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A liveried man ushered the women nearer to the large double doors and signaled for them to wait as the doors were dramatically opened. He stepped into the ballroom, unrolled a scroll, and loudly announced, “Lily. Representative of Eshum, god of healing.”
A short woman with fiery hair and a green and gold ensemble tentatively approached the door. She took a deep breath, then lifted her head high and entered. Polite clapping erupted from the room.
The herald spoke again. “Faith. Representative of Amias, god of love.”
Tempest watched a curvy woman with large chocolate eyes framed by long lashes sashay through the entrance, her black and red gown hugging every curve. She couldn’t help but laugh internally at Amias’s choice. Of course he would choose a woman who practically oozed sexual appeal.
“Isabella,” the herald proclaimed. “Representative of Aloysius, god of war.”
The silver of daggers strapped to her thighs peeked out of the high slits in Isabella’s gold dress as she walked through the doorway. Tempest made a mental note to keep a wary eye on the woman. Aloysius had been very displeased with her before she left the land of the gods. If he had selected Isabella, there was no doubt she could use those blades better than most, if not all, of the guards present.
“Mila. Representative of Bramble, goddess of fertility and harvest.”
A hand grasped at Tempest’s dress as Mila tripped over her own feet and began to fall. Tempest grabbed the woman’s arms and caught her before she could hit the ground.
Warm green eyes peered back up at her. “I’m so sorry!”
“It’s fine,” Tempest replied with a smile as she pulled Mila back to her feet. “Really, don’t worry about it.”
As she watched the gangly woman hurry towards the doorway, Tempest analyzed the residual reading she had pulled from her. No ill will was apparent in her heart, but there was something Tempest couldn’t quite put her finger on. The herald continued announcing, however, and she decided to wait until she was alone to mull it over.
“Aurora. Representative of Septimus, god of luck.”
A tall blonde woman with a dress as deep a blue as her glistening eyes made her way to the entrance. With her shoulders back and a smirk on her face, Aurora appeared the most confident of the women. Tempest would bet good money this woman was from one of the noble families. Moments later, a round of approvingoohsandaahsfollowed by enthusiastic clapping was heard from the ballroom.
“Sylvia. Representative of Vesper, god of stars and time.”
Tempest caught Sylvia’s eye and sent her a reassuring smile. She looked beautiful in her sapphire blue gown. Silver stars were embroidered across it in constellations that matched the night sky. Sylvia seemed the most nervous of the representatives. As a servant who had always been taught that her place was away from the spotlight, Tempest could understand why.
As soon as Sylvia neared the ballroom, everything went dark. Gasps and cries could be heard from both those in the hall and in the ballroom. A small, golden star flickered into being above Sylvia’s head, followed by a crescent moon that nestled the star in its crook. With a smile that finally reached her eyes, Sylvia entered the ballroom and took her light with her, plunging the hallway into darkness once again.
Tempest chuckled. Vesper wouldn’t be Vesper if he didn’t do something so theatrical. She found it especially fitting that he made his representative be allowed to feel as if, at this moment, she was alone. He hid the crowd from someone who wasn’t equipped to handle them.
Soon the darkness receded, and the next woman was called forward.
“Luna. Representative of Ruyah, goddess of sleep and dreams.”
A willowy woman with long white hair slipped between the remaining women in the hall. Her footsteps were silent as she passed them by.
“Serenity. Representative of Tynan, god of chaos and luck.”
Tempest snorted, earning in a dirty look from the dark-skinned woman as she began her way to the doorway. Tynan wasn’t a god Tempest had ever found to be funny, but the irony of a representative named Serenity surely couldn’t have been missed, even by him.
As soon as she walked through the doorway, one of the remaining women mumbled, “Wasn’t there already a god of luck?”
They all glanced at each other and shrugged.
“Tynan is the god of chaos and luck. His luck isn’t always good,” Tempest explained. “Septimus is the god ofgoodluck. Technically, Tynan is more powerful than Septimus, since he can answer more prayers that are sent to him. The more worshipers a god has, the more power they have to answer prayers with. Good luck takes more power and energy to give, so Septimus isn’t as powerful of a god. Many of those prayers go unanswered.”
A woman with hair so black it almost looked blue cocked her head to the side. “Are you a temple worker for one of them?”
Tempest waved her hands in front of her and quickly replied, “No, I just love learning.”
The woman raised her brow and began making her way to the doorway when her name was called.
“Mya. Representative of Zarya, goddess of the sea.”
Fog curled through the doorway soon after Mya entered. The gods weren’t keeping it simple today. How bored they must be, if they all felt they needed to put on this much of a show.
