THE WHEEL AND THE GREAT TOMB OF NAZARICK

A FAN FICTION BY BUF_BUODA

CHAPTER 9

AN: It's a pleasure to bring the next chapter to you - thank you for your patience with this fic. For those who left comments, your comments are well appreciated, and I take your thoughts into consideration as I write - I hope you like the new chapter.

My writing has slowed down due to three major factors: first, RL is quite busy for me at this time. Second, I'm rereading WOT again. I seem to have lost the pulse of the first few books, and inasmuch as this will eventually become completely AU, I still need to keep an eye on the original as I finish up this arc. Thirdly, I'm currently fascinated with reading Naruto and Halo fandom fics.

Once again, thank you for reading, and i hope to update again by the end of the month, or the beginning of next month.

Now, here's two questions: 1. How do you guys think the Aiel and the Sharans would fit in here? 2. How do you think Forsaken like Ishmael (who joined the dark one for philosophical reasons), or Asmodean would react to Nazarick? I look forward to reading your thoughts in the comment!

The other side of the gate...

It had taken everything in Moiraine to step through the portal of swirling darkness with her head held high and her Aes Sedai mask of calmness firmly in place. The words of the maid Yuri Alpha still echoed in her mind – and in the minds of her charges, if their expressions were to be believed.

"You will be silent until spoken to, and show the utmost respect to everyone you meet once we step through the gate," the maid had said in a calm, precise voice when the first hint of darkness started to swirl and expand. Turning to face Moiraine and the others, a sense of pressure began to waft from her as she continued.

"Ainz-sama has graciously allowed you to plead your case. Do not overstep your boundaries."

Lupusregina had nodded emphatically while adjusting the bound captive under her arms and added "Yep! Exactly the way Yuri nee-sama said. You are all insects. Interesting insects for sure, but still insects. Know your..."

"That is enough Lupu," interrupted Yuri. Yet, Moiraine noticed that she made no move to correct the statement.

A light breeze ruffled the grass and her skirts as she stood with Lan by her side, and the Emond Fielders behind them. To her right, a little girl in a soft, black evening gown and a big, heavy skirt stood watching them. Her silver hair was in a ponytail and kept away from her impossibly pale face with a large ribbon tied in a bow. Crimson eyes watched them, and Moiraine made an effort not to shy away from them. She felt Lan stiffen at her side, and reached out to place her hand on his arm, all the while keeping her eyes away from the eyes of the little girl, yet in the general vicinity of her face.

The maids that accompanied them came through the portal (they called it a gate) last, dropped the captive at the feet of the little girl, and bowed at the waist to the little girl. All hint of playfulness was gone from Lupusregina.

"Shalltear-sama," began Yuri in her precise voice.

"These are the people Ainz-sama requested we deliver to you."

The little girl nodded, and the portal snapped shut.

"You've done well," began a sweet voice. It took Moiraine a few heartbeats to realize that it came from the little girl. Now she looked closer, she noticed that the girl seemed unusually buxom for someone her age. The girl gestured, and another portal opened beside her. A pale woman dressed in a sheer gown of flimsy white stepped through, bowed to the little girl, and took the captive back through the gate without saying a word. It whirled shut immediately after she went through.

Turning to Moiraine, the girl gestured for them to follow her.

'She seems normal, if one could ignore that she seemingly made these gates without effort,' thought Moiraine, as the fist of unease that had been in her stomach permanently for the last few hours grew bigger.

'She cannot be normal,' She corrected mentally. 'Those maids deferred to her, and addressed her the way they've been addressing this Ainz Ooal Gown. She must be someone important, even though she's still a child.'

Moiraine nodded to herself, fairly certain that she had a fair handle on the situation. Then she remembered the attitude of the maids towards humans, and her stomach fell again.

'The girl cannot be human, regardless of what she looks like,' she thought, doing her best to still the pulsing threads of fear that continued streaking through that fist in her stomach. 'It would be lethal folly to think of her as a child,'

They were on a hill, it seemed. The ground sloped downwards gently, and the cool breeze was very pleasant. Just ahead of them was a place that looked like a pavilion with a large round table, and seats all around it. Maids stood by every seat – these ones dressed more conventionally as maids.

