Getting down to the Roots

[Guest]

Villetta stood before the walls of the Jade Palace. She placed a small childish hand on the large door of the palace. Such grandeur. Flaunting his power in such a belittling way. She pushed and the door swung open with ease. Just before the push a small blue flash sparked, Villetta's only known form of Alchemy. Of the fifty clans of Xing, she had met none that could keep up with her. It was humorous, even if she was cheating by eliminating certain vectors impeding speedy movement. No matter. She was here to see the Emperor. No point talking to middle men to get what she wanted. Was that a childish way to think? Damn right. She entered the halls and began to wonder which room the Emperor would be in. Several guards came running at the child, pointing several large pointy objects at her. She merely held her box of doughnuts, and nibbled on the one in her hand now.

"I don't speak Xingese...so anyone speak Aerugese? Or Amestrian?" Villetta inquired. She figured someone had to speak one of the two languages. Or this would be a very rough conversation.

[Guest]

"I don't speak Xingese...so anyone speak Aerugese? Or Amestrian?" That, in itself, was all that this male needed to know. Sighing softly and rubbing his temples, he would shake his head and walk out of the long halls of his Palace. He had seen her coming, chosen not to act, and paid for it. Within three days, his middlemen had been simultaneously attacked--the people that one would go through to speak to the Emperor, all murdered in plain sight, but by something that was unknown to them. It amused this man to know, that, in fact, a little girl was the one behind all of this (or at least he surmised as such). For that reason, he would approach her, but with all heckles raised. Chuckling quietly, he would adjust the glasses on his face and slowly step to the spot where the guards would be concentrated; eyes blankly fixated upon Villetta. "I speak Amestrian." He chuckled quietly. "Aerugese as well, as a matter of fact." Tut-tutting, he walked past the protesting guards and raised his hand up, shooing them away and smirking. "Since you seem better versed in such languages, I will begin with this. Miss...?" Instead of waiting for an answer, Ace would place a hand upon his hip, preparing his body for anything that would come of it.

"You invaded my palace, unannounced. I feel that you are to blame for the deaths of many of my men. I do not know what to do with you, whether I should kill you, or blame childish innocence. It eludes me, quite frankly. I must ask, though... what do you want from me?" His grey eyes turned towards her, focussing on her face with prudent inquiry. He would get his answers, no matter what the girl tried to say...

[Guest]

Villetta opened her mouth wide and ate the entire doughnut in one bite. She opened her box to grab another one, yet to have dropped her Alchemic formula on her body. Merely altering it, so not to crush her precious food. She held a powdered doughnut in her hand and then looked at the young upstart. This is what passed for an Emperor? This whippersnapper? Oh well. She wasn't after his life so there was no point in being hostile or lying to him."Eh? Kill your men? I don't recall killing anyone since entering the palace." She nibbled on the doughnut, dropping powder on the floor as she did. "Unless you meant the liaisons. Who tried to get me to jump through hoops to set up a meeting four weeks from now. Yeah, they're answers didn't please me. So I killed both of them. The third killed himself. His mother really should have told him not to throw objects at other people." A small smile crossed her lips behind the doughnut, that is until she bit into it, chewing happily.

"But you surprise me. You would think to harm a defenseless little girl? Because I would hardly, call this invading. I can up the body count if you wish it, though." She finished the doughnut in hand and reached for another. "Oh, but as for why I am here. I want access to your Royal information, and before you get all uppity and bent out of shape. I don't care about Xing or it's people. I just want the knowledge of Alkahestry from start..." She turned the box over, but nothing except crumbs fell from it. She sighed heavily. "to finish." She let the box go as it began to disintegrate before them both. "Perhaps we can come to some form of agreement, yes?"

