Chapter 66- Envoys meeting

  Mage Citadel- Staff Cafeteria, 2nd floor- Late Autumn, Namor 1 (Noon)

  Princess Namorita

  The princess blew on the hot soup on her spoon before taking a bit. The fvor was stronger than she recalled eating before, making her wonder how making meals half-submerged in water affected the taste. Still, a small smile spread across her face as she swallowed.

  Then the ccking of the Shell-born reminded Namorita where in the world she was, and depression drowned what joy the mid-day meal brought her. She liked eating around the little insect folk the most because at least their inhuman nguage gave no hint of scorn that they may be saying about her.

  Since all the staff of the Citadel had quickly picked up on her origins, and the fact that the master of this pce had no love for her or her people. She suspected that were she not her father’s child, and everyone’s fear of him, they would have left her out there for Talis’ wrath.

  Namorita sighed and dipped her spoon back into her soup while it was still warm. As she blew on this next mouthful, the hall's doors opened, and a knight construct led two surfacers into the room. It pointed at the table where food and drinks awaited them.

  Yet it was the scared and sun-kissed male surfacer elbowing the even more sun-kissed woman beside him that made the princess stop from taking her bite. Namorita saw the recognition on the woman’s face when she looked her over, and it appeared all thought of food was discarded as the two people walked towards her table instead.

  As they neared, the princess could make out the long-winged eagles on the shoulders of their uniforms and armor. ‘SHEILD, what could they want?’ she thought as she returned her spoon to the bowl in front of her. She also took note of weapons on their persons. The woman had no firearms but instead carried a wooden longbow, while the man had both an obvious pair of concealed pistols, as well as numerous knives strapped to him.

  “Princess Namorita?” The woman asked surprised. She seemed to be the more senior agent, as the man acted more as a guard than anything.

  “Yes?” She confirmed her identity. Narmorita watched them nervously wondering if the Magi wanted to 'borrow a knife from another party' to deal with her. Especially since the knight hadn't taken any further steps from the door since they got here. With those thoughts, she had to ask. "How do you know of me?"

  "I met your mother, Lady Dorma once, and your father when he was still only the crown prince. While I can see you more take after your father in the shape of your face, your hair screams to me that you are your mother's daughter." The agent pyed with her own braided hair as she expined that, then she spped her chest and said. "Oh, where are my manners, I am Agent Danielle Moonstar.”

  The princess bowed slightly as she properly introduced herself. “Princess Namorita, of Atntis.”

  “I have to confess I am surprised to see someone from Atntis here, given the reports we have heard regarding the Magi and your people.” The female agent admitted, hearing that made Namorita flinch. “So our reports are true? Atntis and the Magi have some trouble in the past?”

  “Of course it’s true. The Betrayal of Atntis is well known to us.” One of the Shell-born added from their table. His mouth still made soft clicking sounds besides the English words it spoke.

  The princess held her temper but still made her hands into fists, her right-hand folding and reshaping the metal spoon under the strength of her hand. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the male agent reach for his openly shown firearm. His eyes snapping between her and the group of insect folk.

  They all missed the opening and closing of the hall's doors, but they all didn't miss the addition in the room when he spoke. "Is there a problem?" The man was slim but also clearly a warrior, the armor he wore reflected the light wrong. Like it wasn't whole in their material realm. Then there were his eyes, his glowing blue-grey eyes looked over everyone in the room, and reminded her of an unsheathed sword. As he looked over the room, he muttered. "When a warrior draws a weapon, he better be ready to die, otherwise he is a fool."

  It was Agent Moonstar’s turn to elbow her companion, who let his hand fall away from his pistol. Not that Narmorita saw it. She was too busy staring at the sword-strapped mage. With a sword on both of his hips and a greatsword strapped to his back, something about the man seemed utterly familiar to her. Like the princess had met the man before, but until now he was just another face in the crowd.

  “Master Ryth’lor, it is a pleasure to speak with you again.” The female agent greeted the mage.

  Hearing the name, stole both Namorita’s breath and voice, as she pced where she knew the man from. In the heart of the Imperial barracks, near the royal pce. It was here that all the soldiers of their army gathered and trained, in the heart of the yard there stood a statue of an outsider. It was of a knight who wielded three swords at once killing loyal soldiers of Atntis.

  Many wanted the statue removed, for it was a stain on their history and memory, yet for many centuries the Kings of Atntis refused, for the warrior was just that infamous. By the time someone with enough pull succeeded in convincing the royal family to remove it, they learned that the piece was partially molded from Adamantium. So while they could remove the dead Atnteans, they could not remove the knight. Almost as if the king who commissioned the piece knew that the man himself would be a thorn in their side ter down the road.

  “Expert Ryth’lor.” The grey-eyed mage corrected. “While I am a master swordsman, I ck the talent to be a master of my people. As we prioritize magic over martial skill. But that’s not why you’re here. But before we begin, the Acting Master wants assurances that our knowledge and time will be compensated. There are only some many of us, and our own interests are many.”

