The shock of the previous day still hadn't left Auric's mind. How could he be the focal point of a prophecy? The All-Mother hadn't delivered a vision to her clerics since the Great Breaking. Or at least, she hadn't to the ones outside The Forest. Were they even really followers of Nathet, or did they pay lip service? Too many questions that don't matter right now. At the moment, Auric needed to focus on the path in front of him.

  His Goddess demanded that he bring the scattered monster tribes here, to this city that was ready and waiting for them to do more than just survive in. Walking down the empty roads, Auric noticed that all of the buildings that weren't purely residential were built for specific professions. By the back wall, tanneries and leather workshops sprouted from the stone of the wall. By the rear gate, blacksmiths and other workshops for metals clustered around a central forge, larger than any Auric had seen before, even in the larger cities closer to the capital. Stalls for foodstuffs and trinkets were lined up in neat rows coming from the large front gate, with bigger shops behind for more specialized traders and hawkers. Auric thought he even saw brewing vats peeking up from the buildings a few malms away from the largest building in the city, the inn. No sign swung from the inn's signpost, it had likely rotted in the millennia since the city had been abandoned. Auric still marveled at the fact that everything was in such good repair, even after one thousand years. Mae had told him it was likely enchantments from when the city was being built. Mages had been far more gifted in those days, nothing even close to this magnitude had been done since.

  Returning from his stroll, he found Mae feeding the baby again. He'd come up with a name for the boy, but he wanted to see what Mae thought before he said anything. Auric had never named a child before, and honestly, if Mae was taking the role of Mother, even temporarily, Auric would defer to her judgment.

  "Mae, the boy needs a name. Would you be willing to help me decide on a good name for him?" Auric felt his cheeks color when she looked up at him, smiling.

  "So you decided to name the child? Good, it is attractive for a man to take charge of some things. You'll learn well I think." Her eyes, perpetually amused with him, flashed something else, but before he could decipher what it meant, she continued "I think that the names Garon, Muros, and Falion are good fits. What say you, male?"

  Auric still wondered why she called him that. He shook his head, getting his train of thought back on track, and considered the names, mouthing them and seeing how they felt to say. He took a few more minutes, and when he looked up, Mae was looking at him intently. He cleared his throat and said, "I think Garon fits the boy well. From this day, until he can have one of his race tell us if it's a good name, he shall be Garon."

  "Little Garon," Mae cooed at the boy. She tickled his belly a little, her blood-red nails glistening, then set him in his bassinet lightly. The boy had a small rattler that Auric had never seen before in his hands as soon as he hit the mattress. Mae was taking this self-imposed duty very seriously. Auric felt admiration towards the woman, even if he was still slightly frightened of her. She'd given him no reason to be, but what she was still put him on edge when he thought about it too much. Her being gorgeous to the point that it almost hurt to look at her helped ease his fear somewhat, but it tended to make his thoughts drift somewhere... unclean.

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  "Well, male," Mae said as she looked away from Garon, "We must begin your task soon. How do you want to start?"

  Auric's throat tightened slightly as he processed what she was asking him. He was meant to unite the tribes of monsters but had no clue how to even start. How did he even contact the tribes, or even communicate with them? They all spoke different languages as far as Auric could tell. Orc sounded like grunting and jabbering to him. He'd never met a Lamia before, but he'd been told that their language was the closest to the human language, as they had a mostly human form, save the reptilian lower half. That's only 2 of the plethora of known monster races, and the enormity of the task threatened to overwhelm him.

  "Mae, I'm not sure where to even start," Auric confessed, crestfallen.

  "Worry not male, the Goddess has prepared your trail."

  "Trail?" Auric asked, confused.

  "Yes, she knew the magnitude of the task before you. It's why I am here. To guide you, Chosen."

  Mae look very serious as she said the last word. It felt like the word punched him in the chest, it was that intense. He had so many questions, but he held them back.

  "Mae, I'll do what I can. I can't promise anything besides that."

  The expression on the Vampire woman's face shifted from intensity to curiosity.

  "I thought he would be more arrogant." She said, under her breath. Auric's hearing was well-trained, so he heard the muttering, but didn't say anything. "Come, male, I have something I am supposed to give you."

  Walking into the throne room, Mae sat on the throne for a moment. She was fiddling with the arm of the throne and cursing under her breath. After a moment, a small rumble emanated from the floor under his feet. A door, 2 malms wide and tall enough for him to lay down and not touch either end slowly appeared where he had been standing. A few thumps echoed from the tunnel that the hole had been created as steps fell into place.

  A vault? This would be the safest place to keep your valuables, I suppose. Always have your eyes on the door at least. Smart.

  Mae stepped down and quickly moved to the vault entrance. After testing the steps gingerly, she motioned for him to follow. At the bottom, a long tunnel was dug into the foundations of the keep. Auric couldn't see how far it stretched, as the end he could see was plunged into darkness, but he guessed it likely went for hundreds more malms. They walked for a few minutes, Mae taking a torch off the wall and sparking it with her nails.

  Neat trick, Auric thought. They arrived at a large metal door, covered in runes. He could see no handle to open it, but Mae just put her hand on it. After a second or two, the runes sprang to life, colors swirling from the runes as they formed words that Auric couldn't read. Another few seconds passed as he watched the runes, entranced before he heard a click that brought him back. The door swung open and inside, was more gold than Auric had ever seen. Not that he'd seen much, but in this room were mountains and mountains of gold. He doubted even the dwarves at the bank in Laris had this much on hand, not to mention the loose jewels. In the back of the vault was another, smaller door that Mae went to, and quickly opened with her magic as well. Inside, she went up to a statue with a medallion around its neck. Mae motioned to the necklace.

  "This is what I was told to give you, Chosen."

  Her tone was softer on the word this time. Auric was hopeful that meant that he was getting into her good graces.

  "What is it?" He asked.

  "A medallion," Mae said dryly.

  "Ah, I meant what is it for?"

  "It is the Mark of Tongues. With this, you will be able to speak to all." Taking the medallion off the statue, she handed it to him. "Put it on." She commanded. He did just that.

  "Do you understand what I am saying?" Mae asked him. Her mouth moved in a way that didn't make sense to Auric, as they didn't match what he heard her say at all.

  "Yes, but it was confusing."

  "Good, now we can truly begin." She said confidently.