[Guest]

Another doughnut, simply eaten like that. For some reason, this man felt a strange tingling feeling rise up his spine as she ate it, as if the entire doughnut itself was some sort of analogue for a human head. He didn't know why the presence of this youth worried him, though he was most certainly going to find out. Slowly approaching her with raised heckles, the young and intelligent Emperor gave a soft and morbid smile. "Eh? Kill your men? I don't recall killing anyone since entering the palace." He smirked. Ah, well. He knew that much, as well. He'd been told of a few men dying, but this at least proved one thing. "Unless you meant the liaisons. Who tried to get me to jump through hoops to set up a meeting four weeks from now. Yeah, they're answers didn't please me. So I killed both of them. The third killed himself. His mother really should have told him not to throw objects at other people." That one stung, for some reason. The liaisons; the men whom Ace trusted to remain with him and keep his house safe, dead and gone. Even though Ace had certain... skills... there was still a formality required; something of a "protection" for him, and now that these liaisons were dead, it meant that others would have just as easy a time getting closer to him now, more than ever. Sighing softly, Ace turned away and shook his head. "Already problematic."

"But you surprise me. You would think to harm a defenseless little girl?" Defenseless? Hah. The brazen nature of her walking into this palace suggested otherwise. No, this girl was neither defenseless, nor little. At least, if only in stature. Saeji Aeries was no idiot, that was for sure. If one was to walk into the Jade Palace, disregarding the guards and looking right for him, then there was sure to be something else in it. "Because I would hardly, call this invading. I can up the body count if you wish it, though." His shoulders bounced for but a second, Ace Aeries laughing softly at her statement before turning around. A hand went into the air, and the soldiers walked away with tentative looks in their eyes. It took a lot to leave the Emperor alone in such a situation, even when he told you to do such things. There was always a sense of worry in your mind and heart, wondering if the next person to enter the room was his killer. Ace knew that, and yet they also knew one other thing--their Emperor was not just some defenseless idiot in a robe. "Oh, but as for why I am here. I want access to your Royal information, and before you get all uppity and bent out of shape. I don't care about Xing or it's people. I just want the knowledge of Alkahestry from start..." Hah. [i]"to finish." The box disintegrated before them, as Ace started to laugh once more, the girl's last statement slightly ignored by Ace's voice. Shaking his head, the man beckoned for her to follow. "Come. I will show you."

Leading her onwards, they approached the Throne Room, Ace letting Villetta in before him, and closing the door behind. There were no soldiers here, just the pair and their worries. A slightly hostile air came from Ace, who was worried--if only a little--about this stranger who came into his palace, openly admitting to killing men that he trusted. On the other hand, there was also amusement. It took either brains or guts to enter a room like this--he assumed both. "I do... I do not have access to a lot of that information." Turning towards the girl, he reached up to his face and gripped the edge of his glasses, sliding them down the bridge of his nose and revealing eyes that slowly turned from grey to blue, the signs that his Alkahestry was active, or at least a certain part. "You ask if you can have all the Alkahestric knowledge from start to end. I can give you some of it, but only what I have. There is not as much as I would like, mind you. If I were to put it quite simply, I would say that the Aeries family have got information on enhancement of the body. The other clans have their own information; their own styles. The only other information I can give you is the theory--information about the Dragon's Pulse, how to use it, manipulate it... and about the final state of Alkahestry, the one pure place where Alkahestry is at its strongest." He chuckled quietly, shaking his head at the last one. "No, that one is but a myth. There are stories, but only stories. Tales, whimsical fairy-land ideas. Something about a mystical garden in the sky, only accessed by those who have mastered Alkahestry to its deepest level." He laughed softly, shoulders shaking up and down as his laughter continued. "Imagine that, a garden, in the sky..." Turning towards the girl, he bowed slightly. "Before I forget, I must introduce myself. I am Saeji, Ace or Nanaya Aeries--though I tend to only answer to the first two. I am, as it stands, the current Emperor of Xing, and Master of the body enhancement arts. May I have a name, or are you to remain secret?"

