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BY THE END OF HIS SPEECH, Archmage Onuri-Unta La-Varrez was essentially screaming, adding fuel to the fire of indignance and trying to impress upon his opponent with the gravity of his accusation. The chamber was also buzzing in support of the old Archmage, which kept the Princess from responding for quite a while.
“They’re gonna need a bit of a push,” the voice of Mac-Peu sounded in Minn-O’s head again. “We didn’t want it to come to this, but our opponents have left us with no choice. Smear them! Use the arguments we prepared yesterday to counter that very accusation!”
Minn-O La-Fin waited patiently for the din to settle, then started to answer with a mocking smile:
“How deplorable it is to see that advanced age has robbed one of the three Corulers of Humanity of his clarity of mind! And it’s doubly vexing that a mage who was once so great squandered the statistic points the game bestowed upon him in a belated attempt to increase muscle mass and paper over childhood insecurities rather than improving his Intelligence!”
“Come now, pitiable wayedda of a space pirate. See that you don’t overstep your bounds!!!” shouted the insulted Archmage Onuri-Unta La-Varrez, trying to talk Minn-O La-Fin back from the brink. But she was no longer listening to him, turning up her microphone and continuing:
“Well, if my opponent ever had deigned to improve his Intelligence, he might be able to take a more critical look at his own words instead of telling a blatant lie to the council of mage-rulers! And meanwhile, an elementary logical counterexample can break down all the Coruler’s arguments: it is easily possible that the dominant faction on the planet could be one containing players from both worlds! And if Leng Onuri-Unta La-Varrez had ever even once improved his Intelligence, he may have come to this thought on his own and realized his idea that one world is sure to be destroyed is nothing more than empty conjecture!”
Princess Minn-O took a brief pause and, noting with satisfaction that the rulers were finally listening closely and even discussing what she had to say, continued:
“So then, let me direct the honorable mages’ attention to the fact that even humanity’s wise Geckho suzerains do not yet know what will happen to two split worlds after the tong of safety runs out. Insufficient data, they say. And I am now stating the official position of the Viceroy of Earth, Kosta Dykhsh. Refuting it would not merely make you look foolish, but also subject all humanity to harsh reprisals for disrespecting our suzerains! The Meleyephatian Horde does not know what will happen to a double world with bifurcated space either, even though they have been exploring the game that bends reality for over three thousand years. The Union of Miyelonian Prides also does not know, even though my husband Coruler of Humanity Gnat La-Fin has spoken on the subject with the wisest and most authoritative rulers of the Miyelonian race. And so Coruler Onuri-Unta La-Varrez cannot possibly say that with such certainty after being in the game for all of five minutes. He does not even know the basics and yet he insists upon making a laughingstock of himself by spouting far-reaching categorical prognoses!”
“Minn-O, what have you done?! You should have stuck to the facts, without pejorative comments about the age and mental capacity of Coruler Onuri-Unta! You made the head of the La-Varrez faction look like a liar and damaged his Authority before his subjects in the most serious fashion! The Archmage will never forgive that! You have just cut off almost all positive lines of the future!”
The mage-rulers in the chamber started buzzing in dismay and even stomped their feet because it was hard to take the Princess’s words as anything other than a direct insult toward one of the three respected Corulers of Humanity. Minn-O herself also understood that she had crossed a line and overplayed her hand, dashing the audience’s budding sympathy. But she wasn’t the least bit sorry for what she’d done. Archmage Onuri-Unta La-Varrez opened and closed his mouth a few times, preparing to respond to the accusations of incompetence and lying, but in the end he waved a hand and plopped down dismally into his seat with the look of a beaten dog.
It was some time before the clamor quieted back down, and only because the other Coruler, Archmage Anri-Huvi La-Shin, stood up and called for silence. After that, he turned to Minn-O and shook his head in reproach:
“Such harsh words are not befitting of a highborn Princess! I believe, as a representative of the ancient and glorious La-Fin dynasty, you should be ashamed of such intemperance. But most importantly magess Minn-O: you did not respond to the allegation that you are working for the enemy! And those are truly grave allegations which threaten the most severe consequences for the leaders of the La-Fin dynasty, who have now completely lost the trust of the Ruling Council!”
Minn-O clenched her teeth until they cracked, trying to restrain herself this time while also not revealing her disappointment and despair. Before today’s council session, she was hoping for Coruler Anri-Huvi La-Shin to at least take a neutral position because he was always considered a friend of her family. The fact that the second Coruler of Humanity supported the allegations came as a heavy blow.