As they drew closer, Moiraine could not tell what the table was made from. It was beautifully crafted and looked incredibly light. It was also a dazzling white, with carvings and etchings all around it in intricate patterns. An elderly man stood on one side of the round-table. His hair and beard were pure white, and smile wrinkles were evident at the corners of his sharp eyes, and on the rest of his face. He wore a black, unadorned coat edged in gold – the type a noble would wear – and he filled it exquisitely. A quick flash of lust ran through Moiraine, all the more shocking especially for someone like her. Taking a deep breath, she schooled the small butterflies in her stomach to silence and continued to observe him as they approached. A white narrow cloth was knotted around the collar of his black shirt. His arms were behind him, and he brought one forward to his barrelled chest as he bowed slightly in greeting towards the little girl leading the party.

"Shalltear," he said by way of greeting.

"Sebas," replied Shalltear as she inclined her head slightly towards him in a gesture of respect. A gesture from Yuri stopped them from following her as Sebas looked them over.

Another stab of lust ran through Moiraine as his eyes brushed hers briefly. She back at the Emond Fielders as an excuse to look away from those eyes. Spots of colour rode the cheeks of the two young women behind her. The moment passed, and with her stomach well in hand, Moiraine looked back at the man. Shalltear stood by his side, looking at them with an expression of unspeakable boredom.

"I am Sebas Tian, Head Butler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick," began the man, addressing the newcomers in an air of formality. He gestured to the girl by his side.

"I am Shalltear Bloodfallen, Guardian of the Great Tomb of Nazarick," she replied in a musical voice.

"Who do we have the pleasure to be addressing?" asked the man as he looked directly at Moiraine.

Her stomach still lurched, but she curtsied, tapping Lan's hand to bow in response to the formal tone set by the butler.

"I am Moiraine, Aes Sedai of the Blue Ajah, and this is Lan Mandragoran, my Warder," she said, her voice steady and strong.

Taking their cue from her, the Emond Fielders bowed and curtsied as well as they introduced themselves, though their introductions were more disjointed. Loial's introduction was unusually short – as though he was too nervous to be his usual long winded self. In a flash of understanding, Moiraine realized that the combination of the extraordinarily beautiful women looking at them must be having an effect similar to her reaction to the butler on the boys.

Sebas nodded as they introduced themselves, and smiled when they were done. It was not a big thing – just a little smile – yet his entire face transformed, and Moiraine could literally feel herself get lightheaded before she got control again. This was going to be extremely difficult.

Lan was sitting deep in the void. It was the only way to stave off the fear that threatened to overwhelm him as he looked at the little girl that had named herself as 'Shalltear'. Initially, he had been shocked, then disgusted in himself.

'She's a child,' he argued in his head. His guts didn't seem to care.

The fear was still there.

After the girl introduced herself, his intellect finally had a reason for the fear his instincts had been pouring into his brain.

'She's a guardian – whatever that means,' he thought. His instincts screamed that it was something very bad. His instincts were not in the habit of jerking him around.

A trick of the light caused him to see a sharp incisor peek out from the thin line of the guardian's lips as her cold eyes kept them all in view.

'This is ridiculous,' he thought with sudden clarity.

'Every one of these maids could probably kill us all many times over. What else is there to be afraid of? Death is lighter than a feather after all,' he lectured his fear as began to ease up, no longer threatening to batter down the walls of the void. He released the void – still afraid, but now calm despite the fear.

The man Sebas smiled, putting them all – even Lan – at ease. That alone would make the so-called butler bear watching.

"Come sit," he said, gesturing to the other side of the table. Shalltear suited his words and wordlessly plopped herself down in the chair just beside Sebas as Lan strode beside Moiraine to sit opposite the pair, with the Emond Fielders seating themselves on either side of him and Moiraine. Surprisingly, the chair fit Loial as well – as though it changed to fit the shape of his rump.

The two battle maids Lupusregina and Yuri stood behind Sebas and Shalltear, and the new maids stationed themselves just behind their own seats.

"As I said before, I am Sebas, and I am the Head Butler of Nazarick," began the white haired man. "Ainz-sama has permitted me to speak on his behalf – in a limited capacity, but sufficient for our discussion. First of all, we would like to know who exactly you are." He gestured behind them as he spoke, and the maids stepped forward with refreshments. Tall drinking glasses that looked like they were cut from exquisite crystal were brought forward, filled with a strange, orange drink. In the little platters that accompanied the drinks, there were pastries – though not of any sort Lan had ever seen before. He put them out of his mind for now – the conversation head of them would require all his attention.

