Chapter 15

Well after midnight, when I had been dozing and half-awake, a knock rang out on my door.

“It’s open.”

Theresa, with quite a few beers in her, stood in the doorway slightly swaying.

“Are you okay,” she asked me suddenly. Not at all what I had expected her first words to be.

“Not really,” I replied, saying more in that short sentence than I wanted to admit.

She stepped in and closed the door. “It must have been really something, if you went that far overboard.”

I cried. I didn’t know why and I couldn’t stop.

I didn’t even realize that Theresa was hugging me until I pulled myself together.

That girl part of me, which I kept fighting off, its influence was just too strong during and after my encounter with Norton. When he spoke of Princess Amethyst’s betrayal and murder, I FELT Her Emotions inside of me!

I now knew why I’d suddenly giggle, cry, and do other girly actions. A little bit of Princess Amethyst’s soul was inside of my body and had been communicating with me the whole time.

I’ve known since the PIT that she was there, but had never felt her this strongly.

It was Amethyst’s sadness and anger that I felt keenly at her sister’s and mother’s betrayal. Sir Kyle’s Betrayal struck the girl inside of me even harder than her family’s did. Sir Kyle was her own personal Knight from the time she could walk until his absence at her capture and subsequent drowning encased in a chained steel crate.

He had always been there for her in all of her years growing up and she adored him.

These weren’t memories from the girl sharing my soul. They were impressions, and not faint ones either. Princess Amethyst was dead and knew it, but the strongest memories she had were of him and her family.

I inhabited a near identical body to hers, or her recreated body, or possibly her body rebuilt. It was mine now, she was just a passenger who had a slight ability to influence me while I explored this world.

Her soul liked me and had fun in my travels. She wanted more and was patient enough to wait for those new experiences to arrive. She didn’t care when they came, just that they did.

I didn’t have to like it, I just had to learn to live with it.

I knew that her soul made up a tiny portion of mine. Maybe not even part of me, I felt that her soul was beside mine, connected in some odd fashion. I knew she wasn’t hostile nor parasitic. She was here for reasons unknown, but none of those reasons did I have to fear.

Shannon Kyle said Princess Amethyst was murdered when she was thirteen. Two years ago. That made this body fifteen.

I was me, yet not entirely me. A cheerfully earnest thirteen-year-old girl’s soul had come to visit and stayed.

It was her crying miserably on the bed and I couldn’t blame her in the least. She was betrayed and killed by those she loved most. Sir Shannon Kyle was the tip of the iceberg which she no longer could ignore.

That I could not ignore.

She cried through me at her loss. I didn’t fight her and let her work her emotions out.

I cried too.

A familiar snore woke me in the morning. Theresa’s leather encased arm was flung over me, making it difficult to sneak out and use the bathroom. I brought out my yellow dress and quietly changed before opening the door.

On my return from the bath, Theresa was lacing up her boots.

“Is it all out?” She meant my tears and sadness.

“Mostly. Thanks for last night.”

“The dragon left the area after eating a few deer. It was a good test of the city’s defenses, but the Guilds will need to remain on alert for a while.

“Is the Swamp okay tomorrow?” Theresa asked. “Just you and me. We should have some privacy there.” Meaning that we could not talk now, but inside of the dungeon should be fine.

“That works. I need to go to Sune’s and speak with Sister Gretchen.”

“Are you spending the whole day there?” she asked with concern.

“Probably most of it. I plan on coming straight back after.”

“I think you need some more rest. Unfortunately, I’ll be meeting with Laine,” the Duchess, “and Guildmaster Jang most of the day.” Her eyes, if not her words, said that she was truly worried for me.

“Sorry and thanks.” It was my fault that she was suddenly taken hostage by politics only days after arriving at Danbury.

We parted with a hug. I knew she watched me walk up the hill and out of sight towards the Temple Quarter. Worried. Probably too worried, yet justifiably so.

“She’s human and young. While she controls a fair amount of mana, it isn’t enough. Bloodbane’s friend is also much too young to be responsible for yesterday’s event,” Guildmaster Jang reported to Duchess Laine after using a significant amount of time and energy scrying the violet haired teen accompanying the famous adventurer.

