392 years before the ascension of the Celestial Monarch.
The palace gardens were decorated with black and white marble, representing duality; in the corners stood statues of wolves from the eastern continent known as wargs.
Paintings and statues of hegemons covered the setting, as well as of ancient gods who were once worshipped in temples and were now admired for their beauty.
Mois, the matron of the great Delus, feeding him at her lips using the cornucopia, depicted as a wolf-like woman; after all, it was rumored she had been the mother of the lupercals.
Images of the corybantes, enormous warriors covered in black and gold armor with huge shields and swords, striking the pose of beating their shields while performing a ritual dance and shouts to hide Delus's cries from his vengeful father.
Not to mention a statue of Delus himself, the last great leader of the Lemurian pantheon.
Or even the painting of the fall of the ancient consulate showing its degeneration, depicted with a scene of a homoerotic orgy, showcasing their rejection of that practice, the so-called declaniationem antiquorum.
And beneath it was a small epitaph in the ancient language of the Hegemony, which read: "Beyond bloodshed and war, cruel is the pleasure of the flesh that shatters the unity and the golden empire."
Ironic, she mocked in her mind as she thought about how, while the magisters complained about past decadence, they frequented brothels where they didn't distinguish between men and women.
But that wasn't what mattered at this precise moment, but rather the people inside the palace. She saw people of all kinds in this place, from Aures dressed in long, colorful tunics, to Argenteans wearing bronze and silver, proudly displaying their ornamental weapons.
She saw some feysier and even feynir among the crowd. What caught her attention the most was a dharmic ascetic, wearing an orange kasaya and followed by several disciples in lighter-colored tunics.
"It seems the invitation reached you as well." She startled slightly at the voice. Turning around, she came face to face with a familiar countenance: Baudila, the princeps's eldest son, who was dressed in a bronze doublet and stood with a regal bearing, giving him an imposing aura thanks to his straight silver hair.
"Yes, my lord, the invitation to attend the welcome banquet has reached me," she replied with a slight bow. She was dressed in a fitted outfit, her crimson hair standing out in the crowd, and her muslin and silk dress was so soft it felt like she was touching the morning dew itself. "How are you? Have you recovered well?"
It wasn't for nothing that she felt the sharp gaze of many men drawn to her and her breasts, but that didn't bother her too much for now.
"You could say that. I appreciate your discretion, Korelia; it's something often lacking among the Argenteans, but it's good to find it in someone like you." At that point, perhaps Korelia could confirm that, apparently, her capture and imprisonment hadn't been exactly legal, which was surely why the princeps hoped she wouldn't spread the word about what had happened.
"I am here to serve you, Your Majesty," she replied with a smile.
"I'm glad you say so, because the situation is about to get quite complicated."
Before he could reveal more, the sudden announcement from the house servant silenced everyone.
"Primus Uncio Betrica, Magister Elektrum of the Elektrum Hunters, Little Hegemon of the East, and heir to Prima Uncia Betrica, graces us with his presence as the distinguished guest of the princeps." Suddenly, silence fell, like an invisible tide that suppressed the voices of everyone present, leaving them stunned, filled with fear and panic.
Even Baudila, who seemed indifferent to everyone, looked troubled at that name, at that identity.
Curiously, Korelia realized at this moment that the hall was strangely arranged in the entrance area as if it were an exhibition, filled with women.
And she was among them.
If there was one feeling when the bronze-colored figure entered the place, it was respect and fear in unison, as if it were a generalized sentiment for everyone present.
He was a tall man, much taller than anyone present, bordering on two point eight meters and rivaling three meters. His body from head to toe was covered in heavy bronze armor ornamented with Sanskrit runes, and a helmet with no slits other than two crimson dots where the eyes should be. A horsehair crest adorned the top of the helmet, giving him an even more powerful aura than he already possessed.
Taking long strides past the entrance of the hall, his gaze seemed omnipresent as he evaluated everyone present with a coldness beyond words. It caused weakness in the legs of more than one of the maidens serving the palace, who could barely remain standing.
Behind him emerged a small but equally striking retinue. This time they were men in golden armor of an almost amber hue, with long green capes draped over their shoulders and helmets with a horizontal visor where the eyes should be.
