All That Glitters

All That Glitters - Ch 69

Intrigue in the Byandi Realm. New workers at the Pod-Drran Palace.

Infighting with the Church of Mylatin results in a change of policy for the Byandi Realm. New medical workers/students begin to work at the Pod-Drran Palace.

© bigtddybr Dec 2024. This story 'All That Glitters - Chapter Sixty-Nine or the series 'All That Glitters', cannot be transferred in whole or in part to any other site besides Literotica.com without the prior authorizations in writing from the author and bigtddybr must be credited for this work.

Due to the number of abbreviations, ship listings, and list of characters, in this story, I include a glossary that is now in a stand-alone chapter called

'All That Glitters: Notes'

. Any and all information that you want or need to know about the series is included in Notes. It will be updated frequently simply by re-issuing the chapter to Literotica as a new version.

There is little attempt to explain the back story, so it is necessary to read previous chapters to fully understand where we are.

As before, I claim sole responsibility for the story line. This story is a fantasy, with no basis in reality. Any similarity that you may perceive to current events, people, or situations real or imaginary is completely unintended. Look no further than the story line for its intent and purpose.

A big shout out to my editors, who wish to remain anonymous, for all the help they provide. If you find any errors still left in this chapter, they are mine, as I have ignored sage advice to make a silly point.

Please rate and comment. But keep your comments respectful. If you rant and rave or are disrespectful in your commentary, it will be deleted.

Point of reference:

Castada is a Byandi word that can carry different meanings dependant on how it is used. Castada de Mylatin, refers to Mylatin's Castle in the Sky (the Byandi phrase for heaven). Castada ne Mylatin, refers to the Grand Palace of the Byandi. Castada se Mylatin, refers to the Cathedral that is contained within the palace. Castada lat Mylatin, refers to the Citadelle or fortress that surrounds and protects the palace in Mylatin City.

'Nuff said...Enjoy.

Castada ne Mylatin, Mylatin City, Mylatinyl, The Salta System, The Byandi Realm, 550 Light Years from Terra

Tullo was watching his beloved Adriné carefully. Something was disturbing her this day. The pair had entered the month of their mating ceremony, now less than thirty-nine days to the event, so were only allowed to be together during the day and only under heaving chaperones (the Byandi calendar consists of 450 and 1/9

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days spread out over ten equal 45 day months. Every nine years, an extra day was added to the end of the first month of the year).

Being chaperoned meant that they could only hold hands and do some light kisses on the cheek. Touching other body parts, such as the hips, was strictly forbidden and kissing on the lips would immediately invite the intervening hand of one of their attendants, a frequent and delightful occurrence for the couple.

After dating on and off for more than two years, Adriné was anxious to be mated. She had brought forward the date of the ceremony because she had wanted to use the upcoming Denders Summit as a kind of 'mating retreat', what humans called a 'honeymoon'. Tullo was all for that...

The staff saw that the pair had only eyes for each other and that made them happy. A simple kiss here or there would not be looked on too harshly by the chaperones...so long as it wasn't too frequent an occurrence.

But, today, his Mate-to-Be was quite anxious. ^Something is bothering you,^ Tullo stated.

^I cannot speak about it in a public forum and we will not be permitted to retreat without an escort,^ Adriné replied.

^Still, whatever it is, it is bothering you. Is there not one you can trust to be with us in a private setting?^ he asked.

^I would consider Genta as the only one who is privy to what is ongoing,^ Adriné nodded to Genta who then led them to a private room.

^This is about the church, isn't it?^ Tullo guessed.

^You are perceptive,^ Adriné acknowledged. ^Fasso has recently blackmailed the second Castada Fierres that I am aware of. Including himself and the three that he has personally named to replace retiring Castada, he now controls half of the Castada Fierres.^

^That makes him a serious threat to you then, my love. Has he done anything as of yet?^

^I do not like Fasso's policies, especially those pertaining to what he refers to as the Gratna. His actions border on the obscene where Church policy is involved. However, I am unable to intervene without the support of the Castada Fierres and I have now lost five of those, six if you include Fierro Fasso.

