It feels good in the pettiest way. Misery can make meanness grand. Even if she were to die at the end of this, she will be spoken of for years to come. For centuries. This performance will not be forgotten. Hands open, she mirrors the pose of Saint Agneta at Mount Isucus. She channels her brother, she channels the wrath of Saint Ono at the Council of Betrayal. Her spine straightens, she speaks not to those before her but the stars in the void of space above.

“You must be wondering, why would the Larex Forge choose me, a simple and lowly nixen from the edge of the Empire, to bring Hir word to the rest of the Faithful. You’re not alone. I wondered the same. Surely there must be someone better. I thought, Great Demiurge, why me? Is there no one else who could fill this role? Surely someone from a duchy closer to the center of the Empire would be better? Someone richer, from a powerful family, someone who could influence the Throne? But that was my mistake.”

She throws her hands to the wind, gesturing at the vastness around her. “You see, I was raised religious. My brother was a pastor. I was taught that the Larex Forge chose who should sit upon the Throne. I was taught that those who lead us, lead us because they are the most devout, that they have the purest of souls. And I believed it. Why shouldn’t I? I believed in a good and just world. Even if we were poor, even if food was hard to come by, we knew that we were protected from the evils of the Heretics and the ravages of the nullvoid by the faith and devotion of those leading our Empire.”

This is a lie. Crem has no love for those in the centers of power and voiced his disdain clearly and often. Misery never once believed herself safe from the nullvoid. It was right there in her house. In her body.

Still she speaks. “This week, coming to the Capital for the first time, I was shocked. I expected the holiest of citadels, prayers of gratitude to the Larex Forge for keeping us safe against the nullvoid. I expected grace and light. What have I found? Vulgar decadence. Gilded doors and grand statues on every corner, while in the outer duchies your citizens ration energy and starve.”

The tittering turns to groans: oh, another lecture about conspicuous consumption, another naggy scold tut-tutting about how good they have it and they should be miserable just for existing. Fools to think that this would be entertaining.