With the arrangements made for Violetta to join them on their expedition to Glanum, Jadis had settled most of the personnel issues that needed her attention for the day. The roster of participants for the trip had grown a fair bit, but considering the capacity of the new Leviathan airship and the fact that the Behemoth would also be flying with them, Jadis was sure they had ample room for everyone. The Leviathan had been designed for passenger and cargo capacity, so the number of people who could fit onboard was a significant increase over the Behemoth. Aside from making sure they had the requisite increase in supplies to account for the extra passengers just in case of emergencies, there wasn’t much more Jadis needed to do on that front.
Shortly after the noonday meal, Jadis assembled her three selves together, cleaned up and dressed nicely, and escorted Eir, Meli, and Tegwyn to the temple district. Tegwyn wanted Meli to meet with the priests in the high temple of Villthyrial while she was in the city, which was something the woman agreed to easily enough. Meli wasn’t keen on exploring the city the way many of the country folk who had never been to Eldingholt before were; Jadis got the feeling the Dryad wasn’t as tolerant of city life as Tegwyn was. However, a trip to the temple district wasn’t too onerous an activity for her.
Jadis and Eir needed to visit Lyssandria’s High Temple for several reasons. Firstly, since Jadis would be going on an expedition that could see her out of the city for weeks, she wanted Aurea or one of the other High Priests to be informed of her whereabouts. Especially since Alex would also be going with her, which meant the first of the newly created race of Succubi would likely be born far and away from where the various high priests could bless her. Or study her. Jadis was pretty sure it was a little of both that motivated the priests.
She also needed to ask the high priests for continued leniency in regard to the deal she had made with the temples so far as her offspring went. Jadis had made a deal when she had first arrived in Eldingholt to sire a certain number of children to help ensure the race of Nephilim did not once more go extinct. In exchange for her efforts, the temples had promised they would not interfere in any of her activities and would even support her as best they could. Certainly, they had fulfilled their end of the bargain, since the temples had not imposed a single restraint on her and had sided with her on all political fronts since the bargain had been struck. Jadis, however, had not entirely lived up to her end of the deal.
While Jadis had impregnated the majority of her lovers, thus ensuring at least seven of her children would be born, she had not done the two things that the temples most wanted her to do. Namely, they wanted her to impregnate someone who would stay behind in the city and not rush off to dangerous battlefields like Jadis and the rest of her lovers, and they wanted Jadis herself to have a child. Directly.
Since Jadis hadn’t accomplished either of those two stipulations as of yet, she felt she needed to talk it over with at least Aurea, if not the other high priests. She knew that they would be concerned for her wellbeing as well as her bloodline since she and literally everyone who carried her unborn children were heading to the frontlines of the demonic invasion. Jadis had absolute confidence that nothing would happen to her loved ones. She would make sure of it with all the power she possessed. But she was also sure that the priests were still probably going to freak out at the idea since there was no backup as of yet. Not that they could stop Jadis from leaving if she wanted to. Jadis had no issue at all with breaking the deal if she felt it was necessary. She wouldn’t let the high temples impose their own will on her; if she disagreed with what they wanted, she would go her own way. However, she would rather stay on friendly terms with the high priests since it had benefited her so far. Plus, most of the priests she had met were good people that she liked on a personal level. Making enemies out of people she thought of as friends was something she’d like to avoid, if she could. Finally, she didn’t wholly disagree with their concerns. Even though Jadis was confident in her own abilities, she couldn’t deny that she had almost died multiple times since her rebirth on Oros. Having at least one lover who would stay behind who could also carry on the Nephilim bloodline was a good idea. She just hadn’t found the right woman for that condition as of yet. Everyone she loved wanted to be right by her side on the battlefield, which was probably a big part of why she was attracted to them in the first place.
In any case, Jadis wanted to at least give Aurea and the rest of the high priests some assurances that she hadn’t forgotten about their deal and that she was still actively trying to propagate her species. None of her children would be born a pureblooded Nephilim as of yet, but considering her almost nightly visits with Severina, Jadis had a feeling that state of affairs wouldn’t last for long. In fact, Jadis had wanted the Seraphim to come with her and Eir to the temple to check and see if maybe she was with child and just didn’t know it yet. Bertha, the midwife priestess, could easily confirm one way or the other. Sev had declined the invitation, however, as she still had many meetings to attend at the imperial palace for pretty much the whole day. Since she would also be joining the expedition to Glanum, she had to make sure all of her affairs were in order in the capital before they left.
