open | an alenroux press release

[sterngaze]

[A couple weeks after the conclusion of the Exalt Oracle trial, a communion message goes out to all Kenos’s shard-bearers — at a brisk mid-morning hour for Springstar residents, and evening for those night owls in Highstorm. Surely an agreeable enough time for all, yes? The voice will be familiar enough to anyone who listened in on the ambassador talk a Kenos month ago; it’s Liem, mayor of Alenroux Meridian’s resident straight man.]

Greetings, everyone. I have some updates to share regarding efforts to make Alenroux fully and safely inhabitable, which I hope you will be pleased to hear.

Last month, prior to the events surrounding the Oracle, a contingent of Springstar military overseen by several shard-bearers launched a multi-pronged expedition north into Alenroux’s forests, in order to locate the source of the monsters that continue to infest the woods. While I’m sure those of you who frequent Alenroux will have noticed that the flow of especially dangerous, augmented creatures mostly died off after the dismantling of Aetós’s underground facility, we have not been able to expunge the general monster population from the forest despite ongoing efforts, so this was an attempt to remedy that.

These expeditionary forces succeeded in locating three separate cornerstones and portals that were previously disgorging monsters. At this time we think it likely that they were connected to the timestream in some way that allowed creatures from other worlds to come through, but the portals themselves proved extremely hazardous to life attempting to breach from this side. All three have now been destroyed, and while we cannot say with certainty that there are no further portals out there, we are optimistic that this will allow the danger to those living in Alenroux to be further reduced by the joint forces still stationed there.

If you have further questions, you may direct them to me, or to Hayame, Akua Sahelian, Keitaro Miura, Gray, Byleth Eisner, Link, Kim Dokja, or Dee. [He means D.]

Comments

[redsoil]

Once again, Meridian proves themselves the better and more rightful custodians of reality. Oracles, Alenroux, past and future.

[ Yes, he's feeling like being REALLY nasty as of late. None of the nastiness is directed at Liem, though. It's more of a general vibe, like Set's taken to lounging indolently upon a throne and recaptured some authority ( some divine monarchism ), as he flirts his fingers around the mental impression of Liem's ear. To tug lightly on the impression of a long, golden earring that he imagines to be worn at all times.

In private, he murmurs "into" that ear: ] Do you have any skills that might now direct you to any other incarnations of the timestream?

🔒 private

[sterngaze]

[Hmm, that seems rather inflammatory! Liem will let it slide, though, because unlike Amos, Set has rights. Still, he says nothing to encourage it, moving right to his private query instead.]

When it comes to seeking, I continue to be best at finding people and things. I was as thorough as was reasonably possible in inspecting the portal before we destroyed it, but I must admit that I could make neither heads nor tails of the magic involved. It did not even seem to display the energies of either Zenith or Meridian.

[That is to say, he's completely out to sea when it comes to understanding anything related to the timestream.]

"unlike Amos, Set has rights" :3c

[redsoil]

Well, Springstar itself must be in possession of a portal.

[ Which, he then used to begin to amplify his presence in Kenos. To draw followers and adjutants alike to his side, in exchange for validation — maybe a little more power, as well. Social power was as important as physical power, and as important as knowledge. And Set was a war god, thus he treated each as a piece to a grand puzzle, rather than being a monolith of battle and conquest. ]

Either the Tribune or the Church has it under lock and key, most likely. I think we properly locate it, learn of it, and use it in the future. Highstorm could benefit from some upheaval and challenge, on multiple levels.

[sterngaze]

[Liem considers this new assumption Set raises, which he had never before considered. The existence of a portal... within Heliopolis, somewhere?]

I suppose that's a reasonable assumption to make. It would have been dangerous to leave the portals in Alenroux active, but I would think such a portal could surely produce things other than monsters.

[Cyrus hadn't seemed to need such a large, permanent fixture when he'd reached into the timestream to pull out year's end presents (like Liem's fucking couch!!!) for visitors, but perhaps, if those in Heliopolis could open such temporary gateways, a more permanent fixture might exist as well?

He does wonder... when he requested a copy of The Manual of City-Building, how did the church's clergy find it within the timestream? Presumably the same way they found all the things that Cetina had presented him with in the past, things that "called out" to him in some way, if she was to be believed.]

