Rebirth of the Nephilim

Taking in the reactions of the people around her, Jadis saw most evinced mild surprise if they showed any emotion at all. Just as Jadis had suspected from Vita’s warning, the secret of her multi-body class was well and truly exposed. One face in particular that Jadis focused on was that of General Egilhard. The man was one of those that kept a blank, neutral expression when she greeted everyone in unison. The fact that the general likely knew her secret before this meeting told Jadis a hint of what was going on behind the scenes. Either he had some discreet line of information coming to him, such as a spy, or someone in a high position like one of the priests had clued him in. In both cases, it meant that Egilhard wasn’t completely without allies.

She couldn’t waste all her mental focus on Egilhard, though. Just like in a battle with multiple foes, Jadis had to keep track of all the players on the field, both allies and enemies. Jadis wasn’t sure where many of the faces looking back at her fell on the spectrum of ally and enemy, but she hoped that most would at least be reasonable people.

Smoothly taking Jadis’ cue, Eir and Tegwyn also introduced themselves, giving their names to the group at large. Vraekae nodded slightly and, motioning to her right, began her own introductions.

“We met last night,” she said as she inclined her head to Tegwyn. “But allow me to introduce you to High Priest Gerhardt, head of the temple here in Far Felsen. And this is General Egilhard, commander of his imperial majesty’s armed forces in Weigrun.”

Both men smiled and greeted Tegwyn. While Gerhardt looked genuinely pleased to meet the Dryad, the smile didn’t quite touch Egilhard’s eyes.

“I would also like to introduce you all to our city’s most esteemed guests. The temples in Eldingholt each saw fit to send envoys headed by high priests.”

While Vraekae was always the consummate professional, Jadis had met with the cold elf enough times to recognize the subtle differences between her normal chilly personality and when she was displeased with something. And by the way Vraekae was practically radiating enough frost to rival the ice dragon Vetregin, Jadis could tell the woman was pissed. Still, she politely presented each high priest to Jadis and her two companions.

Now that she wasn’t putting all her attention on the unexpected general, Jadis was intensely interested in the men and women that were arranged around the long table. They were a varied bunch, showcasing a wide variety of both species and outward personality. Jadis had half-expected that the gathering of high priests would consist of a bunch of elderly folks in white robes and dour faces, but the truth was far different. She examined each person as they were introduced to her, making note of every detail and comparing them to what information Eir had been able to drill into her the night before.

Jadis wasn’t sure if there was some sort of order of precedence to where the individual priests had been positioned, but the man directly to High Priest Gerhardt’s right was the first to be introduced. He was a human, so far as Jadis could tell at least, and looked to be in his fifties or sixties. He was short and thin, probably only a few inches taller than Eir, with the pale complexion of someone who has spent most of their life indoors. His hair was gray and wavy and his eyes were steel blue. Unlike his peer, Gerhardt, he was completely clean shaven. Also, unlike Gerhardt, his robes were not plain white but a mix of white and blue, the colors of the imperial standard. He had a pleasant, modest kind of smile on his face and bowed his head to Jadis in a friendly greeting.

“Oswin Teel,” he said with a strong Germanic accent that reminded Jadis of Aila’s uncles. “High Priest of Valtar. An honor to meet you all.”

The way Oswin spoke, looking each of Jadis’ selves in the eyes as well as Eir and Tegwyn, made her think of one of her professors in university back on Earth. He exuded that kind of confidence that spoke of a man expert in his field, comfortable in his tenure and with no need to flex his status.

Directly across from the mild-mannered Oswin sat a man who looked to be his polar opposite. He was much younger, maybe forty at most, and didn’t look wholly human. His hair was black and his eyes were dark, and his skin had the look of a man who spent most of his life outdoors. He had a thick, dark beard that matched his hair. In fact, most parts of his body had a lot of hair. Not to the point of being furry like Noll, but he was definitely on the edge of werewolf territory. Starting at the bridge of his nose, he had a scar that ran across to his left cheek, disappearing into his black beard. His ears weren’t human; situated high on his head, they practically blended in with his hair with how round and covered in fur they were. It took a moment, but Jadis realized that they looked like a bear’s ears. He didn’t wear robes at all, and instead wore dark pants and a plain tunic that exposed a lot of his thickly corded muscles. When he spoke, Jadis could see his teeth were unusually sharp and had large fangs, like a carnivore.

“Steingrimur,” he spoke in a deep baritone. “Of Solheim. High Priest of Charos. Glad to see you aren’t the helpless waif some worried you would be.”

The dark man’s comment brought a few looks of censure his way from the other priests, but he ignored them entirely in favor of staring down Jadis. Fortunately, Jadis had three different pairs of eyes, so she could easily leave Dys to engage the battle priest in a staring contest for as long as it might take for one of them to blink while her other two selves continued on.