While Sev didn’t have the time to visit the temple to check with Bertha, that was the whole reason for Eir’s visit. The elven oracle still had yet to become pregnant with Jadis’ child. Neither of them were surprised, since despite gaining Breeding Time a couple of weeks ago, Jadis had yet to see any change in Eir that would indicate the elf was in prime condition to “breed” as per the details of her skill. Still, Eir was ever hopeful that their constant lovemaking would lead to a surprise pregnancy. Jadis did have luck on her side, so it was possible. Keeping both their connections to the God of Luck in mind, Eir wanted to check in with Bertha one more time before they left on their trip.
It didn’t take long for their group to make it to the temple district thanks to the fast lanes that lined the wider city streets. While Jadis had to carry Eir and Tegwyn, Meli was able to keep up pretty well on her own. In fact, the Dryad had looked oddly determined to race next to Jadis with as much speed as possible for some reason. Once they arrived, Meli and Tegwyn went off on their own to visit Villthyrial’s temple while Jadis and Eir headed for Lyssandria’s temple.
Upon entering the temple, Jadis was mildly annoyed to learn that none of the three high priests who lived there were available. Aurea was in attendance at Emperor Somerulf’s court in the royal palace, while the other two, Irene and Aimery, were elsewhere in the city performing whatever priestly duties that normally occupied them. Jadis supposed she could seek out different high priests at the other temples, but she really would have preferred to speak with Aurea, since she had become sort of the de facto spokeswoman for the temples, at least when it came to Jadis.
“High Priestess Aurea should be returning within the next two hours,” the dazzlingly handsome priest who had greeted them in the temple lobby informed Jadis and Eir. “Court rarely lasts longer. Would you care to wait?”
“Yes, I think we will,” Eir said after glancing up at Jay. “We would like to speak with Bertha, in the meantime.”
“I believe Bertha is aiding a few other priestesses in a ritual right now,” the man said with a smile. “But if you follow me, I’ll take you to one of the sitting rooms nearby so Priestess Bertha can see you the moment she is finished.”
“Thank you,” Eir replied while Jadis echoed her words.
They followed behind the priest, occasionally greeting and waving at the priests and acolytes they saw moving throughout the temple halls. Since Jadis had lived in the temple for a while, she knew a lot of the faces and was able to greet many of the men and women by name. One individual that Jadis had not seen in far too long ran into them in the corridor just outside of the sitting room they were being led to.
“Jadis!” Roy, the goblin paladin called out. “And Lady Eir! It’s been far too long!”
“Hey Roy,” Jadis greeted the man with a unified chorus. “Yeah, it has been too long.”
“I hope you have been well,” Eir smiled as the paladin bowed before them both in a sweeping, grandiose gesture.
“Very well!” he answered after taking off his plumed helmet to reveal his shockingly pink hair. “I have gained two levels since last we met! Not bad, since I’ve been stuck here on guard duty for months.”
“Not bad at all,” Jay agreed. “Guard duty can be boring, but at least if it is, that means the city is safe.”
“True, but my blood craves the thrill of battle,” Roy held up a clenched fist. “There’s only so much training with those muscleheads in Charos’ temple can do to slake my thirst. Fortunately, my replacement should be arriving in the next week or so.”
“Replacement?” Jay asked in surprise. “Are you leaving?”
“Once they arrive, yes,” Roy nodded. “The temple paladins cycle in and out. My replacement has been on the northern front for six months now. When she arrives, I’ll head out to take her place on the battlefield while she gets some rest time here in the capital. Exceptions like the cultist attack aside, temple guard duty is often seen as a sort of vacation for us paladins.”
At that moment, two gorgeous priestesses passed by in the corridor. Both women smiled and waved, and Roy responded by giving them a grin and a wink, causing the two to blush and twitter like birds as they continued on their way.
“Yeah, I can see that,” Jay smirked.
“Well, I would not want to delay you,” Roy excused himself, his eyes still drawn to the two priestesses. “I have many things to do before I am ready to depart these fair temple halls.”
“I’m sure you do,” Syd drawled. “Don’t have too much fun…”
“No such thing,” Roy countered with another wink before rushing off down the hall.
Turning to continue down the hall, Jadis, Eir, and their escort were stopped once more after only a few steps. The double doors of a ritual room on their right opened up, allowing a stream of six priestesses to exit. The robed women apologized once they saw who they had cut off, but Jadis just waved them on with a smile. As the six dispersed in either direction, Jadis heard a familiar voice coming from beyond the open doors.
“Now, this is no guarantee, remember,” Bertha was saying. “The ritual just increases your chances. An elf of your age should see good results, but I don’t want you getting your hopes up only to be disappointed.”
Jadis didn’t want to eavesdrop on whoever Bertha was consulting with so she started forward again once the way was clear. However, just as they moved past the open doors, she heard the voice of the woman the priestess was talking to and Jadis couldn’t help but freeze all three of her selves in her tracks.
“Thank you for your concern. I assure you, I am well able to manage my expectations.”
“Vraekae?”