Lan kept his eyes on the butler, but still saw Moiraine nod slightly before she started to reply. She kept the story short, focusing on the Dark One's imminent escape, and their quest from the Two Rivers. She ended with the queer incident that brought them to this place. Lan watched the face of the little girl, albeit from the corner of his eyes. The face of the butler showed no emotion besides slight interest as he sipped his drink. The little girl on the other hand was more expressive; her face cycled from boredom when Moiraine started, to slight interest, to wariness when Moiraine started talking about their discovery of their condition. Her drink was deep red, and she sucked it through a straw.

"Then, we arrived at Carne. The rest of what happened can be verified from Lupusregina," concluded Moiraine.

No one had touched their refreshments – to Lan's satisfaction. They were waiting for his lead.

"Interesting," began Sebas as Moiraine brought her story to a close. "Lupusregina mentioned something that Moiraine here did – or started to do before she discouraged her. Can you tell us what that is?"

Moiraine sighed as she replied, "I can channel the One Power. That is part of what it means to be Aes Sedai."

"Oh?" began the Shalltear for the first time, lifting beautiful lips from her straw. "Are you saying that those two are also this Ai Sadai thing you mentioned?" She gestured at the two women from Emond Field as she asked, keeping her gaze on Moiraine.

Egwene and Nynaeve stiffened visibly, shock painted on their faces. The boys did not fare any better – Mat's mouth actually hung open in shock. Moiraine managed to keep the shock away from her features, but Lan could feel it reverberate through the bond. If not for a lifetime of practice, he might have shown his shock as well.

'How did she know that those two can channel?' thought Lan tiredly. As much as he convinced himself that he would not be surprised by anything these people from Nazarick brought forward, he kept failing. It was the little things that drove home the point of how utterly outclassed they were.

"They are not yet Aes Sedai," began Moiraine, subtly correcting the mispronunciation of the girl, none of the shock he felt from her evident in her voice. "They were to follow me to be trained, if they wish it – though there was some danger for the younger one if she was not trained that the older one had already passed."

The little girl nodded, and glanced at the boys as though she wanted to speak. She seemed to change her mind though and settle down as though bored about the whole matter.

Lan brought his glass to his lips to drink. Intense pleasure flooded his tongue as the liquid rolled in his mouth and into his throat. It was quite simply, the best thing he had ever tasted – and he did not even know what it was! He saw Moiraine glance at him – no doubt shocked by the intense pleasure she felt from him through the bond. The shock was ever new, and it was caused by the little things.

"And the things you did during the battle of Carne?" asked the Butler with nothing but mild curiosity in his voice. His manner was impeccable.

"Those were with the One Power," replied Moiraine as she lifted her glass to her lips. Lan felt the shock and pleasure intertwine in her through the bond as her hand actually trembled from the effort not to guzzle the entire drink. The others had no such qualms as they fairly inhaled the drink and the sides that accompanied them. The fact that the maids kept refilling both glass and plate only made it more embarrassing as they could not keep track of how much they guzzled.

"Does that include Lan's martial prowess?" inquired Sebas.

"No," replied Moiraine, the pleasure from the drink colouring her voice as she spoke. "Lan's swordsmanship is pure skill."

Sebas looked... impressed. Shalltear looked at him with renewed interest, and a fang peeked out of the corner of her mouth as she smiled at him in the way that reminded him of a deadly predator that was watching a new, and now mildly interesting addition to its territory.

Silence fell on the gathering as Sebas put two fingers to his temple as though he was deep in thought. The only sounds were from the Emond fielders stuffing their faces with food.

Nazarick...

Pandora's Actor was watching the meeting hosted by Sebas alongside Albedo and Demiurge on the Mirror of Remote Viewing father had graciously provided them. He felt the mild pressure of an incoming message, and answered by raising two of his fingers to his temple.

['Pandora?'], Sebas' voice sounded in his head.

The incoming message notification was silent, and that alerted him that this was the silent variation of [Message]. Even though it was just introduced by father, everyone that had been taught the spell took to it eagerly – not least because it was created by the Supreme One himself.

['Sebas,'], he replied.

