Surprises

Everyone had been to battle weary or grieving to have a productive conversation, so I had foregone grilling Rhea. I had made sure that the people gathered in that tent, those fighting among themselves, or mourning Lord Thomas, were given something constructive to do instead.

Rhea did an admirable job of assigning the right person to the right job, and she had proven she was more than just a glorified aide-de-camp. Her actions had everyone moving constructively and efficiently enough that she proved easily that she was the most suited for taking charge. No one was willing to risk angering me, not after watching me and my group, destroy the group of Fomorian that had attacked, so no one was brave enough to argue with my decision to place her in charge.

I used my free time to try to understand more about where we stood. I used the night to gather information about how my connection with the System had been compromised. It took time and effort to test spells, abilities, and to see if items and enchantments worked as they should.

The ambient magic for the world was comparable to what I was used to, but something was missing, a flavor or texture to the magic that the connection to Fairy represented. That integral connection between Sidhe and the Tuatha de Danaan.

My [Portal: Summerlands] worked, even if the process wasn't as simple when cast using System assistance. The opening of the passage taking almost a half-hour to figure out. Without System assistance, my attempts to complete most of my spells were fumbling and error-prone. I failed time after time, forcing myself to continue.

I persisted, learning to create a connection between my magic and the spell structure that I was creating. It was tedious and humiliating to have so little control over my power, but my perseverance paid off as I began gaining incremental progress. Eventually, something clicked, and the spell and its working were mine again.

With enough practice, I stopped reaching for System assistance, gaining a more complete understanding of my abilities. It was like learning to use your arm again after it had been in a cast for months. A type of magic muscle memory that had to be retrained.

Trying to understand the working of my magic intellectually had been difficult. When I'd fought, I didn't think how to cast a spell, I just did. Spellcraft was as much intuition as anything, and for the Sidhe who were creatures of nature, that holistic approach was, even more, a part of the structure.

Our race didn't use magic the way a wizard might by using tomes of magic and mathematical formula to define rules and limits. Our abilities and techniques were more druid-like. We didn't need to understand that oxygen was required to allow a fire to burn. We knew the nature of fire. That it could warm, give light, and burn. As a son of Beleros and Cyronax, my connection to fire and ice was hardwired into my genetic matrix, serving as a further bridge to understanding the nature of those elements.

I stepped through the [Portal: Summerlands] once I'd managed to open the rift, leaving it open to allow me to return to that point in time and space. I wanted to verify that full System functionality was available in that plane. It was, and with the spell mastered, we might have a way to return to Talahm if we hadn't gone back in time. I had assumed that we could use the Summerlands to return when we set out.

The need to summon Gwyn ap Nudd for passage seemed the height of both folly and disrespect. He was a cosmic entity for [Justice]. Not a taxi service.

Once I'd made certain we wouldn't be stranded on this world, in this universe, I tested the [Ring of Hidden Truth]. I had never really understood the mechanics of this gift from System. It was as much another dimension or planar rift as any Sithern. It didn't have the same egress as the Summerlands or Cait Sith, but for purposes of training and storage, it was unparalleled.

The messages and reports from Ryu were not available, even though his connection to the ring was firmly established. The loss of System access and function had done nothing to interrupt his or my connection or ability to make use of the ring, but any attempt to communicate with him failed. Full System access was restored inside and available as freely in the ring as it had been in the Summerlands.

The ring's storage capacity was so large that I had collected and saved decades of items and things of interest. Among those items, I had a camp array. An array that would allow me to create a campsite that was nothing short of a fortress. It had enough space to house the refugees and guards in comfort, but it was too late to offer those comforts tonight.

It was mostly a construct of glamour and illusion, but even without the connection to the Tuatha de Danaan and Fairy in this world, it would be easy to power and maintain that magic. And my abilities with illusion and glamour were powerful enough to give substance and tangibility to any glamour I crafted.

Last, I tested the King's Regalia. It was hard to tell, without triggering some of the effects each item possessed, but each piece seemed to be working correctly. I decided to keep the cloak and armor equipped. The other pieces, the diadem, and scepter, both powerful, were conspicuous in their appearance, they were obvious items of power that gave insight into my rank as King.

