The Inner Palace, built upon the ruins of Kathmandu, was a vast complex at the heart of the Imperial Palace, its security entirely the responsibility of the Custodes.
The Gate of Ascension separated the Inner Palace from the Outer Palace.
Within the Inner Palace stood the Sanctum Imperialis, the Emperor's residence; the Ambassadorial Enclave of the Mechanicum; the Great Chamber of Legislature's, seat of the Council of Terra; the Hall of Victory, a miracle of the Emperor's power; the Tower of Heroes, housing the Bell of Lost Souls; and the Principa Collegiate.
The Principa Collegiate was the Imperium's largest educational institution and library.
Its auditorium was paved with polished marble, filled with maplewood seats brought from House Carpinus's estates in Cairo.
Paternal Envoy Lauren Visccher arrived on time, entering with Nemo Zhi-Ming, Master of the Adeptus Astra Telepathica, and took her seat in the front row.
After a sip of mandrake-infused Cradle of Seas tea, her brow furrowed.
She turned, seeing Gianluigi Belisarius, a Navigator of House Belisarius, enter.
Petronella Vivar, about to take the stage, signaled her father. The Carpinus patriarch approached.
"Lord Carpinus, you wouldn't turn away an uninvited guest, would you?" Belisarius's sharpened teeth gleamed like a wolf's fangs.
"Of course not," Carpinus said, recovering quickly.
He had already placed spare seats in the back row, prepared for any late-arriving dignitaries.
If an unexpected guest of importance arrived, they would be moved to a more suitable seat.
If no one arrived, the seats would be discreetly removed after the event began.
"I didn't know you had left the Hrafnkel and returned to Terra."
"The Wolf King gave me some time off." Belisarius stared at the beautifully printed books on the stage.
Not long ago, the Wolf King had granted him leave, asking him, as a personal favor, to attend the launch of another Primarch's biography, Nareth's, and bring him a copy.
Belisarius knew the Wolf King wanted to learn about his brother Primarch through his personal biography.
The world saw Russ as a brutal, uncivilized barbarian. But Belisarius knew the cunning and guile he hid beneath that savage exterior.
Belisarius watched Visccher and the representatives of the other Navigator Houses filing into their seats. He walked straight to the middle of the back row and sat alone.
The Carpinus attendants looked to their patriarch for guidance. He gestured.
They quietly dispersed, leaving the seat in place.
Carpinus looked away. He knew there were many other attendees, some overt, some hidden:
Guilliman, openly sending his representative, Gren Vostho, who had once served Nareth.
Fulgrim, the lover of art, naturally sending his former Chief Iterator, Gogonada Peyarch. She was, even more than a Council Lord, the most powerful woman on Terra.
White-haired and with age-spotted skin, she was still the Emperor's voice; her every word carried the weight of the Master of Mankind's own.
.....
Carpinus stood tall. Whether they came for the power of House Carpinus or for their own purposes, it mattered not.
This was a day of glory for House Carpinus. The first Primarch biography, especially one about the legendary and enigmatic Lord Nareth, would cement their standing in the Terran court and the Council.
Petronella would be a second coming of her great-great-grandmother, chronicling the Master of Mankind.
He watched proudly as Petronella walked onto the stage and gently stroked the maple desk gifted by the Emperor.
Petronella, in a simple black dress, raised her elegantly manicured hand.
"Over two hundred years ago, my ancestor sat at this very desk, recording the glory of the Master of Mankind. Our family witnessed the founding of the Imperium, and the reclamation of the galaxy for humanity."
"For the past seven years, I have sat at this desk, completing this biography of Lord Nareth."
She lowered her hand, raising her chin like a swan.
"For seven years, I doubted my meager skills could do justice to the transcendent heroism of the greatest of the living. But Lord Nareth encouraged me. When his obsidian eyes were fixed upon me, he gave me the courage to finish."
She picked up a black-bound book from the table, holding its lower edge in her right hand, displaying it with her left.
