15.5
Gem took her breaths slowly and carefully. Focusing on the rhythm, her endurance had been poor this year, it was easy to cover for, her spars and exercises were something she told Smithson to run her through rather than a thing demanded by Muriel.
But she knew it, she could feel it, impossible to deny every time she came together as all of herselves and the memory blended together.
The twins had always had better endurance than her under heat, even if it made them sweat. But this was different, sometimes her heart pounded and her lungs gasped for air for reasons entirely separate from the need to cool herself.
Last winter she could end up gasping even with her feet in the icy chill of the snow! The cold too was worse, biting far deeper than she remembered from the winter before. Something was wrong with her and Gem had no idea what!
There was no sorcery upon her, no miracle of heaven’s touch sapping her strength, she was just as full of wyrmflame as ever and could hold off the sting of cold and cover for her gasping lungs with such means.
But Gem knew something was wrong with her.
Still she had a duty, as one of the few of her selves that was practiced enough in the manner of Adelyne’s trick that the sorcery clung to her; she was the only one that could follow Havel into one of these meetings.
To listen to the private council that Mathias, Erhard and the Archpriestess of Asherah were having without her or Leo.
“Well my King, I believe that settles the matter of the gods and the dead.”
Mathias sighed, took a heavy breath and then coughed harshly. There was a rattle in his chest that reminded Gem far too much of how Muriel had sounded in the end.
When the wasted form of the man finally got control of his breathing his voice was brittle and almost soggy. It reminded her a bit of Tsulogothulan but without the strength and calm that could make it seem healthy.
Mathias sounded like he was almost drowning.
“So, that’s it?! The souls of the dead are naught but memories!? To be forgo-”
He started coughing again, even harder than before, the Archpriestess made a gesture, murmured something silently under her breath and the terrible sound stopped, the High King taking deep, desperate lungfulls of air before sighing in relief.
The Archpriestess, still veiled, still unnamed even now spoke softly.
“It does hold true to some of the oldest rites and records. What I read in the scrolls of the Pantheon when I prepared to confirm myself as Archpriestess of Asherah. The first blessing given by the gods to men is often called the soul, but equally you could read them as ‘reason’, ‘knowing’ or ‘memory’.”
Gem slinked and stepped as the sense of attention moved through the private room of the High King, moving opposite of Havel who shifted with her into equally unobserved sections of the space. How he was able to discern her own senses from that of everyone else in the room was beyond Gem’s own skill with the spell. Her experience leaving every kind of attention as a uniform itchy presence.
“Given that it might not even be the fault of the stars at all, just a mistake of men interpreting them.”
Erhard’s voice was the familiar plodding calmness, but without her wyrm self’s senses there was none of the emotional clarity. The court wizard’s voice was a dull hum of struck metal devoid of feeling to Gem’s ears.
At least she was able to discern where his attention lay, mostly on and in the metal in the room.
Havel was very carefully not paying attention to anywhere that the other occupants of the room were looking for her benefit. Which was honestly kind of an unfair precision with Fizzbunches Sorcery!
Gem could not even imagine how he did that.
Still not as absurd as what Adelyne could do with it though. How could that woman somehow sense the attention one had from a written missive?! Jewel in any of her selves had no idea, even when she was looking directly at the sorcery the Guildmistress was calling on!
“So it’s not the fault of the gods then? Just every single Priest, priestess and god botherer since who knows when to now? How?! How could all of you have missed this!”
The Archpriestess made a soft noise, half a humming tone and a gentle hushing breath.
“The gods see clearly the hearts of men, and all of them, my lady Asherah included, give what is asked, what is desperately wished, what is yearned. Not what is needed. It is why intercessors are needed, nay required, my king, to put distance and the skill of our craft between the raw desires of man and the ever granting heavens.”
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Mathias’ voice took on a harsh edge, cutting past the malaise of weariness that seemed to hang from his every breath.
“You lot seem to have failed on a rather obvious step with this one! Where has all of this skill been before now? You’ve all missed this for Generations? Ages? How?!”
The Archpriestess again made that soft soothing hush, and although she lacked her largest self’s wyrm sight Gem was certain a miracle was passing through the room, she felt it in a steadying of her own heart, in the way that the fury in the High King’s creased face eased.
“Diviners are still mortal men, our hearts can still cloud a ritual despite all our practice. And what could be more deeply yearned by all men but to have our souls kept after death? Asherah in her kindness would certainly offer any child that wished for it such comfort as this.”
Mathias huffed, she couldn't see his face, positioned as she was away from his awareness. But she suspected there was a scowl there.
