Fae Courts Delusions of Peace

[Sedorohein]

A beautiful glass palace decorated with a confusing and jumbled mass of stained glass that cast colors and lights about the grounds. An assortment of lights floated around the grounds, only ever fading in their shining when covered by the constant smoke that never dispersed. Each room featured its own beautiful music that had no rhyme or reason to the tune in the next room. If this bombardment of the senses was not enough, the glass of this palace had been shattered, adding even more chaos to the light and sounds of the abode.

Yes, this was the Palais de Intinn. Home to the Court of Mysts...or former Court. No those days were long past them. That Court had been broken by civil war and an invasion of magical beasts in Malakath centuries ago. Now, all that remained was the Parlor of the Mind.

"No one will come to this."

"Then they will miss a wonderful party, Condatis."

Sederohein stood in front of his mirror, and he was experiencing the worst moment of his life. He had nothing to wear. As he stood before the broken mirror, each shard showed Sedo a different image of him with an outfit. Somewhere in his ear, Condatis was continuing to worry, but Sedo had long ago ignored him.

With a sad sigh, he waived his fingers, and a long flowing robe that barely clung to his shoulders appeared on him. The colors were random and many, and the robe would leave a long trail while he walked...This would have to do.

"Our Parlor still holds some power. We could be a valuable asset for this war that is coming. Better to let them vie for us rather than running around groveling in front of everyone. If not then...we will find some other way to occupy our time."

The complaining continued until Sedorohein slammed his foot down shattering more of the floor beneath him. His horns now glowed with a crimson color. A big smile stretched across his face, but it did not match the anger in his aura.

"Connie, I want a party...so I will have one."

Sedorohein then slipped out the door and smiled at the guests already wandering the halls. Many of them were simply members of his Parlor, but soon other Parlors and maybe a Court or two would arrive. Then the real fun would begin.

 

[Vulpesen]

Vulpesen's eyes peered about the room as he stepped into the main hall of the parlor's palace. It wasn't that long ago that each of these beings dwarfed him in power. The fae were gods to the Zorrens, and each one was seen as a powerful spirit by those in the know. Even as most of his people knew what the fair folk were, they knew better than to interfere in their machinations.

Vulpesen was not like most of his people. He had been chosen as the champion of the brothers Vitae. His hand acted by their will and his voice spoke with their authority. Being Varos' warlock had made him powerful enough to contend with most lesser fae. Being linked to all three of the Zorren "gods" had made him a force to be reckoned with, barely even recognizable as a mortal.

Golden eyes moved across the room until they came upon a brightly colored duannan, the tall being instantly registering with an image that had been placed in the representatives head. Steeling himself, he stepped forward, his black brush of a tail flicking behind him as he did so. Sedorohein had almost two feet on the Zorren but still, Vulpesen kept his head tall, only offering a respectful bow once he was before the duannan. "Vulpesen Torrevaso, representative of the Vitae court of Stars. A pleasure to meet you, sir."

 

[Nisha Katsuro]

Whispers had made their way to the Sidhe seemingly the moment plans for this quaint event had been hatched. It certainly had turned her head the moment she heard, and thus on this day of attendance, the petite faerie was dressed in soft blues and lilacs. With each step was silence, an affinity of her own that made her quite successful in her role within the Sun Court.

Underneath her lapis hued eyes were lines like sun rays drawn in the finest gold ink. This was her representation of where she hailed from, where she served with her life and honour.

So rare for the Sun Court to be seen at social events, but that seemed to be old news now as the Sidhe graced through the halls where the celebrations would take place.

"Hmm..." A soft sound left her, eyes now surveying those gathered.

 

[Lirielle]

Unseen and unnoticed, Lirielle slipped through the grand entrance of the Palais de Intinn, her form as intangible as the smoke that curled lazily above the chaotic gathering. The colours from the shattered stained glass danced across the ground in a kaleidoscope of light, casting strange, disjointed patterns that seemed to flicker with every step she took. She moved like a breath of wind, barely disturbing the air, her presence blending seamlessly into the fractured beauty of the palace.

Lirielle’s movements were fluid, almost languid, as though time held no meaning for her here. Her long, white hair flowed behind her, catching the light and shimmering like spun moonlight, while her warm, brown eyes scanned the room with an otherworldly calm. She once belonged to this realm. Now, she was something more like a ghost in the midst of life, a forgotten dream slipping through the cracks of reality.

