Erust walked through the rooms of the mansion slowly. He dragged his hands against walls and tried, hoped, and pleaded with his mind to release those first older memories of his time here with Ashra. If not for her, he might have dismissed the whole building as just one more stopping point.
He thought back to the cave they first crossed over from the northern continent when he was still Ed. Would he stop and have the nostalgia over that place too? Or the Cathedral where he performed the miracle with that priest? Was it his lost memories? Or was it his lost memories of Ashra?
At times he wondered if his love of her was becoming of a "prophet". Most stories told of old times had the prophet being a punished man. Who suffered setback after setback at the hands of people trying to manipulate others to their will. Erust did not feel particularly manipulated. In all honesty, he felt pretty unsupported right now anyway.
Erust's wandering mind led his distracted feet up onto the roof terrace where he had met with a previous god. One who had sent him on his path south to the oracle. What if he had ignored the divines and gone about his own path? Would he still be Erust? The existential debates he was having made his head hurt.
Grabbing his head he wandered over to a reclining sedan that was sitting in a lazy pool of shade. For as hot as the sun was the rooftop was remarkably cool and comfortable. He was certain that it was due to some kind of magic, but he wasn't going to complain about it at this time.
Down the stairs and in a less comfortable place Rennish was rummaging through a crate of belongings. The crate wasn't filled with anything remarkable, he was an ex-divine himself, he had very little in the way of material belongings. The crate felt more like props for a play, things a person might put in a box they would EXPECT someone to have if they were following a prophet.
And Erust wasn't the only one having flashbacks to their earlier traveling days. While Erust was desperately trying to get a grip on the lost memories of Ed, Rennish had full memories and the knowledge of what happened. He knew that the man on the roof was NOT really Ed or Erust. Just a half a shell of what was before. He was being manipulated, and as much as that soured his mood, part of him wondered what the other half was doing?
"You know sitting around looking morose is a really bad look for a bard."
The voice caused Rennish to nearly fall off his perch on the edge of his bed. He frantically searched the room before the image of Or'Ain flowed out of a dark corner of the room.
"Seriously can you not be spooky all the time. Are you sure you are the god of good times and not the god of scaring the shit out of people?" Rennish shook his head and got himself perched back up on the edge of the bed.
Or'Ain laughed, "I might use that one from now on. Who says scaring you isn't a good time. Besides what kind of bar doesn't have bar pranks?"
Rennish tilted his head, nodded, and shrugged his shoulders. She had a point. "What do you want? Not my beautiful face or lark-like singing voice I'm sure."
"Next time, I promise." She walked over to his side and sat down. "We have to talk about your next steps. Things have changed and timetables are being moved up."
"You mean the great all-knowing divines aren't in control of everything?" Rennish faked his surprise.
"Always the cynic. Do you want to be kept in the loop or do you want me to just let you find out on your own?"
Rennish put his hands behind him and leaned back. "You're right, sorry. I am just feeling particularly thoughtful which isn't great for a bard. We are made for singing, drinking, and being all-around fun. I suck at being serious."
A snort from Or'Ain filled him on her thoughts. He looked at her as she looked at his face. He knew if she tried she could read his thoughts. Her power was much greater than his, especially now that he was mostly mortal. And if his thoughts weren't plastered on his face she might have.
She waved her hand and the top of the crate near them changed into a looking portal. The portal displayed a map of the world. Little figures of important people or groups of people were moving around the map. There was always activity in the world but this looked a bit more active than normal.
"The church has gotten wind that you are crossing back into the north. What they don't know is that you aren't the first across. The other travelers are about to cross the border into the north tomorrow or the day after. Word of Miracles has made its way across the border already and the church is moving. They wish to use the power of your miracles, and they are preparing a dispatch to meet you."
Rennish looked at the makeshift table and looked at the pieces, he recognized the pieces that must be from the church. Their outfits looked like that of the inquisitors. He looked around his area and saw the pieces that represented him. Not far from their position on the map was the city of northern and southern gate. No piece stood out to him. He was sure that Ed was being shielded to the best of his ability. In the far north of the map, people were moving south as well towards the towns. "Are the giants in the north moving south?"
"That's what catches your eye?" Or'Ain said in surprise.
"No, no, no. I see everything else," He pointed at the church. "Look there are the churches lackeys headed this way. There are people in southern gate headed north. But way up in the frozen reaches, there are REALLY big people moving. How can they not stand out? Besides, I thought they had forsaken all forms of life but their own."
Or'Ain smiled. "Sometimes you surprise me. We aren't sure why they are moving but yes, they are."
Rennish sighed. Great, now the worst-case scenario included the church and giants. Just as he was getting a grip on his thoughts a hand landed on his shoulder across from Or'Ain.
"Don't worry about that. You have bigger things to worry about." Golliad said, knowing he had just quietly scared the crap out of Rennish.
"Holy hell, do neither of you know how to just come in and say hello? Can't either of you come into a person's room without making it a chance to give them a heart attack?" Rennish's startled face made Golliad want to laugh.
"What and miss the fun of seeing your reactions? No, count me out, I enjoy seeing you over-react."
"I never overreact As a bard, I have a perfect sense of just exactly how much reaction is necessary for any given scenario."
"Oh is that so. Well then react to this then bard. Yessenia is getting suspicious and timetables are being moved. You can't sit back anymore. It's time for you to get ready."
Rennish sighed and felt his shoulders slump. "Are you kidding me? Isn't it your job to keep her in the dark?"
"Distracted you mean? And I have, she hasn't gotten a full grip on anything yet. But my gut tells me she will shortly. And the church is pushing for action, and with the disappearance of the dragon they are reaching out to her directly."
"Wait, how long have you divines been making deals with the church?"
"Forever, that's how long. They are our contacts for everything mortal related you know? It's just that we've not had to have a hand in things for a very long time. We were mortal once ourselves you know."
Rennish blinked twice and shook his head. "Yeah I know. Okay so what great plan do you have?"
"None, that's your job Rennish. You have to protect Erust and keep him away from Ed. The farther apart they are the better." Or'Ain smiled as she broke the news to him.
"You can't be serious. I don't know where he is, I don't know how he is, how am I supposed to keep them apart? Send them back south?"
"Can you do that?" Golliad asked, knowing the answer already.
"Look you know I can't. It sounds like my best bet is to make sure that we do end up with the church then. If the other parties involved are smart they will avoid the church at all costs. How long do I have?"
"Maybe three weeks if you are lucky." Golliad smiled and stood up. "Get yourself collected be prepared."
"Thanks for the warning. What about Ashra? Won't she be shunned by the church?"
Or'Ain stood up and walked towards a dark corner. "That's up to you Rennish. Come up with something. Whatever you do keep her with Erust but keep her away from the inquisitors."
As Rennish stared at Golliad he missed Or'Ains exit from the room. "There you go. You heard the lady. Now we have to leave. You are about to have visitors from the other side for dinner. Behave yourself."
Rennish felt himself get tense as he watched Golliad vanish from the room. He was certain he was being manipulated. Actually, he was beyond certain, he was absolutely being manipulated and he hated it. He threw his hands up and walked around the room. His mind was racing and he needed to figure out something before dinner.