Return to the Temple
Apparently there was so much hub-bub about Leon that the teachers just canceled today's lessons to discuss it all. As such, we had a free day today. To say that I was surprised that Leon wanted to use that free time to return to the temple, would be an understatement.
I had had my fill of person-to-person interactions during Serenity's celebrations, and was ready to either get back to work, or sit around being lazy. I needed to decompress from all the interpersonal interaction! Despite current circumstances, I was a shut-in at heart.
Still, Leon insisted, so I found myself soaring above the city of Helios once more, riding updrafts toward the religious sector. Leon claimed that it would be much less crowded this time, and I really hoped he was right...
"So," I said, breaking the silence. As usual, the quiet between us was never awkward, but up in the air was as good a time as any to have a conversation.
"Who was that man you were sparing with anyways?
He was at least as good as Master Abram with the sword.
" Not that I was an expert judge, but I felt I had seen enough spars now to have a novice's opinion at the very least.
"That was Captain Trent Nordson." Grinned Leon. "He's just returned, and he saw me practicing outside the barracks. I guess he wanted to test my new talents himself. Once people started waking up, and word spread, it got rather crowded."
Captain Trent Nordson... Where had I heard that before?
Seeing me contemplating, Leon chuckled. "He's the leader of our cadet class, remember. Master Otis mentioned him when we were introduced to the others."
"Oh, right... And his dragon was ... Kalon? Right?" I remember it, because it sounded like a very human-like name for a dragon. Perhaps not as banal as 'Bob', but definitely less dragon-y as, say, 'Parthus' or 'Neumic' were.
"Right. I think they made their report to Father, then came right to the training grounds."
"I didn't see a strange dragon there..." I said, confused. It wasn't like you could just hide a dragon behind a bush after all.
Laughing, Leon said: "No, Kalon did drop the captain off, but left right after. Him landing probably woke half the people who had gathered up in the first place. Kalon is one of the oldest and largest dragon's in our order after all. There is no way he could just hide."
"Oh." That made more sense. Also, if he were on a difficult mission, then hurried to get Trent home, then it made sense that he wouldn't have had much time to hunt. No doubt he had flown off immediately to fill his stomach.
Flying over the very regal looking temple district, I saw that Leon had been right: there were far fewer people than the day before.
Not that that was saying much, given the last time were were here it had been a whole festival.
It was still reasonably crowded. After all, this was the center of worship for one of the biggest cities on the continent.
I took us directly to the white temple surrounded by pink trees. Asteria's place of worship wasn't exactly hard to miss after all. Some how the place managed to be both simple and ornate at the same time.
Being a pink dragon meant that I was also hard to miss, especially since I was a pink dragon headed for this particular temple.
As we made our approach it was clear that I had drawn the attention of many of the priests and priestesses as they crowded around the location I had designated as my landing spot.
Determined not to make a fool of myself- by either crashing, or looking like I was landing on glass- I set my mind to a true and proper landing.
It resulted in me hitting the ground a little harder then intended, causing Leon to jerk violently.
I grunted to myself- annoyed- while Leon patted the side of my neck and laughed good naturedly. Blast it all...
"You've returned." stated a familiar voice. The High Priestess stood near by with two other priests at either of her elbows. I assumed they were there to assist her.
"Sorry for causing a ruckus." I said, feeling bad for the older woman. She had to of worn herself out during the celebration, and now felt the need to come out and greet us when she probably should be resting.
But, she merely smiled. "I am honored to receive the concern of a dragon, but you needn't worry yourself overly much. I may be old, but Asteria still watches over me."
The surrounding clergy laughed lightly, making me think that this was a joke she relayed to their group often enough.
"We still thank the High Priestess for greeting us, personally.
" Leon stated regally, sliding off my back and landing far more gracefully than I had managed to accomplish.
Show off. "As always, it is an honor to see you, and my Asteria bless you today as well.
" Why did he have to be so good at this?
Well, I supposed he was a prince after all.
He would have been trained all his life for these types of interactions.
At least one of us was good at it. He could deal with all the annoying formalities, and I would take care of the monsters we came across. That sounded like a good deal to me.
"What brings you back to the temple today, Prince Leon?
" Hummed the older woman with a bright smile.
Several of the other priests went back to their duties, now that they had gotten a good look at me.
I wondered if the other dragons- whose scales also happen to match the preferred colors of one god or another- also had to deal with this kind of reception?
