“Okay, what can you do for me, Thaos?” Tilting her head to the side, she continued, “I will not visit my father for you. I only want a place for myself and to be left alone.” Many times in the past Thaos had come to Nysa asking her to speak with her father, Promethus, on his behalf. The god dwelled on the eastern seaboard where Thaos was forbidden to visit, and Nysa always took her time to visit, knowing the answer every time. Favors after favors Thaos requested of Promethus. Her father always sent her back empty-handed.
“And you will be, Nysa,” he over-joyously stated, his arm tightly wrapping around her shoulders. “You will be. I know that you only have self-interests in mind. Like those you give your patronage to.” He pressed the side of his head against hers. Thaos spoke quickly, perhaps to hold her attention. “How would you like to help lead a city? Not a town, but a city, an even larger land space, one that is out of the way from anyone else, one that will be guarded well. You can merge your old town with this new city if you so choose. In fact, giving your ruffians a chance for a better home is exactly what I have in mind.”
Nysa pulled away. “What is the exchange?”
Thaos gazed at her and smiled. When serpents smiled, there was never good intention. Pointing towards Thanis, a much deadlier undertone took over. “I want you to speak to Queen Valia. Her husband, Adinus, recently left the Mortal Realm if you were unaware.” He continued to stare at Thanis, the sweet look turning smug, “Tell Valia, without giving away it was me who sent you, that Elona and I plan to attack within the coming week. Tell her to not let anyone say otherwise and to attack without exchange of words with us. Most importantly, tell Valia to pray for the protection of the angels and seraphim.”
Nysa was surprised. It was known throughout the god’s realm that Elona and Thaos had not interacted with one another in a very long time. It was not something completely believed in the mortal realm. Nysa wondered how Thaos had managed to convince Elona to fight alongside him. Then she wondered why they were heading to Thanis, and why Thaos would want to be attacked by Thena’s angels. Thena held more power while ascended than Thaos did, and her seraphim and angels were not something to be taken lightly.
However, a better question came to mind. “Where is this land located? Who is in charge? Will they pay complete respects to me?”
Thaos looked back at her, eyes sweeping across her face. She needed power, greater power that would make her stronger. She hoped to be on the same level as the elder gods one day. Reigns constantly shifted in the lower god’s realm but never beyond that of the elder gods.
“It rests on the other side of the mountain. The city is being built against them, undetected by Suvius. As for their loyalty to you, it would not be completely yours, no, but enough. There are some there at present who favor Hathus and Eusa.” Nysa shuddered, knowing the twin beasts for their insatiable hunger to torture, stalk, and procreate with the mortals. She couldn’t imagine why anyone would favor them. “But, if you were to bring a sizeable portion of men and women to the land, and I know yours are well tamed, I’ve told their leader to dedicate several days in your honor. Imagine your power. Imagine the mortals looking to you and praying to a walking god. Not just thieves and bandits, not just the mere hundred or so that you have now.” Thaos leaned forward, one hand pressed against the side of her neck, his lips close to touching her ear. “Thousands, Nysa. Thousands.”
A twinge of happiness formed on her face, her heart racing at the idea. She imagined those who would come into her fold. She could also see a better home for those currently serving her, a better home than the cold tops of the mountains. The glory, the military strength, her people would be able to feed themselves year round instead of having to steal from merchants and travelers or having to kill one another for things they needed. They would love and honor her all the more.
Turning her head, she looked Thaos in the eyes, their noses nearly touching.
“This sounds too simple for you, Thaos.” She scoffed. Thaos smirked before touching their lips in a brief kiss, too brief to attempt to escalate it. Gently, he patted her head, stood his full height, and looked at Thanis. Its golden spires rose high in the sky, banners with the crest of a golden griffin against a white backdrop waving proudly in the wind.
“I assure you, it is that simple, Nysa.” His gaze was distant, his face expressionless for the longest. Nysa briefly wondered what was behind his eyes, what workings he thought of and why he did the things he did. Those were things better left untouched, she decided. Thaos, it was said, used to be a kind god, seeking only to protect himself and his lover Elona. Even if he had always controlled the less desirable, he had been kind and helpful.
She didn’t know that god. Nysa was born into knowing his selfishness, pride, and anger.
Her father had told Nysa several times that something had happened to make him thus. It wasn’t just from being cut off from the place of his birth. Something truly dark had taken hold of the elder god. In his face now she could see it. No matter how the mortals thought the gods to be untouchable, they were wrong.
Thaos clapped his hands, smiling once again. “You should get to the task immediately, hmm?” He ruffled her hair to which she groaned. “And, Nysa, I know it’s not something you enjoy, but make a grand entrance. The mortals are apt to believe you better if you do.” He walked off before disappearing from her view completely.
With the current offer she had, she would do anything.
FALLON
“Why are we standing here, Fallon?” Cayden asked from beside his older brother. Fallon gave him a secretive smile, holding back any evidence of pain from his decision to leave.