“I still think Theresa lied when she spoke about what happened. That the danger has passed may be true. Yet something doesn’t feel right,” Duchess Laine speculated aloud.

“I wasn’t here when she was driven out by Olivia and her husbands. That she returned against the wishes of her parents is quite evident from Olivia’s behavior in the last 10-day. The reason for Bloodbane’s return must be that young Priestess,” Guildmaster Jang stated.

“I spoke with Claire in Belfast last night and she reported that Sune’s Temple now has a small memorial to The Avatar. That memorial has one of the Basilisk’s fans as its centerpiece. It has been confirmed that the segment of the fan is genuine. Where it came from, no one will confirm, yet it appeared days after Priestess Cynthia and Bloodbane left Belfast.” Guildmaster Jang concluded.

“Did Priestess Cynthia deliver a segment to Priestess Gertrude?” Duchess Laine asked.

“I just learned my information from Claire last night when I inquired about Priestess Cynthia and Bloodbane’s relationship,” He chided the Duchess, “I also do not know if the Priestess would answer that question. I would not if I were in her position. If word spread, then that girl would be in danger.

“I will add: if that Priestess is carrying relics that used to belong to The Avatar, then she has the favor of the Gods and is not to be taken lightly. Bloodbane agreeing to escort that Priestess would make perfect sense in that case,” Guildmaster Jang said all too seriously for the Duchess to think otherwise.

She understood what was left unsaid.

Priestess Cynthia was a messenger from the Gods.

With the fact that the Gods were unhappy with her King and Kingdom, she understood that she could not let anything happen to that girl.

“Cynthia, come with me, please,” Sister Gertrude called out to me once I entered Sune’s grounds.

“I heard that you were outside Danbury when the spell was cast. Do you know anything?”

“At that time, I was in a Sanctuary speaking to an old acquaintance. I’m sorry. I didn’t see anything or hear anything.” I was sorry for not being able to tell her it was me.

“That you can even cast a Sanctuary outside of consecrated grounds is remarkable. At your age it is astonishing. I wouldn’t go spreading that around or any of your other strengths.”

“Yes, Elder Sister.”

“I heard that the Princess joined you in your first dungeon run and that Bloodbane was the one who escorted you two. Yet you left earlier than they did by an hour. Did something happen?” Sister Gertrude asked.

“Theresa and Princess Marigold are old friends; I gave them room to get reacquainted and left early. They were at a safe location so I didn’t worry about them getting hurt.”

“That’s not all, is it?” She was sharp.

“No, Elder Sister. The zombies inside were too weak. Neither the Princess nor I realized just how weak they were until after we actually faced off against them. And before you ask, yes there is more,” I gave a half laugh, this woman was even wiser than Richard. But she would have to be, she was the face of Sune for decades at her last temple and now she was head of the second busiest temple in the kingdom.

I relayed my disgust at the lack of training that the young adventurers had and my plans on finding someone to start a school to correct that lack.

“I wish to ask you, and I plan to ask the other High Priests and Priestess, if they are willing to help the man I chose to develop the school and assist in the children’s training.”

“We are understaffed right now,” Sister Gertrude replied without answering my request.

“I understand that. But who says that our acolytes cannot receive training along with the others? Most of these children are illiterate, teaching sixteen is little different than teaching six how to read and write.”

“What good is it to teach adventurers how to read?” Sister Gertrude pointed out in the form of a question.

“Some traps may be written puzzles. Besides, not all children should be adventurers,” I replied.

“You wish to educate the children of this city. It will take more than just you,” she chided.

“I know,” I replied succinctly.

“Have you had time to think about the architects?”

“I’ve spoken with them, but they only see my age, I’ll need you to make them understand that...”

After my meeting with Sister Gertrude, I spent the rest of the morning with the acolytes. Leaving the temple grounds, I walked up to Tone’s garden and stood at the perfectly placed rock boundary.