[Guest]

"Come. I will show you." Villetta followed without hesitation. She walked with him, approaching the Throne Room, she entered first. She looked around for a moment, closed her eyes briefly. Guards were stationed nearby, but not within the room. She dropped her barrier, but was no fool. She was a prodigy in Alkahestry, and was now showing it. Her chest cavity was closing. Leaving no room or gaps to her heart or lungs. Her bones creating an armor beneath her skin stronger and far denser than steel, but with the flexibility of cartilage. She could feel the hostility bearing down towards her, and she merely smiled. He feared her. But only rightly so, yet she held no ill intent towards him. "I do... I do not have access to a lot of that information." His eyes shifted in color as he removed his glasses. Alkahestry? But of what nature? She avoided eye contact to be on the safe side.

"You ask if you can have all the Alkahestric knowledge from start to end. I can give you some of it, but only what I have. There is not as much as I would like, mind you. If I were to put it quite simply, I would say that the Aeries family have got information on enhancement of the body. The other clans have their own information; their own styles. The only other information I can give you is the theory--information about the Dragon's Pulse, how to use it, manipulate it... and about the final state of Alkahestry, the one pure place where Alkahestry is at its strongest." Villetta pinched the bridge of her nose. "Un empereur de nom seulement" muttered. "No, that one is but a myth. There are stories, but only stories. Tales, whimsical fairy-land ideas. Something about a mystical garden in the sky, only accessed by those who have mastered Alkahestry to its deepest level." A Garden? Like the Alchemists Gate? A metaphysical plane of existence. Could it be possible Alkahestry had a similar premise? "Imagine that, a garden, in the sky..." She was imagining it. But how could one enter? There was nothing Taboo in terms of Alkahestry. Nothing was said to be impossible. Perhaps he had more knowledge than he knew. Just too naive to listen to his own words. Youth never did value knowledge in the first place.

She watched as he bowed. Showing one's neck to a potential foe could be hap-hazardous to one's life. But Villetta let it slide. "Before I forget, I must introduce myself. I am Saeji, Ace or Nanaya Aeries--though I tend to only answer to the first two. I am, as it stands, the current Emperor of Xing, and Master of the body enhancement arts. May I have a name, or are you to remain secret?" She eye'd him. Such formality. She sighed. "Villetta Nelliel Guinevere." Her Rouenian accent flourishing prominantly in speaking her name. "With that information I want to be able to speak with other Clans on a less hostile note. Do that for me, and whenever you require aid. I can assist you and your cause." She took a couple steps towards him, and opened her palm. An ivory bone slowly pierced through her skin and rose six inches from her flesh. It quickly blossomed into a rose. She plucked it from her hand and held it out to the Emperor. "If you accept, take this rose. Whenever you require me, simply reunite it with the Dragon's Pulse. I will be here within an hour's time." Everything was said. Everything was done. She had more information than she thought, and would soon collect more.

[Guest]

"Villetta Nelliel Guinevere." Flinching slightly, Saeji made a small mental note of the language and accent. That name, it seemed somewhat... Gelemortian in nature, though also closer to the Rouen. Hm. That was a name that he had not heard in a long time, from the days of which he himself had studied historic civilizations. Though somewhat present in the modern day, they were apparently wiped out by the Esparians in bloody religious war. Strange, then, that such an unusual youth was present in his company. Chuckling quietly, the man made no internal comment, instead looking at the girl with a badly-hidden interest. "With that information I want to be able to speak with other Clans on a less hostile note." Ah, they were not as forgiving and trusting as he. Smiling softly at this, the boy looked to the side, watching to see if any of his savants were nearby--an archaic term, yes, but useful nonetheless. "Do that for me, and whenever you require aid. I can assist you and your cause." She was offering him assistance? Bemusing. Turning back to her, he watched as her hand was raised into the air, with a bone protruding out of the wrist. Basal Alkahestry, at its finest.

