"Sevar is not privy to Hell's hidden truths, nor can they be bought, nor scried.  For Sevar to swear that she's guessed a thing is still nothing more than guessing, even if she dresses it up in numbers."

Rugatonn surely does not think that Abrogail can be unbrainwashed upon the spot; or if she's modeling Sevar accurately, knows that Sevar would not have sent Abrogail here in a persuadable state.  And Abrogail knows that Aspexia Rugatonn cannot be turned from her own course.  Least of all could any debate move Gorthoklek.

What Rugatonn must be contesting, then, are the opinions of the high officials and palace Security wizards uneasily watching all this.

This handful of Chelish powers cannot decide any large military-civil conflict, they have not the numbers or combined potency.  But they are informative; the next batch of Chelish powers might not arrive to any different opinion, if these few backed Abrogail here, or Rugatonn.

"Carissa Sevar has now reached INT 29, and mastered every scrap of Law that an INT 18 child could contain out of another world, and extended it.  If Sevar is not yet a god, she is close enough that the likes of us cannot predict in which direction she'll be mistaken relative to a god."

"But you're worried that Sevar's sworn guesses are wrong, for all that you say you don't know Hell's truth yourself?  Or you think yourself sure that an INT 29 ilani is making errors and in a particular direction?  Fine enough, then, Gorthoklek is right there.  He can give us his own oath about anything I say that happens to be false."

"Hell decides for itself what to say, or not say, and to be moved by such a taunt is beneath a pit fiend's pride.  So I answer on Gorthoklek's behalf, for if he answered at all it might be to destroy you."

"You need hardly be INT 29 to understand that Hell makes the decision of what to keep from us for reasons that include leaving the pathetic deluded mortals to their delusions, when those delusions lead them to serving Hell more eagerly than they'd serve if they knew the truth."  Abrogail's voice is clear now and cold.  "Matters of Evil and pride may proceed of Asmodeus, but matters of truth and reality are of Law.  It was stupid in the first place for the mortals of Cheliax to trust to their fates in Hell while only guessing what those fates were.  It was not a sane or Lawful arrangement.  If our dues in Hell are to be the foundations of our loyalty and the Chelish state, if we're to work all our lives to improve our fates, let those fates be known to us and not guessed."

"If Sevar is wrong about that, let Gorthoklek swear that Hell originally decided to not swear to us regarding our fate in Hell, for a primary and decisive reason other than that we mortals were thereby too optimistic, and more eager than we would have been.  That ought not injure his pride by much, if Hell has any legitimate reason for secrecy."

"That rather sounds like Keltham's style of reasoning -"

"I mark that attempted change of topic, and that Gorthoklek remains silent."

"Is there even anything left of Abrogail Thrune, or am I only speaking with what Sevar put into this flesh after it was put into her by Keltham?"

"Carissa Sevar was Chosen of Irori, you know, as I was Chosen of Asmodeus.  Irori doesn't really go for that sort of thing.  I am given this because it made me stronger."

"And also, I'm afraid you're worried about the wrong puppetmaster, Aspexia."  Abrogail looks down at the Crown of Infernal Majesty with entirely-honest wistful regret.  "The other reason I haven't put on this Crown is that, if we do come to an agreement, the Keepers of Asmodeus will need this overpriced headband more than I do, for their training."

"You've gone over to Snack Service."  None of the absolute horror in Aspexia Rugatonn's voice is the tiniest bit feigned.  As promising as Asmodeus's Keepers seem, she's never forgotten for one second whose project that was.

"I understand that Sevar's come to some arrangement with that alliance's representative, yes.  I'm not intelligent enough, Lawful enough, or trusted enough myself to know the details."

"And is Sevar on Asmodeus's side, in this?"

"Don't be absurd.  Sevar is on her own side, as is the way of Lawful Evil.  And I'm on my own side; it's just been shown to me that my best interests lie with her."

"She tortured you until you -"

"Of course.  She is Lawful Evil, not Lawful Neutral.  But she didn't break me in any way she couldn't repair afterwards, because she isn't your kind of Asmodean."

