The royal palace of Sestero was surrounded by excessive layers of walls, all with secret entrances and passageways that served no one. Due to Sesteros fear of outsiders, the streets within the major city were designed as a labyrinth, with multiple dead ends to make it easy to capture threats that never really showed up. It was mostly bothersome to the mail carriers who would curse and kick the walls each time a new one popped up. 

Demeter was dressed in a purple gown accented with gold. She was barefoot, as was customary to the Nau. The way the people here spoke to her felt uncanny. They were highly cautious and polite, acting as if she would strike them if they said something wrong, but simultaneously expecting no retaliation for passive aggression. It was reminiscent of a few people in Dutero she disliked due to their overly compliant anxieties. In being kind, she had accidentally labeled herself passive, something she was absolutely not.

On her first night in the palace, a servant showed her to a lavish bedroom. “If you need anything, feel free to ring the bell,” they explained. 

Demeter took it seriously. When she wondered where the nearest washroom was, she rang the bell and never received an answer. She kept ringing and ringing, until another person of the Nau opened the door across from hers. 

“Why are you ringing your bell?” He asked, a tense smile on his face that was begging to snap.

“Uh, they said to ring it if I needed something.”

“Why are you being difficult?” He questioned, attempting to maintain a polite tone. “Sorry. You must be new here. Nobody rings the bells.”

Demeter frowned. She understood not wanting to feel like a burden, but a simple question? Didn’t they want to feel helpful? “Why not?”

“It creates potential for disagreements. Just keep quiet and ask in the morning, the Nau don’t disturb the peace.”

Demeter winced when he shut the door, just loud enough to almost be a slam, but trying to make it sound unintentional. She sighed and shut her own, heading to bed to lay down and think. People were strange. Every time she questioned something, the group she supposedly belonged to had some unusual mantra solution. The Nau don’t disturb the peace, the Nau don’t provoke people, the Nau don’t speak loudly, the Nau don’t encourage conflict, the Nau don’t create strong presences. 

Demeter wanted to send a strong presence through most of their faces, but it was pointless. She just had to stay until she figured out a way to get back home. Her vivid dreams became more homesick than fearful over time. When she closed her eyes she saw her geppy and siblings on the farm, cradling the baby ducks that were meant to hatch before she returned from her trip. They each packed her an extra snack in her bag secretly before the journey. Her heart ached from wishing to thank them, or say goodbye.

The Nau didn’t knock on doors. That would create too much tension, so they came into Demeter’s room without a word instead. When she woke up, stretched, yawned, rubbed her eyes- there they were in a circle staring at her. She jumped and gripped her sheets. “Hello?!”

“Good morning Demeter!” One of them chimed in a voice like fake sweetcane. “We have wonderful news for you. The royal advisor has accepted your request for an audience.”

“Request? Did I make one of those?”

“We assumed you didn’t want to create any problems with the request managers, so we made one for you. You’re welcome.”

Demeter’s mouth dropped. The Nau were certainly killing her with kindness, which she never expected to experience from anyone. And it wasn’t even the kind of kindness anyone asked for. “Thanks?”

“You will wear white to your interrogation,” they announced. Demeter stayed frozen in position, staring as they formed a single-file line and walked in a quiet step out her door. Once they had vanished, she shook her head and rubbed her face with her hands.

“Am I still dreaming?” She whispered, pinching her hand. No, this was real. Eerily real. She went from her bed to the closet and opened the doors. The rest of the clothes were gone, replaced with a single white robe. She pulled it from the hanger and gazed down at it bewildered. Not even the option for disagreement. That had to make it easy to avoid conflict at all times.

Demeter tried to walk how the Nau did, but her footsteps were too heavy even barefooted. She didn’t make herself small in the presence of others. She walked with her shoulders broad, long strides, her posture lifting her chin confidently. It made the Nau stare as she went past them, whispering in shock as soon as her back was turned. If she dared meet any of their eyes, they immediately rushed away to avoid confrontation.

