“So Caeru, how’s your family going?”

Caeru’s endless milky blue eyes looked up from the Ur board, his wings tucking in behind him.

“You can just say that you have realised inviting me to a game involving dice might have been a bad idea Ishtart. Making small talk won’t throw me off.” He sighed.

Ishtart’s golden eyes narrowed a little as she let out a short laugh, flicking a lock of her hair behind her.

“Caeru, I’ve played with you many times before and I know that you have a natural advantage here. I just wanted to catch up with you! That’s all!”

Caeru snorted, “I still don’t quite believe you, but I’ll accept your word for now. I still feel that we should have played a different game however, Yaawha is a little left out right now. Unless this is for what happened to one of your temples last week? Perhaps?”

The twisting and turning endless mess of eyes, discs, wings and energy sitting somewhere approximating the side of the table, turned its focus from the board.

“I’m fine just watching, but I have already apologised for the actions of my followers! I’ve promised you three months of bull’s essence from the Janwa sect as recompense too. I’m not quite sure what else I should do!”

The light Ishtart’s eyes flared as she huffed, “You should stop it from happening in future. Get rid of that line in the mortal’s holy book that says you’re the only god and that!”

“And I’ve apologised for that before! I’m sorry I was a dick when I was young and hadn’t met you all! Just I can’t change it now! Have you seen what my followers do over a slight difference in interpretation of my words? I tell you, it’s better to be hands-off with them or else they’ll start calling each other heretics, or I’ll accidentally kill a bunch of people, or I’ll drive an entire bloodline insane. All I need to do is make a few saints and tip the scales of a few battles and it keeps the engine of belief ticking over nicely.”

“And I say that is a rather boring way to use your divinity. Have you never gone down and “fraternised” with mortals? Never had any parties with your followers? Followed one of your champions right by their shoulder as they go into battle? No? How boring.”

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Yaawha cleared their metaphorical throat, “I have heard you do get a little-“

“Impulsive and fickle when it comes to my followers?”

“Yes…”

“Mmmh. I suppose you could say so. Though you can’t deny I make myself useful when needed. Bringing some battles to their bloody conclusion here, solving a few loyalists of their dysphoria there, helping a few with their desires sometimes… All regular duties in the life of a god.”

Caeru sighed, “Ishtart, I’ve overtaken one of your chariots and I’ve been waiting for you to make your move for quite a while now. Could we please get back to the game?”

The goddess’s gaze snapped back, her eyes widening as she noticed the piece that had one of Caeru’s sitting on top of it. The god tapping it as he waited for his opponent to remove their piece.

She groaned, taking her piece off of the board and leaving only one of hers on the track facing off against two of Caeru’s. She had managed to get one of her pieces to the end and she had two waiting in the flanks to enter onto the track, but the rest of them were not on the board yet.

“How did you manage to get the perfect roll for that…” She muttered.

Caeru sighed, “You know perfectly well how. I’m my pantheon’s god of luck and opportunity, the dice are slanted in my favour, and I can’t quite help it.”

“Damned magics…”

“I told you, we could have played a game that did not involve chance.”

“And this game is one of the cornerstones of my civilisation, so I’m not going to lose to some toga-wearing cheater!”

Yaawha’s form rumbled, “And this is why I don’t like games of chance…”

Ishtart threw her dice, with all four landing marked side up. An opportunity…

She pushed one of her waiting pieces out of the starting area and right onto the safe spot. Caeru’s pieces now robbed on that centre position and putting her back into parity with him. A small smile creeping across his face.

Caeru simply took the dice into his hands and threw them, getting three upright and moving another one of his pieces to the end. “And my family is doing well. Calsynaicus is hosting a party soon and I think you two will be invited.”

Ishtart tried to stay calm as she resisted the urge to transform her legs into their lion’s form and kick the god right in his fucking crotch. “What’s this one about?” She asked, politely.

“Well, apparently his most recent son has started to go on a bit of an adventure and has just killed a bandit leader. He wants to throw a little celebration in his honour and to, of course, take the opportunity to test everyone’s alcohol and drug resistance as usual. Though he was up until late he was split between that, or grafting the Prince of Estria to a withered grape vine, then watering it with the man’s blood.”

A rush of air emanated for Yaawha as they shook slightly.

“What is it friend?” Caeru asked.

“Oh, I just feel like I need to make a note of that for future punishments to hand down. It’s quite inventive indeed…”

“Well, madness is one of his domains… Ah! Now Ishtart, let’s see if that was the correct move to make…”