On the outskirts of the village that lay a day’s journey north of the temple, they stood just outside his family’s farm. By the smell of the meat and spices lingering in the air, his mother had begun preparations for dinner that night. He thought she could even be cooking for a feast that was being prepared for the nearby village and shrine. Summer Set was always a great time for celebration. It was a day to honor the eldest god, Kothes, the day Gaia had birthed him. It was the same day that Kothes had bound himself eternally to the twin goddesses Vhedril and Ghedril.
The Elder Apprentices at Kothes’s temple helped in prayers for nearly the whole island. Offerings and blessings were requested more than usual during Summer Set. As for the villages and smaller temples, they prepared large feasts and spectacular magic shows from those few who could wield mana. They always hoped to trigger the gods’ desire to return to the Mortal Realm.
Fallon’s cousins spotted the two of them, but none stopped to speak, giving Fallon awkward glances instead. After several moments, one of them dashed inside Fallon’s large wooden home, and he prepared himself.
“Fallon,” Cayden pressed, adjusting his rucksack. Fallon could not move, his chest tight.
Cayden’s appearance was a painful reminder of who left their family first. He matched their elder brother’s appearance in almost every way. Five years younger than Fallon at fourteen, he was a bit stocky, and his features were already turning more rugged. His strong jaw matched his wide ears that bent upwards in a near curl, a trait all of them received from their mother.
Fallon’s heart softened when he thought of how his decision might affect his younger brother. When at home or away from his studies, Cayden tagged alongside Fallon.
“I am only enjoying the scenery,” Fallon finally replied, tightening his grip around the strap of his rucksack. After messing his brother’s hair, he pointed to their home. “You can go ahead if you like. I think I’d like to rest before—”
“Fallon, Cayden, is that you?”
Fallon bit his lip at the sound of his mother’s voice, not yet ready to face his parents. Still he smiled and waved to her as Cayden rushed into her arms. When Fallon reached her, he embraced her warmth. Even after having come of age, he buried his face into her slender neck and inhaled the scent of earth and food. After a long hug, he gave her a tight squeeze and pulled away.
Eryia’s light brown eyes fixed on them as she pushed a lock of earth-toned hair behind her ear, a large smile held her features. “Look at you two! It has been a season since I last saw you.” She paused, tilting her head to one side. “Fallon, are you sad, son?”
Fallon blinked. “I do not feel sad,” he said, forcing a wide smile.
“If it concerns your rites, we understand.” Holding Cayden close to her side, she patted Fallon’s cheek. “It happens that there are no signs from the gods. Such a common occurrence now, it was not a surprise either way with you having been born without a feeling.”
“It’s not that, Mother,” he mumbled, unable to take his eyes off her. “Is Father home? I’d like to speak with both of you.”
“Inside then,” Eryia urged, giving Fallon one more look before turning on her bare heel, both boys in tow. Before either was able to move through the thick framed door, their little sister rushed through. Aratrine’s dark blond curls bounced when she jumped into Fallon’s arms, legs and arms wrapping around his waist.
After catching her, she came nose to nose with him. “Mother says I am leaving for Kothes’s temple with you and Cayden this time. Are we leaving now? Will it be tonight that we leave?”
Fallon chuckled, her high energy always amusing him. After settling her on his hip, he adjusted the pack on his back. “No, we are not leaving just yet, Aratrine. We still have the festivities and packing.” Aratrine had grown much in the time since he had last seen her. Having turned eight, she was ready to be sent to the temple to begin training.
Their parents prayed that one of their younger children might be chosen and decide to stay to become an Elder. With Evert gone, Fallon’s path uncertain, and Aratrine having been born with no abilities, it would more than likely be Cayden.
“Are we leaving tomorrow?” she asked, gently pulling at his ear and bending the tip back and downwards. Although she amused him, she sometimes annoyed him with her poking, prodding, rushing, and questioning. But today he held her tight on his hip, smiling at her playful demeanor and making sure to hold onto this moment for as long as he was mortally capable.
“Not tomorrow either, Aratrine,” he replied, kissing her forehead and setting her down.
“I will prepare for when we do!” Aratrine shouted before rushing up the stairs. Her feet pounded across the wooden beams above them, joy thrumming in the sound.
After Eryia disappeared through the back door, Fallon looked around their home. Lanterns, farming tools, pots, and other various things lined the walls, hanging on metal hooks or shelves his father had built. His mother had left something to cook in the fireplace, the scent carrying through their home more strongly than it had outside. He remembered the many times he had helped prepare meals alongside his brothers. He smiled at the tools leaning against the wall and recalled how he and Evert had played more than they worked in the fields. But his father was stricter when it came to training them with the finely forged weapons that lined the walls.
When Cayden wandered away, Fallon set his sack on the robust family table, being careful with it as he kept his gods’ idols within. The past few times he had visited he had left them in his room at the temple, knowing the family altar rested a few feet from the home. With this visit, however, he wanted to feel the comfort of his gods close by at all times.
“Fallon?” a deep voice inquired. Fallon’s father walked through the back door, his mother following close by. Wiping bloodied hands on a piece of stained cloth, Solon raised his eyebrows at his son. “Your mother says you seem troubled.” Solon pulled out a chair from the long table, gesturing to one beside it. Fallon looked at the wooden table with its many chairs. He remembered the many times they had sat around it or had prepared food for festivals on it. Laughter and happy times surrounded the table his father had made with his own hands.
