“It was a tie…” Syd grumbled with her arms crossed.
“No, you fucking won that,” Kerr groused along with her. “Noll’s a slime-slurping, geese-fucking, roach-eating connard for saying you lost.”
Syd snorted, doing her best to repress her grin at her lover’s indignation. Jadis honestly wasn’t all that mad about the end decision of the fight. She had landed outside of the arena boundary first before Runar, so in all fairness she did ring out before him. She didn’t like losing. She liked Runar winning even less. But it was just a sparring match with no real stakes. She had enough perspective to get over it.
Kerr, though, seemed genuinely pissed that Jadis hadn’t been declared the winner.
“You fought two muscle-headed warrior-god freaks that were over CLR one hundred when you haven’t even unlocked your tertiary class and you were winning that fight!” Kerr complained just loudly enough that Syd had to shush her. “It’s bullshit!” she hissed in a quieter tone. “You won that! I bet you the fur on my tail that not even the Hero could have done that! Well, at the same CLR, anyway.”
“You think so?” Syd asked, smiling as she gave Kerr a sidelong glance.
“I know so,” Kerr waved the question away. “Obviously! You’re stronger than any of them! Just imagine if you had some actual experience under your belt, and you’d have kicked their asses in thirty seconds.”
“Hey! I have experience,” Syd frowned at Kerr.
It was Kerr’s turn to snort at that assertion.
“Sure, sure. Plenty of experience. Not even a full year on the battlefield, no training before unlocking your first class, no weapon expertise skills, no military background—”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Syd flicked one of Kerr’s horns. “I’m working on the whole experience thing. Give me time, okay?”
“As much time as can be given,” Kerr smirked. “You’ve got other responsibilities besides training your combat prowess.”
“Unfortunately…”
Jadis couldn’t help the sigh that escaped Syd’s lips as she took in the sight before her. At least she was able to keep it from coming out of her other bodies. Her Jay and Dys selves were firmly enmeshed in the duties of being a Nephilim who owed the temples a favor. As such, it probably wouldn’t look good to sigh and grumble while meeting the throng of worshippers who had crowded the small temple.
The temple Aurea had escorted her to was in a district on the other side of the river from the Temple District. The area had looked like it catered to mostly the working-class kind of people who were needed to keep any city running. The temple itself wasn’t anything impressive; in fact, it looked a lot like the one that had been in Far Felsen, with altars dedicated to all of the nine gods. Jadis wasn’t sure what the normal capacity for the temple was, but that capacity had certainly been reached as the crowd who had come to see her stretched outside of the open doors.
From her first experiences back in Weigrun, Jadis knew that the average person didn’t know what a Nephilim was. They were a lost race, the last of their kind dead somewhere around two thousand years ago. Only those truly dedicated to the worship of Lyssandria would have bothered to learn anything about them, with most citizens not having the kind of education that would afford them knowledge of a people lost to history. Even those who might have read the name in a book or heard them mentioned in a sermon wouldn’t likely know anything more than that “Nephilim” were related to Lyssandria. All that was to say, Jadis had expected the response from the citizens in the capital to be similar to the locals in Far Felsen. Curiosity and maybe some speculative interest, but not much more.
That expectation had proven wrong.
Maybe it was from some information campaign led by the temples, or maybe the people of Eldingholt were just way more educated on ancient history, but no matter the reason the people who had shown up to the small temple weren’t just curious, they were thrilled to see the trio of Nephilim. The crowd pressed in, all of them trying to see and ask questions; it was a little overwhelming. In that moment, she felt like she knew what it was like to be a new panda on display at a zoo. Or perhaps a new dinosaur exhibit was a better comparison. Either way, it wasn’t the most comfortable she’d ever felt.
Fortunately, Aurea’s priests had come prepared to handle the number of people who had come to see Jadis and they did a good job of keeping everyone in order and respectful. The paladins assigned to guard Jadis helped with that aspect, too. It didn’t look like anyone was going to misbehave with Roy around, along with the three other high CLR paladins who were there to guard her. Jadis didn’t know those paladins, but she was at least thankful that none of them were Severina.
That was one thing Jadis noticed about the visit. None of the priests or guards who’d come with her were avatar races like her. None of the people who had come to see her were avatars, either. Jadis was used to seeing other avatar races, but now that she was in a truly large city, walking among the common folk in a manner of speaking, she felt she had better context to understand just how rarely seen avatar races were. The high temple district where she was staying had a collection of them, and even there they were a barely represented minority. Other than Severina, she’d seen maybe one other Seraphim flying overhead? Possibly two? Runar was the only Valbjorn she’d seen, Myron the only Golem, and Vita the only Lares. That realization made Jadis appreciate just how rare avatar races were among the people. No wonder people were so excited to see her.