"I simply wish to pay my respects to the Goddess." Leon said, affable smile still firmly in place, as per usual. "I feal the Goddess has be showering me with blessings as of late, and I do not want to seem ungrateful."
At that the older woman laughed. "Very well.
Do not let this old woman stop you then.
May the blessings of Asteria be with you.
" With that she, the other priests, and Leon exchanged bows before the two helpers escorted the High Priestess away.
What was left of the lookie-loos also dispersed, and Leon and I were left alone in our little corner of the courtyard.
"I don't think that I will ever be able to land some place without an audience.
" I grumped as Leon lead me up the white stone path, between the pink leafed trees, toward the temple.
It basically shimmered in the still rising sun, making it look all the more majestic.
I could appreciate the aesthetic at least.
Entering the temple, it was very quiet. I didn't even see any other priests. The echo of my claws on the floor was a little grating, but I followed Leon without a complaint. If others found the noise irritating then they would just have to come tell me. Like that would ever happen.
Leon didn't take us toward the large chamber where Serenity had her Awakening.
Instead, he lead me down a tighter corridor, to a double door at the end.
He pushed open the wooden doors and I saw that we were in a room reminiscent of churches in my old life.
About the same size, with rows of seating, and at the far end was a statue carved of white marble of the snake like figure of Asteria.
Around the statue were many fresh cut, pink and white flowers.
It was a bright and airy room, given that none of the curtains on the large floor to ceiling windows were closed, several panels were open, letting in the early morning breeze.
"They say that the best time to pray to Asteria is just as the sun rises.
" Leon said in a hushed voice as we made out way toward the statue.
He walked us past the many benches, and I noted that there was an ornate pink and white runner rug between the rows of pews, dulling the sounds of my claws significantly.
"We are a little late, but hopefully Asteria won't mind. .."
I had accepted that these gods were real- whether they were actual gods or just beings so powerful that the may as well be, I didn't know- but I wasn't sold on the fact that they were actually listening to the prayers of their followers.
.. I mean, wouldn't that give a girl a migraine?
There were probably hundreds of thousands of people praying at any given time across the world, right?
How could, even a god, listen to all of them and not go crazy?
Reaching the far end of the room, I stopped while Leon ascended a few steps to reach the statue.
It would have been a tight fit to get me up there.
The last thing I wanted to do was accidentally knock over a -probably- priceless statue of a Goddess in her own dang temple. That had to be bad karma, right?
Once he stood before the statue I watched as he lowered himself to one knee, a clenched fist over his heart, and his golden head bowed before the effigy.
It looked like he was bowing to a king more than offering a prayer, but what did I know?
I figured that I would just stand here awkwardly while Leon did what he needed, but was surprised that he started to speak out loud.
"Great Goddess, Asteria. This man, Leon Orelious, greets you humbly.
" He stated, sounding more serious than I had heard him before.
It seemed like he took a moment then to collect his thoughts before continuing.
"I don't know why you chose to bestow upon my good friend, Allura, such a wonderous skill.
In my eyes, she is indeed wonderous herself, and am very humbled to think you may view her the same way. "
Okay, this was getting a bit awkward... Wouldn't it have made more sense to pray in his head? Surly a god could hear his thoughts as easily as the words spoken out loud!
"However, I hope that you do not look poorly upon her for giving away your great gift.
" Leon's eyes were open now, looking at the carpeting beneath his knee with great concentration and worry.
I realized then that he worried that the Goddess might punish me for giving away her gift.
That actually hadn't crossed my mind at all.
"Rather, in gratitude for receiving this grand blessing, I hope that you could accept my devotion in her stead. "
To my shock, Leon withdrew his sword from its sheath, planting the tip of the blade into the carpeting and grasping the hilt with both hands, head still bowed.
"I, Leon Orelious, pledge to be a servant of the Goddess Asteria from this day forth.
I will spread the Goddess light throughout this world, and do all in my power to bring Her glory and honor.
I, Leon Orelious, offers my faith and eternal devotion solely to the Goddess Asteria, till the day I pass from this world. "
Huh? Wait, what? What the heck was happening?
If this whole thing wasn't odd enough, suddenly the room seemed to shine with an intense light, not unlike the blinding skill that Leon had used to fight Trent an hour before.
I wasn't completely alarmed until I saw Leon's face and realized that he had not expected this reaction to his pledge either.