The biggest surprise of the night was not mine to make, but Tia's. I had asked her to visit Cait Sith and make our presence known to the King of Cats. Our involvement in this world shouldn't affect [Paradox]. Tybalt and the Oracle had been certain of that, but it never hurt to establish some goodwill with the local Power, at least with a Power I was willing to work with.

Tia's opening of the dimensional rift and entering Cait Sith had heralded an astonishing event. There was no Cait Sith, no King of Cats, no Oracle in this world or in this Universe. Her actions, her stepping into that dimension, had established the domain, and she had been System proclaimed Queen of Cats once she had entered.

System functionality existed within, and she had been forced to deal with an avalanche of System messages and prompts. Her ability to claim the position, to create a connection between Cait Sith and every cat on the planet, made sense. As well as the reason, Tybalt had been adamant that she be the person to accompany me, even if that meant forging a companion bond. He had wanted a Cait Sith that was tied to him by bonds of Blood to be crowned Queen of Cats.

The Oracle must have seen that there would be a need for Cait Sith to be established, for a queen or king to be installed, and spoken of this need to Tybalt. Who better to assume that role than one of his children? He had sent Tia knowing that she would be the focus, the central point that gave birth to Cait Sith, and added it to the lexicon of Cait Sith across all Universes.

She was just one of a multitude of King and Queens of Cats, and her accidental ascension to Queen might be pivotal in restoring balance and timeliness to this world. I would need to give her more freedom than most companions enjoyed, but that was probably for the best. She had chaffed at the bond even from the beginning, and unlike Ag who was content, she had felt enslaved.

This gave her something to focus on. She would have to spend time establishing the firmament that Cait Sith would become. Tybalt's version of Cait Sith was an expansive castle. The structure was exactly as large as it needed to be. Tia didn't have to adhere to his vision. She could establish this Universe's version based on her unique perspective of how the cats of Cait Sith should be tasked to protect [Time] and battle [Paradox]. The laws as well as the Cosmic entities.

"I think establishing Cait Sith may be as important as any of the other goals we need to accomplish while we are here," I suggested once she had explained what she had found.

"I have already formed a connection," Tia admitted. "I can feel it, almost as if it is another part of my body. The plane is already an extension of who I am."

"Does it give you any information about this world's Cait Sith?" I asked. "Can you connect with any of them?"

"They are nothing but possibilities, at the moment," she informed us. "Without the Cait Sith dimension, the Cait Sith people have languished, trapped within their animal form. I think I will need to find the first few and guide them, gifting them with the ability to transform and open the rift between here and Cait Sith."

"Will finding them be a problem?" I asked. "If any cat will work, I wouldn't think so, but is that the case? Or do you need to find only those cats with the potential to become more, to become Cait Sith?"

"I won't know until we come across an animal for me to examine," she said. "I believe the powers I've gained as Queen of Cats will allow me to offer the choice to any feline species. The potential is mine to offer, as a right as Queen. I can be as selective or generous as I please."

"How much of your attention is required to guide the growth of your planar dimension?" I wondered. "If it is anything like awakening a Sithern, the more effort and attention I paid as the seed blossomed and grew, the more expansive and responsive the dimension became."

"I don't believe the same conditions are required," she answered thoughtfully. "Cait Sith will grow based on variables selected from my subconscious. I don't need to concentrate or guide the process; I just need to be present."

"Will we be able to communicate with you inside Cait Sith? Between you and another Cait Sith, that ability has to be part of the mechanics of the dimension, but between us?" I wondered.

"Perhaps a quick visit to test the bond?" Caraid suggested.

His idea was immediately implemented. Tia returned to Cait Sith long enough for us to prove that communication between the bond was still possible. It was muted, not as immediate, and we couldn't get the bond to work as effectively as it did when we were in the same dimension, but it functioned.

We could send emotions, vague images, but there was none of the connectivity we had shared, none of the non-verbal communication that had existed. There was enough consonance that we felt it safe for her to continue to form a deeper connection with the expanding dimension. It was more important that she remain in Cait Sith, at least until she had firmly established herself as Queen, then follow me around as I blundered around this world, gaining understanding.

If we needed her, we would send a focused emotional pulse through the bond, a sense of excitement and happiness that let her know we needed to speak. It would serve to let her know when we came across a cat. We would be on the lookout for any feline, no matter the species, to test if she could offer the gift of Cait Sith, or if we would have to search for and find those special animals that had the potential to become more.