The crowd that had been organized to travel with me jostled nervously. The [Fairy Ring] we were aiming for was complicated because of the barrier that protected and separated the continents. Still, a mix of different Sidhe were brave enough to make the trip.

I’m not sure how it was decided, but every Sidhe sub-species had representatives willing to take the risk and step betwixt and between. The magic barrier that straddled the ley-lines was the only danger that was any concern, and that danger was mine to face.

When I cast the spell to power the [Ritual] that would open the dimensional rift between here and the [Fairy Ring], the repercussions and feedback from a failed or blocked attempt would land squarely on me. I might be more worried if I was trying to brute force my way across the barrier without [Ritual]. But any psychic damage I might take if the magic I unleashed rebounded should be manageable.

I didn’t think it was a real possibility, but I wasn’t foolish enough not to take precautions. My [King’s Regalia] was fully equipped. The enchantments worked into each piece would give me additional physical and mental protection from backlash. If it was strong enough to resist a Levin bolt from the Morrigu, it should stand up to any backlash I might need to contend with from a [Ritual] gone wrong.

The [Torc of Justice], the armor piece that could transform into full armor, added 5 to all stats while raising my armor and defense by 50. It also had a triggered effect that would make me immune from all damage for a full minute. The [Diadem of Focus] was just as powerful, but it protected me from mental attacks, illusions, and charm. When triggered, it not only saved me from those effects, it made me immune to illusion, glamour, and charms with a [Clear Sight] buff that lasted until canceled.

“Once I open the portal, you will have thirty minutes at best to pass through,” I warned. “We have scryed a location that should be well suited to build a Sithern. It is near a convergence of ley-lines and a nexus. There should be more than enough magic to draw upon to evoke the seed. I may need to adjust the location, but it would be a matter of a mile at most.

“Once the first Sithern has been created, we will rest for a week before moving on to the second location. The Sitherns will connect without prompting, forming a [Portal] network. It is the reason we can keep this first group to a minimum. Everyone not taking part in the [Revel] can come through the [Portal] from Seastan Deireanach once it has been established.”

Morgan and Lleu Llaw watched and listened intently. Neither was happy about what was about to happen, their unhappiness only increasing once I told them they were barred from participating. They were already connected to Seastan Deireanach, members of the council of Twelve. If they were to participate in the [Revel] that would be used to germinate the Sithern seed if that happened, the connection might be compromised.

More importantly, the Sithern could be capricious once life has been kindled and sentience established. This tendency had been proven when Irvin, my adopted son, was selected as [Host] on the planet Derva instead of the [Ambassador] I’d appointed. If the newly born Sithern decided to take Morgan or Lleu Llaw as [Host], it might create a series of errors that closed the portal network for good.

The other matter to consider was the amount of time and effort a [Host] would need to familiarize himself with the Sithern. There would be a lot of grunt work and city building required. Detailed work that might take longer without the System to support them. Work and time I didn’t think any of the Twelve had in abundance.

“I will enter first to make sure there isn’t something waiting on the other side. Caraid, Ag, and Meala will enter with me, and once we find everything to be safe, Caraid will come back to escort those that have chosen to help through the rift.”

The scry we had initially done had been redone with a few more variables added. Not only did we need a [Fairy Ring], but we needed that nearby nexus pool for power and somewhere relatively safe and free of animals, beasts, or monsters.

This world didn’t have dungeons, at least none had been discovered yet, but it did have monsters that would attack and could kill. Monsters like the Fachen that I had already encountered might be ready to attack. I was confident we would find Wargs both in Greenland and Canada. The environment for both landmasses was well suited to that type of beast. What else we might find would have to wait until more Sidhe had settled the Sithern we would open and begin exploring the countryside.

Opening a tear in space between to the [Fairy Ring] was straightforward enough as long as you had any form of spatial magic. Since I came from Talahm, I like all members of the Sidhe collective there had a [Portal: Summerlands] spell. That spell, when deconstructed, used spatial magic to work, magic that I was able to co-opt using a cantrip and array to power and structure my [Ritual].

