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The Songstress Song: Rise of The Lady Fair
Chapter 2: Setting the Board (part 1)

Chapter 2: Setting the Board (part 1)

Brushing her fingers along the rough jade walls of the courtyard, Naomi walked through her temple, taking in the conversations and prayers of the surrounding women. Waiting at the temple, she hoped to see Bella, the young girl who had piqued her interest when a servant of Soalis prayed to her about the girl's situation. The girl and her mother intended to visit her temple. She waited to see if they had already arrived, relying on her heightened senses to locate them.

Naomi, thankfully, didn't have to wait long for the two to come into sight. Upon taking the form of a white cat, Naomi brushed herself against each woman, peering into their memories to list the wrongs she would rectify in the future. Brushing up against Bella, Naomi felt her anger flare as she examined the many abuses the girl suffered regularly. From being locked away, starved, and beaten, feeling that she couldn't flee because of her mother being trapped in marriage by another goddess. But it was the disregard and the active destain the head of the merchant guild held for her domain of protecting women, but greedily sought the protection Soalis offered. Naomi let the young Bella pet her and, as she did so, she passed on a blessing of protection, giving the girl courage to do what she needed for herself. Dashing off as the girl went to join the group, discussing a way to escape their abusers.

Naomi traversed the temple, concealing herself from mortals. After stepping outside, she altered her plane of existence and reappeared in the immortal realm as a jade woman. Approaching the Forger's ethereal forge, Solias met her, appearing as an orange calcite man. "I felt your anger from here, Naomi. What could have made you angry in the mortal realm?"

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"A rather contentious mortal that seeks the favor of one protector but dismisses the other," anger staining Naomi's voice as she slipped her arm through the other immortal's, keeping at him at her desired pace.

Soalis let out a throaty laugh in amusement. "Ah, mortals, such brief notes in the queen's song, but surprisingly varied."

Naomi glared at Soalis for finding amusement in the pain of those she protected. Her already inflamed anger growing as she couldn't help but think that perhaps it wasn't only the mortal men that she had to protect her charges from and that it wasn't all the mortals of Fartell's fault but the patron god who watched over said city.

While Soalis laughed, Naomi considered how she would show her displeasure at the dismissal of her domain by Bella's father, knowing Soalis had always kept the other immortals' influence on the port of Fartell limited. Then she recalled the mother's vow that trapped her and thought of leveraging it to her advantage, knowing his great dislike of the Namiakes Patheon.

"You know, Soalis, I would really like to teach this mortal a lesson. The problem lays in the scale needed to do, so he cares little about anything but himself and coin from what I can gather from his daughter's memories. His position in mortal affairs in your city needs to be compromised. Now there are several ways I could normally do, but I feel anything I do is to be seen as Losea's influence finally coming for the man."