Lily [https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AP1GczNR9MueSswxAqvUS2jHNfvC0xii93Y6P28JXgU6rtlbLWSvAVI1gloUbKp7uDPIvNQJdfuYWh5hvkz9HGsdv9j5laR5pd9G_x0FvpcLzcay0PSoc266oEo4QB3q68IRyEVvzBHY0kes7vH3wBsspPbW=w639-h958-s-no-gm?authuser=0]
Everyone turned to leave, Veldrix included, when the goddess called out to them, “The quest is for you as well, Veldrix Thevaris.”
The knight paused and glanced back at the man who had been arguing with them only a few hours ago. Everin frowned and looked as confused as Veldrix felt at that moment.
Once the others all left, Veldrix gave a respectful bow towards the deity and carefully said, “I’m honored by the inclusion, Lady Scholar, but we both know that my duties—”
“Will be fulfilled adequately by a divine quest needing your assistance specifically,” the goddess interjected, “I am well aware of your entire life, Veldrix Thevaris. As well as the queen and king’s lives who keep you chained to them, the life of every noble’s gaze and touch you’ve had to deal with, and all the garnet gemites lives in Blomstra who are shielded from the horrors of the world by your subservience to the crown. I am aware of every thought and dream you’ve ever had and know that, if given the right opportunity and reassurances, you would love to go on an adventure with a friend and learn more about what the world has to offer.”
Veldrix looked up in surprise at the goddess who made them feel more vulnerable in that moment than they had in centuries. She knew everything about them.
Everin was also staring at the goddess in surprise, and he was the one to clarify, “You’re giving us a quest just to help legitimize Veldrix being able to leave the country?”
The goddess returned his gaze and said with a bit more levity in her child-like voice, “Well, that’s not the only reason. I want to see my Avatar happy, too. Plus, I have some concerns about where you’ll be going and who you’ll be retrieving for me, and Veldrix Thevaris is likely the best person for the job from anyone else on the entire planet.”
That statement made Veldrix’s chest tighten slightly. The only people they could possibly be the best for retrieving would have to mean—
“I request that you both travel to the Renko duchy and bring the Saint of the Arcanist last seen there back to the Sacred City.”
Veldrix wanted to groan aloud. They hadn’t seen Helen in decades and almost preferred it that way. No matter where that woman went, trouble always found her and inevitably everyone around her as well. If they had thought Everin acted like an impulsive child at times, Helen made him look like the most patient of elders.
Whether it concerned magic, money, alcohol, sex, or any other vice Veldrix could conceivably think of, Helen seemed to have a voracious appetite for it and little thought for any future consequence. The last time she had bothered to visit them, it was to ask for help in clearing an unfortunate gambling debt that she didn’t want her lover to discover. How she had made it to Obsidian Caste was still a complete mystery to them.
“Don’t you have clergy in the area that can pass on the message?” Veldrix asked instead of airing their grievances about the tourmaline gemite they had known for far, far too long and would likely never be free of. “If you know every thought of mine, then you know I am definitely not the best person—”
“You’re the only one she’ll listen to in this matter, and she owes you a favor,” the goddess pointed out, causing them to grimace at the truth of it.
Despite all the trouble Helen caused, she had always had a soft spot for Veldrix. Even though she was terrible at managing anything, especially her own life, she had always tried to be good to them.
Veldrix sighed, “When do we leave?”
“As soon as you can. Since you are not part of my clergy, I will provide a Divine Sigil for you to bring to your queen in exchange for freedom from your vows to pursue this quest. I will warn you that the area there has been taken over by a Labyrinth and I cannot reach my clergy there anymore. I suspect even Everin’s connection to me will be cut off when he enters the boundary of that new Reality Rift.”
Veldrix and Everin both frowned at the goddess, and the Avatar asked the question they were both thinking, “What do you mean by ‘new Reality Rift’? The Renko duchy didn’t have a Labyrinth as far as I was aware. The main attraction that set them apart was that giant Ruby Caste monster floraval that had somehow learned to peacefully coexist with the locals there.”
