The Search For Kathea, A Leap Into Conflict with An Emperor

  The 'Keep' has been berthed into the 'Krang', umbilicals have been placed to allow a complete second set of manual controls to be placed in case they are needed. Reinforcing buttresses have been installed on the walls where the 'Keep' was embedded within the mountain. The area around the 'Altar' and 'Pit' has been sealed but not destroyed, Iriisii wanted to be able to go back and examine them in more detail to determine who corrupted them and where the other symbols directed the portals toward.

     She is spending some time by the lake on the surface, near the naiad village. The mother of her newest 'daughter' has been with her, learning of what happened to her daughter and what her future path will be, all while waiting for word from Ciri if there is to be a wedding in the offing.

     Telasine's mother, Selaya, sits with Iriisii on a stone seat near the statue that Geralt had made and placed here.

     "I know it is difficult for me to accept what happened to Telasine, but I thank you, anyway for saving her life. You did not have to, but I have come to respect you for keeping your word. You came when she called, fought with her, and saved her when others would not have cared if she lived or died."

     "I set her feet on the 'Path', not knowing where it would lead her. I only knew it would not be possible for her to follow me and survive. And so I gave her a new direction to live her life in. I would have been remiss in my obligation to her had I let her die, while I was the one to set her life on her new path. Now because of what happened, she has the chance to follow her first dream and become as I am.

     I am sorry that she must come with me and leave here, but there is no other way with what comes. She is the 'first of my line', the flesh of my flesh, the blood of my blood. She is now as much my daughter as if I had given birth to her, and in a way I did. You gave her 'mortal' life, and now I have given her 'immortal' life. We are both 'mothers' to her, and it is now my responsibility to teach her about her new life and help her achieve all that she can be.

     I look at her and see myself long ago, while I was still mortal. She will not have as hard a time as I did, I had to learn by doing and discovering all I know on my own. She will have teachers, mentors, friends, and a new family, to add to the one she has here."

     "Then it was a good thing that you came when you did. I would have lost her otherwise, at least I know she goes to be with someone who cares for her and wants her to be her best. Perhaps one day she can come back for a short while when the business of gods is taken care of?"

     "I will see to it that she returns from time to time, I lost my own mother in childbirth and so never knew her. I know what it means to have no memories of mother or father, so I would that she never forget you or the things you did for her in raising her."

     "You are not like so many who live on this continent, obsessed with themselves and no one other. And if that other be different than they are..."

     "You do not have to go on, I am well aware of how people are here. Would that they had a true immortal guide to shepherd them, but they have only those who have risen in the absence of one, and they know not what the true responsibilities are. They want the power, but not the wisdom, the freedom, but not the responsibility, the adoration, but not the selfless caring.

     One day they may yet grow up, for it fast approaches that a choice will have to be made, no way to be left behind, no way to hide, they must decide the side they will stand on, and then accept the fate that comes with that decision."

     "Before I forget, I wanted to thank you for the guards you left for us when you went inside the mountain. At first, we were scared, most others would have taken advantage of us. But the ones you left were polite and helpful, when they helped us with anything, they would not accept recompense. They said they received all they needed from you."

     "I pay my people well and see to their needs whatever they may be. Those who guarded your people are my 'Hand of Blood', my personal bodyguards. This was just a few of them, the complete number of them is two thousand."

     "Two thousand? Why so many?"

     "The world they come from was under attack from another. I freed many who had been taken captive, destroyed a fleet of ships sent to enslave all of them, then went to the world trying to take them and took down their leaders instead. I also empowered the goddess of the desert world, gave her access to the power that flows to me from the belief and faith of those who live there, so that she would never starve for power again.

     The leaders of the desert world gathered their best and most fierce warriors, then presented them to me as my bodyguards. I accepted them even though I did not really need them, to turn them away after all volunteered to become mine would be a deathly insult. So I marked them as mine, by marking their armor with my bloody hand. It is my intention to further their training and equipment to the absolute best they can be, then put them back on their homeworld to guard it in my name."

     "Ah, I see now, that is indeed a good plan and everyone benefits. If only more saw as you do. But I wanted to say it was not too long after you went inside, that some strangers came. Your guards intercepted them and turned them away. I remember a few of them said they would return after the guards left, then they would continue their mission."

     "Did you hear what their mission was?"

     "No, but maybe the guards did. I know they asked questions of the strangers."

     "Thank you, I will find out who they were and what it was they wanted. Then I can decide what needs to be done."

