Chapter 42: Hierophant

It was strange, looking down the hill at the horde of people who had, just a few minutes prior, gotten riled up at her appearance. The hope and grief in their eyes had only barely registered to Adriana, but haunted her now. They had called her the heir, and while she supposed that it was technically true, the very idea made her skin crawl.

“How long until the others get here?” Adriana asked halfway through her pacing. They weren’t alone, but the rest of the worshipers and clerics of the Sun Temple kept their distance. She tended to project ‘leave me alone’ vibes at the best of times, let alone when she was actually agitated.

Eva sat on a stone bench, where she inspected her nails. “They’ll get here when they get here. They not only have all those steps we skipped, you’re welcome by the way, but they also have to keep people calm. It’s a long, tedious, thankless job, and will likely take Lucas a minute or two. Be patient.”

Adriana opened her mouth to snap at her, but thought better of it. Getting into a fight before meeting the Hierophant would be stupid, even for her. She could throw Eva into another body of water later. With an annoyed groan, she joined Eva on the bench.

It would’ve been the best time she had of maybe talking things out and maybe finding common ground, but her insides twisted themselves into knots, and her desire to break things rose the longer they waited. It only took another ten minutes of silently squirming on the bench before Tobias ran up ahead of the group.

“Sorry it took so long,” he said, coming to a stop. “You’ve got some new best friends, Adriana. If you don’t get completely swarmed by people next time you’re out, you might drink free.”

“Great,” she said flatly. “And what are the odds of being jumped for my Divinity?”

Eva scoffed. “Higher than it should be, lower than you’d expect. Not everyone here is devout, but Hessius was good to us. You’ll find a lot of people who hope you’ll be just as good. They’re delusional, but faith is a powerful thing. Earn the peoples’ trust and love, and they’ll give you everything they have.”

It was equal parts horrifying and tempting. Adriana could never decide which side won out, and she reasoned it would remain that way until things changed dramatically. The weight of the expectations only ever grew heavier, and so far, nothing had made it bearable or worth it.

“Either way, I won’t be penned up,” Adriana swore.

“Of course,” said Tobias. “We won’t let it happen.”

The rest of them came up the stairs, Lucas at the front, Iris in the center, and Davos and Cora trailing behind. Like usual, their leader wore a permanently stressed grimace. “We’ve handled it,” he announced simply. “Sorry for the wait.”

Iris chimed in with, “He talked you up a lot! You’re gonna have to be nicer.”

Great, more expectations. Adriana shook it off and gave a crooked smile. She stood and met them in the middle of the path. “Let’s get this over with, shall we?”

They finished climbing, Sweat trailed down Lucas’ temples, but he was too indefatigable to stop for a break. On the other hand, Cora huffed and puffed a little. Davos led her over to the bench. “If it’s all the same to you, we’ll rest out here while you check in.”

A pang of betrayal struck her. “You’re not going to come with me?” Adriana asked. She hated how helpless it made her sound.

Davos smiled and shrugged. “I think it would make a bad impression if it looks like you only behave because of me. I can’t do the talking for us all the time, can I?”

No, she supposed not. That meant it would be just her and the Children of Stephanos for company. “Fine,” she said. “Let’s do this.”

Lucas took the lead, while Tobias and Iris flanked her. The teenage girl put her hand on Adriana’s arm and squeezed reassuringly. Iris was too pure of heart and kind for her to mind the familiarity. The great doors opened as if on their own, and they walked inside the temple.

Even without her amazing eyesight, the inside of the temple was almost as bright as the day outside. Stained glass windows on every level of the building let the sunlight trail in. The tallest of those windows had a chain of mirrors strung around, illuminating the entire building. Adriana was grateful for that, and how the lights emphasized the architecture.

Brilliant, glittery, marble pillars lined the vestibule and continued on up stone steps where the Hierophant would host the temples’ services. A golden statue of Hessius stood posed with the great sunlight shining directly on his sculpted features. Pools lined the walls, helping keep things cool no matter how hot it got. Worshipers and clerics kneeled facing the statue, muttering their prayers.

No one stirred at the entrance, except for the Hierophant himself, who stood above everyone, waiting. At his side was a lion with a flaming mane curled up at his feet. Once upon a time, Adriana would’ve had trouble making out his features from this distance, but she clearly made out a round, bearded face, graying hair, and a portly body clad in the finest silks money could buy. He wore a very tall, grand hat that seemed to function as a crown.

“There she is!” He bellowed in a voice big enough even for the temple. “Bringing our fallen Lord’s power and spirit back to us! Our prayers have been answered!”

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

The rest of the temple echoed his words, repeating them again and again. Adriana hid her shudder, and was grateful when the Hierophant cut them off with a wave of his hand.

“But first, she must be tested. While the girl is here, she is to be counted as one of us, welcomed and trained. The girl is our --”

“My name is Adriana,” she shouted across the temple. “Not ‘the girl’.”

A hush fell over the crowd. Behind her, Lucas radiated exasperation and disappointment, but it was nothing compared to the way the Hierophant’s eyes narrowed and lip curled. He nodded once. “Adriana is to be welcomed in and trained. The Maw grows ever bolder, but at the end of every night, the sun is the promise of a new day. That new day starts now!”

He got some cheers and cries from the worshipers, but Adriana already disliked him. It would do her no favors, and she knew it, but she wasn’t sure it would be possible to hide her disdain. At a prod from Lucas, she moved to the end of the temple, staying low and walking around people who watched her with reference and some doubt. Rather than meet the Hierophant up on his stage, they went through a door, down a tunnel, and into an office.

