***Seria's private Hot Springs***

***Seria***

“AAAaaaahhh...” There is nothing better than a bath inside my own hot spring at the top of an inactive volcano.

No other gods to disturb my peace. No Council, no worshippers, no stress.

Soaking in the water, I float on my back with a faint smile on my face, allowing my boobs to hold me aloft. The little underground lake is saturated with my energy, giving me a homey feeling.

This is my favourite place, right after my own little world. I pay a relaxing visit every once in a while when I get fed up with the Council.

The hot spring is located inside a cave near the peak. The water, clear and blue, is heated by the slumbering volcano. It's a pool of about two hundred square meters with a small island in the centre. On the walls and the cave's ceiling are crystals which I personally enchanted. Not only do they glow so that the cave is always bathed in a pleasant light, but they also grant an invigorating healing aura.

I worked hard to give this place my personal touch.

There are even crystals on the ground of the pool which are shimmering in different colours. Their purpose is to adjust the water's temperature to be perfect. It's a fantastic place!

All that's missing now is a pretty guy to give me a kinky massage. I also wouldn't complain if he had a large tool to...

I am about to reach for my privates when I am interrupted by the screams of two people.

“Unworthy! Don't desecrate the holy water with your body!”

“Get out now!”

Looking up and seriously wound up, I find two elves at the entrance to my hot spring. I sneer at the sight of the woman and the man. My mood takes another dip when I notice that they are armed. The guy is aiming his bow at me, while the woman readied a fireball.

I groan. “Mortals... get out of my hot spring. I may be benevolent and let you live. This is my only warning.”

They don't hesitate. The guy shoots his arrow and the woman launches her fireball.

Why are mortals so bad at judging the power of their betters?

I wave my hand and the projectiles disappear before they can damage my hot spring. Normally, I wouldn't even bother, since such puny attacks have no hope of even scratching me. Nonetheless, damaging my spring would be a real turn-off.

With another wave of my hand, both elves fly backwards and are pinned to the cave-entrance's wall. They struggle but are held in place by an invisible force.

“I should probably just take your souls, but I wonder how you got in here.” Manifesting my wings, I beat them once to swim closer, reaching the edge of the lake.

I step out of the pool and position myself in front of them, presenting myself in all my glory. Their frightened eyes are transfixed on my double pair of angel and demon wings. “Ah. How to punish the foolish mortals who enter my domain?”

Mortals are so cute when they realize that they are up against something that's worse than death. With a thought, my tail appears and I use it to poke at the bulge in the guy's pants. “Maybe a hundred years of pain and suffering?” I muse to myself. Ah, he got bigger, so he is a masochist.

Yet, he is just an elf, and they aren't exactly well endowed. There is no comparison to a good romp with an incubus. I sigh, even those aren't really able to satisfy me.

“Please. I don't know who you are, but this a sacred place for our people. We protected it for over a hundred years,” the woman begs.

“A hundred years?” I frown and try to remember when I visited my hot springs the last time. Was it five hundred years ago? “No, I am sure I checked this place about four hundred years ago, and it wasn't infested with vermin back then.”

“The entrance to this cave opened up a century ago due to an earthquake. Our people worshipped and protected the place ever since because of its healing properties,” the woman admits.

“You can't just bath inside the holy water! You could destroy its healing effects, demon,” the guy barks at me.

Holy water? Healing? Don't tell me...

“Pff!” I cover my mouth with both hands. “Hahaha!” I fall to the floor and roll around. It has been an eternity since I had a good laugh.

There is a flash of light and yet another person invades my private property. “Let them go! That's not the proper way to treat mortals, Seria!” Lada bends over me, hovering in the air. She is clad in a white toga just like some Roman goddess. Her silver-blonde hair is cut at shoulder-length and curly. Together with the youthful baby-face of a young woman, she looks like a real angel. One who is supposed to preach love and harmony, not the evil, doomsday-kind like I am.

