Alitia: Hellfire and Blizzard

III: Torched Horizons

Aithne Palpatine had learned how to be careful long ago. 

It wasn't something she could say she was proud of understanding. The lesson of care had been taught to her by her mother and father, but it had been in a very different way from her sister, Dolores. Where Dolores was given the ability to seek out anything she could ever want in any way she chose, Aithne had to learn how to choose her words. She was forced to apologize to the world before she ever had the chance to voice her concerns. Aithne was inferior to Dolores, and as a result, she owed the rest of the world for giving her a chance to stand in its ranks. 

While Aithne had grown up hating just how differently she had to behave from her sister, she had come to appreciate it in the years since she escaped her youth. Aithne knew the importance of approaching every situation with care now, and if she had not been taught that subtlety and deliberation from a young age, she never would have made it as far as she had. Aithne had come to be hated by the world since her birth, and she needed to choose her words and actions carefully so she didn't invite more ire in her direction. She had once hated the fact that she needed to worry so much about her words where Dolores did not need to bother, but Aithne had learned since then that there was more to the world than she had ever imagined. She could do more than others had taught her, and she wanted to prove it. 

Aithne had thought that defeating her sister in combat would be enough. She had been certain that would be the end of it all. If she destroyed Dolores' empire, then maybe there would be a way for her to change the world without needing to rely on the same care that had helped her to survive for so many years. It was perhaps a bit idealistic, but Aithne had taught herself to be years ago. She needed to place her hope in something she thought deserved her optimism so she didn't crumble under the weight of the pressure that had been placed on her shoulders. Aithne needed something to yearn for so she could keep herself strong. It was the only thing she could truly offer herself in her darkest of hours. 

But no amount of hope or care seemed to be able to pull Aithne out of her current situation. She had been waiting for days now, listening carefully for any signs of what Pyre was going to do next, but nothing had ever happened. She knew the shoe was going to drop soon, but Aithne couldn't constantly watch for it. She could feel the exhaustion starting to wear at her already, and Aithne knew this wasn't sustainable. She wished she could keep her composure in the face of any horrors that came in her direction, but she knew better than that. Aithne was human whether she wanted to admit it or not, and she needed to treat herself with care to ensure she didn't crumble. 

"Here's your tea, Mother."

Isleif's voice pulled Aithne out of her thoughts. She had been standing near one of the windows on an upper floor of the Etruna palace, staring out at the horizon and waiting for something to change so that she could prepare for battle. Aithne's life had been marked by war, and even though it had never been an open show of hostility until recently, she had still fought in more battles than she could count. That was what it meant to stand in the Etrunan royal family without holding the throne. Aithne would always have to fight for her position, and even though Dolores was dead and could no longer take it from her, Aithne could not take any chances. 

Aithne looked back to her son slowly, and she allowed him a small smile as she accepted her cup. "Thank you, Isleif." She couldn't have said it enough. Without Isleif and Elcynder there, Aithne knew her paranoia would have eaten her alive ages ago. She wanted nothing more than to stand at the window and wait for something to change so she would know how to fight back as soon as possible. It was the best thing she could do for herself... But Aithne knew she couldn't succumb to her fear, at least not yet. She had others relying on her, and Aithne couldn't let herself collapse as long as she had children to look after. Isleif and Elcynder deserved better than a mother who was more focused on the affairs of the world than them. That was the way Dolores had treated her children, and Aithne would never let herself draw parallels between her behavior and that of her sister.