“You know. You guys didn’t make it easy for me, even before I pleaded for mercy,” I spoke to Tone. Even if I weren’t touching his bark, I felt that he could hear me. Did He understand me? That I wasn’t as sure of.

“Do you always talk to Tone?” A solid older male voice asked as I felt a presence near. Turning to look, I recognized the man that the voice belonged to, Forgemaster Ren who I saw with Sister Gertrude the other day.

“Only when I want to throw stones at him,” I grimaced.

“Such a brave woman. No one I know of is willing to even say good things about the Silent God.”

“He’s not silent. We just cannot understand his method of communication,” I replied, half distracted. I felt that He was trying to get my attention again and resisted stepping forward into His domain.

“What makes you believe that?” Forgemaster Ren asked evenly. By his tone of voice, he truly was curious on why I thought that way and not mocking me.

“There are fish in the sea and birds in the sky that speak in tones too high for humans to hear. There are also sounds that young humans can hear that older ones cannot. There are colors we cannot see and places we cannot go. That doesn’t mean that they do not exist,” I rambled. I knew that I wasn’t making the most sense, but Tone had my attention.

“Has he ever spoken to you?”

“Once,” I shuddered, I remembered how close I came to self-destruction that day and Lars helping me to escape the people who surrounded me. “It’s not something I hope to repeat.”

Unable or unwilling to stop himself, my newest friend asked, “What did He say?”

“He asked if I knew what time was.” With difficulty, I tore my attention away from the God of Time and Space. “Forgemaster, do you play chess?”

“I do.”

“Shall we play a game?” I grinned, “and get some food. I’m hungry and could use a drink.” Or five. Getting drunk sounded awesome even if it was impossible.

After spending two hours with Forgemaster Ren, I returned to my room, laid down, and stared at the ceiling lost in thought.

“You called for us, Forgemaster?”

“Cynthia of Sune is our ally. Keep that in mind when you deal with matters relating to Sune and Her Priestesses.”

“Ren? Are you getting married after all these years?” One of his Elders asked, not quite seriously. But still, the old Forgemistress was curious to what brought out the upgrade in relations between the two temples.

“That girl is intriguing. She already has plans in motion to set up a school and that is just the first of her plans. How many others are in that pretty head of hers, I can’t wait to see.”

“Do you want us to aid her with that school?”

“Not yet. She wants the school head, an adventurer named Norton, to make the first move.” Unless someone makes her move.

For the second night in a row, Theresa returned home drunk. Just before midnight, she knocked on my door a little too hard, probably disturbing the other guests.

“Come in.”

“Feeling better?” she slurred.

Smiling, “I should be asking you that. It looks like you had fun tonight.”

“I met up with some old friends.”

I patted a freshly vacated space on my bed, “Sit and tell me about them.”

Closing the door behind her, she unbuckled her sword and sat hard on the bed, rambling about friends from long ago that she came across when exiting the ducal palace.

I took her sword from her and hung it on the back of the door, before kneeling to unlace her boots while encouraging her to continue. Boots off, tunic unbuckled and partially unlaced, I struggled with her awkward help to loosen her pants after pushing her backwards across my bed.

She hated to have her armor completely removed unless she was bathing, and I respected that. It was my turn to tuck her in, yet this time she took the whole single sized bed. I was left with a pillow and the floor.

Theresa sobered some and spoke of her day with the Duchess and the Guild leaders, glossing over her parents’ involvement. The Clan leaders made an appearance for an hour before being dismissed by the Duchess. Nothing was accomplished other than taking the whole episode as an emergency test run for the city and those who ran it.

Before sleep overcame my friend, the last words out of her mouth were, “The Duchess wants to meet you.”

That wasn’t a surprise.

...

I didn’t buy a map while waiting in line with Theresa the next morning. I teased her about entering my room and taking advantage of this poor helpless girl after coming home drunk last night.

She clobbered me on the shoulder, yet didn’t dispute my accusations. A few eyes were turned in our direction at our playing around. Even with the massive reversal of age, Theresa’s name and face were the most recognized ones in the city after her parents and Duchess Laine.