Thayla #4
“Well, that’s only a piece of it, but thank you. I need—I’m going to ask a lot of you. All of you really. I need help with some of these.”
I flip through my parchments and pull out the list of Domain Gods I wrote down. They all jump up and lean over the table to get a look as I slide it to the middle. Their eyes grow wider the farther down the list they go.
“You’re fucking joking,” Sevryn growls as he narrows his eyes on me.
“Nope.”
The word pops off my lips and he shakes his head.
“Well, seeing as I’m the first on the list, I will gladly hand my signature over now,” Doren says with a massive grin.
With a snap of his fingers, a pen appears clenched between them, but I shake my head at him.
“I put you on there as a maybe. I don’t want you to think I assumed you’d sign. This undoubtedly announces you’re alive and well. If you’re not ready to rejoin the godly realm fully, I completely support that.”
“I know you do, and that’s why it makes my decision that much easier. Not only will I sign, but I’ll get you in touch with two of those gods on your list if you’d like for me to.”
“Two, really? I was only going to ask for your help with one.”
“I figured, but little does the realm know, those two are quite inseparable.” He winks and we all chuckle as we catch what he means.
“Thank you, Doren. Really.”
“No thanks needed. This is what friends are for.”
A small amount of tension uncoils from my chest as I slide the parchment for signatures across the table toward him. He reads over the wording, humming and nodding. Nero confirms he’ll need to sign with his essence embedded in the ink so the gods know it hasn’t been forged.
“One down, nine to go,” Yemi says as she bumps me with her elbow.
“Eleven to go.”
“But they agreed on ten,” she says.
“I know, but I’m playing it safe. I don’t trust the Goddess of Accord to pull the rug from under me, so to speak.”
“So that’s why there are like twenty fucking Domain Gods on this list,” Havar says.
“Yeah. See one you think you could get in touch with?”
He gives me a sassy-ass smirk. “Maybe. You think a certain Veilatara will feel up to helping me pull a string?”
I’m sure.
“Seismet, Verlet, can either of you hear me?”
“We can.”
I startle as their voices come through loud and clear.
“Where are the two of you?”
“Outside your windows,” Seismet says, and I laugh to myself.
“Will you two help Havar get the God of Creatures to the meadows for me?”
“Of course. When do you want him here by?” Verlet asks.
To me, his tone is certain, but I know below that easy agreement, there’s worry.
“This afternoon if possible.”
“Consider it taken care of, Thayla.”
“Thank you, Verlet.”
“What about me?” Seismet chuffs.
“Thank you for your support, my oh so lovely, not jealous at all, companion.”
He neighs loudly in my mind and I shake the vibrations from my brain as I glance back at Havar.
“They’ve got you covered. This afternoon.”
“Sounds good. I’ll be there,” Havar agrees, then tosses a piece of food up and catches it in his mouth.
Yemi and I cringe at him.
Did he pull that out of his pocket? Disgusting.
“Other than these four,” I say, dragging my finger in a circle around the names, “I could use some help.”
Ellian holds my gaze and nods. “I’ll get in touch with the ones who I think will hold the most weight and agree. Lambrit, would you mind assisting me with this?”
“Not at all. Is that okay, Thay, or did you need me to do something else?”
“No, that’s perfect. Thank you both. Ellian, will you…”
Our gazes drift down to the parchment. I don’t know why I’m having such a hard time flat out asking.
It just feels like I’m asking for favors, when it isn’t really that.
The guys have more than earned this and deserve it.
I think my fear that these Domain Gods are going to want to call in debts later is causing worry where worry shouldn’t be.
“Of course I will,” he says with a small bow of his head.
My shoulders slump as his name, followed by his newly appointed title, glows at the bottom of the page where the signature of the Entrusted Authority goes.
“You’re not going to get the rest of those signatures alone,” Sevryn grunts as he crosses his arms and stares me down.
“Yeah, no shit. You’re coming with me.”
“I don’t want to hear a fucking argument—wait, what did you say?”
“Dumbass.” Havar chuckles, earning himself a glare from Sevryn.
“I didn’t expect you to agree so easily.”
“Obviously.”
“Am I going with you two?” Yemi asks. There’s a touch of expectation in her tone, and I tighten my lips as I turn to her.
She huffs before I even open my mouth.
“I need you and Rose to stay here and keep this organized for me. I can’t go where I need to go and worry about setting times for meetings while also communicating with everyone.
I also don’t want to carry the parchment around in my back pocket, so I need to be able to starshoot it here, but it needs to be protected. V can be our line of communication.”
She purses her lips and holds my pleading gaze for a moment longer.
“Fine. I am the best at keeping your life organized for you. Well, I suppose Amick and I make a good team.”
My soul shudders in my chest, but my wall locks its mournful ass down.
“You are,” I say, faking a smile I don’t feel.
“V, you know where the Goddess of Creation lives, right? And you’ll be able to starshoot us there when it’s time to go?”
“I’m sorry to say, I do not know. Valveilious wasn’t a place when I was their Vedarya. I know much about it and have seen much of it through the minds of others, but I’ve never traveled across its barrier myself. If you locate it, though, I will take all who are going.”
Shit. That wasn’t the answer I was expecting.
I pretty much chalked that part of the plan up to being taken care of.
My gaze roams across everyone as they look to me for the next thing on my agenda. My focus settles on Nero, who’s still scrutinizing the guys’ agreement like it personally offended him.
“Nero, I kind of have a big favor to ask.”
He snaps his attention to me. “What’s that?”
“I need you to locate the Goddess of Creation’s house for me. She starshot us straight from the Neutral to there. So I guess I remember the gardens. Or I suppose Doren, you can—”
“I know where the Goddess of Creation’s house is.”
Everyone whips their heads toward Iric.
“How do you know where her house is?” Yemi asks.
My lips part.
“No,” I mumble.
He gives me a clipped nod. “That’s the goddess Harriseen assigned me to.”
Fuck.
“You don’t have to come with us when we go. If you could just tell V, let him see in your mind, he can starshoot all of us.”
Iric shakes his head, and the fine hairs across my body stand on edge.
“I’ll be there alongside all of you.”
I exhale subtly as I wrangle my quick burst of anger back down.
“Thank you.”
“So everyone knows what they’re doing right now?” Yemi asks, jumping right into organizer mode.
They all echo yes, and then she focuses on me.
“Where’s your first stop?”
I glance at Sevryn, and my lips tilt into a smirk.
“The barrier at the Abandon. We’re going to pay the dear ol’ God of Strength a visit.”