Her reflection caught briefly in the broken mirrors scattered throughout the hall. For the faintest moment, her pale face appeared in a jagged shard of glass, her crimson lips smiling sadly as she admired the waking and their pretty gowns. The guests, absorbed in their own interactions, saw nothing. Even when her image flickered in the polished surfaces, they moved on, unaware that something beyond their senses was passing through.

She felt the thrum of magic and power in the air, the remnants of the broken Court of Mysts lingering still, but it did not touch her—not truly. She was a distant echo of another time, another place.

Liri continued her path through the fractured halls, her gaze flicking briefly to the figures who moved around her—powerful beings who could shift the course of fate with a whisper, yet as always, it seemed that none of them could see her. Not in the way she longed to be seen. Her reflection shimmered once more in a nearby shard of glass, before vanishing again.

She walked amongst the beautiful strangers, smiling to herself as she imagined herself to be a part of their soiree. She spoke to them though they could not hear. She did not care. She chuckled and fanned her face with her hand as she imagined them complimenting her own gown of silver lace, and she curtsied as she imagined them asking her to dance. "Me?.. How kind of you to ask.." she beamed, and took herself on a most beautiful waltz around the guests, her presence unnoticed, but felt by those who cared to listen for the faintest whisper of longing in the air.

 

[Sedorohein]

Sedorohein was not known as a very active fae, in fact, most of his days were spent inside these halls. He was prone to random and ridiculous mood shifts, but when the moment struck him, he was quite the charmer. It paid to be as handsome as he was. And, since this was his party, even he understood he needed to put in a little effort.

Although he still moved rather slow, his long legs somehow carried in quite fast through the broken halls. He slipped around greeting each of the guests with joy, confusion, random questions, or all three. He was in the middle of one such conversation when something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. A reflection in one of the pieces of broken glass, but it wasn't his own. Strange, most of the reflections were designed to be himself. After all, why wouldn't everyone want to look at him?

Those conceited thoughts were interrupted by an introduction. Completely ignoring his previous conversation, he turned to the newcomer.

"Oh!" Sedo happily shifted from foot to foot.

"A pleasure to meet you Vulpesen. It's a shame the brothers couldn't make it, they always are so much fun around each other. I'm sure you are a worthy replacement! Can I get you something? Food, drink, literally anything you can desire I can find it."

Those last words, while featuring no malice were just creepy enough to be unsettling.

Vulpesen

 

[Vulpesen]

Vulpesen's eyes flashed as the mercurial fae spun towards him. He resisted the urge to offer the fae behind Sedorohein a look of apology, instead opting for a winning smile with his response. "They send their regrets and their regards. Running a city of mortals can be rather demanding, even with three brothers. Particularly when our influence is expanding." The brothers had made it no secret that they intended to make a move on the continents of Epressa and Liaden.

The duannan's invitation did send a small shudder down the Zorren's spine and he worked to keep his expression passive, even as the very end of his tail gave a small agitated flick. "I've never been one to turn down a good drink. Quite the extravagant palace you've got here." While his voice was friendly, he kept some aspect of his guard up. He could sense something off in the lord before him, and he wasn't paritcularly keen on the idea of finding himself on the down swing of a mood shift.

 

[Nisha Katsuro]

There was movement on the wind, and Nisha's eyes narrowed to catch it.

Her head turned, watching things settle within a moment and her watchful gaze settled on a pale haired fae. Her eyes watched for measurements moments, her own feet walking softly and moving fluidly with the shift of the still entering crowd.

The smile was pleasant and soft, pulling at the corners of her lips and reaching her eyes as she stepped before the other fae. "Curious thing you are... fascinating, really." For the other fae seemed hard to decipher, unlike plenty others that gathered within these halls.

The white haired female was only a little taller than the small Sidhe, who was very careful on her feet to keep from being squashed by the Duannan and other taller faefolk.

"Acquainted with this Court?" She asked.

Lirielle

 

[Lirielle]

Lirielle’s steps faltered, her eyes widening slightly as the voice broke through the haze of magic and music around her. She hadn’t expected anyone to notice her—not here, not now. The faint colors from the shattered glass played across her pale skin as she slowly turned to face the speaker, a delicate furrow forming between her brows.

Warm, brown eyes locked with Nisha’s, confusion flickering across her usually serene features like a stone skipped across a moonlit lake. The Sidhe was so small, so soft in appearance, yet her gaze was sharp—far too sharp for the likes of this place. For a moment, Lirielle remained silent, as if testing whether this was some kind of illusion, some trick of the Palais de Intinn. But no, the Sidhe's words lingered in the air, too real to ignore.

