The Other Witch; The Sergeant-at-Arms

The Palace had been built years before the first Nielda ever discovered that space existed, a fact made possible primarily on account of their homeworld's unusual positioning in a binary star system.  But even now, thousands of years later, the palace was every bit as inaccessible and magnificent as it had been when it was first built.  Admittedly, It had been rebuilt on at least one occasion since, but the blueprints were widely available and it had been rebuilt exactly to specifications.  The general consensus was that being able to be obliterated by demons didn't really count as a design flaw, although for insurance purposes it wasn't really an act of God either.
It stood forty stories high, but only contained about twelve floors, such was the armor alone.  Every ward imagined, defense invented, and potentially millions of each completely forgotten had been showered upon it; mostly at the personal expense of the Imperial Family.  In fact, the legendary Imperial Guards were the only thing in the building provided for by the budget, even maintenance was paid for by the various business ventures of the Emperor's family.  This made the tax-paying public, and penny-pinching council of nobles, very happy about the state of the Empire.  A family that could take care of their gigantic, murderous death trap of a house, could take care of their gigantic, murderous death trap of an empire.
Which left Salvia wondering why Hack insisted on openly wearing his sword as they walked off the train to the front door.
"Do you have an appointment?"  Apparently, they had a receptionist.  Somehow she'd expected guards.  Hack stepped up and pulled out what Salvia recognized as a form from the Bureau of Simplification.  He set it on the desk and the woman looked up at him without even reading it.  "This is a permission to speak with the Empress form.  The Empress has been dead for over a month, this form no longer does what I think you want it to do.  Are you sure you don't want a permission to speak with the Emperor form?  I have them over on the rack."
"Do you know who I am?"
"Old Cloak, the guy who takes people on adventures to thwart blah blah blah, yeah I know who you think you are.  Even if you were him, and you should see a therapist if you really think you are, you'd still have to fill out the form.  Now either fill out the right form or I'll remove you from the building."
Hack reached out and pulled her over the desk, flinging her headlong at the rack of forms.  Surprisingly, she managed to flip in the air and landed feet first, sliding to a stop in front of the rack, drawing a bloodstone scimitar as she did.
"Security!  We have hostiles at the front gate, engaging."  She leaped back at Hack, but Braga caught her on the flat of his axe and flung her to the ground.
"I assure you, this is The Old Cloak.  He is no imposter, and has been recognized by both the Countess of Stormguarde and the Earl of Star Haven.  I, Braga of the Falling Leaves clan, stake my honor upon his claim."
"Falling Leaves clan?"  She stopped herself, just out of reach of Hack's sword, which Salvia couldn't remember him having had in his hand a moment earlier.  "I had an assignment with one of your people a few years back.  Jhok?"
"He is my sister's husband, a good hunter and reputable man."  Braga nodded.
"Your clan is known for its honor, and I do not believe you would stake it if you were not certain of this."  She turned her head skyward and continued.  "Hold security, run a check on these four; cross-reference files with the immortal database and the Witches registry.  I want confirmation of identities."
"Thank you for your patience.  Jhok mentioned a Nielda in our correspondence, but not a guard.  Are you not Cera, daughter of the Empress?"
"It is Cera, sister to the Emperor now.  My brother and his Captain agreed to make me Sergeant at arms over the watch.  It is not what I would have hoped for, but I like it all the same."  She glanced at Hack.  'Most of the time at least."
"What's this about the Empress dying?"  Salvia had been hearing rumors of this for sometime, but no announcement had been made.  Some said she had sought immortality and been struck down by the guard; others claimed she had been assassinated by a lich, but had destroyed it in the process.  There was even one story that involved her being a lich herself, and that she'd been killed by Arcania herself for some minor slight.  Having met Katherine, Salvia found the last one unlikely.  Besides, what guard captain would have permitted an Imperial to hold the throne while Immortal?  It was one of the only rules imposed on the throne really.
"Toln said, 'it was messy, and I don't want to talk about it.'  Grandma says it was Admiral Casat, but he's been dead for hundreds of years.  If you ask me, she blew herself up experimenting with black magic.  She was always doing it, and it was bound to happen.  I loved my mother, but she was a crazy old woman, and more than a little evil."
Admiral Casat, Braga quietly explained to James, was a famous Nieldic hero from a few hundred years back who'd slain a Lych responsible for inflicting undeath upon all the Nielda of the day.  He was also, apparently, a close friend of the Imperial family and had died at a young age.  Something about that last note brought a slim smile to Hack's lips.
"Confirm identities?"  The voice seemed to come from the walls themselves.
"State your full name and occupation, if you lie, you die.  Tell the truth and we'll grant you an audience with the Emperor."
"Braga, of the Falling Leaves clan, resident scholar at the Arcane Academy."  A tone sounded, indicating that he spoke the truth.
"James Ernst, Thief"
"Salvia Hex, Witch-Errant"
"My Full Name?  You wouldn't have it on record."
"Our database is very complete.  Besides, we're using a zone of unfaltering truth and certain justice, even if we don't have it on file, we'll still know."
"My name is secret for a reason.  It would ruin much to reveal it."
Salvia chanted a quick spell to place everyone but herself and Hack into stasis.  It wasn't really a standard issue witch's chant, but she didn't like to let on that she was actually fairly adept as a mage, besides being a properly trained witch.
"Go ahead and say it, Hal.  Your daughter already told me, and none of them will hear it now.  Unless I'm mistaken about the range of my spells, even the guys in the booth can't hear you right now.  But we'll never get in there unless you spit it out."
Hack grumbled something about how Katherine should keep things to herself, then looked up at the ceiling and spoke as the rest had.  "Hal Immersfeld, Lord Executioner, prince-consort, and General of the Armies of Gravaga."  Salvia broke stasis just before the tone sounded, allowing Cera and the guards to make note of it.  Cera looked suspiciously at her, but made no mention of the spell.
"You may enter, but we'll be watching you, Old Cloak."