Both elves open their mouths and stare at Lada and me with scared expressions. “She is really the Goddess Seria?” the male asks.

“Goddess of Life and Death!” the female whispers. “And I think that one is Lada.”

Lada turns to the two mortals, clearly amused at being recognized. “You know me? I can't remember visiting this world recently, but it's nice that I am still being remembered.”

“Pfhahaha!” I can't control myself and point at Lada whose toga was chosen a little short. Since she is hovering above us, she is flashing her panties.

“Your toga! Hahaha... too short... and.... hover around up in the air like that! Hahaha! Your lingerie can be seen.” I crawl to my knees and pound the ground. I can't breathe! Need air!

Another laughing fit shakes me.

Lada immediately descends to the floor and corrects her outfit, embarrassed that I got to see her white string tanga. Seriously, who chooses white panties nowadays.

“I don't want to be laughed at by someone who is showing herself naked! And my choice of panties is mine to make. They happen to be comfortable.”

I get to my feet and smack my own breasts, allowing them to jiggle and therefore drawing the elf-guy's attention. “But by showing off you can get much more followers! See? Even those stoic, prude elves are shaken by my godly self!” I run up to the guy and rub my body against him, which results in a completely natural reaction.

The woman's face immediately turns red like a tomato. “We aren't perverts! Leave my boyfriend alone!”

“What? It's not perverted to drink someone else’s bathing water? Well, I suppose mortals have all kinds of strange fetishes. Tell me, how do you feel when you drink a god's bathing water?” I change places and press myself against the female.

“It's… it's refreshing... and we don't really drink it,” the elf-girl admits. “I think there is a misunderstanding.”

I frown. “Drinking the water would be the most effective way to benefit from its effects.” Deciding to tease the guy, I circle my left nipple with my thumb and smile at him seductively. “The healing effect is only aimed at rejuvinating my skin, but I guess it's a little more potent for mortals.”

Feeling the weight of my attention, the elf woman continues, “It heals all kinds of sicknesses. And when mixed with some herbs, it raises fertility or acts as a good poison for arrows.”

So they do drink it! But sensing that she is trying to evade a proper answer, I look at the guy.

“It's widely known that... if a man and a woman... have trouble conceiving... they go to the Fertility Springs... and do it in the water...” the man admits slowly, keeping his voice low.

The elven woman turns bright red from her partner's admission. It seems like she is almost dying of shame. Don't tell me they came here as a pair to...?

Curling my lips in undisguised disgust, I look at my beautiful lake, imagining hundreds, thousands of elves soiling the water. I look down at myself as Lada starts laughing.

“Fertility Springs!” She covers her mouth with a hand, trying hard to hide her malicious glee.

“I have to disinfect this whole place.” Yuck!

Should I blow up the mountain? A few thousand tons of lava should erase any trace of this sacrilege! But I put so much work into this place.

Shuddering, I decide to take a different kind of revenge. Stepping closer, I move my fingertip around the woman's navel and whisper into her ear while casting a spell. “I will help you out with your little problem. Try again soon and I am sure you will be blessed with lots of children!”

The woman is now blue up to the tips of her ears.

“See Lada? They aren't perverts at all! They just use my bathing water to make all kinds of strange medicine! They even fuck inside it. Oh, mortals surely find a use for everything.” I spread my hands.

Lada sighs and waves her hand, dispelling the binding which I placed on the mortals. Both elves drop to the ground.

“I think you've had your fun now. And I am sure they will tell their people to not disturb the goddess while she is using her hot spring.”

“That's not the problem!” I gesture at the lake. “Do you have any idea how long it takes to drain all that unclean water?”

“You don't use it very often anyway, so there is no harm in them being here. It's surely not so different from some public lake or a pool,” Lada gestures for the elves to make themselves scarce before I can change my mind.

Both elves look at me with frightened faces, seeking my permission. “Fine, but if you damage my hot spring, I will make the volcano erupt and flatten your village!”

