"You have been staring at that thing for weeks! How can you not know what to do yet?"

Flowheart's cold voice rang out through the small plant-covered room.

Rathica ignored her as she glared at the canvas covered in lines, archaic symbols, runes, and glyphs. She knew by now that it was a spell with each part explained in another highly complex language, and she could make out large parts of it. The trouble was that it seemed to be changing, and she was almost sure by now that someone was actively tampering with it while she tried to solve it. She had tried to detect any interfering forces but without success so far.

Whoever or whatever was interfering might have been doing so when she was powering the barrier, but that put her in a conundrum. If someone was meddling with it, they had to be within the barrier, and that meant it could be one of the others. Even Ulderion, no matter how unlikely that seemed to her. Although she trusted him for the most part, speaking with him in the barrier without one of the others overhearing was nearly impossible. Flowheart and Wyerg were incredibly sensitive, within this range even capable of listening in to mind speak, something she had never been able to do, not even in her previous form.

Her glare hardened. Even if one of them was actively meddling, she knew that she could brute force the pattern with enough time.

The problem is, we don't have that much time, she thought as she turned her attention to Flowheart.

"How is the barrier holding up?"

Flowhearts eyes darkened as if clouds rolled in above a previous clear blue sea. She seemed ready to argue again, then the darkness retracted, and she glared at the canvas with equal measures of curiosity and revulsion.

"We almost had enough Karma to link up the different parts so it can sustain itself, then I lost more of my Prime's, causing me to lose focus. We managed to stop the spells from collapsing, and the others are holding them together for now. If I lose any more, we will be in trouble. Without me, The Stone can't keep up the barrier with just the other's help. Lisschen has stopped responding too, so the chances of somehow winning her over are close to zero. Did you gain more Karma from that annoying Prime of yours?"

Rathica crossed her arms. "No," she lied. "You and the others will have to keep the barrier up by yourself for now."

It was almost impossible for Deities to perceive each other's lies, which was one of the reasons she had begun keeping her current Karma reservoir to herself, slowly building up a reserve, no matter how tiny it was. Any of the others could be lying about how much power they had. If they were actively hampering her, that meant they might actually be in league with Nimron. There was also the chance that the barrier would break, and she would need to find a way through the primal chaos cloud roiling outside. No, she needed more Karma. Badly.

Still, all of it had given her more time to stay with the pattern to prevent anyone from tampering with it. The added benefit was that she was closer to unraveling it than ever before.

Flowheart stepped closer, her coldness fading for a moment. The worry she projected caused Rathica to put her full attention on her, as she believed it was not completely enacted. Flowheart bent close, her voice a whisper so soft that no mortal could have heard it even if they were standing a step away.

"I fear that Wyerg has tricked us. This pattern looks like it will grant what you need to form the Pantheon, but you should have been able to discern its truths by now," Flowheart whispered. "It feels like a trap to trick us into coming here. All in one spot. It is simply too convenient!"

Rathica hid her shock. If Flowheart dared speak out, that meant she was sure Wyerg wasn't paying attention or couldn't hear. Or worse, that she and Wyerg were planning something. Although she hoped not, there was a chance that Flowheart was working her own agenda to become the leader of the Pantheon.

She also agreed with her, as was one of the options she was toying with. Ulderion had come to her a week ago with the same worries.

She knew that Flowehart hadn't only thought of it just now. No, she had probably not spoken out yet, as any infighting now could prove disastrous. The fact that she had finally come to talk meant she had reached the point that she thought a confrontation would be less dangerous than waiting for the situation to resolve itself.

Rathica spun across hundreds of possible scenarios, but in the end, she knew that this put her in the weakest place. Even hoarding the paltry Karma she gained, she would last the shortest in any confrontation.

Est, I need more Karma, she thought, trying once again to shove the message through the dull connection to her most powerful Prime. As always, there was no feedback, which angered her immensely.

"You are probably right," she said, keeping her voice as soft as Flowheart had. If Flowheart believed they could speak, she had to be sure Wyerg wasn't able to listen in, or it didn't matter either way. "He and Ulderion are going to take over from the Stone soon. Let's wait till then to confront him."

Flowheart nodded, her icy blue eyes showing no emotion as she turned and walked away without another word.

Rathica followed her until she was out of the small chamber before turning back to the patterns. She gaped in stunned disbelief at the pattern. Minute changes had been made around one of the edges, so small he might not have noticed had she not focused on that section only minutes ago.

What? she thought, furious. How had that happened? She had been beside it!