Scholar got a manic grin on her face as she practically squealed, “I know! And a happy result of that monster battling so many Soul Reapers was that it finally evolved to Obsidian, but since it was a creature that had no evolutionary type it transformed into a freaking Labyrinth! How amazing is that! I mean, getting a chunk of my influence basically stolen was definitely not nice, but I had never learned anything like that before! I keep trying to send my clergy in to get more information, but that Labyrinth is fierce and is practically extorting my disciples for every Bit they have!”
“Wait, so are we going there to get the Arcanist’s Saint or to gather information about a new natural phenomena?” Veldrix asked with narrowed eyes at the tiny goddess of learning.
She paused, looking like a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar, before slowly asking, “Why not both?”
----------------------------------------
Everin sat among the white lilies surrounding the altered ruebean tree marking where Paul had almost died, and where he had become an Avatar of the goddess who was now sending him away on a mission he didn’t particularly want to do. He understood the value of it, though, and it had the additional benefit of keeping him and Veldrix together for a little longer.
Despite their brief spat, he still found himself caring about the Royal Knight who often subverted his expectations. Perhaps the fact that this time they had actually fulfilled their role of the duty-bound knight is what had caught him off guard and upset him so much.
As he leaned back and stared up at the ever-growing canopy of the World Tree, Veldrix softly spoke beside him, “Are you angry that Scholar wants me to go with you?”
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“No, I’m angry that you agreed to that instead of my request to join us in the first place,” he retorted.
“Everin, I can’t just tell my queen that I’m leaving my post to chase after my—” They stopped theirself before clarifying, “Actually, we haven’t really talked about what we are to one another.”
“Apparently, we’re nothing more than quest-mates.”
“Come now, you’re not really going to behave like a petulant child because I chose duty over someone I’ve only known for a couple of months, are you? Also, it’s not like you ever told me that you were planning to leave Tulimeir so soon after the blood moon. I acted under the impression that we had time to get to know each other better.”
“It sounds like you’re saying I tried to trick you.”
“No, I’m just saying I wish you wouldn’t be angry at me for daring to act as myself with you and not abandoning the promises I’ve already made to others.”
Everin sighed as he looked back down at the lilies surrounding them in this peaceful little glade among the growing metropolis of the Sacred City. After a few more calming breaths, he finally admitted, “I’m angry because I realize how much of a child I was when I asked in the first place. Especially compared to you.
“I was just… so happy last night. Being with you… I could only think about how I didn’t want it to end. After Scholar whispered to me that she was going to have you there to learn about Phoenix’s quest, I made the selfish request for you to leave everything behind to stay with me for just a little longer. I shouldn’t have expected any answer other than your refusal.”
“I guess I should thank your goddess for giving me a legitimate excuse then,” Veldrix replied and surprised him by placing a hand over his, “I didn’t want to refuse you. You’ve brought me more happiness in the short time I’ve known you than the last decade I’ve spent in the capital. What you said about Queen Mairea, while disrespectful, was true. She is cold, entitled, can often be cruel, and her husband isn’t much better, but by kneeling before both of them, I can ensure the safety of thousands.”
The knight glanced up at the boughs of the World Tree as well for a moment before saying, “I’ve felt trapped in my role for a long time now. Bound by my duty and so bored by the neverending monotony of their expectations. Scholar’s quest gives me a way to step away from that, at least for a little while.” They turned to look back at him and added, “For what it’s worth, I’m glad it gets to be with you.”
Everin felt his cheeks heat despite his attempts to control his emotions and ended up covering his face with a tail instead as he changed the topic, “So, you’ll be sending yet another missive to Blomstra to get a replacement Ruby Caster sent here, and once they arrive we can head to the Renko Duchy and try to find your old friend?”
“I’m not sure I would go so far as to say she was a friend, but I believe Scholar is right that she won’t refuse to see me again.”
“Well, I’m definitely curious to meet this Saint of the Arcanist we’re meant to retrieve who apparently owes you a favor.”