     "Do you think they want the prisoner you have down there?"

     "It will not matter as I have taken him aboard my 'Krang' along with the 'Keep of the First Ones'. There is nothing left down there for anyone to be interested in. Also, there are several clans of lesser vampires living deep inside, I have spoken to the 'Elder' over them and they will not be a problem to you. I have arranged for 'prey' to be periodically released inside for them to hunt and feed on. They will have no reason to come to the surface and be a problem."

     "What kind of 'prey' do you mean?"

     "Animals, kin to ones they hunted on their homeworld before they were brought here. I have promised them that if they stay out of trouble when I can, I will return them to the home they came from. I hope to do this for all the others as well. If any wish to stay, as long as they respect the lives and rights of all others, I have no problem with that."

     "You are indeed a 'wise one', wise enough that even those, others call 'monsters', will listen to you when you speak."

     "Most will, now that I have grown strong enough that they will heed me when I first speak. Some will never listen as such they do not wish to. Those must be dealt with in another fashion. But now I must speak to my 'guards' and see what transpired. I hope it will be something easily dealt with."

     Iriisii rises and walks over to where some of the off-duty guards are resting.

     "Captain, there were unwanted visitors after I went into the mountain?"

     "Yes, Lady of the Sands. How may I be of service?"

     "Tell me what you found out as to who they were and why they were here."

     "They said they were 'Niffgard', I think that is right."

     "Nilfgard?"

     "Yes, Lady. Niffgard. Anyway, at first, they wanted to go into the mountain, said the 'Witcher' they were tracking went inside and they were to follow. They did not take it too well that we denied them entrance."

     "Did they say which one they were following?"

     "The 'white-haired' one was the one they were interested in. Very interested in. They asked why the witchers were allowed inside when they were not. We said one came from here, and so had every right to go inside. She took the other with her and so we allowed it, but no one else could go in until you gave permission. Did we do right, my Lady?"

     "Yes, Captain, you performed your duties just as I instructed, you could not have done better."

     "Thank you, my Lady. Your praise is what we live for."

     Iriisii walks back to the shore and stands in front of the statue. Thinking on it, she lowers her head and thinks of 'Ciri'. It only takes a moment before she feels where 'Ciri' is, in Dandelion's Cabaret.

     'Ciri, dear, I apologize for the intrusion, but I must speak with you.'

     'What is it about?'

     'While we were in the mountain and the 'Keep', some Nilfgard agents came looking for you. My 'Hand of Blood' denied them entrance and sent them away, but not before some said they would be back to fulfill their mission.'

     'Crap, he was supposed to leave me alone. I told him if he pressured me I would never do as he wants for me to do.'

     'I take it he is someone high up in Nilfgard, to have command of agents.'

     'He is my father, Emhyr var Emreis, the 'White Flame that dances on the graves of his enemies'. He is the Emperor of Nilfgard. And he wants me to take his place on the throne.'

     'I see, and judging from your reaction, you want no part of it.'

     'For certain, I do not! I like my life as it is. I am free to help people with their monster problems and that is all that I care to involve myself in. The politics and infighting of the Court is something I want to stay as far from as possible. The things he has done to try and 'retrieve' me, not to mention using that as an excuse to expand the Empire for me to rule over. I wanted no part of it, if he had come to me as a father. I would have been more accepting of him. But truthfully, I see more of the father that cares for me in Geralt than I ever saw in Emhyr. I thought for so long he was dead in that shipwreck along with my mother, and I still do not feel that I know the truth of what happened.'

     'Because he is your birth father, I will try and be diplomatic with him. But I will not allow any threat to the Naiads. If it is your wish, I will speak to him about keeping more distance from you, but first I need to ask your advice.'

     'I do not know what help I can be but ask.'

     'He strikes me as a very proud and vain man, what I have to say and how I may have to say it to make it 'stick', would humiliate many men. To do such to a man like your father, a man in the political position he is in, would cause untold humiliation if done in front of his Court. Would it be better to speak with him late into the night when there are much fewer witnesses?'

     'A good question. Personally, I would not care when you did it or what you had to do. But the kind of humiliation you are likely talking about would cause a full-scale rebellion among the nobles to unseat him. Whether they could actually do it before he killed them all, I do not know, but the people do not deserve what would happen. It would be blood running in the streets like a river. And then the northern kingdoms would see that as an opportunity for revenge for what he has already done to them over the last several years.'