At least, she and Lucas did. The rest of the Children of Stephanos stayed behind, for which Adriana was grateful. Inside was fairly bare. There was a simple desk, and an overly plush chair behind it. Why did powerful men always need a desk and a big chair? She snorted as the thought of taking his chair struck her. Naw, too much trouble.

“The Hierophant is…” Lucas started.

“Presumptuous?” Adriana supplied with a wicked grin.

“Used to being on top of things and receiving unconditional respect,” he said. “Whatever he says to you, please just go along with it. I’ll work on him after. He respects me and listens to me, so if you can -- “

“Yeah yeah, if I can behave, then you can make things better until we don’t hate each other,” Adriana scoffed. “I saw the way he looked at me. I don’t think it’ll work, but…I’ll try.”

“Thank you,” he said simply. It felt better than it should have.

A few minutes later the door opened, and the Hierophant came in. His fiery-maned lion came in behind, eyeing the two guests with startling intelligence. Adriana couldn’t help but point and blurt out, “Is that a Divine Beast?” It was the rare creature who was given Divinity and ascended, but they existed.

The Hierophant paused before reaching his chair. “It is. His name is Griehr. He was a favored companion of Hessius, gifted to me many years ago. I am Pailus, the Hierophant of the Sun Temple. You have a lot of explaining to do.” He sat down, and the lion lay on the floor next to him. The beast’s attention remained on her.

“Do I?” Adriana asked.

Pailus frowned and took off his hat. It went on a cushion on the desk. “Yes. I would like a full accounting of how Hessius fell, and how it was that his power came to reside in you.”

His tone bothered her. That he thought he could make demands of her, and that she should be expected to deliver and be polite about it. Adriana shot a murderous look at Lucas, who gave an almost imperceptible shrug. Fine, she was on her own.

“Myself and a crew I was on received a tip of a battle on Dahkres Island to the south. We went there, in search of Divinity -- “

“What did you have before this?” Pailus interrupted.

“I didn’t,” Adriana said flatly. “It was to get my first piece of Divinity, off of a Hero we were told would be there.” There was no way to make it sound more savory or less opportunistic. Oh well. “When we arrived at the place, we saw Hessius and the Maw, fighting, with hundreds of people fending off monsters below.”

It seemed so much longer than just two and a half weeks. It was an entire lifetime ago, and she felt like the start of a new person, halfway in transformation. She eyed Lucas thoughtfully. He nodded and motioned for her to keep going, while a patient Hierophant sat with his hands steepled.

“The Maw overwhelmed him with her monsters,” she continued. “He fell, and crashed into the mountain I was standing on. My companions ran, but I didn’t. The mountain came down, and I woke up later and I was…I was dying.”

Lucas twitched. He’d heard the story before, but it was the first time she’d admitted it out loud. She averted her gaze and stared instead at Griehr, who continued to watch her. His tail flicked the flaming tuft of fur back and forth with interest.

“So was he. Hessius lay there bleeding, and he was small. And he told me to take his power, to live, and to tell you what happened. He told me to keep his strength, and use it to fight against the Maw.” Adriana looked up. “And that’s what I’ve been doing. I’ve taken out a hydra already, and am being hunted by someone who’s taken up Maw Divinity and makes monsters.

“It doesn’t matter what happens here,” she said with fire in her voice. “I’m going to fight the Maw no matter where I go. And I don’t need anyone’s permission to do that, or to keep this Divinity. Hessius gave it to me.” She crossed her arms over her chest and met the Hierophant’s eyes with all the fierceness she could muster.

Pailus said nothing at first, just watching her with a mask of disdain. Eventually, he shook his head. “You’re impudent. Do you really think that the world can afford to lose Hessius’ spark? And to what, a girl with delusions of grandeur?”

At this point, Lucas knew her well enough to know when she was about to lose her cool. He jumped in and said, “I’ve fought her, and spent time with her, Hierophant. I’m not sure the world can afford to lose her help. Give me some time with her to train her and assess her on the battlefield, and I believe she could be a great asset.”

Adriana unclenched her hands before her short, uneven nails could gouge lines in her palm. She knew it would be smarter to let Lucas handle it, but she was starting to get tired of people thinking they could handle her. But if she was going to speak, she could at least try to hit the Hierophant where it hurt.

“Do you think you know better than your God?” she asked. “Would you undo his final wish, just because you think it’s convenient?”

Judging by the way Lucas froze and the silent snarl on the Hierophant’s face, she’d chosen correctly. In the corner, Griehr raised his head and chuffed. It took Adriana a second to realize the Divine Lion was laughing at her words.

Pailus took a deep breath. “You raise a point, gi-- Adriana. And if Lucas is willing to vouch for you, then I think it’s possible to give you a trial period. You will train with us, learn with us, and fight with us. And from there…we’ll see what happens.”

Adriana nearly barked that she’d burn the entire temple down before she gave up her Divinity, but even she had some restraint. Lucas jumped in and said, “Thank you, Hierophant. With your blessing, I would like to show her to her quarters. Since she’s been traveling with us and staying as our guest, I believe it appropriate that she receive a week of pay now. Is that acceptable?”

“Fine, fine,” Pailus said, waving his hand. “I’m trusting you. Both of you. Don’t make me regret it.”

“Thank you, Hierophant.” Lucas stood, and Adriana joined him. They walked out, and Lucas closed the door behind them.