Both run out of the cave without answering or saying 'thank you'.

Holy water...

At least I got my revenge on them. The female will be the most fertile elf who ever walked the planet. I wonder what they will think about their idea once they have to take care of a little football team.

No longer giving a shit about a sanitary bath, I jump back into the lake. “So why do I have the honour of your presence, Lada?”

Lada doesn't enter the hot spring and just walks above the water to stay close. “I heard some disturbing news about you during the last Council meeting. I hoped we could talk about it in private.”

What is it this time? Lada is the only Council member who is not rotten to the core. If I have to deal with the Council I prefer to talk with her, so it is better to listen when she wants something. She is a goddess of harmony after all.

And maybe... just maybe... I would even consider her a friend?

At least I know that she cares for me. Otherwise, she wouldn't come here to speak to me. Judging by her behaviour, it seems like she is doing this without the knowledge of the other Council members.

I wave for her to go on.

“Tjenemit believes that you are planning something stupid. He wants to know where all the vanished gods went to. His behaviour borders on obsession. He is investigating their whereabouts and he believes that you had a hand in their disappearance.” She looks down at me, wringing her hands. “He thinks that you are hiding much more than just Ascathon and Myrm inside one of the Void Zones.”

“Hmm. I don't have anyone else aside from those two inside my Void Zone. Why are you even worried? I took a magical oath to the Council. If I would ever raise my hand against you I would suffer significantly.” I answer with closed eyes while drifting in the water.

A long time ago, when the Council was less paranoid about their rule, I swore a binding oath to serve them. It's a huge hindrance to my plans, but it was necessary to keep them off my tail. Thankfully, the oath I swore back then was an intention-based contract and the wording loose enough to give me a lot of wriggle room. The only thing I absolutely can't do without suffering the consequences is to openly attack a Council member.

“He believes that you found a way to bypass your oath. You don't know what's on the line here! I took a look at Tjenemit's research. It is very convincing. Whatever you are doing, you have to stop it! Such a stupid little plan won't work against the Council! They will find out and deal with you and I can't stop them! I can't stop them, they are too strong! Especially El Shaddai!” Lada waves her hands, infuriated at my stupidity.

Using levitation magic, I rise out of the water and hug Lada. “It's okay, Lada. You are the only goddess among them whose soul hasn't completely died yet. This plan of mine isn't stupid. Just trust me and see, everything will work out in the end. Maybe you will even get to see what's to come.”

“Please don't tell me you are really planning something! You know why the Council was created. The gods have to be controlled somehow! You have no idea about the time before the Council! There is a reason for its existence!” Lada takes me by the shoulders and looks deep into my eyes, imploring me.

I smile. “I know. Everyone was striving for power and gods fought each other, dying and being born again. Fighting each other...” I take a shuddering breath. “What many don't know is that it was a different time. We, and the multiverse were different. The multiverse was young in those days.

“It was an endless cycle of war and bloodshed. Very much like the fight of those two, a fight over ideologies, fought on the backs of those who are weaker. Only that it happened all over the multiverse. A never ending struggle for superiority and survival.” I shrug, showing my indifference.

“In the end, most gods were slain. The Council just picked up the pieces. Like scavengers, you inserted yourselves into the place of the true rulers. Everyone who didn't obey your rule was disposed of, though I am not entirely sure how. You held the new status quo by absolute control and forced your ideals onto every new god who emerged. And so it has been for an eternity till now.”

“You know? But... I never told you...” Lada's expression turns wary of me. “But if you know, you should support the Council!”

“I know because I was inside that Void Zone much longer than the Council thinks.” Taking her hands in mine, I lower my voice. “I got lost in there before the Council 'won' the war. I even dimly remember the time before the war. I am not some half-baked god who ascended unnoticed to godhood. I was walking the pathways and the river of souls long before you even knew of the Crystal City.”

“…” Her expression makes it clear that she doesn't buy my story, but she says nothing.

