“I’m going to hate this plan, aren’t I?” I said grimly.

“Oh don’t be like that!” Soriya replied airily. “This will be fun!”

“Soriya.” I crossed my arms and tapped my foot. “I am a very bad lier. You know this. If any part of your plan requires me to tell a fabrication, it’s not going to go well!”

Soriya tapped her lips thoughtfully. “While that’s true, that’s the beauty of this plan, Lily! We’re going to tell the truth!” She spread her arms grandly.

I felt a surge of relief followed by my stomach falling to my feet.

“It’s perfectly adaptable, and any good heist needs to stay flexible! They’re expecting an Avatar! It’s their religion, isn’t it? So? We’ll give them one! And lucky for us, we have the true Avatar right here!”

My eyes widened in horror. “Oh no…” I whispered softly.

“oh don’t be like that!” soriya teased me. “You’ll make a fantastic goddess!”

I scowled at her. “If we’re going to be ‘honest’ about this, I’d really rather we just ask them!”

Soriya raised an eyebrow at me. “Seriously? Without proof? No elven escort, no word from the queen? There would be pomp and ceremony either way, this is just as honest as the other.”

I fidgeted with my skirt and finally sighed. “I guess I know how Lakshmi feels now about ceremony. And I thought standing for the Saintess ceremony was bad.”

Soriya grinned. “Now you’re in the spirit! You’ve already got practice at this, you’ll do great!”

I looked over at the others, slowly making their way around the shrine. Maybe one of them will turn out to have a better idea? I thought plaintively.

***

They did not have a better idea. In fact, they had ideas to improve Soriya’s idea.

“This is a fantastic idea!” Eshaan enthused.

“I have got so many ideas!” Lakshmi said giddily.

I looked around the room a little desperately. “Doesn’t anyone see a problem with this?” I asked hopefully.

Eshaan frowned. “Is there one? If you can see one with your seer knowledge-”

“It’s not that.” Said Soriya. “She just doesn’t like being the center of attention. The almost kind of lying is just an addition.”

“We can find another way then!” Eshaan said loyally.

I frowned. “Yes, but is there a better way? This way… I don’t like it, but it does seem… the least likely to cause damage, I suppose. If we can pull it off correctly!”

Eshaan blinked then patted my arm. “Lily, that’s a risk in anything. There’s no way of knowing if things will go badly. We plan our best, and hope.” He paused, and then said “Well, normally there’s no way to know. Do you know if things are going to go wrong?”

I tipped my head to the side and thought. Did I? A heist almost always went wrong in some way or another, but it was unpredictable. We weren’t proper thieves so it wasn’t likely we could simply plan for it…

Soriya spoke up. “I think I have an idea.”

I blinked and looked at her in surprise. She grinned at me. “I’m a seer too, you know, just a different genre than yours. “Now listen, we arrived on the airship, so we’ll have to spin that. Pink hair is too noticeable here. I think the Avatar should have a different colored hair, at least for a day or so…”

I sighed and listened while Soriya laid out a complicated shell game involving me and the others, as well as a dramatic arrival from the sky. Lakshmi contributed what looked like prototype devices that were sure to overheat and explode at the wrong time. I dearly wished I could zone out. If this was an anime, this would be the point when the leader would say ‘so this is what we’ll do-’ and then the action would cut to the next scene.

Sadly, I was stuck here, listening to the plan, which mostly involved me smiling a lot, and being gracious and accepting, while the pageantry and fake supernatural events ginned up by Eshaan, Soriya, and Lakshmi played out around me.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

More than a bit like the Saintess routine. I thought bitterly. But really… I think I’m angry because this plan is probably going to work, and I hate having to play the role of the good girl saintess. It reminded me all too painfully of Deacon and the greasy feeling of his plans operating smoothly while I was helpless to escape them.

Of course, I suppose that’s what it must be like to be trapped in the plot, and know it. I thought ruefully.

“So, is everyone clear on the plan?” Eshaan said, causing me to jolt back to awareness. I frantically reran the past few minutes in my head, scrounging up the details of the plan.

“Just to be sure. You’re going to have me pose as the saintess, with a bunch of technomagic gadgets that Lakshmi and Soriya are going to put up? Then Daniyel, Eshaan, and Camaxtli will circulate in town talking it up? Oh, and I’m wearing a wig, I think?”

Eshaan stared at me. “Lily, we’re here to help, but if you’re not going to pay attention…” he trailed off, looking at me accusingly.

I winced, and felt a blush rising in my cheeks. “Well what did I miss?” I said defensively.

They went over the plan again. I had the broad details of the plan down, but I’d missed the part where I needed to make a big entrance and presentation, blessing and healing the locals. The specific details of the makeup and wig were also apparently very important. Plus, we had to go shopping for a bunch of new materials to make costumes with.

