Chapter 780 – Smokescreen of Stone
Ultimately, Arascus’ theories regarding the creation of Divines were correct. Those are undeniable. Nevertheless, there is an issue in the new Empire, and it is one that has been sidelined since Arascus began his family. Ever since the incarnation of Empire, in fact. It has been stalled by the fact that has existed in a form of permanent open warfare since its founding. It is the same one that Allasaria considered unbreakable and it is the same one that is always levied against these lands that rely on one such person.
All Imperial decisions of permanence, or even of long-lasting consequence, are levied through Arascus. Ultimately though, the Empire is large and certain things slip through the cracks. Whereas I am certain that Olonia first asked someone on whether she could start the Land of Gods, I doubt anyone imagined the project would once grow to be an effective nature-reserve habituated by Divines. What happened there is the perfect example of Arascus’ Pride for once can call him all matter of things, and it washes off him like water. If one were to insult a daughter in his presence, or a fellow Divine, or his Empire, I am certain that is when the protectiveness truly kicks in. In fact, I can demonstrate it. After Olonia proved herself, Arascus sailed through the Ashfront on untested technology to save her.
The more one inspects the Empire, the more true decision truly come out. Arascus sits at the top although he does not interfere in national politics. The Imperial Project sits in this odd dimension of open hierarchy and authoritarianism, that provides renders far more freedom to its subjects than the White Pantheon ever did. The only time Arascus has ever touched the Imperial Bureau of Information was the day he declared it an official Bureau.
It is only now that I sit after this realisation that I truly realise what the God of Pride demands. Maisara claims it hypocritical corruption, Allasaria would call it stifling authoritarianism, I now witness and call it natural selection. The Empire demands efficiency and loyalty, and rewards independence and striving. Every organisation is staffed with bootlickers, and yet it is those who refuse to kneel that rise to the top.
It is the Anassan mindset taken to governance. The awareness of rules, the respect of their importance, and the total disregard for them when the situation calls for it. The sycophants who swear to the queen that is bureaucracy can never ever ascend past the throne. And there are plenty of seats above her. I am certain that if I ever tried to publish this text, Arascus would come personally to me and shut it down. Likewise, I am certain that the conclusion I have come to is exactly what every good Imperial citizen should do.
I should take more matters into my own hands.
- Entry in Goddess Helenna’s, of Love’s, diary.
Helenna stood, arms behind her back, a smile starting to grow on her face as she took a matter of Empire into her own hands, finally, since no one else would. In the distance, the shadows of mountains were snaking there way towards the foundations of the Imperial Palace. She had asked no one for permission to build Arascus a home, but the simple fucking fact of the matter was that a court was needed. Arascus could pretend it wasn’t important, or that he could deal with it in town halls and hotel rooms, but the rest of the administration could not. Every month, when she had to send an IBI man to report to Iliyal or to Arascus about the state of the intelligence bureau, she would have to spend fifteen minutes making phone-calls about which fucking city and which fucking building the meeting would take place in.
And those fifteen minutes would have more value spent on anything else. Even if she wasted them on something as petty as an extension to a bath, or another reason to eat a treat, it would be better. And since the God of Pride would not do it himself, she would do it for him. Helenna looked from the snow-capped mountains to the foundations that were still being dug. The concrete that would serve as the base of the great hall would was already poured and setting. There would be towers. There would be bridges. There would be a helicopter bay, somewhere, and a pool, because Helenna wanted a pool. Bunkers and armouries, and rooms.
Rooms for Divines, because the last time there had been a large meeting, Helenna had to bunk with Malam. And they got no sleep, even though none was needed, but Malam was a menace and Helenna needed a rest. A horde of workers were working digging more foundations as architects and planners were working in real time. Helenna was using her own authority to suspend Imperial Regulations. Such things as road connections could be added, or plumbing, or power lines were problems to solve. Doschia’s local height limit to “conserve the landscape” had already been negotiated away, Saksma had come out very happy from that meeting. Uniformity regulation was part of the Bureau of Culture, and there, Helenna was liked. They had not raised a stink yet, they would not be raising a stink anytime soon.
And the Imperial Palace would rise, and the Empire would have a functioning seat of government, and Arascus would have to sit on a throne, and it would be courtly. Helenna took a deep breath, her eyes scanning the workers that were measuring out new foundations. Of Love wanted to get the stone into the ground and beat the bureaucracy and beat Arascus. As long as they got enough progress done before he came, he would not put a stop to it. And she had her own defence prepared for it in the folder in her hands for when he did. This fucking palace would get built, and Helenna would claw those fifteen minutes a month back because fifteen minutes were priceless.
Arascus came to put a stop to it half an hour later, as Helenna stood and watched and thought about how else to handle calming populations down. This project was just as much for her to get a break from the endless grind of telling everyone in the Empire that the Second Arc would not hit Arda, and that even if it were to hit Arda, then it would be stopped. The God of Pride descended down from the sky, dropped off by a plane as he usually was when he came quickly. He hovered the last few feet down. “What are you doing here?” Arascus asked as he settled on the grass by Helenna.
