Date: February 16, 2000
Place: Cella, Atrium - Palladium - Haven
Cast: Selene, Thalia
Scene: The Maharani of the Varati visits the Palladium to bring a gift to the Dea of Acesius, and the two women with opposite viewpoints manage to have a civil conversation about possibilities for the future.

Cella - Palladium - Haven:

There is a feeling of sanctuary here, for although the vast Palladium lies just beyond this small chamber, it may as well be in another world. Here is serenity, in the silence of shadows and stone, but it is not an empty silence -- the kind that comes when you are by yourself and no one is listening. Here, you are left with the profound feeling that, out there, someone is listening. And that you are not alone.

Indeed, you are not, for statues adorn each wall. Divanus, the god of doorways, stares down benevolently from the peak of the arch with his twin faces. Apollo, at the left wall, holds his silver bow in one hand and his lyre in the other. Opposite him is Tritonia, the goddess of wise counsel and warfare, with her owl atop her shoulder and her eyes on some distant horizon. And finally, the Kronian--Zeus Jupiter, seated on a throne at the head of the chamber, his gaze stern and immobile, while clutched in one fist is a spear of lightning. Here, reverence is displayed in every smooth contour of marble, and whispers from centuries past seem to echo forever against stone walls.

An austere silence hangs heavy in the Empyreans' small cella here in Haven. Torchlight illuminates the room only partly, causing dark shadows to lurk in the corners and in the small paces behind the stone images of the Empyre's Gods and Goddesses. Candles, small offerings left by visitors, sit at the base of each image, their tiny flames doing little more than lighting the feet and shins of those they were lit for. The only thing missing on this visit is the heavy perfume of incense, though a faint memory of it lingers in the air.

A pair of figures are seated before the image of Apollo, wings tucked against their back and their eyes lifted to the God's visage. A small sound, an infant's babbling, breaks the serenity every so often, but Selene, the one cradling the child at Apollo's feet, makes no scolding to the child, in fact, she is practically beaming at each noise uttered from the child's lips.

Thalia breaks the solemnity of the cella by arriving with her miniature army. The boots of the Maharani's guard clatter loudly against the floor, disturbing any peace which was inherent in the area. Thalia carries a package in her arms and she walks with reverence into the area, despite the thunderous approach of her guard. Without hesitation, she walks toward Selene, shedding most of her guard at the entrance to the cella and reaching the Dea with only five.

The Empyrean servant looks up first at the annoyingly loud distraction, and her face expresses a mix of surprise and disgust at the entrance of the dark-skinned guards in this sanctuary.

Selene glances up at the sound of Olivia's bristling wings, and while her expression is not as readable as her maid, there is a certain amount of shock at the sight of Varati within these hallowed walls, and, more importantly, so near her daughter. Her sapphire eyes settle on the pale figure among the guards, fighting her instinct to give the woman a brief, 'Ave,' in greeting. "Perhaps we should adjourn to the atrium, this location isn't... proper."

Thalia looks around at the various statues and nods her assent. "Ave, Dea. I brought a present for your daughter." She lifts the package in her hands. "Perhaps I might be able to give it to her once we are in the atrium? I shall meet you out there." With that, Thalia backs away from Selene and Olivia so that she can depart from the Cella first, thus removing all her guards and leaving room for Selene and Olivia to exit.

Atrium - Palladium - Haven:

This vast, high-ceilinged hall is the main area of congregation within the Palladium, and its decor is as simple as it is elegant. Corinthian columns provide both support and aesthetic splendor, and tucked between them are finely-carved statues of the men and women who were this place's founders. A wide, shallow pool in the center of the room catches the rainwater from the compluvium above, which allows light and air to banish the shadows. There is no place for darkness among these pristine white columns and noble-faced stone sentinels. At night, lamps and tapers are lit to help the moon and starlight keep the shadows at bay.

Marble benches, chairs, and chaise lounges are situated at various spots in the room so that visitors may sit and converse (see 'places'). Between the columns, you glimpse the verdant foliage of the garden, and winding paths that lead to adjacent buildings.

The two Empyreans slip from the cella, careful to remain as far apart from the obsidian-clothed images of Thalia's guards as possible -- Olivia still bearing her utter distaste for the situation. Selene, for her part, appears much more relaxed now that she's cleared the Varati from the cella -- she'll have to remind slaves to scrub it down later tonight. Her daughter is cradled to her bosom; that small protective action is all she can offer her infant in such company. "That wasn't necessary," she dryly comments to Thalia, regarding the package in the Varati Queen's arms.

