“Why did your patron god have to be Destarious?”
Aila sighed heavily, her shoulders sagging as she stared at the table in front of her. On her left, Jay gently rubbed the redhead’s back, a sympathetic expression on her face. To her right, Kerr leaned one elbow on the table, left eyebrow raised in a look of exasperation.
“You can’t be surprised by shit like this anymore,” the therion said, her cheek leaning heavily on her fist. “This is all practically standard procedure around here by this point.”
“I’m not surprised,” Aila said as she pressed the heels of her hands against her eyes. “I just wish I knew what it was like to have normal conversations about the gods and the empire and all such things. I somehow doubt Wilhelm and his companions suffer from his visits with Valtar the way we do.”
“Well, you can talk to him all about it when we set flight for Volto,” Jay said with a small laugh. “I’m sure he and the others will love to swap stories.”
As soon as their souls had returned to their bodies, Jadis, Eir, and Alex had immediately gathered the full group together and recounted what had occurred during their visit with Destarious, including the answers to the questions asked. Aila, Kerr, Thea, Sabina, Bridget, Sorcha, and Severina had all sat quietly, listening to the details with varying levels of stoicism. It wasn’t as though they weren’t at least somewhat acclimated to the oddities that came along with having an Oracle of D in the party.
Meli was also taking the situation relatively well. Her inclusion in the conversation was obvious to Jadis, since they had taken that further step in their relationship earlier that day in the boughs of Eikr. No one was surprised by her inclusion, either, since Jadis was always open and honest with her lovers about such things. Everyone had been expecting Jadis to make a move on the Dryad in the near future, and at least two of their number had been eagerly anticipating the event.
Sometimes, in quiet moments, Jadis pondered about the weirdness of being in a multi-person relationship with so many lovers. Usually, those moments ended with her thanking all her lucky stars that she had found women who loved her as much as she loved them and were also compatible with each other. Life didn’t often go so smoothly in such matters.
In any case, Meli took the description of the events in D’s realm in stride. She had a practical mind, even if her thoughts went in strange directions at times, so she handled the revelations like a champ.
“Destarious sounds both chaotic and maddening,” the Dryad stated flatly.
“Well, yeah,” Maeve said dryly from where she sat next to the tree woman. “He’s the god of chaos and madness. He sounds exactly like how I always figured he’d be, the piece of shit.”
Maeve’s inclusion in the discussion had been a little less predictable, but Jadis had refuted the minor objections that had been raised by making two arguments. The first being, she genuinely cared for the Fetch now that she had developed a more stable personality and wasn’t trying to be what she thought other people wanted her to be. Even if they weren’t lovers yet, their relationship was progressing in that direction. And if for some reason they never actually got to that point, Jadis still trusted Maeve with the lives of her lovers and family. She had earned that much, at least.
The other point Jadis had made was the fact that the sneaky Fetch would probably just find a way to listen in on their discussion anyway. Why try to hide the details and force the Fetch to take drastic actions when they could just skip all the subterfuge and invite her to the table and get her perspective on the weirdness as well. Considering her role as their anti-espionage agent, it helped Maeve if she knew what details needed protection.
“I understand the antipathy you have towards Destarious,” Eir spoke softly, addressing the orange Fetch. “However, I do not believe his actions are worth your ire, at least not in this case. Yes, his words could have been more helpful, but they were not without value, either.”
“He absolutely made you waste a question,” Maeve folded her arms across her chest. “He didn’t count the accidental question, but then he gave a shit answer to make you three use up one of your allotted questions in a different way. Absolute dick move on his part.”
“I’m still not satisfied with the response we got from him, even with two questions used,” Dys growled as she drummed her fingers on the large table they were all sitting around in the company dining hall. “What the fuck does he mean ‘the Playwright isn’t the threat she needs to worry about anymore.’ The bastard is still out there. I want to find him and end him. Even if there’s a newer, bigger threat at work, it’s not like he just went away.”
“From a practical perspective, he might not be a real threat anymore,” Aila stated calmly, having shaken off her D-induced malaise. “He used up an extensive number of resources during the battle of Glanum and the subsequent attacks. Both manpower and magical equipment. It could take him months, perhaps even years to fully recover from those losses. Remember, the attack on Eldingholt was a plan that had been in the works for two years at the least, if not longer. What happened in Glanum, at least the bare bones, likely took just as long to prepare for. He may not have much left in his bag to use against us.”
