open | The Emperor's (?) Audience at the Palace of Landed Sky

[alderwood]

Characters: The Ironwood Emperor Alderwood Commander and anyone who came to speak with the Ironwood Emperor.
Date: January 12th
Location: The Palace of Landed Sky
Situation: The expected holding of an audience for any that care to speak with the Ironwood Emperor, though they will be met instead by the Alderwood Commander.
Warnings/Rating: N/A; to be updated if necessary

The hall is still and white, strung with softly glowing lanterns that are strung up high beyond reach. Outside, the sun is at its zenith, and it filters down through the cloudy glass roof to create a brilliant, nearly blinding ambiance.

The floor is marble, inlaid with mother-of-pearl and ruby quartz. It catches the light, and casts strange patterns on the walls.

The room itself is almost eerily silent. No noise, no echoes. No one and nothing vaguely human, excepting the presence of Evandau. The commander of all law enforcement in Keeliai and its surrounding areas stands before the Emperor's empty throne with patient expression and posture reminiscent to the at-ease bearing of a soldier. He waits to receive the petitioners, kedan and Foreigner alike, in Eshai's place this one day. As with her audiences, those wishing to make their case must approach him and he will make not move to shorten the distance between the grand entryway and the throne that he defends.

The 'audience' is an open one, and no one will be turned away. So come one, come all, to the Palace of Landed Sky.

[Actionspam or prose are both acceptable! The Emperor has delegated the audience to Evandau this month and he has been temporarily granted many of the authorities that she naturally holds. Why is that? Well, telling y'all would be too easy, wouldn't it?

Characters will only be admitted into the hall one by one, so there won't be anyone present for anyone else's conversations, and there won't be any 'mingling' in the chamber itself.

By popular demand, we will continue to allow mingling for those waiting for an audience in an antechamber. There is a thread header below to allow for that!]

Comments

AUDIENCE

[alderwood]

Kon-El - CU

[tactile_telekinesis]

Kon had been waiting until he caught wind that the Emperor was going to hold another audience. He wanted to speak to her, ask her something and he was nervous as he went along. What was she going to say? Would she laugh at his request? Tell him it was an impossible task? Kon had no idea and that's what made him all the more nervous about it.

More people from his home world had arrived, and since he had arrived here himself, every person was from a point in time that was literally years ahead. He was tired of it. The mild surprise some of them showed at seeing a younger version, at seeing him. He wanted to know what he was like when they came from, what the Kon they knew was like and the only person that could really help was the Emperor.

So that was why he was there, entering the audience chamber and, oh holy crap the place was huge. Kon took a deep breath and let it out after a moment and took to the air, making his way to the throne. He'd never been before, so he didn't know what to expect, no one had told him. To be fair though, he never asked.

He stopped suddenly when he saw Evandau and stared, hovering in mid-air. This wasn't something he'd expected before, and he didn't see the Emperor. With a raised brow, he cleared his throat and moved a little closer.

"Uh, I thought I was gonna see the Emperor? Not that I'm not totally thrilled to see you or anything but, y'know..."

[alderwood]

Evandau remembered him, the same as he recalled all that broke the laws of Keeliai. The curfew miscreant with flight and strength, both which had taken his presence to subdue in the aftermath of the gang altercations.

He remained standing before the throne, unfazed by the hovering. Briefly, his expression took on a wry cant. "Today, you will be seeing me," came out simple and sweet. "What do you want?"

[duelkatana]

One at a time. Leonardo had suspected it might turn out this way, in the month following his decision to speak to the Emperor; he knew it was a long shot that he'd be able to keep his brother with him for this day. Maybe it's for the best - Raph is far from a diplomat, after all. But it's the first time they've been truly separated since they arrived here, and the weight of it still presses down.

But he has faced the unknown with no one at his side before. And this time, his purpose is already laid out in front of him. Leo settles his shoulders and presses forward into the audience hall.

In the light of day, the room is far different than what Leonardo experienced when he and Raph snuck in only a month before. Instead of soft moonlight casting foggy shadows onto the floor, the sun has swept the audience hall into a place of shining brilliance, patterns of light dancing across the floor and walls. It's still beautiful, he grudgingly notes - but far too bright.

His eyes almost drift to the doors lining the edges of the room, but he refrains at the last moment. No point in that. His previous visit has left him fully aware of what lies beyond...or rather, what keeps him from discovering it.

Which is another concern: he and Raphael tried to break in, however failed an attempt it was. They saw not a single person to serve as witness to their crime, but it troubles him all the same.

When he catches sight of the figure waiting before the empty throne, alarm bells ring in Leo's head. The man before him stands with the posture of a military soldier, and there's no sign of the woman Leonardo expected to see. But he doesn't allow himself the time to wonder; don't hesitate, don't show weakness. Leo halts in front of the man a polite distance away and dips into a formal bow. Then he speaks, his voice level.