^What bothers me is the finale for season one of Catrana Private Eye is upcoming and it will be very much controversial. Fasso dislikes the program because it uses a Gratna as its protagonist and puts the Church in a bad light.^

^Should not you, as the Head of the Church, not be upset about that as well?^ Tullo asked.

^Freedom of speech is enshrined in our constitution, Tullo. All have the right to express their opinions so long as they do not constitute an act of aggression against another person or defined group. They have the right to speak out against Church policy or even government policy.

^Fasso has been trying to force 4

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Sky Network to cancel the program since the beginning. He will most surely attempt to force the cancellation of this finale if he can. We must prevent that and allow the episode to air.^

^Does Fasso know about your input on the program?^

^No, he knows of my interest but not of my involvement in the program and I want to keep it that way.^ Adriné stated.

^I like the show. You have my support, my love. I will back your play. This should be interesting.^

As they rose to return to the main room, Adriné leaned into Tullo and gave him a full-on kiss.

^Mylatrin Adriné!^ Genta snapped, but Adriné simply smiled and headed to the door while holding Tullo's hand. For ages immortal, couples in their final month had always sought to sneak past the chaperones and even the royal couple was not above doing the same.

Adriné looked down at their joined hands and smiled. As she looked up, she saw Tullo regarding her, knowing where her eyes had just been. She flushed a pretty blue at the thought of being caught out by her future Caltan, but her heart did a little dip of its own knowing he knew of her desires.

She moved toward the door, slowing deliberately.

My moving will force Genta to rush ahead to open the door, allowing me another opportunity for a kiss,

Adriné thought with a smile, only to see the guard on the other side open the door ahead of them. A quick peek back showed a smiling Genta, her finger on a button on her Wrist Comp.

Damn!

Thought Adriné.

Those Comps are just too good for communications!

Genta was only doing her proper job as chaperone, but it ticked Adriné off that she was being so successful at it.

Oh well, it did get one good kiss in

, Adriné thought to herself.

Tullo could understand Adriné's frustration. It amused him to see her so upset over a kiss.

Castada se Mylatin, Mylatin City, Mylatinyl, The Salta System, The Byandi Realm

Galtu was nervous. Almost every week since the beginning of the drama series 'Catrana Private Eye', he had been called into the Castada se Mylatin, the Grand Cathedral of the Church of Mylatin in the Palace, to be harangued by the Castada Fierro Fasso, the Castada Fierro in charge of the Church of Mylatin.

Fasso was a very angry male of late and quite irate at Galtu and 4

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Sky Entertainment Network, who aired the program.

Galtu was the Director of Programming at 4

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Sky and was responsible for all of the public comments on the Catrana drama series. Many of the same comments, mostly the angry ones, were being sent to the Castada Fierro Fasso.

This week, however, Galtu had not only been subject to the usual harangue from Fierro Fasso, but he also had to bear the brunt of Fasso's ire for the upcoming season finale.

^Galtu, as senior Fierro of the Church of Mylatin, I demand that you postpone or eliminate the upcoming episode. I have heard that you make the church look especially evil in that episode! How could you do something of this nature? Have you no shame as a member of the Church?^ Fasso had demanded.

Galtu had humbled himself before Fasso and promised to draw a program from the upcoming season to replace the finale of this season, something that Galtu had no intention of doing.

Originally from the Western Continent, Galtu was the third son of a backwater fishing family that had barely eked out a living in a tiny village on the coast. Galtu had left the village to continue his advanced education, going into communications. He was drawn to the entertainment channels as a way to make a living, quickly rising up the chain of command to become the Director in Charge of Programming for 4

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Sky Entertainment Network. Some of the money he made had gone back to his family, helping them prosper. So maintaining his place at 4

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Sky was particularly important to him.

4

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Sky had a string of new entertainment programs over the last four years all developed by Galtu. The most contentious and most fiercely watched of all the programs that he had helped to develop was the Catrana Private Eye series.

It was not so much that the subject matter was controversial, it was more that 4

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Sky was deliberately poking the eye of the Church of Mylatin authorities with how they portrayed the Church in the program. It was, after all, the Church that was attacking the Gratna in the program. This was a fact in real life but one that Fasso preferred not to advertise for some reason.