  “Oh, they don’t like money do they?” The male agent muttered softly.

  Moonstar cleared her throat before asking. “Are you sure you want to have this conversation here, in the open?”

  Ryth’lor stared at the male agent as he stated. "As mentioned, the popution of the Citadel is rather low, and as such word gets around. And whatever it is you're willing to offer us, will more than likely be moved by the very Shell-born in this room once we receive it.'

  “So here, or in the room across the hall, doesn’t really matter to me, only so long as your hound behaves himself and keeps his hands where I can see them.” Hearing the warning the male agent raises his hands so that they are clearly visible to everyone.

  The female agent cleared her throat, before making her offer. “Eastern SHEILD division recently captured a cargo ship that was captained and crewed by Hydra personnel. Our division will be getting some of its spoils, and Director Fury has authorized me to offer you three hundred pounds of liquefied Adamantium, as well as a potential pardon for Psylocke given most of her crimes are non-violent in nature, but only if your information leads us to a successful operation.”

  The grey-eyed mage shook his head at the offer. ”Flip the priority. We would rather have the pardon over the metal.”

  "You're willing to give up liquid Adamantium? Don’t you know what you can do with that stuff?” The cocky male agent asked.

  “More than you do.” The sword-master said as his answer to both questions.

  “Fine. The director suspected as much, but knows the difficulty and price it will take to get you what you want.” Agent Moonstar agreed quickly.

  The grey-eyed mage was stone-faced as he asked. "The Acting Master said you have some questions about demons, and since I have the most experience with them I have come to answer them. He also mentioned something about an attack?”

  Hearing the mention of demons woke the princess up. Namorita recalled the lessons that her Uncle Noctis had given her and her cousin about the threat those creatures posed to them. So she stood up suddenly and asked boldly. “Has there been an Incursion?”

  The agents looked at her confused. Meanwhile, the living legend was as calm as ever.

  "No," Ryth’lor said ftly.

  “What is an incursion? And how do you know there hasn’t been one?” The male agent asked the room.

  "An Incursion is when a neighboring pne or realm invades ours, and if a mystical pne, like Hell, was doing so we Magi would notice a sharp increase in the amount of magic energy our bodies absorb from said pne.” The swords-master expined. Then he added. “More than likely, what you encountered were scouts or ‘spies’ simir to you and your agents.”

  While the female agent nodded in understanding, the male one just crossed his arms bored.

  “Shouldn’t the Veil kept them out of our world though?” The princess asked. She didn’t pay a lot of attention in her lessons about magic, but she knew her people were aware of magic and the Veil, but not all of its rules around both.

  Ryth’lor shook his head, as he answered. "The Veil is not foolproof, otherwise magic would be unattainable in our realm. And while we Magi cut ourselves off from the outside world for survivability, even so, we can still tell that several attempts to breach our pne have occurred during our isotion. Meaning it is easier for weaker entries to cross over." Then he looked Moonstar in the eye and asked. “The Citadel said you have pictures, can I see them?”

  The female agent pulled her backpack off and dug into it before pulling out some surfacer device. She interacted with it while she expined. "The gold-skinned man killed two of the three creatures we think are demons, mostly because I recognized the imp from the packet you got for Entreatment Day." Once she found whatever was searching for on the device she id it on the table beside her, and turned it so the mage could see the image.

  “That’s an imp alright. Judging from its second set of horns it was on the verge of its first evolution.” Ryth’lor observed.

  Namorita moved to stand closer to them so she could too observe the images. She covered her mouth and was gd she hadn't finished her lunch when she saw the mostly disintegrated red-skinned creature with cws and horns.

  Moonstar tapped a button on the device, and the image changed again, showing them a liquefied purple mass in a tub. At that, she had to look away, as Ryth’lor muttered. “It might be nezberkneet. But it’s hard to tell considering the damage done to it.”

  “A nez’berkneet?” The male agent asked as if it was just gibberish.

  “A thought demon. They have very simir powers to your Tribesmen of the Land telepaths or psychics.” The swords-master expined.

  “Mockingbird did say that the golden man compined about his thoughts being fragmented.” The female agent muttered.

  “The live one?” Ryth’lor asked after a moment of them standing around doing nothing.

  "Sorry," Moonstar muttered while tapping a couple of buttons before a short video pyed showing an odd cocoon pulsating and flexing for a minute and a half. “I could feel an incredibly massive amount of psychic energy off of it, and was worried that attacking it might set off some sort of backsh if we killed it."

  “Not really, but you were probably sensing the potential power of the Phelem that’s awakening in there.” The swords-master muttered, before sighing and crossing his arms as if he was unimpressed.

  The two agents frowned, and shared a look before both looked at him again and Agent Moonstar asked. “A what?”

  “A Phelem, a half-blood." Ryth’lor’s ck of interest only seemed more obvious from his partial answer.

