Diplomacy and Awakening

Codex: The Pantheon of the Great Ones II.

Naturally the most important is the Oedon, the Formless God of Blood, who was said to give the people the Old Blood.

Then there was the Great One, known as the Moon Presence, the God of Hunters and Moon, the one who presided over the Hunter's Dream and the Old Workshop; he was the one whom the Hunters venerated the most because he was their primary patron.

Among the other notable Great Ones, was Gwyn, the newly ascended Great One from a mortal form of Lord Gwyn when he sacrificed himself to begin the new age and gave up his life for the mortals. He was worshipped as the God of Sunlight and Cinder, the God of Martial Honor, Knights and Silver.

Others, including the Great Ones such as Amygdala or Cthulhu, were worshipped within the territory of the Holy Arcadia Empire by various groups. Aside from these ones, there were several other Great Ones that were not that known well across the wider populace of the Holy Arcadia Empire, but they still enjoyed great worship from their followers.

***

3rd POV - High Chancellor of the Landsraad

Lands of the Ancient Lords, Holy Arcadia Empire, Grand Principality of the Reikland, Holy Imperial Capital of Lordran, April of Year 10,281 - of the Imperial Lordranese Callendar 

One of the most important duties of the High Chancellor of the Holy Arcadia Empire and the Landsraad was to oversee most of the bureaucratic activities within the huge Imperial Administration Apparatus. 

For the High Chancellor Luca Brewster, this was rather common Monday as he now goes over the reports from the Office of the Imperial Military Intelligence and another one from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that were forwarded to him by Minister Carla Linda Schopenhauer.

The Holy Arcadia Empire maintained a few diplomatic relationships with other nations in the known world. After the unification of the Lordran, there were only a handful of factions that could stand on the same level as the newly established Holy Arcadia Empire. 

One such nation that the Holy Arcadia Empire maintained diplomatic and trading relationships was the nation of the High Elves, the Ulthuan, or, as they were called, the Ten Kingdoms of the Ulthuan.

Ulthuan, also known as the "Ten Kingdoms," is the island-continent of the Known World that serves as the ancestral home of the Elven race, and is currently inhabited by the High Elves.

Ulthuan is located off the eastern coast of the New World, near the isthmus linking the continent of Lustria to the northern lands of Naggaroth.

The island currently lies approximately 200 kilometers from the Lands of the Ancient Lords at its nearest point, though this distance was less in the time before the Sundering and the geographical changes that great conflict wrought.

Ulthuan forms a hollow ring of land floating in the sea, surrounding what is known as the Inner Sea. This inner sea is accessible only at the Straits of Lothern, in the south of the island continent.

Ulthuan is split up into ten High Elven kingdoms, each with its own cultural character and ways of waging war and ruled by a High Elf Prince or Princess. Each one of their Princes and Princesses was a Grand Magister of Magic, one of the most powerful Magic Users in the whole known world.

It was said that Ulthuan was shattered in the distant past, during the Great Sundering with the Dark Elves, and much of its northern regions and western coasts now lie underwater. The eastern approaches are protected by the Shifting Isles, a treacherous maze of magical mists and moving sandbanks.

"Hmm... they are sent envoy?"

The High Elves were an arrogant, very, very arrogant race that looked down on almost every species in the known world. Mostly due to their own power, Magical one especially, long heritage and superior lifespan.

Due to the appearance of the Old Blood, they started taking the Arcadians seriously because those who drank the Old Blood became, in certain areas, even superior to their own species, something that even the High Elves had to accept begrudgingly.

"Yes. According to the information from the Elector-Count Cross Marian, they are facing invasion from the coalition forces of the Druchii, a few Ork Tribes and several Corsair Crews."

When the Chancellor heard that, he frowned a bit because he felt that there was something that the High Elves were not telling them.

The power of the Ulthuan was great, almost rivaling that of the Holy Arcadia Empire itself, so it wasn't really logical that this coalition was threatening them so much that they were going to the Holy Arcadia Empire for help.