Seeking such important things is most reliably done methodically, in person. I would expect something so important to be shielded from divination.

[redsoil]

I am quite reasonable.

[ The toss of his head is purposeful in indulgent confidence, Set's hand rising to touch his collarbone and spread his fingers across the width of his sternum, to tuck them higher still, curling against his cheek as his mouth spreads. In fact, he is quite smart. Emotionally and mentally, he is unstable and wild, but intellectually he knows he rises above the cut. Kenos is a puzzle, and he holds many pieces that he wishes to begin connecting.

Liem puts things together fast, and has always been someone who looks beyond his immediate task to consider how the bigger picture comes together. Cyrus had delivered Set's divine mask to him, through the timestream, he has concluded. The gifts from Cetina might come from there, as well. Which means there is a portal, and a way to use it with more precision than just hoping what one needs comes through it at any given time. ]

I expect so, as well. We have a triumvirate that rule in Springstar, which means the Tribune, the General and-or the Hieropoios must have the access we covet. With your lovely title and my service to the Church, we may stand a chance to access it.

[ 'We', as if Liem will go along with any of Set's wild ideas. ]

Depending on its properties, it might be a fantastic weapon to channel directly against Highstorm in the future.

[sterngaze]

[Set's presumptions in assuming that Liem will just go along with whatever ideas pop into his head are, for good or for ill, not that far off the mark. For all that the god is an agent of chaos, Liem is still loath to spurn his counsel altogether.]

It does seem like a worthwhile thing to seek, not only because its properties may be useful in ways that are not currently being utilized, but also because finding and studying such a thing may reveal things about this place that have not heretofore been revealed to us, as new shard-bearers.

However, discerning such things about a portal of that nature may be even more challenging as locating it.

[As he's mentioned, understanding complex, foreign magics is not a great skill of his.]

[redsoil]

It can go on our list of things to investigate, as it could be useful to have in the future. Even knowledge gives us leverage.

[ It is why he turns to Liem, because he can trust in his discretion and his desire to be heard, to know things and provide sensible input in return. Matters are not torn to shreds, if Liem is involved, they are enhanced and given diligent consideration. The priest is essential to many aspects of Set's plans, and truly —

He is a good friend. ] That being said, I wanted to propose something to you. In regards to my sister's temple, I would like to invite Akua out to view it. She and I are turning to wartime matters, and the location might serve as a staging grounds for — [ Pause. ] Well, a weapon. To say the least. Because Highstorm and the Zenites will inevitably make a move, and they must be made to regret it.

[sterngaze]

[Liem considers the matter that Set now turns to with quiet interest. He does not know what a weapon might entail, exactly, but he suspects it is nothing mundane, given the involvement of both Set and Akua.]

You want my opinion on this idea?

[Obviously Set doesn't need Liem's permission to invite people to his own temple, so this is the only obvious conclusion he can draw.]

I can see why you would choose there. It is remote, but still on Highstorm's own land. A good place from which to prepare a counter, in the event that Zenith strikes at us. And Akua is a canny ally.

What manner of weapon are you preparing?

[redsoil]

A grand one. Akua is well-versed in mass destruction, and I am a god of war — what I design will have a body count.

[ He won't shy from that. While his tone arches, there is a still severity within him; a calm understanding of the nature of war, of death, innocent and deserved. He intends to respect and adhere to the domains he embodies, and not deny anyone their rest after they die ever again.

But. Shard-bearer deaths are worth little, unless their shards are crushed. ]

I plan on making a gun of sorts! Sebastian showed me one that fells vehicles akin to moving walls! And one capable of firing so rapidly it caused deaths that numbered into the millions! And. I have Amos's shotgun. I intend to study it as best I can, for ideas. But. A gun. I believe I will create a gun driven by Meridian's might, fired directly into the heart of Highstorm. Even just the once.

[warmare]

It is exactly as you say.

We accomplish what Zenith never bothered to, nor could.

[That's not nasty, that's just the truth???]

[redsoil]

Though, [ ah, he did his gloating and now here comes the rest. ]

I would argue that Alenroux was a great waste of time and effort, and commend Zenith for playing a long game. It was a great pawn to sacrifice, to keep Meridian Shardbearers suitably distracted.

