Conclave Yearly Meeting

‘’Anything new from the research on Earth technology?’’ Arnold asks with genuine curiosity, still upset about the last idea from the Earth being more beneficial to Monika’s enclave instead of his own.

‘’These earthlyings are either incredibly cursed or blessed to live in a world with no mana,’’ Aaka says excitedly. Facing Questica he asks innocently. ‘’Do we still not know why your father opened those portals from Earth?’’

She ignores him, having had this conversation with him more than twice already. Her gaze rest’s on Sisi, the one who is supposed to lead this meeting today but she just shrugs and leans back in her glayzá-tree throne. Each of the heads of the Enclaves has a custom chair/throne based on their own preferences skill-sets, resources and relationships. It started out slow and innocently at first with Sarah not being comfortable in the original ‘heiress’ high back formal chairs. Then Angel brought one designed to accommodate her feline form while Monika had hers enchanted as an amplifier for clairvoyance and divine eye ability, which changed the dynamic a bit. It was finally when Arnold’s original chair broke under his weight that everyone started bringing more complex and sophisticated chairs to these meetings.

As such, the glazá-tree-chair is currently the most exciting to behold as it blooms it’s dark orange furry fruit. The plum like growths have an appetising blush, many in the meeting distracted by the pleasant waffing rising from the ripe fruit.

‘’The earthlying technology is both maddeningly exasperating and amazingly clever considering what they have to work with,’’ Mstr. Olek at the compound in Hala begins speaking reporting as prompted by his superior. ‘’Take this element here, ‘aluminium’ for instance. It clearly is a bastard descendent of mythril of some sort and to them may as well be considering the effects it has compared to their other metals. But as clever and industrious as they are they find ways to produce it in bulk and build large flying vessels with it. Just the way they chose to use the metal reveals their circumstances in struggling to survive in a world without mana. For instead of making individually strong weapons they make tools-‘’

‘’The point Master Olek’’ the head of the Earth research department prompts, he himself promted by the Compound head to prompt the academic getting lost in his research back into topic.

‘’Ahhh, mhmm ahh, yes...’’ Olek blushes, having forgotten that he was reporting for a meeting of the Conclave spanning all of Gaia whilst also sitting in a comfortable room with his usual twelve colleagues. ‘’

‘’Well since the Proelium archery boys called firearms ineffective and slow, and the artisans said the bullets would be too costly to make in mass quantity, they could make them as specialised items. Each ‘bullet’ individually enchanted for specialised effects but that will still take a lot of resources and there are few in their current group with the level of skill to make items that can really give a punch at the level of destruction we are aiming for.’’ The artisans confirm their accent to the words spoken on their behalf.

‘’What about their atomic technology? I hear they can make weapons that could rival a planar spell.’’ Someone asks from somewhere but Olek takes for granted that for the mere fact that he hears the question it’s directed at him.

‘’The way the earthling do things is still too convoluted to quickly decipher. They make too many assumptions just to find their way through some of the most basic of questions. Of course without mana their Laws are slightly different to ours, even at an atomic level we are seeing differences between some of the things the earthlings ascend with.’’ That part of the meeting continues while the enclaves heads branch off, brining another discussion to the attention of all the ‘present’ relevant people.

‘’Nuntius has sent the invitations to father’s chosen and the pathfinders have been sent out to gather them at the Great-Hall Citadel in.’’ Malachi says moving the meeting of the Conclave Council along.

As the meeting controller this year, Sisi nudges the meeting to that point on the agenda. The flow of the conversation shifts seamlessly as the interested and relevant people stay connected with the rest of Master Olek’s report while many others focus on the main meeting still. Some listen to several parts of the meetings at the same time as report after report takes place in the background. Others staying on the main agenda for the entire duration of a report, some reports branching off to become side meetings of their own as the hive that is the Conclave organises itself.

‘’The pathfinders have been sent out to collect their charges, the Great-Hall Citadel has been prepared to host and house Six thousand people, the various stakeholders have all been notified and are eagerly waiting to see if this ‘Inheritance’ experiment works.’’

‘’He eventually managed to get the Elder Humans on board?’’ Baagh asks with worried cynical amusement.

