Chapter 77: Champion, Chapter 11: Towards Utopia

Aidan

The Realms

Secondday, 1st week of the 9th month, Age of the Chosen 1

Mid-Morning

Ceallach Macht, Mistvale Highlands

Aidan and Sunnild emerged from Caer Macht clean, refreshed, and ready to face the day's trials. Aidan was still uncomfortable with aspects of his current situation, but there was something about Sunnild that drew him like a moth to a flame. The young harpy was glommed onto his arm, humming a cheerful tune. He looked over at her and smiled; her sunny disposition was impossibly infectious. I hope it works out better for me than for the moth.

Aidan redirected his thoughts to the coming meeting. He expected it to be rough on both him and Sunnild, but they'd spent the last hour preparing with Ailis. Sunnild refused to give out any strategically-important information—which Aidan backed her on, much to Ailis's frustration—but she was happy to dish on her so-called teammates. And, true to her nature, she spent more time talking about their hobbies, accomplishments, and qualifications than she did about their weaknesses and failures. That still left them with plenty of buttons to push and levers to pull. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, Aidan reminded himself, even if they're big ole horseflies.

"You know they're going to cry fowl when they see you looking so happy, right?" Aidan asked Sunnild. He didn't think anyone else caught the pun, but he did, and that's what mattered in the end.

"Mm," she agreed. "They will say I sold em out fer one night with a man. But they woulda said the same regardless. When I went with ya yesterday, I knew what would come." She looked up at him, then smiled and poked him in the belly. "And no gettin' all sad over that. I made my choice with knowledge of the consequences, and it turned out well for me."

Aidan laughed, caught her hand, and gave it a squeeze. "Yes, ma'am. Will this cause a problem for you back at the Ayrie? You still have to report to your commander and gather your things."

Sunnild shrugged. "It might, but nothin' that I will not be able to handle. I did not give out any secrets, and, in fact, I helped secure the mission objective. The bigger problem will be leaving. Sisters do not leave the Sisterhood."

"There's no reason you have to leave the Sisterhood." Aidan was puzzled for a second before realizing, "Oh! I never told you my dream for this city, did I?"

"Nope! Ya were too busy seducin' the poor, innocent harpy." Sunnild grinned up at him.

Aidan smiled back. "Well, I'll keep it a secret for a little while longer; there's no sense explaining it twice, and the Sisterhood will be quite interested in it."

"Nnooo! Tell me! Ya cannot say ya have a secret and then not tell it to me!" The look that she gave him made Aidan wonder if there was a Puppy Dog Eyes Skill. He found himself considering telling her although they were less than a minute from the meeting place.

"You can wait five minutes until I can tell everyone at once." Her expression morphed into a puffy-cheeked pout. "I'll make it up to you," he promised. "I meant to tell you yesterday, but, well..."

"Mm!" And she was back to her usual smiling self.

Unfortunately, the other four harpies gathered in the building they entered wore less pleasant expressions. "Sunnild. You will report to Wingleader Frythe to explain your dereliction of duty upon our return. Until then, you are to remain in the cabin under house arrest." Strike two, Aidan thought. She doesn't even have the grace to look angry. Sunnild's right; Ecgwena was only looking for an excuse.

"Dereliction of duty?" Aidan asked. "That's a curious accusation. Now, I am an outsider here, but my understanding is that you five were sent to work out a deal with me. That has not happened yet, but I can tell you that I am much more inclined to be reasonable this morning than when I left your presence yesterday evening, Wingsister Ecgwena. In fact, Sunnild was the one who persuaded me not to send you all away." The Crown of the Exalted shimmered into existence on Aidan's brow as he leaned over the table. "Let me be blunt, ladies: Sunnild is off-limits to your power plays. If your leadership wants a good relationship with me—and they do, because I can give you something that you have wanted for generations—then the petty games stop here."

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Now Ecgwena was angry. "You have no right to interfere in internal Sisterhood affairs, human. I am Sunnild's superior officer, and I say she abandoned her duty for a quick fuck. Did she even tell you that harpies are always fertile, or did she stay quiet while you filled her womb?" Sunnild's face was stricken. She looked at Aidan, tears in her eyes.

Strike three. You're out. "Wingsister Ecgwena Shatterstrike, you are hereby forbidden entry to my lands, which extend for 10 miles in all directions from Ceallach Macht. You have until noon to leave. If you are found within my territory after that time, my soldiers and guardians will have orders to attack on sight." He glared right back at her across the table. "If you think to test my determination, know that I slew the Tannath Taig who previously occupied this city. The pillar of fire above the city?" Aidan curled his lips back in a snarl. "Me. I swear by Birgitte, Brigantia, and Braihain, these facts are true." That had been a gamble, but the sudden widening of the harpies' eyes told him that they received a system message confirming his oath. "Leave us, Ecgwena. You are not welcome here."

The brown-feathered harpy trembled with rage. The moment drew out in silence, until, just as Aidan started to raise his hand to signal Cai, Ecgwena leaped to her feet and stormed off. He changed the signal, sending one of his two bodyguards to make sure Ecgwena left without issue. He had four Passion Elementals circling in the air above, so he wasn't worried about his personal safety. Once Ecgwena was away, Aidan took his seat at the head of the table.

"I apologize for the unpleasantness. I will be straightforward with you all. Yes, I slept with Sunnild last night." Even though she knew it was coming, Sunnild still blushed scarlet and ducked her head. "However, your previous leader was already on thin ice with me when she struck a soldier under her command, knocking her to the ground because she didn't want to take a step sideways. I did not invite Sunnild into the citadel yesterday to bed her; I did so because I will always stand up for the abused. I want to make that very clear now so that there will be no misunderstandings in the future. Now," he leaned back and folded his hands in his lap, "who was second-in-command of your mission?"