Without knocking, Demeter pushed open the doors to the administration room. It was the largest room at the center of the house of the Nau. The floor was carpeted in expensive white wool and the furniture was elegantly polished. It would have been a pleasant space to work if it hadn't been decorated with gruesome artwork on each wall. Demeter couldn't take her eyes off the paintings and scanned each one. Each one seemed to correlate with a district. 

The first on the left was Unutero, showing people’s hearts being ripped out and replaced with mechanical parts. Dutero had to be the one beside it. There were people attempting to feed animals, while some were having their friendly hands bitten off in return. In the Tritero painting, people were competing in a violent tournament and mauling each other with various weapons. Kvartero had people dressed in outlandish costumes and tearing at each other’s skin in jealousy. Kvintero had shadows, people living in darkness among skeletons and cobwebs. Sestero invoked fear. There were a thousand eyes and a thousand mouths full of teeth surrounding people who were screaming. Septero depicted severe deformities, and the people were decaying among excessive, colorful garbage and rotten things. Oktero showed oppressive warriors in glorious armor slaughtering innocents. 

Then the ninth painting, the largest painting, was hung above the door. Demeter had to step further into the room to view the entirety. She was in such great awe of it that she hit the advisor’s desk from behind. 

“It really is a nice painting, don’t you think?”

Demeter spun around. “Yes! Of course.” She nodded. It would have been a nice painting, if the context wasn’t there. It was the ninth, final painting, of a person in a white dress meditating. Surrounding the figure was a faint outline of flame and smoke.

The advisor smiled politely. They were an inch taller, an average six foot with a spotted-tan complexion and swept back brown hair, thick brows and an un-intimidating- but equally unwelcoming aura. They stood up from their work and gently placed their quill pen into its ink bottle. They bowed their head forwards and Demeter did the same, their antennae brushing for just a second. 

“I am Delilah, the keeper of the Nau and royal advisor to King Mordecai. I heard you survived your mission into Oktero. Do tell me what information you discovered, it could be vital to our success in the-” They stopped, frowning and looking side to side before leaning in close to whisper. “W. A. R.”

They spelled it out like hiding the term from a child. Demeter gulped and squeezed one hand in another. She had to think fast. She wasn’t good at doing that under pressure, but the fate of the Balanced Tribe could be in her hands. “I traveled around, you know, to get a general idea.” She nodded. Delilah’s brows knit in confusion. Demeter attempted to clarify. “To get an idea of their generals, I meant! And I found one. I found a really dangerous one, the uh, the lady with all the bronze? Yeah, horrible. Anyway, she kidnapped the Balanced Tribe and- well you would really like them because they’re all about… peace and stuff.”

Delilah nodded slowly. Demeter took a breath in relief, since her story must have been believable. 

“Sestero’s- our armies, we sank the ships. The survivors will need to be shown hospitality. They’re just as much enemies to Oktero’s armies as we are. If you want, I could- I could take them back on a ship.”

Delilah’s eyes widened. A grin appeared on their lips. They nodded once. “A ship, what kind of ship?”

“Just, you know, a regular ship.” Demeter nodded fast and laughed. “Anything I- I don’t want to bother anyone. Right?”

Delilah lowered their eyelids now and folded their hands in front of them. “Right.” They breathed smoothly and sat back down at their desk. “Well in that case, I’ll send an order out to King Mordecai right away. Thank you for your service.”

Demeter remained in place. She couldn’t believe it was that simple, she had just pulled it off! “Real- uh, thank you. Delilah.” She bowed her head, curtseyed and started heading out.

There was a chuckle from behind. “Oh, Demeter,” Delilah called in a sharply soothing voice. Demeter gripped her upper arms tightly. She knew that tone. It sent shockwaves through her body as she realized what she was dealing with. 

Her reply was weak, “Yeah?”

“The carpet is uneven right where you’re standing.” Delilah wasn’t looking at her. “I suggest you watch your step.”

Demeter shuddered and ran from the room. This type of passivity could avoid backlash, but it didn't fool her. There would be no ship waiting for her in the morning.

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