Somehow, against all odds, Callan found his voice again. “Alyssa, I—”
“Shh. No more talking. From either of you.” Then her lips were pressed against his own.
“Mmph.” Callan tried to speak again, but only succeeded in opening his mouth enough for Alyssa to slide her tongue in. She darted it back and forth, like she was checking his molars for cavities or something. It was... more off-putting than sexy, if he was being honest.
At least until she started climbing on top of him.
“Whoa, whoa, stop. Stop!” He grabbed her by the shoulders and tried to push her off, but Alyssa just giggled, grabbed him right back and pulled him along with her. He found himself hovering only inches over her, hands clasped around her wrists.
Alyssa gave him a coquettish smile. “Seems you found some energy to move after all.”
“What are you doing, Alyssa?” She started wrapping her legs around his waist and pulling him closer, so Callan released one hand in order to pry her off. That was a mistake, as Alyssa used the opportunity to reach up and pull his face down to hers. “Can we just talk for a—mmph!”
After another awkward kiss, Alyssa released him. “I told you, Callan, no more talking. Tell that god to take a nap or something. Let the adults have a bit of time to themselves.”
“I mean, technically I’m only seventeen, that barely qualifies as an adult,” Callan pointed out. Then it occurred to him that the age of consent probably wasn’t a thing on this planet. Or consent at all, from the way she was acting.
I need to defuse this situation before it gets any worse.
“Listen—I don’t think—gah!” Alyssa came in for another lip-lock, so Callan turned his head away just in time, which resulted in getting his ear nibbled on painfully instead.
“Oh, enough ‘think this’ and ‘think that’. Don’t you dare go turning into a yeth on me now!” Alyssa sat up, placing her hands on her hips, giving Callan a perfect view of her swaying—no, no. Don’t think about that. Anything but that. He focused on her belly button. That was currently the safest distance between two otherwise dangerous points.
Or would have been, if only he didn’t have a thing for girls with flat stomachs and rock-hard abs. Damn her and all those hours spent in the smithy!
Meanwhile, Alyssa kept talking, oblivious to his internal battle. “You know what I like about you, Callan? How completely un-yeth you are. When I talk with you, there’s no need to analyze every conversation, to wonder what angle you’re playing, or what you might secretly be trying to get out of me. You’re straightforward and honest. It’s... refreshing. Something I didn’t even realize my life was missing until I met you.”
She sighed. “I can’t imagine what it must be like to live with the other races. Life must be so simple and uncomplicated.”
“You really have no idea, if you think—” Callan began. Alyssa locked eyes with him.
“That’s right. I don’t have any idea. All I know is this village, this tiny slice of ‘perfection’ that my mother has forced on me. You’re the first real thing from outside the plateau I’ve ever gotten to experience. So, let me experience you, at least this once.”
She grabbed his hands and started guiding them towards her. Realizing what she intended, Callan pulled out of her grip and seized her by the shoulders instead. Gently as he could, he pried her off of him.
“Alyssa, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t interested—”
“Oh, I could tell you were interested,” she interrupted with another giggle. “Believe, me, I more than felt exactly how interesting you found me.”
“—But,” he continued, undaunted, “It doesn’t matter what I might feel about this situation. Like I told you the last time, I can’t have sex with someone who isn’t truly interested in me.”
“That’s—what are you talking about, Callan?”
“I know you’re not here because you want to be.” Callan turned away from her until his feet slid off the bed. Unfortunately, this made his ‘interest’ all the more obvious, so he quickly pulled his knees back up against his chest. “It might be that you’re here for your own reasons instead of the mayor’s, but it’s still to serve a purpose. Some end.”
Alyssa was silent for a minute. There was a soft rustling, and when Callan glanced at her she had pulled her own knees up to her chest, her eyes just poking over them. “I see. Is that what Xeph is telling you right now?”
“No, he’s... he’s letting me sort this out on my own. But I’ve spent enough time around yeth to know. I’ve spent enough time around you, Alyssa. So why don’t you just tell me—what is it you want?”
“And what if it is you that I want? What if you’re my end?”
Callan just stared at her until the woman shrugged. “What? It’s true. I wanted to be with you. Want to be with you.”