"If you accept, take this rose." A rose by any other name... would it smell as sweet? Or would such a thing destroy, bringing forth chaos and ruin upon his own lands. "Whenever you require me, simply reunite it with the Dragon's Pulse. I will be here within an hour's time." Reaching out fingers, he gripped the rose with a light touch, holding it in his digits with curiosity abound. It was bone, yet looked as if it had been plucked from a flower of its own name. It was not heavy--it would have weighed only 300gm or so, if just a little more. Instead of studying it further, it was quickly pocketed--though carefully--before Saeji looked up to meet the eyes of Villetta once more. "Very well. I accept your proposal, at least to the best of my abilities. I can contact most, if not all, of the clans within Xing, and warn them of your arrival. However, it is up to you to approach them and their leaders for goodwill, as I will not be able to make such things happen--such is the way of many men vying for power. They see me as weak, a lot of them do. That said, I will not be able to get you in contact with all of them. There is a man, by the name of Butaar Jemutin, in the northern provinces of this country. For some reason, I have not recently heard of him. He guards the passage through the mountains between ourselves and Drachma, and is one of the most outspoken against me. I worry." Laughing softly, the man turned away and shook his head with a smile. "I worry too much, however. You wish to see papers from our "Body Enhancement" school, yes? Follow!" Turning towards a darkened passage, Ace beckoned once more, leading Villetta off and into the distance...

[Guest]

"Very well. I accept your proposal, at least to the best of my abilities. I can contact most, if not all, of the clans within Xing, and warn them of your arrival. However, it is up to you to approach them and their leaders for goodwill, as I will not be able to make such things happen--such is the way of many men vying for power. They see me as weak, a lot of them do. That said, I will not be able to get you in contact with all of them. There is a man, by the name of Butaar Jemutin, in the northern provinces of this country. For some reason, I have not recently heard of him. He guards the passage through the mountains between ourselves and Drachma, and is one of the most outspoken against me. I worry." She was familiar with the Xing right of succession. Quite a bloody tradition, but she had seen worse by far. "I worry too much, however. You wish to see papers from our "Body Enhancement" school, yes? Follow!" Villetta did, but something wasn't quite right. He accepted her aid, without question. Was this due in part to his fear of her, or was this in part due to the nature of her visit. Perplexing at the most, it was not rational in the least.

"Tell me, you accepted my rose without a word of question. Show your secrets without a word of protest and yet still claim that you know nothing of the other clan's techniques." Her eyes hardened at his back. "Do you help me because you think I'm weaker than you...or because you know I'm stronger?" Her words were sharp and to the point. Out of doughnuts, her whimsical nature had long since died. She was becoming more feral by the moment. Her bones were aching for a corpse to maul, but she held back. Granted many probably wouldn't attack her, but a mad rush for the throne would probably throw Xing into ruin overnight. Such a precarious system of power, and yet it held so resolutely. "Not even a question as to how I could even aid Xing or you for that matter. I find this whole thing rather perplexing. Your attitude, and mannerisms suggest that I was a childhood friend. Yet I invaded your territory, and broke into your palace. You even have the audacity of presenting your back to me. I find this all to be rather insulting."

Villetta had no real intention of harming the man, but that was not to say she couldn't. But even still, she was expecting to be treated as a criminal. Argued down. Rejected. Tested, or even questioned. But his nature was so nonchalant it was infuriating. His cool nature, unfitting a nation of warring clans all seeking the throne or his head. She was expecting...something more than him. Perhaps she was beyond her time. Perhaps Xing had fallen from its former glory, and the watered down remnants of an ancient civilization had arose in it's place. Like the Gelemortians. Using that jumbled language that spat upon the Rouenian language. It was like speaking Rouenian with a mouth full of sand. This only added fuel to her already burning fire, as her fist clenched. The sound of bone joints popping was louder than normally possible. Due in part to the density and durability she had enforced her bones with earlier.

[Csilla Angelis]

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