Skyvenom: Epilogue

And with this chapter, we conclude Skyvenom! More notes after.

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"-and we had hoped that the new initiative would increase Ruler recruitment for the House, but Blacksilver continues to outpace us in growth. House Crimson still has more resources per capita, of course. The problem is that their food and aid outreach in the outer regions has given them a foothold in recruiting all lower tier soulcrafters-"

Roker sat in his chair, trying not to slump. He was fidgeting with one of the quills in front of him, but he hoped that made him look engaged instead of bored. The truth was that he found everything about the day-to-day administration of House Crimson incredibly dull.

He liked the grand hall of their complex, at least, with the long table underneath all the crimson banners. Currently all the seats were filled, but the majority were random officials, not soulcrafters. Roker could remember their names and put on a positive face with them, they just wouldn't be worth much when everything turned to war again.

The head of House Crimson sat at the head of the table, of course. Wiltur had vanished from public life for a time after the disaster, but the battle at the Dustwind Plateaus had somewhat restored their leader's good fortune, and now he was leading the House again. Roker sat on his right hand while Gethyrue sat on his left. They had one new Authority, but the woman had barely made it through her ascension and was only good for bullying lower tiers. Beyond that, the chairs were full of bodies but short on strength.

Alright, one chair was empty: Tythes was as absent as always.

That should have encouraged Roker, who was now the only potential heir to the House, but he couldn't help but worry his rival was scheming something again. He looked around the officials, wondering how many of them were corrupted by Tythes. There was no time to worry about that, however, because Gethyrue was speaking up just across from him.

"In my opinion, we should accept that House Blacksilver is transitioning to a different role," the old woman said. "Are we threatened by the House of Coin because it extends beyond one city? I say, instead of fighting Blacksilver, we support them in their outward growth. That will leave us as the most powerful House solely focused on Norro Yorthin."

Some of the others argued, and even Roker voiced objections, but Wiltur remained silent. It was strange for the old man to seem so distant. Not absent-minded, simply indifferent. The head of House Crimson said nothing throughout the meeting as they made more decisions and finally agreed on how to distribute their resources.

As everyone left the chamber, Wiltur reached out and touched Roker's arm. Instantly the old man's cantae seized his body, binding him in place. Roker gave a stiff nod to show he understood and pretended to linger to look over some of his papers. Some of the others noticed, and Gethyrue paused at the door to look back at him, but when Roker smiled at her she passed on and they were finally alone.

"What's this about?" Roker asked.

"Wait." Wiltur settled back into his chair and folded his hands in his lap. "This was not the meeting that mattered, today."

There was no point asking anything else, not when the old man was like this. Roker had gotten this far by understanding that Wiltur had his own schemes and ambitions, and just wanted someone who would fit into them. That path had taken Roker far, making him twice the Authority he had been five years ago, but it involved a lot of waiting.

Then a chill passed through the room and Roker wondered just what he'd gotten himself into.

The cold emanated from the closed doors to the balcony, which seemed to be frosting over despite the heat in Norro Yorthin this time of year. Wiltur waved a hand and the doors snapped open, revealing an alien woman wearing blue robes. Roker had been forced to study other worlds... judging from the metallic hair and sharp eyes, she must be Deuxan.

"Welcome, Calvatrina." Wiltur gestured to the empty chair opposite Roker. "Please join us."

"Pleased to meet you," Roker said as the woman came to sit down. "I'm Roker, next head of House Crimson."

He extended a hand toward her, but the woman only stared at for a moment as if puzzled as to what he was doing, then sat and ignored him.

"This is Calvatrina of the Salebrante," Wiltur told him. "They're the inter-world organization that has been supporting us this far. Sometimes better, sometimes worse, as with that horrid fleshmasker debacle."

"We gave you the resources for victory and you misused them," Calvatrina said.

Roker flinched, expecting Wiltur to punish such insolence, but to his surprise the old man didn't even react. Did he need alien help that much, or was she actually that strong? The Deuxan woman felt like an Authority, but with shielding walls that didn't mean anything. Presumably she was a Stronghold... or even a Dominion? The idea was astonishing, but Wiltur had stressed over and over that inter-world organizations were stronger than their House, or even the Ruling Cities.

"Regardless of blame," Wiltur said evenly, "your help was not sufficient to make us the leaders of the Ruling Cities. I was under the impression that there was little else we could do for one another, so I was surprised to hear your offer."

"Circumstances have changed," Calvatrina said. "The Salebrante has increased its strength and we seek to expand our influence. Because we have taken a step away from Deuxan, that means moving into other worlds. If House Crimson can make itself into a worthwhile ally, you could be our primary contact here. Such a position would be enviable indeed."

"I can imagine what you'll ask, but what do you offer?"