Thalia holds out the package for Olivia to take since Selene is burdened with her daughter. "Unnecessary to some, but I am not merely a creature of politics, Dea. I am a mother and I know the joy of birth. That is the reason I brought a present, no other. I bring a present as a woman. It is something that one mother might do for another. A bond, that I can only hope is stronger than the prejudices which divide our world."

Olivia looks dubiously to her mistress before she extends her hands to accept the gift, perhaps half-expecting flames to burst from it at any moment or something else horrible to happen by the simple act of accepting a gift. Selene nods briefly to her maid; a scant heartbeat where her gaze wanders from Thalia and her entourage to the winged servant at her side. "Thank you," she finally replies, unsure exactly what to say, receiving a gift from the wife of the God-King of her most hated enemies. Selene takes a seat on the nearest bench and shifts her daughter slightly in her arms. "What of your own daughters? Do you see them often now?"

Thalia takes a seat on the bench, but as far to the end as she can manage, perhaps to avoid crowding Selene. "I see Oriane," she replies, her voice fond. "After Kalypso's wedding, Oriane and I took a small trip together. We went to Callisar's Eyrie. It was the longest I had been with her in some time. We mostly see each other in passing. She is an adult and has many duties to attend, as do I." Of Riana, Thalia makes no mention, nor does she make any indication that the present should be opened. She simply looks fondly at Selene's daughter.

The infant squirms in her mother's arms, upset that she had been moved. Her mother's eyes drift to her daughter and on her lips appears a tender smile that could never exist in such company if not for her presence. She whispers a few brief words of comfort, adding a feathery kiss to the baby's forehead before giving her attention back to Thalia. "I saw your daughter, at the funeral and the wedding. Quite a change she's going through. Miraculous, one might say."

Thalia bites her lower lip. "One could say that. It is a double-edged sword, for it cannot be solely a benefit to undergo such a change at this stage in her life. Indeed, when even the reason for the change is unknown, the sword's edge is very sharp. There could be hidden pitfalls that lie unseen to the casual observer."

The infant settles, somewhat, though an occasional babble, along with a spittle bubble, escapes her tiny lips. Selene gently rocks her daughter while she continues the conversation, trying her best to ignore those that surround the queen. "Did your... husband do that?" By the gods it is so difficult to utter that word, knowing who this woman's husband is -- especially to hold back any further comment with those dark images looking down on her. It is well known in the Empyre that Aurora was once without wings, and now she has them -- maybe a darkling can be given new wings, as well?

Thalia says softly, "No, he did not. Oriane, herself, believes that it was due to the magical storms that were experienced last year." Thalia does not appear to be particularly enthusiastic about Oriane's new wing color. It is almost as if she feels that something special has been lost. Her eyes rest more frequently on the baby than on Selene, though she lifts them from time to time to show that she is paying attention to the conversation. "In your message, you wished to discuss the topic that we spoke of last time we met. If you could clarify your request, I would be grateful."

Selene sniffs softly, a faint slip in her restraint where the Varati in general are concerned. True, Oriane still has that dark hair, but who would not be happy for their daughter to look more like an Empyrean and less like Khalid? Expect maybe the woman beside her. "I would like to be able to understand your thinking -- what was going through your mind when you, by your own free will, left your family behind to become that mo..." Selene bites her lip quickly to silence her own words and quickly find others more suitable and less likely to get her killed. "To marry ... Khalid."

Thalia folds her hands in her lap. "How much honesty would you like, Dea Acesian? Do you intend to share this information with others? I can reveal nothing which would injure Oriane. In some ways, she is still a child, believing only in good things and happy endings."

Selene shakes her head. "Honestly, there are very few that even know I've spoken with you once, much less twice. I would appreciate complete honesty, but it is for you to say. I would never do anything that would intentionally hurt your daughter, that much I can promise." The brief shift of her gaze from Thalia to Olivia gives a silent, stern instruction that she, too, is to remain silent. "If I would tell anyone, it would be my husband, though I am not sure how he would take the news of this interaction." Varati in the Palladium and around his newborn daughter? Little chance that Pantoleon will be happy about it.

Thalia nods and falls silent, considering. The silence stretches, broken only by the gurgles from Selene's daughter. "I suppose I ought to give you some background, so that you will understand the events which made the woman that met Khalid and agreed to marry him.