“I’m building you a palace.” Helenna said dryly, her hair brown, neutral and perfectly controlled. He had come dressed in black and clean, then Elassa was done if he had the time to change to.
The God of Pride did not reply for a moment. “Alright.” He said. “I expect it to be up to standards though.”
“It’ll be a wonder of the world when it’s done.” Helenna said. “How did the Ad Astra launch go?”
“Elassa confirmed magic works in space.” Arascus said. “So now, it’s about putting as much rock up into the atmosphere as possible. Anassa proposed the idea of a space staircase.” Helenna sighed when she heard it.
“I assume she means literal.”
“I assume she means the same but it was explained poorly.” He said slowly. “We’re not building a space-staircase, a mountain or something, maybe. The floating islands solve the issue of getting mass into orbit. Elassa has her own work now.” Arascus nodded to the palace foundations. “This will need mages.”
“As you can see, I’ve not employed any.” Helenna said.
“Don’t bother, next week, we’re going to start running mass communion experiments in the Sassara. There’ll be a shortage of magical manpower.” Elassa closed her eyes and sighed. So that would be another week of propaganda and population control about why the mages were suddenly missing. The governments would hate it.
“Thanks for the heads-up.” Helenna said. “Really working me to the bone here.”
“If you have enough time to plot this, you still have some fat on you.” Arascus said and Helenna’s eyes blinked open. Her hair turned a deathly shade of black.
“Did you just call me fat?”
“No.” Arascus said. “Plump maybe, but not fat.” He chuckled to himself and then moved the topic on. Helenna was not going to cause a scene here, and she had dealt with Malam often enough to not be bothered by it. Frankly, it was almost pleasant. He should consider being more blunt. “Lots of people here.” Arascus said.
“I’ve not taken anyone off who is involved in your work, they’re operating on civilian contracts, you’re welcome to draft them.” Helenna said.
“They may be drafted but that’s only once we get the foundation designs down. Elassa is stockpile islands now. I’ll let the Epa be launched because it’s almost done.” That was the joint project between Paida and Saksma to produce a non-Arcadian floating island. “After that though, their mages are getting conscripted.” Great. Another heads-up. Helenna filed it away in her mind. Wine for Paida, beer for Saksma. And some personal concession or gift, a statue. Helenna stared at the palace foundations. Maybe their own private rooms? That could work.
“Anything else you’re going to warn me about?”
Arascus pulled out a piece of paper. “Now I don’t really care about the fact you went behind my back on this in the first place.” Helenna’s smile grew wider. So there was another issue, she knew what it was. “Rather it’s the publicity of it.” Arascus pulled out his phone and started going pictures he had already saved, they were screenshots of various forums and websites. “These normally don’t even reach my desk, Internal Affairs has noticed it though and they’ve raised an issue to me about it, so now I’m raising an issue to you about it.” He showed the phone to Helenna and the Goddess of Love leaned in to read.
The world is ending and we’ve decided to build an Imperial Palace.
It’s less the fact that it’s expenditure, it’s the timing of it.
There’s spending, there’s reckless spending, and then there’s stupid spending.
Why of course! A palace will save the world! Naturally! That one had a few skull and laughing emojis after it.
So this is for who exactly? I’d rather we spend.
Helenna looked up at Arascus, smiling smugly, because this was a sign of her succeeding. She didn’t bother with argument, instead bringing her folder around. “I know, the Imperial Palace is serving its purpose then, that was the predicted outcome.”
“Predicted outcome.” Arascus repeated her own words back to her. “And you’re smiling about that why?” Of course he hadn’t heard it, if it wasn’t hard governance or numbers or grand decrees, it rarely reached his desk. And when it did, Helenna would be tasked with fixing the mess.
“Because people were saying this at first.” She brought out a single page, a collage of her own taking from the very same forums and websites. And this set was far more concerning: they were calling for blood, they were saying that the Empire had failed against Tartarus, that the FPN-1 should not have been dropped in the first place. That the world was doomed. Arascus looked it over, pursing his lips and saying nothing. “The world is under threat Arascus. Do you believe it will get hit?”
“We’ll know when it re-emerges from behind the Sun.” Arascus said, handing the sheet back. He looked over at the castle foundations. “I see what you’ve done then. Good job.”
Of course he did. If the Second Arc was going to hit, then that was the crisis and people panicked during a crisis. There would be debate on whether the Empire would succeed, or whether Arda would hold, or whether it was even possible to stop the Second Arc in the first place. Helenna’s stunt had shifted the conversation, slightly, but the shift was there. The debate was on the Imperial Palace and whether the Empire was doing enough about the Second Arc, not whether it was possible to do anything about the Second Arc in the first place. “The situation is poor.” Helenna said. “And there is no clean method, you will get rabble-rousers no matter what is happening.”
