In a room in the buildings, the divine used as their headquarters two gods were sitting behind a desk staring at it.
"Go Ed!" said Golliad in an approving tone.
Ysennia on the other hand was NOT amused. "This complicates things you know. Virgins are far more powerful." She said with a sigh.
Golliad sat back in his chair still trying to peek in on the action on the desk. "So what Ysennia. You ascended and you were no saint. You wear white as a fashion statement, and you've been eyeing him as a starving man looks at a steak. We tasked him with this and told him to grow." He waved at the desk. "Just let the poor boy grow up for a while."
Ysennia rubbed her head in her hands and looked at the scene below. Jealousy was her first instinct. She wanted this soul for herself, not tainted like this by another. She had kept him from so many other women that this was something she had not expected. The plan was still in place but small chinks were building in its armor and that was concerning to her.
"Well what is done is done I suppose. Can we still use this our advantage?" She muttered to herself as she looked down at the tabletop and watched.
"Of course, the plan is still very much going to work. We are going to keep everything together and the world will carry on just like you want. Look at it this way Ysennia, possess the girl if you feel like it and then you can have your fun and not worry about being a direct participant. She won't even know. And really, Ed's soul is still a virgin. He is doing this as Erust. It's not unless he reverts to his actual body that he loses his powers." Golliad replied trying to appease her.
The thought of possessing her had already crossed her mind, but as the goddess of creation and destruction so had smiting her. One freak tree, or a rock from the heavens, or even just a runaway cart full of orphans. The irony of that would have hit like a shockwave to even the most cynical of watchers. And it was more in her nature to destroy than to change things. Rebirth, that was what most things needed. Life didn't change quickly, something has to die for something new to come back in its place.
"I suppose its worth watching then isn't it?" She said.
"Let it play." He said with calm in his voice. "This all works out. Everyone wins, well almost everyone."
She swiped away the image from the table and leaned back. "And what about that idiot bard?"
"I've got people watching them in the southern lands. He is actually being of some help."
"Will he toe the line?"
"He is commanded to do so. Will he give us hell along the way? Absolutely. But quit worrying." Golliad smiled at Ysennia. "Just think about new things to make and do, possess the cat girl occasionally and watch the party. You worry too much."
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Across the continent, away from the ruins that the divine beings used as there home, the sun was creeping up towards the noonday mark. The markets were calming down as the heat of the day slowly worked its way into every corner and dark alley and the wind died down. The heat something that you had to get used too.
Ed and Ashra snuck from their shared room out into the front of the hotel where Rennish was sitting and playing a stringed instrument he had found in the front of the hotel. The other guests were listening and nodding back and forth to the tune. The hotel manager was keeping Rennish with a full cup and a discounted room rate for free labor.
"Oh, the newlyweds return to us!" Rennish said still playing. "Let's all give a round of applause to the couple!"
The rest of the people in the room laughed and clapped. Everyone loves a celebration. Ashra turned her face away and stood behind Ed's frame who couldn't help but laugh. "Thank you, Thank you, everyone. I hate to steal your music, but I am going to need him here in a little bit."
The crowd made a groaning noise but started to slowly disperse or find other things to amuse themselves with. Rennish nodded and kept on playing, intent to finish the last of this song before putting the instrument back where he found it.
The hotel owner brought out lunch for the two and sat them down at a table in a corner away from the small crowd, "Compliments of the house and thanks for letting your man play for my other patrons."
"Thank you, we really should be thanking you for helping us in our time of need," Ed said.
"For the Pilgrim? Anything." And he winked at Ed and patted Ashra on the shoulder. "To think I was witness to his marriage to a member of the southern peoples. Glory be to the spirits of our elders."
Ashra nodded and thanked him with a pat on his hand. "Thank you, I will make sure that word makes it to my father and your tribe is helped when it needs it."
He nodded and walked away satisfied with what had happened. Ed looked to her. "You told him?"
She shook her head. "No, he figured it out. Word has made it this far of the pilgrim, but the word of your home at the comfort of the oasis has not. That is still a safe space away from prying eyes. MiNoosh is trying to keep it safe and secret as much as possible for you."
Ed looked to his plate to find spiced meats and some type of vegetable that was pickled and stuffed with cheese. He took a bite and found that the sour tangy flavor paired well with the meat. "Is this Lloras?"
She nodded. "Yes, it is. The southern peoples don't eat much beef because there are tribes of people with bodies similar to bovines. It is similar to what you would call cannibalism."
He looked at it and nodded. "Interesting, okay well today we need to go pick up the package. We need to get moving out of town before we get roped into anything else. The plan is to head south still and find the oracle. The package needs to see the northern gate of the Glass Capital. We don't need to take it any further. I hope that's on the way."