“It wasn’t that long ago you wanted to be with Falchion,” Callan pointed out.
“That was different! Our relationship was purely transactional. I thought maybe... maybe with you I could have something that lasts. Then, when you and your cult left...”
“...I’d take you with us,” Callan finished. Alyssa nodded.
“That’s not so bad, is it? Just take me along. Stand against my mother, stand by my side, and I’ll stay by yours. For as long as you’ll have me.” She wriggled her eyebrows at him. “So what do you say? Not such a bad deal, is it?”
There was a war waging itself within Callan. On the one hand, he knew this was manipulation on multiple levels, that there was no real emotion behind Alyssa’s words, even of the variety that passed for emotion amongst the yeth.
But on the other hand, it was a naked girl, in his bed...
Callan quickly slammed the door on that thought. No. He knew what the right decision to make here was. Even if every fiber of his being was yelling at him to say otherwise.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t take that deal.” When Alyssa visibly wilted, Callan hastened to add, “But I will fight with Belinda on your behalf. If you really want out of here that badly, I can make it a new condition of our temple’s help, or something. Favors don’t always have to be transactional. Sometimes we just help people because it’s the right thing to do.”
“That is... very un-yeth of you, Callan.” Alyssa smiled at him. “But thank you, anyways. I guess I should appreciate what I can get.”
Quickly, she rose and began gathering her clothing. Callan barely caught more than a glimpse of her bare back before the dress slid up it and was secured in place. Alyssa turned around. Her smile this time had a tinge of sadness to it.
“I’m sorry that I wasn’t who you’re waiting for. They must be special, for you to be able to resist all of this this.” She ran a hand down her side and winked at him.
“That’s not—there isn’t—” Before he could say any more Alyssa giggled and waved away his protests.
“Still too easy. I hope you never change, Callan. I really do.” Reaching out, she patted him on the cheek. “I’ve kept you up long enough. Get some sleep, and I’ll see you in the morning.”
She turned and made her way towards the door. Pausing in the entryway she looked back at him. Callan waited for her parting jab, but instead she simply turned away and was gone.
Callan collapsed back on his bed. “Right. As if I could sleep a wink after this.”
And yet, I would still advise you to try. For tomorrow Veritas will care little how long you were awake or how much time you wasted on these bizarre mating rituals of yours.
“Xeph!” He sat up in surprise. With all the commotion surrounding Alyssa he hadn’t noticed the counter had reached zero. “You’re back! That’s—wait. You saw all of that, didn’t you.”
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Of course, mortal. Even in my reduced state, I still monitor most of your interactions. Even ones whose details I would prefer not to.
Callan felt his face heat up. “That wasn’t a mating ritual you know.”
Hmm.
“It wasn’t! She basically assaulted me!”
Clearly you are just unfamiliar with yeth mating rituals. Xeph chuckled to himself. Joking aside, you were wise to put her off. Whatever fun you might have enjoyed, the price would have been too high.
Laying back down again, Callan tucked his hands behind his head. He closed his eyes. “I know that, Xeph. It might take me a while, but I do learn, eventually.”
Xeph’s chuckle was like a stone bouncing into a ravine. Have I ever claimed you didn’t? If anything, much of the blame for all this lies at my feet. Had I access to my full breadth of memories, I might have been better prepared to predict such a move on the woman’s part. In hindsight, it seems like the obvious choice for a yeth in her position to make.
“That could have been helpful, yeah.”
For now, rest easy knowing that you handled a difficult situation as best you could, Xeph continued. Though I am not entirely comfortable with the idea of endangering our agreement with this village just to aid a single yeth. Still, if it is your desire to help her, then we will do what is in our power to do.
“Thanks, buddy. Good to know you’ve got my back.”
And your front, and most of your sides. I tower over all of you, both physically and mentally.
Callan snorted and didn’t rise to the bait. Instead he let his mind relax, and with nothing left to occupy it, drifted off to sleep.
----------------------------------------
“You know, I’m still not entirely pleased that you hid the whole ‘powers are off the table for everybody’ part of the quarantine deal from me in the first place.”
It wasn’t my intention to hide anything from you, human. There was simply no time for such banalities the first time it occurred, and we have been rather occupied since then!