"According to the secret report from the Office of the Imperial Military Intelligence that was delivered to your table this morning, three months ago, there was a huge Chaos Incursion on the island-continent of Ulthuan and they suffered great losses. They are reports, that some of the Daemons are still clinging to the materium and even a lot of corrupted humans and worshippers of the Ruinious Powers managed to hide within the Ulthuan."

Given this context, the situation was now giving off more logic than before.

The Dark Elves were very powerful on their own, not to mention the new leader of the Dark Elves, who unified all of their Clans, Families, and Tribes under the single banner, Malekith, was someone who was giving fright to even the Empire's most powerful. 

Coupled with the addition of the brute force of the Greenskins, their unknown number and perhaps even a connection to the Orktarius Empire that may be involved in all of this represented a grave threat to the Ulthuan. 

Aside from that, the Corsairs were not really particularly powerful, but some of their Pirate Kings were really powerful individuals who acted unbridled, even in front of the Imperial Navy. However, more reason for that was probably the fact that the Imperial Navy wasn't really particularly strong.

"Hmm... then invite the Enoy from the Ulthuan to my office for prolonged discussion. Also... immediately order the O. I. M. I. to investigate the connections between the Dark Elves of Naggaroth and the Orctarius Empire of the Orklands. If the Ghazghkull Thraka is involved in this, the situation is far graver than it seems..."

Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka is an Ork Warlord of the Goff Klan, a mighty prophet of the WAAAGH!, and Emperor of the Orkatarius Empire of the Orklands. He managed to establish a unified Orkish nation within the Orklands, where only war prevailed. 

This Orkish Warlord and self-proclaimed prophet of the Green Gods, Gork and Mork, was always a thorn in the eyes of the Holy Arcadia Empire. A unified Orkish Empire within the Orklands was the last thing that the Holy Imperium needed. 

Right now, Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka is in the process of unifying the entire Orklands, and when that is done, it will be a very dangerous and powerful neighbor of the Holy Arcadia Empire. 

Orks were species with tremendous ponteial if they were unified, fortunately enough such thing was impossible. Even if they would soon be assimilated into the unified Orkish Nation of the Orkatrius Empire, the bad blood between various Klanz or Tribes would never be forgotten.

Fortunately enough, the borders between the Orklands and the Grand Province of Orleáns were nowadays separated by the enormous wall that should be able to withstand everything that the Orks should be able to bring to the table.

Right now, together with the Skycrown Gate in the Grand Province of Sylvania that was guarding the passage between the Lordran and the Dark Lands, the Grand Wall of the Orleáns had the strongest military garrison within the entire nation.

***

Velentor Moonfeather was an Envoy to the Holy Arcadia Empire from the Ulthuan for more than two hundred years. It could be said that he watched the Imperial rise to power in real-time, and he was deeply aware of the strength of the Holy Arcadia Empire.

The elderly High Elf already had white hair; he was considered old even among his High Elven kin, as he was over four thousand years old.

For the High Elven pride, it was a hard blow to come and ask for help from the humans, even though the humans of the Holy Arcadia Empire were already pretty much different from the ordinary humans of the other continents.

Contrary to what many could think, the High Elves of the Ulthuan were very well aware of the happenings on the continents of the Westeros and Essos, way before the Holy Arcadia Empire made contact with them. 

For that reason, they greatly looked down on the humans because humans in those places were weak, very, very weak, and they didn't even have access to proper Magic, something that the High Elves took very seriously.

And yet, despite the overwhelming power and rich heritage of the High Elves species, they were forced to ask for help from the Holy Arcadia Empire, the Empire of the Old Blood. 

"Envoy Moonfeather, what a pleasant surprise."

The High Chancellor of the Holy Arcadia Empire knew that if there was one area where the Ulthuan was far superior to the current Holy Arcadia Empire, it was an area of Magic Development. 

While the Holy Arcadia Empire was advancing by leaps and bounds in the aspects of Magic and uncovering the secrets of the Arcane, they were still inferior to the Ten Kingdoms of the Ulthuan in this aspect.

So, for their fast development of the Magic, having a good relationship with the High Elves was imminent. There were still many things that they could learn from the High Elves, as they were magically the most advanced civilization in the known world.