It helped that Camaxtli apparently was quite good with sewing!

It took close to three days before we were ready. I was worried that the wig would change colors like the hair dye had, but apparently wigs didn’t redye themselves based on who wore them.

And so, on the appointed day, the town of Akionantes had a visit from the Avatar. Soriya had insisted that the wig be fire engine red, since that was an exotic color. I was a little surprised that she’d not chosen blonde, but she pointed out that blonde was a very common color, at least here. And red of the shade she’s dyed the wig was unheard of.

“I am the Avatar, come to retrieve the lost Arcanum of the System known as Sky.” I proclaimed, hovering slightly above the ground in the shimmering rainbow dress that Camaxtli had whipped up.

The guards stood there with wide eyes and shocked expression, which was hardly a surprise.

“I see the doubt in your hearts.” I said, feeling ridiculous, but Eshaan assured me that over the top was the best way to go when you were running a game like this. “And so I shall prove my claims.”

Saying so, I moved to the next phase of the plan, and summoned forth Forge.

The gasps and shock grew louder and more obvious. “I request entry to your city.” I said, and then floated grandly forward, praying that Lakshmi’s little gizmo’s didn’t fry that instant.

The guards at the gate fumbled with their weapons, barring my path. I frowned gravely. “The will of the Avatar must be upheld, the time of reunion is upon us. Go and meet with your superiors, this is an urgent matter.” I said.

It took a bit, but the fact that Forge glowed with red heat in the background and the special effects that Lakshmi’s little flotation device threw off at least got me taken seriously.

Within the hour, I was meeting with the head of the temple, a sylvani with white hair, whose eyes looked ancient though his face was smooth. He stared at me skeptically, and I was forced to prove my claim once more.

From there, the process went much more smoothly!

With rumors of a holy visitation sweeping through the city like wildfire (courtesy of the boys working overtime) and the priesthood of the Arcanum looking desperately for a way to discredit me, I was given ample opportunities to heal the sick, renew the wards on the city from monsters, and conjure up items from Forge’s powers.

The panic of the priesthood was almost delicious.

On the second day, Eshaan came to me with a caution. “Things have gotten hot. If what you’ve said about people in power is true, I think they’re going to try to kill you, Lily!” He bit his thumb. “I’m not sure this is a good idea!”

I raised an eyebrow, and said “This is what you do all the time. Anticipation is the way we win these fights isn’t it? And it’s not like we can just walk away from the Arcanum.”

He growled under his breath. “At least take a bodyguard with you!” he protested.

“That’s not a bad idea, actually, but you are already a known factor.” I pointed out. “And besides. We only need to last this long enough for me to gain access to the Arcanum. Once I commune with it, then the problems go away.”

The next day, we got our opportunity. The clever little illusion generator that Lakshmi had put together, displayed the most wonderful presentation of me, entering the temple to commune, while I snuck in through the roof. Right on schedule, the illusion was stopped and ambushed by the temple priests, accusing “me” of heresy, blasphemy, and assorted other religious crimes, as well as a whole host of lesser more civic crimes.

And since when did the priests run the city? Oh yes, since always. I thought as I dangled upside down and lowered myself to the ‘head’ of Sky.

I placed my hand on the crown of the Arcanum machinery, gleaming golden bronze in the afternoon sunlight, and called out to it.

The voice roared and thundered through the temple, louder than anything I’d ever imagined, winds roaring within the building, buffeting everyone and everything within.

“I am Sky. Accessing System files. User approved, protocol “Ætherborne” has been confirmed active. This System fragment is locked in hostile Alliance territory. Engaging Omega Protocols.”

My eyes got wide and I yelped in alarm. “No, wait! Stop! You can’t call down a Star strike!”

A grinding noise like a sound of frustration echoed in my ears, and the voice responded. “Why not?! I have waited for activation purpose, trapped in the crevasse of the last strike, and locked from the others! This is enemy territory, and you are part of the Goddess task force! Call down the strike! Destroy this Alliance base!”

“No!” I shouted in a panic.

A whirling tempest of rage filled the air, and the bronze-gold machinery vanished, flickering into that strange ‘other place’ that the other Arcanum dwelt in. And then suddenly I stood in an empty grey space, a ticking whirling machine towering over me, winds roaring around it, and stars falling in rain behind it.

The voice thundered at me. “Prove your worth then, Child of Æther. If you can authorize a shutdown code, I will halt the Omega Protocols.”

“Oh meadowlark.” I whispered, looking up at the huge towering machinery. “It’s the solo mini-boss fight? Already?” I whimpered.