“I was simply not allowed to finish, respected Coruler Anri-Huvi La-Shin, so I was not able to give an explanation. And as for the harsh words, it’s hard to maintain calm with Coruler Onuri-Unta La-Varrez and his vassals constantly trying to mentally attack me and break my train of thought! What’s more, I was not the one who started throwing around insults such as ‘inexperienced girl,’ and ‘pitiable wayedda of a space pirate.’ By the way, the fact you called me a wayedda means your information is out of date. Coruler Gnat La-Fin raised my status yesterday from wayedda to senior wife.”
“I confirm!” Mage Diviner Mac-Peu Un-Roi took a step toward the podium. “The ruler of the First Directory, Coruler Gnat La-Fin declared Princess Minn-O his senior wife yesterday and left her in charge of the La-Fin faction on her personal request. Someone with decision-making authority must always be present to maintain contact with neighbors, expand faction borders and manage our grand building projects. And that is why Leng Gnat embarked upon a spaceflight and left his wife Minn-O La-Fin at home.”
The news made the mage-rulers start buzzing again because it seriously changed the speaker’s status and impacted the political landscape of the whole world. One lone shout rose up from the chamber:
“Princess Minn-O, do you care to comment on why Coruler Gnat waited until now to do that? Was it out of desire to secure the property of the La-Fin dynasty before this meeting? After all, after a directory leader is deposed, his senior wife may lay claim to a portion of the dynasty’s property, unlike a travelling wife.”
Minn-O turned to see who that was and smiled with the very corners of her lips:
“My husband would hardly be guided by such mundane concerns. It’s just that, until recently, the position of senior wife was occupied. Perhaps if you were paying closer attention to the galactic news, you’d know that the human Leng Gnat La-Fin performed a ritual marriage dance with Leng Keetsie-Myau, commander of the Miyelonian fleet in our part of the galaxy. So technically, she was my husband’s senior wife and it took some time to smooth over that little misunderstanding. At any rate, the amusing episode also came with an upside: the Miyelonian race has officially renounced all claims to our planet, so we now have one less potential invader!”
Minn-O La-Fin was expecting the mage-rulers to react positively, but nothing could have been farther from reality. In fact, Coruler Anri-Huvi La-Shin knocked the Princess down a peg and again demanded that she respond to the allegation she was working for the enemy rather than “recount the amorous adventures of a space pirate.”
“Space pirate???” she again started losing control. “If I were you, Coruler Anri-Huvi, I would choose my words more carefully because the fate of your faction’s starship now hangs on nothing more than my husband’s peaceable nature. As you know, the dispatchers and customs officials of the space port are subordinate to Earth’s Viceroy, Kosta Dykhsh. And the Viceroy is fiancé to Uline Tar, a close friend and business associate of my husband’s. So the ‘space pirate’ Leng Gnat already knows the route that will be taken by La-Shin faction’s rickety three-hundred-year old rust bucket, as well as its cargo – gemstones!”
Old Archmage Anri-Huvi reeled, went pale and clutched at the heart region of his chest. The that his starship was under threat clearly shocked the old man. It was immediately apparent that the La-Shin faction had invested serious funds into purchasing the second-hand shuttle and had placed a big bet on the starship making a successful trade run. Some attendants ran over to the Coruler, grabbed him under the arms and carried him to his seat, pouring some sustaining elixirs down the old man’s throat on the way.
As she looked on, Minn-O winced in disgust. Archmage Anri-Huvi was nearly two hundred years old. Any powerful emotional trauma could kill him. Still he was the one who started arguing with her and making allegations against her faction. Not waiting for the old man to be brought to his senses, Minn-O continued:
“As for the accusations, which are ludicrous on their face, let me assure you all that no one is doing more to safeguard our world than my husband Coruler Gnat! Seeking out extraterrestrial allies and new technology, constructing a planetary shield...”
“Healer! The Coruler’s heart has stopped!” an agonized erupted, interrupting Minn-O’s speech.
All hell broke loose! A huge buzzing crowd was instantly gathered around the Archmage, who was crawling impotently on the floor. The members of the ruling Council jumped up from their seats, many trying to get over to the leader’s unconscious body and shouting advice. Just then, Mage Diviner Mac-Peu Un-Roi took advantage of the commotion and approached the podium. With a gesture, he called for Minn-O to lean down and whispered into her very ear:
“This is all turning out wrong! Now no matter how this ends now, there will be no avoiding a vote to strip you of your titles! And the whole chamber is inclined against us. I checked. What’s more, they came in feeling that way, and the whole spectacle of you making a report and answering questions was just an empty formality. They all knew the outcome in advance. Everyone here has been promised a share of the La-Fin dynasty’s riches, so they will all vote to depose. Even the mages sitting in the First Directory section have been paid off, lock stock and barrel. In fact, everyone in this chamber is a ravening jackal who rushed here as fast as they could to make certain they would get their piece of the big pie.”