Jadis immediately regretted calling out the magistrate’s name. Whatever was going on between the blue-skinned elf and Bertha was clearly private and none of her concern. She did not want to intrude. However, Jadis hadn’t actually seen Vraekae since her audience with the emperor. The coldly logical woman had undoubtedly been extremely busy since she had taken over as the magistrate for the capital city, even if it was only a temporary appointment to the office. It wasn’t as though Jadis had expected to see her often; Jadis hadn’t generally spent much time with Vraekae before so she didn’t think that would change. However, she had grown fond of the flinty elf, despite the way they had often butted heads in the past. Vraekae had her own plans for her future and was highly driven to achieve those goals. Jadis appreciated that about her, even if they didn’t always get along. Besides which, she had been a great dancing partner during the ball, before cultists crashed the party.
“Jadis?” Vraekae responded in surprise. “What are you—”
The elf cut herself off, her quick mind recovering the shock of the unexpected encounter with the speed Jadis was accustomed to. With the polished grace and reserved stoicism that was the magistrate’s hallmark, Vraekae took a step forward and bowed slightly in formal greeting to Jadis and Eir.
“Good afternoon. I apologize for my momentary lack of tact. I had not expected to see either of you here today.”
Looking into the room, Jadis could see that Vraekae was sharply dressed in her usual military uniform. Aside from Bertha, who stood facing the magistrate, the only other person in the room was a young acolyte who was quietly cleaning up some melted candles that had been placed on a raised altar while trying very hard to not look like she was listening to their conversation. Something about the room and the way those candles had been placed reminded Jadis of something, though she didn’t immediately recognize what.
Eir, however, looked like she did recognize whatever ritual had just been performed. Her expression wavered between happiness and confusion, as though she wasn’t sure if she should be pleased by seeing Vraekae there or not. By the same token, even though the magistrate’s expression was her usual blank slate, Jadis could tell that her composure was off by the stilted delivery of her words.
Jadis would have focused more on trying to figure out what exactly was up with the weird vibe being given off by the two elves, however, something else distracted her. While the two cousins greeted each other and asked how one and the other had been doing as of late, Jadis was distracted by the strange sparkle that she could see coming from Vraekae.
Sparkle wasn’t the right word. Jadis didn’t know what the right word was. There was no visual difference in the woman, she was positive of that much. However, there was just something about Vraekae that was different from normal. A shine, or inner glow that was apparent to Jadis, but apparently not visible to anyone else since neither Eir nor Bertha were showing any kind of reaction to the unusual effect. The red orb of magic that habitually hovered over Vraekae’s shoulder was present, but it definitely wasn’t the source of the strange light, or lack thereof. As Eir told her cousin about the trip to the border they would be undertaking in the next day or two, Jadis noticed a strangely familiar scent fill the air. She had never smelled anything like it before, yet she was certain that she knew what it meant. She couldn’t help but have all three of her selves take a deep breath of the oddly pleasing smell. Doing so, she felt her hearts start to flutter with an unexpected excitement as her cocks twitched in a frankly confusing arousal.
“Holy fucking shit.”
“Jadis?”
Eir looked up at Jay, clearly puzzled by the Nephilim’s outburst. Vraekae was giving her a withering look, no doubt in disapproval of the use of foul language inside a holy temple. Bertha just smiled and raised her eyebrows with a questioning expression.
“Uh, sorry,” Jay told the other woman. “Just… realized something that kind of caught me off guard. Anyway, I’m sorry we bothered you, Vraekae. We didn’t mean to interrupt you and you’re clearly busy. So we’ll just get out of your hair and—”
“Actually, while unexpected, I am glad that we ran into each other,” Vraekae cut her off. “I would have sought you out later this evening, otherwise. Since fortune is on our side, I hope we can take a moment to speak. Privately.”
“Uh…”
“With you as well, Eir,” Vraekae addressed her younger cousin. “As what I have to ask concerns you as well.”
“Of course,” Eir replied immediately. “We are at your disposal. We do need to speak with Bertha, but that business can wait.”
“I’ll just be in here, tidying up,” Bertha told them with a kindly smile. “Why don’t you two follow Avery to the sitting room over there. Call on me when you need me.”
As Jadis, Eir, and Vraekae followed the priest to the sitting room a few doors further down the corridor, the panicking Nephilim had only a few seconds to try and decide what the fuck she was going to do. Now that she had recognized the reaction she had gotten after smelling Vraekae, she also recognized the markings on the floor of the ritual room, as well as the placement of the candles and even the number of participants involved in the ritual. She had seen them often enough when she had accompanied Eir to the temple in the past. Now that she knew, she didn’t know what to do with the knowledge, or if she was supposed to do anything at all.
