Entering the temple, I went to where Danuva was right away while carrying Elena.

The Goddess was floating in silence as usual. Alyssa, Lapia, and Yolin were meditating in front of her, probably receiving some guidance.

“Oi,” I called out to her, patting Elena's back. “This lunatic got out and went full moron on me, so I slapped some sense into her.”

Alyssa sighed, stood up, and walked to me.

I offered the unconscious Elf.

“You broke her jaw,” the Luzo commented with a sigh and glowing eyes, taking the knocked-out woman in her arms while healing her. “And a few vertebrae.”

I shrugged. As long as the outcome wasn't instant death, no injury had real weight in my eyes. That's not to say that pain and fear go away, which means they can be exploited with greater results if one would be inclined to do so.

“It didn't work,” Shorvanna spoke up, still on me. “I knew it wouldn't.”

“She wanted to try regardless of outcome,” Danuva replied in a tone that implied she also knew 'it' wouldn't work.

I sighed, feeling a headache forming. “What didn't work?” I asked, feeling a suspicion that Elena wasn't that stupid after all.

“Elena wanted to see if putting herself in danger would make Yulianna come back,” Danuva summarized. “You are easy to anger.”

I nodded with the confirmation. “So you are a moron as well, Danuva,” I told her with a frown. “What were you thinking?”

“Mortals' freedom of action is more important than anything,” the Divine being replied. “If they aren't allowed to do whatever they desire, how will the fittest come out on top?” She pointed out. “Besides, I did not encourage her, young Halve. Do not treat me unfairly based on wrong assumptions.”

My eyebrows went up at her words. “That's cold,” I pointed out while shaking my head. “Still stupid, though. You have the power to stop her. Inaction is still wrong.”

Elena coughed and came to, then looked around. Her eyes focused on me, and she sighed with disappointment while averting her eyes.

Alyssa let the ancient Elf go and let out a sigh that implied she didn't quite agree with Elena's way of doing things.

“You're a moron,” I told the Entomancer. “What kind of toxic behavior is risking your life to get a bitch back?”

“Worth a try,” Elena sighed with sadness in her eyes. “If anything, I learned something new.”

“Yeah,” I agreed with a scoff. “Fuck around and find out is what you learned, so shut the fuck up.”

Alyssa nodded several times while humming in agreement to my words.

I turned to my girlfriend. “And you,” I sighed and shook my head. “What's this? You on this make my girlfriend angry plan?”

The Luzo raised her hands to communicate her innocence ,and her expression turned complicated. She gestured at Danuva with a nod. “I had nothing to do with this, Natasha. You walked in a few seconds after I finished with meditation.”

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I nodded. “Alright. I jumped to conclusions. I'm sorry, Alyssa,” I told her and ran a hand through my hair.

“All good,” she replied with a smile. “I'd be angry too.”

I crossed my arms and stared at Elena. “Well? Does the moron have anything to say for herself?” I demanded.

The Faeton Elf sighed. “Can you blame me?” She questioned with a sigh, looking up at me. “I know you're a violent one, and Yulianna is...” she closed her eyes for a few seconds to hide the pain and sighed “..or was very protective of me. Maybe you slapping me would have activated the enchantments on the plaques she gave me, letting her know I was in danger, which would make her come...”

I closed my eyes, pinched the bridge of my nose, and let out a long sigh. “So you are stupid,” I concluded. “Shouldn't you be, like, super wise and emotionally in control or something? Considering you're over three thousand years old?”

Alyssa turned to me and gave me a look. “Don't be so mean, Natasha. Have you forgotten what she has gone through? Lost Perculis, Yulianna left, Changelings mind-controlled her, you erased over half her memories, then everything comes back at once.” She placed a hand on Elena's shoulder and gave her a reassuring nod. “While not the smartest thing to do, I don't blame you one bit, Elena.”

I bit my lower lip and stared at the ceiling. She has a point... but would desperation make her do something like that? I understand if she's close with Halves to the point of not caring about Gods and their suggestions, but fucking hell... “Haaa...” I massaged my temples to ease the headache. “Okay, let's do it like this,” I started and faced Elena. “Do you know anything about Yulianna's departure?”

Elena met my eyes and nodded with a sad frown. “Perculis' death was a heavy loss for us, but much heavier for Yulianna. They knew each other for a very long time, which made their bond that much deeper. She cried for a week straight after he passed, then refused to speak for another. She cares a lot about those around her, so we did our best to be there for her. When things started looking better she told us she needed a bit more time and left.”

“Well...” I tried my best not to be a bitch. “I'm sure she'll come back. Nilenna is looking for her so... let's hope for the best. We all mourn at our own pace.”

The Elf nodded, still wearing a sad expression.

“Ahem,” I cleared my throat. “I don't mean to downplay the circumstances at hand, but I hope you understand I am more interested in the Changeling matter,” I told her with my friendliest tone. “Could you tell me more about that?”

Alyssa squinted her eyes at me, probably disapproving how quickly I changed subjects.

The Goddesses were silent and still, probably thinking deranged things about how beautiful mortality is for being capable of dying and feeling such strong emotions, and also going 'none of our business'.

“I met Yugulari a good while ago,” Elena started with a long sigh. “They told me they could help me find Yulianna, and I was... vulnerable at the time...”

I bit my lips and held back a sigh.

“I took their invitation, ignorant of what was going down in Lumin Kingdom,” she continued. “Miraztor had told Yulianna about the attempt at his life, but the way he put it made me think it was banditry instead of insurrection when I heard of it, so I never thought of Yugulari as a suspicious individual since there was no way to connect them to such a life with how they conducted themselves,” she explained with a shrug and a short chuckle. “It started with little, nonsensical questions that soon turned into seeds of doubt. Yugulari would hint at some places that could have someone who knew about Yulianna's whereabouts, and I would go there to gather information... but there never was. I was just a spy of sorts for them. After a while I started harboring ugly thoughts about Yulianna, feeling betrayed, left behind, useless, and worse. The desire to find her was turned into wanting to harm her. Whenever I so much as hinted that I would returned to my normal behavior, Yugulari would cut me with words so sharp I would doubt myself even in my sleep. I was told a new Halve had showed up to replace Yulianna, and that all my efforts would be in vain if I didn't kill you myself.”

“I see,” I muttered with a nod. “I assume the organization is smart enough to change locations after I got you out of there?”

“Definitely,” Elena nodded. “They had a vast number of locations, and we never met at the same spot twice. Also...” she averted her eyes. “I told them your party's composition before you broke my mind. I assume Nerissa and Zalan did the same right before you killed them.”

“Well, fuck,” I blurted out, recalling the information I spilled before taking their lives. The cold hand of regret gripped my soul. “Holy shit.”