Ashra looked at Ed mid-bite and thought for a moment. "I think it is a little out of the way but that is fine. I believe we can find a few more of Ursal's stores along the way to sell our little trinkets too. Spending cash would be useful for a comfortable trip."
Ed nodded, they hashed out a plan. Ashra was going to go and get a list of things from the market that would make the trip easier. Ed was going to take Rennish to get the package from the stable and make sure that it was secure. Ed assured her that his satchel was impenetrable. She believed him fully now that she was filled in on his past.
Rennish walked over to them and leaned over the table, putting both hands down and leaning in, "So my two sweet lovebirds. How are you two doing this morning?"
Ashra laughed. "Why does everyone act as if something happened?"
"Don't start Rennish, it has to do with a nickname from my previous life. I will explain later I promise. Plus, humans think it's funny to point out when two people have been, you know, being married." Ed said looking at them both. "Rennish, I have told Ashra about my previous life as a sign of trust but not my name from my previous life. You have permission to confirm what I have told her. Understand?"
Slightly shocked he nodded. "Are you sure that was wise?"
"We need to trust each other. You know, she needs to know. The divines already probably know that she knows. It's fine. She is my wife now and deserved to be kept in the loop when and where I am able to."
"Okay," he looked to Ashra. "You may ask, and I am bound to give answers that confirm what he has told you or to deny any information that is not true. Please understand that there is a bond between us that I can not break. Okay?"
She nodded, suddenly slightly confused at the way he worded it but figured that had to be a human thing.
"Good," Said Rennish. "We really ought to get out of town as quickly as possible. This whole town just reeks of divine intervention. Something is being orchestrated here I want to be moving on as quickly as possible."
They all agreed that leaving town and heading south was the best course of action at this point. Ed and Rennish got up to leave and go to stables, the walk wasn't long but in their head, it would be worse. Ed threw on his cape and hood over his normal white shirt and black pants. Ashra got up and walked over to Ed.
"Be safe beloved." She said. During their talks before coming out to breakfast, they had talked and learned more about the customs each had that were the same and different. A kiss was still a kiss but it was more intimate for people in her clan to touch foreheads. Much like wild cats they could put their scent on something and mark it as theirs. So, they had blended customs together to make something that was uniquely theirs.
Ed reached out and put his hand on the back of her neck and pulled his forehead to hers. They smiled at each other laughed a little before he kissed her on the forehead. She reached up and touched his face and smiled.
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Ed took off with Rennish and headed to the area where their cart was stored. Ashra stood in the doorway to the hotel and watched them leave. She had mixed emotions running through her head right now. She was 23 and considered beyond marriage age for the people in her clan of Felis. Most females were arranged for a wedding by the age of 15 so that when they came into their first heat, they could bear children.
She had told him because she lacked many of the feline features that defined her clan she had been passed up for marriage. That was true, most males and families wanted children with ears who pointed more to the top of the head. They wanted children with fur who covered all of their skin unlike the patch of exposed skin she had going from her navel up onto her face. She was a Felis but not desirable for breeding and had never found a mate that would take her on based on her personality alone. The only offer left was civic service or to marry an older gentleman and take care of him until he died. She had resisted either and a miracle of coincidences had sent her into Ed's care. She was offered up as a way to guarantee a life where her parents wouldn't worry what had happened to her.
She hadn't gone into his service with the intent of marrying him. She really found him curious at best at the beginning and a secure way to stay in a warm house and well-fed. She agreed to leave and take this position so quickly because it prevented her from being bound to a life of cleaning up drooling old men. Early on she hoped she would just find some peace of mind as a servant to a great house instead of having one of her own. She wasn't well educated but she was smart and she hoped that would be enough to help her out.
Erust turned out to be different than she expected. He was fair if not far shyer than she expected of the prophet. He was very human, not even the last little bit of Demi flowed through his veins. And his hair was totally different than hers, she was curious why the humans had any kind of hair or pelt.
But above all, he treated her like a person. He did not ogle her or ask her to demean herself for his amusement. She had heard tales as a child of the horrible thing humans could ask others to do for them or to them. She had made it known that she was sworn into service to him and made offers to him but he had refused anything that might have been considered demeaning. Over time she felt she could trust him. And then when he said what he did something lit up a little in her chest. It was a new feeling for her as she had given up on emotions like this long ago.
No, she was not yet in love with him, but to her marrying him was far better than ending up alone forever. The more time she spent with him the more she would come to love him; she was sure of this. Most marriages of girls were arranged anyway, and dating was an extravagant thing only humans did. This marriage was just arranged by coincidence instead of her parents. That was the only real difference.
She turned around when walked out of sight and she headed back inside to grab a cloak to keep the sun off her skin. "I wonder if our kids will be hairless or not…" she thought to herself as she rubbed her stomach.