[b][i]Relevant to Everyone[/i][/b]

With the Surge Guardians gone, those still in Madoka's world would be teleported to the Manisa League, in order to get their bearings and some medical attention for Ryteb. The fleet itself, once it had replenished enough energy, would travel back to above Madoka!Earth, kept hidden from the people below by magic. In the large, blue whale-sized dreadnought, the group would have downtime...

[i][b]Not Relevant to Everyone[/b][/i]

((Collab between Letter Bee and Arty Fox))

Cheese now walked calmly through the corridors of the almost laberynthian Mansia Legue unlike earlier when she had been skulking around one of the common rooms Ruler of the Sea, after a brief encounter with Mac outside the medical room.
 
She had apologised for nearly strangling him and stated she would try not to lose her temper again, and he in turn had begrudgingly accepted her apology. But sadly the conversation had returned to Mac refusing to use magic and after several very rude words were shouted the pair stormed off in seperate directions.

"Excuse me." She stopped a passing crew emmber. "Any idea where the Emperor might be right now? And if he is available for an audience?"

"He is resting from the exertion of using Planetary Stopza," the crewman said to Cheese. "But the Empress is available; she's in her chambers."

"Thank you." She said simply and made her way towards the Empresses chambers. Arriving at the doors Cheese gently knocked upon the elegent doors and awaited a reply.

The doors would then open, and Cheese would find Empress Maria D' Italia, now in a simple white shirt and black pants, her long hair tied in a bun, waiting for her, seated on a chair of plastic. There was another seat of non-metallic material close by, and the Empress would say:

"Cheese, I'm glad you can see me. Have a seat."

"Thank you, your Majesty." Cheese gave a small bow when the Empress guided her into her chambers and bid her to sit. "I do hope I am not intruding but I was wondering if I might ask you of something? Unless my..." Cheese thought of what word she should use. "Associate. Has already seen either yourself or your husband."

Cheese felt a prickle at the base of her spine but refused to acknowledge it;Mac was safe on the Ruler of the Sea.

"Althought I would still like to discuss it with you." She continued and lifted her hands from her lap ready to illustrate what she had to say. "Me and Mac are trying to shatter our curse and the two of us feel that, given what you have already been able to do, with your rescourses you could help us."

"I don't know how much you know about curses but in our world there's a difference between Breaking a Curse and Shattering one." She held up bother her hands to illustrate. She gestured with her right hand before continuing. "When Breaking a curse you are fulfilling it's criteria be that either simply expending the required amount to remove it or meeting a specific set of circumstances.

Next Cheese gestured with her left. "Shattering a curse is another way and to do so you just need to hit the Curse with enough magical energy for it to break.But even the smallest curses take a large amount of magical power, I think it has something to do with how complex the Curse is or who laid it but I'm not entirely sure I'm afraid."

Letting her hands fall Cheese paused and looked almost defeated but still held a very sharp stare with the Empress "I should make the scale of how much power is need clear to you; the only known succesful Shattering of a Curse took place many, many ages ago, even by Fae standards, and where it took place there are now multiple villages surrounding a lake."

"I know it's a lot to ask but." Cheese steadied herself, despite everything she couldn't help but let her hopes rise slightly. "I was wondering if you might be able to help, even a little bit both I and Mac would be immensly grateful."

"My husband, albeit drawing power from this entire fleet, was able to stop time on a moon-shaped mass, and is theoretically able to do the same to something as large as Earth," Maria D' Italia said. "We are thus capable of what you want or need, but the backlash might cause massive destruction, which is why we waited for you to ask us. Nevertheless, I do have a solution." She then looked at them.

"We will have to take a brief detour back to Renovation -we will teleport there. Underneath the Palace of the Blachrenae is the [I]Cornerstone[/i], a relic of such power it might shatter your curse easily...but I'll have to bring Damianos with me, and request Hakim the Wise and Sharukh Mirza the Fifth to come so that they can contain the excess power and prevent it from killing large numbers of people. But yes, we can do it right now, if you want..."

