Rebirth and Second Chances

Chapter 173: Exposed

"Most of this is contained in the briefs I have submitted, to this body and to the press," I began. "Olympus has conspired to infiltrate Talahm. They have taken Sidhe prisoner or murdered them in an attempt to replace them with individuals that were gifted with artifacts of power that made detection of illusion and glamour difficult. Illusions so well crafted that even the power of the Divine could be ignored."

"Bold claims," Loki claimed speaking without being recognized. Maat was quick to demand order and warn Loki as well as the rest of the assembly that any more outbursts and they would be [Silenced]. But the damage was done, at least Loki believed so. No one in this chamber would believe that a God could be deceived.

Fortunately, I had not removed the [Raiment of Kings] that I had been wearing when Zeus and Odin attempted to humiliate me. Unfortunately for a few in this chamber my [Diadem of Focus] gave me absolute immunity to illusion and charms while wearing it.

"Perhaps," I agreed with Loki ignoring the warning Maat had issued, "But I am about to make an even bolder claim. There are members of this Senate, sitting here today, that are hidden by the Illusions I spoke of. Olympians that are cloaked in the aspect and appearance of different factions. Sitting in Senate seats that do not belong to them.

"Yet, none of you have managed to pierce the veil of illusion. Or if you have, you have remained silent, complicit. You want proof that Olympus would dare anything to gain and hold power? Look no further than this chamber.

"Loki has a reputation for illusion and trickery," I continued. "Of all the Asgardian Gods, none can compare when matters of magic touch upon this aspect of his Domain.

"So, then. I challenge you," I sneered, "any of you. Point out the individual that is hidden by glamour and prove to the chamber that these artifacts of illusion are not powerful enough to fool even the eyes of the trickster god."

The stirrings in the chamber, the whispers that muffled discussions became a chorus of shouts. Voices demanding proof. Voices that were stilled one after another as Maat invoked [Silence] as she had warned.

"You claim that there is someone in this chamber that has obfuscated his appearance?" Maat demanded.

"There are three," I said, "but I have only asked that one be revealed." I and the rest of the chamber watched as Maat the Goddess of Justice turned her discerning visage among those gathered. Every member in the chamber felt her power, as she extended her Divinity in overlapping pulses, searching the room, attempting to reveal that which had been hidden.

There was no change. Her power was unable to isolate and reveal the truth my [Diadem] made so clear. Justice could not prevail without the light of truth, so to be able to stay unseen was an affront to Maat.

"Loki," She demanded, her fury constrained, not sure if my words were truth or a bit of theater, "You have this body's permission. Seek and prove one way or the other that no illusion can withstand scrutiny in the face of your Domain."

He was reluctant to comply, his very action testament to that reluctance. I thought it more that he didn't want to upset any plot Olympus might be engaged in, rather than worry that his powers might be stymied.

Where Maat's search had been prodding and questing, an insistence and right to know, Loki's was more brute strength. He rammed his power throughout the room, bludgeoning apart illusion, stripping away anything that was not real, searching relentlessly for the smallest hint of deceit.

Because His powers were founded on deceit, in all the firmament of any Pantheon, there were few that could contend with him when he acted within the confines of his purview. And of those that could, perhaps Coyote of the Navajo Pantheon was the only God skilled enough to contend with him for preeminence.

Loki's efforts were futile, his power unable to strip the combined braided powers of an artifact, Egyptian runic tattoo, and spell powered and maintained with a drop of Divine blood. Whoever was behind the illusions being used in these Halls, they had gone to even more effort to remain hidden than they had on Talahm. Using the blood of a God as the final strand to weave a braid of magic, made the illusion unassailable for any but System.

The weaving was suggestive of something the Fates might do, but I doubted it, although, Arachne probably did have her hand in the mix. Still, no matter how much effort Loki spent, he was unable to unmask anyone in the room.

"He lies," He finally concluded, satisfied that no one or nothing could withstand his scrutiny when he brought his full power to bear.

"The Sidhe are incapable of lying," I said as Maat turned to me allowing me to respond. "We can twist words almost as well as Loki, but to blatantly lie might bring the Wild Hunt, and no Sidhe would risk being the target of that Hunt."

Standing, I moved to approach the Aztec representative. Quetzalcoatl the least blood-thirsty God of that Pantheon. A God happy with butterfly and hummingbirds as a sacrifice was a Power. He was the Morning Star that presaged the dawn. He was the God of Wind, Air, and Learning. He gave fire to the faithful. He was an intricate force for the Aztec people.