"Perhaps... if not for the unfortunate situation we are currently in."

The Envoy Velentor Moonfeather remarked lightly as he then sat down, opposite to the High Chancellor of the Holy Arcadia Empire.

Judging based on the High Chancellor's expression, the Envoy Velentor Moonfeather, the Envoy of the Ulthuan, realized the Imperials had most probably realized the true situation of the Ulthuan...

If not, then the expression of the High Chancellor Luca Brewster wouldn't be this satisfied. If such was the case, then it would seriously lower the negotiating position his own because the Ulthuan would get at a disadvantage because the Imperials would be able to ask for more. 

"I heard whispers of the birds and in them, there are some interesting rumors about the peculiar situation of the Ulthuan."

It was clear that the High Chancellor, Luca Brewster, didn't intend to waste any more time and went directly to the negotiations. Because both of them had known each other for many decades, it was a waste to spend more time on these useless phrases, and so on, so they went directly to the matter.

"Then, as you already know, the Witch King Malekith managed to unify all Dark Elven factions, several Orkish bands, and even several of the Corsair Crews to launch an attack on the Ulthuan."

This was already something that everyone present here was aware of. Malekith was considered the most serious threat that the Ten Kingdoms of Ulthuan faced in the past centuries, he managed to achieve a feat that nobody yet achieved.

The complete unification of the Dark Elves, something that nobody thought hat could ever happen. The High Elves were rather arrogant about this thing because they never considered the possibility that someone would be able to unify all of the Druchii factions on the continent of Naggoroth.

"If you mentioned the recent Chaos incursion into the Ulthuan some time ago and problems with the Chaos Daemons and Chaos Cultists wreaking havoc in certain areas of the island continent, it would certainly be a better start than this."

One could visibly see how the face of the Envoy Velentor Moonfeather stiffened a bit, but soon enough, he recovered from the small remark.

"Yes, this is putting the Ulthuan in a very difficult position. I am sure that some of your spies are already working on collection every possible information about this, but the internal situation at Ulthuan is not really good. If not for the last Chaos Incursion, we wouldn't be in this difficult situation."

Several years ago, Chaos Cult emerged on the island-contient of Ulthaun and managed to open the Chaos Gate and thus inviting whole Legions of the Chaos Daemons, led under the leadership of the Daemon Prince and several Daemon Lords they wreaked havoc through the Kingdoms and caused high losses to the High Elves.

"Let me go straight to the matter. What does the Holy Arcadia Empire want for reinforcing the efforts of the Ulthuan in cleansing the forces of Chaos and a coalition led by the Witch King Malekith."

A small smile formed on the face of the High Chancellor.

"For the time being, the Imperium wants only one thing. Open negotiations between the Byrgenwerth and The White Tower of Hoeth about exchanging knowledge and cooperation."

When that was said, it was clear that the Imperium gave the Ulthuan a very high price for their help on this matter. For the High Elves, in fact, they could handle the situation even by themselves, but at a high cost.

Something that was unacceptable for them, because it would require a lot of lives and the population of the High Elves was not that big in the first place.

The White Tower of Hoeth, located on the High Elven island-continent of Ulthuan, is the greatest repository of arcane knowledge in the Known World, compiled down the millennia by the tower's Loremasters, the greatest High Elf Mages and scholars of Ulthuan, and therefore the world, who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit and documentation of knowledge, wisdom, and truth.

Indeed, the White Tower of Hoeth was not just a tremendous feat of High Elven architecture, but also the centre of learning for the entire island-continent.

The White Tower stands at the point of a particular confluence of the coursing magical energies of the Great Vortex, a fact lending the tower a greater strength than any creation of mere brick and mortar. Within the White Tower of Hoeth, the High Elves were uncovering the mysteries of the Arcane and mastering the might of Magic.

"This is rather a steep request... though, the Phoenix King and Phoenix Queen would most probably agree to your request."

Envoy Velentor Moonfeather knew that giving access to the White Tower of Hoeth to the Byrgenwerth of the Holy Arcadia Empire was something that would scruffle feathers of just not one Grand Magisters of the Ulthuan, but in the end, they would still agree...

