Celestia's Apostate

Chapter Two

Tartaglia practically skips as he walks into the ballroom and approaches his fellow harbingers, la Signora and Scaramouch, "Wow, I can't believe I'm about to witness another harbinger rise to the ranks. This party seems extravagant. They really pulled out all the stops, huh?" he says as he pours himself a drink.

"I heard the Tsaritsa herself helped with the party preparation, along with the priestess of the Church of Snezhnaya," Signora said as she takes a look around, eyeing the important people who were in the room.

Scaramouch scoffs as he rolls his eyes. "The 12th harbinger will probably be someone from the Church. I bet that little brat has something up her sleeve. Why else would they be so secretive with who will be promoted?"

Tartaglia hums, swirling the drink in his hand. "I, for one, am hoping it's someone from the church. I've been wanting to fight one of their head generals for a while now. My mora's on Sir Nigredo. I hear he's the best fighter in the entire church and he is one of the most trusted people to the priestess." Signora tsk's, crossing her arms and giving him a stern look.

"Haven't you've been banned from the church, multiple times? Even the Tsaritsa has given you orders to stay away. If you keep harassing them people are going to think you have something against the church or even the priestess herself."

Tartaglia gasps holding a hand to his heart as he looks to Signora with an offended look. "I don't hate the divine priestess! In fact, I highly respect her! It takes a warrior spirit to rise above in the most unlikely of places. Her story is something straight out of a Fairy tale. I wonder how the Tsaritsa found her all those years ago."

Four years ago there was a massive blizzard that spread over Snezhnaya, one the nation had never seen before. That same day, the Cryo Archon went missing. The fatui searched high and low but there were no signs of the Tsaritsa until she came back in the dead of night with a small girl drenched in blood. The little girl did not have a name. She did not look human. Her eyes had no visible iris and shone like jewels holding a look almost akin to a doll. She had two crystal-like horns protruding from her head. People assumed she was just an orphan the Tsaritsa took pity on. Eventually, the girl ended up working at the church in a considerably high position with the backing of the Tsaritsa.

Though she had extraordinary healing abilities, no one expected much of the girl. Perhaps if the girl was lucky she would gain a higher position, if not she would most likely fall victim to the harsh and competitive nature of the church. What no one expected was that in just six months of her stay, she compiled evidence of corruption. Almost all of the head officials were executed and for her service, the nameless little girl became the new head of the church.

Scaramouch crosses his arms and raises his eyebrow. "Fairytale, huh? Sounds more like a nightmare to me. Who knows how many people were after her back then." Tartaglia sighs dreamily, resting his elbows on the table. "I know if the priestess ever learned how to fight, she would be a fearsome appoint."

"Ever battle-hungry as ever I see, Tartaglia,"
Dottore says as he walks in buttoning up his blazer. There's a small smudge of oil smeared on his cheek making it clear he was in the middle of something before he joined the group. "I'm surprised to see you here so soon, Dottore. The last time you arrived just before the ceremony started and left once it ended. To what do we owe your gracious presence?" Signora says as she takes out a handkerchief, wiping away the stain on his cheek and smoothing down the blue curls on his head to make him look more presentable.

"Why the divine priestess, of course. Seeing that she's not here yet, it seems our predictions may be correct," Dottore says, a crazed smile on his face. The three harbingers look uncomfortable knowing exactly why he was smiling.