In the Mana Gardens

“Oh! Is Imojin! Hi!” said Dhaura, greeting happily an older girl she knew, that was along with her mother and citizen.

Shi’Nill looked the child her daughter was greeting, and as well her parents. As they greeted in the distance and walked to their encounter, she murmured to her husband.

“You know who they are?” asked the councilwoman Shi’Nill Dahl’Arak.

Her husband smiled, and while he greeted with the hand the strangers, he answered to his wife.

“Imojin Lo’Kee is a young initiated of Negeé, friend of our Dhaura. Her father is Mr, Lo’Kee –I know him from the knitting group-, it have been a time since he assisted to a knitting session, thought”

“Who is the tall woman?” Shi’Nill asked, a bit impatient. Being a politician, it was a useful skill to know the most possible people.

“Xuunera Lo’Kee. She is an officer of your mother” he murmured.

“You are a life-saver” Shi’Nill said to her husband, kissing him. There is a saying that, behind every great woman, there is a man. And her husband really had show his value as husband of an ambitious politician.

Captain Xuunera Lo’Kee greeted then the Dahl’Arak family.

“Citizen Dahl’Arak!” she said with respect on her voice.

“Citizen Lo’Kee, may the Goddess Bless You.” Said Shi’Nill formally, while the little girls Dhaura Dahl’Arak and Imojin Lo’Kee were already chatting.

Originally, Shi’Nill had planned to do a familiar picnic in the Mana Mushroom Gardens of Negeémiliel: She really loved the mushroom gardens, being one of her preferred areas of the city: Having been Built relatively few time ago, she –and the traditionalist party- played a role not only in the creation of this park, but in a general bettering and landscaping of Negeémiliel, as they thought the capitol of an Empire needed to show their importance, and as well beauty being a way of appealing to the Matron Goddess Negeé, who could only be content with the marvels sported by their city.

The Mana Mushroom Gardens where a marvel created by the more skillful gardeners, sculptors, architects and sorceress: Using plants and mushrooms of the underground, along with mana lamps, statues, arches and bridges, where built the Mana Gardens as a place within the city for the Negeémi to relax, and be contacted –in a safe way!- with the otherwise wild nature of the Underworld of Kazrrad.

The Mana Gardens where built in what before where some slums: But due their centric location in the city, it was seen that some poor area in the middle of the city wasn’t very urbanistic, and began a process of expulsion of the slums and poorer commoner neighborhoods to new, exterior caves. Shi’Nill smiled as well, remembering the terrain speculation, and how buying for almost nothing the slums from the inhabitants –who where forced to leave-, before selling the now empty buildings to the city reported some significant gains for her –and the traditionalist party, and their supporters.

As well, the inhabitants of the former slums became as well tenants of buildings owned by people of her party in the new habitation caves, which proved as well to be quite a good business, with the high housing prices in Negeémiliel, due the expansion of the population being greater than the expansion of the city itself.

But well: aside for all the money that meant for her –and power gained, economically and in influence for the faction of the Traditionalists, a part of the Senatorial Party- she really liked the Mana Mushroom Gardens: and as well so did the Negeémi, being a place to relax, and as well, to encounter.

But while the children played and the husbands talked of manly stuff, such as house-keeping, knitting and other of these banalities that entertained men, Shi’Nill Dahl’Arak soon learned this wasn’t a casual encounter, the one with this woman of her mother.

“That’s the situation” finished to explain Captain Xuunera Lo’Kee. “And that’s why your mother the General is asking for your help, Citizen Dahl’Arak.”

Shi’Nill nodded. Even if it was clear and there where proofs that the Populist Party was preparing a coup d’etat to overthrow the current senatorial-party directed government, the action planned by her mother was extremely risky.

“I suppose she knows that, for doing something like that, I will ask as well something in return.”

“That the Traditionalists form part of the new government” Lo’Kee said, looking around in the park, but there seemed to be no one hearing their conversation.

“We want as well to choose the next High Sorceress of the Temple of Doom.” Shi’Nill said. She knew her mother –and therefore, all the senatorial party- needed all the help they could gather against the Populists… but to choose the High Sorceress? That was quite a gamble.”

“The High Sorceress?”

“For long the main temple of the Goddess have been served by unfaithful” Shi’Nill said. “It’s only logical that only a true believer lead the first temple of our Matron Goddess”. And by a true believer, the Traditionalists thought of Priestess of Negeé, existing since long a rivalry between the Sorceresses and Priestesses of Negeé.

Xuunera Lo’Kee doubted for a moment. “I will need to ask General Dahl’Arak for that” she finally said.

“Then we will see us later” Shi’Nill said, as she called back her daughter Dhaura from her games and her husband from the male gossiping: finally, with a hand gesture, she told the slaves that carried the food for the picnic to move along.

She still planned to enjoy a familiar evening. while she pondered about this issue and it's consecuences...