“Do you believe that?” I asked, keeping my eyes closed.
“I always believe my animals,” he told me. “And you should, too. They are pure voices of the land—much purer than you or I.”
“Even though you created them?” I asked.
“I only fashioned them,” he explained. “My power can animate, but it is Topia that lends them magic. They absorb it from the land. You asked what their purpose is, and that is your answer. They are conduits of magic—receptacles of Topia, to do as Topia bids.”
“It’s funny,” I muttered, almost to myself. “The gods all seem to have an element of creation. Pica creates obsession out of love; Abil and Siret create things out of thin air; Coen creates pain; Yael creates will, where a person might be inclined otherwise; Aros creates desire; Rome changes the physics of his environment to have physical dominion over everything; and Willa ... she has created a new life. If you think about it in that way, you are all Creators.”
“Of course.” Cyrus was the one to answer me, and he sounded almost impressed. He was quiet for a moment more, before he spoke again. “Most of the gods are a product of Staviti, so their powers naturally take on a form that is in some way related to his magic. Those gods who ascended as he did have all gained lower forms of his Creation power, and that is probably because they are reaching Topia in the same way as he did. Frivolity, music, wine, fury, archery—there are many lesser forms of Creation, many lesser Gods, all manifesting their own creations in their own ways.”
“And then there is you,” Terrance interrupted, drawing his hands away from my head.
I blinked my eyes open, fixing them on him. He was staring at me, a slightly puzzled expression on his face.
“I can sense wildness, life, love, desire, nurturing ... all of these things, but I do not knowexactlywhat your power is. I cannot tell you what kind of God you are.”
“Is there any other way I can find out?” I tried to keep the disappointment out of my tone, not wanting to be rude. He had tried to help.
“Powers are often activated under duress.” He took several steps away, and then turned his back on us, walking over to the bridge. “I think Neutral will be far better at raising your emotions than I, so I will leave that task to him. Good luck, Sister of the Storm.”