1/2

[warmare]

[What an idiot. What a fucking idiot.]

[warmare]

They still squabble amongst themselves about whether it should be "sacrificed" or not.

You give them too much credit, making it sound like they decided anything about it at all.

[redsoil]

Oh, Zenites never do anything they're not told to do. Any decisions they make are handfed to them.

[ They're useless, as people and Shardbearers tbh. He thinks they could do better, but has the mindset that they won't. Half of them would rather leave their future to someone else, and many of them are running solely on spite. They're just senseless, stupid animals as they are. He wishes they were better opponents in the long run, because this war is very dull and very boring thus far. ]

While I expect nothing from them, I expect more from the side I have devoted myself to. What comes after Alenroux? What do you think the Meridians have failed to keep an eye upon, while fixated upon this?

[ The questions, at least, are honestly seeking Hayame's thoughts. ]

locked to meridian

[warmare]

By their sacred bitch on high. Yes.

[For Amos, she softened it to "witch", but if Set is going to remind her of her own idiocy... But then he asks her for her thoughts and she genuinely can't decide if he really wants the answer or if he wants to rub in that she herself was used to simply doing what she was told.

But that was in her own world, and as much as she still yearned for it, to be able to follow someone wise and honorable and trustworthy...

Hah. That person doesn't exist here, do they?]

Aetos and his foul meddling.

[That comes first, because she'd gone into Alenroux hoping to find proof of that thing, and yet they'd turned up nothing. Was it because there was nothing, or had they simply not found it this time?]

Kowloon rotting beneath it. That fake shard business.

[But that's what Springstar should be concerned with. She... is concerned with something else.]

[redsoil]

[ Why are you softening anything for Amos "Always Cruel" Burton, Hayame!! ]

Good. Those are good places to turn your gaze to. I am in the Church to aid with the fake shards, as well as the strange machine located in the warehouse in Viomichanikós. The one I mentioned after the last Oracle, en masse.

[ He thinks of Kowloon. He thinks of what he knows about Silco's personality, his goals and drive and the fact that the two of them remain in cahoots about so many things and he thinks: I should ask Hayame to take to Kowloon's streets, to bring her might upon it, and not because he thinks it will help Springstar's cause. ]

Our Tribune is under threat, as well. Best be prepared for the best and worst outcomes. I have chosen to support Cyrus for my own reasons, but. There is a candidate who you might like... who shares views more kin to yours.

[ She might like him. ]

What would you like to do? If you could name anything other than "claim immediate victory"? What would you want to do, in this land?

[warmare]

[It's Amos' reward for playing with her emotions like 5% less.]

I had hoped to find proof of Aetos' schemes in Alenroux. The General mentioned something of great interest to me on that subject. But it seems this time we were unlucky. I will make time for another expedition as soon as I can.

[The Tribune, though... She had her own dissatisfaction with Cyrus, but would she see him replaced? Yima being the undeniable queen of her faction was part of why she thought Zenith had succeeded thus far. Would it benefit them to change, or would things worsen?]

- Which candidate is that? What views do I share with them?

[Politics...

... and what?]

- What I would like to do?

[Something... in this world?]

You mean to ask me what I would do for this world, and not mine?

[redsoil]

Agipitos Voreen. His platform thinks Springstar's current it stance is too soft and conciliatory on Zenith. He mistrusts Yima, the same way you do. He would be the better leader, if Cyrus is killed during this whole situation, and the seat of the Tribune is up for grabs.

[ He informs her of this information, because he keeps all things in his mind ( upon that war table laden with thousands of centuries of information pertaining to the realm of war and how to wage it in all forms — ) and brings them up from time to time. It is only fair to Hayame to let her know about the candidate who might make her feel better about her vision, her methods. A warrior cannot ignore the world around them, must be more akin to a scholar of how the war's tides will turn and flex — he wants to see her being proactive, instead of guided by what she has known.

She'd be fantastic, as a scholar-warrior. With a cutting mind and a mastery of the bigger picture, she'd make Springstar's military unstoppable. ( He wants to tell her not to bother with another exploration, to put Alenroux in her peripherals and return to Springstar, lest the city be swept from above and below — but, he does not. Not now. ) ]

You live here. For however long it takes for Meridian to triumph, you live here — what would you do for this place? What would you want it to do for you?

