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"I have a feeling it's not only Inspiration that's putting pressure on Kinen," Nari said. "I mean, why that temple? Out of all of them, I'd expect Compassion or Ambition."
"But Viyan can talk to Merci," I reminded her. "That means he wouldn't need to talk to Kinen. He'd understand what's going on."
"So wouldn't he be pressuring Kinen to get Maela the reports?" Nari asked. "If the other temples are worried, and the barons are trying to take advantage of this, then I'd expect him to be trying to help us the most."
"Or Rebexa," Talin said. "She has been surprisingly supportive. I can't help but wonder if it's because of Peyron."
"He's just an initiate," Nari countered. "No different from us."
"And we're saving Zeal," he pointed out. "Nari, the gods don't care about what titles we wear. They care about the ones they give us. Peyron is Savi's Chosen. Your brother is Merci's."
"Wait," I begged. "Maybe that's it? One Chosen from each temple? One for each god or goddess? Maybe they want me to relay messages or act as a go-between so the gods can finally work together?"
"Or something," Nari agreed. "With gods, it's hard to be sure. All you can do is ask and wait for them to guide you."
Then Ela shifted his hand so our fingers were intertwined. "You're going today?"
I just nodded. "I got the impression that they're tired of waiting."
"Be careful?" Wraythe begged. "I know you will, but you're a guardian, so take your weapons, because being the messenger of the gods won't be an easy task."
"And even if it is," Nari said, "take your weapons anyway. It'll make all of us feel better, and I do not want to lose you again."
Talin chuckled once. "I'm looking forward to molesting you in bed now. And yes, I mean the hugging, cuddling, and kissing type."
My face was warming up all over again. "Ok, I'll take a sword. I'll even add a dagger to that. If I'm going to be gone too long, I'll pray to Zeal and ask him to let you four know so that you don't worry."
"One more thing," Ela said, lifting our linked hands so he could kiss the back of mine. "Enjoy it, Anver. You are Zeal's best friend and our partner. Yeah, I'm making that an official thing right now. Guardians call their ward's lover's guardian their partner, so that even works with Wraythe."
"I like partner," Wraythe admitted.
But Ela kept going. "You are a priest unlike any other, and handpicked by a god. Don't let them push you around. Not the gods, not the priests in the temples, and not even the other High Priests. You are the man who made a god into his best fucking friend, so those fools have nothing on you."
"That," I told him, bobbing my head in acknowledgement. "I think that's exactly what I needed to hear." Because those words made me feel like I was honestly the right guy for this job, and it felt so fucking good.
It seemed that this whole process of becoming was an awful lot like healing. At least for me.
Chapter 38
Nariana
Anver spent about an hour talking to the other gods. To make it look casual, he said he walked around the open space behind our temple, but no one else was out there due to the cold weather. Unfortunately, none of them knew exactly what they needed, but they knew they needed something. Then there was the issue of the High Priests.
Something was brewing, but unless the High Priests actually said what, it was hard for Will, Bode, or Charisma to be in the right place when a note was read. Still, there was a lot of discussion amongst the leadership about the temples handling something, Temptation being a problem, and the unrest in all of Calseth. Nothing was bad, but it made the gods worried, and their anxiety came out as something that looked a lot like panic at their helplessness.
Anver assured them that he would try to be in the same place every day around the same time. If they needed something specific, he was willing to help, but they had to do their part. He told all of the gods to find out what was going on between the temples, including Merci and Savi in that, since their High Priests talked to them. Then, if they had specific problems, he would help find a way to deal with it. However, if they were just lonely and needed someone willing to listen, he was also willing to do that.
When he explained it to us that night, I was more worried about potential conflicts. The next morning, I thought more about that last part. The gods were lonely. They had spent centuries talking to each other and no one else. Zeal seemed happier to me, and I had a feeling they were jealous of that. I knew I would be if the situation was reversed.
But I wasn't allowed to help with this. I was too visible. I realized just how visible in my third class of the day. It was called the Words of Zeal, so when our god had decided to take over teaching the class, Priestess Vernie was more than willing to let him. Today's discussion was about his original intention when designing the leadership structure for the temple.
"We realized that we needed Paths," Zeal explained. "For the first few years the temples were in existence, all priests were encouraged to learn all things. It didn't take long before people began to focus on the areas that held their interest. We thought that was a good thing, allowing our followers to have control over their own lives. But the more responsibility someone takes for a specific thing, the less time it leaves for anything else."
"So you put people on Paths?" Konas asked.
"When a priest had to neglect sleeping and eating to meet all of their responsibilities, we realized that maybe they had too many responsibilities," Zeal clarified. "So, with the help of the priests at the time - which was about forty people - we discussed how to separate duties into larger groups and offer training to the next generation." He chuckled. "We also didn't have the Day of Surrender back then. That came nearly eighty years after the temples were opened."
"Why?" I asked.