     'I understand, the common people do not deserve what would happen. I will see if I can at least convince him to return to his borders and leave you be.'

     'Good luck with that. You will need it.'

     'When dealing with someone like he is from what you say, a clear position of strength is the first thing that needs to be established, and in this case that has to be done privately. Later if needs be, that strength can be shown in a more public manner, but that should be only the last resort. As long as he does not drag anyone else into this, I will deal with him privately, if he endangers anyone else. I will take my gloves off, and he will feel my dragon claws.'

     'If you need any further help, just call me. But please understand, it is not that I hate him, for I do not. Rather it is that we do not understand each other, we each want different things, different lives, and we cannot see why the other does not see things our way.'

     'Indeed a difficult situation to be in, but he cannot live your life for you, try as he would want to. He must see this and come to accept this, or he risks losing you forever. I do not know if there is any way for him to see this, but I will try for you.'

     'Why are you willing to do this for me, you really do not know me that well.'

     'But I do know, trust, and even admire Geralt, for the effort he made to help you, teach you, showed you the 'path', but in the end, left the decision to you if that life was what you wanted. Had you chosen otherwise, he would still have supported you in whatever decision you made?'

     'You are right, he would have. That is why I feel him to be more my father than the Emperor.'

     'Somehow, we will sort this out. There are many options that I have available to me that you do not, I will find a way for him to see what he is driving you toward, and then we will see if he will come to his senses.'

     'And if he will not, what then?'

     'I will not kill him if that is what you are asking, I can give him a comfortable life somewhere that he can never find his way back here. And he can live out his years as he wishes, remorseful over his decisions or not. It will be his choice to make, by his actions, his decisions, by the words out of his own mouth will his fate be decided.'

     'You cannot be fairer than that, by the words out of his own mouth, then let his fate be decided.'

     Iriisii decided to wait until the hours just after midnight to make a surprise visit to Emhyr var Emreis, for now, a bit of planning was in order. She talks to the other souls within to ask their opinions.

     'How do you think we should handle this, based on what we know of him?'

     'Your thoughts on timing are well-founded. We can always run a repeat during the height of day if the night visit fails.'

     'You will have to establish your strength early, he is not one to respect anything else, and even then he will attempt to control you and the conversation, do not let him or he will leave you twisting in the winds.'

     'You must be ready to be decisive, even hard with him. He is not likely to change his beliefs in himself and the rightness he feels is his right. Be prepared to do your worst and do not hesitate if you begin it.'

     'Then you think he will not change his ways or his mind?'

     'No, I do not. I think if you do not wish to kill him, then you must exile him to somewhere he cannot escape from. Let his cage be gilded, let him have the possibility of life if he wishes to pursue it, but he cannot leave.'

     'I do not like the idea of permanent exile, but I also believe you are likely right. Ok, we will go in to shock him with how vulnerable he really is, then show him how implacable we are. We have been given the writ to judge him, found him wanting, and now is the time of judgment. He is likely to start a fight, so who is best to finish it to show him how powerless he truly is?'

     'I will, when I project who I am, he will have no choice but to fall into rage and anger to protect himself against despair. That will put him off balance and ensure we will win in a fashion that will make a lasting impression on him.'

     'Very well, I think we should 'usurp' his throne, so to speak, that will let us begin with the upper hand. All right let us do it.'

     Iriisii checks on the time of night that Nilfgard is experiencing. Determining it is near perfect, a severe storm is brewing near the Palace, and will mask their entrance. She creates a vision portal within the throne room to check if it is empty. when it is she calls on Atticus.

     "Atticus, I need you and a couple of squads of your best and most frightening looking to go with us on a task."

     "Give me just a few minutes to round them up, my Lady, and we will be ready."

     "Thank you. Just let me know, we will be arriving by the portal."

     She then on impulse asks 'Reaper' to go with them as well. He steps through the portal she opens for him and they wait on Atticus.

     Once all are ready, Iriisii ports all of them into the throne room. As they look around, Iriisii has Atticus place them in the area close to the throne but spread out where they can easily surround anyone standing in front of the throne. She then casts a disguising spell to allow them to be ignored until they need to act. She then walks to Emhyr's throne and sits down, motions  Reaper to stand to her right side, and Atticus to her left. Then she sends a dream call to the Emperor to come to his throne room and greet his newest guests.

