Order from Chaos [Eitan]

[Rune]

Mid-Late Searing, 123

While it was true that the Sentinels from the other cities had only settled on Eitan as the replacement for the lost High Sentinel was because they believed he could be easily manipulated and, if needed, easily done away with, they also wanted someone in the role who would be capable of putting the command structure back together so that, when the time came whoever stepped properly into the role would have a cohesive Order to take over.

On this unspoken understanding they were perfectly willing to cooperate with Angevin and found him to be both well organized and energetically enthusiastic about the task at hand. This was a relief seeing as the man held not only several positions in the Order currently but also several positions, all of them lofty, in the ZADC.

Once the information of the unanimous choice for new High Sentinel had been discriminated throughout Zaichaer and the greater region as a whole, members of the Order who had been waiting to see which way the wind blew, or simply for some believable confirmation that it was safe, began to return. Most found their way to the Sky Islands, eventually, even some who had attached themselves to a different faction or general after the disaster. While following the orders of a military commanded was not outside the realm of what an Order member might be expected to do, they were always supposed to be reporting back to one of their own. After the 34th many had no had the option of reporting back to the person who had been either their direct commander or their contact if they had been undercover. Some had found others and banded together, doing what they could to aid the civilians, others had left the country to find refuge in the chapter houses outside the borders. Since the announcement had come at the end of Glade (if the continuously cold could be called Glade) they had been trickling in and being sent to report to Beeman, who found the state of affairs to be most annoying. There were several hundred individuals now, working, or at least arriving every day to see if there were assignments for them, in the make-shift headquarters that had been given them below the Windworks.

Now that military matters were beginning to run smoothly, and there were significantly more men of Captain rank or similar to handle giving orders and running operations, the bulk of the Order seemed to have decided that it was time to require a little more of their newest commander themselves.

Beeman had requested a meeting with Eitan and had explained, in her sometimes round about way, that it would be with the members of several sections of the Order who had ended up as de facto leaders. Though there had been no sort of vote the urge to compare abilities between themselves was too ingrained for the group not to have shifted around each other until the strongest (by one metric or another) had emerged. The group was not large, though Beeman had seemed confused about the exact number, there would be no more than half a dozen. What they wanted, as described by the distracted researcher, was to begin reestablishing a proper structure and begin the operations which the Order had been formed to ensure, under Eitan's leadership.

[Eitan Angevin]

"...and bring me Captain Merovech's response," Admiral Angevin continued, stopping at a door guarded by a Watcher and her Aspirant. He glanced at the closed door, then back at the fresh-faced young airman. "I shall be engaged herewithin, but word can be brought to me inside."

The young airman saluted, and Angevin saluted back, acknowledging and dismissing him. Only those of the Order were permitted inside, even if this was only a temporary Hall of Reconciliation. Now the guards needed no order to open the door for Angevin, who was - more importantly - their High Sentinel. Sentinel Angevin made eye contact with Watcher Lessnau, his constant shadow, nodded to the guards, and led the way inside.

If wearing two such august hats wore heavily upon his brow, he gave no indication of it here. His family knew, of course, and he supposed Lessnau must know - being a Mesmer and a Sembler of some power - but thankfully, family was family and Lessnau was loyal.

He had followed up with Study Gebieter, Beeman's minder, and so he had some idea what this meeting might entail.

Beeman, at least, would be there, and possibly Gebieter, as well, to keep her on task. The others had mostly arrived via normal means, and so he was aware of their presence on the Sky Islands. The politics had already begun, but it was certainly time to clean house. The new Order needed a new order, and whether they thought him a figurehead or a puppet, he was going to shape the new Order such that it would not be caught flat-footed again as it had with the rift, and unaware of the means by which that rift had been sealed.

Some headway had already been made in Zaichaer proper, but it needed to be more fully realized before it could spread properly through the chapterhouses, and those changes needed to occur slowly so enemies abroad didn't see this as a time of upheaval. They had weathered the rift, the future would be theirs.

He entered the appointed meeting place.

[Rune]

The group that was assembled in the room awaiting Eitan ended up being eight people, rather than the suggested six. If one were to have viewed them without context one might have thought they were an extended family in mourning, arranged into little groups, awaiting the lawyer to tell them who had inherited what.

The center of the room was taken up by a conference table and chairs, near the left wall Agata Beeman stood, pouring over a miniature book of notes, glasses seeming to take up the majority of her face. To her elbow her assistant, Tristram Gebieter stood, keeping an eye on the room attentively so he could inform his mentor when her attention was required.

