Compliance

[Arvælyn]

"Aniyah? Who is Aniyah?" Arvælyn inquired through a grimace.

"The subject's current chaperone, sire. A servant we had on hand who has experience with and a natural affinity for child-rearing." Phocion clarified.

"I see... well, why bring the girl to the Luxium? Mightn't your family enjoy a quiet, country getaway? I can't imagine the Aurecine District is particularly hospitable and they were never cityfolk to begin with. They can still keep the manor in the capital, but if you feel a personal responsibility..."

"If I may, Exalted Highness, I think the only worry there would be that their foreign values may confuse the goal of assimilating her toward Solunarian culture. A concerted and concentrated effort should be made to bring her into the Founders' fold."

"Well, if the aim is to cow her to our will, then Finn or Vrædyn ought to exploit their Marks to properly enthrall her. Her mother was as powerful a Mesmer as I met in the North, and if she is, in fact, some vestigial piece of that greater whole, we cannot rely upon our usual methods alone to instill a sense of compliance." He paused, his eyes lingering upon Phocion.

"Or, of course, you or I might..."

"Much to be discussed before the council, to be sure, Exalted Highness."

"I see." Another pregnant pause hung between the three, before Arvælyn sighed heavily and crossed his arms over his chest. "Very well, then, I suppose I should meet the creature that's put our unflappable Phocion into such a tizzy."

"I wouldn't call it a 'tizzy', Highness, nor would I advise you put your sacred person into direct contact with an entity we still-..."

"Come now, brother Sentinel. Surely, by the reckoning of the realm, if I find myself felled by a child that hatched from an egg a week ago, I deserved it and good riddance to so unworthy an heir to the Umbrium."

"As you command, My Liege. Lead the way, won't you, Sentinel Finn?"

[Finn]

Finn's mouth opened to clarify on the point of Aniyah, but Phocion was quicker on the uptake. His eyes went thoughtful at the mention of a more rural home for his family. His parents, at least, would likely enjoy existing both in a smaller village as they were accustomed to and the city where all was new and shiny. His sibling, their husband, and child, might feel the same. Ciarán would likely whine if he was separated from Umbrian debauchery. Finn was going to have to teach him how to mitigate those urges somewhat; moderation in all things.

He was not above a touch of Mesmer added to a lullaby to soothe his nephew to sleep, though he figured he would have to be more careful with Sirena. It hadn't occurred to him to present himself to her with Aværys' grace. Perhaps a touch of it here and there might lend a sense of patriarchal awe to his imagine in her mind. But, as Phocion said, much needed to be discussed before all decisions were made.

"Verro, Vigilia."

He turned and half-led, half-accompanied his husband back to where he had left Sirena and Aniyah to the revelation of pancakes.

"Sirena," he said, and perhaps there was a faint smudge of gold in the air around his hallowed head as he knelt beside her and Aniyah bowed low to the prince. "This is my golden prince I told you about. Phædryn Sol'Zalkyrion Arvælyn Princeps, but you should call him—"

"Your Exalted Highness," she said, precocious and calm, standing and bowing in a fair imitation of Aniyah's. "Thank you for your hopsitality." With only one stumble on her short script, Finn smiled approvingly. He, at least, thought she was adorable, even if she might be dangerous. After all, quite a bit of naturally-occuring beauty was dangerous. Take Arvælyn, for example.

[Arvælyn]

As they stepped into the chamber, Arvælyn's focus was fixed upon the child. He didn't really acknowledge the bowing servant, nor the veiled Vigils flowering the walls, but one wasn't supposed to. He eyed her curiously, electing not to hazard an incursion of his potent Craft, though he did extend one of his Patroness' tethers to Unmask the child who greeted him, to his surprise, with the appropriate form of address.

He arched a brow and glanced to Finn with an expression that said, 'You trained her well,' though his gaze didn't linger upon his lover and returned, instead, to his ward.

"There is nothing to thank, Sirena, I'm pleased to meet you." She spoke to him rather like an adult, the sole mispronunciation notwithstanding. This was welcome to Arvælyn, who had never had much of an affinity for children nor any of the ease Finn displayed when Phocion observed him interact with Sirena prior. Like many Solunarians of the upper class, the princes present preferred the children in their presence to behave like adults in miniature.

"It must have been quite a journey travelling through the Warrens, as you did." He offered, taking a few steps closer and sidestepping to perch upon a nearby chair to lower himself closer to her level, even as the frame of his wings loomed above them both, casting a long shadow.

"Finn was a good adventuring partner, I trust? Do you..." He furrowed his brow, "...do you recall anything from the time before he found you?" He was certain Finn must have already gone over this with her, but he hadn't thought to ask his husband. It only now occurred to him to make his enquiry with the subject of all this morning's hubbub herself.