"Hello. My apologies, but I was expecting to meet with the Emperor today."

[alderwood]

The show of respect is customary, but still he inclines his head with a brief, efficient nod. "I am her proxy," Evandau replied mildly. "What do you want?"

[neverleftharlan]

[Raylan strides into the audience chamber with a projected confidence that's as much for his own comfort as anything. He's relieved to see a military man instead of royalty, just the same.

His boots don't echo. The resplendence of the palace stirs resentments as old as the first Kentucky coal mines, and by the time Raylan stops at what he estimates to be a safe and respectful distance, his dander is up enough to banish the uncertainty sown by this place and all that comes with it.

Raylan nods, touching the brim of his hat.]

Sir. Do you require my introduction, or would you as soon get down to business.

[alderwood]

[Evandau can appreciate the direct manner of his approach and statement, giving hints to what might be a worthwhile audience after a series of grovelling, circuitous conversations.]

I know every Foreigner. [A confirmation for him more than anything.] What is it you want?

[histruename]

Hellboy doesn't consider himself the best at detective work. His title as "The World's Greatest Paranormal Investigator" usually had more to do with being at the right place at the right time and beating the crap out of whatever ugly stirred up a fuss.

But here he is, his hooves clicking against the marble floors as he trudges his way across the dizzyingly beautiful expanse between the grand entryway and the Emperor's throne. And Evandau, waiting patient as stone.

When he caught wind of him acting as the Emperor's stand-in from the people come and gone before him, Hellboy was less than pleased. He's had run-ins with this guy before. But looking back on it, getting thrown in jail for the night had more to do with his poor choices and bad mood more than anything. The whole incident was a little embarrassing, more than anything. So he's determined to not talk about it and try to get some decent information out of the guy.

Not that he won't take anything he says with a heavy grain of salt. He has no real respect or trust for the Emperor or anyone who willingly serves her. Whether or not this place really does need protection from whatever big nasty might be lurking on the horizon, she's still a kidnapper. She's still taking people against their will, and that will always rub him the wrong way.

When he reaches the steps leading up to the Emperor's empty throne, he stops, regarding Evandau in silence, face expressionless as always. "Emperor," he drawls after a moment. "You look different. Get a new hair cut?"

[alderwood]

Evandau's lips crawl upwards into a wry smile, recognising the humour and visage of the one before him. It is not his concern whether the Foreigners which visit him get a value for their time, so he plays into it with a flat reply of: "Astute of you to notice."

[memoriesinsmoke]

This had been something Liz was planning since she was apparently brought back. She didn't remember going home and she didn't remember leaving, but apparently something had happened to make her disappear for several weeks. What exactly that something was... well, it's what she hopes to find out today. Liz doubts that she'll manage to get any straight answers, but that doesn't mean she shouldn't at least try.

Once her turn comes and she goes inside, Liz frowns as she notices that, no, the person standing in front of her is not the Emperor.

"I thought this was supposed to be a meeting with the Emperor."

[alderwood]

"It is," Evandau replies, well-accustomed now to this reaction. "I'm acting as her proxy. What do you want?"

[hackingyoursensors]

The palace is grand, a show of power in a place so resource-starved. But Dick was used to grand places and shows of power, so he's not intimidated. And certainly isn't tongue-tied. If that was the intended effect, it failed.

The fact that Evandau was here in place of the Emperor was unexpected, to say the least. But there was no evidence of any kind of insurrection, so clearly he was just a stand-in. Dick couldn't help but be curious about where the Emperor had gone. He highly doubted anyone, especially Evandau, would tell him. No, he should just stick to his plan and make his request. Hopefully Evandau was as inclined to be generous about this request as the Emperor reportedly was.

Dick walks calmly through the throne room, not looking hostile but also not bending over backwards to be polite and deferential. He does bow formally, though, before speaking.

"Alderwood Commander, I have a request I hope you can grant."

[alderwood]

Young, but respectful; Evandau suspects it to be as much a show of custom as anything else. The Foreigners have an interesting penchant to distrust and dislike him solely for his role as the Commander in their perceived imprisonment. "What do you want?" he asks, a simple and flat question that serves him well today.

Zatanna

[backwordscompatible]

She was nervous.

Granted, there was every reason to be, but it was still a rare occurrence for her. Though maybe not as rare as it used to be. Not after the last couple of months in particular. She was requesting the audience of someone who was apparently powerful enough to summon her from beyond realms. Not just realms, either, but through the Helmet. Which was exactly what she came here for.

It was more than just the Helmet, though. Zatanna knew things, and though there were only two people in Keelai who knew that she knew, she couldn't help wondering about the degree of the Emepror's omniscience. For all she knew, the Emperor was telepathic. Which was why she tried to keep her thoughts focused soley on her main reason for coming.

