Riches to Rags, Rags to Vengeance V

[Diachronos]

Kelastra hesitates. (Draconic) "It's... the Shard of Blasphemy. It... it might not be retrievable."

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel blinks. He glances behind him. "Eden, take this and the cat and head back to the palace. Lorelei, Violet, Constance, you all go too. I'll catch up." He hands Eden Mora's leash and watches her go.

Once they're alone, Gabriel turns his attention back to Kelastra. "(Draconic) Not retrievable? What do you mean by that?"

[Diachronos]

Kelastra crosses her arms. (Draconic) "I mean that it might be impossible to get to where the Shard is, and that even if we could we likely won't be able to get to the Shard itself."

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel pulls out the map. "(Draconic) It's under the Maelstrom, that's what you're worried about? But Okais originally hid it there right?"

[Diachronos]

(Draconic) "It's not the Maelstrom that's the issue. It's what's imprisoned there that is causing the problem."

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel looks up at her. "(Draconic) Imprisoned? You mean, like the Guardian of that Shard?"

[Diachronos]

(Draconic) "No. It is a creature that the Order imprisoned even before we discovered the Shards, as it proved to be too dangerous to be allowed to roam the world."

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel tilts his head. "(Draconic) If you imprisoned it there it shouldn't be a problem, right? Even if I go pick up the Shard, the creature is still locked up and can't hurt me."

[Diachronos]

(Draconic) "It took the entire Order just to subdue the beast enough to imprison it, and dozens of powerful mages in addition to them to create the wards to keep it asleep. And this happened thousands of years ago, before the world was sundered by Mephalas; we have no way of knowing if the wards are holding or if the beast will remain asleep if they are not."

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel shakes his head. "(Draconic) Be that as it may, I made a promise to Avarice. I am going to save all twelve of them. No matter what it takes."

[Diachronos]

Kelastra sighs. (Draconic) "I recommend that you leave Blasphemy for last, then."

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel nods. "(Draconic) Thank you for the advice. Now, I need to go see my queen. Have a good day, Kelastra."

Gabriel heads home. He hasn't seen Celeste in two weeks now, and he didn't exactly tell her he was leaving either...

[Diachronos]

If Gabriel thought she'd slapped him hard after he'd disappeared for a few days to recover from the Rite of the Dragon, he has a whole new definition of "hard" after meeting up with his wife. Did she knock a tooth loose? Yeah, pretty sure she knocked a tooth loose that time. Or several teeth.

"Dammit, Gabriel, when are you going to stop running off like this?!"

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel rubs his cheek. "I told Adelle to let you know I was leaving..." he points out.

[Diachronos]

"Well, clearly she didn't tell me! Why couldn't you tell me yourself?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel rubs the back of his neck. "Um...well, I didn't tell you because I figured if I said I was going off to war you'd be upset...."

[Diachronos]

"Of course I'm upset! You keep running off to all these dangerous places just because you can't be happy with what you already have!"

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel winces. Her words sting him more than the slap did. "No...honey, that's not why. Listen, I went there to recover one of the Shards of Midnight...that's an important quest that I'm on to try and keep the world safe from harm. It has nothing to do with my own greed, I promise."

[Diachronos]

"Oh. Really. Then why did two of those Shard-possessed androids come back with a chained-up minotaur woman? Was it absolutely necessary for you to bring back a slave too?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel sighs. "She nearly killed me. I spared her life but now she owes me. I intend for her to become a soldier in the army at some point, but for now she's just going to have to suffer the consequences of her actions."

He leans back against a wall. "I'm sorry I left without telling you, but you have to understand that I am happy with you, Celeste. You and I are working together to help everyone. We did it in Teluvar and we did it in Hylia, right?"

[Diachronos]

Celeste sighs and hugs him. "...I'm just worried about you, Gabriel."

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel smiles. "I appreciate that, but I know exactly what I'm doing."

---------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day, Gabriel calls his subjects to the town square. He makes certain that this announcement is being broadcast live across the entire world.

"Good people of Kalimdor! It is I, your king. I come to speak to you today after a long silence, because I have found myself at odds with the people. I entered into this house seeking to help set the bar for racial equality, and instead under my watch the city has become a haven for prejudice and discrimination. And because of this, it is with a heavy heart that I must declare...the peoples' voices will no longer hold the same sway they did before."

He gestures to Celeste, who is seated behind him. "Her Majesty and I stayed silent on the subject because we thought it was what the people wanted, but now I know that just because something is popular does not make it right. And so, as of right now, I am abolishing the Senate in its entirety! No more corrupt laws, no more mistreatment of the people. No more rule by the aristocracy."

Gabriel nods to Garthad, who snaps to attention. "The second thing I must discuss today is that as of now, all elves and those who cannot claim either full human or full drow heritage will be stripped of their rights and become slaves. Any elf who is part of a noble house shall pass all of his or her assets to the crown and submit themselves to be personal servants of the king and queen immediately. Any elves who serve as guards will become property of Captain Garthad. All others have twenty-four hours to find an owner. If you are a free slave by this time tomorrow you will be arrested and put up for sale. I know that slavery is wrong, but at this point our economy cannot shift back to the system it operated on before, so I shall at least endeavor to make this unjust law equally applied to all elves instead of only those who cannot afford to avoid it."