She stepped forward, placing her hands on the pattern to try and find if she could follow the change to its origin. Unlike the previous times, she sensed a tiny trace of Karma around it. Someone had tampered with it only seconds ago, and it wasn't Flowheart. There was no way Flowheart could have done that with her noticing!

Rathica kept her eyes on the pattern, her mind racing through plans, covering all options. A single one kept cropping up. Although risky, she knew that if none of them had noticed any intruder or tampering, she wouldn't be able to find whoever it was now either. But if the perpetrator had dared act now, they knew she was close to uncovering the solution. If they were willing to risk this much, who was to say they wouldn't risk more?

She dedicated the half dozen thin threads of consciousness that her Prime's granted her to work through the pattern. It would drain her of some precious Karma, but she had to hurry. She kept her strongest, thread of consciousness, the one powered by her connection with Est, and readied herself for what she was going to attempt.

"Flowheart, can you come back?" she asked, her voice loud enough that both Flowheart and the others would hear. There was no way around that. She wasn't planning on letting the pattern out of her sight again.

Within moments soft footsteps approached from the distance.

"What?" Flowheart asked coldly.

There was no evidence of it in her voice or aura that she was surprised.

Rathica didn't reply but beckoned her over, keeping her eyes focused on the pattern. Now came the most dangerous part, praying that her assessment of the other was accurate. Flowheart came closer until she stood beside her, and Rathica could perceive the frown on her face.

"Someone just changed the pattern while we were speaking," Rathica said, her voice loud enough for all of the deities to hear.

"What? Who would-" Flowheart began, then stopped as she stepped even closer to Rathica, her eyes flickering from her to Rathica at a barely perceivable speed.

"I see," she said, her voice even colder than before. "I'll find the perpetrator," she hissed.

A wave of Karma pulsed out of her, cold and wet. It spread outwards through the city, covering each part of stone, each person, and each plant. Although usually something all of them could do, it was a showcase of power far beyond what they had done since arriving here. It also wasted Karma they could barely miss to keep the barrier powered.

How does she have this much power left? Rathica thought, shocked.

Still, she refrained from looking or examining the other, focusing entirely on the pattern. If any attempt to mess with it came, she would be able to trace it back to its origin.

"There," Floweheart suddenly hissed, and her presence vanished from beside Rathica.

A surprised roar came from a far-off part of the city, followed by a second, louder roar from Ulderion.

"You vile little miscreant," he roared, and for a short moment, Rathica feared it was him. Then she sensed a sharp, oddly slimy presence flash towards her.

"Grab that slippery little-" Ulderion roared.

A dull red light flashed in the corner of Rathica's sight, screaming through the entrance. She sidestepped so fast she left behind only a golden shimmer, dodging the red flash, then the green and blue one chasing it. For mortals, all of it would have happened in under a second, but to Rathica, it happened in slow motion. The red flash changed direction sharply and headed straight at the pattern. Infuriated, Rathica dug into the remainder of her Karma, spreading a barrier in front of it.

A blinding explosion came from the wall, and the entire building around her disintegrated. Rathica barely managed to spread her rapidly dwindling power behind her, covering the mortals nearby in a thin veil, keeping them safe. Only the narrow wall section that held the pattern remained, hanging in the air, protected by her severely weakened shield.

The red streak blurred away from her just as the green overtook it and slammed into it. For a second, Rathica saw a wiry green, red-haired, and red-eyed figure wrestle with Ulderion, then Flowheart's blue streak collided with them, causing them to tumble over each other as they struck the center of the barrier, which shuddered from the impact.

The red streak managed to untangle from the other two when a thick, dull-gray streak appeared from the side, moving much faster than the others. Rathica could barely believe how fast The Stone moved as he intercepted the red one. Then the gray Deity appeared in mid-air, his bulky frame partially obscuring the slim green figure he held around the neck.

"Ulderion, Flowheart! Help Wyerg with the shield before it crumbles. I'll hold him," The Stone's deep voice rumbled.

Flowheart and Ulderion blurred into existence next to him, Ulderion looking weary from the ordeal. Still, he followed Flowheart's example and raised his hands. Watery blue and silver Karma and green leafy Karma flowed into the shimmering barrier.

"Let me go, or Nimron will come to-" a surprisingly mellow voice said before being silenced as The Stone put his second hand entirely around the green, pointy-eared head.

"Which one is this?" Rathica asked as she gazed at the slippery but weak Deity. She had seen most of Nimron's followers but couldn't recall seeing this one. She had an idea who it could be but wasn't sure.