...the unexpected presence of a surrogate, however, momentarily threw her off. Making her initial greeting come out far more or a surprised outburst than the carefully calculated introduction she'd originally planned.

"I thought the Emperor was a woman?"

Re: Zatanna

[alderwood]

Had he a juulan for every time he's heard that today, Evandau would possess more than the monetarily mighty Lieuen himself. The thought brought a dry shadow to his expression. "You thought right," he said, his turn-of-phrase simple and direct compared to Eshai. "I'm her proxy today. What do you want?"

[wintershepherd]

Jack had been told about the upcoming audience with the Emperor a little while ago, and while he had known exactly what it was that he had wanted to know, it had taken quite a few days of thinking to be able to put it together into something that sounded a little more proper for asking an Emperor.

Yet when the winter spirit entered the audience hall, he was utterly amazed at the beautiful room. He wanted to fly up to examine the glass roof, but he'd bade the wind to stay outside rather than follow him in. When he saw that the throne itself was empty and that a man was standing near it rather than the woman Emperor he'd been told to expect, he had only a moment of pause... given the security in the Palace, anyone left standing alone in the throne room was probably important enough to answer the questions Jack had anyway.

"Hello," he greeted, hoping there wasn't any sort of proper act that was supposed to go with meeting royalty. He also didn't know who he was talking to yet, so he figured a little introduction could go a long way. "I'm Jack Frost. The Emperor isn't in today?"

[alderwood]

One of the newer Foreigners, to be unaccustomed to his presence -- the gang wars etched it in the minds of those present, but he had little active duty in their ranks since then. Too busy was he with the ins-and-outs of the kedan to overly worry about the mostly-behaved Foreigner population.

"Evandau," he provided dryly in return. "I'm her proxy today. What do you want?"

[build]

For the most part, Ariadne is and always will be considered, an inquisitive girl. So when the opportunity to finally see this mysterious emperor presented itself to her, she jumped at it, and quietly waited her turn, somewhat unsure of just what she was going to say and just what exactly she was doing.

That is until it was her turn and she was looking up at man she honestly didn't expect to be seeing. Last she heard the emperor was a woman, and this definitely wasn't a woman.

So with a bit of skepticism appearing on her face, and her weight shifting from one leg to the next, she just politely (well, as politely as she could) asked: "Who exactly are you?" Because she might as well just get right to the point and not tip toe around this man. She did need some type of understanding to whom these people were that were that had her and Arthur stuck in this limbo.

Re: AUDIENCE

[the_other_eight]

Pepper honestly had nothing that she wanted to ask for from the Emperor, or in this case the Alderwood Commander. Pepper wasn't entirely sure what to do in the case of meeting someone like this. She'd never had to know what to do. So instead of bowing or anything of that nature she extended her hand to him. "Good afternoon."

[sophos]

[Annabeth goes, she'll usually go and to not do so might be suspicious, no matter how much things might be a little different from the last time. She's fully intending to see the Emperor, only there's Evandau instead. Interesting. But she approaches the same as she usually would.]

This is new. What happened to the Emperor?

[trainwrecked]

[Bucky approaches quietly, smartly, paying attention to the place. He hasn't actually been here, before, not the audience room... and the man at the end of the walk is not who he expects to see. His eyebrows rise, but the reaction is his heels clicking together, and brief at-attention.]


Sir.


[Since Evandau was the one who commandeered the foreigners back during the mess with the gangs... months ago. Still, a superior enough. And, out of habit, he waits for acknowledgment, before going on.]

Damian

[demon_brat]

[Damian walks across the audience chamber with his eyebrows drawn up. This is clearly not the Emperor... and his memories of Evandau are not necessarily the fondest. Though the bad run-in was as Robin, so he narrowly swallows the first comment he is tempted to make, and instead thinks of modifying the question he had come with for the altered circumstances.]

[By the time he reaches the dais, there is little surprise on his face.]

Commander.

[Simple greeting. Request to be acknowledged. One of those.]

ANTECHAMBER

[alderwood]

[neverleftharlan]

[He stations himself in a corner against the far wall so he can at the very least watch who comes and goes through the doors to the audience chamber and the antechamber - and keep his back against something, though the latter is pure habit. He'll be there before and after his own audience, as approachable as he ever tends to be.]

[meanandgreen]

[After his brother is forced to enter the audience hall alone, Raphael takes to pacing the marble floor just outside the doors like a caged tiger. He knows Leo's got this whole diplomacy thing down, but letting him go in there alone is seriously pissing him off.

Though it's probably better. Leo's plan was to confront the Emperor peacefully, and what Raph really has in mind is anything but peaceful.]