Kaln had lived through enough moments in his life in which everything fell apart that he was practically a connoisseur of them. To his surprise, now that this one had arrived, he found that it wasn’t all that bad, to the point he was almost unsure what he’d been so worried about.
In the worst case…he still had all the power here. Which was not to say he didn’t now have some explaining to do.
“How’s that expression go?” he asked aloud. “Fuck around and find out? For someone who was so afraid of attracting Emeralaphine’s notice, you’ve been awfully cavalier about—”
“Oh, please,” the Entity retorted in a tone of good-humored ribbing, its voice undisturbed by whatever effect was now laid over it. “Don’t even try to take credit for this, it’s not like you tipped her off.”
“You know what, that’s a very good point.” Kaln grinned up at the dragon, finding to his surprise that he didn’t have to force the expression. “I know it shouldn’t surprise me at all that you of all people pulled off the impossible, but still, well done. I don’t even know what this thing is, but it’s been awfully resistant to revealing any weaknesses.”
“It’s a god, husband,” she stated, smirking.
“Just a little one!” the Entity said innocently.
“Not to mention a bit of fascinating context,” Emeralaphine continued. “Gods are difficult creatures to analyze if they choose not to cooperate, but even at a glance I can tell that this one’s divine aspect is related in some way to stealth, which answers the looming questions I’ve had about how you waltzed blithely past all our senses and Atraximos’s preposterously overtuned ward network before you were even a godling. Also, it is a particularly weak and thus likely young specimen of its kind, if I was able to perceive that much.”
“All of that slots together very neatly,” Kaln mused. “Well. I suppose this calls for some explanations—”
“Oh, you had better believe I expect to receive them,” she said pointedly, “but it calls first for a change of venue. I require surroundings providing firmer control, and for that matter, I confess I am not the only party to whom these explanations are owed.”
She called forth magic again; Kaln could tell this was a teleportation spell at a glance, but it had multiple layers of additional effects he couldn’t interpret. That was all the time he had to think about it before the world blurred around him, and suddenly he, Emeralaphine, and the imprisoned Entity were all in the middle of the central Timekeeper vault of their lair.
So was the peculiar distortion in the air that was apparently keeping the little god captive.
Kaln had barely caught his bearings when Emeralaphine raised her head and emitted a trumpeting roar which echoed off the enclosed walls at such a deafening intensity that… Well, actually, it did nothing to him; apparently this counted as dragon-generated harm, and so Kaln suffered no discomfort even though the intensity of the sound caused the very air to tremble around him. He hoped Percy was still outside.
He sensed the other dragons react immediately, though, much faster than they usually did. Izayaroa and Vanimax instantly broke off their conversation and surged out into the central hall, as did Tiavathyris from her own lair. Kaln actually sensed the magical pulse she sent out, which caught Vadaralshi’s attention and brought the younger green swooping back toward the main entrance. Pheneraxa…was in the library, not outside, and responded the slowest. Hopefully she was making sure their guest was all right.
“And what have we here?” Tiavathyris inquired, arching her neck to peer down at Kaln and the imprisoned shadow, still contained within a cage of moonlight.
“Our husband has some things he wishes to explain, when everyone is gathered,” Emeralaphine said primly. “Before anyone overreacts, you know that I respect a person’s privacy as much as anyone. But this troublesome little thing has been snooping about intermittently since he arrived, and that I will not countenance with good grace until I receive certain…assurances.”
“More than fair,” Kaln said, carefully projecting calm. “I would like some myself; perhaps you can aid me in getting them. I haven’t had much luck.”
“Oh, I am delighted to be of service, husband,” Emeralaphine said, lowering her head nearly to ground level and grinning at him.
“I believe I can intuit the general shape of it at a glance,” Tiavathyris murmured as Vadaralshi darted into the room, head up in an alert posture and for once not goofing around. Kaln was honestly impressed at how seriously they took this sounding of the alarm; they hadn’t even pulled together like this during his confrontation with Atraximos.
