Blackout
The Meeting
Raia thanks Karnariel for the apology. As Lexianna gives her speech she can't help but doubt the professionalism of them all. Sia is anything but professional. She catches the feral hostility emanating from the fox girl. For lashing out at Gaul? She considers saying something but doesn't. If it comes to it that beastly ferocity can be dealt with easily. She looks at Shadow who has been silent. His brow is furrowed. A look of consternation and annoyance.

Jalen looks at Karnariel.
"Do you want to?" Jalen asks Karnariel.
"Not really. But it is important." Karnariel takes a deep breath.

"After the advent of the Great Shaper it seemed as though The Old Gods and him would go to war. To broker peace an arrangement was made. Humanity could pray to whatever god they pleased so long as he was recognized as the supreme being. The god of gods. A marriage was arranged between the two factions. Karna, The Sun God, and Galladriel, The Angel of Peace, were to be wed to solidify the peace. But on the night of the consummation the Trickster God Loki disguised himself as Freya disguised as Galladriel and tricked the servants into leading Karna into the wrong bedchambers. Loki made it seem like Karna had bedded Freya. The world nearly came crashing down into ruin. Galladriel, however, saw through the ruse. Though she couldn't prevent it she was able to avert a holy war. Loki was banished to a celestial prison far across the stars in the darkest of places. Karna and Galladriel put the incident behind them and moved forward as the keystone of peace."

Karnariel takes a drink from his cup and looks around the room at everyone before continuing.

"Loki is a crafty one though. He broke free from his imprisonment and vanished. But not before leaving an omen. A reminder of his deeds. Kara. She appeared one day. Loki had become pregnant from his endeavor and had birthed a daughter. At least that what the Viking seerers say. She was abandoned. Left to live in a world that scorned her very existence." Karnariel is somber when speaking of this. It pains him to look back on the past. "When I was old enough I came to Earth to bring her up to her rightful place amongst the pantheon. I was furious she was blamed for the actions of her father. We spent every day together for several years. During that time I worked to get the other deities to accept her. And it was working. She was brilliant. Strong. She had my fathers passion and a clever mind. It was going so well."

Karnariel's breathing has quickened. His body is tense. The sorrow he had felt is replaced with white hot burning hatred.

"She had comes to us. Mother, Father, and I. She told us of her decision to join the Father. It was a shock. She threw away everything I had done to build her a place with us. She preached at us about equality and justice. Father and mother gave her their answer. It had not changed since that murderer first appeared. We fought about her choice. Bitterly. She left and I did not see her again until that day at the capital. I fought her but couldn't match her strength without my own. It cost the life of Princess Sabra Starborn."

Shadow perks up having caught how Karnariel left out the younger Starborn. 
"And what of Stella? We had all assumed that the two perished in the fires of the castle ruins." Shadow says, his gazed fixed on Karnariel. Karnariel returns his gaze.
"If that were not the truth what would you do?" Karnariel fires back. Shadow laces his fingers and leans forward.
"I've lived under the rule of two Starborn kings. One a saint and the other a despot. I suppose it would all depend on what kind of Queen she would be." Shadow answers. Baruss turns to Karnariel.
"You're going to be mad." Baruss says as the doors to the meeting open up and a young woman enters. She is dressed modestly in a tunic and loose pant. Her hair is decorative and ornate yet practical.
"I would try my very best to live up to your expectations of a fair and just ruler." Stella Starborn says to the entire room. She is no older than seventeen yet has the poise of royalty despite not being an attendee of any formal court for at least the last ten years. Her hands are rough. Not what you'd expect of a royal. It is also apparent that she has seen battle. Her posture and how she confidently rests her hand on the hilt of her sword coupled with the scars that she wears all speak to an accomplished swordsman.
"You are not supposed to be here!" Karnariel shouts as he gets up from his seat. Stella walks past him and sets herself in the seat next to his.
"You may continue." Stella says matching Karnariels stern gaze and pretending as though she had been there from the start.
"That's all I have to say. If someone wants to elaborate on her powers." Karnariel says re-seating himself and trying not to explode.

"Valkyrie has always been the strongest of us." Shadow announces. Raia's expression confirms this.
"The way she moves. It's not normal. Is that her power?" Smough asks genuinely interested.
"In a manner of speaking." Raia says pulling her eyes away from Stella. "As she explains it her power is Freedom. I'm not entirely sure what that means. She sometimes also refers to it as Liberation."
"She seems to use it to remove any hindrance of the physical world. The wind does not ruffle her clothes. She can see in the darkest of shadows or the brightest of lights. I've seen her ignore doors and walls altogether." Shadow adds. "It's a vague and mysterious power to be sure."
"When I fought her at the capital she seemed to dance around me as though she weighed nothing. Yet her strikes were heavy and she could unbalance me with the weight of her spear alone." Karnariel adds. He looks to Lexianna. "If it were anyone but her... but I can't forgive her."