['You followed our discussion, I presume?'], asked the Iron Butler.

['Indeed I did! These treasures are definitely interesting. You know what to do. This is the first project that Ainz-sama is leaving completely to us since his revelation of his dream for us. Let us carry it out in a manner that would impress even Him!'], replied Pandora's Actor, taking the extra effort not to shout excitedly at the end there. It was a lot harder to stop yourself from shouting mentally than it was to stop from shouting out loud.

Sebas simply ended the message, presumably to go ahead with their plan.

Pandora had chosen Sebas and Shalltear as the face of Nazarick for these discussions because Sebas was the only one of them that was not negatively aligned. He was also a hit with the ladies – if the report from his mission with Solution was anything to go by. He had the most experience out of all of them in blending in with humans. Shalltear had been chosen to accompany him as a way to redeem herself from the sting of her failure – even though father insisted that He was to blame. She also looked like a child, and could be underestimated long enough to kill everything there ten times over without strain.

Albedo had taken the choice well, although Pandora suspected that she was still running off the fumes of her success with Father. He had the time to briefly wonder how much of Albedo's former earnestness was simply sexual tension that had no outlet she would permit herself.

With the message ended, and the meeting looking like it was concluding as well, Pandora turned to the others at the mirror with him.

"Demiurge," he began. "The captive was taken to Neuronist, and she's currently cooling her heels there. I think you should lead the information extraction team for this project – you are the best, after all."

The arch Devil simply nodded as though it was the most natural thing in the world. He was impatient to be on his way, but still waited to hear the rest of Pandora's conclusions.

"Albedo," continued the doppelganger, "According to what Ainz-sama said previously, you will focus on Nazarick, and integrating E-Rantel into our newly formed Kingdom. You will also be the closest to Ainz-sama, and we will therefore give you periodic reports to pass on to Ainz-sama on this project."

The succubus frowned as she replied.

"Eh? Are you sure about that? You were put in charge of the project by my Love himself. Wouldn't you prefer to report directly?"

"I definitely would," replied Pandora. "However, you are to be Ainz-sama's queen and love. That must be a position higher than that of guardian overseer. I'd even hazard that you are almost like a Supreme Being in status now – if not in power."

"I am not like the Supreme Beings," replied Albedo hotly.

"Maybe not," interjected Demiurge. "But as one who is not only the mate or lover of Ainz-sama, but his Queen, how else could we see you? Ainz-sama chose you himself. He even went as far as changing who you are in preparation for this role."

Albedo was silent as she considered it, but Pandora had already moved on from the discussion mentally. He and Demiurge were right, and Albedo would see it eventually. She was really quite logical, despite her random outbursts of uncontrolled lust.

"Sebas will be the primary person interacting with the strangers in Little Nazarick, along with Aura and Mare sometime," continued Pandora, adopting Ainz's moniker for the fortress built by the elf twins. "He will eventually have to test that swordsman called Lan. In the meantime, I will use Punitto Moe-sama's special skill [Dispel Fog of War] – with Ainz-sama's permission of course. I can only think that He has not used it all this while to keep things interesting for us. This way, we can have a perfect map of the world – not just this continent. That is the only way we can verify the story this Moiraine told."

"[Dispel Fog of War]?" asked Demiurge with keen interest. "What skill is that?"

"You know I can transform into any of the Supreme Ones, and use their powers at 80% efficiency, right?" asked Pandora in response. Not waiting for an answer, he continued.

"The skill is one that projects the entire world map as it is at the time of use. If it is used during combat, it also shows friend or foe designations of the cities on the map. We can save the projection, and use it when needed."

Demiurge looked stunned. Albedo looked thoughtful.

"And the downsides?" asked Albedo.

'See? Quite logical,' thought Pandora to himself as he replied her, calling up the spell details on his HUD and slaving the sight to the two guardians. Father was quite ingenious when it came to manipulating Yggdrasil systems.

"There are three main downsides, minus the mana cost, of course - although only one is really serious" replied Pandora.

"First of all, there is a fixed experience cost to using the skill that maybe could be offset by using Avarice and Generosity. Secondly, the caster would be unable to gather any experience for as long as the details gotten from the use of the skill remain accurate, and will experience a 50% penalty in gathering experience for twelve weeks after he is able to again."