The shimmering air was the only warning anyone watching would have before [Fairy] guided by my magic and powered by the array opened a path between. The rift itself had the characteristics of waves of heat rising from the ground when the sun scorched the earth. That shimmering haze expanded until it was a perfect square, ten feet wide and ten feet tall.

It was large enough to let three or four of the Sidhe through at a time, at least those Sidhe of Seelie height. Slaugh and Redcaps would find the opening problematic, and the larger older Slaugh would never be able to pass through. They would have to wait to use the [Portal System] when the Sitherns were connected.

A quick step through was all it took for me to move from one location to the next—the [Fairy Ring] we had selected adjusting to serve as an anchor for the transit point. As I passed the event horizon, I felt a notable change in my proprioception, as I was both here and there. My body was unsure of how to behave while I was in two places at once.

For most, this was mildly unsettling but easily managed, but a few people needed dozens of trips through a [Portal] before their bodies accepted the strangeness of the transportation. Until then, travel often resulted in them exiting the event horizon and collapsing as their equilibrium tried to adjust to what they had just experienced.

The transition itself, from one place to the next, was instantaneous. But I had always experienced [Portals] as a challenge. My intellect and perception were high enough to feel the changes to my body. I saw space, time, and void currents fluctuate as I moved. Time had no real meaning here; it defied the rules of logic. It was only magic that made [Portals] possible, and I was a child of magic, but that moment of translation often gave me insight into the secrets of creation.

I enjoyed the experience. I even attempted to extend that instant between here and there to thoroughly understand what was happening to me. It was exhilarating and the closest I would ever get to experience that moment in creation when the Alpha and Omega willed the multi-verse into existence.

The coldness of the air, the wisps of smoke as steam began to form a fog bank, welcomed me to this new location. I had selected Skjoldungen Island for this first Sithern. It was situated southeast off the coast of Greenland and would be a fitting place for the first Sithern in these new lands.

Protected by ocean and weather, the island had formed on the top of a confluence of ley-lines creating a powerful nexus that would give the new Sithern enough raw magic to build a formidable place of safety and respite for the Sidhe.

Huig, the Goblin King, had been selected as [Host] and would do well here. The island was close enough to Greenland that expansion would prove simple enough. There were enough natural resources and connections with nature locally for the Sidhe to stake their claim and form a link to the world around them. All of it untainted and unspoiled by the workings of Man.

The few hundred Sidhe that would take part in the [Revel] came through once Caraid had notified them it was safe. I scouted around quickly as they did, finding a suitable spot to lay the formation for the [Ritual]. The process would require blood and sex to give life to the Sithern seed I would plant.

Magic of [Fairy], intent, and [Ritual].

I would be the conductor of the event, directing the magic and planting the seed, but Huig would be the conduit through which all that magic flowed. It would ensure that he was chosen as [Host] unless the Sithern defied all expectations and found him lacking.

Thirty minutes after I had arrived, the [Portal] I had opened closed, and the part of my subconscious that had been holding the aperture open informed me that the tear between was closed, the [Ritual] completed.

Ten minutes later, I had the formation laid out and a new [Ritual] ready to begin. The Sidhe waiting for my direction were divided into five quadrants, with Huig taking his position in the center. I had taken a risk and included Balfour as part of this [Revel]. He was the only Aziza on the planet, and I was hoping to guide [Fairy] and the Wild Magic to take note of his species and populate the newly born Sithern with more of his kind of Demi-fey.

My most significant concern with allowing him to participate was that the Sithern would select him as [Host], primarily because of his unique nature. That wouldn’t be the worst thing that could happen, and if it did, I would gift the Sidhe of this world with a fourth Sithern and find a place for Huig somewhere in the Amazon rain forest.