Solon gestured to the chair once again. His father had always been kind yet stern, patient yet unafraid to let him know when time was not on their side, always Solon followed the teachings of Kothes. When Fallon sat, he prayed silently for his father’s kindness to accompany his news.
“Well,” Fallon began, his words not coming easily. Both his parents, with his mother standing behind Solon, looked on patiently. “Nara and I have been promised to one another, if you had not heard.” Hearing his own voice say these words made him cringe.
Solon smirked, leaning back in his chair. “Is that what you are so worried about? Do you not want to be with her?”
Fallon shook his head and stared down at his hands. “It’s not that. I want her more than anything.” His cheeks burned at having finally admitted his feelings for Nara. “But she plans to leave for Ghela by the week’s end, and she appears to have taken interest in a visitor from Ionus.” He looked up, meeting his father’s strong, ice-born gaze, eyes that had been handed down to his children. The smile left Solon’s lips when Fallon stammered, “I think I should follow her.”
“I’ll not hear it.” Solon’s jaw set tightly when he left his chair without disturbing it or any other thing around him. Being the great hunter he was, his movements were swift and graceful.
Fallon was not as graceful as his father, knocking over his chair when he stood. “Father, please. I assure you I only have the best intentions in mind when—”
Solon threw his hands into the air and turned to face Fallon. “I care not what you have in mind. I’ll not hear any talk of you leaving. When those humans came to Vheria thousands of years ago, they tore our lands apart. They tricked hundreds into leaving the path of the gods. Why would you ever entertain joining them?”
“Father...” Fallon’s chest was tight when he spoke. “Because I want to be bound to her, but it will take some time.” He took a step forward but stopped, not daring to completely challenge his father. “And while I am gone, I can seek out Evert, possibly convince him to return.”
“Evert,” Solon scoffed. The anger was present in the lines on his face while red spread to the tips of his ears. “Evert is no longer welcomed here; you know that. With you two gone, who will the younger ones have to look up to? What kind of example are you setting? You think you can go to spoiled lands and return untouched? Your sister especially does not need to see that.”
“The Elders want me to be bound to her.” Fallon raised his voice, immediately regretting it when his father closed the distance between them. Solon’s eyes were hardened. Fallon did not shy away from his father’s aggressive stance, meeting it with just as much assertion.
Solon still would not raise his voice, instead keeping it even. “Then you will tell her to stay. If she leaves, then she is gone, and we will no longer speak of her. I am not obligated to look after her, and you will find or be found another. If you follow her, do not expect to be welcomed back. I’ll not have you bring back their tainted views.” Solon tilted his rough chin upwards, seething with anger but holding a great deal of it back. “Make your decision now, Fallon.”
At last Fallon shirked from his father’s stance, his shoulders hunching forward. “I was not going to—”
“Make your decision now.”
Fallon looked at his mother for support. But Eryia stood silently, refusing to look at her son. Fallon could understand her pain, but he couldn’t understand her abandonment. Eryia had always been there for him no matter what. She had been there to plead for Evert the night he left. But for Fallon, she was silent. This cut deeper than anything he had ever experienced.
He looked at the sack he had set on the table. His heart reached out to the gods through his idols, searching for their guidance. A momentary peace coursed through him and provided the answer he needed.
Looking back at his father, he said, “I need to do what I feel is right. I need to go where I feel the gods are leading me, just as you’ve done all your life. Even if it means she does not take me, I need to be there for Nara. To care for her. I need to find Evert as well. I worry for him.”
“What is your decision?” Solon repeated,
making it clear he wanted to hear Fallon say the exact words.
Swallowing hard, Fallon uttered, “I am leaving Vheria.”
Solon looked Fallon over once, his lip twitching before he nodded, turned, and walked away while declaring, “Retrieve your possessions and leave. You are no longer wanted or welcome in this home.” Eryia quietly followed her husband from the house, tiny feet shuffling across the wood floors. A soft sniffle sounded from behind him. He turned to see Cayden and Aratrine watching him from the stairs. Aratrine, with tears falling down her slender cheeks, was held back by Cayden. Cayden held his chin high, though his lip quivered below narrowed eyes.
Without a word, they also left through the backdoor. It left Fallon alone in the house, reflecting on his memories and his decision.
NARA
She hastened her steps, moving outside and through the temple halls with such speed she nearly toppled everyone she came across.
Nara had not seen Castien as he requested. It was now the second day since she had seen him. The Elders desired her constant attention the closer she came to the Summer Set festival and to her coming of age rites. Blessings, prayers, and gifts were bestowed upon her and the collection of others who would go with her. The Elders wanted to ensure that any path she was given was directly from the gods.
Castien would more than likely understand her absence. He had, after all, sent someone to ask for her. Either way, she would be leaving with him. Those she would leave behind were growing distant, all except the High Elder. The two times they had seen one another, his attitude towards her altered from cheerful to remorseful. She kept her feelings towards him and the situation he had placed her in at a distance. She never would have known about her birthright had Castien not came along, and she resented the High Elder for his secrecy.
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