     Emhyr var Emreis is restless in his sleep, something is nagging at him, urging him to arise. He is getting the feeling something is not right in the Palace, it seems to be centering in his throne room. He cannot imagine who would have the audacity to do anything, especially after the last time. Well, might as well see to whatever is there, I am not going to get back to sleep until I do.

     He rises up, wraps a thick robe around himself against the chill of a gathering storm he can hear approaching. On a whim, he grabs his sword, slinging it across his shoulder as he leaves his bed chamber and walks toward the throne room. He considers getting a few of the guards to go with him but decides against it. If he needs them, he can call them, this way he does not look weak if there is nothing wrong.

     He reaches the doors and quietly opens one, slips through, shuts the door, and turns to look into the throne room. Iriisii in her 'Armor of the Ages', sits on his throne, looking at him with a sly smile, her hands holding the most magnificent katana blade across her legs, one hand on the hilt, the other caressing the blade as if it were a treasured lover. Then he sees the two figures on either side of her and immediately whips the sheathe off of his own blade.

     "Who are you to come in here and defile my throne!"

     Iriisii looks at him with disdain and projects it into her voice.

     "It is you who have defiled this throne for long enough. You, who has forgotten what it means to rule over the people who make up this Empire. You, who have made enemies even within your own Court, who only wait for a single mistake in order to topple your reign."

     "Who paid you to come here, which of the Northern idiots has finally grown the balls to do something."

     "None of them know what I am doing, for to know why I am here you must look closer to home. And the one you seek is not within your Court. To know who is your adversary, go look into a mirror, Emhyr var Emreis."

     "What kind of foolishness do you spout about woman?! Tell me now before I spit you like a pig for the roasting!"

     Reaper and Atticus both place their hands on their blades to draw and protect Iriisii, even as she asks them to hold their blades.

     "I really did not want to come and get involved in this, but you left me no choice."

     "I..left you no choice? How did I leave you no choice but to come in here and sit on MY THRONE!'

     "You sent your people to the mountains in the far north, where the Naiads guard the entrance into the mountain for me. Your people who thought to intrude into a sacred place where they had no business. The Naiads are under my protection, and yet your agents threatened to return with soldiers after they were turned away by my, 'Hand of Blood', my personal guards. And so you forced my hand to come here and show you the error of your ways."

     "Mountains in the north? Naiads? Cirilla? You are you to stand between my daughter and me?!"

     "Ciri is known to me, as are several others as well. I have spoken to her concerning you after your people tried to trespass. She told me much that convinced me there would be no peace until I dealt with you. She told you her feelings toward your actions, feelings that continue to cause her pain that you have no regard for her desires at all, that all you care about is yourself and your own thoughts of what she wants."

     "You have spoken to her?"

     "Yes, I have. And she wishes for you to leave her alone. She has made her choice, a choice that you drove her to, and are so completely blinded that you will not see your own complicity in why she did not choose you."

     Iriisii rises to her feet, pointing a direct finger at Emhyr.

     "You meddle in affairs of which you know nothing. Affairs of import great enough to concern the very 'heavens' and the 'hells', all of the Gods, lesser and greater, even to the 'Mother' herself, that direct the fates of all of the Realms in all of the Creations. Ciri has a place in what is to come and you would interfere in her destiny? I think not!"

     "One last time, who are you to come here, making these absurd pronouncements, coming between me and my daughter?!"

     Reaper takes a step forward, and in a deep, echoing voice.

     She is the 'Daughter of the Mother of the Cosmos', 'First of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, WAR', called both the 'Dragon of War' and the 'Mother of Dragons', 'first Greater Goddess, Leader, and Harbinger of the Gods of Eld', 'Battle Mistress of the Celestial Army of the Balance', possessor of the 'Tar Aiym Krang', and the 'Wisdom of the First Ones'.

     "Perhaps this might jar your memory, Emhyr var Emreis, some years ago, on the border with Beauclaire, a brigade of your soldiers disappeared without a trace. I heard you wanted to lay the blame on Countess Henrietta, but because there was no evidence whatsoever that she even knew your soldiers were there, you were advised not to attempt to blame her for the disappearance."

     "You are saying you were the one responsible?"

     "No, they were given the chance to turn away and leave. It seems that at that time, they feared you more than they feared me. It also seems their lesser fear of me was misplaced, had they been more fearful of me, they might still be alive. And I did not hold but a slight amount of power compared to what I hold now. It was me, who laid siege to Aretuza and brought the Society of Sorceresses to their knees."