"The Elektrum Guard, they must be his subordinates," Baudila murmured with a solemn expression, watching the gold-armored men with deep respect and caution, but focusing his gaze on the bronze-armored man who had stopped in the middle of the room, motionless.
"That is the magister," she murmured, somewhat dazed. The man's presence was quite brutal; even Lunes probably didn't have such a powerful and sublime presence and aura, although she couldn't say for sure if it was weaker or stronger than Primus's. At the very least, in impetus and ferocity, he surpassed the majority of the powers in the cult by a considerable margin.
"Yes, that is the magister. There are quite terrifying rumors about his presence in the upper echelons; it's said that he is the son of the usurper hegemon Prima Uncia, and that he is her most powerful warrior and general, having been the hidden force behind each of her victories."
"Hence the title of Little Hegemon, huh," she murmured, the realization dawning in her mind.
"Yes, but alongside that fame, there is also his infamy. It's said he doesn't deny himself pleasure and strips women of all classes, from princesses of ancient clans to slaves." Unconsciously, as he said those words, he looked at Korelia with some guilt.
Who had practically already understood the reason why there were so many courtesans and maidens at this high-society gathering.
They were sacrifices, essentially.
The princeps, nervous despite his age, quickly stepped forward upon feeling the sharp gaze of the Magister Elektrum, or rather, Primus.
The armor of Primus and his retinue of Elektrum warriors shone even without the need for natural light, as if their mere holy presence was enough to eliminate any shadow.
Palladium, Korelia thought to herself as she enviously observed the warriors' armor. It was a metal of the highest quality, even many times denser than titanium and more flexible than steel, possessing the ability to change shape at the user's will through the manipulation of spiritual energy, and here it was being used for giant armors as well as weapons.
Every gram of palladium was likely more valuable than a hundred ounces of gold and silver.
"Your presence in this place is an honor, venerable one," the princeps said respectfully, narrowing his eyes and casting a stern look at Primus as he continued, "but your authority only exists within the borders of the eastern continent." His voice had taken on a touch of coldness at those last words.
In recent months, rumors of a dual campaign to suppress the usurpers' rebellion, led by Hegemon Liaure in both the western and eastern continents, ran deep. Therefore, the presence of an Elektrum magister by the name of Primus Uncio Betrica raised quite a few suspicions and even alarms in the princeps's mind.
"We do not come to fight your authority, princeps," said a deep, powerful voice that provoked the urge to kneel in most of those present, but the person who had spoken was not Primus.
The most ornamented golden figure from Primus's retinue stepped ahead of his magister and revealed a parchment written in platinum ink, clearly displaying the ancient Sanskrit characters of a single word:
"Purge."
The character shone with a blinding light that provoked a gasp of surprise from the princeps. "That's impossible, only the Hegemon has the ability to invoke the power of the ancient constellations..." But before he could continue speaking, screams of pain echoed throughout the venue as a mist of blood blanketed the scene.
Suddenly, a high-pitched scream echoed through the hall as blood began to violently erupt from the bodies of several nobles, who suddenly found their bodies burning and consumed in flames. Most notable was an ancient noble of the Aurean lineage who suddenly burst into a fierce black flame while roaring in anger.
But as this happened, a sinister voice echoed in the room: "It seems tonight's preparations will have to be moved up. I suppose the banquet must start early."
Suddenly, the air began to distort as if it were a shattered stained-glass window. Kaleidoscopic lights filled the hall while the blood flowing on the floor formed mysterious runes, very different from any language she had ever seen in this world; but if she had to compare it to something, it would probably be similar to Norse runes or even ancient sigils.
The Elektrum warriors quickly reacted and gripped their blades, which surprisingly extended on their own, transforming into long halberds that sliced several nearby nobles in two. The nobles began emitting smoke and fire from their eyes and mouths as they recited a strange ritual in a sinister tongue.
The blood and viscera from the severed bodies flew in all directions in response to the brutal force of the Elektrum warriors.
But it was too late; the ritual was complete.
Dazed and on guard against any unforeseen event, Korelia watched in surprise as the world turned into a realm of kaleidoscopic light before a feeling of emptiness flooded her. She suddenly realized that her body had shifted through space, into a dimension that seemed to be filled with colored mirrors.
And then she simply lost consciousness.