"Fin'r," The Stone said, his voice low and dangerous. "A pathetic, backstabbing Deity that I have had the dubious pleasure of running into many times over the last few centuries."

"Let go of me, you grumpy pile of rocks," the mellow voice said, seeming to appear from the empty air beside him. "Nimron won't like it if you harm one of his Pantheon!"

"Are you insane?" Ulderion rumbled from the side. "You've been lurking about, just out of reach for weeks, doing I don't know what! Why would we let you go?"

Rathica felt a rush of surprise as she heard Ulderion's words.

"You knew he was here?" she asked, her gaze never wavering from the pattern.

"Wyerg told me he detected something, but he couldn't determine what," Ulderion said calmly.

And why didn't you tell me? Rathica thought as she felt a slight anger surface.

She suppressed it, not an easy feat, and instead focused on the pattern. She didn't need to ask why Fin'r was here or what he was up to. That much was obvious. Instead, she worried about what would happen now they had found him. Was he the reason Nimron hadn't shown up yet?

"Hold him. I'll try to solve this pattern now no nuisances are working against me," she said.

"Too late," Fin'r said, his voice with thick humor and an implied superiority. "Although it's a shame I didn't manage to obstruct you longer! It was such fun watching you bumbling about!"

The Stone pulled the other Deity closer, their faces almost touching. "Explain!"

"What? And get into trouble with Nimron? I think not!" Fin'r said smoothly.

Another streak came from the distance, and Wyerg appeared, his canine features warped with anger.

"Lischen did something, then disappeared," he growled, staring at Fin'r. "So you were the slimy weasel I smelled! I should have recognized it..."

Wyerg moved closer, letting out a menacing growl. "You always stayed out of my side of the Forest, Fin'r. That was smart. You should have remained smart!"

"Shut up, puppy," Fin'r drawled. "You and your furry menaces will soon be finished, leaving me the sole ruler of the Howling Forest!"

Rathica snapped her fingers, the thunderous clap silencing everyone.

"Bring him away, and keep the barrier powered," she said. "If my guess is right, I'll figure out how we need to weave our Karma soon!"

"Too bad it will be too late," Fin'r said again, his bright red eyes sparkling as he looked at her.

Rathica ignored him, and as the others vanished, she focused all her attention on the complex patterns.

Days passed by, but she barely noticed, ignoring everything in favor of changing the pattern until a week after they had captured Fin'r, the last part suddenly clicked. As soon as it did, a swirl of energy wafted outward from the pattern, drawing the attention of all the others as something formed in front of it. Flowheart was the first to arrive, quickly followed by the others, all staring at the complex weave of Karma that now hovered in front of the patterns.

"That's one ridiculous weave," Ulderion rumbled as he moved beside Rathica. "It's going to be a hassle to juggle both this and keeping up the barrier. I'm not even sure I'll have enough Karma for it."

"I told you," Fin'r said, laughing softly from where he still dangled from The Stone's hand.

The Stone hadn't released him even once since grabbing him, as none had the Karma to spare to keep the slippery Deity locked down.

"I can do my part," The Stone said as he gazed at the weave.

"I'll be fine too," Flowheart added before turning to the others. "Which leaves the three of you."

Rathica nodded, forcing down the anger she felt. Come on, Est, I need more Karma, she thought, sending another message through the connection. She had gotten none for days now, and she was starting to worry something had happened.

"If you two can take one of my shifts with the barrier, I'll be fine," Ulderion said.

Wyerg growled softly, then shook his head. "Even if I don't have to deal with the barrier, something is happening in the Forest, and I've not had any Karma for a few days now."

A soft laugh came from Fin'r, but the others ignored him.

"How much do you need?" The Stone asked as he looked at Wyerg.

"I can do three quarters," Wyerg said, sounding uncertain.

"And you?" The Stone asked, turning his dull grey gaze to Rathica.

"Half," Rathica said, holding back a snarl.

"You are so weak!" Flowheart snapped, shaking her head. "Someone, explain why we agree to let her be the head of this Pantheon?"

"Because all of us trust her," Ulderion stated calmly.

It was quiet, then the Stone sighed.

"I can provide the Karma… but I agree with Flowheart," he said as he turned to Rathica. "If I am to give up so much of what I have gained, I want to lead the Pantheon to recuperate my losses."

It was quiet as the other Deities gazed at him, even Flowheart seeming surprised.

