And there it was, out in the open. The one thing I had feared all this time and had never been able to address with Theo.
He cleared his throat and signaled to the Gods to let him speak. “Thank you, Seraphae, for your candor and your courage in speaking. You raise a question of great importance—one that I, too, have wrestled with for some time.
“At my court, we have known of Maelis for some years now. The Fates themselves marked her birth, and we were alerted to her arrival. Yet for two decades, we could not find her, for she never once drew upon herhekafor herself. Even then, without ever meeting her, I saw in that restraint a rare strength of character, and a mind untouched by corruption.”
I winced at that as unbidden pictures of what we’d done the night before flooded my mind. Not exactly a pure mind. Oblivious to my inner turmoil, Theo continued.
“Maelis has resided at my temple for several months now, during which my circle and I have had ample opportunity to observe her, both her character and her intentions. And I tell you this with certainty: her heart lies in the right place. She carries within her a deep and genuine care for both the mortal realm and our own.
That said, I cannot peer into her mind. What I offer you is my judgment, measured and sincere, but, in the end, still just a subjective judgment.” My heart sank at that statement, and tears pricked my eyes.
Because he was right, we never truly knew who we weredealing with and some people were better at keeping their secrets than others, I had my secrets too. And still it hurt to hear him speak so plainly about his mistrust in me. He carried on over the murmur of voices.
“It is true, we cannot know with absolute certainty that she will not betray us. But consider this: she has stepped willingly into the unknown, into a chamber filled with beings who could end her life with a flick of the hand, before she could even draw breath to speak. She is mortal. And yet, she stands here. That alone speaks of courage. So while I understand your doubts, I urge you to remember: her coming was foretold by the Oracle, and it is the Fates themselves who sent her, to aid me in fulfilling the prophecy. If you cannot place your trust in her, or even in me, then at the very least, trust in the Fates. They do not choose lightly.”
Cheers erupted and it seemed like Auretheos had managed to sway most of them to give me the benefit of the doubt. The conversation shifted then, with the Gods and Goddesses starting to talk strategy and logistics. It was decided that there would be groups tasked with different aspects of preparation for the war. There would be a military division, coordinating troops and strategies, there would be a group to share intel and information from their spies and a group to prepare the defense on home territory. This was not their first war and likely not their last. They had moved to the new continent in hopes of being left out of further conflict, but the conflict had followed them.
I felt his eyes on my back before I saw him.
Veridus came to stand next to me, watching out over the crowd ahead, deep into conversation with each other.
“He has a good heart, Auretheos. I hope he knows whathe’s getting himself into.”
I looked at him, but he stared right ahead.
“You called me?” He asked and turned towards me.
I frowned, “I don’t think I did,” I said.
“Maybe not with words, but you were going to approach me about something. So let’s have it, what do you need?”
I was feeling a little nauseous but took a breath and said, “I need to make use of your talents as a storyteller.”
Chapter 28
The conclave dragged on deep into the night, although there was a noticeable shift in the atmosphere after a few hours. The mood lifted, people were starting to drink and soon enough it was more of a celebration than a war council. I felt the tiredness in my bones and searched for Theo in the crowd. I spotted him in the corner with the red-haired Goddess who had spoken out earlier and made my way towards them. She spotted me first and smiled at me kindly when I approached.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Maelis,” she said and bowed her head in greeting.
“I am sorry for speaking up today, but I hope you understand that I just want to protect my people. It was not intended to hurt you or question your character.”
“Please don’t worry, I understand that I am an outsider here. I hope I will be able to prove my worth to you when it comes to it.” I looked up at Theo who had a proud look on his face. “I didn’t want to interrupt, I just wanted to say goodnight. It’s been a long day, and I am afraid I don’t have your immortal stamina.” I said.
Seraphae smiled, “Of course, good night, wordsmith.”
“I will bring you back to your room,” Theo said and putdown his glass of wine on a nearby table. We walked through the crowd together, only stopping to say goodnight here and there. When we closed the doors of the ballroom behind us, a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
“You don’t need to walk me back, Theo. I can manage just fine.”
He smiled, but motioned me to walk with him.
“I don’t doubt it, I just wanted to make sure you were all right. We never had a chance to speak of the reputation that precedes your kind, the wordsmiths, and I am sorry that I did not prepare you for the possibility that some Gods might be hesitant to trust you.”
We walked slowly, passing by groups of deities and Faerie that were walking the grounds to get some fresh air or have a private conversation. It was a relief that Theo broached the subject with me, I too wanted to clear the air.
“Don’t worry, I knew this would happen. The Abbot, he… already filled me in with the particular reputation we have.”
His eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Why did you never say anything?” he asked.
