Caeileera

After Aki left Lilyth lay down again and picked up the book she was reading. Pretty bored I joined her and asked:

‘What’s it about?’

‘A crime-solving monk,’ she answered and then muttered under her breath: ‘I guess some things are universal.’

‘Can I read it next?’ I asked.

‘Uhh… sure.’

Lilyth pointed to the four other paperback novels the guards brought them.

‘I think one of them is also from this series. I don’t think they need to be read in any particular order.’

Following her advice, I picked it up and started reading it. The plot was interesting. There was a murder in the town the monk - some loser devoted to the Light named Lokin lived in. He started looking into it because of the dead guy being the brother of one of the initiates. Why the local guards weren't investigating it was a question I couldn't find an answer to. There was also a subplot about a widow in town seeing an angel. The mention of the angel got me thinking about my wings again and before I knew I began to cry again.

‘What… is the b…’ Lilyth began to joke but quickly caught herself and embraced me.

‘It’s going to be alright. We’ll get through it.’

I hugged her back and we just sat there. After a while, I became aware of how close to me Lilyth was. I looked at her. She was this close to me. And we were alone.

Is it okay if I do this without Aki here? No. I don’t think so. At least not initially.

So instead we just lay there next to each other and Lilyth, on my request, told me stories from Earth. I wasn’t interested in actual history, just legends, novels and fables. So she told me of the thing they called isekai. Apparently, it was a genre of stories where the hero ends up in another world, sometimes directly and sometimes reincarnated.

‘I guess your experience doesn't really match those stories,’ I laughed.

‘Not quite. Still, I somehow managed to get together with two beautiful women, so it counts as something eh?’

She pecked me on the cheek.

It was the drop that broke the dam. I kissed her back and before we knew it we were taking off our clothes.

After we were done we lay there panting. Lilyth wasn’t the best lover I ever had, but was willing to learn, and she still knew how to make me tick. Her being able to switch equipment also made it more fun. And that's all I needed.

Realising we needed to clean up before Aki returned we went to shower. When we left dressed in fresh clothes we saw Aki staring at the mess we’d made.

‘Did you two…’ she asked but then saw our horrified expressions. Oddly enough, she began to laugh.

‘Oh my gods. You two should see your faces. This is what we agreed to, didn't we?’

‘We… ummm… didn't know how you would react… ‘Lilyth stammered out. ‘I don't think we ever discussed this part.’

‘I’m not going to say I’m not disappointed a bit, but then again…’

As she was saying this walked over to us. I saw that she now had a black metal magitek replacement for her right arm.

That was fast.

To my surprise, she wrapped her hands around our necks and dragged the two of us to bed.

‘... Let’s make up for me missing out, eh?’ Aki finished with a smile.

Much later, I lay there staring at the ceiling, spent but happy. Aki’s naked form was lying on me, while Lilyth was sleeping next to us.

‘I think we wore her out,’ Aki whispered to me.

‘I doubt she minds.’ I laughed.

‘Yeah,’ Aki laughed and kissed me.

Aki

We lay there until the guard came to take us to dinner with Zekuthran. We quickly cleaned ourselves up and followed him. To my surprise, Savri was with him. She was dressed in casual clothes: A short-sleeved white shirt, a black skirt and slippers. Grandfather had grace enough not to comment about how completely dishevelled the three of us looked. His only reaction was a slightly raised corner of his mouth, quickly replaced by a frown.

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‘I was going to let you stay here for a few days but circumstances have changed. You will leave the day after tomorrow. Savri here will join you and ensure your new hand works properly.’

‘Meaning what? Savri’s to spy for you and if Aki steps out of line she is to break her new hand, motherfu…’

‘Terran, if you know what's best for you, you will be silent.’

He didn't answer the question, did he?

Tomorrow, Lord Sun wishes to speak with you, ‘Zekuthran continued. ‘After that I want you gone. I promised you a gift, Terran. Given the change of circumstances and your behaviour, this is no longer an option.’

Lilyth shrugged and showed him the middle finger of her right hand.

‘Love you too, Zeke.’

‘Enough! Your insolence-’

‘Yes, yes. Will not be tolerated. You are throwing us out anyway and since… this Sun of yours wants to see us, you can’t do shit. Meaning, you are the one who has a problem with us. Not him.’