"I did not have a happy marriage. When I married, I was young and romantic. I believed that love could cure all the ills of the world and survive any hardship. It was only later that I learned that, for some people, prejudice is stronger than love. I was a very jaded woman when I met Khalid Atar. I believed that vows and honesty did not exist, that words were spoken, only to be reneged when better chances were presented."

Selene doesn't appear to be swayed by the other woman's comments on marriage, aware of many marriages for political or social advantage and not for love. Her face remains as impassive through the explanation, the image broken only with her own words. "So you believed that a marriage to the Varati God-King was that better chance being presented?" A touch of sarcasm cannot be masked in her voice, as she finds it hard to imagine in the least that a marriage to a Varati would in any way be better than that which she left behind.

Thalia takes a breath, her eyes touching upon the baby in Selene's arms. "No, I am saying that I did not love my husband, no matter how hard Oriane believed this would be a link to hold me to him. I met Khalid and he was fearsome at first. Terrifying, but he kept me present during many of his negotiations with his people, and I came to see that he was not mere hate and retribution. He was a man tormented by past wrongs that he could not right, yet he could see a path to absolution. Absolution not only for him, but for the Empyre, as well. When he proposed, he made me believe that after a millennia of searching, he had only found two women could bridge the gap between Empyreans and Varati. One was Damaris, and the other was me.

"As you know, he could not possibly marry Damaris. It was this chance," Thalia adds wryly, "this better chance, that convinced me to leave all that I knew and marry him. It was my belief at the time and now that when the dust had settled from my hated action, I could lay lines of communication and understanding between the two peoples."

Selene is unable to hide a scowl at the supposed torment that Khalid has gone through. "It seems odd that a man so tormented would see to relieve it by turning a bunch of innocents into a volcano," she mutters angrily while holding her child to her, covering an exposed ear with her fingers. "You believe that by marrying him that you could erase such horrors? If you'd like, I have a young child in my household that was left orphaned and even now continues to have nightmares of a huge fire coming from the ground." She shakes her head and lowers her voice. "I am sorry, but I cannot understand that."

Thalia says placidly, "Horrors which have occurred cannot be erased. If they could, then they would lose their impact and their value. The problem with war is that it is an exchange between the value of people and the value of a nation. Individuals lose their importance. I believed -- I hoped -- that by marrying him, such a war would not occur again, that no other young children would be left orphaned and with nightmares. Expiation can only occur in future actions. It cannot unmake the past."

A deep sigh leaves the Dea's throat and she releases the close hold she has on her daughter, giving her another brief kiss to the forehead. "But there was no stipulation in the treaty that you had to be the one to marry him. You left your daughters for a Varati, for Apollo's sake. Why not leave the choice to a younger woman who had no husband -- no children to abandon?" Again, her gaze goes to the girl in her arms and her wings shiver at the mere thought of leaving her behind for any reason. "I did not understand it when it happened, and as a new mother, I understand that point even less."

Thalia bites her lower lip again. "Yes, I could have insisted that he choose another, but I have not had a husband for many years. It is not a small issue to dissolve a marriage, but staying with him because it was familiar and comfortable would have been a sham. As the proposal was presented to me, Khalid felt that no other woman could fill the role. He wanted an older woman, rather than a youth. My daughters were grown. They had left home. Now, I actually see Oriane more than when I was married to her father, as he did not desire that I have contact with her at all. So, in that respect, I have gained." Still, Thalia does not mention Riana.

Selene makes no mention of the darkling's twin either, having only encountered her briefly and never really spoken to her. She sighs again, but with defeat, not in anger. "I could never have done it," she finally admits, though her eyes have fallen from Thalia to the floor in front of her. "I know it had to be done by someone, lest the executions of our people continue, but still..." The weight of such a decision seems to hit Selene all at once and there is a tiny glimmer of understanding for the other woman. She doesn't like it, mind you. "And what happens when you die? Will he ask for another bride from our people, or else threaten another attack?" This comment draws her gaze back to her daughter in sudden fear, from some unspoken reason.

Thalia bites her lip and looks down at her lap. There is true fear in her voice when she answers, "I do not know. Perhaps, given my position, Healers will be able to keep me alive longer than possible. Perhaps, if I can provide enough avenues for peace to continue, then he will not need to take another bride. I can only hope that I can do enough good before I die that no other will need to make such a sacrifice. The first step is always the hardest, and I am that. I chose it and I will stand by my decision, but I cannot foresee the future. There are too many ifs which can only be answered when I die. I can hope and pray that my death occurs from old age, rather than other circumstances." There is more than a shadow of fear as she raises her head and looks at Selene. The manner of her dying deeply troubles Thalia.