The safety of the Ulthuan took the highest priority above everything else, and the word of the Phoenix King had the absolute authority in these manners. 

"Then we can discuss the cooperation between the Ulthuan and Holy Arcadia Empire after we defeat Witch King Malekith. How much of Military Forces could the Imperial Military send to the Ulthuan to help us defeat the Witch King Malekith, his forces and the forces of the Chaos."

Military Forces of the Imperium were already stretched thin; most of them were nowadays concentrated at the Grand Wall of the Orklands, Skycrown Gate, and Badlands after the Holy Crusade against the Children of the Bul-Khatos.

Though, right now, a large part of the armed forces of the Imperium was moving towards the Grand Province of Norsca and Grand Province of Fenris, due to the increasing presence of the Under-Empire of the Skaven.

Some signs of rats were observed in these two Grand Provinces, and it was unanimously decided that they should immediately be culled down and pushed back to the Dark Lands. The last thing that they needed to have within the premises of the Imperium were the Skaven. 

"The final decision would belong to the Holy Imperator and Imperial Bashar Jacques d'Orleáns, though I can see that we can dispatch one or two Imperial Legions, perhaps even few retinues of the Stormcast Eternals. Does the Ulthuan require reinforcements in the form of the Navy Forces?"

Within the Holy Arcadia Empire the final say of agreement or disagreement would befall onto the Holy Imperiator, but it was actually Imperial Bashar Jacques d'Orleáns who would decide the number of forces that the Holy Arcadia Empire would dispatch to help the Ulthuan. 

Imperial Bashar Jacques d'Orleáns was the person who was responsible for all military matters of the Holy Arcadia Empire, and in the end, he would be the one who would decide on the precise numbers that the Imperium would send as reinforcements to the Ulthuan. 

Typically speaking, Imperator never intervened in this area because it wasn't in his expertise. The Envoy from the Ulthuan knew that they would need to convince the Imperial Bashar to send more troops to support the High Elves in times of peril.

"Yes, the Naval forces of the Dark Elves from the Naggorth in their enormous ships are equally matched with our own... but if the Corsairs of the Lustria are taken into account, we are facing serious disadvantage on the naval side of all things. Not to mention the Orks are bringing their enormous numbers, so, yes... we would need reinforcements in this area as well."

The High Chancellor of the Holy Imperium hummed lightly because this wasn't really good news. If the Ulthuan fell, then the Lands of the Ancient Lords would become the next target for the Dark Elves, Corsairs of Lustria and god knows of what was hiding at the continent of Lustria.

Ten Kingdoms of Ulthuan was the sole barrier that was keeping the Lordran from the continents of North and Lustria. Both of the continents were filled with hostile elements that would attack the western shores of the Holy Arcadia Empire.

For that reason, the Ulthuan couldn't be allowed to fall, even though the idea of the Holy Arcadia Empire assimialting the remnants of the Ulthuan and the High Elves species was something that was very appealing to many high-ranking figures within the Imperium. 

Still, the risks were far outweighing the benefits that they could obtain from the assimilation of the potential High Elves remnants of the Ten Kingdoms of Ulthuan. Perhaps in the future, there would be time for that, but right now, there was time to have a good relationship with the Ulthuan and the High Elves.

"Then it is decided. Once the Imperator returned to the Anor Londo, Imperial Bashar would consult with him about the situation of the Ulthuan and the number of troops that would be sent to the Ulthuan."

The Envoy Moonfeather was rather satisfied with the outcome because this was already better than he expected. In fact, he expected that the Imperium would ask for far more things in return for helping the High Elves of the Ulthuan. 

Still, the bad feeling still lingered, because he felt that this was rather easy. In fact, he knew that access to the White Tower of Hoeth was priceless for the Holy Arcadia Empire and Byrgenwerth because the White Tower of Hoeth contained knowledge that could propel the state of Magic by whole centuries. 

The High Elves were guarding this kind of knowledge with precious jealousy. And now they would be forced to pay with this kind of knowledge for their own safety and continuous survival.