“Good thing we came prepared then!” Not a single muscle twitched on the Princess’s face when she heard the worrying news. She just readjusted her grip on the remote she’d been using to control the slides and pressed a button she hadn’t touched before.
The image of the port under construction changed. The new picture on all the holographic screens looked something like thermal transfer or a microchip and it had a little red blinking light in the middle. The slide change didn’t catch the mages’ attention right away, but gradually the din in the chamber fell silent. All that remained were the healers fussing around next to Coruler Anri-Huvi, who had been brought back to his senses with artificial respiration. The others were all silent and awaiting commentary from Minn-O. And she didn’t keep them waiting long:
“Respected members of the Ruling Council! This is quite a long story, and I will start from the beginning – with the history of this palace. As you most likely know, two hundred years ago, there was a devastating great war between the magical dynasties. At a certain point my great grandfather, Coruler of Humanity Yuho-Loru La-Fin was on the verge of defeat and the Council of Rulers convened in this very chamber to discuss whether or not to depose him. In fact, at that time, the Palace of the Ruling Council was half destroyed and it was restored just for the occasion. The thing is, that was also when this furniture was installed in the Small Chamber. You have all probably noticed how disproportionately thick the crimsonwood benches are. And trust me, this is all important to the story. You see, Coruler Yuho-Loru La-Fin had each of the dozens of benches in this chamber packed full of nitro-plastic explosive – the most powerful bomb-making material known to humanity at the time. Fortunately, that vote went how the head of the La-Fin dynasty wanted and there was no need to blow up the Council of Rulers at that time. But as we all know, history has a funny little way of repeating itself. The furniture in the Small Chamber hasn’t been replaced in those two centuries, so all we had to do was add more modern detonators – there’s one beneath every bench. And the design on screen is a schematic of their inner workings. Hey now, none of that! No one stand up!!! Silence in the chamber!!!”
The mage-rulers who jumped up from their seats in fear were forced to sit back down. Such a silence came over the chamber that still prostrate Coruler Anri-Huvi La-Shin’s rapid breathing was suddenly audible. And meanwhile the Princess’s servants, who had been sitting meekly in the corner, walked up to their master. The large man lifted Minn-O delicately and moved her from the podium back to her levitating throne. The woman then took the dangerous remote from the Princess’s hands.
And unhurriedly, making her way to the exit between the rows of tensely seated but stock-still mage-rulers, Minn-O La-Fin commented:
“I could go on and on about the absurdity of the allegations against me and my husband Gnat La-Fin for ages, but you wouldn’t listen. Yes, I am perfectly aware that each of your votes has been bought and that there is no cause to expect an honest outcome. But still I will try to take a fair survey. Respected mage-rulers, answer me this: do you really consider it acceptable to depose the ruler of the First Directory – a man who is doing more to ensure the continuation of humankind than all of you taken together? So on that note, I bid you adieu, and my trusted servants will be staying behind to make sure you all vote your conscience here today. If they don’t like the way things turn out, you’ll have only yourselves to blame!”
With these words, the Princess unclipped the microphone from her dress and, accompanied by the Mage Diviner, left the chamber. As soon as the doors closed behind the Princess, the miniature woman got up on the podium and raised the dangerous remote high in her right hand:
“Don’t even try to take control of my mind, it’s no use!”
The girl was speaking a language not of this world, but there were a few mage-rulers who understood it. At the very least the six former La-Fin Faction spymasters who jumped ship to the La-Varrez Faction would.
“Gerd Tamara!” they all shouted in concert.
Based on the groan that rolled through the room, many of the mage-rulers were familiar with her name and it inspired nothing short of horror. They didn’t expect anything good from such close proximity with the fanatic Paladin.
“Yes, it is I!” with these words, the Paladin girl pulled the ash-gray mask off her face with her free left hand, revealing herself as a native of the alternate world. “Gerd Tamara, the worst nightmare of all mages, no matter which cursed faction you belong to! So, to be perfectly clear, there isn’t going to be any vote! Thousands of years ago, my ancestors banished you vile magic-spawn from their world. But you just couldn’t leave well enough alone and dared to intrude upon my world through the game to spread your sorcerous blight! But I’m not troubled by that, because today your reign comes to an end! How long have I dreamed of this moment – to be in the very epicenter of the magical infection and destroy all mage-rulers in one fell swoop! I am not the least bit sorry to give my life for this holy mission! My only regret is that I had to let one of you go – while discussing today’s plans, I promised the Mage Diviner that I would let him escape. And Paladins always keep their word.”