Along the back wall there was a small table with a coffee and water service arranged, on the left side of this stood a man and a women with their heads together speaking quietly but not whispering. It was obvious that they were related, siblings, most likely, a fact that was emphasized by both of them wearing severe, black, gender appropriate versions of the old Order uniform. They were in their late twenties or early thirties and their clothing had obviously been tailored. They both had short, business-like haircuts, and while they seemed intent on their conversation there was an air of knowing about them.


At the center of the spread pouring herself a coffee was a women of a similar age to the siblings, with honey-colored hair curled into an attractive bun. She was dressed in civilian clothing less severe than a uniform but much neater than Beeman's typical attire. It looked as if she enjoyed being pretty but not as much as she enjoyed getting her work done. To the opposite said of the table as the siblings a man stood alone, he had likely once, in his youth, been heart-breakingly handsome, now, nearing forty, his looks had matured into something approaching devastating. If he had been smiling, that was. His expression was bland in the way that only men who are used to having their lives and the lives of their comrades constantly under threat for years can achieve. He sipped at his own refreshment with a confident, dangerous ease and his eyes tracked the movements of everyone in the room. The observation was so sharply casual that it might cut anyone who dared notice it.

To the right side of the room stood two men, one around thirty and the other perhaps a little past fifty. They stood at a conversational distance and seemed to be speaking about an academic matter. The elder wore eye glasses, was tall, quite slim, with dark hair and eyes. The younger wore a close shaved beard of reddish-brown that matched his hair. Both wore Order uniforms but they appeared standard issue with no personal tailoring or adjustment.

Everyone turned to look, conversation trailing off, as Eitan arrived, each adopting a more upright posture that came with the training of the Order when in the presence of a superior. It wasn't a military level stance, but it was one of respect and recognition. Except Beeman, who hadn't seemed to notice the arrival. Gebieter cleared his throat, then again, then leaned close and whispered in her ear before she finally gave a little start and noticed the change to the room.

"High Sentinel," She greeted, "Thank you for coming. Let me introduce you."

Walking forward to meet him she turned so they were facing the room together and went around it starting with the siblings,

"These are Andrea and August Roth, of the Watchers of Purity," Turning towards the woman in the civilian garb, "Della Sterling, of the College of Minders," Then to the observant man, "Hauke Brandt, of the Watchers," On to the two men standing together, "And Heiden Essar," The younger man, "and Dietrich Eckehart," The elder, "Of the Minders."

Turning back to her companion she said,

"Of course you know my assistant Tristram Gebieter, and I see you brought Klaus-Dieter Lessnau with you. Shall we all be seated?"

Each person had nodded or raised their glass or made some other sign of acknowledgement when they had been introduced and, of course, Eitan himself did not need introduction. At Beeman's suggestion en masse to the table and took their seats, all except Gebieter and Lessnau, who remained standing. Once everyone was settled there was a long moment of expectant silence before Gebieter cleared his throat again and Beeman came back to attention.

"Oh yes. As my note indicated, these members of our Order have been chosen by their peers to represent their various interests and concerns and wanted to meet with you to discuss them, but, more so, to gain an understanding of what are the current goals of the Order and how they best might be achieved."

She glanced at her assistant for a moment and he gave a minute nod to indicate that she had done her part for the moment. There was a nod or two around the table but mostly the group simply waited to see how Eitan would proceed.

[Eitan Angevin]

High Sentinel Angevin wore the uniform of an admiral of the Zaichaer Air Defense Corps, albeit with a badge that clearly identified him as a member of the Order of Reconciliation. About his shoulders was a short cape, the sort worn by Watchers of high rank during the winter months. Though it was summer, it was still cold, both because of their altitude and whatever shenanigans the towers and trees had caused when they heralded the eclipse—another magical catastrophe that affected the entire world, it seemed, and not just the Brass City.

"Distinguished guests," he said, nodding curtly. "Welcome to the Dornkirk Windworks." Beeman and her long-suffering assistant got a small, sincere smile. Then he nodded at Lessnau, who saluted when he was introduced, and then went to fetch his superior a coffee. Angevin sat at one end of the conference table, his back to the door. It was, perhaps, a bad habit, but he no longer feared assassination. His wards were all but impervious, though his daily mantra reminded him that he was not invincible. Lucrece had made him promise to say it morning and night, lest he forget in the arrogance that his near-death experience had planted in him.

Angevin was the very picture of a pre-rift officer and Watcher of Purity. Dienerin kept his uniforms pristine, his hair perfectly slicked, and he had begun to grow accustomed to his power. It showed. For better or for worse, it showed. He was now a man accustomed to giving orders and being obeyed, and he knew this for what it was. His smile was polite.