Pheneraxa was the last to arrive, though she’d spent the interim right there in the library. Emeralaphine swiveled her head to give her daughter a baleful stare, likely for that very reason, so Kaln stepped in before she could speak.
“Is Percy all right?”
“She’s reading quietly,” Pheneraxa replied, pacing over to join the group with her gaze fixed upon the Entity. “Seems to be mostly recovered.”
Recovered? What in the hells had happened to Percy? He’d left them alone for a few minutes! Kaln was forced to prioritize, though; if the princess was currently safe and sound, he had more immediate affairs to get squared away before he could attend to her.
“What is this critter meant to be?” Vanimax demanded, extending his neck to sniff at the Entity, which waved at him.
“A deity.” Izayaroa tugged her son back by his tail, golden eyes fixed on the being in question. “A minor one, I should think. Likely lesser in power than any of us.”
“Yes, hence my ability to restrain it,” Emeralaphine agreed. “But challenging gods never comes down to raw power. A god is a focus of reality, a nexus of existence governed only by its own rules, which it then imposes upon the world. To truly defeat a god one must understand their nature and use it against them. Otherwise…no amount of power will avail you against a creature which can determine the terms by which your power may be used.”
“And yet you seem to have this one neatly wrapped up, mother,” said Pheneraxa.
“Yes,” Emeralaphine said pointedly, swiveling her head back to stare down at the patiently waiting Entity. “Yes, with remarkable ease. Almost as if…”
“As if it wants to be held,” Izayaroa finished quietly.
“It’s a subtle thing,” the white dragon continued. “I am solidly certain that subtlety is part of its divine nature, perhaps one of its core aspects. But still, I have sensed…something sniffing around at the edges of perception. At very particular times and places. In the vicinity of our Kaln, at moments when he himself stood at a circumspect distance from the lair. Not for nothing am I the greatest sorceress yet alive,” she added, lifting her chin proudly.
“Hey, I never doubted you for a second!” the Entity said, holding up its shadowy hands limned in pale light and silently applauding. “Between you and me, I didn’t dare get within sniffing distance of this place! Remember, Kaln? I told you she’d spot me.”
“That sounds very much like Kaln having private conversations, which he is well within his rights to do,” Tiavathyris pointed out. “I do not propose to share with him every secret detail of my own affairs. Do you, Emeralaphine?”
“I have already addressed that,” Emeralaphine snapped, thumping her tail on the floor for emphasis. “Obviously Kaln can do as he likes—within reason. None of my hobbies involve bringing enigmatic stealth-aspected deities of uncertain provenance and intention around our lair, where we all have our homes, hoards, and children!”
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“These of course being listed in order of importance,” Vadaralshi said, whereupon Tiavathyris swatted her with a wing.
“I believe I see your point,” said Izayaroa, once again turning her eyes back to Kaln. “Very well. I would very much prefer to leave you the privacy of your own business, husband. If nothing else… I had rather looked forward to the day when you felt safe enough to share such things with us.”
“I, as well,” Tiavathyris added quietly. “To earn such trust is a precious thing. I much regret having the opportunity preempted.”
“But,” Izayaroa continued, “Emeralaphine is not incorrect, though I would personally have gone about this in a less ham-fisted way. A thing like this in particular… If it is to be loitering around our home, at least some assurances are called for.”
“Yes…yes, they are,” Kaln agreed with a sigh. “Well. Now that we’re all here… I apologize, to all of you, for keeping this from you. This being…well, it is the reason I’m here. The reason for all of this. Its help is what got me here, got me to…where I am.”
“Uh, Pants,” Vadaralshi said, “I hope you didn’t think that was some kind of secret. Like, seriously, you snuck in here past all six of us and booped Atraximos on the snoot right there in that room with all the magical defenses that you definitely know what they’re like by now. I promise, nobody thought you did that with your scribe powers.”