"My kind of Asmodean?  I am the one who defines -"

"It's only heresy until it becomes orthodoxy, Rugatonn, and remember that you too will come to Hell in time."

"Enough of this.  You don't know the true stakes on this gameboard - and neither do I.  So let's negotiate about the parts our lesser minds can understand."

"Gorthoklek might have been destroyed by an ilani weapon, and upon my being resurrected I could have taken Cheliax from Hell, though with great strife and loss.  And then I'd give Cheliax into Sevar's hands, to rule in Hell's name again; and souls here who cry her name would be hers to own, in Hell after Her ascension.  Except," Abrogail turns now to look deliberately at the watching royal guards, "those already soul-sold to Hell, who are excluded from Sevar's compact with Asmodeus.  Whom Sevar has separately compacted with Dispater to be able to buy from their current owners in Dis, with the approval of Crown and Church."

"So as an alternative to the road that needlessly costs Hell - Cheliax could submit itself to Carissa Sevar as its Empress, with myself as her viceroy, styling myself Directrix.  The worship of Sevar, as a destined future goddess of Hell under Asmodeus, will be legalized and encouraged by the state if perhaps not the Church.  Those worthy in Cheliax will still go to Sevar in due time.  Perhaps through emigration to Wanshou; perhaps after She's taken three-quarters of Avistan in Hell's name, backed by an unweakened Cheliax.  The Church will give its approval to Sevar's buying of those who've already sold themselves to Hell, if they please her or seem to hold promise."

"Neither Church nor Hell shall try to interfere with Sevar's rulership of Cheliax for three years, so long as it stays within the bounds of reformed Asmodeanism; nor will the Church protest certain changes away from the more wasteful and self-destructive of Cheliax's current policies.  On Sevar's own oath that she expects all those changes together to increase the number of souls that come to Hell eventually, compared to what would have come about if she did nothing at all."

"You do not trust me, of course, and I do not trust you.  But we both aspire to Lawfulness, and Gorthoklek actually is Lawful, and neither of us wishes to expend Cheliax's strength in a conflict between us.  Lawful beings need not waste their strength so, if they both prefer doing something else.  That we do not trust one another, that we do not have the same goals, these are obstacles that we are both incentivized to pay some little costs to overcome.  It isn't even hard, for us, being Lawful and knowing one another for Lawful.  We'll set up cutouts in Cheliax's command structure whereby I or Sevar cannot just betray the country to Good, or whatever it is you fear we'll do with it; and your and Gorthoklek's oaths, somewhat severer than those you've made before, will properly forbid the Church to use those cutouts to take away our country."

"It's an offer that works for everyone, really.  You should all be grateful that Sevar is the sort of Lawful Evil who'll give you the chance at it."

"Mmhm.  And the coming war with Osirion?"

"In a word, no.  Those preparations will prove useful, but we'll conquer where the Empress says we conquer, and Sevar will take care of talking it through with Keltham first.  I am not going to tell you any details of what would happen to us otherwise; you might not believe the plain truth about what They can do... before seeing evidence that will be demonstrated in some little time."

There are many uneasy glances, then, among the sort of Chelish powers present who are not mainly thinking about running away.

"Snack Service made mention of the Keepers of Asmodeus needing to be ready before we attacked Osirion."

"It would have been truthful given what It knew, expected, at the time.  Carissa Sevar has altered Cayden Cailean's plan; let Him pray that she does not alter it any further."

"I frankly fail to see how any of this benefits you.  Asmodeus would still own your soul, and He seems unlikely to be pleased with your concept of loyalty.  Dispater Himself could not sell you to Sevar even if He wanted to.  You will never come to her hands in death."

"Carissa promised me she'd make a reasonable effort to do something about that, and said she thought she could, though she said I couldn't know the details."

For a second there's just sheer disbelieving silence in the throne hall of Cheliax.

"I thought you stronger than to have been that brainwashed, that quickly, if you can still talk this coherently at all."