There was a flash of distaste on the faces of the arch devil and the succubus as he mentioned that second drawback. The doppelganger ignored it as he continued.

"Thirdly, the skill costs half of the gold in the inventory of the user when it is activated, and a 50% penalty on gold for the duration of the experience embargo. This last one should be easy to get around for me – after all, all I need to do is transfer all the gold in my inventory to someone else."

The room was silent as Pandora took in their various expressions. He shrugged at them helplessly - it wasn't like the opportunity to use said skill came along often. Plus, even though he would never admit it, he loved the rare times when he could become the avatars of the Supreme beings. It was one of the best feelings for him – regardless of the risk.

"You're correct," began Demiurge, "Even if you could meet the mana cost - and I think it will be very close - Ainz-sama would never let us use this skill without good reason. Even now, I seriously doubt that we can succeed at convincing him – especially now he has shown us his mind as thoroughly as he has. The lack of mana would leave you completely defenseless for at least a day; unless Ainz-sama shares his items."

Pandora nodded, but just as he wanted to reply, Albedo spoke up.

"I will convince Ainz-sama," she said calmly.

Pandora looked at her and began to protest, but she stared him down, something hard in her eyes. There was no choice. No one could resist the succubus when she was this determined.

Sebas, Little Nazarick...

Sebas remained thoughtful as the maids led the newcomers to their quarters in Little Nazarick. The fortress was named by Ainz-sama himself – a testament to how much he valued their work. By his side, Shalltear stood passively. She had changed since that fateful meeting where Ainz-sama bared his heart out to them, and chose Albedo over her (even though the vampire was not calling it that). He thought back to that strange incident – for the first time that Sebas could remember, Shalltear voluntarily went to the library.

Sebas strolled into the library as part of his routine, random inspection of Nazarick in his capacity as the Butler of the Supreme Ones. The library was empty save for the attendants clearing up, and one person in the general reading area. The butler's legendary composure shattered as he saw who it was – Shalltear, alone. He stood there for a few seconds with his mouth hanging wide open until Shalltear turned to him, probably sensing his attention on her.

"What?!" she asked furiously, a deep blush filling the pale, flawless skin of her face.

Sebas gathered himself and walked to sit beside the now thoroughly embarrassed vampire.

"Shalltear-sama," he began.

"Just Shalltear," interrupted the now dejected vampire. "After all, I have failed Ainz-sama in every way I thought was my strength."

The butler tried to interrupt, but the vampire had the bit between her teeth now.

"I once thought I was as loyal as they come. Yet, I allowed myself to be controlled, and even fought against Ainz-sama. After a while, I picked myself up from that. After all, as someone who wanted to be Ainz-sama's mate, no one could love him more than me, right? But even at that, I failed again. Ainz-sama chose Albedo as his mate. Where does that leave me now?"

Sebas was silent. He did not doubt that there was no good answer to that question. Shalltear answered herself though,

"It leaves me vying for the position of his mistress. Well, sex and kink are my specialties, regardless of what the succubus thinks. But then again, I thought the same about loyalty and love, yet lost. So, I need to improve myself."

"Shalltear-sama," interrupted Sebas, "what does the library have to do with improving your specialties of 'sex and kink'?" asked the slightly baffled butler.

The vampire blushed as she replied,

"Peroronchino-sama's section," was all she replied.

They had discussed for longer, and had surprisingly struck up a better relationship. After all, they had the common denominator of knowing what it felt like to fail their Lord to the point where he had to intervene in the matter personally. It had the effect of making it easier for them to work together, as Sebas noticed during this particular mission.

'This must be what Ainz-sama means when he says that he wants us to grow,' thought the butler to himself as the newcomers were led to their quarters.

Ainz-sama had given them complete control over this mission – baring some conditions, of course. They suited him just fine. Even though he would never hesitate to end any and all threats to Nazarick and Ainz-sama with extreme prejudice, the butler did not revel in mindless slaughter of mere humans. What had started out as a fondness for them because of their weakness and helplessness had grown into something else – especially because of Tuare.

He shook his head to put the blonde out of his mind for the moment – she was in Nazarick, and perfectly safe.

"Which of us will take the first posting here?" asked Shalltear, breaking him out from his musings.

The butler shrugged as he replied, "shall we settle it with the game of the Supreme ones?"

Shalltear nodded.

