Fighting a smile, I took in the woman that would be my roommate for the next few weeks. Her honey gold hair was a wild and beautiful halo of tight curls, her hazel eyes sharp and sparkling with excitement. She had along, elegant nose that flattened ever so slightly at the tip complimenting her high cheekbones.
Her skin was perhaps a few shades darker than my own natural olive, rich and tawny with the shimmering golden tattoos of the Solerian soldiers inked in various spots.
My brows rose at the inked blessings as my gaze sharpened, looking past the elegant pale blue dress that contrasted so beautifully against her skin, to the muscle that corded her body. This woman was awarrior.She was taller than I was, at least by a few inches, and despite her charm, I detected the predator that lay in wait behind practiced smiles and sultry eyes. Even as those sharp eyes assessed me back, perhaps finding the same strength I had, there was no malice in her gaze. Only excitement and perhaps, surprise?
I instantly liked her, figuring we’d get along just fine.
"Oh I'm just so excited to finally meet you, Kai's told me so much about you and—"
I froze, brows scrunching in confusion, "I'm sorry, Kai?"
"My cousin? Prince Kairen?" She gasped at my look of surprise. "Oh he didn't tell you? That prick," she muttered before giving a hesitant smile. "My name is Rena, Kai pulled a few strings to get us roomed together for your trials in case you decided to come on the quest. Honestly, I think he just wanted you to see that we're not all moody like Roan is, so you wouldn't be nervous about spending so much time on the road with—”
"He did what?" My arms crossed tight over my chest as I snapped, "is it not enough that I agreed to think about it?"
Rena grimaced slightly at my tone, offering a weak smile. "Let us talk no more of the quest then," she insisted. "Regardless of how it came to be, we're roommates and I still need to show you around and get you acquainted with everything."
Lips pursing, I shifted to toss my bag upon the empty bed behind me. It was clear the one pressed against the opposite wall was Rena's as it was covered in a variety of pink and lavender pillows with various books and notebooks splayed open.
Would the entirety of my trials be consumed by this Goddess damned quest?
My resolve slowly crumbled as Rena wrung her hands, eyes hesitant with a tentative kindness.
"Very well then," I conceded with a sigh, "but no talk of the quest."
"What quest?" Her reply was playful and had a reluctant smile tilting the corners of my mouth.
Rena was true to her word, the entire tour she didn't utter a word about the quest. Goddess knew the girl could talk, not a minute of silence could pass by before she thought up a question, topic, or piece of advice that sent her into some new tangent.
I didn't mind, listening passively without saying much as we walked.
We made our way through a garden path and I found it hard to focus on whatever Rena spoke of as I took in all the beautiful plants. It was like walking through a fairytale.
I imagined that this is what the Kingdom of the Sun Goddess would look like in the afterlife.
It wasn't long before we were stepping from the garden and into the small market that resembled the one outside the palace. There was a line of carts with various things being sold, however it wasn't nearly as large or crowded. A few buildings lined the walkways as well; I noted a seamstresses shop and what looked like a tavern at the very end of the row.
A question nagged at the back of my mind as we explored. At a cart that fashioned finely made jewelry, Rena held up a jade necklace to my throat as she spoke of how beautifully it went with my skin tone and eyes.
"Why is it that you have the marks of a soldier when you're apprenticing as a healer?"
"Being a cousin to the royal family, I had many expectations placed upon me," she explained as she looked over the other necklaces and bracelets the cart offered. "I apprenticed in magic, the art of war, and now healing."
My eyes widened at the admission. “You did three apprenticeships?"
A ghost of a smirk slid across her lips as she said, "We all do. It’s the life of a royal, I suppose."
I had barely survived the pressure and time requirements of being a potions apprentice, let alone taking on two other apprenticeships on top of it. To be a Master of Goddess-blessed magic, a soldier, and a Master Healer was insanity.
A companionable silence fell upon us as we moved to the next cart, which housed the most exquisitely made tapestries I had ever seen. Looking closely, my fingers trailed over one of Goddess Soli. Her hair was a waterfall of blazing fire, her eyes golden and fierce as she plunged a blade into the heart of Calzar, the Demon Prince of the Second Hell.
My mind struggled to recall the tale, the death of the Demon Prince of Lust.
His skin in the depiction was like that of cracking ice, nearly translucent as fissures spread and formed around the mortal wound Soli had bestowed upon him, his hair a black halo as the energy of the Sun Goddess roared through him.
If I recalled correctly, it was said that Calzar was the catalyst for the ruination of the Sister Goddesses’ relationship. For Calzar and Soli hadbeen betrothed, meant to unite the rift between the Nine Hells and the Kingdom of the Goddesses. It was said that Calzar, upon first meeting Lua, Goddess of the Moon, had fallen irrevocably in love with the sister of his betrothed and Lua too had fallen for him. When their love grew too strong to ignore, flamed by secret nights and whispered promises, Lua had gone to her sister. Kneeling before the Sun Goddess, begging forgiveness for the betrayal, Lua asked that she break the betrothal and allow her and Calzar to wed instead. It was said that in a fit of rage fueled by her sister's treachery, Soli had plunged her blade into Calzar's heart, ending his life and breaking her sister's heart.
And so, the Nine Hells with its eight remaining Demon Princes reigned on in the war against the Sister Goddesses, but no longer were the Sun and Moon united against their tricks and warmongering.
