Lament of the Fallen

”Now aren’t you glad I picked the destination this time?” Moirai asked with a slight victorious smirk.

Dee was too busy eating her way through the seventh dish within thirty minutes to answer properly, but her nod was eager enough to get the message across. This world wasn’t exactly a hub of great power and activity, but it did have a very refined agricultural development. The animals were especially suited for domestication and the soil somehow produced wonderful plants and fruit trees. The locals attributed it to being blessed by the local gods of earth and harvest, and for all Dee and Moirai knew it might even be true. No matter the reason though, the world was one of the major agricultural centers in this area of Assembly controlled worlds.

“Still, this map we managed to acquire from the information broker is rather different. It’s at the same time extremely complex and extremely simple.” Moirai toyed with a magical crystal in her hand.

With a small injection of power the map, or more accurately maps, inside the crystal were projected into the mind of the user. The user could freely zoom in and out of the map, all the way up to a level that spanned multiple galaxies, or all the way down to the level of a single world. The broker had even helpfully added annotated notes on each world. That said, those little annotations were based on the information that the broker had available, so they were not completely reliable.

“It’s hard to really conceptualize the locations of worlds over a network spanning galaxies, especially when the location of the worlds keeps changing.” Moirai continued with a judging tone.

Dee stopped eating long enough to answer. “You’re thinking about it the wrong way. You should not think of it as a normal map. Instead, think of it as a grid of connected dots. Regardless of their location, only some of those dots are connected. The actual distance between them is, well not irrelevant, but not all that far from it either. There are too many factors that affect which other dots a single dot is connected to for simple distance to matter too much, and if you try to conceptualize it as a normal map you’ll go crazy. You need to get rid of the idea that location and distance are the most important factors in determining connections.” She then proceeded to stuff her mouth full again.

“Have I mentioned that I dislike it when you manage to figure out something like this faster than me?” Moirai replied a little testily. Dee’s explanation had made things click in her mind though, so she couldn’t be too upset. “Well, as revenge, it’s only right that you’ll actually have to learn the locations of the different worlds and not just the connections.”

Dee had to get a decent handle on the location of the different worlds in case she ever needed to use her portals. She didn’t need the exact location, but she couldn’t go in totally blind either. Luckily it wasn’t too difficult for a psion to memorize the contents of the map. Dee stopped chewing long enough for another comment. “Still, we’ll need more information. The broker was worth the extravagant price but the information is not complete. Besides, the notes are biased.”

“True. All information is biased though, as it’s always given from someone’s point of view. We’ll need to cross-check things with other information brokers, preferably on other worlds. It would be even better if we got maps from the angels, dragons, and demons as well. If the remaining demons even have maps. This map is understandably Assembly-centric.” Moirai said in agreement.

Araqiel entered the booth they were in and shot a quirked eyebrow at all the empty plates surrounding Dee. “How was the information broker?” She asked as she entered.

“Good. We got most of what we wanted.” Moirai replied as Dee was still too busy to do so. “How about you? Did you manage to reach the Archangel?”

“Well, good news and bad news on that front. I did manage to reach her and she has the information you want. The bad news is that the device I was using was not secure and this isn’t the sort of information we want to be overheard. If the other Archangels found out she is looking into this matter and spreading the information around, she’d have a real problem. She wants a meeting. I’m sure she also has questions to you as well. The sort of questions you don’t talk about when you can be overheard.” Araqiel explained.

“She expects us to go into the area controlled by the angels? Surely she can see we would find that more than a little suspicious?” Moirai pointed out incredulously, and Dee waved a piece of bread at them in a very agreeing manner.

“She can indeed see that, which is why she has agreed to meet us on one of the worlds in Assembly space that allows angels access. She can easily find a good reason to visit and we can find a suitable chance to meet. You should find that agreeable as well, as the world in question has a very heavy Assembly presence so even if she tried to betray you, a battle would draw the wrong kind of attention and everyone involved would get caught up in a three-way mess.” Araqiel explained. She had expected Moirai’s reaction and so had her mother.

“Well, that was considerate of her. When is this meeting supposed to take place?” Moirai found herself with a better impression of the Archangel. She still wouldn’t make the mistake of fully trusting the angel, but she still had a more positive impression of this angel in particular.