Callan snorted, then took another bite of his breakfast. Across from him, Kivi arched an eyebrow. He waved away her unspoken question.
“I feel like you could have fit it in there somewhere. Maybe when we were languishing with nothing else to do in that dveorg prison. Maybe on the long walk here. I dunno. Just a suggestion.”
Hmmph. My sincerest apologies. I’ll endeavor to fill your head with my constant chatter from now on whenever you attempt a moment of silence for yourself.
“See, now you’re just being petulant. I’m only pointing out that there have been opportunities.”
“If I may interrupt, Avatar,” Kivi said, picking up a piece of toast and munching on it. “The fact of the matter is that while we may have been uninformed before, nothing drastic occurred as a result.”
Callan nodded to concede the point. Then he rebutted, “But it easily could have gone south on us. What if we’d engaged Veritas and their followers in a full-on battle? We’d have been slaughtered!”
“I think that particular outcome unlikely,” Kivi noted. “When Veritas spoke of these ‘Accords of Divinity’, they seemed certain that they provided ample protection for you both.”
“Yeah, but not to our followers apparently. Those accords didn’t do much good for Sworv’s poor arm.”
What does a cardinal direction have to do with engaging this other avatar in battle?
“Focus, Xeph, focus.” Callan shook his head. “Hey, what are these Accords of Divinity, anyway? You haven’t mentioned them before.”
“Nor am I familiar with the term,” Kivi added.
Unfortunately, I am ignorant as well, Xeph admitted. It must be some cultural taboos associated with duels that were adapted after my time. Veritas mentioned the north when they spoke of it. Isn’t there supposed to be a great nation in that direction?
Callan repeated the god’s words, and Kivi nodded. “The Northern Alliance. Though I know even less about it than the Southern Reach, which is scant as it is.”
“Huh. Maybe I can pick Belinda’s brain about these accords and the north, both. She’s mentioned that Alliance at least once before.”
The high priestess frowned at that. “Just be careful, Avatar. Do not leave us anymore indebted to that woman than we absolutely must be. She will be looking for any way to wriggle out of our original arrangement that she can find, the closer we get to victory over Veritas.”
Kivi’s words reminded Callan of his conversation with Alyssa the night before. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Actually, there’s something I need to talk to you about on that front.”
First south, now front. Your Earthling anachronisms will be the end of me, mortal.
“Xeph, can you just... not, for five minutes?” Callan turned back to find Kivi waiting. “So, after I left the temple, I ran into Alyssa.”
Kivi’s expression immediately darkened. When she spoke, her tone was so flat it was almost monotone. “I see. And what did Alyssa need from you?”
The way she said the yeth woman’s name made it sound like an insult. There was clearly more going on there than Callan realized. He hesitated before speaking further.
“Oh, are we talking about me this morning?” Alyssa appeared in the doorway, head tilted in curiosity. Callan was both relieved and a little disappointed to see she was once again wearing her work leathers.
“Morning, Alyssa. I was just telling the high priestess...” He trailed off, suddenly unsure if he wanted to continue that particular line of conversation until he understood the look Kivi had been wearing a moment before. A look that had converted to all smiles now that the subject matter herself had appeared. He cleared his throat. “Is there something you needed?”
“Actually, yes. My mother requests your presence immediately. She wants to go over the plan for today’s contest once more before Veritas arrives.”
Callan groaned. “Again? We’ve discussed it like three times already. And anyways, it’s all just an educated guess. Who knows what the god will actually chose for their contest.”
“Still.” Alyssa shrugged. “She’s waiting at her home. Shall I let her know you’ll be along shortly?”
“Yeah, yeah.” Callan waved the yeth woman away. Once she disappeared, he turned back to Kivi. “I guess we should get going. If nothing else, we need to tell them about your conversation with Shamain.”
“Very well, Avatar.” Kivi shoved a final piece of toast into her mouth and rose from her seat. Together they made their way in the direction of the mayor’s house.
“So what were you trying to tell me before?” Kivi asked as they walked.
“Oh. Um, before that, I was actually wondering what that expression you made was all about. Did something happen between you and Alyssa?”
