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"Talin?" Ela asked, his voice soft and filled with worry.
Talin simply shook his head. "This is more important, Ela. The gods have given us the ability to take a little more from Nari's shoulders." He looked over at Charisma, the next closest god to him. "Thank you. All of you."
I just looked up at Zeal. "We'll make sure you don't regret the gift, even if we won't be able to pass it on."
"Which is why," Bode said, "we agreed so easily. The sight can be a powerful thing. It is not a parlor trick we want to bestow on everyone."
"Even gods need to move in secrecy," Savi admitted. "The problem is that we also need to be seen. We can't survive without believers, and we can't be believed without someone who can speak for us. Will the five of you do that?"
"We already are," Ela assured her. "The way I see it, that's my deal with Zeal. My family in exchange for his, and I have no intention of losing the ones I love."
"Nor do I," Zeal agreed. "I promise that these five are the exact ones we need."
Will just chuckled. "And you bought them for so little."
"Because you don't understand what he's offering," I told the god who'd held me. "Ambition is all about finding the limits and pushing them. Temptation? It's about leaving limits behind. Zeal promised to protect our family. Just think about that for a moment and then explain to me what it is you're trying to do. The same thing? Yeah, we are the priests you need."
"And we're very good at it," Anver added. "Happy Fresh Start, Merci. May your new year be a joyous and fruitful one."
"And may your year treat you as gently as the pawns of gods can be treated," Merci replied, gesturing to the door. "Enjoy my home for as long as you wish."
Chapter 3
Anver
The five of us made our way out of the High Priest's office. Zeal didn't immediately follow, but in the nave right outside, at least six Priests of Compassion waited. Priest Viyan turned his attention on Nari, a hopeful expression on his face. She immediately smiled and made her way right to him, taking over the way she always did.
"Thank you for the use of your office, Priest Viyan," she said. "I'm not sure what Merci told you, but we do appreciate your generosity."
"She told me that tonight was one of the few nights when all six of them could be together in this realm," he explained. "If the use of my office can help my goddess, then I'm more than happy to let you use it. Is there anything else the five devoted need?"
"Just to meet up with the people expecting us," Nari told him.
So Priest Viyan gave her directions to get to the room where the party would be held. It was on the second floor, a space we rarely used in our own temple, but it seemed it was a normal thing in this one. One of the other priests standing there seemed surprised that none of us had attended the Fresh Start celebration before, but only until Nari explained that we were mere initiates. If it wasn't for standing with our god, we would likely be celebrating in the Temple of Temptation tonight.
I said nothing. If I was honest, I wasn't quite sure how I fit in with these four. Oh, I knew that they welcomed me with open arms. It wasn't that. My problem was what my responsibilities were. Zeal wanted me to be a guardian, but Talin was Nari's guardian. Wraythe was Ela's. I also happened to know that they guarded each other, and I would gladly do the same, but I didn't want to step over any of them or act like I had more power here than I did.
Because Zeal had made me the shadow.
My duty was to follow, listen, and watch. That had been easier when I spent my time alone, wasting away in an initiate room where only a god came to visit me. It had also been lonely. This? I loved that they wanted me with them. However, a little piece of me was also worried that I was going to screw it up. I was the fifth head of the snake, the last one, the one who wasn't bound to a specific person. It was hard not to think that it also made me the extra.
But once Nari understood where we were supposed to go, she excused our group politely and then turned that way. The priest who'd led us here had long since vanished, probably sent on his way. Yes, I knew that was one of Nari's brothers, but I wasn't sure of his standing in the temple. Too many times, I'd been watching over that sniveling little bitch I called a ward, missing out on the information I really needed.
Then, once we were finally away from all the curious ears, Wraythe decided to break the silence. "Is it just me?" he asked.
"It felt like that was a big deal," I admitted, hoping that was what he was talking about.
Ela paused for half a step, waiting for me to reach his side. Then he wrapped his arm around my shoulders. "They gave us the sight. From the way Zeal talks about it, they've only done that once before, and that was to their mother. I'm pretty sure that was areally bigfucking deal. I also think they added something else," he admitted.
"Like what?" Nari asked.
Ela quickly looked at all of us. "In the middle of that, I felt like I was inspired. It was as if the thoughts in the back of my head were all about ways to be more impressive, more flamboyant, and even more beautiful. Ways that I could show off to others, which didn't really fit with what they were doing."
"Huh," I breathed.
Ela's arm around my shoulder kept me walking, but my eyes fell to the ground. It'd been subtle, but he was right. Savi had been the one to hold me. She was the Goddess of Perception, and now I felt like I was just a little more aware of everything around me. Not just the sights and sounds, but also those little things like my insecurity about my place with this group. It wasn't something I'd consciously thought about before. I'd also noticed Ela looking around. I couldn't stop thinking about the rush of guilt from Talin in the middle of that or the surge of pride from Wraythe. What were all those things if not Perception?
"I can't really say I noticed anything," Talin admitted. "Supposedly, the God of Intuition has always been a part of my life."