Fasso had been all over the network complaining and threatening them every week. But 4

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Sky had a secret ally that Fasso did not know about. Mylatrin Adriné herself had encouraged 4

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Sky to develop the Catrana program. She had said that the Gratna were being portrayed as evil by factions within the Church and she wanted that to stop.

Galtu had agreed with the Mylatrin. As far as he was concerned, the Church under Fasso had gone too far. As a child in his village, he had seen for himself what had happened to the Gratna. So this was his way to protest those attacks but it also made him a target of the Church and Fasso.

Fasso's latest gambit had been to threaten him with excommunication from the Church, something that was usually reserved for only the worst of criminals.

So Galtu had come once again to be cursed at and threatened by Fasso and had once again humbled himself to prevent Fasso from putting a stop to the program. His promise of switching out the program was something he did not intend to keep which would, of course, bring about dire consequences to both Galtu and 4

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Sky.

It was time to think about exposing Fasso for the person he was and taking him down...though Galtu had no idea how to go about doing that.

Castada se Layalle, Layalle Valley, The Western Continent, Mylatinyl, The Salta System

Castada Fierra se Layalle Giella looked askance at her mate, Castada Fierro se Layalle Argro. ^What is Fierro Fasso thinking? Is he really going to challenge the Royal Family? He is mad!^

A Fierra/Fierres/Fierro was the equivalent of a Bishop/Archbishop. The Senior Most members of the priests and priestesses. Those who held the highest level of Fierres were noted by living in the principal Citadelle of the respective gods/goddesses. In this case, Giella and Argro lived and worked from the Castada se Layalle, the primary edifice of the Goddess Layalle.

Giella was half of the Fierres se Layalle, the Senior High Priestess to her mate's role of Senior High Priest. Layalle was the Goddess of the Home and Hearth and the only Goddess in the Byandi Pantheon that had mated pairs of Priestesses and Priests. Fierra Giella and Fierro Argro were the most senior of Layalle's pairs.

Giella handed the missive to her mate to read.

^He has published this?^ a shocked Argro said after reading the missive. It told all the Church's Fierres to vilify and destroy the Gratna, painting them as evil and untrustworthy.

^Are we going to back him?^ Giella asked. ^After all, the Gratna are known to cause problems within their communities.^

^Definitely not. This goes against everything that Layalle stands for. In fact, everything that the Church of Mylatin stands for! Besides, you heard what the Council of Empaths said at the beginning of the year. The Gratna need to be able to use their power or it will destroy them emotionally which is why they have become dangerous. This becomes a two-edged sword, being ostracized by the community forces them to hide and restrain their powers, which in turn creates other problems for the Gratna and the communities they live in.^

^Will we openly oppose Fasso, my mate? Fierro Fasso must have some kind of leverage if he has put this missive out to the Fierres network.^

^We cannot support him in this,^ Argro replied. ^This will put him in opposition to the Royal Family. It will not end well for him.^

The missive was dated today, the 39

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of month of Onost 4189 but Argro noted that the Mylatrin Adriné, the de facto head of the Church of Mylatin, was not included on the list of recipients. Any official notice from the Castada se Mylatin, required her tacit approval. If she was not on the list then the missive was coming directly from Fasso himself.

^Shall we contact the other Castada Fierres?^ Giella asked.

^I think it would be best. It will only be a matter of time before the Mylatrin sees this missive and takes action. Castada Fasso will not survive this.^

************

The pair immediately contacted those among the Castada Fierres net that they knew would oppose Fierro Fasso. Their newly purchased Comps made easy work of what would previously have been a much more complex attempt at multiple contacts.

^You have seen the missive where Castada Fierro se Mylatin Fasso is demanding all the Fierres to denounce the Gratna? Especially the Castada Fierres?^ Giella demanded when all the other Castada Fierres were together online.

^I have,^ said Castada Fierra Sellda, the Castada Fierra se Branna, Byandi God of Smiths, Miners, and those who dealt with fire, and firearms. ^Fasso has been doing much behind the scenes to accomplish what he wants but he is stretching things now. I do not believe I can be comfortable not speaking out against him any longer.^

^What has he been doing?^ asked Castada Fierro Sepho, Castada Fierro se Fulton, God of Thunder and Lightning, patron God of those who deal with electricity and communications.