  "A half-blood of what?" The male agent asked frustration clear at the sword master's ck of interest.

  “It’s a half demon isn’t it?” Namorita guessed. The mage uncrossed one hand to point at her and give her a ‘thumbs up’ in agreement before re-crossing the hand.

  “What does this mean?” The female agent asked somewhat surprised.

  “It means one of your agents had a demon for a father. And the cocoon means she wants more power and might follow in his footsteps.” Ryth’lor said rather deadpan.

  Moonstar took a deep breath before she asked. “So she is a threat that needs to be destroyed?”

  “Not necessary, like Nephalem, Phelem has more self-control. As a result of the free will of the material pne, or the seed of mortality.” The Grey-eyed mage corrected, and then he uncrossed his arms and shrugged before he added. “It is only when they become too invested in the ways of demons and they lose themselves to their inner urges, that they can truly be considered damned.’

  “But that also is you assuming that demons are inherently evil. Evil requires intent. And for most lesser demons it's just an overwhelming hunger that they are trying to sate. Meaning there is little difference between them and most animals. It's only ter when they become lords or princes and they have full control over their appetites and continue to act as they did before do they truly become evil, because they know there is another way."

  “So you’re saying we should give her a pass?” The male agent asked angrily.

  Rythlor shook his head, as he suggested. "A pass, no, but maybe a job. From what I've heard of your organization, you like collecting empowered people into your ranks. And like it or not, your superiors are going to have to accept the cold truth that magic is real." There was a long cold pause as the agents mulled over what such a discussion would be like.

  So after a moment, the princess asked. "How do you know it was the person's father who was the demon?"

  The mage gnced at her but before he could answer, the male agent muttered. "That's a good question."

  “If the demon was female, the half-blood would have been born in Hell, not here in the material pne. Because any concealment magic or tricks to hide her presence would have been broken when she went into bor. And thus either ourselves or other magic users would have found her and dealt with her at that time.” Ryth’lor seemed to look through rather than at her, as he expined that.

  “Dealt with?” Agent Moonstar repeated.

  "Few are willing to let demons remain here, either because of their reputation or their upkeep. Although I suppose some more ruthless and well-established sorcerers or witches could be scummy enough to ensve or bind the mother to them." The grey-eyed mage stated, before he shrugged and added. "Had I found said birthing bed, I would have waited for the newborn to be ushered into the world, before I ran the mother through.'

  ”Anything else?”

  The female agent then went back to the ptop found another short video and pyed it before backing away. The video was minute long and on repeat and showed them a golden-skinned and haired man in a bck and red outfit, walking towards a door before said door opened on its own and he walked through it before it closed on its own after him.

  “Do you know who or what that is?” Moonstar asked Ryth’lor.

  “A failed experiment of the High Evolutionary.” The mage said ftly.

  “Failed how?” The female agent asked.

  “He isn’t alive.” Ryth’lor again said ftly.

  “He seems pretty alive to me.” The male agent argued.

  "That's because you don't have Mage Sight and haven't interacted with Him." The mage said ftly before he cleared his throat before saying. "Let me expin this in another way. To be truly alive, you need a functioning mind, body, and essence, or as your holy texts call it a soul.” Ryth’lor held out his thumb to his middle finger as he counted the items, then he pulled his middle finger away and pointed at the ptop with only his index and thumb at the still-pying video. "Him only has two of those.”

  "Are you trying to say that he is a failure because he doesn't have a soul?" Moonstar asked after a moment.

  The mage shrugged before admitting. "We do not know why the Evolutionary deemed him a failure, but to us, he is just an un-programmed bio-organic construct. That it goes out and explores on its own is a complete surprise to me." There was a long silence, before he asked. "Do you have any other questions for us?"

  “No, not at this time. You can expect payment in a week or so." The female agent answered as she moved to shut down her ptop and put it back into her backpack. But as the doors opened for the living legend she added one st question. "Oh, out of curiosity why is Princess Namorita here?”

  "The princess is our political hostage," Ryth’lor answered ftly before leaving the hall.

  As the doors closed behind him, Namorita felt a major chill enter the core of her being as hearing the Father of Swords say it so bluntly stunned her. So much so she didn't even notice the male agent reach out to her until one of the building's hooded silver robots shimmered into existence to block the man's attempt to comfort her.

  She honestly thought she was about to be killed when a hand touched her shoulder, as Psylocke materialized beside her. “Agent Rumlow, I think it is time for you and Agent Moonstar to return to your companions back at the exchange base. Don’t you?”

  The rough-looking surfacer, watched the robot more than the teleporting mutant as he nodded in agreement, although it was his companion that vocally agreed. “You of course are right Psylocke, we have another six-hour flight ahead of us. And a crisis we need to slove after we nd."

  As the princess watched the two surfacers moved to leave, and then it was parting man's words that really gave her the knockout. "You know, if Namor was smart, he should just have her marry this Acting Master, whoever he is. Might get him a peace treaty and save him from having to pay a ransom."