Maybe she was misinterpreting things. Sure, she had always thought Vraekae was a very attractive woman and sure, Vraekae had occasionally teased her with some innocent flirting, but that was all it was, wasn’t it? She probably wasn’t reading the strange sensations correctly. Maybe her sex-addled head was making things up. Maybe she just had babies on the brain with Alex ready to give birth so very soon. Or… maybe Jadis was just making excuses.
Her new skill had specified “reciprocal desire,” had it not?
Since she had three sets of eyes, Jadis was able to see that she wasn’t containing her emotions as well as she should. The looks on her faces would have been hilarious, if those faces weren’t hers. Doing her best to school her expressions into a semblance of calm, Jadis followed the two elves into the sitting room. After they had all taken seats, the priest who had escorted them closed the door as he left, leaving them in privacy.
“What did you want to discuss?” Eir asked her cousin. “Is it about the airship business? Do you need one for city defenses?”
“While the idea is not without merit,” Vraekae tilted her head to one side. “That is not the topic that concerns me today. If I may broach a delicate subject; have you met with any success in your attempts to bear Jadis’ child?”
Eir looked shocked by the question, maybe because of who it was that had asked, but she quickly recovered her poise.
“We… have not had success thus far,” Eir admitted. “That is actually part of why we came here today. I was going to ask Bertha to check and see if that had changed.”
“I see,” Vraekae nodded. “You have my sympathies. Truly. I know having children means a great deal to you, Eir. I also know that you will one day have many. It may take time, but I have never known anyone else who would make a better mother.”
Eir ducked her head for a moment before her gaze met Vraekae’s once more.
“Thank you, cousin. Your words mean more to me than you know.”
Vraekae acknowledged Eir’s sentiment, her own expression softening slightly. The blue elf wasn’t one to let her guard down often, but she certainly showed a fondness for her family.
“I would have preferred to bring this topic up after offering my congratulations to you and Jadis, however, I do not feel it wise to delay any longer. Since both of you will doubtlessly be heading out to fight Demons once again now that winter has thawed and spring has come in full force, I have a proposition to make.”
As the elf spoke, Jadis stiffened like three blocks of wood. By the time Vraekae had made it to the word “proposition,” she felt as though her suspicions were all but confirmed. Doing her best to maintain composure, Jadis tried not to show any emotion at all on her faces. However, when Vraekae paused to take a breath, she narrowed her red eyes at the three of Jadis.
“How do you know what I’m about to say?”
Jadis hesitated, then spoke with her Jay self.
“I have no idea what you’re about to say,” she shook her head.
“Yes, you do,” Vraekae asserted with unwavering conviction. “How do you know? Did that new Fetch of yours spy on me?”
“No! Well, actually, I have no idea. Maeve might have spied on you but if she did, I was not made aware of the fact. And I don’t actually know what you’re about to say!”
“But you think you do,” Vraekae pressed as she sat forward on her seat. “I can tell by the way you have frozen up your faces. You never look like that unless you’re trying to hide something. What did you do?”
“What did I do?” Dys asked incredulously. “I didn’t do anything! You’re the one being weird and grilling me!”
“I am not ‘grilling’ you. That is a bizarre nomenclature. Tell me the truth. What did you do?”
“I have done nothing but mind my own business,” Syd waved her hands in front of her. “Even if I did know something I shouldn’t, it’s not on purpose and I didn’t mean to invade any privacy.”
“So you do know something,” Vraekae accused.
“No, I don’t know anything!” Jadis spoke in unison.
“What in Lyssandria’s name are you two talking about?” Eir demanded, causing both Jadis and Vraekae to shut their mouths. “Jadis, I know you’re hiding something. Vraekae, you’re being a tyrant. Please explain what is being argued about right now!”
Duly admonished, both of them sat in silence while Eir levied a stern glare between them. Eventually, Jay rolled her shoulders before taking a deep breath. If someone had to start talking first, she would be the one to do so.
“So, Eir, you know my new skill that I got from my tertiary class?” When her lover tentatively nodded, Jay continued. “I didn’t really know how it works since it hasn’t triggered since I got it. Well, after coming here today, and seeing Vraekae… I know how it works now.”
Eir stared at Jay for a long moment, dawning realization causing her eyes to widen. Whipping her head around, she stared at Vraekae, her mouth hanging open, speechless.
“What is the nature of this new skill?” Vraekae quietly asked Jay.
“It’s called… Breeding Time,” Jay winced as she spoke. “I think you can probably guess what it does from the name.”
Vraekae closed her scarlet eyes for a moment. As Eir continued to stare, mouth agape, Jadis just waited to see what would happen next. She didn’t have to wait long.
“Jadis,” Vraekae said as she opened her eyes. “So long as Eir consents to the idea, I would like for you to consider having a child with me.”
274