"Wake up, girl."
Asteria woke up to something quite unwelcome. A loud mistress of the spire – Hestia.
"I don't want to..." she grumbled, throwing the cover of her bed over her head once more to avoid the noisy woman in her chambers.
"You've been formally invited by Her Majesty to venture to the cathedral with her," Her voice flat and unamused. "How dare you sleep in?"
'I don't want to see that crazy lady any more than I have to... ' Asteria inwardly lampooned.
The morning air within the spire was thick with anticipation and overly expensive oils. Asteria – somehow clawing herself out of her warm abode – was in front of the vanity after having her skin assaulted within a bath.
"Stop slouching," Mistress Hestia snapped, wielding a silver-backed brush like a weapon. "And for the love of the Gods, keep your face still. You look like you're preparing for a brawl."
"Maybe I am?" Asteria muttered, wincing as Hestia aggressively pulled a knot out of her hair. "And I don't see the problem with how I look! It's a dress, Hestia. It covers what it needs to."
Hestia let out a horrified gasp, dropping the brush to clutch her heart. "Scruffy! Absolutely scruffy. You look like a slav-" She caught her breath, realizing what she nearly said before continuing with a wry, embarrassed smile. "You are wearing the finest silk of this kingdom, child!"
Asteria hummed in lieu of a response, just with a bright, pointedly fake smile on her face.
The dress she was – forced to wear – was heavy, to say the least. Looking down at the gown, it was a deep, iridescent navy that shifted to an almost charcoal black when she moved – it was elegant, beautiful, even – but to her, it felt like another chain around her limbs.
'The Queen doesn't even care about how I dress, all she cares is how different I am... she's really a handful, damnation.'
"Her Majesty wouldn't care if I wore a rag or a dirty shroud, Hestia, you know she's... eccentric." Asteria mused for a moment.
Hestia's hands fumbled for a moment, her face paling. "Don't say such things. Not even in jest. That's our Queen you're insulting. You are going to the Cathedral and meeting the bishop there. It is the holiest ground in the kingdom." She paused for a moment, her face twisting into a terrifying scowl. "Do not, by any means, embarrass us. After all, you're different – maybe the holiness will clean that dirt inside of you." Her voice trailed off at the end, sounding unsure.
'I'd like to see it try, hah!' Asteria lampooned, but she remained silent letting, the older woman fuss over her garments and accessories.
A sharp knock at the door signalled someone's arrival and permission to enter.
"Come in." Asteria said under her breath, irritated at the disruption – knowing it would somehow find it's way to the other side of the door.
Though, she didn't expect him to be on the other side.
Valerius entered with a stride that suggested he had already been awake for hours, his cloak fastened with a brooch of blackened silver. He looked at Asteria with a curious gaze, then at Hestia, who gave a frantic curtsy and scurried away.
"I've not heard that tone in a while. Are you not happy to see me?" He began with a ridiculous smile on his face.
"Not at all, actually, this might've just made my day even worse." A dry laugh escaped her lips.
"You wound me, my dear. Am I not welcoming enough for you?"
"Whatever you say..."
"You look presentable, Asteria! I should know, given I am the most fashionable man in the whole Kingdom of Gla-"
Asteria quickly sat up and crushed his feet beneath her heels. "I get it, you're the most cunning, smartest, fashionable and charming man in the whole kingdom of glass, moving on?"
"I believe you forgot rich too." He smiled, laughing at her antics. "Though I may need some different shoes now, you've ruined these ones."
"If you're so rich then it shouldn't be a problem should it?" She snarled.
"It is a problem, in fact," A smirk made it's way to his lips. "After all we have quite an eventful day ahead of us!"
"Hah! We?" Asteria's eyes widened at what this meant. "Are you seriously coming along? You're joking right?"
He stepped closer to her, his hand brushing against her shoulders. "You didn't hear? I invited myself along of course!" a smile making it's way onto his stupidly handsome face, "Halesia isn't pleased, but as one of her – dutiful and loyal – vassals I have an obligation to do these things!"
"You're insane..." Asteria finally said with a sigh and a droop of her shoulders. "She's going to make your – our – life harder, no?"
"Let her!" Valerius waved his hands with a grim smile. "This is all just a game to her anyways! Now, we have places to be, my dearest Asteria!" He finished speaking with a push of his hands to her back, urging her along out of the spire.
***
The Cathedral was a short walk from the palace, situated on a floating terrace that overlooked the entire capital. The path was lined with white-leafed trees that shivered in time with the distant – disgusting – bell.
Queen Halesia was waiting at the palace gates. She wore a mantle of woven sunlight that made her look like a star brought down to earth. When she saw Valerius standing beside Asteria, her sky-blue eyes narrowed, a flicker of genuine irritation crossing her divine features.
"Valerius," the Queen said, her voice like silk over glass. "I was under the impression you had a house to maintain. Does your spire no longer require its master's hand?"
Valerius bowed, the movement perfectly executed, yet lacking any real warmth. "My house is stable, Your Majesty. But I have heard you were inviting my dear maid to the Cathedral today," He looked around, his gaze wandering along the glamorous structure behind them. "As your architect and someone who helped the construction of this place, I would be remiss if I allowed your morning devotions to be disturbed."
Halesia tilted her head, her gaze shifting to Asteria. "Disturbance seems to be the theme of the week, doesn't it? Very well. If you wish to play the dutiful vassal, walk with us. But do try to keep your 'technical observations' to a minimum. I am in the mood for silence."
The procession began. It was a bizarre trio: the glowing Goddess, the calculating vassal and a maid in silk.
"The building is... impressive, right?" Asteria said, trying to break the suffocating silence. She looked at the towering white spires of the Cathedral ahead.
'Please say something! I am surrounded by crazy people and a horrible silence, none of this makes sense.'
"It is more than impressive, child," Halesia replied, her tone airy. "It is the ribcage of the world. Each arch is designed to catch the chime and carry it into the hearts of the faithful. Without it, the people would be deaf to my love."
'Hah! Love? Is that what you call love?!'
Valerius cleared his throat. "Everything is working as intended, Your Majesty. However, the southern area feels slightly behind. Almost as if something is... interfering before it can be broadcast."
Halesia's steps didn't falter, but the light around her flared for a second. "Perhaps the stones are simply tired of listening to your complaints, Valerius. Or perhaps they are keeping a secret of their own."
"Secrets in a house of light?" Valerius mused, his eyes darting toward the Cathedral's foundations. "How unconventional."
Asteria felt the vibration in her feet change as they stepped onto the Cathedral's bridge. A sensation pricked in her head, trickling down into her eyes and deeper into her very soul.
'What is this place... I know Valerius said there was something important here but is that all?'
"You've gone quiet again, little one," the Queen remarked, glancing back at her. "Are you overwhelmed by the holiness? Or is that man's prattling finally getting to you?"
"I'm just thinking," Asteria said, her voice sharp. "It's silent, that's all."
Halesia stopped at the great silver doors of the Cathedral. She turned to face them both, her presence suddenly towering, the divine warmth turning into a wall of heat.
"The silence is not real, Asteria. It is the absence of life. And today, you will see exactly how much life it takes to keep singing."
She gestured for the doors to be opened. As the silver valves swung wide, a chorus of a thousand harrowing voices erupted from within, singing a hymn that felt like it was peeling the skin from Asteria's bones.
Valerius caught Asteria's eye, a silent command in his gaze: Find the way down.