"Me? You..." Lirielle’s voice was barely a whisper at first, almost as though she didn’t quite believe her own ears. Her eyes searched Nisha’s face, a strange mixture of disbelief and vulnerability settling into her expression. "You can see me?"

She blinked, as though trying to ground herself in the moment, and then let out a breath she hadn’t realised she was holding. Her voice, though quiet, carried a weight of centuries—an echo of something ancient and forgotten, as if she were speaking from a dream long past.

"No one... No one usually sees me." Not when they were awake, at least. They were awake, weren't they?

 

[Sedorohein]

Sedo clapped happily as he called over one of the servants who was carrying around one of the platters of champagne. Although the far of this parlor may have called it such, very few mortals would recognize the beverage as champagne. The liquid, while still bubbly, seemed to be an everchanging combination of the colors of the rainbow. The flavor itself started as rather sweet before the very end becoming very bitter. It was a personal creation of Sedorohein several centuries ago.

"Excellent, I love expansion, so many new things to come. The crescendo before the finale. Marvelous! I'm sure they will have great success, mortals always do well with types like the brothers."

And it was true in Sedo's eyes, to put it simply, mortals were subservient. They tried when they had someone to follow. Fae, like the brothers, who urged worship or subservience always did well. But then always came the aftermath, the one mortal that convinced themselves that they somehow knew better than immortal beings...Those were his favorites.

"Nothing for me and my parlor to worry about, I'm sure, our time in the sun has long passed." He added dismissively.

Vulpesen

 

[Vulpesen]

Vulpesen rose a brow at the ever changing drinks, though he took one up almost immediately. "It is our purpose and pleasure. Defend and protect the realm." It was odd in a way, to listen to Sedorohein describe the relationship between fae and mortals. To speak as though Vulpesen was a fellow immortal. Fae rather than fae made. Even with the power of the Brothers flowing through his veins, a day would come where he would age and die. It would take longer than most. Perhaps it would happen so slowly that he would even forget it was happening at all. But it was still a truth that he lived with.

"I'm sure they would be happy to invite you in on their success. My Lord Varos has mentioned an interest in your talents. Believes they could be useful in his line of work." Varos the lord of shadows and secrets knew much about many. There were few fae on the continent of Malakath that could expect to live in anonymity rather than in a full dossier hidden within his files. The ruler of a parlour like Sedorohein stood no chance at all of living below his sight.

Vulpesen took a small sip of the drink, his tail flicking at the sweetness, then stilling rigidly as the bitter flavor set in. Still, he ensured that the momentary displeasure didn't show on his face, something aided by the fact that he had drunk far worse over the years.

 

[Sedorohein]

"I would hope so, the brothers wouldn't get any free worship if the 'realm' got destroyed." He said with a laugh before taking another large sip of his drink and then looking expectantly at Vulpesen's reaction. No matter how much Sederohein smiled, his eyes never seemed to match the rest of the emotions on his face.

"I would enjoy working with the brothers, but alas, I am far too unreliable. He would find better luck perhaps in one of the...seasonal courts. Unfortunately, madness is all year round." The last words shifted his smile to a smirk at his own joke.

"But if the brothers three do look to protect the realm, then they must be picking a side in this inevitable slugfest that I have been hearing so much about...In all honesty, it's all rather exciting. Our world has been rather dull as of late. This chaos might even provide my poor little parlor some opportunities."

Sederohein suddenly snapped his head to the side before raising his hand and the music throughout the entire palace stopped and then shifted to another genre.

"Much better."

Vulpesen

 

[Nisha Katsuro]

A small, triumphant smile pulled at her lips, Nisha nodding affirmation that she indeed could see the other. "I see all, in the sense that those often overlooked or hidden will always be revealed to me. As if the Fates intend on me knowing..." And thus, made her job as a spy fruitful.

Nisha outstretched a hand, a collection of thin chains of gold and bronze wrapped around her wrist and some part of her forearm that they twinkled lightly at the movement. "I hail from the Sun Court. A servant to the Whispers." Servant was a loose word for it, not when she had been willing to listen, to understand, and to wield that words said through the space of the world.

"The winds have been busy carrying word, and what I have been overhearing has left my Court unsettled. A feat not so easily done, I must say... and so I volunteered to travel the other Courts to listen." And investigate. That was left unsaid.

Lirielle