“This is his temple?” Derzina asked.

The two-story stone building with its curved roof before them looked much the same as those crammed either side of it. Not only did it lack in both beauty and grandeur, but there was nothing to indicate that it was a temple or anything of the sort. From what she could see, it was just an ordinary building.

“One of them. He has a number of temples around the city, which he prefers to keep discreet.”

“Why would he wish to obscure such a thing? Aren’t his temples meant for the people to work in his name and receive his blessing?”

She could see little legitimate reason for such secrecy and it made her wonder if Inea’s supposed paranoia wasn’t justified. What was the point of a temple, if people didn’t know it was one?

“We make sure that those who need to find such a temple know how to. For everyone else, it’s better than for them and us to keep them in the dark where possible.”

Derzina didn’t much like the sound of that, she believed strongly that being honest was almost always the best policy but she also didn’t claim to understand what living in this city was like. Mostanto and Xanathel seemed sensible enough, so if that was what they’d decided there must be a good reason behind it.

Though it was becoming increasingly clear that they weren’t willing to share too much of their reasons with her, which was perhaps only reasonable given that they’d just met. Still, she’d thought Xanathel would trust his own mother more. There was probably a lot more to their family than Derzina knew, and she’d rather not pry regarding what was likely a sensitive subject.

“So Xanathel doesn’t have any problem with me staying here? I’m definitely not one of his followers.”

“I believe he’s happy to make an exception in your case, someone of your unique nature is due far more consideration than ordinary people.”

She wasn’t too comfortable with receiving preferential treatment, but it was also hard to argue that she should be treated the same as the citizens of Brtet. All the more so because she had enough problems already without trying to make things harder for herself.

“Shouldn’t you at least ask his permission? Or are you so confident that you know the will of your lord?”

“I’m quite confident making decisions like this in his stead. I’ve known him long enough to be able to discern what he would prefer, and I can say without a doubt that he would put his temple at your disposal.”

Then Xanathel was committed to helping them? That wasn’t the way he’d come across when they met him, but perhaps he also liked to keep his true feelings discreet. It was a strange way of acting, particularly for a god, but Derzina was in no place to judge him for it.

“It appears we owe both you and your master thanks, as we will take him up on his hospitality. At least for a little while; if things go well with Araveena, we shan’t be visiting your city for long.”

“Then I wish you a speedy departure,” Mostanto said, smiling as he opened the way into Xanathel’s temple and ushered Derzina inside.

Stepping beyond the temple’s unassuming exterior, she found the inside to be every bit as ordinary once Mostanto had the lights on. A few pieces of rude furniture and a rug of some coarse material made up the bulk of the decoration, other than that it was mostly bare stone. Xanathel clearly didn’t have much use for luxury, at least as far as his follower’s accommodations went.

“Where will I be sleeping?” Derzina asked.

“There’s a few bedrooms upstairs for you to choose from. I understand that you’re probably tired, and may prefer you can go right to bed, but I was hoping to show you around the temple proper before that.”

“Then there’s more to the temple than this? I’d be happy to see it.”

She was faintly relieved to hear the temple contained more than just this terribly mundane interior. Though she didn’t have high hopes, whatever the building had in store had to be more interesting than seeing even more of Inea’s statues.

“I wouldn’t get your hopes up, it’s little better than the rest of the building. Be that as it may, and maybe this is just my vanity talking, but I think it’s worth seeing.”

Kneeling down, Mostanto pulled aside the rug to reveal a trapdoor. Hinges creaking as it was opened, it revealed a series of rungs built into the wall.

“I’ll go in first then, shall I?” Mostanto asked, not waiting for a reply before he climbed downward.

After his head disappeared beneath the floor, Derzina went over and followed him below. As the light above faded away, it was replaced by dull brownish glow of the stout altar which dominated the subterranean room.

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Other than the glow, the only mark upon the square altar’s flat surface was a metal emblem depicting a pitch-black wave. It reminded Derzina of Ortesia’s symbol though it was black instead of gold.

“You’re right,” Derzina said, once she was finished climbing, “it’s really not much to look at.”

“It’s not, but,” Mostanto said, “for me it feels like home.” He turned toward her with laughter in his eyes. “Though it’s hardly surprising, given that I was raised in one of his other temples.”

“Oh.”

If it was anything like how things were in Ortesion, then the only children raised by the temple were orphans or those from similarly tragic backgrounds. Whatever the reason that Mostanto had ended up there, she thought it best not to dwell on it. He didn’t seem too bothered by the subject, but it could only make things awkward between them given the short duration of their acquaintance.

“Does anyone else live here?” Derzina asked.

“Not right now, but they do from time to time. Xanathel’s servants tend to keep to themselves unless there’s work to be done or they need somewhere to stay.”

