215 Underhill

Selling part of her property had been an elegant solution for both of our problems. She would sign over three feet of land bordering her home, and we would pay her enough, in Silinium, that she could afford to live off the interest for the rest of her life even if only placing her assets in the safest of investments. If she decided to invest her money strategically, even frugally, she would be able to turn the small fortune we had paid her, into one large enough to provide a dowry for her daughter and an education for her son.

There were forces in play that still conspired to keep the Tuatha de Danaan from purchasing land, factions that owed their success and loyalty to Olympus. Without this purchase, we would have to close the embassy. The rules and strictures about private land ownership for diplomatic missions were set in stone. They were precedents that had been established and reaffirmed over millions of years. Requiring an embassy to own the property where it was located was a key element of those precedents.

Saanvi's desperation had solved our dilemma, but her decision would certainly have been different if Rajah Indrajit had not forced her hand. She had been all but abandoned by family, friends, and retainers leaving her with no real recourse. Perhaps she may have acted differently if there were no children to consider. But she was days away from fleeing the planet, hoping against hope that she could start over somewhere else. Abandoning home to the vagaries of fate with hardly enough funds to pay the Portal fees.

Things moved fast once Saanvi agreed to my proposal. The funds were transferred to her accounts, and her lands was divided with the outer boundary being transferred to the Sidhe consulate. I think there might have been more roadblocks if the amount of land she was selling wasn't so strange; the people working behind the scenes by opposing us simply couldn't fathom how we could build an embassy with the limited property we had purchased.

We had found the property owed a substantial sum of back taxes. Saanvi was unable to dispute the amount owed, even though she was adamant that her husband would have paid any property taxes as they became due. I wasn't sure if it was a failing of her husband or if Rajah Indrajit, the man responsible for her current predicament hadn't bribed some official to create another liability that would force her to agree to his demands.

The amount due wasn't specially burdensome unless you were a young widow with two children and no source of income. Lord Clive agreed to include the amount as part of the filing fee to have the new property deed executed.

The legalities taken care of, there was nothing left but to raise the embassy.

"I just stand here?" Saanvi asked.

"Yes, until you feel the magic begin to build. You will feel an increasing pressure, an electric charge, and notice a strong scent of ozone. When you do, then break the vial of your blood against the ground.

"I will try to give a signal, but I may be too engaged in ritual to remember. At some point, I become a focal point of the magic and would not be responsive to any other stimuli.

"You do have the vial of blood?" I asked making sure something so integral to the ritual we were about to initiate wasn't missing.

"Irvin!" Saanvi protested, "You've asked me that at least a dozen times already. The answer remains the same. Yes, I have the vial of my blood. Blood that I had drawn today so that the potency was at full strength."

She flashed the vial of blood that she was holding in her hand as further proof, tangible evidence that she was prepared.

I knew I was obsessing over this detail, but not because I was worried about the ritual. If she failed to break the vial of blood at the appropriate time, the ritual would still succeed. But the home, the land that she hadn't sold the embassy would be included in the construct that we were about to build. We were giving bringing life to a Sithern, the seed that King Teigh had gifted Lord Clive could be invasive, the only way to control and limit its growth was by marking the boundaries with blood.

The ritual we were about to enact required five Tuatha de Danaan. One person standing in each of the cardinal positions, their location defining the boundaries of the magic. Normally this ritual only required four people, but Ambassador Clive had wanted to create an edifice that fit Egyptian style and architecture.

After much discussion, a pyramid had been decided to be used as the template. On the outside, at least, the building would seem to conform to local taste. One of the Volar-fey was added to the ritual. Their placement in the center, hundreds of feet in the air, set the final limit to the building we would construct out of magic and intent.

I had protested this configuration. We were on a planet that worshiped the Hindu Pantheon and it seemed an insult to glorify Egyptian architecture instead of Sidhe or Hinduism. But Lord Clive wanted to pay homage to the people that had reached out to help the Sidhe free themselves from Olympus and Asgard's oppression.

The inside would be different. Here, Sidhe aesthetics would dominate. The Sithern would create an inner world and building using themes that touched upon nature. The essence of Sidhe would be emphasized. The building would include offices and public areas, but it would also contain private suites where staff could live. Magic would weave together the boundaries we set and expand the limited property we had available, using the boundary Saanvi had parted with for the Sithern to anchor itself. Those few feet of real land that surrounded the property would transform into a realm of Fairy.

Ambassador Clive had an excess of individuals he could use as vessels. After some debate, he had decided to use a Seelie, Unseelie, Kelpie, and Selkie as a receptacle for the powers that would be released. The five, joined together by ritual, set the delineation of what the world would see.

What we were about to do was more than just constructing an embassy. We were investing this building with Fairy, bringing a Sithern to life. The rules and truths that defined who and what we were as Tuatha de Danaan. Once we were done, a small spark of Universal Law would warp, and for all intents and purposes, this building would sit betwixt and between.

Not quite here or there, the building would be a true manifestation of the power of Sithern. An Underhill made manifest with the sentience of Sithern to direct and allow change. This building would become our seat of Power in this world, and within these walls, we would become unassailable.

Enemies, those that would attack or defeat us, would have to brave the Wild Magics, the chaotic frenzy of illusion, the never-ending banquets, and parties that could confuse and ensnare the minds of mortals for thousands of years. Rules of Fairy would apply here. The magic of illusion and temptation that had befuddled the minds of so many would be in place, that magic paramount.

The ritual began with a bit of magic, the sharing of blood. For just as blood could make the crops grow, it could be used to create the mortar that would seal brick and stone. Not blood magic, nothing so vile or dangerous, instead of a simple offering. A gift of life's energy to the Tuatha de Danaan to gain their attention and their blessing.

Saanvi's actions were vital as we invoked Power and the Wild Magic. She would break that vial of blood she had collected to warp the weaving. A passage through Fairy that would protect her and her family. The embassy would rise, but her home and garden would continue to exist. Safely ensconced within the defining walls of illusion and reality.

Once concluded, she would be able to set permission for whom could approach her home. For the rest of the world, it would seem that her home and land had been replaced. No one without her permission would ever notice the small path that still existed leading to her front door.

Rajah Indrajit would be considered a vile, contemptible man no matter what species was judging his character, but this action would remove his ability to harass or cajole. He would have no way to approach the young mother, protected within the illusion of Fairy.

She and the people she trusted or held dear, would be firmly protected by the might of Sithern, and for those that would contend with the Wild Magic, it would be interesting to see how they were warped, their bodies changed to conform. They might just find themselves transformed, and for the first time, their inner nature exposed for everyone to see.

Because just as Fairy enjoyed ensnaring mortals in endless dances and banquets, it enjoyed a reputation much darker. One of judgment and action. Those people stupid enough to contend with the forces of Fairy were often marked. They would be cursed with Truth. Truth exposing who they were and what they hid.

And nothing would ever undo that curse.