Chapter 93: Caught in the Currents
Grace’s wings flapped hard as she approached the temple entrance.
Her body ached in places she hadn’t known existed before Diana’s light-dick marathon. Her thighs burned, her back was sore, and the place between her legs felt like it had been through a divine war.
[Walking would’ve been a mistake. Flying hurts less. My poor kitty needs a spa day. And therapy. And possibly an ice pack the size of... well, me.]
She landed awkwardly on the wet stone, wincing as her thighs protested. The temple entrance gaped like a hungry maw, dark and wet. Water trickled down the walls, more than before. The tide was rising.
"Meridian?" Grace called, summoning her Blade of Dawn for light. "Uh, are you in here?"
No answer. Just the echo of water dripping from stone.
[Of course she wouldn’t answer. That would be convenient. And nothing about this mission has been convenient. Not the water zombies, not the horny goddess, and definitely not Meridian’s academic death wish.]
Grace stepped inside, blade held high. The golden light lit up the ancient corridors, casting creepy shadows along the walls. The air smelled of salt and age and something else—a faint sweet scent like flowers blooming underwater. Now that she wasn’t fighting for her life or feeling up Petriel, she noticed details she’d missed before.
Carvings lined the walls. Not just the wave patterns they’d noticed earlier, but scenes from daily life. People—or angels—working, playing, worshipping. And between those normal scenes were others... Far less innocent ones.
[Oh wow.]
Grace stopped at a particularly graphic carving. Two figures tangled together in a position that looked physically impossible. Unless you had wings for balance. One figure was clearly Eternia, her distinctive features unmistakable even in stone. The other appeared to be some kind of water being, their body flowing around Eternia’s in ways that defied normal anatomy.