“Aye.” Arascus said. “It is a clean solution.” Helenna put her sheet back in the folder and followed Arascus as he set off. Then he stopped, took a deep breath and looked at the construction crews and workers. A few had turned to look back at their Emperor, others were working twice as hard to try and show off how useful they were being. “Do you have a timeline?”
“I have a romantic outlook on whether it will get finished in a decade.” Helenna said.
“That’s a no, then.” Arascus put it into his own language.
“That’s a no.” Helenna confirmed.
“How are you funding it?” Arascus asked. “Internal Affairs nor Culture have given stamps and they would have passed it off to me.”
“My own money and the IBI black budget.” Helenna said proudly.
“Send me the check when you’re done.”
“Oh?” Helenna said. “Are you getting into debt for me?”
“You’re putting me into debt.” Arascus said. “Send me the check when you have it calculated and then be done with it.” Helenna saw the opening, she stormed ahead.
“I’ll make it expensive.”
“Tell me something I don’t know.” Arascus said.
“I’ll fudge the numbers in my favour.”
“Imperial Auditry will run their own numbers.” Arascus said and Helenna laughed.
“Auditors are still human.” She said, Auditry did have its own organization and it was the one branch of the bureaucracy that existed outside of the hierarchy, reporting directly to Arascus. But surely they weren’t that annoying? Were they? “I have a better solution. You get it free.” She leaned over and looked up at him.
“The audit won’t change.” Arascus said and Helenna pouted, her eyes going large. This was fun. Allasaria would never play along and see the humour in such blatantly open corruption.
“Will it not?”
“Why do you even want money?” Arascus asked and Helenna made a low laugh.
“Why do I not is the better question?” Helenna said, he was correct entirely. Helenna was treated about as well as were any other Divine of reputation. She wished for nothing, better than most Divines in fact. She got to run her own agency and even be important enough that she could honestly say she mattered. But it wasn’t about that, it was simply seeing whether she could sneak something under Arascus’ nose and then seeing how the man would react when she did.
Arascus sighed. “Imperial Auditry will investigate now, definitely.” He stopped and looked around. “I’ll give you a week to prepare and tidy your numbers before the dogs are loose.” Helenna blinked.
“Excuse me?” He turned, lips turning up in an amused grin.
“You’re excused.” He said. “What is the other solution?” And…
“You don’t get to change topics like that.” Helenna said. “What? They will?”
Arascus may as well have been ordering an execution with a tone like that. “If you want to butt heads, we will. And I will beat you, and that is assured Helenna.” He turned around. “Presumably, the first thing they will investigate is the black budget leaks, although I will say there’s a Saksma connection.” Helenna’s eyes grew wide. Well of course there was a Saksma connection! Goddesses did not just give up acres of land from their own nation unless Arascus personally asked for it! Saksma had just been the cheapest horse in the stables! Helenna felt her hair turn white and then confirmed it when she dragged some of her fluff into the vision. Bone ivory. “I’ll pretend not to see that.” Arascus said.
“Oh please your majesty.” Helenna said. “Don’t be so magnanimous, I know you want to rub it in.”
Arascus chuckled, he put his hand on top of her head and messed up the rest of carefully brushed locks which had taken half an hour to get right in the morning. “Silly. Bad.” He said. “Not good at all, easy even.” Every single word made her cheeks redden again. To think she had been caught with her hands in the cookie jar.
“I’ll brief Saksma.” Helenna said.
“You do that.” Arascus said. “So what’s the other thing you proposed then? What I assume was a bribe that wasn’t a bribe.”
He took another few steps and walked on the massive foundations of concrete. “I’ll put my room next to yours.” Arascus stopped, turned to her, and gave her a dry stare. Helenna stared at him back. “What exactly? I’m not going to blush at that, am I?”
“I see.” Arascus said. “So you’re overpaying in the hopes of me deciding that it’s just too much, and then just giving up and accepting that?” Helenna’s hair dulled to a grey. Her plan was mischievous and cheeky and lovely and had all the right elements for a story. It wasn’t even that she particularly enjoyed the man’s company; she did of course, but it wasn’t like that! And somehow, he managed to change something that would be written from a fairytale and instead make it sound like he was reading from a slideshow presentation!
“That is exactly what I’m doing.” Helenna replied dryly and crossed her arms. What? Maybe someone else would squeal and giggle with glee at being caught, but not her.
“Alright.” Arascus said. “We’ll do one better.”
“What?” Helenna said.
“If Imperial Auditry can’t find anything wrong, then you get to do as you want. Otherwise, I set the layout.” Helenna blinked, her hair went red, then orange, then green, then back to orange. Had he just? This was a bet? Since when? Since now apparently! “Do you even have layout plans?”
“Ahhh….” She did not. Architecture was beautiful and lovely and very much something Helenna could do, but getting told that.
“I’ll pretend you do, Auditry will assign a force in a week.” Arascus laughed to himself. “I’ll give you a headstart.”
“Oh will you now?”
“All buildings need a detailed, finished plan to start construction.” Arascus said. “Nevertheless, nothing stops plans from changing in mid-construction.” He patted her on the back. “That’s your assistance.”