At breakfast the next day, Suliel looked thoughtfully at Delir Nyer. He wasn’t her guild master, he managed the Adventurers’ Guild in Kirido. He answered to the head of the Guild, here in Bures, and the King before he answered to her. But he had lived in her town for so long—all her life—that Suliel had trouble separating him from the other townsfolk. Her people.
She suspected he had the same difficulty. Certainly, he addressed her with the same respect that everyone else in town did. And he’d come here at her request, to help her with matters that had very little to do with Kirido’s guild hall.
“How is the recruitment coming along?” she asked him.
He nodded in acknowledgement, but waited to finish his mouthful of bacon before he replied.
“Well, my lady. We should have the first cartload ready by tomorrow.”
Suliel nodded, pleased. Under normal circumstances, there was an ebb and flow to the population of the Kingdom. Part of that was the additional work required during harvest, but it was also a response to events—like the raid on Kirido.
Suliel had lost a good number of men on the walls, and these needed to be replaced. She could draw from the nearby villages, but that left those villages bereft of manpower. Eventually, word of work being available would draw in those looking for a job, or a home.
However, Suliel required many more workers than the natural flow could provide. She needed to expand her army, and Kelsey was promising her industries that no one had ever heard of. So she was tapping the much larger employment pool in the capital. Some of these people would find their way to Kirido eventually, but she needed them now.
Paying to transport immigrants was an expense, but it was one that Suliel was willing to pay. At the same time, she didn’t want to burden her fiefdom with those unwilling or unable to work—Anton was sending her enough of those—so she needed an administrator with discernment. And discretion.
“Good. I’m sure I can rely on you,” Suliel said. “There is another matter that’s been troubling me, though. What can you tell me about Riadi?”
Suliel felt Kelsey’s interest sharpen, but the dungeon didn’t say anything.
“The Goddess of Reincarnation, my Lady?”
The image of the blue-skinned and definitely male god flashed into Suliel’s head.
“Yes. I can’t say I’ve heard of… that god. What do you know of her?”
Delir looked thoughtful. “In my job, you collect bits of all sorts of lore. I’d heard the name before Kelsey looked it up and asked me about her. Since then, I’ve looked up what I could, which wasn’t much.”
“What can you tell me?”
“No known priesthood in Zamarra or the neighbouring kingdoms. No temples. Although…” he trailed off, thinking. “If what Kelsey surmised was correct and she has taken over the Dungeon portfolio, every dungeon might serve as a temple.”
“Do temples serve a special purpose for gods?” Suliel asked. It was surprising to her how little she knew about religion. The priests of Tiait handled most ceremonies for her demesne, and Suliel’s education hadn’t covered much on them beyond learning the proper way to pay respect.
“It’s not really known,” Delir said. “They may be no more than status symbols. On the other hand, most stories about gods manifesting have them do it inside a temple, so that may be a requirement.”
Kelsey sent.
“Reincarnation is an odd portfolio,” Delir said. “No one ever remembers doing it, and the only reason it exists as a concept is that several gods have mentioned that it happens.”
“If it happens to everyone, but no one remembers it…” Suliel said, trailing off into confusion. “Does that make her a powerful god or not?”
“Indeed,” Delir said. “Perhaps the most useful comparison is Enbanser, goddess of Birth. But she is much more well-known and revered than Riadi.”
“Everyone prays for a safe birth,” Suliel said, “And her priesthood goes out into the countryside helping expectant mothers.”
“Yes,” Delir agreed. “But no one prays for a safe rebirth. How would you even know it occured?”
“You wouldn’t. So she must be a weak goddess then.”
“Perhaps. Though, if she has picked up the Dungeon portfolio, perhaps she has others that bring her more worship.”
“Wouldn’t be know her as the goddess of something other than reincarnation, then?”
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Delir smiled gently. “She may operate those portfolios under a different name. Or, in far-away countries.”
Suliel sighed. “We don’t know much, do we? Do we even know she’s female?”
“Gods don’t have physical bodies, so they are genderless in a literal sense,” Delir said. “Most of them prefer to present a constant form, which includes a gender.”
“Mel doesn’t have a physical body, but she’s definitely female,” Suliel said.
“Who?” Delir asked.
“Mel is Kelsey’s dungeon fairy,” Suliel explained. She added on what Kelsey had told her.
“I see,” Delir said. “That may be true for gods as well—they are influenced by their worshipper’s beliefs. But gods are a completely different order of beings from fairies. I’d expect them to have more control over their form.”
“If she hasn’t manifested, though, then how do we know she’s female?”
“I’m not sure,” Delir admitted. “The book I read simply gave her gender as female without any explanation. Perhaps one of the gods mentioned it to their followers in passing.”