Derzina was glad to hear that she was likely to be alone. Spending time with Mostanto was tiring enough, it would be exhausting if there were more like him around. Though she didn’t much feel like resting, she could still do with some relaxation after her long journey.

“Is that all then, or can I go to my room now?” Derzina asked.

“Your lack of enthusiasm wounds me. I thought somehow you might feel some measure of wonder looking upon a sacred altar of Xanathel, but I suppose I was naïve to expect as much. How could one appreciate such a meagre display after the grandiosity that Inea so generously bestows upon the city?”

“I think you’ve misunderstood my position,” Derzina said. “Though this isn’t much to look at, I do prefer it over most of Inea’s gaudy ornaments. It’s just that I already have my own god, and I have too much on my mind to have much appreciation for these sorts of things.”

She found it difficult to appreciate anything after the loss of her city, but he didn’t need to hear that. All she wanted to do was ease his disappointment and to do that she would tell him no more than what was required. It’s not as if he’d understand, he still had both his god and his city.

She tried to tell herself that she was only doing this to help ensure his future cooperation, but the truth was that she found it difficult to tolerate people being upset in front of her when there was something she could do to make them feel better.

“That makes perfect sense, it was silly of me to expect anything else. I suppose I was just excited to show off my god to an outsider; at least what little there is to show. After all, it’s practically a once in a lifetime opportunity. I hope my thoughtless efforts haven’t done anything to displease you.”

“You can rest easy on that count; you’ve done nothing of the sort. On the contrary, you’ve made me feel exceptionally welcome.”

It was the best welcome she’d received so far, though it wasn’t exactly hard to offer one more pleasant than what she’d experienced in Merstaneon. She imagined even visiting demons would be pleasant compared to the company of Mortsiflor and her devotees.

“Wonderful,” Mostanto said. “Hopefully seeing where you’ll be staying won’t do anything to tarnish your experience thus far, though that might be too much to hope for.”

Despite his words, his tone was light and she smiled politely as they left the altar behind. He closed the trapdoor and covered it, before heading up to the second floor.

“There’s not a lot of difference,” he said, “but this is the largest room we have to offer.”

He pulled opened the door to a modest bedroom with a bed, covered by a tan sheet, with a single pillow. It wasn’t much to look at, but it was clean and that was good enough for Derzina.

“Thank you,” she said. “I’ll be fine here.”

“Do you need anything else? A change of clothes or a bath perhaps?”

“It’s kind of you to offer, but for now I just wish to rest.”

Once she brushed the dirt from her clothes, they should be clean enough. Normally she’d be bothered by her current state and happily taken him up on his offer, but right now it just didn’t seem to matter.

“Then I shall leave you to rest, have a good night.”

“You too,” she said, and with a dip of his head, he left.

Once the door was closed, Derzina made a perfunctory attempt at cleaning her clothing and lay down on the bed.

“It appears you had a rather pleasant day,” Atasimon said, within Derzina’s head.

“I did, apart from the meeting with Inea.”

“I doubt I need to remind you, but you haven’t forgotten why we came here, have you?”

“Of course not,” Derzina said, a little guiltily.

Their mission hadn’t truly left her mind for even a second, but it felt wrong to have gotten caught up in things as she had. There had been points where things felt almost normal for the first time since Ortesia fell. Being around humans again brought her a certain degree of peace she’d lacked until she reached Brtet.

“Good, because we can ill afford to make mistakes. Especially ones born of carelessness.”

“If this was bothering you, why did you not simply bring it up earlier? I didn’t mean to give you the impression that I was taking my duty lightly.”

“I didn’t want to interrupt. There was nothing wrong with what you were doing, so long it doesn’t affect your focus. Besides, I needed to rest and do some thinking of my own. Seeing my son again, assuming he truly is my son, was difficult.”

“I can’t pretend to understand what that’s like,” Derzina said, “as I’m both a mortal, and have no children of my own. But if you ever want to talk about it, I’d be happy to listen.”

“Thank you. I appreciate the gesture, though I assure you it’s not necessary. Crippled as I may be, I’m still quite capable of handling my own affairs.”

Derzina hadn’t meant to imply that she couldn’t, but arguing would was more likely to upset the goddess to no useful end than accomplish anything. After a little thought, Derzina decided Atasimon was probably right to be annoyed at her suggestion. However well-intentioned she may think herself; she was very much overstepping her bounds.

Close as they were, she was still only a mortal. What right did she have to question a god? Particularly one who’d shown herself to be rational and capable up to this point; she felt ashamed for ever having said it.

Staring up at the ceiling, Derzina reflected on the lessons in humility she’d learnt in Ortesia’s service, but all she succeeded in doing was remembering the goddess herself. Tears rolled down her cheeks as sorrow overcame her and she remained still, simply letting them flow.