“Ah, there’s a slight rub with that. Dee’s banishment from Pantheon has been noted among the angels. It would draw unwanted attention if she made moves right after that happened. She suggested the meeting take place in three months. The exact date can be set later. She did suggest that we should start moving in that direction when the time draws near. Oh, and I’m sure there will be angels looking for Dee, though that’s not exactly news.” Araqiel outlined. “What about you, I’m sure you got a map, but how about the robes and sashes?”

They had used the robes to enter this world without hassle and had hidden them soon after. “Ah, right. Those requests roused some questioning looks by the way. I’m pretty sure she will sell information about us as soon as she figures out the best person to approach. Good thing we both looked very different while we were there.”

“A good precaution.” Araqiel mumbled and Dee waved her fork in agreement this time.

Moirai continued while eyeing the fork in case of food splatter. Not that Dee would let anything escape. “Anyway, to our fortune, it doesn’t seem that the Assembly is an overly complex organization when it comes to ranks between members. There are special designated positions when a situation calls for it, but that doesn’t show on the robes. Brown robes for new trainees, dark blue for those that have been tested but haven’t become full members yet, and then three ranks for the full members. The first rank covers almost everyone, and our robes are of that rank as well. The second rank denotes a member of the ruling body or a faction leader. As one might imagine from the name, the Assembly usually decides most important matters with all members voting, but there is a council that keeps things running on a day to day basis. There’s also a designated head of the council, which is the third rank, for leadership in case of emergencies. The faction leaders share the same second rank. Incidentally, the members of the first rank determine seniority among themselves via a web of hundreds of factors that only they understand fully. That’s the hard part of pretending to be one of them.”

“Alright, so far so good. I told you those things even before you asked the broker.” Araqiel said a little smugly.

“I know, but you yourself said your information is out of date. We needed to confirm things. Moving on, there are about two dozen major factions with their own color sashes. The number changes every now and then as the internal politics change, so even the broker could not give a definitive list. The major factions have several sub-factions which is what the markings on the sash indicate. The factions fall into two major categories, those dedicated to combat and leading armies, and those dedicated to more intellectual pursuits. There are factions that don’t quite fit neatly into either category, but that’s the general gist of things. Incidentally, you were correct in the assumption that our red sashes indicate membership in a faction that is definitively militaristic.”

Araqiel sighed. “I knew it. Anything else?”

“Well, the factions we should be most aware of. The reds, whose robes we stole, are pretty firm in their desire to expand the influence of the Assembly, but they’re not exactly extreme about it. Another one we should pay attention is those with green sashes. They are the largest faction among the Assembly, and they are the major military faction. The greens lead the armies and are the best in battle. There are sub-factions with differing views, but in general the greens don’t go out looking for trouble. They’re more than happy to take part in any trouble that finds them though. The whites are the most pro-angel faction, so they probably won’t like us if we ever run into them. We should also keep our eyes on the blues. They’re the premier research faction. They won’t pick a fight with us, but they are the ones that might have surprising new techniques to spot us and bother us. The facility we destroyed was testing an idea the reds stole from the blues.” Moirai explained.

“Is the black faction still around? They used to be the primary pro-demon faction, but they were on a downward spiral the last I heard.” Araqiel asked. As an angel, she personally wasn’t fond of that faction but realized Dee might feel the opposite.

“They’re still around according to the broker’s knowledge, but they’re pretty much delegated into being the anti-angel faction now. Not much wind in their sails I’m afraid. The white faction is ascendant at the moment.” Moirai replied with a shrug. She knew Dee wasn’t all that fond of demons in general either, despite her background.

“Well, be that as it may, we need to determine our next destination. That map should be of help.” Araqiel stood up, preparing to leave.

“You mean we can’t stay here? But the food here is excellent.” Dee asked with a sad voice.

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The trio spent a few days planning their next course of action. That allowed Dee to indulge in her gluttony and she also made sure to stuff as much food as possible inside Croestia’s storage. The money they had gained from the previous owners of their robes had been severely depleted by her purchases and the visit to an information broker. They had determined that they would need to find a source of funds rather soon, or they would be forced to sell some of the stuff they had brought with them from Pantheon. Dee had an especially large amount of materials stored, partly thanks to the Living Mountain still being obsessed by slimming its form by shedding any excess materials.

Dee also noted that whenever she absorbed the souls from the storage device her mother had left behind, those souls now all stuck around her Domain. The first two souls had some meaning to her, but now that she had come to a careful agreement of sorts with Death, it seemed like the anomaly extended to all souls. The souls didn’t do anything though, as they just floated around her mostly empty Domain. The increased number did worry Dee just a bit, but not enough to prompt any action just yet. She was curious about where this was headed, even though she wasn’t foolish enough to ignore the possible risks.

