rendered her stillborn. Then sought to unravel the Dance of the Faeries in her jealousy and fear. The Queen is merely dreaming, now. Awaiting the moment of her Rebirth and the continuation of the Cycle. And no, High Priest, it is not possible for you to stop that. The events have been set in motion, and they are not to be stopped by any agency. Not even the True King Himself could halt the process at this juncture."
"Is that what you took Contessa for?" He demanded, whispering his anger. "That you could cause this to happen?"
"It would be poetic irony, would it not?" I smiled. "There is, after all, such a fine line between the gift of Poison, and the gift of Medicine. However, now that I have properly chastised the Betrayer of her crimes, I find there is little that I need do to accomplish the goal I sought. As such, I am content to adhere to our prior agreements. You and the Pantheon have done well in learning of the Cycle as you have. I shall continue providing my advice, if you continue to provide shows as you have promised. I do believe the claim was for the next one to be twofold the last?"
"I... would have to check, that is not my department," the High Priest fidgeted uncomfortably. "Tell me, why would we trust you not to kill the rest of us? Or Pantheon's, for that matter? What is stopping you from attempting to reclaim my Faerie? Or any of the others?"
"Why, nothing could stop me," I answered. "Save for my word, given freely as I have done here. I am not a murderer for murder's sake, High Priest. I am the Faerie Queen, and what I kill needs to die to serve my purposes, and the purpose of the Cycle. Now that the Betrayer is contained, there is little else for me to do save wait for the end, when we cease our games, cast off our mortal forms, and return to the Grand Dance amongst the stars."
"I see," he muttered unhappily. The Betrayer whispered in my ear, even as I bid her hand me another cup of spiced mead. I had to admit, if begrudgingly, that the recipe was delicious. The Faerie was, as promised, an expert at all things and a caterer to every desire.
That was what made the Serpent so dangerous, so poisonously appealing. If she were allowed, she would betray me as well. Even if merely as I grew to rely upon her power and lose myself in the power to always know the most convenient path through all obstacles. But, no, I would not allow myself that. To play my role in the Cycle was one thing, but the King and Queen did not orchestrate the entire play for a reason. They created the framework, and allowed the actors to improvise upon the stage for their amusement and pleasure. I would defer to their wisdom. The Serpent was a beautiful pet to own, but it would remain locked safely behind glass.
Save for when I desire the perfect drink.
"You have my offer, High Priest," I responded. "It remains unchanged from before. I will be understanding, if disappointed, should you reject my generosity. There will be no retribution if you wish to abandon the plan. If anything, I see how the loss of the Serpent bothers you so. I shall be more generous in my dealings with your organization in the future. You may enjoy one additional hour of my company per week, distributed however you wish, should you continue to meet my price."
"I... will talk to the others," he responded, still unhappily. "We'll have our answer to you by tomorrow's meeting."
"Thank you," I responded sincerely. "Now I really must return to my duties under the mountain. As entertaining as our conversations are, I have obligations to attend to, and lesser serpents to chastise."
"Yes, I understand," he agreed. "Doormaker? Passage to the Faerie Queen's residence."
The Tunnel Digger obeyed, and the passage opened. "Fairwell, High Priest," I responded. "I look forward to our next discussion."
"As do I, Faerie Queen," he nodded.
I smiled the moment I was sure no one could see me. Perhaps it was the mead talking, but I really did look forward to our next meeting.
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A/N- As far as April Fool's jokes go? I think my favorite part of this one is going to be where I don't tell you whether or not this is an April Fool's joke and it'll be potentially dozens of chapters before it's confirmed or denied.
Transcendent Bluff THAT, bitches!
.... Also, I may have been planning this chapter for the last two weeks....