[Finn]

Finn rather hoped Phocion too was at least somewhat impressed by Sirena's comportment. He had only had one sleepless week with her, but she was behaving herself and showing due deference to one of Solunarium's thrones.

"Finn kept me safe. Finn killed the monsters." Her face screwed up in thought at the question. "In the place I was before... It felt real. Now it seems a dream. I had someone who took care of me." Her hand sought out Finn's. While she hadn't given Aniyah undue problems, it was clear to whom she felt attached without the need of any arcane meddling in her mind.

"It was real, though." She looked to Finn, who nodded gently.

"I never knew Lyra to be a... dreamwalker. But the egg... it was clearly magical, and so perhaps it mesmerized her into a didactic dream while it kept her safe and hidden." They still didn't know whether it had been an incubator as she grew, or kept her in stasis until such time as he released her. He could take an Assessor back and vault them home with much greater ease now, at least if the Zaichaeri Order hadn't further meddled with the site, but for now it was likely best to let that bees' nest settle rather than stir it up again. While he was more partial to a pax with Kalzasi, he didn't want to be responsible for closing the door on a pax with Zaichaer.

Strange times made for strange bedfellows, and these were certainly strange times.

[Pharaoh]

If Phocion was impressed, he didn't reveal as much, but such was his wont.

"Killed monsters, did he?" Arvælyn arched an eyebrow at that revelation, shifting from one foot to the other as he grimaced in concern. Obviously Finn had prevailed, but facing the blights of the Warrens was a lot to brook for a friendly favour, in Arry's estimation, though he remained reticent and allowed the ostensible child to continue her recounting of events.

As Finn added his hypothesis, Arvælyn thought, but didn't say, that such a circumstance might prime her well for the Solunarian education that seemed to be the path being laid out for her in this stretch of desert.

"Yes, I would imagine the egg was magical." He noted, with no dearth of amusement. "Elves tend to be live births." With a twitch of his wings, he looked to Sirena, "Even I didn't hatch from an egg, no matter what rumours you may hear to the contrary." Though his conspiratorial wink may have made it seem otherwise.

The prince rose and regarded the scene before him. Finn hand-in-hand with this charge like the illustration looming at the start of some bizarre new chapter in the chronicle of their lives. He wasn't thrilled, but he wasn't furious. More than anything he was bewildered.

"Well. Again, Sirena, I welcome you to Solunarium. I've no doubt we'll cross paths again. Finn, I'm... glad you're back. We'll speak more at home and Sentinel Phocion, I shall see you in the council chambers anon."

"My Liege." Phocion bowed.

3 Searing 124
Arx Rubrum Petram

"...at which point His Exalted Highness quit the citadel. You were present for the rest that was pertinent from that day."

"So I was. And how is Sentinel Finn faring through all this?"

"I shall let him report on that himself and allow you to draw your own conclusions." He nodded toward the door behind the Vigilia Magna, which opened to reveal Finn waiting on the other side. Cithæra did not turn to glance back at him, but waited for him to take the seat at her side, at which point Phocion instructed:

"It has been well over a season with Subject X in your care. The High Sentinel would like a status report on your work with Sirena."

[Finn]

When the door opened, Finn was waiting. He walked in immediately, dropped a bow and a respectful "Vigiliae."

As they had long ago dispensed with him standing at attention and giving reports, he took the seat beside his mother-in-law. The query made sense; he assumed she had read reports, but wanted to hear it directly from those working with her. He considered.

"She seems to be acclimating to life in the village," he said. "She has her mother's intelligence, though I cannot say yet whether she has her mother's cunning. She is reserved, observant, and well-behaved. I believe she has the requisite empathy to understand what the adults around her want and give that to them so she is otherwise free to do as she pleases. My family has indicated that they could be persuaded to move to the village and help in her raising, give her some sense of a family unit since she imprinted upon me and so, by extension, might feel a bond with them. They are also peregrini, and learning how to integrate themselves with the Solunarian populace, so they might actually help each other. My sibling and brother-in-law trust my judgment, and I trust the judgment of Phocion and the Assessors, so if they deem her safe enough for it, she might learn from having another child around her as well.

"With regard to the state religion, I cannot say whether she has any true religious feeling. I do not recall how I related to the Gods in my youth, not at that age. But I have fed upon a little of Deus Aværys' grace whenever in her presence, underscoring what authority she sees in me with His divine Majesty. Perhaps that will lay a groundwork for the future. I do believe that she would respond better to awe than Our Lady's chains. But perhaps Vrædyn Princeps might be a better judge of that than I am."

