Chapter Eighteen
Regi stared at thedop curled his lap. It kept all of its quills tucked close to its body, but Regi could not escape the thought that this creature napping on him could kill him with a simple flick of a muscle. As much as Regi liked to think that he was faithful to the gods, he had to admit to a certain level of trepidation when it came to this particular goddess. Newr had called several colleagues, and now five exalteds sat on the opposite side of a low white table. Regi wished he had someone to sit next to him, but the only exalted he knew that might take his side was his mother, and that was a level of masochism that he was not willing to engage in.
“Your goddess does not have known goals, so what do you feel she might hope to gain out of this relationship?” The oldest exalted asked. She was so elderly that her black stripes had nearly vanished under gray, making her resemble a ghost. She wore the symbol of Oba, Lady of writing.
“I will not pretend that I understand any of this,” Regi admitted. He hoped that his new goddess did not expect him to poison anyone, and her other two realms were disorder and new beginnings. Regi had a higher tolerance for disorder than the average Kowri, but he did not want to wallow in it. He had thought that being an exalted would offer answers. He had assumed that he would be the exalted of Poque, and as such, it would be his duty to explore. The universe had conspired to make him a fool.
“Could the goddess have any interest in this outsider ship?” One of the other exalteds asked. He had a brooch with a carved vui lu esh, so ironically he spent his life studying the stars, but had no interest in sapient creatures from those distant places.
The exalted of Gavd said, “I do not see why our gods would have anything to do with these outsiders. I have seen the reports from their space, and they are dangerous.”
Regi could not let that stand. “The Coalition respects laws. The ship I serve on is dedicated to enforcing them.” Blank expressions answered him. “They disagree about which laws are appropriate, and they have more individuals willing to break laws because they do not fear the retribution of gods. But, the vast majority are as good as any Kowri. And Kowri are not free from even the most heinous of crimes. They kill and rape and steal.” If not, the temple would have needed far fewer devotees of Gavd.
“But not at the rate these other species do. I know how often the Coalition ships must chase down criminals.”
“But as you say, we do chase down criminals. We do not allow them free rein. And the goddess has assisted us in that quest. She led us to a pirate ship and assisted us in freeing a slave and killing pirates who would have taken more. Perhaps the lady would end the slaving of these pirates.” Regi suspected his logic was born from wishful thinking, but he could not imagine what other purpose she might have entertained.
Lady Divashi does not care for justice or slaves,” the exalted of Gavd snapped. The other exalted winced at his tone, but they didn’t protest.
“So you assume, but she led the ship to free the slave and prevent more slavery. Gavd did not.”
The exalted leaned forward in his chair, his expression twisted with either frustration or rage. “Do not question the motives of the Lord of justice. Those who deny the gods have not earned the justice that they would provide. He has no obligation to this slave or the non-believers on that ship.”
“They do not believe in the gods because they have a different definition of god.”
The exalted of Oba spoke. “What definition is there other than the great and powerful creatures who guide our lives and protect us?”
Regi turned toward her. “The primitive superstitions of ignorant people who would explain natural phenomenon that they cannot control using names that they hope will allow them some illusion of self-efficacy,” Regi countered. Every Kowri bristled in horror at his words. Regi sighed. “I do not agree with their definition, but I understand their logic. They worshipped gods that were either imaginary or sadistic enough that they deserve to be forgotten.”
The exalted of Asza spoke in a near whisper. “Would they see our gods in that same cloak?”
“They do not know any other definition for god,” Regi said wearily. He had spent years trying to convince Coalition officers to stop insulting his religious beliefs, so it was ironic that he was now cast as the defender of theirs.
“So what request would you make in your goddess's name?” The exalted of Oba asked. She fingered the lines of the embroidered school of itnbo that decorated her scarf.
Regi rubbed his cheekbones. It did nothing to ease the throbbing in his head, but he did not want to take any medicine that might dull his senses when he had a dangerous ball of poisonous quills curled in his lap. The dop in question stretched, his tiny legs reaching out before he folded them back under his body. This dop had chosen to remain with him, and no one, not even Regi, could deny the creature his right to choose his own home. That did not mean Regi appreciated his poisonous companion.
“Until an hour ago, I did not know that the Lady Divashi had chosen me at all. I suspected that Poque would ask me to explore some corner of the galaxy we had neglected, but I have no idea what this might mean.” Regi gestured towards the sleeping dop.
“We should send the outsiders away, fix their ship as quickly as possible and tell them to not return,” the exalted of Itzpach said, and the exalted of Gavd nodded.
“Whatever the Lady Divashi has asked of me, it includes them,” Regi argued.
“They were simply the vehicle which you had access to at the time. If the Lady wishes to send you somewhere, the cold weather temple has ships that can carry you,” the exalted of Itzpach said.
The exalted of Gavd grimaced at the suggestion that one of his people would be tasked with escorting Regi. However, ships, like temples, did not belong to a single god. They were called Gavd ships because every ship had an exalted of Gavd in charge and had devotees of Gavd ready to employ their various resources to investigate crime, but any cold weather god could call on the temple ships. The exalted of Asza often directed the ships to the edges of galactic arms where they could use powerful computers and scopes to explore space. After all, few Kowri committed crimes that required investigation.
“If my goddess has not made her wishes clear, I would suggest that we do nothing until a clear path is open,” Regi said.
Nawr nodded, clearly in agreement.
The exalted of Gavd was not ready to acquiesce. “I agree with giving the goddess time to make herself known, but that does not require we allow outsiders to remain on our world. Our treaty with the Coalition makes it clear that our borders are inviolate.”
Regi did not think that they had a treaty as much as they had issued a series of threats, followed by the Empire destroying a few ships. It was ironic that Kowri were less likely to kill other Kowri but seemed to lack that same moral fiber when it came to outsiders.
“The Lady Divashi included them, so I would have to disagree.”