Lessnau, efficient in all things, set cup and saucer correctly at Angevin's side and then stepped back, assuming something akin to a military at-ease.

"Thank you, Watcher.

"High Sentinel."

Some of them he knew by reputation. The twins had been mentees of Vigilant Rickter before him. And, of course, he had taken more than one class from Professor Eckehart. They all knew him now—the Warden of Zaichaer.

"I am at your disposal for the afternoon."

[Rune]

The room at large wore their uniforms, and even their civilian clothing, as crisply and exactly as they would have on the 33rd of Searing, 122. Looking at those gathered one could have easily imagined that nothing had changed and the gathering itself suggested that while the government, the nation, and the world might have changed in irrevocable ways, The Order was not only still standing, but still standing in the exact posture that it had held from its inception.

Anyone who had access to the unredacted versions of the recorded history of The Order knew that the idea of the unchanging Order was not, strictly accurate. It could be assumed that all those gathered were not aware of that, even if they had not been eighteen months prior. The leadership of The Order had always been made up of those individuals who were able and insistent on stepping into situations and positions which caused ordinary people to balk, or come undone. Looking between the faces High Sentinel Angevin could see that some were there out of a sense of duty, some out of a burning ambition (whether for personal power or to root out evil made no difference) and some because they wanted to know what was going to happen. All of them had proven their ability to weather this current storm, and that they were capable of staring in the face the realities of ensuring a pure society. Neither of these ensured that they would end up in positions of power, but they did suggest that any of them were able to do so, if called.

While they all examined Eitan, and judged him according to their own standards, none seemed to find him wanting in any ways that showed, so they listened. After the brief introduction none of them spoke for a long, if not tense at least pregnant pause before Minder Essar leaning a little closer across the table and said,

"High Sentinel, I believe, the question is, more correctly, what can we do for you?" A quick dart of his eyes around the table gathered little consenting nods or at least nothing contradicting from all the others. His eyes stopped last on Eckehart, who was his elder and fairly obviously his superior in rank, and receiving an additional nod from him he turned his gaze back, to Eitan. His expression was serious but open, an offering,

"The chaos of the past year and more has led to many changes, necessary, most of them, but The Order remains." Murmurs or small gesture of agreement passed around the table, "While there was no official head to The Order each member has continued to operate in what ways they believed to be best to maintain the safety of as much of The State as possible. However, you have now been elected and the time for everyone to go their own way is, thankfully, at an end. Each of us, to my understanding, has kept together a group of those who used to work closely with them and are now here representing those groups. In short, we are here, ready and able, to follow where you direct."

Essar's speaking voice was somehow soothing while also causing the mind to wish to listen, to absorb the information it was offering rather than lulling. It took only a few sentences before most people realized he must be a educator, and a rather good one.

As if in after thought he added,

"We have all brought detailed reports of our actives, as well as suggestions for how we might proceed in future, but that is, ultimately, up to you, High Sentinel."

[Eitan Angevin]

If Angevin felt threatened, he hadn't admitted it to himself yet. If he had anticipated pushback, it hadn't come yet.

"Excellent," he said decisively, shifting tone and energy immediately. His posture moved forward.

"The chaos of the past year and more has led to many changes," he agreed. "The Order must change, must adapt to the times, without losing the core of its identity, its purpose. I look forward to perusing your reports, of catching up on how you proved your mettle and survived, as well as hearing your suggestions as to the future. As High Sentinel, ultimate decisions will be mine, as well as ultimate responsibility for any repercussions or fallout for those decisions, but I will not make those decisions uninformed. I value your input, you who have been my teachers," he glanced at Eckehart, tacitly giving a nod to his expertise, "and you who have been my idols." He glanced at various Watchers whose watch had lasted longer than his own.

"The atrocity of the rift and the horrors that followed brought the High City low, but I was able to shield some parts of it, and my brother-in-law has stepped into the yoke of responsibility and brought his genius to bear upon the problems at hand. If there is to be a silver lining to all this... or if we are to take our lemons and make lemonade, then it is clear we must change, adapt, and, ultimately, grow. This year of hells on earth has been a trial. We have lost too many good men and women, but if we are to make their sacrifices meaningful, then we must pivot, take this opportunity to change, adapt, and grow. We must look to being the Order of the Year 124 and the years to come, taking what was best of the years previous, but setting aside that which serves neither us nor the populace we are sworn to protect from the dangers of unchecked magical manipulation.

