Page 1 of The Gods Order

Previously In

The Gods Return

Thayla

V dropped me into the hot spring with a stranger named Willow Vito, who claimed she could pull Kirabaddon’s corrupt power out of me.

Turns out…she knew what she was doing.

That wasn’t the only reason she and her Nexus came to the Valorian Veil.

Willow told me the Messenger isn’t allowed to contact me because I haven’t proven unwavering loyalty and love to the Valories. I’ll never put them above my men. They’ll have to accept that like I’ve had to accept that they threw the five of us into this mess without giving any of us a real choice.

I made that clear when Willow asked what I wanted out of being in the middle of everything happening in the realm. I told her I wanted freedom. Then I went off on a tangent, but it all boiled down to the same thing.

Freedom for my men, my friends, myself, and the realm.

That question led her to the real reason she came, and she gave me a list of advice. She promised that if a line was ever crossed—one that should never be crossed—I had allies in Elementra.

Alliances will come from unlikely places. Don’t let grudges keep me from my goals. Redemption walks a different path. Mercy is optional, not required. Leave room for change. At the very least, tolerance.

My Valtrue and I can’t do this alone. We need people behind us.

My Valtrue isn’t complete, and neither am I.

The Angel Aura Amethyst is a powerful tool at my disposal.

Truths will be revealed, and each will feel like a betrayal. Be careful where I place my anger.

Last but not least, she had a Gods Binding in her possession and returned it to me.

Seven replicas came out. Seven have to go back in.

As she and her Nexus left, she said they were heading to the barrier in Oddian to bring her people home.

From there, we went straight to Yemi’s to check on Sevryn. Derivius and Ellian were there, so we told everyone what had happened. Ellian left, saying we’d all be having dinner the next day to discuss changes coming to the Godsdawn.

By the time we left, my power was severely depleted.

My men took care of me.

The next day, we went to the Akovas’ for dinner. Turns out Annalise is the Goddess of Affection, even though she doesn’t hold the title. After that revelation, Ellian explained the changes coming to the Godsdawn, starting with the Attendants. Our roles shifted so we could help with the transition.

Derivius then informed us that Amick’s trial would be held in a week, so preparations intensified.

At Ellian’s official address the next day, some of the becoming gods handled the Attendant changes well. Others…did not.

From there, the guys searched for the bodies of the Attendants Harriseen killed. They were crucial evidence for Amick’s trial. Turns out I accidentally placed a barrier around them while I was drugged unconscious, preserving their bodies this whole time. Yemi and I had to replace my barrier with hers so we could use the fact that I have more than one Domain from the Beginning Gods during the trial.

After that, I had my first official training day as instructor for the female Attendants. Mara surprised me by asking to stay with me and help instead of going with her Valtrue to the barrier every day. Yemi talked some sense into me, and I agreed. I understood why Mara wanted distance from Mellcom and Jeremiah.

The days leading up to Amick’s trial passed faster than I wanted. Anxiety ate me alive. It didn’t ease when Derivius starshot us to the Neutral.

Creation’s and Rella’s reactions to learning the guys were in a completed Valtrue with me caught me off guard. For two mothers who’ve barely been involved in their sons’ lives, they acted like they should’ve known all along.

Amick told them it wasn’t their business and to continue with the trial. It took everything in me to stay calm while Kira and Sabe tried to undermine and disprove everything.

I’d promised myself I’d keep my mouth shut—and I did.