The ‘’yes,’’ from Malachi causing his upper ears to tusle in surprise as though he were still a cub. He adjusts on his own ‘throne’, perched as he is on the mana-stone that he has made into a tiger’s bed.

‘’The nature spirits were the most reluctant as they feel they don’t have much to contribute towards conflicts,’’ all of them are always amused at that, each of knowing how dangerous naiads, nebulae, oreads and dryads can be.

‘’Otherwise two water dragons Yópa and Apep have agreed to bestow their Inheritance on two people each, the stone dragon Aeosera will take a hundred and twenty hopeful to bestow her racial traits to, the air dragons will take several dozen, the ancient beasts are pooling together at Skydome and will choose individually amongst those invited –‘’

‘’I’ve never heard of Ancient Beasts having a conference before, the ‘Ancient of Days’ must have a lot of power still to be able to influence so many powerful beings to such an extent.’’ Erica says, she herself having received an invitation. Chosen by the old man and recommended to join the Elder Humans and receive their ‘inheritance’ bestowed upon her. Nothing the old man does is ever on a whim, or if it is then fates long fingers twist it making it eventually more meaningful... she sighs.

She had plans of her own for this coming challenge, as an Imperium she stands at the panicle of power that one can reach on Gaia, at over a thousand years old she is one of the oldest and strongest mortals on the planet. After centuries of gaining power, skill, knowledge and disciples she now has to abandon all her plans to go on a trip whose outcome she cannot predict. Though the decision has already been made to follow in the direction the Ancient points there is some resentment, this organisation is not his, it’s ours, who is he to give me orders? But even as the thought comes it embarrasses her and worries her, for she hadn’t realised before receiving a visit from Nuntius her pride had grown to this extent.

‘’The Ancients have always had those that pursue druidry and other natural arts train under them, that is nothing new,’’ Quintin says in his slow rumbling baritone. ‘’This inheritance business gives us very little time in which to become familiar with these hopeful recipients, we do not usually give away our blessings so easily.’’

Everyone stays quiet at that, as an Ancient Beast himself as well as the head of Conclave Bestia Quintin usually knows exactly how his people feel. ‘’Many that have received invitation from my enclave eagerly await opportunity to receive racial traits previously only enjoyed by those old and wise enough to have gained the prestigious title of ‘Ancient’. Still, we are all ambivalent about bestowing on another even a fraction of the ability we as Beasts have toiled so hard for, but we will do this thing.’’

Malachi clears his throat after a slight silence in which everyone digests that, ‘’Yes. We all appreciate the great sacrifices the older beings are making in helping us gain even a modicum of advantage’’ he says with a nod. Other discussions, reports and plans are simultaneously happening throughout the large organism that is the Conclave of Gaia.

The many different masters found within the conclave each sit in their own conference rooms, the sorcerers, artists, enchanters, smiths, managers, warriors, academics, teachers, researchers, diplomats, governors, spies, wizards and magicians of the Den Compound in Iguria, the ... Compound in Hala, the Sistysis Compound in Somnium all interconnected sharing ideas and progress.

Those at the budding town of Atrium in Ulgeria and many other minor bases scattered throughout this corner of Gaia confer securely. The Proelium, Sovereign, Shadow, Construe, Artem, Verbis, Spiritus, Civitus, Psi, Navis, Academia and Bestia enclaves all likewise interconnected. Getting things done whilst staying on the same page with the rest of the conclave in almost unheard of level of transparency for a world with a culture where knowledge is guarded so jealously.

‘’All the elementals except earth/.... completely ignored us, the fae didn’t seem to take our envoy very seriously but assured us that they would step in to prevent the death of Gaia if it comes to that. We have sent word to all the stable kingdoms, organisations and churches we have ways to communicate with and I think that’s all we can do at this point.’’

‘’What about access to the dungeon worlds that we were promised, we cannot put our hopes on a few thousand younglings chosen by the Ancient to safe our way of life,’’ Erickson says from his own throne. The vampire’s red eyes rest on no one in particular for long as the question is for all of them, a response comes not from the room but from someone else Sisi apparently thought relevant enough to be included in this.