^He is responsible for the increase in the Church's actions against the Gratna over the last ten years,^ Sellda replied. ^He has fired up the members of the Church against the Gratna. They are now openly attacking them and these attacks have become more deadly over the past three years.

^Rumour has it that the attacks are being carried out by a 'flying group' of Church members who are devoted to Fasso. Fasso could never be certain that the locals would do his bidding and not hide those named as Gratna from the Church. It is one thing for a member of the Church in some backwater village to name a Gratna in their midst, it is another for them to actually attack or kill a Gratna, especially a local. Almost all of the attacks have occurred in out of the way villages and not in major towns or cities.^

Most Gratna were young teens known to the local communities. Fear of them being Gratna warred with the community who had also watched the children grow up.

^The Church, under Fasso, never explicitly said that what the attackers are doing is correct, but they never chastised them either,^ Sellda added.

^There is, of course, no official documentation of Church involvement,^ Giella informed them.

^It has also been noted that locals have rarely been documented as attacking the Gratna. If that is the case, then where did these attackers come from? I believe the rumour of the flying group is true. It's the only thing that matches the evidence,^ Castada Sellda explained. ^Any official documentation will likely only be found among the documents of the Castada se Mylatin and Fasso controls all of that. But why is he acting now of all times?^

^Something we do not know about has occurred,^ Castada Sepho murmured. ^And now Fasso is pushing things to come to a head. We must find out the what and the why.^

^Regardless, he must think he has victory in hand. Deaths of Gratna before the last three years have been infrequent. Now the attacks are becoming far more fatal for the Gratna. No one is stepping up to condemn the attacks, but then, most people believe it is locals conducting these same attacks.

^Castada Fasso must believe that the people will back him if he openly condemns the Gratna,^ Argro answered. ^However, I think he is very much premature in his calculations. Until now, he has only made vague statements against the Gratna and almost none against the Royal Family. This missive puts him at direct odds with Mylatrin Adriné, Head of the Church of Mylatin, and openly displays his new Church policies.^

^How many other members of the Castada Fierres can he count on?^ Gella asked.

^There are three new Castada that Fasso installed and are devoted to him and perhaps two more who he manages to control,^ Sepho told them. ^How he controls them I cannot say.^

^He has something over them, obviously.^ Argro mused. ^With his own vote, he has six of us in thrall. He needs more. Nine of us are needed to overturn the Mylatrin, who has veto rights on Church policies. He needs to do something that will bring us to the forefront in support of him. The question is, what is he planning?^

^Whatever it is, it must be happening soon,^ Sellda said. ^Otherwise, he would never have put out this missive.^

^What of the Royal Family? The Mylatrin?^ someone asked.

^Oh, the Mylatrin is definitely opposed to Fasso,^ Fierra Giella said. ^It is not very well known, but it is she who asked 4

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Sky Entertainment Network to create the 'Catana Private Eye' drama series. That has been a boon in supporting the Gratna since it began.^

^That could be why Fasso is acting now...he must think that the program is beginning to eat into the results of his previous actions. He must feel that if he waits much longer, the populace will turn against the attacks on the Gratna. The attacks, after all, are not a popular thing,^ Giella informed them.

^Who can we count on inside the Castada se Mylatin?^ Sellda asked.

^Garrinno is the only one that comes to mind,^ Sellda stated. ^He is the only Laët Fierro in the Castada se Mylatin who was appointed by the Mylatrin and not by the hand of Fasso. I would be cautious of any other Fierres in the Castada se Mylatin. I believe them all to be Fasso's people.^

^So, we wait for Fasso to make his move and either condemn him outright or support the Mylatrin if and when she acts?^ Giella asked. She got nods all around from the other Castada Fierres. But there was worry on their faces...they couldn't think of what the Castada Fierres who were backing Fasso would do or what hold Fasso had over them, and that bothered those Castada Fierres speaking here today.

The Market, Mylatin City, Mylatinyl, The Salta System, The Byandi Realm

Galtu returned to 4

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Sky to give his report to the senior executives about his visit with Castada Fierro Fasso. The executives were not surprised to find it was much the same as had been previously reported, except for the threat against 4

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Sky if they aired this season's finale and of excommunication for himself.