"No more soldiers, only sublime materials. As I said, we are expanding, so our resources have expanded as well... this is a millenniumtree seed from Aathal, a lineagegem from Noven, a fellheart from darkest Ichil..."

As she spoke, the Deuxan woman removed items from her soulhome to place them on the table. Roker's eyes bulged as he saw material after material of astonishing power. The cantae from all of them was Authority-tier at minimum and there were so many extraordinary sublime materials... the lineagegem somehow felt like the power of multiple soulcrafters gathered and condensed. If he could gain control of it, he might well have a path to Stronghold... Roker reached out almost unconsciously...

And in a flash Calvatrina returned all the materials into her soulhome.

"These aren't for you." Her tone was chiding, almost insulting, but Roker could tolerate that if it meant such potent sublime materials. "They only serve as a taste of the power we can acquire by working freely across the Nine Worlds. If you want to work with us in the future, you must become our point of contact - not just for this little region or continent, but all of Fithe."

"The idea is as appealing as it ever was." Wiltur spoke calmly, but Roker was sure even he had started to twitch toward the sublime materials. "But you must understand, our social position has weakened. We lack the strength to dominate the Ruling Cities, and if we take any suspicious actions, the other cities will turn against us."

"We're aware of your local politics," Calvatrina said, "which is why we're offering something different: the next plan won't involve interfering with any of your allies, only your enemy... what was it, the Asplundat Movement? With our intelligence, you will be able to strike at their heart. In a single stroke, you can defeat your old enemy and make your organization the leader of the Ruling Cities and indeed the continent."

"And what do you demand in return?"

"This time we don't need payment, only your assistance. Plutalgion will be sending his enforcers soon, and someone is required to meet them. If you lack the strength, your continent will simply be invaded, which is not in our best interest."

Roker tensed at the mention of Plutalgion. He got local politics: Ruling Cities and Asplundat Movement and Wavefront - simple. Getting other continents involved, where the soulcrafters seemed to be even stronger, made him nervous. He would have said it was all nonsense except that he'd seen some of the representatives from Tymetron, and they seemed to have Strongholds to spare.

Wiltur was also frowning in response. "If you seek a partner on Fithe, why not go to Plutalgion?" the old man asked. "He and his empire would seem to be a much better candidate to represent the entire world."

"The trouble is that he has enough strength to refuse us." For the first time, Calvatrina looked slightly perturbed. "No, we do not seek to make an alliance with Plutalgion... but we do have a non-aggression pact. That is why it's all the more important that you act now, before he invades. If all goes well, your organization can rise to the preeminent position on the continent."

"Then you can give us another Stronghold?"

The Deuxan woman's eyes flickered over Roker and she shrugged. "It will take time, but we can most likely get him to Stronghold, yes. But that is the least of it: if this strike into your enemy's territory goes well, you should be able to reach Dominion."

In the silence of the chamber, Wiltur's slight intake of breath was audible. Roker knew he was visibly gaping and couldn't pull his jaw up - helping Authorities ascend was already crazy enough, but Dominions? There were only two on the entire continent, and they led empires. A soulcrafter who reached Dominion wasn't the head of a house, they floated over all the Ruling Cities. And yet this woman made such a statement so easily...

"How could this be accomplished?" Wiltur's control had returned, but after witnessing that moment of desire, Roker could see the greed in his eyes.

"There will soon be an extraordinary confluence of sublime materials, the likes of which attracts even our attention." The Deuxan woman shook her head slowly. "Unfortunately, due to the involvement of Plutalgion and other factors, the Salebrante cannot act directly, as we might elsewhere. That is why we need more local partners. If we succeed, there will be sublime materials enough for all of us."

"And just what are they?"

"The Asplundat Movement is about to conclude a project centuries in the making, one that will have far greater returns than they expect. Plutalgion knows about it and will be sending his own armies, trying to seize it for his own. But the result will surpass what either expects... and it will be something truly new, a crest of sublime material created from the confluence. It lacks a name... but if you assist us, it could be the Crimsoncrest."

A sublime material so powerful that Dominions and inter-world organizations hungered for it... Roker's mind boggled at the idea. Yet Wiltur seemed to be taking the idea seriously, so it must not be a lie. After so long listening to threats between continents, maybe the politics were about to come to a head.

Wiltur leaned forward. "We're listening."

-

The tenth book in the series will be titled Crimsoncrest, and it will indeed take the characters back to Fithe. They've spent three books exploring further afield, so I hope everyone is ready to catch up on all the plots that have been fermenting there in the meantime. Lots of seeds that have been planted across the entire series will blossom in the next arc.

I have made better progress on the next book than I would have expected a month ago... but in my overall state of distraction, I haven't commissioned a cover. -_- I've contacted my usual artists but not head back yet, so I hope that works out.

Most likely Skyvenom will be released in February, barring trouble. Until then, I have some finished blueprints for everyone, as well as some potentially exciting announcements.