Vitala's hands waved through the air, the crystals of the room shifting and pulsing with her unspoken commands until six pillars of crystal evenly faced a seat. She lowered herself onto the seat, letting her magic flow through, the pillar crystals pulsing once before silence. Minutes dragged until several pillars lit up, voices filtering through to praise her and claim they were awaiting her command. She channeled her magic again into the crystals. “Status reports.”
More waiting and the messages she got back were... mixed. The work on Inani Bay was actually progressing quicker than expected; the main structures and supports were done, everything else was just improvements to the plans. More sword rattling from the neighbors, even one brief rebellion of a village that refused to pay their due taxes. It ended without bloodshed but the town was now another drain on her forces. At this point she wished she could send them all the to the middle of nowhere-
“...Nowhere...” Something was stirring in her mind. What if it wasn’t nowhere? What if it wasn’t just some no-name little village? A place that wasn’t part of her empire, nor a part of her enemies’ lands. Her fingers rapped against her crystal seat; she couldn’t just give the rebels gifts, what sort of message would that send? However, sending their neighbors, or better yet, their rivals aid? That was a whole other story.
“...Let us see if the boy had the right idea...”
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"...I admit, coming here without knowing much about you was probably not one of my best ideas.” Hazard admitted to the air as he sat in the chapel, the face of the Saintess peering down at him. He awkwardly smiled, “Any chance you accept a Lord’s prayer, or maybe something for Channukah?”
He chuckled, and it just as awkwardly trailed off into the silence. He sighed heavily, clasping his hands in his lap. “Look I don’t... you, whoever or whatever or wherever you are, did a lot for me. This was... a chance I didn’t actually think I’d get. I’m sure you know the question of what would happen after always kind of hung in my head. Well in a lot of people’s heads, but you know what I mean. What I want to say is...”
He took a deep breath and sighed again, “Thank you. I never really had a chance to really sit and marinate on it, but this is what I had always hoped for, at least in a way. It’s not... perfect, and I think you might’ve taken me saying “people need a bit of discomfort in their lives” way too far, but... it’s a good life. Good enough for me, at least.”
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There was no response, of course, and Hazard leaned back in his seat, taking a deep breath...and something brushed his shoulder.
“You-”
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Vitala looked over the proposition as she sat at her desk, sighing through her nose. Would that she could this little experiment of hers would happens over the next few days, but sadly it would take some months to even build up the supplies for it. Now it was just more the usual: budget requests for cockamamie things, tax deductions, she was actually interested in some of these rationing ideas for the colder months-
She lifted her head as she felt a distant, but large blip of magic and heard some sort of... scream? No, it was more like a squeak. One of the maids must’ve encountered a rat or something.
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Hazard breathed heavily as he shook, bordering on tears as the priestess rubbed his back and held his hands, trying to calm him. “You are safe, you are safe, no harm will come to you here.”
It took a good few minutes as Hazard calmed himself, and the priestess gently pat his head. “Are you calm, little one?”
“Uh huh.” He was pulled into a hug.
“I’m so sorry, I didn’t think you reaction would be so...”
“It’s okay, I know you didn’t mean to.” He took a deep breath again and the priestess gently pulled away from him, sitting beside him in the pew. “I’m sorry. I just kind of zone out sometimes, so when it gets really quiet and something really sudden happens-”
“You didn’t do anything wrong.” She stroked his back again. “I just wanted to say, it’s very rare to see one so young yet so dedicated to the Saintess. It seems you’ve had a difficult life, but I’m glad you’ve found solace in her holy light. My only wish is that she had done more for you.”
Hazard jolted, stunned from her words. It wasn’t just the kindness behind them, it was she’d say them in the first place. Considering the world they were in, they felt like a big no-no. She smiled softly and angled herself down a bit so she was closer to eye level. “Little one, it’s okay. You of all people have earned the right to feel... frustrated. I know, however, that the Saintess loves you and your sister. Please never doubt that.”
Hazard couldn’t say anything in response to that; while he wasn’t exactly about to sing anyone’s praises (he, quite literally, couldn’t stand to do so), he had just got done thanking the powers that be that he didn’t... well he did die, but that it wasn’t permanent. The priestess sensed his turmoil and stood, offering him a hand. “Do you like books?”
“Yes?”
“Would you like to join me in reading about the Saintess?”
A myriad of unbearable Sunday-school memories flooded his head, but she was being very kind to him, and it’d be a good chance to see the perspective on the religion from someone in the know. He nodded, picking up his cane to stand and take her hand. “I would like that.”