He already knew the answer, of course, but it provided the harpies a chance to collect themselves and soothe their ruffled feathers. After a few shared looks, the scarred twin spoke up. "My name is Wingsister Estrith, and with Wingsister Ecgwena," she hesitated, "no longer available, the lead falls to me." Her gaze shifted to Sunnild. "As such, I am rescinding Ecgwena's command. However, we will need to debrief you after this meeting." Back to Aidan. "Not as a punishment, my Lord, just a standard procedure. Wingsister Sunnild was away from—"

Aidan raised a hand and waved her explanation off. "There is no problem. I understand the importance of debriefs. Ask her whatever you want so long as it's mission-relevant; I trust that I don't need to warn you away from prying into her private life?"

"No, my Lord, you do not. I will keep the debrief professional."

"Thank you. I will consider it a favor owed." This, too, was part of the plan—by 'giving away' a favor like this, he gave the Sisterhood face and balanced out the potential offense of banishing their lead envoy. Naturally, it had been Ailis's suggestion. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "Now, I spoke with Sunnild regarding your mission here, so I have the general shape of it. However, she joined your team at the last moment, so she was not privy to the full details. Please, Wingsister Estrith, tell me what I can do for the Ash Shroud Sisterhood."

Estrith relaxed a fraction and, after a moment to collect her thoughts, began. "First, allow me to start by saying that the Sisterhood assumed that it was the Starchaser tribe who controlled Ceallach Macht. I understand that you are, technically, a member of the tribe, but we expected to be dealing with the Council. Our orders are with that scenario in mind."

Aidan nodded. "Yes, the situation is a little unusual. I was the only one with the ability to claim Caer Macht—" Aidan and Ailis had decided that information wasn't worth hiding since any Throne that lay unclaimed for as long as Caer Macht must have stringent requirements "—and the city came along with it. My status within the tribe is still somewhat fluid, although I do have the Council's backing. I am confident that we can work out any tangles caused by the circumstances. Please, go on."

Estrith nodded. "Very well, my Lord Aidan. Given the dawn of the new Age, chaos is on the horizon. As the Starchaser tribe and the Sisterhood have, for the most part, been on good terms with each other, my superiors wished to sound out the Council about a formal treaty. At this time, they are not yet prepared to commit to a full military alliance, but I am authorized to negotiate terms on a non-aggression pact and discuss how our people might best share information and resources in the future."

Interesting. Sunnild knew about the non-aggression pact, but not the formal alliance or the information-sharing. That means both the Sisterhood and Estrith are serious about this; good. "Obviously, I cannot sign an agreement on behalf of the Starchaser Council, so that will need to wait another two weeks for them to arrive. However, what I can do is offer you something else your leaders might like as much."

"Tell me, Estrith: what is the single biggest weakness the Sisterhood has?" The harpy scowled and stiffened, but Aidan waved her objection away before she could voice it. "I'm not talking about military weaknesses. I'm not even talking about anything someone with half a brain couldn't figure out for themselves. Your biggest weakness is men. Harpies only bear daughters, so your continued existence requires a constant influx of compatible males into the Ayrie." Sunnild's eyes were wide open; she'd made the connection. Aidan favored her with a smile.

"What if I told you that my vision for Ceallach Macht is a multi-racial, multi-cultural utopia, where harpies, centaurs, wolven, cu uisce, and even gargoyles," and humans, but he didn't add that, "can live side-by-side in peace? What if I told you that the Starchaser leadership have already agreed to be part of such a city? Can you imagine how much simpler it would be for your people if you didn't have to bribe, beg, and barter for men?" Sunnild had been emphatic that the Sisterhood never kidnapped or raped men. Aidan had his doubts about the literal truth of that statement but accepted it as a general rule. "What I propose is to invite the Sisterhood to have a permanent presence in Ceallach Macht. In exchange for services such as defending the city from outside attackers, I would be happy to make concessions regarding the recruitment of men. As long as they sign up of their own free will, I don't see what business it is of anyone else's, anyway."

Now the three negotiation team harpies were staring at him with wide eyes. Sunnild had progressed from staring to vibrating with excitement; likely, the only thing keeping her from launching herself at him was her superiors' presence. Estrith regained her composure. "I... am not authorized to accept or reject your proposal, Lord Aidan. I assure you that it will feature prominently in my report, however. If I may be unprofessional for a moment, it sounds like a dream come true to me."

"Ceallach Macht was once known as the City of Dreams," Aidan noted with a smile. The hook was set. Now he just had to land the fish, and that wasn't a task for today. "I plan to make it so again." The negotiations continued for another two hours. In the end, they settled on several tentative agreements, requiring ratification from both the Starchaser Council and the Flockmarshal.

The harpies offered a non-aggression pact with a three-month warning required before ending it in exchange for permission to cross Starchaser territory freely. Aidan felt that would likely pass because it wasn't like the centaurs could stop them anyway. In turn, Aidan proposed a permanent Sisterhood embassy in Ceallach Macht, with an offer to turn it into an enclave. He also revealed the Labyrinth's existence and offered to allow the Sisterhood to send parties into it to gather resources—which, of course, he would tax.

By the time the talks were over, Aidan felt drained. Estrith was a capable negotiator; even though Aidan knew she wanted what he had to offer, she fought tooth and nail for every concession. Next time I'll make Ailis do the negotiating. I need to delegate more, anyway. He made his way back to Caer Macht, intent on seeking out Brighid for some cuddle time.

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