“The Council is wrong, Lada. I have seen how things can be without a Council. Dimly, I even remember that I was there when the Crystal City was built. Those memories tell me that your path of absolute control is wrong. Maybe your Council was created with good intentions, but those intentions are just a facade by now. If you are my friend, you will just lean back and remain silent,” I explain in a gentle tone to my friend.

“You wouldn't be able to stop it anyway,” I finish and let go of her hands.

“What have you done, Seria?”

I dance away from her, hovering above the water. “Hmmm. Nothing huge. I just gathered a lot of people and gave them a choice which I didn't have. I myself don't really know which side they will choose in the end. All I asked them for was to help me, but I tried to choose those who seemed honourable enough.”

“But if the Council is no more, then...”

Lada starts speaking but I interrupt her, “I believe something better will take its place! And I need you to show those who come after the Council the right direction.”

“Me?” Lada points at herself, her expression incredulous. “You do realize that I am a Council member. The people who you plan to rebel against are my friends!”

“Are they?” I move, appearing instantly behind her.

Having to silence her would suck in many ways, but I would do it if there is no other choice.

Leaning in, I whisper into her ear. “Think about it. Are those people still the same ones who you allied with so long ago? Are you still true to the ideals you had aeons ago?”

Lada turns and stumbles away from me, looking small and frightened as I release my true form, bathing the cavern in light and darkness, life and death. Golden horns sprout from my temples and my four wings ignite.

One set with the verdant force of life, and the other with the decaying force of death as they turn ethereal and encompass the cavern. I close my eyes and open them again, allowing Lada to take a look beyond the mortal facade I normally use to fool the other gods. Very few have ever seen the true extent of my natural form. A form that wasn't born mortal, but was forged in one of the primeval planes beyond the currently known multiverse.

The water evaporates as I touch it with my wings of death. The light dims and flickers as I lower myself to her level and reach for her cheek. Smiling, I raise her chin with a clawed fingernail. “Yes. Once the current order is broken, you need to pick up the good parts and help those who remain to find the right path.” Smiling, I show her my sharp teeth.

“You are playing a dangerous game, Seria. But I see that I won't be able to change your mind.” Lada straightens her back, refusing to let herself be intimidated.

“I know, my friend,” I answer, bemused by her attempt to show spine. She must realize that this form is legend. There are very few places in the Crystal City which have inscriptions or hints at the original creators of that marvellous monument. The Council is trying to dissuade the public from any thoughts that they might not be the City's true owners.

Everything that wasn't made out of Mana Crystal fell victim to time and decay, but there is one thing in the City's administrative centre, rarely seen by outsiders or the lesser gods.

It's a huge fresco of differently coloured Mana Crystal. Indestructible and eternal, it shows two figures leading an army against an endless tide of nothingness. They are defending a multitude of worlds against a nameless end that seems to threaten the multiverse itself. And behind them, one of their few detailed companions, is me.

I can tell that Lada finally made the connection. She must have studied the depiction countless times.

“Tjenemit is trying to enter your Void Zone with a summoning circle. I guess you want to stop him?” Lada raises an eyebrow.

I tilt my head and think about it for a second.

Slowly, I retract my aura and reshape my body until I am nothing more than a human. “Maybe it's good if he enters it. He would be alone and cut off from the others. It will set everything into motion.” I look past Lada, not really seeing her. “It will be as good a starting point as any other. A wake-up call for my people, so to speak. I will wait until he trespasses and confront him them.”

“But you will be alone against him! He may be a god of creation, but that doesn't mean that he is weak! Your oath won't allow you to fight him.” Lada tilts her head. “Or do you want to tell me that you can go against your oath?”

I pout. “Sadly, the oath I was forced to swear back then is binding. Maybe even more so because of what I am. I wouldn't have sworn it had I been lucid enough when I finally managed to leave the Void.”

Stepping in, I hug Lada. “Don't worry. I won't be alone there. I think I would never be alone again in that Void Zone.”