***

1st POV

Somewhere in the Athel Loren, the inner area of the Athel Loren, G-1 Mobile Base

It has been two days since we have fought against one of the squads of the Wild Hunt, after they appeared in the Athel Loren. After we killed the initial wave that was pursuing their target, more didn't appear.

That was certainly a good thing, because the last thing that I wanted right now was to fight more and more members of the Wild Hunt. They were relatively powerful, If I had to say, and each one of them was eclipsing that power of the Silver Knights.

The forests of the Athel Loren were sacred, as they were sacred to the Holy Arcadia Empire, as they were sacred to the High Elves of the Ulthuan, Dark Elves of the Naggaroth, and even to the dwarven clans to a certain degree.

It would be a pity if this place was destroyed during the fight against the Wild Hunt.

"How is she? Any signs of waking up?"

Maria was in charge of overseeing the sleeping fugitive of the Wild Hunt because she was rather an apt healer. It was due to her heritage as the descendant of the Vileblood Lineage that she was a splendid healer.

If one could control their very own concept of blood, it was no surprise that they would become an excellent healer.

"Yes, her condition is very good. Surprisingly enough, she is regenerating very fast, even faster than some people with the Old Blood."

I nodded at that, though it should be something related to the Elder Blood that was running through her veins. The Elder Blood, as it was called, was something that allowed its bearer to possess a tremendous amount of Magic and truth to say...

Even I was tempted to obtain the Elder Blood because it would complement the abilities of the Old Blood very well, and it would tremendously increase my power and cover for some weaknesses that I had. 

"The Magic Source that is within her bloodline is extremely potent, but it seems that the Elder Blood is in some kind of dormant state."

Evidently, the Elder Blood in her body wasn't activated, or else she would be a powerhouse to reckon with. I predicted that if her Elder Blood was fully awakened, then, perhaps not even the most powerful people within the Imperium would be a match for her in terms of raw power. 

Having access to an unlimited amount of Magic Power and, especially, the powerful Primal Magic that the Elder Blood certainly was.

"Did you carry any analysis on the Elder Blood?"

I was betting on Maria attempting to manipulate the Elder Blood, possibly to replicate the thing, because she for sure recognized its worth for the Imperium. Even if they managed to create just some weaker version of the Elder Blood, then it would be worth it.

Perhaps some weakened version for the Magicians of the Imperium, which would tremendously boost up the Magical Prowess of the Magic Users within the Holy Arcadia Empire. 

"Yes, but it is beyond my understanding... not to mention, I can't get beyond the outer layer of the Elder Blood. The Elder Blood is especially complicated, and it would probably be best to let the top scholars of the Byrgenwerth study the Elder Blood and its possible usage, but for that... we would need for it to be awakened. When the Elder Blood is dormant, there is some certain shield or seal around it, so nobody could even temper with it."

I knew that the results wouldn't be immediate, but the scans were far better than I had initially anticipated, and hopefully, in a few years, we would be able to decipher at least part of the Elder Blood.

If we could gain the cooperation of Cirilla Fiona Elena Rionon on this and manage to awaken her Elder Blood, then the results would be even better. 

"But enough of it... approximately one hour, we got a message from the High Chancellor that the Envoy of the Ulthuan, Velentor Moonfeather, relayed a message from the Phoenix King and Phoenix Queen that they had agreed to the conditions of the Imperium."

Hearing this, I couldn't really say that I wasn't shocked, because I was... 

I would have never though that the High Elves of Ulthuan would agree to having cooperation with Byrgenwerth and The White Tower of Hoeth. Not talking about exchanging knowledge between the two, this was absolute taboo for the High Elves.

The White Tower of Hoeth was the biggest Arcane and Magic Repository in the known world and something that the High Elves had been guarding with extreme prejudice for millennia.

"You can tell Imperial Bashar that he has a free hand on this, and whatever they decide in the High Council to send would have my agreement. Though I want Euron Greyjoy and other Admirals of the Imperial Navy to participate in this, it could be a good learning experience, and at the same time, it would be a good possibility to observe the strategies of the Dark Elves, High Elves, and Lustrian Corsairs when it comes to the naval warfare."