"We have brought more of the covens into alignment with Zaichaer's goals. We will continue to integrate the Order into other aspects of Zaichaer—the College of Minders having more influence upon the Ministry of Education, and scouting the brightest minds for recruitment, the Watchers of Purity siphoning those particular individuals from the military corps and elsewhere. The Sky Islands have seen something like a utopia, each man and woman setting aside ego to serve the greater good to the best of their abilities, and this is a goal to seek in the future as well."

Behind him, Lessnau's eyes shone with fervor and unshed tears. Some were clearly true believers.

Agata Beeman was less emotional about her support, perhaps, but had been only too happy to collaborate with him prior to the Rift and defer to him after it. All these people, however, were less familiar variables. She adjusted her spectacles, wanting to support his thesis with facts and figures, but she bit her tongue, waiting for the response of her peers as they would review their new leader.

[Rune]

The group mostly listened, though there were little signs of acknowledgement when certain members were alluded to, if not by name. The only attempt at interruption came when Minder Sterling, upon mention of Eitan's warding of The Windworks sat forward in her chair and opened her mouth to speak in what looked like it might be a series of interested questions, only to be silenced by a cutting look from Andrea Roth. While the look seemed to make the scholar recall where she was and that this was not the time for exploration, her expression was not dampened.

Eitan's vision for the future seemed to please, or at least interest everyone at the table and, by the time he was done, all three scholars were nodding in agreement and the twins wore identical sharp smiles, only Brandt's expression remained unchanged but that, for anyone who knew him, was as good as sign as one was likely to get. Had the streets-hardened near to legendary Watcher's face altered, it would almost certainly been cause for alarm.

When it was clear that Eitan's introductory speech, as their High Sentinel, was concluded, at least for the moment, Professor Eckehart cleared his throat quietly before speaking.

"I am gratified and heartened to know that we still stand and, with work, will become, as always, only stronger. If you will allow me, Angevin," He caught himself over the name, having used it when he'd taught the young High Sentinel, he corrected himself without seeming discomfort and continued,

"High Sentinel Angevin, while we have each prepared out reports of our past activities and suggestions for the future in detail, for this meeting it was agreed that we would each make the single suggestion that we consider to be currently most pressing." When he received a nod from Eitan he raised his had to indicate Andrea Roth, who sat at the far end of the table.

With a respectful nod for the older Minder Andrea turned her intense, predatory eyes to Eitan.

"High Sentinel," Her voice was higher than one might expect from the severity of her look, and just as pointed as her smile, "The Watchers consider it vital that we begin isolating those who have been touched by the Mists and analyzing what effect its corrupting influence has had on them. We all saw some of the," Her lip curled in a miniature snarl, "outcomes of the corruption have been. Plants, animals, even inanimate things have been twisted and all of that is a concern, but the greater one is that people, and mages, have been twisted in ways that are not immediately visible to the naked eye. While the immediate danger to the lives of our people seem to have been swept away it is not for the Watchers to trust such a boon. Without swift and exacting action there is no guessing what might befall our people in the days and years ahead. On the top of my report there is a detailed plan for examining every citizen in the city and those who are beginning to return as they enter."

Andrea's twin watched her as she spoke and then met Eitan's eyes with a simple nod, she spoke for both of them on this matter.

[Eitan Angevin]

"Stronger together," he reminded them softly with a curt nod. Eitan even offered a small, wry smile at the misstep, though he was hardly going to berate the esteemed professor and Minder for what was so understandable. His support meant a great deal, even more so than Beeman's, really, in the grand scheme of things.

The High Sentinel listened to his advisors.

"Indeed, I entirely agree," he said to the one Roth, then adding a nod to each of them. He took a sip of tea.

"We shall have to see what other priorities our colleagues bring to the table before we can make logistical decisions. However, Orator Beeman and those Minders under her leadership have already begun this task. I'm certain they will appreciate more minds turned to their study, as well as more people to gather specimens. To that end and, I would wager, to accommodate the forthcoming priorities, I intend to pull resources from our chapterhouses. I will not leave them with skeleton crews, but Zaichaer requires her foreign agents to become temporarily domestic in order to rebuild quickly, cleanly, and better. I hope the other Sentinels are as obliging as all of you."

He would leave it to Beeman, Stechpalme, and even Stefan to show them some of the horrors that the Mists had wrought, including the mutated creatures that ate aether that had been applied to magical workings. That was a problem that it behooved him to delegate; his expertise would be better utilized elsewhere. And he had already supplied many a ward for them to chew through where his Minders could observe and study.

"Thank you, Roth. Who is next?"