He paused, then, "I am certain you have read my reports and those of others. I am necessarily kept in the dark about certain aspects of her nature, but if Your Serene Highness has specific questions, I might give you more germane answers."

[Pharaoh]

Cithæra listened in silence, as did Phocion, though his version was a bit more active as he fidgeted with his hands and his eyes would occasionally dart down or off to the side. Finn was savvy enough to know that the silence between mothers and sons of Re'ha did not necessarily betoken a lack of discourse, given the blessing the Founders instilled in their blood. It was entirely possible Phocion's tics were in direct response to telepathic prompts, though it was not uncommon for him outside of situations in which he felt inclined to consciously suppress his movement.

As he completed Finn's first thought, Cithæra glanced to Phocion, who piped up to say:

"If you are content that your family is safe in her company, I would not object to their integration. As much as we have endeavoured to treat the subject as a native, she is aware that she is not and her peculiarities cannot be wholly hidden from the other children. At least she has grasped Vastian quite capably, at this point, with no hint of a foreign accent. Regardless- I agree that it may be good to let a peregrine perspective into the fold as not to foster a sense of isolation or otherness that would be counter to our goals."

Cithæra did not speak aloud, but gestured for Finn to continue. As he spoke on Sirena's response to her religious education, Phocion's fidgeting stilled and he became the same sort of edifice his mother presented- an icy, unmoving aberration against the desert backdrop that spread out in the frame of the grand window to his rear.

"Her Chains are subtle." Cithæra intoned softly, "One does not tend to respond to them until one feels their pull by reaching the limit of their leeway..." She let that hang in the air and, for a moment it seemed as though she might elaborate further, but instead she stood.

"I've no questions." Finn would feel a shifting in the Slipspace as a portal to the Umbrium opened behind her. "Phocion will see to your further instruction." She stepped through the portal which promptly closed behind her, and Phocion's shoulders relaxed visibly.

He lifted his gaze to meet Finn's and it was strangely warm for Phocion, as if augmented, like the silver stream of words that poured from his lips as he spoke:

"Religion is everything in Solunarium. The Pyramid is paramount and you are the chosen of The Sceptre's Source. Wield it well and remember that this is not the North and she is not a normal child. Fealty to you is fealty to Them, and great are Their rewards for the true-hearted missionary. This is now your priority, Sentinel. Go forth and evangelise." And the glow that Finn hadn't even noticed burgeon in his eyes dimmed to their usual moonlit hue.

[Finn]

Finn inclined his head to Phocion's input, glad that classism didn't prevent him from understanding and appreciating his point of view on this aspect of Sirena's upbringing.

He inclined as well to Phocion's mother, who was abrupt. He didn't necessarily want her speaking directly into his mind—or reading it for that matter—but he did rather wish he was included in those discussions she had with Phocion right in front of him. After all, he had married another son of hers and worked faithfully for this one in the Custodes Deorum, which was, by extension for her as the Vigilia Magna. But then, mothers-in-law were meant to vex, he supposed.

She knew better than he did about Varvara Domina, however. His sacrifice of Syren's lute had pleased her, but other than that, she seemed content to leave him to her brother, who had chosen him. He might claim some special knowledge of Aværys' mind, but not his twin's.

Finn stood respectfully as she took her leave.

"Verro, Domina."

And then he was alone with Phocion once more. He considered. According to his own parents, a parent's duty was to guide their children, educate them, and all, but to gradually release control as they grew older, as they grew into themselves, and would have to, perforce, make their own decisions. He didn't know whether that could be true in this case, but perhaps if he did evangelize her, Aværys would protect her. He wanted to believe that Lyra would return for her, that Lyra would be grateful to Solunarium, to the Custodes Deorum, and to the Divine Twins for the succor they offered her daughter, and the same would be true of Sirena herself, or whatever Lyra had intended to name her.

He supposed he would have to play the Golden Father, and pray that it was for the best.

"Verro, Vigilia," he said, quietly. If she became his thrall, his Leh'anafel, then he could, at least protect her. Perhaps she would be the one to succeed him in the fullness of time. He bowed, and wondered sometimes whether Aværys spoke through him as it sometimes seemed Varvara spoke through Phocion. But he had been dismissed, and so he made to depart, his orders given and received.

[Pharaoh]

!	Message from: Pharaoh
	Review Experience: 15 XP may be used for applicable magic. Injuries: N/A Loot: A ward Notes: By order of Sentine Phocion, Finn's primary duty as a Sentinel is henceforth centred around the assimilation of Subject X. He has been removed from the bulk of his other duties, until further notice. Phocion did not make it clear whether this was a simple shift in priorities or a demotion.