I rushed forward, not caring if I knocked over the statue any more. If the goddess was mad that I had given away her gift, then she could just take it out on me! She had better not hurt Leon!
The prince seemed unharmed, however, as I crouched above him. I was snarling up at the statue, unsure where else to direct my ire at that very moment, and figuring the statue was as good as any place.
"I-its okay Allura... I think I'm fine..." Leon stammered, still kneeling, but also looking over his own body as if checking for wounds.
"You think?!" I snarled, still directing a death glare at the statue.
Leon nodded, patting my chest scales so that I would back up, giving him room to stand. I saw that he had a hand on his chest, like he was sensing something there, even if no visible wound existed.
"What's that?" I asked, alarmed.
"What?" He asked, giving himself another once over, sword still in hand.
"On your forehead." I said, on the verge of panic. "There is a light!"
As if on instinct, Leon lifted a hand and slapped it to his forehead, covering the faint glow I had noticed there. As he lowered his hand, I saw that it had vanished.
"Its gone..." I said, panic slowly vanishing as nothing seemed to be happening. Visions of the prince exploding, or erupting into flames, fading from my mind for the moment.
"Your Majesty!" A worried shout met our ears, drawing our attention toward the door we had entered through. "Are you unharmed?!"
A man in a robe stood in the open doorway, breathing heavily as if he had run here. Just beyond him I could see a few other priests, and just behind them was the High Priestess and her escorts.
"I- I'm fine." Leon stammered once again, still shaken up.
"Come now, out of the way." chastised the Hight Priestess, shooing the other priests away so that she could get though.
Having made it to the doors, she directed the helpers to take her toward us. I tried not to growl at her, given I was still in defensive mode and not entirely comfortable with others approaching right now.
"Let us see..." She said and lifted a hand toward the prince. Without too much hesitation, he bowed his head slightly, so that the shorter woman's fingers brushed his forehead.
The other gathered priests gasped as a pale light shone upon both Leon and the Priestess' heads.
They started to chatter excitedly amongst themselves, leaving me all the more confused.
I took a little comfort when the older woman smiled genuinely, making me think that Leon's head wouldn't just explode at the very least.
"Well this is new..." She said.
Leon straightened up and set a hand upon his own forehead once again, the light now fading away. "I don't understand..."
"You have received Asteria's Will, young Prince Leon." Stated the High Priestess, her eyes full of warmth. "I know not what prayers you offered the Goddess, but she has welcomed you into her embrace, much as she has done for myself."
"So Leon has to be a priest now?" I asked, incredulous. What kind of sick punishment was that?
She laughed. "No, no one can make you a priest young Allura.
Devotion to the gods is voluntary, after all.
I sense that his Highness has merely offered himself to Asteria earnestly, and she has granted him the rights of one of her Devoted.
Given the prince's talents in life... well, I would say that he has been recognized as a paladin of our great goddess, Asteria. "
"A paladin?!" Exclaimed on of the nearby priests as more excited chatter broke out.
"Truly?" Leon asked, eyes growing wide. I could tell immediately that those words meant the world to him. After all, had that not been his greatest dream: to become a paladin like his deceased relative had?
"Yes. Not just in name either... but a true paladin in the service of Asteria.
" I could hear the wonder in the woman's voice.
Personally, I felt a mixture of happiness and confusion.
I was glad for Leon- of course- but confused by the fact that the people gathered seemed to think that this was something more than just a man wielding his sword and magic in the name of the gods.
Not that I was any sort of expert on paladins.
"What does that mean?" I asked, not liking that something was happening with Leon that I didn't understand.
The High Priestess beamed. "There are many who call themselves paladins, and fight in the name of the gods.
And, for the most part, they do great and noble work for the people.
However, a true paladin is only made though a divine edict, directly from the gods themselves.
Much like how my position as the High Priestess sets me apart from the average devotees to the Goddess.
In the eyes of Asteria, Leon now holds a position similar to my own.
He is a direct follower of the goddess! And Asteria almost never accepts paladins.
After all, she is not a battle minded goddess. "
"It is a divine occasion!" Exclaimed the priest from earlier. His bright eyes turned to Leon and he offered the prince a quick- and some what awkward- bow. "I greet the Paladin of Asteria!" He said excitedly.
It was a sentiment echoed by the others present, while the High Priestess continued to beam, like a proud grandma.
I suddenly felt like my world jut got a little more complicated...