“Or he has three other overly convoluted machinations in motion,” Sorcha grumbled. At Aila’s look, the goblin shrugged her shoulders. “What? It’s all just speculation, isn’t it? Who knows what that bloody shitwit is up to right now.”
“While there are many unknown possibilities, I do not think it is unreasonable to assume that D is giving us useful guidance,” Severina frowned in thought as she spoke. “While he and his order are known for their tricks, he generally seems to favor you, Jadis. I don’t think he would tell you to do something that would purposefully cause you harm.”
“He wouldn’t want to break his favorite toy,” Kerr huffed. “Just rough her up a bit, occasionally. For the laughs.”
Jadis wasn’t sure if D would or wouldn’t purposefully put her in life-threatening danger. His choice of location for her reincarnation had certainly been fraught with dangers. Then again, it was because she had overcome those dangers that she had become such a powerful combatant so quickly. She probably wouldn’t have had anywhere near as much strength if she had started out somewhere safe, like in a village in the central lands of the empire, for instance. D seemed to lean towards high risk, high reward plans.
In that way, she and the god were alike.
“I think he’s probably saying there’s no point in trying to hunt the Playwright down,” Bridget spoke up for the first time since they had all sat down together. “We’re committed to Kastoria, right? The bastard has probably fled, and whether or not we see him again isn’t what’s important right now. We need to focus on what we’re doing in Volto.”
“That’s probably fair,” Jay sighed as she leaned back in her chair, knees scraping against the underside of the table. “I really wanted to nail that asshole but driving the Demons out of Kastoria is more important, from a wider perspective.”
“We can always keep our ears open and our noses to the ground for signs of cultists in Volto,” Kerr pointed out. “Just because we aren’t actively pursuing him doesn’t mean we have to forget about the rat fucker entirely.”
“Maeve,” Dys directed her gaze to the Fetch. “When we get to Volto, consider that your main priority. I’m relying on you to suss out any cultists that might be in the area.”
“I’m on it,” Maeve said, sitting up a little straighter and looking far more engaged.
“We’ll be traveling with the Hero and his party,” Aila said, head tilted to one side as she considered the situation. “Won’t Lucia be able to reveal any hiding cultists and possession Demons?”
“I have no idea how closely we’ll be working with Wilhelm and the others,” Jay said with a half-shrug. “Besides. I’ll wager a thousand eagles that Maeve can go places to speak with people that Lucia would never even think to go, much less be able to infiltrate.”
“It’s been a while since I visited Volto,” Maeve added a moment later. “But I doubt any of the shadier establishments have changed. Governments might rise and fall, but the underbelly endures.”
Kerr pointed at Maeve with a clawed finger.
“The Sagging Grapes.”
“First stop,” the Fetch nodded. “The Honey Jug second.”
“Honey Jug? That place is for tourists,” Kerr wrinkled her nose in distaste.
“The front is,” Maeve grinned slyly. “The back room that only the local wildlife know about isn’t.”
“There’s a back room?” the therion leaned forward, her ears perked and attention fixed. “How do you get in?”
“That is not information I give away for free…”
“Ooo, you bitch…” Kerr grinned widely. “Let’s come back to that. Those are both in the capital, Thracina. What about the Golden Curls in Raetia?”
“Well…”
The plans for what they would be doing once they got to Volto were constantly evolving, especially considering the news that the emperor had given Jadis. With further information given by D indicating that seeking the Playwright shouldn’t even be on their radar since bigger fish were swimming in dangerous waters, plans changed again. Their discussion became sidetracked as they spent close to an hour debating plans for the coming trip. Traveling north to the neighboring nation wasn’t going to be a small undertaking, that was for certain, but with how much prep work they had all done over the past two weeks, Jadis felt like they were nearing the point where they were about as ready as they could possibly be.
Eventually, as the talks about the nearing campaign died down, one of several elephants that were idling in the background was called out and brought to the attention of all.
“What did Charos mean, ah, when he said to leave her alone?”
Thea’s question induced looks of consternation and confusion from many in the room. Jadis, however, struggled to keep her face blank. She had already put two and two together on that interaction. There was only one option, and it wasn’t one she could talk about with everyone since it involved a secret that wasn’t hers to reveal.
Noct wasn’t a Seraphim. Thanks to the small amount of research that she had been able to do during a few quiet moments, Jadis had determined that Aelius’ daughter was almost certainly a hybrid avatar. The result of a Seraphim and a Valbjorn having a child would, on very rare occasions, be what was called a Valravn. Other than the name, Jadis didn’t have much information on the race, since the book she had sitting on her nightstand was more of an overview of avatar races in general, and thus didn’t go into specifics on the known avatar hybrids. Why Noct would feel the need to hide her species was unknown to her as well, though Jadis was burning with curiosity.