The book was three thousand three hundred pages long, each page made of Bondsman No. 11, the pinnacle of human papermaking.
A single page would cost a hive-dweller a lifetime's savings.
Of course, they would never be able to buy it anyway.
After acquiring Bondsman, Petronella had ordered a new paper type, skipping No. 10 and naming it No. 11. She ordered it to be used only for Lord Nareth's biography.
"I have titled it The Shadow Sovereign."
"Lord Nareth's achievements are legendary, yet few know the full scope of his epic saga, they remain as mysterious as shadow."
"He is also known as the Monarch of Vostroya. Hence, the title."
She traced the four gilded characters on the cover.
"For the first time, Lord Nareth has revealed his inner thoughts during the liberation of the Coronid Deeps and the annihilation of the Mitus."
"There are, of course, many other campaigns. You will have to discover them for yourselves within."
Her gaze swept the audience, lingering on Belisarius, sitting alone in the back row, looking at her with interest.
"I witnessed firsthand his victory over the powerful Khrave xenos. My accounts far more vivid than anything in the War Council's records."
She looked at the eager faces below, finally settling on Osean, the Master of the Imperial Archives.
"There is even an account of a Primarch's duel within the Warp, a contest between Lord Nareth and Lord Magnus, the two Primarchs most knowledgeable about the Warp, a contest in the Immaterium."
Nemo Zhi-Ming's hand trembled, spilling his tea. He glanced at Visccher.
Lauren gave a slight nod. She had already read the report within her own family; she had little interest in Petronella's layman's account of the Warp. It was the mysterious Hrud that fascinated her.
Lord Angron had left no records; only through Lord Nareth's biography could one glimpse the Hrud's mysteries.
Seeing the audience captivated, Petronella smiled.
"The Regent was joking earlier, saying he wanted my autograph."
"I have, of course, signed my own name, though I know that without my reminder, everyone might have overlooked it."
After the jest, she continued.
"However, there is one page, a foreword written by Lord Nareth himself with his own signature and seal."
"Of course, what you receive will be a reproduction. After all, Lord Nareth is not as leisurely as I am, to sign so many copies."
She quipped, "His original signature is my most precious possession."
The nobles laughed along, rising one by one to have their photos taken with Petronella and to receive their copies.
Belisarius was the last to approach the stage. He looked at Petronella. "Lady Carpinus, could I have two copies?"
She studied him. Besides Ossian for the Regent, Gren for Lord Guilliman, Peyarch for Lord Fulgrim, and a dozen others who had requested extra copies, this uninvited guest also wanted a second.
"Of course, Mr. Belisarius."
For the first time since the Council of Terra's formation, the Palatine Arc beyond the Europa Wall held no all-night banquets. Only the rustle of turning pages echoed through the noble estates.
....
Beneath the Imperial Palace, Malcador approached the Emperor.
The Master of Mankind, after hearing of the day's Council session and the release of Nareth's biography, gave a deep look.
"I remember Carpinus. She was always full of energy, earnest to the point of stubbornness."
He had been forced to subtly influence her, altering much of her work.
"Petronella Vivar is very like her."
"Indeed. They are both relentless." Malcador smiled.
"A thought occurred to me today."
"What?"
"Nareth foresaw the formation of the Council of Terra," Malcador said, thoughtful.
"Even if he lacks Magnus's, Sanguinius's, or Curze's prophetic gifts, he may have deduced the Imperium's political trajectory."
"You mean, he agreed to Petronella Vivar's biography to influence the Council's nobles?"
Malcador nodded. "He, like all the Primarchs, perhaps except Vulkan, would be dissatisfied with the loss of their power."
"But unlike Mortarion and others who would openly complain, this is the approach Nareth would take."
"Then, what would his reaction be if I banned psychic powers?" the Emperor asked.
Malcador felt the weight of the world settle on him. "You have made a decision?"
"Summon the Primarchs. Convene a council at Nikaea."
"There, I will announce my decision."
Malcador gripped his staff. "As you command."
....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
[email protected]/DaoistJinzu