“There are more books of lore in the capital, correct?”
“Indeed, my lady. The Adventurer’s Guild here has an extensive collection.”
“Then can I ask you to go through those books, and let me know anything you find about Riadi.”
“Of course, my lady. Should this take priority over the recruiting?”
“No…” Suliel said, consideringly. “But you can’t be spending all your time recruiting, can you? If we’re keeping our efforts quiet.”
“Indeed not, my lady. But going through old books—while an enjoyable pastime—takes a great deal of time.”
“Focus on recruitment. But do as much searching as you can. Oh, and can you also check for any gods that have blue skin.”
Delir dropped his fork. It clattered on the metal plate.
“Did you say blue skin, my lady?”
“I did. What of it?” Suliel asked.
“Gods can take any form, my lady, but blue skin… it’s a sign of demons.”
“What?” Suliel asked.
----------------------------------------
Delir begged leave to finish his breakfast and organise his thoughts before saying more. Suliel agreed, if only to avoid their food growing cold. She had to force herself to eat, though. The only thing that got her through was the training her parents had put her through about maintaining a pleasant composure during unpleasant events.
After the plates had been cleaned, and they’d moved to the sitting room, Delir sat opposite Suliel, his face a picture of furious thought.
Finally, he took a deep breath.
“As I said, my lady, the administrator of the Adventurer’s guild needs to know all sorts of odd things. Most people will never encounter a demon, but the odds are much higher for an adventurer.”
Suliel nodded. That made sense. Adventurers encountered all sorts of strange things.
“Demons are creatures from outside of this world,” Delir said. “That makes them part of the class of beings known as Outsiders—beings from outside of this world. Outsiders are generally considered to be of two types. Demons, who are entirely inimical to mortals, and Fae, who are more neutral.”
“Is there not a class of Outsiders that are considered good?” Suliel asked.
“There is not,” Delir said. “But I have only speculation of why that is. The most likely reason is the mistrust that the gods have for any being from the outside. They are unwilling to countenance the idea that an Outsider can be good, and assume that any actions that appear beneficial are either a product of capriciousness or deceit.”
“So there might be good Outsiders, we just don’t hear of them?” she asked.
“Perhaps. Another school of thought states that Outsiders come in many types. Demons and Fae are just the most common, and they are the way they are because of their shared heritage and culture.”
Kelsey said.
“Well, she would,” Delir said when Suliel reported her words. “Since she is, by her account, an Outsider who is neither a Demon nor Fae.”
Kelsey replied with a very odd sensation. It took Suliel a moment to process it, but it was the sensation of her tongue sticking out.
Delir continued with his lecture. “Part of the reason we think this is that Demons and Fae refer to themselves as such, while some other Outsiders have not. Though some have, once the distinction was explained to them.
“Some do, some don’t… this is getting complicated,” Suliel complained.
“I’m afraid so, my lady. We have never received a comprehensive explanation of Outsiders. What I’m telling you is based on the recorded interactions with Outsiders, spread over hundreds of years.
“Over the centuries, demons have consistently displayed some characteristics. The most salient one is that they have a physical body. They are skilled with both illusions and shapeshifting, so that body might not look like their true form. But in every case that a true form has been revealed, it had blue skin.”
“In every case?” Suliel asked. “Wait, who does this revealing?”
“Whenever a demon shows up, a hero isn’t too far behind,” Delir said. “These heroes are often guild members, so we do get reports.”
“Do heroes show up for Fae as well?”
“Fae are best left alone,” Delir said. “That’s the advice we get. Be polite, don’t ask for things and they’ll go away when they get bored. They rarely cause harm like a demon does.”
“How do the heroes know to show up?” Suliel asked.
“Sometimes it is as simple as a request going out to a nearby Guild. Other times… divine providence is assumed.”
“What does that mean?”
Delir looked a little embarrassed. “Sometimes, a series of unlikely events occur that lead to a hero being in the right place at the right time. When that happens, we assume that a god was responsible for arranging it.”
“So when it comes down to it, what does a god with blue skin actually mean?” Suliel asked.
“Hard to say,” Delir said. “They could take on that form if they wanted to make a point. Or it could be a demon pretending to be a god.”
“We need more information,” Suliel decided. “Delir, is there anyone at the Guild you can trust to search the records while keeping quiet about it?”
“Who are we keeping it a secret from?” Delir asked.
“Everyone,” Suliel said sourly. “From the gods themselves if we can manage it.”
Suliel grimaced. “I just want to know what we’re dealing with before anyone else knows that I’m dealing with it. I’ll make some funds available, Delir. Try and find me some information I can use.”
Delir bowed his head. “I will do what I can, my lady.”