“Can you bless me so that I will find true love?” a pretty young woman asked as she stared up at Jay with adoration in her brown eyes. “I’ll pray to Lyssandria every night!”
“I don’t really have that kind of power,” Jay replied to the woman with a smile. She wasn’t the first to have that particular request and didn’t seem likely to be last. “But I’ll offer a prayer to Lyssandria for you, if you tell me your name.”
“Is there really a city of Nephilim living in Bosrenia?” a middle-aged man with a red beard asked Dys. “Have they been keeping it secret from the world?”
“I’ve never been to Bosrenia,” Dys shook her head. “I don’t even know where that is. But I doubt they have any Nephilim over there at all.”
And so the questions and requests continued as more people were ushered through the temple to see her. Most were innocuous inquiries regarding Nephilim, some were questions about her specifically, and quite a few requests were made for her to intercede with Lyssandria on some matter or another that Jadis was fairly certain she couldn’t really do anything about. Some of the questions were a little less innocent, though, including the one woman who wanted to know if the rumors of Nephilim being unstoppable sex-beasts was true. The fact that it was a seventy-year-old grandmother asking with a mischievous twinkle in her eye helped, but Jadis still had a hard time answering that particular question.
Then there were the questions about Demons. Those were a lot harder to answer, since Jadis did actually have a Demon as a companion. However, explaining Alex’s particulars was not something easily done in the setting of a temple meet-and-greet. For the most part, Jadis just did her best to assure the people who asked that she was not possessed, had never been possessed, and had nothing to do with any cults dedicated to Samleos or any other gods for that matter.
The event continued for about three hours, during which Jadis switched out her bodies in a rotation so that at least one of her always had a reprieve from the crush of people. Both Eir and Kerr had accompanied her to the temple, which helped greatly. Eir of course helped field a lot of the more technical religious questions, while Kerr hung around in the back, keeping whichever body was on break company. By the time the event was concluded, Jadis was mentally exhausted.
“Are people going to mob me like that every time I try to go out now?” Jay asked Eir in a plaintive, whining tone. “Because that’s way too much to handle on a daily basis.”
“I doubt it,” Eir shook her head as she smiled. “There will always be the curious onlookers and the few bold enough to approach you directly, but most will be polite and maintain some distance.”
“Eyes will always be on you,” Roy chimed in from where he stood off to the side, his absurdly decorated armor shining in the light. “I’ve known a few Seraphim and Lares over the years and they’re always watched by a crowd no matter where they go. You’re going to draw crowds, lady Jadis. Best get used to it!”
“That, or you can always sequester yourself in a temple, far removed from the public,” Aurea suggested in a not particularly serious way. “I know a few Avatars who have done just that.”
Jadis shuddered at the idea. Holing herself up in a room somewhere for the rest of her life just to avoid a little attention? No, thank you. She’d rather deal with the annoyance of a few crowds than give up her freedom.
Freedom was certainly on her mind as she walked out of the small temple flanked by guards. That was a temporary situation, so far as she was concerned, though. Only a couple of weeks, then she’d be through with the nonsense. She hoped.
“You know, this whole temple thing wasn’t the only responsibility I was referring to, right?” Kerr whispered up at Dys as they walked out into the street lit by the afternoon sun. “You owe me a date.”
“Yes, yes I do,” Dys grinned at her therion lover. “That thought is what’s been getting me through this whole day.”
“Me too,” Kerr grinned back. “I have all kinds of plans for you and me.”
“Oh really?” Dys raised an eyebrow. “What do you have in mind? Something fun?”
Jadis had already thought of a few things she wanted to do with Kerr, but she wasn’t surprised to learn that Kerr already had ideas for what she wanted to do on their date. Kerr was anything but passive, and if she wanted to take the lead, Jadis was willing to indulge her.
“A dinner, a drink, a show,” Kerr ticked off on her fingers. “Then, tonight, I get all of you all to myself.”
“Sounds like you’ve got all the details hammered out,” Dys commented.
“Damn right,” Kerr quipped. “And I’m going to love every minute. You too, but that’s beside the point.”
Nothing about Kerr’s plans sounded unusual, which was why Jadis was certain that her crazy slut had something outrageous in mind. Kerr was always cooking up some absurdity to mess with everyone, usually in a lewd way. Jadis could try to pry the details out of her, but why bother? It was far more fun to wait and see in what way Kerr would surprise her.
As Jadis was coming up with a suitably saucy response to Kerr, her thoughts were interrupted by another woman’s voice.