I didn't really have any intention to meddle in this because Imperial Bashar would be the most competent man in this area. Jacques d'Orleáns was more competent on this matter than I was and he would be able to handle the matter as it was needed.

"Is Cersei right now with the guest?"

Due to the presence of the Elder Blood within her body, as she was right now unconscious and probably due to the fact that this should be the first time she arrived in such a magically advanced world, her Elder Blood was being stimulated. 

From time to time, she had some uncontrollable burst of raw Magic all around her, so there was a need to have constantly someone around her who would be able to restrain the ambient Magic if such a thing happened. 

"Yes... the girl had Magical Burst a few hours ago."

It was evident that the Elder Blood within her body was being stimulated by the enormous amount of ambient Magic in the air. From what it looks, it should not be enough for the Elder Blood to properly awaken, but it should be more than enough to greatly speed up the whole process.

"They are becoming less and less frequent and they are also less powerful than they were at the start."

This was a good sign because it meant that his body was acclimatized to the status of the known world of Azyr. For the time being, we would need to observe the behavior of the Elder Blood within her body.

I had some hunch that sooner or later, this would bring great benefits for her; perhaps it would even entirely awaken her Elder Blood. Though right now, the presence of the Elder Blood represented a danger to the Imperium because the Wild Hunt and the Aen Elle could trace it through their advanced Magic. 

***

3rd POV

Somewhere in the Athel Loren, the inner area of the Athel Loren, G-1 Mobile Base

It wasn't that long since she was forced to leave the previous world to escape the pursuit of the Wild Hunt. Waking up after severe Magical Exhaustion was something that wasn't a very pleasant experience.

She remembered that when she opened a portal to another world, she appeared in the dense forest. The Wild Hunt soldiers were pursuing her thanks to the Navigator, who traced after her every single step.

The last thing she remembered was warm golden light and a man holding a lance who attacked the Wild Hunt soldiers, and then everything went blank. Then the next thing that she remembered was waking up in this room, which looked far more luxurious than it should be...

This meant that it either belonged to someone very powerful or someone of very high social standing; judging based on the architecture at the place, Ciri concluded that this world should be pretty similar to that of her own or to that of the Aen Elle of the Wild Hunt. 

Still, she concluded that this world must be more powerful than the ones that she previously visited to be able to deal with the entire squadron of the Wild Hunt. Normally speaking, she could open portals to the world with Magic present in them in most cases, and there were rarely worlds that were magically as rich as this one. 

'It seems that I am safe for the time being... the people who saved me probably just killed the Wild Hunt grunt and brought me here...'

She could feel that her whole body hurt like hell, and she hurt a bit, but contrary to what she would expected after using what she could from the Elder Blood to the limits, there was no aftermath of the severe Magical Exhaustion.

It was evident that whoever saved her and brought her here, must have also healed her as well and put her in the best condition possible. Healing the aftermath of the Magical Exhaustion was a feat that was considered impossible in her own homeworld.

This meant that the world where she arrived was more magically advanced than her own by a tremendous margin and probably even more advanced than that of the Aen Elle. Still, judging based on the signs that she wasn't imprisoned or anything, it meant that the people who found her didn't really have bad intentions for her... most probably.

"At least, for the time being, I am safe before I move again. Hopefully, this time, I could stay at one place longer than usual."

She had already traveled through dozens of worlds; in some, she stayed only for a short time before she was found by the Wild Hunt; in some, she stayed for longer. Especially in the ones that were typically devoid of civilization and filled with dangerous fauna. 

Once in one world that was filled with mutated animals of some kind, she managed to kill whole squads of the Wild Hunt, including two Navigators and dozens of Magicians, when she tricked them into entering the trajectory of the mutated beast horde.

"It seems that you are awake, that's good."

When she heard a male voice coming from the side, she wanted to stretch her hand for her sword, but then she realized that she didn't have any weapon in the vicinity. However, she was rather surprised by this, because it seemed that the man who spoke was in the room with her for the whole time and she didn't even notice him.