A serpent dressed in plumage and feathers that were resplendent and colorful. He wore his armor and jewelry of power.

And He was an imposter.

Hidden by illusion so strong that neither Maat nor Loki could discern the Medusa that was sitting anxiously in a seat that did not belong to her, she watched with a mixture of snide derision that transformed into unbelieving horror as I approached, and stripped the illusion from her, revealing for all, an Olympian.

My ability to remove her illusion had nothing to do with the Divine or my powers. The ability was System gifted, a benefit of the [Diadem of Focus] was that the power of clear sight that it shared with me, would reveal the truth if I extended that boon.

The Medusa that had managed to assume the shape, form, and mantle of an Aztec God was revealed for the chamber to see. An illusion capable of mimicking the Devine. The chamber, the Senators that had been [Silence]d erupted into chaos, because if Olympus would kidnap or kill a fellow God what did that mean about the balance of power?

Elder Statesmen. Gods and mortals. Furious at the share effrontery of Olympus stood ready to do battle.

But I wasn't done. And as those Olympians that had drawn the ire and anger of the Chamber remained seated, I approached another group. Reaching out my hand, I stripped the false Athena of her illusion and Artemis who was empowered as Senator. Plenipotentiary for Olympus, vested with the authority to act for that Pantheon. Stripped of illusion, the false Athena and Artemis were revealed to the chamber as two of the faces of the Fates.

Clotho and Lachesis. And Olympus' perfidy was exposed.

My claims were proven. The bit of theater I had orchestrated, to brandish five thousand prisoners before the cameras broadcasting across the cosmos and killing them had damaged more than Olympus all so that I would be confronted within the halls of Senate.

My proof spoke of the Senate's corruption or impotence. They had either turned a blind eye to the machinations that originated with the Pantheons from Olympus and Asgard, or they were powerless and unable to withstand the tapestry the Fates would weave. Five thousand prisoners were damning evidence, but the events that occurred behind that closed-door session would never have been possible without those deaths.

Events that weren't hidden behind layers of diplomacy or Senate prerogative. I had taken measures, a means to broadcast events, contracts, and hidden cameras that I had used to stream, exposing to the Universe, truth. Organizations that had been willing to broadcast the Senate session as events transpired, and for the first time in history tore back the curtain to reveal to the populace of countless worlds, that the actions of Gods were not infallible and some were more concerned with image and sophistry.

The evidence I had, the documents, recordings, and prisoner statements had been presented, entered into evidence along with broken illusion as proof. My actions completed before a frantic retainer for one of the Senators came rushing in, whispering and informing him that the session was being broadcast live.

Maat had revoked [Silence]. Only to listen as voices and shouting spread, it was easy to see who was aligned with what faction. Almost half of the Senators began clamoring, demanding the floor recognize them, calling for my sanction and Talahm's seat be revoked. The rest watched in confusion as more and more voices demanded recognition.

But I refused to cede the floor. Parliamentary rules were in my favor in this instance, and I knew it likely that if I allowed the meeting to be adjourned or suborned, a veil of secrecy would shroud whatever outcome or penalties the chamber might levy against Olympus.

And I had yet to parade my most telling proof of Olympus' involvement. As one of the surviving prisoners was ushered into the chambers, I informed Maat that I would be calling him as my one and only witness.

The Demi-god Perseus had allowed himself to become embroiled in this plot, the lure of God particles and true Godhood too tempting to resist. He had used illusion to kidnap and replace a Seelie Court minister and had been instrumental in funneling and smuggling the vast amounts of Silinium that Olympus had stolen.

But his testimony was the superfluous, the ability to capture and replace a fellow God was potent proof that Olympus would stop at nothing in their plots to gain and hold power. His testimony proof that Olympus was complicit.

Olympus stood accused, backed by irrefutable evidence of actions that may lead to war. I no longer needed to force the Senate to act, the Aztecs and Egyptians would do that.

***

"You took a huge risk," Isis complained, speaking with me now that the Senate session was completed, and accord had been reached.

The Olympians were banned from holding the Speaker position for a thousand years. Tariffs were doubled on all Silinium exports permanently. And their interest in the next five Planets to be claimed by their Pantheon were forfeit.