Cheese felt as if she had just been slapped in the face and all composure had quickly left her. She stared slack-jawed at the empress.

"I..." Cheese closed her mouth and tried again. "uh..." "umm..." "Sorry..." She frowned heavily firmly believing that it was too good to be true.

"No." She finally spoke. "No, it can't be that simple. It just can't!" Cheese leapt up with such force, slamming her palms down onto the table, that her chair was sent clattering to the ground.

"This isn't some simple little curse that can just be whisked away! It was laid by The. Goblin.King." Another slam for each word. "And not just on one person but on two, plus Mac lost his Name and Face for crying out loud, there are rule even to magic that need to be followed!"

Cheese stepped away from the table and swore several times under her breath, and then bellowed several more.

"Are you telling me that you have had a solution for goodness knows how long without even telling us!?" Cheese bared her teeth, hissing out every word with barely controlled rage. "You do realise that if Mac gets his sorry ass killed I die too! We have been trying for years to fulfil our Curses criteria and you're saying you can just shatter it? Like it's just..." Cheese had burnt herself out. "Like it's just this mildly dangerous thing."

For a minute at least Cheese stood, staring at the Empress, almost pleading with silence for a different answer. Or maybe just say it really was that simple. Cheese didn't know, in fact she just felt very empty.

"I'm sorry." She said very quietly. "The Goblin King will know, and I think they'll try to stop you from taking his thing."

"The Cornerstone of Light is located under a city of 16 million people, 2 million more people than the city in the original timeline, the so-called 'Istanbul'. I waited for you to ask because I wanted to know whether I should risk the lives of [i]my adoptive city[/i] for the sake of the Multiverse. So, no, not mildly dangerous; more like the danger is such that I would have been betraying my own people if I failed," Maria was tranquilly furious.

"Because I actually [i]care[/i] about my own subjects, unlike your Goblin King, much as I care about the welfare of the Multiverse. I needed to know first if you would ask me to take up the burden of putting the latter above the former before risking anything..." A pause.

"As for the Goblin King, Giorgios Kyros and the elite guards - Athanatoi/Immortals, we no longer use Varangians - can be deployed to protect us..."

Cheese huffed and considered trying to regain some composure and goodwill with the Empress. She ran a hand through her hair in thought trying to figure out what to do next; she didn't want to betray The Goblin King, but after the years she had spent in the Mundane Realm she had slowly begun to consider them less and lesss her King. To Cheese the words The Empress spoke sounds very much like theirs always saying how much they cared about their subjects, that they were better thanany other being in power. Cheese held her toungue though.

"The Goblin King themself won't appear, doubt they would even fit." A dark and exhausted chuckle. How long had she been holding in that outburst? "They'll use Mac, and then through Mac they'll use me."

"The Goblin King owns Macs name so they can pretty much control him, and use him somewhat like a conduit for magic." She explained but didn't meet the Empresses icy gaze. Cheese also decided against mentioning the missions she had undertaken whilst in the Mundane. "But given how far away we are from the Fae Realm their old on him is weak. In Madokas world The Goblin King could only keep hold for a minute so if we're quick we could..."

"Your Majesty. I would like to formally apologise for my outburst moments ago." Finally Cheese met the Empress' eyes and bowed. "Given the risks my request holds I completely...understand if you do not wish to grant it." Cheese felt a horrible clench in her chest and her voice wavered slightly but neither were from the Curse. She knew the Empress could help. "If you do however, in your great kindness, decide to despite my actions I would like to take a while to speak to Mac. As well as make a phone call home."

"For the sake of the Multiverse, I will shatter the curse," spoke Maria D' Italia. "You and Mac don't deserve the fate you got. So, very well, I'll begin preperations right away while you talk to...your partner."

"Associate." Cheese corrected respectfully, even with a smile trying to peak past her stoic mask. "But thank you ever so much your Majesty. If this works then I will be in your and you husbands debt, for as long as you shall require my services." Her eyes flashed violet as the contract wrote itself into her being.