He looks at the camera. "My next announcement is for those who would call themselves territories of Kalimdor. The Kingdom of Kalimdor is no more! After the egregious offenses committed against the Kalimdor military by the beastkin of Labryos, Kalimdor has had enough of resistance! Effective immediately, I am establishing the Astralan Empire, with Kalimdor as her capital. Hylia, Labryos and Telavur will all fall under Astrala's rule. Any and all laws that exist in the capital extend to the entire empire, and those who are outside the capital will need to pay their taxes and their tributes to the Emperor. Additionally, female mermaids and minotaurs of both sexes are affected by the slavery laws as if they were elves, effective immediately. Queen Merrow may retain her position with the understanding that she is the Emperor's slave."

Gabriel bows. "At this time, only I am fit to serve as Emperor, so I shall accept that title and serve this world proudly. My wife, Celeste Astrala, shall serve as the Emperor's head concubine and chief advisor, though her power as a queen is no more. And to all the other nations watching right now, I submit to you..."

He points at the screen dramatically. "Do not make me come find you! If Labryos was conquered in just two weeks, what chance do you have? Spare your people and spare yourselves the cost of war, and submit to the Astralan Empire of your own will. I shall unite this world under one banner. We shall have free trade. Free migration. There will be peace. There will be prosperity! Do not fight the future. Join me, and seek to make your lives even better!"

Spoiler

Show

Diplomacy: (1d20+36)[45] plus (1d6)[6]

[Diachronos]

If there are any in the crowd who are opposed to Gabriel's announcements, they remain silent, or their protests are drowned out by the roaring applause of the citizens praising their new Emperor. Already the city guard are beginning to pull aside the elven and half-elven citizens, and those of the elven noble houses are beginning the long, trudging walk home to prepare themselves for their new lives.

From the sidelines, Celeste and Lorelei give each other worried looks. Things are changing drastically in Kalimdor, and they fear that this could be a start of darkness for their beloved husband...

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel nods. "And now, I have a very special announcement! Your Emperor is in need of a new right-hand man or woman. Do you think you have what it takes? Skill, stealth, strength or magic, it matters not! As long as you're the best, you're exactly what I need! So without further ado, I would like to announce...The Astralan Grand Prix! A fighting tournament with no restrictions on weapons or magic used. Do whatever you can to prove your worth. The only rule is that you cannot bring fatal harm to the other contestants. Whoever wins first place will get a mysterious prize, and not only that, but will have the chance to serve me directly and help set the direction for the Astralan Empire! Would you like to become one of the most powerful individuals in the new world? Then enter the tournament in one week, and show me what you've got!"

[Diachronos]

Somehow, the announcement of the tournament draws even more applause from the crowd. Every warrior in the city seems excited to compete, and already people are shouting questions to him about the mystery prize.

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel raises a hand. "Peace. I can assure you the prize is a gift beyond your wildest imaginations, something befitting of the Emperor's most powerful servant. Though I cannot tell you what it is just yet, I hope that the chance to stand at my side will be enough for most of you to try to compete. That is all for today!"

He steps down and ends the broadcast, heading into the kitchen for a break.

[Diachronos]

Gabriel finds Clarisse directing the kitchen staff in the preparation of the evening meal, with her daughter Melody cradled in her arms. She smiles when Gabriel enters. "To think that I was so close to marrying the future emperor of the world." She walks up and kisses him on the cheek.

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel smiles. "Hello dear. And hello my little angel..." He reaches out to hold his daughter. When Celeste hands Melody to him he nuzzles his nose against hers and smiles warmly at the little one. "Did you see the speech?"

[Diachronos]

Clarisse nods. "Everybody saw it. And I'm proud to see that you're taking the world by storm like this. It's a shame about the elves, mermaids, and minotaurs, but... I suppose it's just the price of progress."

[NeoSeraphi]

Gabriel nods. "I personally don't agree with the elves part myself, but if there is going to be slavery in this nation based on race it should apply to every member of that race. I don't want to create classes of elves where some have a lot of money and others are slaves. That isn't the goal I had in mind when I took power. I wanted to eliminate class and help those who have long had no opportunities find more. Don't you remember?"

He smiles at her as he plays peek-a-boo with Melody. "As for the minotaurs, well, the reason that the Labryos mines haven't been producing lots of wealth for the beast kin who were living there is it was always too expensive to pay the labor costs for emptying the mine. Now that we have no labor costs we can get all those necessary resources to the nations who need them. And slavery wasn't my plan for them. I was originally planning to have a universal tax applied to all citizens of the empire to pay the cost of mining, but then the Labryos forces got violent while I was there. A conquered nation has fewer rights than an ally."