The monies from the tariffs would find their way directly into Sidhe coffers, but the other penalties would be divided and shared between the Sidhe and the Aztecs. There had been no clear proof that Asgard had played a part in corrupting System, but there had been enough anecdotal evidence to issue a warning and exclude them from any of the spoils Olympus was forced to pay, and to ban them from the Speakership of the Senate for ten terms.

It wasn't the first setback either Pantheon had experienced, but it was the most egregious in hundreds of thousands of years. They had become complacent, assured of their superiority and ability to dismiss any repercussions that might result from their hubris.

While true Zeus and the Olympians had mastered the tenets of hubris, the Sidhe's doctrine in our own superiority was sacrosanct. They practiced hubris. We had cultivated our understanding and belief in our superiority.

"We won," I replied not in the least remorseful that I had acted without informing Her or Her faction first.

"And acting as I did, without your involvement, allowed you to maintain as much impartiality as possible. We looked ungrateful, while the Egyptians managed the role of the long-suffering elder statesman."

She flashed me a brief smile acknowledging my barb. The Egyptians had come out of this rather well. Maat's practicality and impartiality, while I presented evidence and proof of Olympus' perfidy, did not go unnoticed. So, when it came time to vote on what Pantheon would ascend and assume the powers of Senate leader, Maat and the Egyptians had narrowly prevailed.

"What will you do about the planet Ijal and the restrictions the Asgardians managed to place on you and your people?" Isis wondered.

"The fact that Ijal has no indigenous intelligent people makes things somewhat easier," I began thoughtfully. "That it has been seeded as a dungeon planet becomes problematic with these new restrictions.

"I'm not sure I understand the reasoning behind allowing only those that have yet to ascend access until certain benchmarks have been met. I do understand why they demanded that a scion of my House, someone that shares my bloodline be included in the initial group.

"They thought that requirement would force our people to wait decades until a child of my flesh was born, grown, and was about to attempt the Ascension chamber.

"They are mistaken," I rejoined.

I would not explain my circumstance. That with an accident of metaphysical serendipity, the Volar-fey, Sithern, and I had melded our energies and created a horde of new Volar-fey. Each new life, technically a child of mine, containing enough of my essence to be recognized descendants.

These Volar-fey had swarmed, released from the Sithern. Exploring, propagating plants, repairing the land. And mating. Giving birth to strange hybrids. Most of these 'grandchildren' were Volar-fey with powers unique to their species with some small abilities of Sidhe added to their own.

But in a few cases, instead of Volar-fey new Sidhe were born.

Ryu was the first child the Volar-fey brought to me. His existence the first I knew of their fecundity and ability to mate with anything. They had joined with a Cu-sith, the resulting pairing more Unseelie than an animal, the baby was intelligent and sentient. The child had the graceful and beautiful appearance that the Seelie and Unseelie admired, with none of the earmarks of either Cu-sith or Volar-fey. But his power, his control, and his affinity with shadow had bred true.

It had been hard to keep track of him, his ability to blink and travel using even the smallest bit of darkness made constraining him almost impossible.

I'd had to have a suppression bracelet crafted that limited his abilities until he was older. A baby barely able to crawl vanishing and reappearing in rooms that were barred was both startling to those he interrupted and frustrating for Jennie and her helpers who had taken to him with exuberance and love.

I had raised him as a child of House Teigh and as my son. His connection to Beleros was tenuous at best, but shadow meshed well with cold and his connection to Cyronax was strong. The Senate had felt it necessary to punish my methods by demanding I be barred from exploring the planet I had been awarded until a child related by blood was raised. I had fought hard against that condition, and the harder I fought, the fewer other concessions were demanded until I finally capitulated.

"I still don't know how you managed to hide all of this from the Fates," Isis said returning my attention to the present. "Those hags should have seen this coming and moved to prevent it."

"I'm not so sure they didn't," I suggested, "but I had contingency plans. Not just a few, either. Thousands. Choices that would be made based on their actions and reactions.

"I have noticed one thing about the Fates. They conspire to nudge Gods and mortals alike to fit the weaves of the tapestry. The embroidered scene that is slowly unfolding and forming. Tangle that weave, and they become distracted. Their focus invested in unsnarling and smoothing out the fabric of destiny.

"I am not sure if what happened here today was part of their Divine weft, or if the snarls that would have been created if they had not allowed my actions to unfold would have forced them to alter the tapestry beyond any acceptable measure."