“Lady Nephilim, may I offer you this gift?”
Jay paused her steps. She had been following Aurea and Eir down the street, her four guards surrounding her at a distance. Most of the people who had come for the event had already dispersed, but a few clustered groups still lingered. The woman who had approached her came from around one of those groups, and a man who was probably her husband stood right behind her.
The human woman looked like she was in her thirties and had a wide smile on her round face. She was short and just a tad plump in an attractive kind of way. The man behind her was almost the same height as her and had a well-trimmed beard that made him look dignified, though he was balding on top. They were both wearing fairly plain, common clothes that were nevertheless well-maintained and showed a hint of wealth with how nice the material was. The jewelry that both she and he wore also spoke of them being richer than the average person Jadis had seen in the temple that day. Merchants, perhaps? The man had a polished wooden box held between his outstretched hands, about two feet across though only a few inches deep.
“You don’t need to give me anything,” Jay kindly replied. “Your well-wishes and prayers are enough.”
That had been the rote reply she’d been instructed to give by Aurea before coming to the temple. It was not uncommon for gifts to be offered at these kinds of events, which Aurea had told her was entirely appropriate to accept. However, Jadis was uncomfortable with the idea of receiving gifts from people she didn’t know for no reason other than who she was. She hadn’t done anything for any of those people, so accepting something that no doubt cost them money didn’t sit right with her. When she had expressed that opinion, Aurea had taught her the simple way to politely refuse without causing offense.
Some of the gifts she’d been offered Jadis had taken, though those had mainly been small packages of food like home-baked breads and cookies. A few other items had worked their way into her hands, like a nicely knit scarf and a hand-stitched handkerchief. Nothing that looked like it would cause a problem for the giver to give away. This box the two were offering her looked like it would be one of the things Jadis would want to turn away.
“Oh, please!” The woman pleaded as she placed a hand on the lid of the box. “When we heard about you and your sisters, we spent many nights making these in your honor! Please take them, it would bring us so much joy to know that you had them!”
As she spoke, the woman opened up the lid of the box to reveal a velvet cushion upon which lay three silver necklaces. The chain of each necklace had clearly been made long enough to fit someone of Jadis’ size, as anyone else would have to loop the necklace twice over to not have it dangling below their chest. The pendants on each necklace weren’t anything ornate; the style was rather simple in fact, designed to look like a blooming flower with a small violet-colored jewel in the center. They were really quite lovely, and looked like a lot of care had gone into their crafting.
“That’s far too much—” Jay started to say, before the woman cut her off with another plea.
“No, please do take them!” she said as she placed her hand on her man’s shoulder. “My husband and I are jewelers. The cost truly isn’t a burden, I assure you. In fact, if you take them, we’ll be able to proudly tell all of our customers that we make jewelry fine enough to suit the avatars of the goddess of beauty! There could be no higher compliment!”
The woman’s words caused Jadis to hesitate. She’d had plenty of letters from weapon and armor smiths saying they wanted to equip her for basically the same purpose as these two were saying. She hadn’t taken any of them up on that offer since her companions had found those merchants were more interested in gossip than anything else, but these two seemed to genuinely just want to give her a present that would also benefit them. That kind of straightforward exchange seemed far fairer to Jadis than just a unilateral offering.
“What are your names?” Jay asked.
“Nedrick and Olga,” the man replied in a quiet voice. “Of the Understair.”
“Well, Nedrick and Olga,” Jay smiled as she took the proffered jewelry case from the short man, “I thank you for your gift. You are very kind to make these for us. They are truly beautiful, and I’ll make sure to wear them on special occasions.”
“Thank you!” Olga beamed proudly as her husband put an arm around her shoulders. “Thank you very much!”
“No, thank you,” Jay repeated. “And tell your customers that Jay, Dys, and Syd are fans of your work.”
“We will!” Olga proclaimed. “Please, come visit our shop next chance you can! We promise you’ll not regret it!”
With a final farewell, Jadis took her leave from the happy couple. The necklaces were truly beautiful, and Jadis meant what she’d said. She would absolutely wear them for formal events. In fact, the timing was perfect, since the ball Eir’s parents had planned was coming up soon. The real prize, though, was knowing some excellent jewelers who were friendly to her. There were gifts she’d like to commission for her lovers, and having a good relationship with crafters who could make such fine jewelry was a definite boon.
“Okay,” Kerr exclaimed as soon as they were out of earshot of the couple and further down the road. “Let’s get all this shit back to our rooms so we can get our date going! All this temple stuff is putting a crimp in my back and I’m ready to blow off some steam!”
Jadis couldn’t have agreed more.
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