Stefan was correct: he was going to need more assistants. Eitan was convinced he could no longer function without Dienerin, and he could grant his valet military clearance. After all, he had already served in the military. But he would rather the man focus more on domestic and civilian affairs when not ensuring Eitan looked the part of High Sentinel, Admiral, and blueblood.

Lessnau was handy, but neither a valet nor a secretary. Eitan was going to have to have an assistant specific to the ZADC and another specific to the Order. In order to fulfill all his roles, he was going to need a support team.

But that would keep for now; he kept his attention trained on the heroes of his Order.

[Rune]

There was a general expression of approval, mostly in the form of nods when the High Sentinel revealed his intention to pull the scattered members of the Order back to support Zaichaer while its need was greater.

Once the Roth's were acknowledged the group turned their attention to Della Sterling, the thirty-something Minder whose specialty remained unknown. With a smile that was honest and confident but also seemed perfunctory, she picked up where Eitan had began,

"Recalling members of our Order is, rather exactly, what I have been looking into, actually, High Sentinel." She did not trip over his title and it didn't feel tacked onto the end either. "I, and a small team that assists me have been trying to track the movements of our scattered brethren, aiding them where we can and referring them to trusted Watchers," She made a small gesture to the Roth's who sat to her right and Brandt on her left, "when their return to our ranks would not be advisable."

The implication was clear and she did not shy from it, even if no details were given. There were surely those of the Order who had been overtaken by the Mists or tempted by the lack of oversight to break the laws they had been trained to uphold.

"Many of our records were lost when the Presidium fell, but we have some copies of our rosters, older and newer, which we have been cross referencing with mission reports and personal accounts. Our accounting is not complete," Her tone said it was a damn near as was humanly possible, "but we have been able to find the whereabouts, or locate the remains, of a majority of our members. A good deal are working with the military," The other generals, "which has led, in some cases to us not being able to establish contact with them but in those cases we have mostly been able to at least confirm their status."

Nodding to one of the folders in the stack she finished with,

"Our report includes the most prevent information as to numbers and specialties that are available to us here, as well as those that we have confirmed to be alive and can be called in from elsewhere."

It might not be a total accounting for the Order, but her tone and expressions said it was as damn near as was humanly possible under the current circumstances. Watching the Watchers (and the Minders) had always been a significant part of what the Order did, and, it seemed, Sterling intended to ensure that a national disaster that would likely end up having killed half the population by the end was no reason to loosen the reins.

"Mine is less a request than it is an offer to assist in the continued search and assessment of our Order and the suggestion that you make this one of your, many, priorities.

The whole speech had been delivered with an air of ease in competence and high level organizational ability such that it might be wondered if Sterling wasn't hoping for a job as one of Eitan's personal assistants herself. Having someone around who knew, from memory, the majority of the Order members was as useful as it might be dangerous in the wrong hands, so it was a risk for her, showing her hand and hoping doing so wouldn't cost her head.

[Eitan Angevin]

Angevin nodded in response to Minder Sterling's opening, and then he was all (totally human) ears.

He nodded again and again at salient points. Any reports sent to him prior to this meeting had been duly read, but he would not be able to give them the time and attention they needed now. He would read hers and all those reports before him after the meeting. These briefs, however, were proving quite helpful.

"We must indeed know ourselves," he said, raven-wing brows furrowed for a moment in thought. "I will personally ward those personnel files you deem most sensitive, and while I don't want you to feel incarcerated, I want you to be warded and guarded. We can hammer out the details later. I want you and the knowledge you hold to be safe, but I want the restrictions to be appropriate ones that you can comfortably live with." He smiled tightly. They all made sacrifices, but he was not averse to mitigating them when possible. Not everyone was able to ward themselves as he was, and even he kept their strongest sembler and mesmer on a short leash. Well, perhaps Sterling would reveal an even stronger asset. He had been of the understanding that few Watchers were allowed to pass a certain threshold of power. Now he knew many of the exceptions, and he was sure there were more.

It would become a matter of who was trustworthy, and having checks against those powers, even his own. Well, perhaps less so his own; he trusted himself.

His hand came to rest upon the reports.

"Thank you, Minder Sterling. You will be an immeasurable help, and I intend to give all these reports my full attention this evening. No rest for the wicked." His smile was a clever blend of the charms he had learned as a blueblood and the more reserved gravitas he had learned from the Order. Once acknowledged, he turned his black-eyed gaze upon Professor Eckehart, who was apparently the master of ceremonies for this meeting. In future, Angevin would run them, but for now, he played the benevolent dictator.