“Indeed,” said Emeralaphine. “The question, then, is why did this creature feel the need to thus empower a scribe to fell Atraximos the Dread and ascend to godhood? It is rather against character for any deity to empower a godling. Most of them will tend to do the opposite.”
“What, un-empower godlings?” Vanimax asked. “How do you do that, exactly?”
“You kill them,” Pheneraxa said dryly.
“Why?” Vadaralshi added, grinning. “You curious for any specific reason, Vanimax?”
“Shut up!” all three of their mothers barked in unison. All three drakes immediately flattened themselves to the floor.
“Oh, my goodness, they do byplay,” the Entity squealed. “They’re adorable. Now I want some of my own!”
“Rather insouciant little thing, isn’t it,” Tiavathyris rumbled.
“Well?” Emeralaphine asked pointedly. “Can you reassure us, husband, that this thing which has conspired to destroy one dragon is harmless to have around?”
“I…very much cannot,” Kaln stated, turning to fix his stare upon the Entity. It just stood there, looking particularly uncanny with its normally vague outline delineated by the spell she’d laid over it. It was still using his shadow; he currently didn’t have one attached to his own feet. He could actually see its shape, thanks to the transparent of scintillating shell which lay over it. In form, it might have passed for human, except…it had no face. “To be clear, I owe this entity more than just my success and the place I’ve obtained here. I would be grateful enough for all of that, but the truth is it came to me in my most vulnerable moment, when I was as surely doomed as it’s possible for a person to be. I owe it my life. I believe strongly that one must show gratitude where it is deserved—that a civilized person repays their debts, honor for honor and mercy with generosity.”
Tiavathyris nodded in approval.
“But,” Kaln continued quietly, “I still don’t know why it did this. And when I was a desperate exile, I didn’t ask questions of the only power in the world that deigned to help me. But now… Now I have a family. And it’s a different matter when a being as mysterious and powerful as this one insists on hanging around them without telling me what it wants! It refuses to answer the most basic questions about its motivations or interests, or why it bothered with me at all. What it gained from elevating me, or destroying Atraximos, or whether any of that was actually what it was trying to do. Emeralaphine is right—we need some simple assurance. That’s all I want, all I asked for. Just…let me understand.” He shifted his focus from the dragons to the Entity as he spoke. “Who are you, what are you, why have you done all this? Why do you care? If there are good answers, then I will be glad to repay your aid in whatever way I can. If there aren’t…then I can’t have you looming over the heads of those I love.”
All three of his consorts now drew themselves up to their full, truly intimidating heights, arching their long necks to glare menacingly down at their captive.
“You are an honorable guy, y’know?” the Entity said. Its tone, as always, was light…but now it was also soft, the usual sauciness traded for a gentler delivery. “Just so…decent. It’s one of the best things about you, Kaln, and a big part of why I chose you. But your selective application of that trait is…frustrating.”
“And this is what it’s been like,” Kaln said in exasperation, shrugging and looking up at the looming faces of his wives. “I ask a simple question and I get something like that. Anything other than an explanation that tells me how worried I should be.”
“A disappointingly standard gambit, from such a novel being,” Tiavathyris stated flatly. “The response of every cornered manipulator.”
“And the answer to our question,” Izayaroa growled. “You have our thanks, spirit, for the aid you have rendered our husband. Emeralaphine, what are our options for getting rid of this thing?”
“It’s not so easy, with gods, but it is doable,” the white dragon answered. “Magical might alone won’t do it, but they are creatures so inherently tied to a domain, it is possible to render one’s own domain incompatible with theirs. I can manage.”
“I am concerned,” said Tiavathyris, “by the fact that this is very clearly a god of deception, among other nuances we do not even know. Look at the approach it took with Kaln. This creature operates by moving others to do its bidding. Banishing it from our own home will leave it with the entire rest of the world’s inhabitants as its arsenal.”
“I think that’s overstating it, but fundamentally not wrong,” Izayaroa agreed. “Then it would seem we have a problem.”