Sitting to Steingrimur’s left was a man who was just as large and powerfully built, maybe even more so. Since his skin was green, Jadis thought that the hugely muscular priest had to be an orc, yet there were two glaring differences between him and every other orc Jadis had ever met. Those being the two thick horns jutting out from his head. They weren’t as long as Kerr’s or even Noll’s horns, but they were much wider at the base. The combination of horns and green skin made Jadis wonder if maybe the man was a mix between orc and therion.

Looking past his possible hybrid origins, the man had short brown hair cut close to his scalp, red eyes that did nothing to soften his intimidating visage, and an exceptionally thick jaw. He wore clothes similar to Steingrimur’s in that they were a tunic and pants, but his clothes were far more ornamented with stitched patterns. He also had a multitude of bracelets and bangles on his wrists and arms, some of which Jadis could tell were etched with enchantments. When he spoke, his voice was deep and rough, and had an accent to it that Jadis hadn’t heard before.

“Doru of Clan Jormund. I serve Svaroga. May his hammer bless your works.”

Jadis was immediately certain that she needed to get Sabina in the same room as Doru. A high priest of the god of crafting and the forge was someone that the budding enchanter absolutely had to have a few words with.

Across from Doru and to the right of Oswin sat a man who managed to look even more unusual than the horned orc. Well, Jadis assumed he was a man, though that was mostly based on the complete lack of any feminine features. Not that there were many Jadis would call masculine, either. There wasn’t a lot to go on at all with the strange creature.

He was, Jadis was certain, a Golem. That assumption came from the fact that the priest was made entirely from a dark bluish-green stone. The Golem’s head was only vaguely human-shaped and lacked any clear features, just hints of what could be a face. His tall and wide-shouldered torso had six different arms coming out from it, and each arm had one more joint to it than was right. Jadis wasn’t sure if it was strange or not, but he was wearing robes in a toga-like style, not too dissimilar from how the elder Dryad Yorath had dressed. The Golem wasn’t unpleasant to look at, but he was definitely strange to the eye in a distracting way. If Jadis had to compare the priest to anything, she would suppose he looked like someone had blended a man and a spider together and then let some Cubist artist replicate the result in a sculpture.

“I am called Myron,” the Golem said, his voice definitely masculine though higher pitched than Jadis had anticipated. “I am a High Priest in the service of the Eldingholt temple dedicated to my god, Metethys. With your permission, I would like to transcribe what is said here today for our official record. I have already received permission from the others present.”

“Sure, that’s fine,” Jay said after checking with Eir and Tegwyn.

As soon as she had agreed, Myron pulled a book from the folds of his robes and began writing in it with a pair of his lower arms. Bizarrely, rather than hold the book in one hand while the other wrote, the Golem set the book down on the table and wrote with two hands, each holding a pen.

Sitting to Myron’s right was a man who was far less eye-catching than the Golem, though Jadis was certain that if he hadn’t been sat next to the living modern art sculpture, Jadis would have thought the little priest to be exceptionally strange looking.

The priest was a goblin, with lime green skin and bright orange hair styled in a bushy mop that made Jadis think of dandelions. His bright purple eyes twinkled with a hidden merriment, like he was privy to some joke and didn’t want to spoil the punchline for anyone else. He was, just like Sorcha, completely proportional for his height. He had to be three feet tall at the most, yet his head and limbs looked to be the right size for his body. He wasn’t a handsome man, but he wasn’t ugly like Jadis pictured goblins either. His thin lips were parted in a half-grin that revealed rows of small, sharp teeth, but that was about the most monstrous thing about him.

He wore robes, but they were more form-fitting than the others and were a mix of blacks, blues, and reds. He also wore five earrings in each of his large, floppy ears, a different colored stone represented by each of the ten pieces of jewelry.

“You can call me Sholto,” the goblin called out casually, like he was sitting in a bar rather than in a meeting with the highest-ranking people currently in the city. “I’ll give you three guesses as to which god I serve. Also, if it takes you more than one, I’ll lose all respect for you as a person.”

“D,” all three of Jadis said without hesitation.

“Damn bloody right!” the goblin cackled gleefully. “Wasn’t sure if splitting a brain between three bodies would dull ya, but so far you seem to have all your ale in one cup.”

“Sholto, behave yourself,” Vita chided the amused high priest of Destarious. “We are guests in this land. Save your jokes and pranks for the tavern, if you please.”

“I might not please!” Sholto shot back, though he gave the Lares a congenial wave. “But then again, I might! Time will tell!”

Vita shook her head but didn’t press the issue further. She had been sat across from Sholto and to Doru’s left, which had probably been on purpose. Jadis imagined that the motherly cat needed to be where she could keep an eye on Sholto, who was obviously the troublemaking sort, though Jadis could also guess that it would have been a bad idea to put her directly next to the goblin. Sholto seemed the type to poke and goad.

