Rebirth and Second Chances

Chapter 259: World Tree

"Liar," Indrajit accused me. "The Portal Authority has been warned about allowing her to leave. If she had made the attempt, she would have been detained, and I would have been contacted."

"The Sidhe do not lie," I informed him. "I will ignore that slander, just once. But retract that accusation, or I will treat the insult as I would on Talahm and give challenge and prove my words are the truth by combat."

I shouldn't have bothered giving him a warning. Indrajit was too entitled, too sure of his own place and power on Derva to take my warning as anything more than a joke. I knew his type. Mab had allowed his type to invade the Seelie Court. People that believed they were entitled, those spoiled and gifted with their skills and levels.

And because I understood the type of person he was, any chance of grace or forbearance would not happen. His expectations were none of my concern, his behavior encouraged by parents and society that allowed him to act as he did. If the next words out of his mouth were not a retraction and an apology, he would find that even for a Rajah of Derva, there could be a reckoning.

"Rajah," an obsequious little man said that had been standing behind Indrajit, dared to tug on his sleeve to gain his attention. He didn't get a chance to explain his actions or give counsel before Indrajit struck him, knocking him to the ground for his temerity in touching someone so far above his station.

"Forgiveness," the felled man said, moving to kowtow. The man wounded and bleeding as he abased himself only solidified my understanding of the type of person Indrajit was. His people expected this type of treatment and had been conditioned to react as subservient as possible. He had acted in a servile manner because that was what was expected of him.

I watched as the man's attempts to soothe Indrajit worked; the Rajah calming down as he watched his servant's forehead begin running with blood. The self-mutilation from striking his head against the ground with increasing ferocity seeking forgiveness pleasing Indrajit. The servant's plan worked as intended, Indrajit ignored me, his attention solely focused on the man kneeling before him.

"Rajah," one of his guards said, managing to gain his attention now that I was no longer the object of his anger. The actions of his servant had distracted him, his anger vanishing like so much smoke.

"This lowly servant would point out that the Prime Minister has signed a covenant with the Sidhe, to attack or insult the people of this embassy may anger him or the Prime Minister's cabinet."

Whoever this man was, he wasn't a typical guard, at least not the kind of guard I'd assumed. His understanding of the situation and politics was too nuanced, and if he could see the fallout from the Rajah's actions, then he was smarter than Indrajit appeared to be. At least he was able to marshal his emotions long enough to consider the ramifications of his actions.

Indrajit was many things. Stupid seemed to be one of them, but he had a scavenger's ability to recognize when it was better to scurry for safety. Reminded that he was not dealing with someone lesser, he swallowed his vitriol and forced words of apology past lips tightened in anger and hate.

I had made an enemy here today, not that I cared. There was no force on Derva that could breach the walls of Cuan Sabhailte. We had worked within the framework of laws that existed, those constraints that bound embassy and personal alike. The treaties and covenants between worlds that guided diplomatic missions had been followed.

We had purchased the property the Sithern was constructed on. We owned it, in perpetuity, forever. We had made sure of that by agreeing to pay lump-sum tax fees, an amount, and an agreement that would exempt the embassy from any type of future tax or tithe. That we had Silinium to pay the taxes and grease the wheels of government was leverage that we were happy to use.

"My apologies," Indrajit said, once again giving me his full attention. The words forced past teeth clenched in fury.

It would have been nice if he meant that apology, or if he spent even a second waiting for me to respond, but he didn't, and he hadn't. He turned and stormed down the street as soon as the words had passed his lips, leaving his wounded servant still kowtowing in his wake.

I had to wonder at his hubris. He had just watched an entire building vanish, a World Tree sprout and grow, and the spatial boundaries of the small area the embassy had been built on expand to encompass Underhill while still remaining within the boundaries of what was now Sidhe territory.

"He'll be back," Lord Clive who had arrived but remained out of sight warned me. He hadn't interrupted as I'd spoken with the Sithern using the Host bond to destroy the temple that had been created and replace it with a World Tree, and I appreciated his discretion and tacit support.

"I know," I agreed.

"You are going to have to challenge him at some point. Why wait?"

"I suppose you could say I am setting the stage. I want to make sure that the Powers that rule Derva are aware of today's events.

"I will kill him because he has forced my hand, but I want to make a spectacle of his death. I can't replicate the drama that His Majesty managed when confronting Olympus, or Princess Wynne's confrontation with a goddess, but I want this fight to have an impact," I explained.

"What do you want me to do if the Prime Minister or Derva government demands I act as ambassador?" He asked.

"Organize a duel," I suggested offhandedly.

"Make sure that Kelpie rules apply, and that the Rajah is notified of Belisama's Arena. I will agree when he demands redress but make it clear that I am a Peace-broker of Belisama and I will act in full view with full knowledge of Her tenets, adhering to the principles She orchestrated for those that worshiped Her."

"Are you going to keep the World Tree?" Lord Clive asked hopefully.

"Yes," I promised. "The Sithern has sent out a tap root and connected to the original. What was created here wasn't glamour or illusion anymore. The branches of Cuan Sabhailte now run with the sap from the primogenitor of all World Trees, that spark of creation that allows the World Tree to serve as a dividing line between Heaven and Earth.

"I can no longer change the structure or form of the outward appearance. The changes Cuan Sabhailte agreed to here and implemented will last forever, even if the Hindu Pantheon command otherwise."

"How do you want to deal with any acorns that fall?" He wondered.

"Have them gathered. King Teigh gifted us with the seed to build this Sithern, repay that gift with the first acorn that drops. It will be thousands of years between each seed that forms, so we can table any decision on what to do with each seed after that first one for now," I decided.

"If King Teigh asks?" He wondered.

"Tell him what I've decided and let him know I am open to suggestions on how to marshal, save, or share future Sithern seeds."

Each acorn could be planted, expanded to become a Sithern, but these seeds would be different, each able to extend a tap root to connect to the original. The sap and seeds of this World Tree would become priceless gifts. An evolution of Sithern from pocket dimension to a branch of Universal Law.

Cuan Sabhailte now stood as part of the network of World Trees that served to divide order and chaos, to create the barrier between heaven and earth. This change was even more momentous than expanding Fairy and bringing it to this world.