     "Why did you see the need to destroy my brigade, what threat could they have been to you?"

     "People who your soldiers take in for questioning, tend to never be seen again. I could not take the chance, too much revolved around what I was called to do. If they had tried to make me disappear, a great many more of your soldiers would have died. Enough that it would have drawn the attention of those more powerful toward me before I was ready to make my presence known to all."

     "And now you announce your presence to all?"

     "Actually I did that about a year ago when my rise among the powers made me cross over into the realm of the Greater Gods, and I continue to climb the ladder. As I climb, as I complete my 'Tasks of Destiny', more and greater ones are added to me. I am aware of Ciri's bloodline, and the purpose to which it was first desired. What those who brought it about did not see, was what might happen if those who stood above them, decided to change the destiny and direction of the power she carries."

     "So it was true."

     "She did as she was destined to do when she faced the 'White Frost'. But the new world she was to bring about under a new sun, was a world for the elves, only the elves. The 'White Frost' was to take all others into its cold embrace. But Geralt was the agent of change in that, it was the relationship he built with her, that caused her to use the power to not only turn away the 'White Frost' but to renew this world for all that call it home. It is because of both of them, that you still live, you and all others, who are not elves.

     And before you decide to start a pogrom against the elves, consider this. A great deal of the problems that came about with them in these latter times, is entirely in your hands. Really, having Francesca's child murdered. That started a chain of events that still have not finished. And quite possibly be magnified when the next Conjunction occurs."

     "Wait!, there will be another Conjunction? When?"

     "Within your lifetime, if nothing is done to avert it. But it is not your problem, it is given to others to stop it."

     "And Ciri is one of these others?"

     "Yes, but she will only do it if you do not interfere in her life."

     "How do you know this? How can anyone know all of this?"

     "Once one passes into the 'Greater Gods', the 'Streams of Time' are open to being seen, if one so desires. I use them sparingly for it is too easy to become totally dependant on them, and crux decisions can change their directions within a heartbeat. But they can be useful when one takes care of how they are used. In this situation, I had hoped to guide you to where it would not be needful to intervene directly.

     You made that impossible, not that the path does not exist, but that the cost is too high for others to have to pay, and so another path had to be sought. That is why I am here, to implement the one path that brings into balance the forces needed to forestall the next Conjunction."

     "And so you are here to kill me, is that it?"

     "No, that would be your solution. I do not rely on that unless there is no other way. That does not mean I am not capable of it, do not make that mistake, for it would be your last."

     "I do not think that I believe you. If it is, all the same, I will take my chances."

     And he brings up his sword, readying it for a fight.

     "I had hoped to avoid this, but by the words out of your own mouth will your fate be sealed. Darkstar, he is yours."

     "Who is this Dark..."

     He sees the change come over Iriisii, her features subtly change, but her demeanor, her stance, the icy cold within her eyes, and most of all, the aura of death that envelopes her. He knows fear for perhaps the first time in his life, for he is in the presence of an assassin of the first order. Someone he had heard rumors and stories about, but never found one, until now.

     "I am Darkstar, and I give you this one last chance to turn from this fate..."

     As Emhyr swings his sword in a short swing before thrusting toward Darkstar's heart. She parries cleanly, Emhyr's blade sliding to the side, as he frantically skips to the side to avoid the strike that Darkstar does not send his way. She steps back, allows him to regain his step before stepping toward him. He tries a combination strike, and she stops with a single parry.

     Emhyr is trying hard to still his mind, as Darkstar sheathes her blade and approaches bare-handed, Emhyr makes a solid move, Darkstar grasps the blade in her hands, wrenches the blade out of his hands, then turns it back to him hilt first. As he takes it back she takes a step back, and she motions him to try again. He raises the blade to try again and halfway through tosses the blade to the floor.

     "Do it! Get it over with."

     "We have no intention to kill you."

     "Wha.."

     "We intend to exile you. Someplace far enough away you will never find your way back on your own. If you wish, you can have a comfortable life, but it will be up to you to make it so."

     "Then I have no choice if I wish to live."

     "If the situation were reversed, would you offer the same?"

     "No, I would not."

     "And so the difference that lies between you and Iriisii. She will kill, without regret or remorse, when it is needed, but when it is not needed, she prefers other solutions. You have a chance to reflect on your life, try and find where you could have done something different, and start down another path that might have made this one unnecessary. And maybe healed the rift between you and Ciri, before it grew so far."