Next to Vita and the last priest on that side of the table before reaching Tegwyn was another elven woman. She was the tallest of the three, taller than Eir and Vraekae, though not by much. Her skin was light green in color, almost like a pale plant’s leaves, and her hair was the pink of cherry blossoms. Her almond-shaped eyes were also pink though they were a darker color than her hair. She was beautiful, though not in the voluptuous way of Eir. She looked more like a doll with her delicate features and perfectly straight long hair.

The elf wore robes that looked similar to what Oswin and Gerhardt wore, though there were significant differences in ornamentation. Small stones and pieces of bone were beaded all over her clothes, with both feathers and dried flowers mixed in. Across her chest lay a necklace made entirely of uncut crystals that had been tied together with leather straps. When she was introduced, her smile was thin and her nod slight, though Jadis sensed no hostility.

“Good morning. My name is Rhyswynn Salonen. I have dedicated my life to Villthyrial’s service. I am glad to have met you, Jadis. And you as well, Cousin Tegwyn.”

Tegwyn, Jadis noticed, seemed particularly interested in Rhyswynn. He grinned at her with a questioning look, then spoke in a language that Jadis didn’t understand. In response, the priestess nodded slightly and spoke a few more words in that same lilting language.

“Ha! I did not think to find family here,” Tegwyn laughed. “Not even one so distantly related. Still, what a fine day this is, Cousin Rhyswynn. We must talk later!”

“Yes,” the elf agreed with a single word and a soft smile.

Moving on from the two, Jadis was next introduced to the man sitting to Sholto’s right. He was about the same size as the goblin, though of very different build and coloration. Tan and covered in those strange bluish markings, the priest was clearly a gnome. His light, sun-bleached hair looked like it had been combed recently but wasn’t used to the effort and his brown eyes had deep crinkles in the corners. The gnome looked like a worker rather than a priest, his strong hands covered in calluses. The blue robes he wore were very fine and looked expensive and were clearly his, but the man looked like he’d be better suited to wearing a tunic like Steingrimur and Doru.

“I’m Lonan Fairwind. High Priest of Tamar. I want you to know I put in a word with my goddess to cut the blizzard out once I heard you had returned, so feel free to give the credit for this fine morning to me.”

Lonan’s words were clearly spoken with humor and were punctuated with a mischievous wink. Jadis could tell right away that the gnome didn’t take himself too seriously, or his goddess for that matter. The way he spoke also reminded Jadis of the sailors she’d met back on her first trip to Alawar. Jadis wondered if the man had been a sailor himself before becoming a high priest, or if those two occupations were mutually exclusive. His patron deity was the goddess of storms and seas, after all.

Between Lonan and Eir sat the last high priest in the room to be introduced. She was also a human like Gerhardt and Oswin, but their race was the end of their shared characteristics. The woman was gorgeous, breathtakingly so. Her hair was golden blonde and her hazel eyes shone with a lustrous light. Her plump lips were set in a demure smile that constantly threatened to expand into a full-blown grin every time Jadis spoke and her gaze never left the Nephilim.

The priestess’ figure was a match for Eir’s and the delicately flowing white and purple robes she wore were designed to enhance her figure, rather than hide it. When she spoke, she leaned forward in a perfectly elegant way that also managed to show off her impressive cleavage.

“I am High Priestess Aurea Hightower, but please call me Aurea,” she purred in a way that was wholly different from Vita. “I serve our Lady Lyssandria. I do not think you can begin to imagine just how much of a pleasure it is for me to meet you. When word of your existence made it to our temple in Eldingholt—well, you would not believe the furor that was stirred in even our most serene members.”

“I can guess,” Syd said from where she sat next to Eir. “Must have been a surprise.”

“That’s the understatement of the century,” Sholto said as he leaned to put his cheek on his fist. “Could hear the screaming from the other side of the temple square.”

“Screaming…?” Jay asked with one eyebrow raised.

“Shouts of excitement and joy,” Aurea quickly interjected before Sholto could say more. “In praise of the gift that our Lady has seen fit to bestow us with once more.”

Lyssandria’s gift. Right. So Aurea and the other priests didn’t have any clue that Jadis was a product of D and not their goddess. That was going to be an interesting conversation. But one that would hopefully wait for later.

As the introductions had finally been completed, Vraekae took her seat. Her gaze swept around the table before settling back on Jay. For the briefest of moments, Jadis saw a slight frown tug at the elf’s lips, but her expression quickly smoothed into her usual cool stoicism. With one hand she rapped the table with her knuckles, almost like the gavel of a judge calling for attention.

“Now that we are settled, we have multiple items on the docket to discuss for this meeting. As host and magistrate, I cede the place of first matter to High Priest Oswin. As you please.”

“Thank you,” Oswin replied as he scooted forward in his chair slightly. His eyes moved over the assembled table before stopping on the three of Jadis. “As High Priest of Valtar and a member of the Emperor’s Holy Council, I petition that the Nephilim known as Jadis Ahlstrom be immediately removed from Far Felsen and placed in protective custody in the capital city of Eldingholt.”