Eventually, the trio decided on a plan of action and was preparing to leave this world behind. They had donned the robes again and were already walking towards the gateways. This world was something of an exception in that it had both the inbound and outbound gates in the same place, though that was mostly for trade reasons. Even though this world wasn’t too far from the border, it was also a major supply center so logistic reasons trumped security.

“Don’t worry, the world we picked has great access to auction houses even if the map doesn’t list that. I’ve been there before. There’s plenty of other possibilities as well.” Araqiel tried convincing Moirai.

“I don’t doubt you, but I find it suspicious the map has no mention of those things. There must be some reason they are not listed.” Moirai countered.

“It might be a world the broker has a grudge with. Or it might be a competitor with the organization the broker has ties with. The broker would avoid directing potential customers to competing organizations. Look, I’ve been there, and the map has no mention of the world having faced a recent disaster, right? Even if the possibilities I mentioned are not available anymore, we can just leave and go somewhere else.” Araqiel argued.

Dee, on the other hand, was noticing a commotion near the gates. “Uh, girls, I think there’s something going on ahead. I think we might have to table this discussion for now.”

The trio was already too close to just turn around as they had just rounded a corner and they were already in sight of the gates. And it seemed their appearance had drawn some attention. Turning around now would have been highly suspicious. The guards made room as another black robed and green sashed individual approached them. “Ah good, I was just about to try and contact you magically. The guard informed me that the three of you were the only Lords present in this world.” Lords was the term used to address the members of the Assembly.

“What’s going on?” Moirai asked, tugging at her robe slightly. She was significantly shorter than the previous owner of the robe. She’d had it adjusted, but it still didn’t sit perfectly.

“A general summons to all Lords. This isn’t the place to discuss details, but there’s war brewing.” The man could now be recognized as a beastman as they got closer, and he seemed to have a savage grin expecting violence on his visage.

One of the guards approached the man and whispered just loud enough for all four of the robed people to hear. “Lord, one of the blues is in this world as well. At least I have not heard of her leaving. She has stayed here for research on agricultural methods.” The gate guards kept tabs on the number of Lords present in each world for just such an occasion. Of course, they had no way to know if a Lord decided to move incognito or use a method of travel that would hide their movements.

The beastman waved his hand in dismissal. “That doesn’t matter. The general summons only applies to the battle factions for now.”

The man gave an evaluating glance towards the three and they all knew what it meant. There were hundreds of ways of determining seniority among the Lords. Power was far from being the only method, but it did carry a lot of weight, especially if the individuals were unfamiliar and could not use other means to judge otherwise. Dee and Moirai were clearly stronger than the beastman and even Araqiel was about equal. The man gave a small nod of acquiescence, showing he was deferring to Dee’s seniority. He also knew this would not last all that long, so he didn’t really mind.

The trio had gotten a pretty good idea of this little ritual that took place almost always when the Lords met. They didn’t know all the methods of determining seniority, but the information broker had managed to give them the broad strokes that had leaked over the years. Dee knew enough to give an accepting gesture, to show she knew she was in command should the situation require it.

“Guards, prepare the gates. I gave the destination already and expect the preparations have been made.” The man commanded, and the guards hurried to obey.

Dee felt a silent message from Croestia. ‘I still can’t believe the Lords of the Assembly are so easy to fool. They should have a way of knowing you are all frauds.’

‘Well, you have to consider a few details. The robes we are wearing are not fake. I would imagine they do have ways of recognizing fake ones. Secondly, there’s a lot of Lords in the Assembly. They are a participant in the War in Heaven so they have to have the numbers to match the angels and demons. They are also the group that accepts the broadest spread of races and people, so it’s natural they don’t recognize even a fraction of the people by appearance.’ Dee replied.

‘Still, one would think they would pay attention to Lords with your level of strength. There can’t be that many rank twelve individuals among them.’ Croestia argued.

‘Well, that’s assuming people aren’t hiding their strength. And they have to assume, correctly, that I’ve recently attained my level of power. Besides, I think the sheer number of powerful individuals might surprise you.’ Dee replied with a small smile. They’d had this same discussion with Moirai and Araqiel before. Speaking of…

”Now aren’t you glad you picked the destination this time?” Dee couldn’t stop herself from throwing Moirai’s words back at her, eliciting a deep sigh.