AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He chuckled. "Yeah, I will. I'd kinda like it if you were beside me. I mean, I can hope, right? And Wraythe will watch over us like he's always done."
It sounded oddly appealing when he said it like that. I could almost imagine Wraythe's eyes taking in our every move, Eladehl and I seducing some arrogant man until he begged. Or maybe even a woman. I knew Eladehl would prefer the man, yet the idea was oddly titillating. In truth, with these two beside me, I didn't really think I'd care.
I also wasn't quite sure it was where I belonged. I kept hoping for some sign from Zeal about what he wanted from me, but it hadn't come. Instead, I'd learned more about who I was with every passing year. Thankfully, I liked myself. Not every girl - or boy - could say the same. Tishlie was the perfect example. She always wanted to change something. To be taller, curvier, or have straight hair, things like that. Or even to be braver, although I wasn't convinced she meant that, because it was usually said when grasping at Anver.
Yes, I was still bitter about him choosing her over me. In a few hours, their group would form up to meet with a priest from the Temple of Compassion, and Anver would end up holding her hand instead of mine. I simply couldn't figure out where I'd gone wrong. Did hewantme to be scared of everything like she was? Had he secretly hoped that I would choose a Path where he couldn't follow?
Thinking about it made me sigh, and Wraythe reached up to palm the back of my neck. When he looked down at me, I saw nothing but honest concern in his eyes, so I pushed a smile to my lips. Naturally, he saw through it, but he didn't call me on it. He just massaged gently, showing he wasn't going anywhere.
Then we reached the back entrance to the Temple of All Gods. Our group formed into two lines to make it through the door. Eladehl shifted to my left. Wraythe walked in behind us. The Priest of Intuition didn't stop. He kept walking, leading all of us into the domed center room, right into the middle, and then spread his hands.
"This is where the gods mingle," he said. "Think of it as their playground. If you notice, the goddesses have one side, and the gods are all placed on the other. What many of you don't realize is that two of them..." He pointed at the pair on either end, facing each other. "They are twins. Flip sides of the same coin. The goddess is Perception, and her twin brother is the one you will be learning about this year, Intuition."
One of the girls lifted her fingers to get his attention. "How can they all be born of the same body and yet those two are twins?"
"Because they both sprang from the mind," the priest explained. "All priests have five potential Paths to study, and most of them are the same. Every temple offers the Path of the Word, Protection, Action, and Obligation. It is the second Path that differs. Where followers of Temptation learn the Path of the Body, I was trained in the Path of the Mind.
"You see, both Bode and his sister Savi sprang from the head. Inspiration came from the voice, and her students are offered the Path of the Soul. Compassion came from the chest, so she offers the Path of the Heart. Ambition came from the back, which is why his acolytes can choose the Path of the Spine."
"Wait," Wraythe said. "Every god offers a Path of Protection?"
"They do," the priest assured him. "Not all gods ask for the same task of their priests. Where Temptation's protectors literally guard the bodies of the other priests, Intuition does it a little differently. Our Priests of Protection serve as advisors to those in positions of power. Could be for business, government, or other things. Our Priests of the Mind work as mediators alongside those of Perception. The most obvious task we perform, though, is simply to guide people in their daily lives."
"Sounds boring," Eladehl mumbled.
The priest heard him. "It's rewarding in a different way from what you're used to. Imagine a mother who isn't sure if her child is getting into trouble with his friends. We can assure her it's just a phase or that she needs to step in. Or a man who is having trouble with his business. His capital is limited, and he isn't sure if he should invest or save it to maintain security. People need help from those who can understand the subtle warning signs, and that is what we do." He smiled. "I think you will appreciate it when your own guardian gets a bad feeling about a patron and moves in before you are beaten."
One of the boys snickered. "He'd like it."
"No one likes dying," the priest corrected. "Our gods are brothers, and they will work together. They will also clash. Sometimes, your gut will tell you a thing is a bad idea, and yet you still have to do it. Or maybe you know youneedto. My hope is that throughout this year, I will be able to help all of you discern the very fine line between a divine push and our own human natures. Now, let me show you around the temple."
Because, like the Temple of Temptation, there was a lot more to this place than was initially seen. The large, domed room was designed for people to come and worship. The Priests of Obligation who served here would help direct them to the god that could help them best. Deeper inside the building were sections for every god. Naturally, Intuition's were marked in yellow.
The color accented doors and decorated trim. As priests ourselves, this area was not off-limits, but it was considered polite to respect the area of another deity. For the rest of this year, however, this would also become our classroom. The new priest led us to a large gathering area, and gestured for us all to find a seat. We could remove our robes if that made us more comfortable, but we would be expected to wear them outside of this room. Then he pulled his own off.
Underneath, he wore simple brown pants and a comfortable white shirt. His shoes were soft-soled slippers that wouldn't make his feet hurt. He had a belly that was noticeable, but he wasn't a fat man. Just a soft one. Then there were his hands. Amber lines were faint against his skin but still visible. Unlike ours, which resembled lace, his were bolder, more geometric. It made me wonder about something else.
"If you do not have a Path of the Body, then how are the second tier of priests marked in your temple?" I asked as I pulled off my robe.
He smiled at me until his eyes fell on my hands. Slowly, his lips parted and his gaze traveled up my arms, taking in each and every one of the black swirls on my skin. Then he seemed to shake himself back to reality.
"Um, at the back of our neck." He turned and lifted up his light brown hair to reveal a set of lines and triangles right at the base of his skull. "The goddess of Perception uses the same area, but the patterns are different. Tell me, acolyte, has a priest read your marks?"
"Our instructor did," I told him. "Why?"
"Because I've never seen a student with that much before. Even those who reach deep into the pool rarely are stained more than midway up the arm. Does your lace go over your elbows?"
I pushed at my sleeve to show him. "Yes, on both sides. Our instructor says I show signs of the top four Paths, but otherwise, they are a matched set."
"God-touched," he breathed.
Eladehl just chuckled. "You don't know the half of it."
Chapter 20
Nariana
I'd honestly hoped that our lessons in the Temple of All Gods would be exciting. They weren't. Priest Lavin, as we later learned was his name, preferred to instruct us on theory and concept. We'd all heard the childhood version of how the gods had come to be, yet he told another, grimmer version of how their sacrifice had saved our small country, springing forth from the body of the man who'd claimed to rule.