“She’s said herself that she owes me a mountain of favors,” Veldrix said, “Honestly, I don’t think you’ll like her very much, though.” Then they gave a sly grin and admitted, “You could say my willingness to kneel that you dislike so much is the reason she got to keep her head on her shoulders.”
“Well, that sounds a bit ominous. How did your kneeling keep her alive?”
“Because the first time I knelt in the queen and king’s bed chambers was in exchange for a pardon on her life.”
“You’re right. I hate her already.”
Veldrix laughed, and Everin found himself hoping he’d hear the sound more on the new journey that lay before them.
“While I can understand the sentiment, and have a list a kilometer long of all the reasons to hate her,” the knight paused, giving a sad smile, “I could never bring myself to despise my older sister.”
Everin’s eyes went wide at that revelation, “Older sister? You mean the Saint we’re going to retrieve is that first blue tourmaline gemite you mentioned before?”
“Yes. She has a bad habit of getting into all sorts of trouble, and when she landed in some while visiting me shortly after I became a knight in their court, that was the only way I could get her out of it,” they explained, looking down at the white lilies surrounding them, “We were both only Emerald at the time, and it seemed a small price to pay for her life.”
“How did someone like her become a Saint?”
Veldrix snorted a laugh, “Practically by accident, I think. The Arcanist was simply excited about a new subspecies that was more attuned to Arcane magic. With all the protections around us, that particular god made her Chosen as a toddler. I think they were hoping to influence her to be more obsessed with magic and potentially strengthen that Arcane attunement into the bloodline.”
“Did it work?”
“I believe so. She’s been roaming around exploring ancient magic and hunting for arcane secrets since she was old enough to leave home.” Veldrix got an annoyed look on their face as they added, “Between getting drunk enough to sleep with the wrong person and causing an uproar among the nobles.”
“Is that what the trouble she found in Blomstra was?”
“I can’t entirely blame her for that one,” they clarified, giving a heavy sigh, “She says they were in love and the princess did approach her first.”
Everin winced. Being a noble’s lover that nobody talked about was one thing, but if Veldrix was talking about the story he remembered hearing long ago when first learning about the various nations of Pyrin, then their sister was quite the well-known scandal. “Your sister was the Temptation of Princess Aino?”
Veldrix gave a sad chuckle, “Yep. Having a crown princess abdicate their inheritance to chase after a crazy magic hunter was not the best situation. If I hadn’t intervened and offered myself, they would have sent the entire nation’s military might after both of them.”
“Wait,” Everin interjected, feeling confused by the brief retelling, “How was sleeping with you equivalent to losing the sole heir to the throne?”
“Because part of that deal was helping to provide a new heir,” they replied with a shrug, “I’ve been used for that kind of thing before, after all.”
That was even more confusing to him as he pointed out, “But if I recall correctly, that scandal happened over three hundred years ago and there’s still no heir currently.”
“Hence why I am still bound to their bedroom and not just my position as a knight.”
Everin’s face contorted in rage at the idea that the royals were postponing an heir just to keep playing with their gemite toy.
Veldrix chuckled, “Don’t make that face, Ev. It could have been worse. I’m even able to convince them to let me go off on assignments like this once in a while when I’ve reached the limits of my patience. Despite the few negatives, they still treat me and my people well, for the most part. I also get paid well for my position and respected by most for it.
“Even if I made that particular deal out of desperation for my sister, our overall relationship is a partnership to keep all of the gemites in the nation welcome and protected within their borders. I’ve been able to influence laws to protect them from being discriminated against, or worse, made slaves to any who wished to take them.”
“But you’re strong enough to retaliate against anyone who might do that without the royals treating you as a slave in turn.”
Vel smiled softly at him, then picked one of the lilies. They idly twirled it in their hand and said, “I am still just a single person, Everin. No matter how strong I am, I cannot stand against the whole world on my own. It takes a unified nation to safeguard an entire people on that kind of scale.”
Veldrix handed him the flower as they added, “If my subservience can move an entire nation, then kneeling becomes the greatest strength I have.”
Everin frowned but took the flower as he grumbled, “That logic goes against every fiber of my being.”
They laughed, “Of course it does, my little rebel.”