“Expression?” A bit of pink tinged Kivi’s cheeks, though it was difficult to tell with her dark-olive skin. Callan only caught it because he’d spent enough time with the lud girl to know what to watch for. She gave a polite cough. “The two of us have had very little reason to converse. If not for her being the mayor’s daughter, I doubt we would have spoken at all.”
Then, she continued, “However, I have noticed her speaking with you on multiple occasions. In fact, it seems as if she is going out of her way to gain your attention. I worry that her interests are not... entirely pure, Avatar.”
Callan blinked. “Wait, you aren’t jealous of Alyssa, are you?”
“Jealous? What would I have to be jealous of?”
“You—never mind. Anyway, I can’t entirely say you’re wrong about Alyssa’s interests,” he admitted.
“I knew it!” Kivi looked towards him, her eyes full of concern. “Be careful, Avatar. Bargaining with a yeth can be dangerous at the best of times, but with a desperate yeth... there is no predicting what she might do to get her way.”
Callan’s mind flashed back to the previous evening again. Now it was his turn to blush. “Believe me, I’m aware.”
“Oh?” Kivi looked at him in curiosity, but before he could think of a response, they arrived at the mayor’s house. The door swung open at their arrival.
“There you are. Come in, come in.” Belinda ushered them into the kitchen, where Alyssa and Radavan were already waiting. “So, before that upstart godling arrives, I thought we should discuss today’s plan once more.”
“Actually, before that, Mayor, I should inform you of what I learned from our main temple.” Kivi went on to relate her conversation with Shamain, of which she’d already given Callan the highlights over breakfast.
It seemed that when Shamain had dispatched her grandsons to join Callan and the others, she’d given them explicit directions to turn around and hurry back if anything unusual happened in the slightest. The attack by Veritas’s priests certainly qualified, so there was every chance that the lud were now several plateaus away, hurrying towards home.
“Interesting,” Belinda said as Kivi finished. “But utterly useless information. Whether they’ve gone back home or were captured, it doesn’t do us much good, does it?”
“It makes all the difference,” Kivi countered, “On whether or not we need negotiate with Veritas for their return, or if this other avatar now has collateral to use against us.”
“Hmm. Maybe so, but I doubt it’ll come up before the duel is finished. That’s what we should be focusing our attention on right now.”
The mayor turned towards Callan. “You feel confident you can handle today’s challenge?”
“I think so.” Callan glanced at Alyssa, who gave her usual shy smile. “Scratch that, I know so. Your daughter is a good teacher. She made sure I can handle the basics.”
While they might not know exactly what Veritas had planned for the day, the god was one of metal, so it was likely to be something involving that. After much discussion, Callan and the others had decided a weapon or tool-making contest was likely, so Alyssa had spent several hours teaching him the basics behind blacksmithing.
While he knew it wouldn’t be enough to win against Veritas, that wasn’t the point of this particular challenge.
Indeed, Belinda commented as much, casting her daughter a level expression. “It isn’t the basics I’m concerned about, Avatar. Did you learn enough to at least keep from looking the utter fool out there?”
“The avatar will perform masterfully,” Kivi said. Then she added, “Or at least well enough to show the villagers he is taking the contest seriously.”
“Good. Because ensuring that the opinion of my people does not shift anymore in Veritas’s favor is almost as important as this contest itself.”
“Believe us, Mayor, we know what is at stake.” It wouldn’t do to be victorious in battle, only to lose the war and have the villagers side with Veritas anyway. Callan had already seen how easily opinion could shift during yesterday’s contest.
“Good.” The mayor gave a nod of satisfaction. “Because while I am fully prepared to continue running this town from exile if the avatar loses this duel, it will be considerably harder to do so if no one here listens to me any longer. Now, we should discuss the particulars concerning—”
The back door burst open, and Lisson stumbled through. Everyone stared as the boy panted heavily, fighting to regain his breath enough to speak.
Finally, he managed to eke out a few words. “Veritas. Spotted. Approaching village.”
“What?” Belinda leapt to her feet. “They’re hours early! This is... this is...”
“This is nothing more than a maneuver to put us on the defensive,” Kivi finished. She also rose to her feet. “Come, Avatar. It seems the second challenge has come sooner than expected.”