“Unless you want to spit it out?” Kaln prompted, again staring at the Entity. “No matter what you are, the personal enmity of all these dragons is not something you need. This would be so easy if you’d just give us a straight answer.”
“Oh, Kaln,” the Entity chided, wagging an unusually distinct finger at him. “You are so close to being right. It is excruciatingly true that a simple answer is what will resolve all this. Almost, you’re almost there! It’s just that…I’m not the one who needs to give that answer.”
“And again it turns the question around on you,” Tiavathyris snorted. “Husband, the best approach to beings such as this is often not to engage with them at all. Words are its weapon and its battlefield.”
“Kaln himself is hardly unarmed in that arena,” Izayaroa said quietly, “nor are we.”
“Tell them,” the Entity urged. “Tell them the truth. All of it. You need to tell them, not me!”
“That kind of detail may be germane,” said Emeralaphine. “Positioning people and events and revelations just so is often a component of divine machinations.”
“Tell them,” the Entity commanded, now turned fully to face Kaln and ignoring the dragons, “why you needed my help. All of it, Kaln. You heard the lady, I’m a spirit of deception. The truth from me means nothing and helps no one. Tell them your truth!”
Despite themselves, all the dragons shifted their heads to stare at Kaln directly. He kept his own gaze fixed on the Entity, frowning in concentration.
“Yes…that’s what you wanted from the beginning,” Kaln said slowly. “For me to rally the dragons…to attack those who’ve wronged me. Why? Why do you want that?”
“Husband, you show more wisdom than I think you know,” Tiavathyris interjected in a ringing tone, stepping forward so that she towered intimidatingly over the Entity. “Any enemy will attempt to maneuver you into making a mistake. When the enemy is a god, these actions have weight, an ontological force that can reshape the world around you.”
“And when you are a godling,” Emeralaphine chimed in, “any significant actions you take will powerfully shape the kind of being you become. Which tells us, at least in part, what this thing wants. It’s trying to determine your divine aspect, to control what kind of god you grow into.”
“A god of revenge,” Izayaroa hissed, lowering her head to bare her teeth directly at the Entity. “As it is.”
“Stealth, manipuation, and vengeance,” Pheneraxa murmured. “Hm… This increasingly sounds like an enemy we don’t want.”
“Looks like that ship has sailed, sister,” said Vadaralshi.
“You have done well, husband,” Tiavathyris stated, “to resist these manipulations. Remember that from now on, your battles are also ours.”
“And we are able to defend our home and family against far worse than…this,” Izayaroa agreed, snorting contemptuously down at the Entity.
“Mmm. Been a while since I’ve had any worthwhile opposition,” Emeralaphine said, her lips curling up in an unpleasant smile. “That might be just the thing. I’d hate to get all…soft.”
“Aw, beans,” the Entity sighed. “I had so hoped you’d do the right thing, Kaln. Oh, well.”
Then the casing of pale light around it shattered like an eggshell, its fragments spinning away and dissolving into gossamer streamers of glitter.
Emeralaphine snarled in displeasure, flaring her wings. All three of the elder dragons drew upon magic, as the drakes began hastily backing away.
“But that’s all right!”
The unleashed form of the Entity grew, rising up until it towered over even the dragons, spreading arms which cast darkness across the room. Shadows formed and danced across the ancient Timestone walls, blotting out even the glow of Timeglass with unnatural strength. In the darkness, the dragons retreated warily, bringing up defensive spells of their own. All around the suddenly darkened chamber, luminous blue forms stood out as the Phantom Legion materialized in force, assembling in formation with their spectral weapons aimed at the dark shape of the Entity.
“So you missed one chance to do what’s right,” the dark god continued, and its cheerful tone filled the room with an inexplicable, existential force that slowed all their reactions to a crawl. “Nobody’s perfect! We all have our failures and regrets. You’re a good egg, my boy, and I know you’ll go on to do great things—great things, and more importantly, good things. But for this one time, I guess it falls to me to tell you all the tale of Ar-Kaln Zelekhir!”