“So it’s true, the souls are not kept?”
A soft sigh from the Archpriestess.
“It was never part of Asherah’s responsibilities to see to the care of the dead, her dominion is new life, but the young Leo Haeborne’s ritual seems quite conclusive to me. A spirit called from the dead knows only what the witnesses of its calling do.”
Gem had to slip to one side of the room as Mathias turned in his place standing, walked over to the chair, then she had to squeeze up against the wall as he turned about and settled into it with a groan of relief and pain. Fortunately his gaze then focused on the table, focusing on the unmelted lump of red wax for his seals.
It gave her enough room to settle into a more securely unobserved position in the room.
“So our souls are naught but memories and lies told to the living? Gone to nothing in death?”
He sounded defeated, worn out, exhausted.
“No, at least we in this room have proof the gods can maintain one beyond death.”
With a voice of hot coals and bellows Erhard the Iron Hand rumbled his declaration into the room. Gem suddenly felt a stab of attention, a glance of those fiery red eyes landing squarely upon her own, before turning to look at the High King.
“The ritual of Asherah’s blessing that I tied to Jaska’s working assures that a soul must remain, a will beyond flesh that can reinforce and maintain its purpose, judgement, will, freedom. The wound of Jaska’s working would allow nothing else to impose upon the body after his violation.”
The court wizard’s tone did not shift, did not change, but Gem’s heart was hammering. He’d seen her, there was no mistaking it, the only thing keeping her from gasping in panic was the absolute certainty that it would draw the two unaware occupants in the room to stare right at her.
“Then it is possible for the souls to be kept? To truly be held? Without the need of creating more of those-”
Mathias’ voice suddenly had a desperate plea to it. Erhard began to circle the room, observing random things with an intensity that Gem would have found odd if it was not a Wizard doing it. The way that neither the High King or the Archpriestess even shifted their attention to his actions suggested they were also familiar with such foibles.
Nevermind that his wandering curiosity put him solidly with his back to Gem, blocking her and the door from view by the Archpriestess or Mathias.
“In principle, Asherah could be asked to keep the souls of her children protected, but It’s not been done to my knowledge, not in this way. We would need to invoke her carefully, question her delicately, and test any such ritual offered to us.”
There was a thoughtfulness to the Archpriestess’ tone. Erhard’s attention settled firmly on Gem without the wizard turning his head, first all over her, and then slowly moving from her right hand, over her shoulders and then slipping down her left arm and only vanishing at the tips of her fingers.
“And it would have to be performed upon one who lives first. With a modification of Leo Haeborne’s rite to verify we have accomplished what we think we have asked of Asherah after death.”
The motion of attention passed over her again and then Erhard settled in place, waiting, solidly blocking sight of Gem.
The Archpriestess took in a deep breath and then exhaled.
“Asherah is a mother to all, she would not deny even the worst of criminals destined for execution. In her heart there is forgiveness for any mortal, we could verify such a rite, but we’ve yet to even confirm what such a sheltering of the soul will require.”
Mathias, High King of Cantor Reborn was leaning forward, Gem could hear his lungs, how sickly he had become in her lifetime.
“You will have the full resources of my house, the palace and if needed all of the realm for this endeavor. If we can offer the solution to this betrayal by the uncaring heavens?”
The Archpriestess’ attention swept up and down with a hard nod.
“It will be done my king, now the hour is late and there is now much work to be done before tomorrow night.”
Mathias dismissed them both, only settling his gaze on Erhard in mild confusion when the court wizard studiously walked out of the office through the door instead of vanishing in a clash of iron and fire.
Giving Gem a cover as they left, then once they were out of the room pinning her in place with his attention and not letting go until she followed in step with him down a hallway and around a corner, it was only the slight brush of Havel’s attention that didn't have Gem bolting into the palace hallways for safety.
Without the assurance of her Wyrmself the court wizard lost all of his curiosity and wonder, replaced with nothing but a flat voice and a nearly scowling glare.
Finally he turned his attention properly upon her with those glowing eyes.
“I anticipate that this endeavor will require the input of a wyrm’s unique vantage to see to completion Daughter of Jewel, Mathias is adrift without the council of Thurzó and wasting away besides. I will see to it that your mother is included in the effort. But in future please remember, there is Iron in both of your blood. And not all Wizards are aligned with the Countess.”
And then the Court Wizard vanished in a clash of metal upon metal and searing bright sparks. Havel, revealed from his vantage in a dark corner that had been at the Wizard’s back, wore a pained glare upon what of his brows Gem could see behind the mask of cloth.