[wolof]

Mm, I would suggest, dear heart, that we do not become too cocky with our... providence.

Certainty is a path towards destruction.

[ It may not be that this world follows her rules, but Akua still sees this world through such a lens. ]

[redsoil]

Oh, Akua! There is no "wrong" in what I decree, for if I decree it — it is so!

[ His boasts are made on the back of his divinity, rather than mortal fragility and fluidity. There is not an inch of him that would say something he did not wholly believe in, with the audacity and power of someone who is flexible, but still woven into parameters. Discord, war, calamity, and so on. ]

This is not an opinion to be disputed, it is the result of proven fact and effort. I will be cautious for you, though — your counsel and knowledge of rhetoric is, doubtless, arresting.

[wolof]

Those who experience Providence certainly have such certainty.

[ She says it, and there's a mix of both pride and jealousy in there, for those winds of Providence were so... fickle, in her experience. Then again... she knew whom they were guided by, just as she should — would her mind provided, given the vision she had seen in the portal, disjointed though it was — guide the inexorable tug of Calamity. ]

I only caution for the forces of one or another can turn quickly enough. Zenith captured the first, did they not? I do not doubt that they will inevitably begin to clutch tighter, and reach for the next with renewed efforts.

We are only to a tie now, after all. The deck will need to continue to be stacked.

PRIVATE.

[redsoil]

Well, I do have to appear a certain way to the public — my personal beliefs are more in line with what you imagine. To that end, I want to meet with you soon.

[ Sure, they could be cautious. Or, they could be proactive and prepared for the inevitable. This is a war, and the war is going to escalate soon. He feels it in his gut. Be it by Oracle or the months in-between, he wants to be ready to accomplish something grand. Something violent and sudden and jaw-droppingly definitive. Which means he needs Akua, who is of the same mind.

She once built a grand weapon. He wants to do it again. ]

I have a location in mind for preparations. Liem and I have locked it down, so I will need to loop him in.

PRIVATE.

[wolof]

Do you think he will find our plans... agreeable?

[ She asks, cautious. Though she had worked with Liem, she sensed that he had some measure of honor, or perhaps that was merely projection. With Akua, it was so hard to tell. ]

If so, I think he has the wherewithal to not stumble too much into the... dangerous parts of where we decide to establish our working.

[ And then her voice turns... excitable. Surging with lust, but not for any person. For power. For doing something nobody expected, and shaking up the very establishment. Changing it, perhaps for the better. ]

We'll create something so grand, Set. Once I blotted out the very sun with Night. Perhaps I shall decide to do the opposite.

[redsoil]

Liem has a perspective I value.

[ High praise, from a god! There is an innate confidence within him, despite the malignancy of self-doubt, that speaks to his acknowledgement of Liem's orderliness. However, he does believe that the man would agree to participate if given the room to ask essential questions and provide input of his own. ]

He is not the manner of who allows 'goodness' and 'righteousness' to get in the way of doing what is necessary.

[ Which makes him a little more kindred to Set and Akua, than someone like Hayame, or Claude. ]

Akua, I want to scar Highstorm. I want to unseat their long-standing confidence and reveal to them how silly it was to become content with sedation and tranquility. To that end, we will have three potential targets: Lady Yima, herself, or her seat of power, or her Tree. The beauty of this is that all three are in the same spot. We have to do a lot of preparation, though.

[wolof]

Good.

[ Whether that to Liem or the statement, it doesn't matter. It is both. As long as Set trusts Liem not to get in the way of her weapon, of destruction, she would allow them to see the majesty of her working. To see the great and terrible work that they will create. To see how they can destroy and rend.

To see that Springstar will not just lay over, and allow Zenith to control their fates. ]

I want to see them boil under our power. Let them writhe and cry out in terror as our power streaks through the sky for them. They may not be taken wholly — but I do intend to make Lady Yima fear for her life for the first time in a long age.

[ The smile that flickers through communion is over-confident. ]

I suppose it will not be my first time, threatening beings of her caliber.

[ Immortals. Gods. They can all be threatened. ]