It's no secret that there is rumor about assassination attempts against the Varati Queen, just as there are rumors of the same against Aurora. For a moment, the Dea only sees another Empyrean woman before her, the dark shadows that follow her in the form of Agni-Haidar are forgotten, and for that brief moment, Selene allows herself to smile. "I do not know if the Empyre and the Varati nations can ever live in true peace, and I'm not sure if I would be ready for such a thing. To call them equals is just..." Remembrance of those around them halts her words on her tongue and the smile fade, the moment is gone.

Thalia says softly, but sturdily, "I do not know either, but if I can increase the chances for understanding -- if my actions can make it possible to happen in the future when I am gone, then I will have done the best that I could. I am a start. I do not expect to see the finish. The fact that you can consider it a possibility... someday, says that I have begun my task well. I can ask for nothing more. Thank you for thinking about my words, for truly considering them instead of dismissing them immediately out of mind."

Selene dips her head slightly in acceptance of the thanks. "I am not sure if I can consider it a possibility. I would be more willing to assume it will end in a strained acceptance of the presence of one another, but I cannot imagine a true peace. You must do what you believe is right, but I, as well, must do as I believe is right." A brief change of gaze to her daughter indicates the child's future education. "I'm slowly learning tolerance in some things, these conversations being part of that education process. You were once one of us -- that has to account for something."

Thalia smiles. "I do not believe that, in our lifetime, the opinions and prejudices of a millennia can be completely reversed so that all live in perfect harmony. I believe in the possibility, and that I will lay the groundwork for such a future. If, in our lifetime, we can reach a tolerated acceptance between Empyreans and Varati, then we will have done more than the hundreds of generations before us. That is an achievement of which to be proud. I keep my Empyrean mind. I was born thus, and I do not ever intend to discard my origins. Nay, I wish to add the Varati culture to myself, so that I can see where the difficulties will lie in creating understanding and acceptance."

Selene tightens her shoulders inward in a wince; bringing that culture to herself is another thing she could never bring herself to do. "I'm not sure how I can properly respond to that. I cannot really wish you luck, because I believe your visions of a peace differ from those that I envision, as do many of the conservatives among the Empyre. I think we both agree that we do not wish another war, for I believe I've seen enough blood and pain to last my lifetime. Perhaps that is what I can answer -- the hope for a positive outcome." The infant whimpers in her arms and squirms in agitation within the confines of her swaddling, suddenly fussy after a long, peaceful period.

Thalia reaches a hand up and brushes a strand of hair away from her cheek. "Thank you. If I may ask, how do you perceive that peace will be achieved. I have told you my vision. Will you share yours?"

There is a long period of time dedicated to silence while Selene musters the courage to speak her reply, again, remembering quite clearing the dark forms that linger nearby. "I wish for another Golden Age, when the Empyre reigned over all. That is one thing that has not wavered in my thinking since I've been a child, and I do not see that changing. Can it be done without a feud of blood?" Selene shrugs amidst rocking her daughter in her arms. "I do not know. I hope not, I would not wish to sit at the bedside of our wounded again, if at all possible."

Thalia pushes the errant strand off hair off her face a second time as it sneaked in during the interim of Selene's response. She does not comment on the possibility of Selene's desire. After a long silence, she finally says, "My goal and yours are not necessarily fully in opposition. I believe I should leave my statement at that."

Selene nods in agreement -- such discussions on her desires should be saved for the safety of her home, not in the company of those you wish to lord over, especially when said opposition bears strength and weapons. "As do I. I do not believe we will gain anything from it." Her eyes shift again to her daughter who begins wailing -- perhaps it has been too long since she's been fed, or she needs changing. The rocking seems to be doing little, and for that reason Selene returns a somewhat apologetic gaze to Thalia. "I really should get her home, and I should be home soon as well, lest my husband come looking for me."

Thalia nods and rises from the bench. "I am glad that we had this chance to speak, Dea Acesian. I would like to visit again, if I may." She smiles wryly at the wailing babe, bemused at the strength of the lungs. "I hope that you and your daughter enjoy my present." As the wailing continues, Thalia merely turns and heads for the exit, taking her guards away from Selene.

The request for another meeting goes unanswered, the Dea is at the moment more concerned with the well-being of her daughter than in Thalia's words, but in no means a rude way. She rises as well and heads in the opposite direction, complete with screeching child and the gift-bearing maid.

FIN  

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