I thought Zekuthran was so mad his head would explode.

‘Guards!’ he shouted.

‘Take the slime to a prison cell. She will stay there until the meeting with our lord. Then return her to it until she and her party are about to depart.’

They moved to grab Lilyth, but she simply stood up and followed them. While she was leaving she raised her right hand and showed Zekuthran the middle finger again. I noticed the bracelet was no longer on it.

Grandfather lost this one, didn't he?

Apparently, he didn’t have anything else to say to us because he dismissed us and sent us back to our room. He told the guards to bring us some food.

‘Lilyth just made us a new “friend”, didn’t she?’ Caei whispered.

‘No,’ I shook my head. ‘Zekuthran was never on our side, to begin with, I think.

Savri

Savri couldn't believe the scene in the dining room. While Lilyth crossed the line multiple times, that was not the Zekuthran she knew. She had never seen him lose his temper like this. Lilyth totally outplayed him and she wasn’t even trying to do that.

She just treated him like what… a normal man, she realised. Not the Archpraetor, not the Blade of the Ashen Storm, just a man.

And him not denying Lilyth's accusation… Such an action would be against her oath as a healer.

What happened to you, boss?

That was a mystery for later, however. For now, she rushed after Aki and Caeileera.

‘Can I join you for dinner?’ she asked. ‘I think we need to talk.’

The Sanguine didn’t look pleased about it, but Aki nodded.

‘We are to travel together after all, aren’t we?’ she said, resigned and angry.

‘First,’ she began after they sat around the table, ‘please allow me to apologise, at least on my end. None of that was my idea. I was informed I was to join you at the same time you did. If the Archpraetor wanted me to do things Lilyth suggested, I was not aware of that. Yet. I don’t expect you to believe me, but that’s the truth. What I will do…’

Caeileera stopped her with a hand gesture brought over the notebook and tapped on it.

Oh. They are afraid the old man is spying on them.

Savri: “What I will do is help Aki gain full control of her new hand. After that… I don’t know.”

Caeileera: “I’ll be watching you. Just so you know. I imagine Lilyth will be too.”

Savri: “I understand.”

Aki: “Sorry you got dragged into this.”

Savri: “I don’t know what happened to Zekuthran. He didn’t used to be like this.”

Aki: “What was he like?”

Savri: “Smart. Fierce. Unmovable.”

Caei: "Not brought into an impotent rage by someone insulting him?"

Savri: “No. He said something about circumstances having changed. What was he talking about? Do you know?”

Caei: “No clue. The only thing out of the ordinary was well… Lilyth being Lilyth at the hospital wing.”

Savri: “I heard about that. Pretty funny.“

Aki: “I think it might have been me. Lady Irmen contacted me last time. Warned me about Lord Sun. Offered to mentor me in guile and leadership. I accepted.”

Savri: “Oh no. Palace rumour was Lord Sun was pissed at him over how he handled the matters at the hospital. You pledging yourself to another god WHILE HERE is a massive black mark against him if the rumours are true.”

Aki: “Oh my. Lady Irmen warned me…”

Caei (having taken the notebook from Aki): “You were right to take her deal. Fuck your grandfather. And not in a fun way.”

Savri: “What happened over at the hospital?”

Caei: “Zekuthran wanted to turn Lilyth into his minion, have us join something called Pathfinders in your legions. She refused. He claimed it was just a test and she passed it and Pathfinders are, in truth, an Adventurer's Guild.

Savri: “It wasn’t. And they are not Pathfinders are a scout branch of our legions “

Caei: “Motherfucker.“

Savri started to reply but then someone knocked on their door. Caeileera quickly grabbed the papers and burned them.

‘Enter!’ Aki shouted after she was done.

The door opened and Eurydon entered the room. There were two guards with him.

‘You’re already here, Savri,’ he said. ‘That makes it easier.’

Savri’s heart sank. Did Zekuthran decide to kill them all? No… he wouldn't defy Lord Sun, would he?

She could see Aki and Caeileera had similar thoughts as they tensed and looked ready to go down fighting.

Eury made a worried expression.

‘Sorry,’ he said. ‘I mean you no harm. This was poor phrasing given the circumstances. I was asked by Lord Sun to bring you all to his chambers.’