“What about Princess Minn-O La-Fin? After all, she’s also a mage who wields considerable power!” Despite the tension of the moment, one of the mages was bold enough to ask a clarifying question. Perhaps he merely wanted to distract the strange girl with an icy emotionless face and earn himself a few more minutes of life.
“Princess Minn-O?” she asked with a happy laugh that looked somewhat strange and even frightening with her practically motionless facial muscles. “You really haven’t figured it out? Minn-O doesn’t have any magical abilities! All of her apparent magic is from the fetus in her womb, spawned when the magical genes of people from two long-separated worlds made contact. Minn-O’s child will grow to be a powerful mage. A very powerful mage. But the thing is, no matter how profoundly I hate mages, I was not prepared to kill an unborn child. Especially the child of a person I care for deeply!”
* * *
THE RULER OF THE FIRST Directory’s procession was getting ready to head out. Many armored defensive antigravs were hovering above the earth ready to take off at any moment and disappear into the low cloud cover.
“Advisor, how do you think the vote will turn out?” Princess Minn-O La-Fin’s eyes were plastered to the armored glass of her luxuriant flying vehicle, staring at the exit from the Palace of the Ruling Council and awaiting her companions, who were taking longer than she expected.
Mage Diviner Mac-Peu Un-Roi took a good bit of time to answer. Choosing his words carefully and avoiding categorical statements, he cautiously suggested that Tamara may have seen this as a convenient opportunity to detonate all the explosives in the chamber regardless of how the vote went. However, despite all the advisor’s careful couching, Princess Minn-O quickly saw what was happening:
“Diviner, you must have known this was going to happen! Admit it! All your talk of a ‘plan B’ and just spooking the Council of Rulers before the vote were only to make me agree to take part. Is that right?”
Mac-Peu didn’t have time to answer. A fearsome thundering blast rolled through the surrounding area, popping ears and spooking all the birds out of their trees. The squat pyramidal Palace of the Ruling Council, two hundred steps from the armored antigrav, sank. The tip of the structure collapsed into the building. A second later, everything was obscured by huge dust clouds.
“That’s all she wrote...” the advisor commented calmly. “You were not deposed. You’re still the Princess of an ancient dynasty and the ruler of a faction in the game that bends reality. We were also able to avoid a great war – the other directories won’t be capable of such a large undertaking anytime soon. All that remains is to inform the news channels that Emancipation from Mage Tyranny terrorists committed yet another heinous act, this time bombing a session of the Council of Rulers. The fact that we survived is a miracle and only because you finished your speech earlier than scheduled and left. And there can be no complaints against us – the palace guard will confirm that they searched our group thoroughly and that we didn’t bring any hazardous materials into the palace.”
“And the cleaning woman?” Minn-O shuddered. “She’ll say that she installed detonators under the benches in the chamber!”
“The cleaning woman?” the advisor asked with false surprise, raising his brows and widening his eyes. “Princess, didn’t I tell you that she died this morning? Cardiac arrest. A real tragedy. Although it’s no surprise at her age. Basically, I plan to put some money aside to pay her family a handsome bonus for her many years of impeccable service.”
“Mac-Peu, you’re a monster!” Despite the Princess’s emotional outburst, deep in her soul she didn’t blame her chief advisor one bit and even agreed that there was no other way.
“No, Princess Minn-O. I am not some bloodthirsty monster. I simply put my faith in your husband and am doing everything in my power to bring Leng Gnat’s plan to fruition and safeguard our world against alien invasion!”
The ruler of the First Directory spent a few seconds in silence thinking over what she’d heard, but then she demanded impatiently:
“Let’s take off already! Tell the guard we’re getting out of here. Otherwise it’ll look weird that we didn’t leave right away, despite the clear and present danger. Although... wait! Someone is coming out of the demolished building!”
And in fact, enshrouded in dense clouds of dust, a small figure emerged with a staggering gait. It was a girl, and her head was pointed down. The Princess and her advisor exchanged surprised glances.
“Isn’t she supposed to be dead?” asked the Princess, reproach for her servant’s failure cutting through.
The Mage Diviner shrugged his shoulders. He truly had not seen this possible future.
“Maybe it’s for the best?” Minn-O La-Fin asked pensively. “Order her arrested! We must have a living terrorist to show the thirty directories. They’ll be thirsty for blood! Here we have a real live member of the sinister terror group Emancipation from Mage Tyranny!”