Moments later, a gate leading back to Nazarick opened beside the vampire. She stepped through with a tinkling laugh, and a promise to return early to relieve the butler who lost the game. A slight smile at the antics of the vampire cracked the steel visage of the butler as the gate closed.

He nodded to the maids beside him to dismiss them as he turned and began to walk to the quarters of the new comers. He would be able to teleport there instantly, but he wanted to use the time to gather his thoughts.

The new comers were very interesting. Despite the fact that they were ordinary humans, they had tremendous potential. The One Power that the woman and girls could wield sounded really useful, and it might be something the homunculus maids in Nazarick could learn. Shalltear had indicated that at least one of the boys could use this power as well, but his seemed different somehow. The swordsman (Warder, as Moiraine called him) was also very interesting. He was definitely more skilled than anyone else in this world when it came to raw techniques alone. His inability to use magic would put him at a distinct disadvantage though, but the butler felt that the gap could be overcome.

But Moiraine was definitely the most interesting of them all by far. She was a skilled politician – for a human. He had heard about the human Demiurge was excited about, but he felt that this Moiraine might give her a run for her money in terms of politicking alone, irrespective of all the genius of Demiurge's pet. He himself had little to no interest in politics, yet that did not mean that he could not appreciate the sheer skill it took to play the game expertly. It was one of Ainz-sama's greatest strengths, despite all his insistence on it being pure luck.

The rest of the party was of no consequence, but Sebas was a hundred percent sure that it was only temporary.

He stopped at the door to their quarters, nodded to the Death Knights that stood at their door, and rang. A few moments later, Lan, eyeing the Death Knights warily, held the door open for him as he stepped through.

Their quarters were modest by Nazarick standards. However, from his mission living among humans, he knew that it was quite lavish. The door opened into a passageway, which in turn opened into a well furnished living room/dining room. At the end of the room, another door led to the eight suites that made up the quarters.

He turned his attention to the Aes Sedai seated sedately watching him, her only reaction being a slight flush in her cheeks.

"Moiraine," he began with a slight nod at her, "Are the quarters to your liking?"

"They are indeed, Sebas," she replied.

"That is good," he replied. "The guards at your door will not intrude, and will never attack you – never fear," he continued.

"The gesture is appreciated," she replied. "However, I would have thought that surely nothing can attack here, the centre of power of Ainz Ooal Gown?"

Sebas fought down irritation at the tone that accompanied the casual way she mentioned the name of his master. He knew she was fishing, and saw no reason not to give her something for her efforts.

"Here?" he replied, feigning shock. "This is just an outpost of Nazarick, built to draw attention. Ainz-sama likes to give us opportunities to do things for him - despite the fact that he need no help from us. A chance to destroy those who would be fool enough to dare attack Nazarick is rare enough that the guardians jostle for it. It is part of what makes Ainz-sama such a superior Lord."

There was no reaction from the woman to the information, so he continued.

"However, take a care with how you address Ainz-sama. There are colleagues of mine – Shalltear being one of them – who would rip out your tongue for such a careless mode of address. Those are the reasonable ones. You and your party cannot afford such a slip. You might be under the protection of Ainz-sama, but it will only be for as long as you interest him and hold the good will or indifference of the rest of Nazarick – and immortals have long memories."

He felt the animosity from her warder at the thinly veiled threat, but ignored it. The best thing he could do for them in this situation was make it easier for the other guardians to decide to help them – he already had. After all, helping those in need was common sense, but only to a distinct minority of guardians. With Ainz-sama hesitant to give too many direct orders regarding this operation, he would have to focus on convincing the others.

"That was uncalled for, I admit," she replied, finally making reference to her thinly veiled insult. "I beg your pardon."

Sebas nodded as he turned to take his leave.

"Now, please rest," he began. "I will require a more complete account of your situation once you are rested. If you require anything, just speak out clearly and the maids will bring it here.

...

The beginnings of consciousness stirred within the collective of the abomination. It, they – it made no difference – had indulged hunger, sating appetite by feeding on the wildlife, and gathering mass. Unfortunately, it had found only the beginnings of sentient life. Its members roamed the surface, consolidating its hold on its chosen centre, while the mass of what was rapidly becoming a consciousness followed eons old instincts, and burrowed deeper into the ground, seeking the life that filled the earth.