Jadis didn’t need to be a genius to figure out what Charos meant by his comment, either. It seemed likely that Noct was… interested, in Jadis. Interested enough to want to be upfront with her about a well-hidden and very personal secret, at the least. Valtar had warned her that not all gods would be happy with her “poaching” their followers, whatever that was supposed to mean. She guessed Charos and Noct was the prime example. A funny enough thought, since Jadis hadn’t made any moves on the silent winged woman at all thus far.
Not that a sexy woman wearing a bondage nympho’s wet dream wasn’t frequently in Jadis’ thoughts…
Regardless, Jadis couldn’t actually bring any of the suspicions and information she had up with the rest of her lovers. Doing so would reveal Noct’s secret, and she couldn’t do that. Not only would she feel like absolute shit if she did, from the way Sorcha was quietly glaring at her, Jadis was pretty sure her goblin lover would twist her ears off if she fucked up in that way a second time. So, she wisely kept her mouth shut while the others discussed the mysterious threat made by the God of War.
“Oh, I know what it is,” Kerr said, smacking her palm against her forehead. “Odilia!”
“What?” Syd stared at the therion.
“Odilia! That Valbjorn with the pike up her ass! After everything that happened in Glanum, I bet she’s been thinking about you non-stop. Maybe all that pent up anger has started to turn into something else?”
“You mean… hate fucking?” Sabina chirped, her head tilting to one side in confusion. “I mean, I know that’s a thing that some people do but I think that’s kind of weird myself actually and I don’t think Odilia would do that anyway since she seemed like a rude and unpleasant person anyway, but then again I don’t know if she’s married or has a relationship and if she’s been on the front lines for a long time maybe she’s been pent up for a while and I guess those two emotions could kind of mix together if she has them both locked up in her chest for a really long time.”
“That… makes a weird amount of sense, actually,” Bridget said as she scratched the side of her head. “Charos might be pissed that one of his loyal bears is considering straying from his, uh, herd? Flock? I don’t know what groups of bears are called. Anyway, you get my meaning.”
“Jadis does seem to have that effect on women,” Aila commented dryly. “Even ones who started out on bad terms with her.”
“Correct,” Meli nodded along, completely unperturbed by being called out. “She is very attractive, and her personality is charming and endearing. Her competency in battle is impressive, and also strangely arousing.”
“Tell us what you really think about her, why don’t you?” Kerr grinned toothily at the Dryad.
“I believe I just did?” Meli replied, blinking in confusion.
Jadis, for her part, stared in horror as everyone seemed to agree that Odilia had the hots for her.
“Look, before any of you continue,” Dys held up her hands to stop the talks. “The only interaction I plan on having with Odilia is when we stop in Glanum on our way to Volto and I punch her in the face, as per my agreement with General Voss. If that’s all Charos is worried about, then he can put them to bed because nothing is happening between me and Odilia. She is really not my type.”
“What, you don’t think Valbjorn can be cute?” Kerr asked innocently.
“Yeah, I mean, they have their charms,” Maeve said as her form rippled. A moment later, and she had taken on the appearance of a surprisingly small and shockingly adorable Valbjorn with honey-gold fur and bright gray eyes. “Isn’t this a face you just want to snuggle?”
“Cute bears aside,” Syd held up a finger, “I object to Odilia, specifically. The answer is no.”
“Yeah, but I’ve heard that Valbjorn are really well hung, and if you did that one ritual on Odilia—”
“No!”
“Alright, fine,” Kerr sighed. “We’ll tease you about this shit later.”
“What ritual?” Meli asked.
While Maeve whispered into the Dryad’s ear, Aila cleared her throat while lacing her fingers together and putting her hands on the table in front of her.
“Moving on to a more important topic…”
Jadis could tell that one of the other lingering elephants was about to be called and braced herself.
“What should Jadis tell Prince Hraustrekr and Prince Kestil about what D told her in regards to the throne?”
That question brought silence to the room. As multiple minds ruminated on the bizarre situation, Eir leaned close to Jay and gave her a smile that showed just how much confidence she placed in her Nephilim lover.
“What do you think you should do?” the saint asked.
Jay let out a long, slow sigh.
“Well…”
187