Riven leans back against a column, smacking a flower away as it leans toward his face. “Okay, so what’s the plan here? We go on this little tour, coo and compliment her creations, then leave?”
“I got a feeling the more we keep ignoring her, the longer she’s going to try to stretch this stay. I say we survive a few hours of faked enjoyment. Then it’ll be easier to declare we’re leaving.”
“Well, you’re her favorite, dear Keeper of Time, so whatever you say,” Riven snarks.
“Don’t do that. You know as well as I do that she only treats me like that because my power can help her keep all this shit thriving for longer.”
Thayla’s frown deepens as she peers between the two of them.
“I don’t like this whole favoritism taurnshit. Why is that so normal between them?”
“It’s just the way of the gods. Whatever power benefits them the most gets their favor,” I say.
“So the whole ‘don’t touch anything’…”
“Only she’s allowed to kill her creations. Not me.”
She humphs and scowls around at everything like she’s tempted to kill it all off herself.
Despite myself, that makes me chuckle.
“Okay then,” she says, giving us a tight grin. “So we’re going to fake it till we make it. No touching her shit. Polite. Calm. Normal-ish.”
“As normal as we get.” Riven smiles, earning a glare from each of us.
“Well, you all didn’t move at all. What’s wrong? You don’t like the layout of the foyer?”
Thayla mutters a curse under her breath as she spins around, and we all straighten slightly. Calista’s bottom lip pokes out a bit as she stares at us with sad eyes, and I have to force mine not to roll.
She replaced her robes with a damn evening gown.
I can’t imagine that’s more comfortable.
“It’s very lovely. We just didn’t want to disturb anything.”
Her face morphs into a massive-ass smile.
“That is so very thoughtful, Ms. Godrun. I do love my creations.”
“Please, call me Thayla.”
“I’ll call you what I want.” She sighs softly as she gawks lovingly around her foyer, all while ignoring the small sneer on Thayla’s face. “Well, come, follow me. I can’t wait to show you everything.”
She twirls around and glides ahead, not checking if we follow.
We do.
The hallway curves instead of running straight. Tall windows line one side, though I don’t remember windows here before. Light spills in soft and gold, illuminating polished floors that reflect us too clearly.
Attendants move silently along the edges. Their steps make no sound. Their eyes never quite focus.
Thayla tenses a touch more with each one that passes.
All these gods in Valveilious, Beginning and Domain, have always had Attendants orlessergods work in their homes. Something about these ones, though, is different.
Rather than beaming with life like the rest of this fucking place, they seem completely devoid of it.
Calista waves her hand toward a set of doors that the Attendants keep hurrying through, and I get the smallest glimpse of the room.