‘’The Silva Carcerem has been open to us by Ancestor Drayce, you wouldn’t believ the wonders I’ve witnessed in that place! I can’t believe the Ancestral Beasts have been keeping such an extensive dungeon to themselves, already two squards of Arnold’s proelium boys have gotten lost and six of my disciples were almost mawed to death, it’s amazing!’’ Zaraya shouts from wherever it is she is tuning in from, Sarah smiles fondly hearing her friend’s voice after so long.

‘’The other dungeons open to us are the Imperium level dungeon Tijuana in Mexico Atrium.’’

‘’I didn’t even know a tier three dungeon existed in Atrium,’’ Michael grumbles to himself. There is too much they don’t know still about that enigmatic man Adromidas Draconus and it has never sat well with him, but the instructions from Master Elder Apaios were clear. ‘Leave the Celestial emperor alone’.

‘’Neither did any of us but apparently the Celestian Royal Family cultivated this one from almost infancy to be a testing grounds for them.’’ Malachi says in a bland tone, the words surprising even him though they come from his lips. They all fidget, each having spent a month in Orion and each having at some point lost a match against one of the Celestial Royals, badly enough to worry them.

Cyrus tche’s from his position of concealment between two enchanted pillars conspicuously build/placed on the far end of the Council Room. ‘’I have been studying and training with the Celestians for years now, let us not fear to acknowledge the heights those obsessive have reached when we can acknowledge other races when they accomplish similar feats.’’

Quintin grunts his accent but others says nothing, a scowl still evident on his face, the scare under his right breast still tender after all these years. ‘’Still, there are some things I’ve seen from the elves, the fae and the demi-humans that I can only attest to the many more years they have to pursue their passion. For humans to reach such heights of mastery so consistently in a single family...’’

‘’I heard almost all the emperor’s children at the minimum are Saints,’’ Eronica says, no one even disputes the outrageous claim, it’s probably true.

‘’I want to hear about the other groups that are going to take part in the inheritance working. So dragons and druids hey? Do any of us qualify to be bestowed such favour? It would be a shame if we missed this once in a lifetime opportunity to improve ourselves wouldn’t it?’’ Baagh says eying Quintin carefully.

As an Ancient Beast Tiger Baagh is a power in his own right and doesn’t have the psky limit of not being allowed to kill anyone in order to stay on the planet. But as an Ancient that took the path he took, the path to becoming is almost completely barred to him unless something drastic changes. Though to be fair, the advantages he does have are not ones he would easily give up for an alternative path.

‘’Dragons, lichens, Spirits, Elementals, Ancients, Cnidarians, Daemons, Spirits, Elder races and a few of the secluded entities on the Seven Worlds that are the last of their kind have agreed to do the working on the people father has chosen. If you didn’t get an invitation Baagh I’m sure father had his reasons, no doubt it had nothing to do with how you killed two of your disciples in training.’’ Malachi says with a straight face.

‘’What will we do about the Celestians if they become a threat?’’ Erica asks when a moment f silence presents itself. Cyrus just snorts but stays within the hidden gloom of him strange grey stone pillars.

‘’Enough of that now, what’s next on the agenda?’’ Questica asks and Sarah is quick to change the subject.

‘’The town of Atrium is coming along nicely, we should be able to move most of the families and the people not officially part of the Conclave there as per our agreements with the Ulgerian government.’’

The meetings go on and on, everyone getting ready for the opening of the Gates. Some with fear, others worry, many with eager anticipation.

‘’How many of our people have Ascended since we started all this?’’ Suzuki asks looking at Sisi.

‘’Since Zaraya’s descent and the intelligence she gave us from the upper worlds we have trained and sent out 448 people to the world of Omega.’’ The response comes not from the room but from one of the many people connected to the meeting.

‘’So many?’’ Suzuki says with a start. ‘’How did we groom so many Awakened Imperiums?’’

‘’The methods used by Mistress Zaraya and the ‘advice’ solicited from the Celestians has been of great help in accelerating the Awakening process for many.’’ Questica says carefully, again silence reigns.

‘’Fucken Celestians,’’ Arnold grumbles to chuckles from a few in the room.

‘’At least they are on our side, for now.’’ Erickson says ominously, his crimson eyes flashing momentarily.