Rathica knew that, like her, they were all stunned by the sheer amount of Karma the grey Deity could wield even while locked up. She didn't blame them. From what she had seen, he had carried the heaviest load since arriving and had lost many Primes, yet he could still share this much Karma.

But can we trust him with this? Can I trust him? she thought as she inspected the slate-colored Deity.

The idea of losing out on the security of becoming the Pantheon Leader stung, but more than that, she knew too little of him. She glanced at Ulderion and saw the nature Deity was quietly staring at her, his wooden face expressionless.

"I vote that The Stone becomes leader," Flowheart suddenly said, blurring from her spot to reappear beside The Stone.

Wyerg disappeared and stood beside her, saying nothing.

"Well, isn't this just lovely!" Fin'r said. "How about you guys just fight for dominance? That would be fun to see!'

"Shut up," Ulderion snapped, then his green eyes flashed, focusing on The Stone, Flowheart, and Wyerg. "When you three came to me, you said Rathica would be the leader. This is what I agreed to. I know none of you well enough to feel comfortable with this arrangement. If you want the Pantheon, you can have it, but without me."

It was quiet as Rathica stared at the others, wondering how they would react to Ulderions clear words. She felt relieved that Ulderion was still on her side, but she doubted it would be enough.

"We can't do this with the three of us," Flowheart snapped. "Or we would have done so long ago!"

"You are forgetting we couldn't solve the patterns," The Stone stated. "But I agree. We can't do this with just three. Even if we manage to form the Pantheon, it won't be strong enough to stop Nimron."

"Like you could stop him with all five!" Fin'r said, laughing softly. "Delusional fools!"

The other Deities ignored him as The Stone focused on Rathica. "What do you want as leverage to join us and let me be the leader?" he asked, his voice soft.

Rathica had anticipated the question, but her mind was still spinning, trying to find a way out. To fight was no option. Even if she were strong enough, the Pantheon had to be formed willingly. Words and pleads wouldn't help, as she could see from the way they acted they had made up their mind. Slowly, she realized she agreed with Ulderion. She couldn't find it in her to trust the others, trust The Stone. As her mind began to set, a sigh came from The Stone.

"Don't answer yet," he said. "Let's do the following. Another few days won't matter, so this is my proposal. If you get another influx of Karma that can sustain your part of the weave, we can continue, as we said before, with you as the leader. However, if you can't and need my help, I become the leader."

Rathica blinked, then shook her head as she made up her mind.

"No. If I don't gain enough Karma, I'll assist in creating the Pantheon and help until we finish with Nimron. After that, I'll continue on my own."

The other Deities remained quiet, then Flowheart shook her head, her eyes cold. She didn't say anything but vanished, quickly followed by Wyerg.

"If this is how it will be, it will have to be enough," The Stone finally said.

Rathica didn't see any anger, but she could feel his tension. He stared at Ulderion, then her, then vanished, taking Fin'r with him.

"Great," Ulderion said as he sat down, waving his hand above the ground. A tiny tree grew up, and he began fiddling with the leaves.

"They were never preparing to have me be the leader," Rathica said as she moved beside him, sitting down and not caring that the others could hear her.

"Feels like it, doesn't it?" Ulderion said, looking in the direction she could sense the others, and smirked. "I'm starting to see why they never managed to stand up to the big three!".

Rathica laughed, then focused on her connection with Est. With the patterns done, and the stage set, she could only hope he would somehow gain another large amount of Karma.

Come on, Est! Another mortal miracle would be really useful right about now.

--

"Bile-covered demon shit," Grem hissed through his ragged breath.

He was sprinting across the beach towards the red sea, a group of canine-like quadruped demons giving chase.

Halfway towards the surf, the demons were a dozen feet away, and he jumped up, turned mid-air, and flashed his hands through a spell. A burst of silvery tentacles erupted from his outstretched palms, flying forward and wrapping around his pursues. Landing on his feet, he turned around without even looking at them as he continued.

"Yes, yes, I know," he snarled. "Thiwick, I told you, stop telling me what to do!"

He ran into the water, his hands flashing rapidly.

"I hate this," he muttered, as the spell he was casting took hold.

With a shudder, his body morphed, his neck lengthening, his arms morphing, and the material of his robe bulged and stretched. A minute later, it ripped apart as a long, part human, part reptile shape plunged forward into the water, leaving behind an assortment of clothing and armor.

As his supple body swam deeper, Grem looked into the dark depths. His eyes were glowing a dull green; pupils narrow, bright yellow slits. As he surged on, powered on by his finned legs, his clawed hands flashed in a quick pattern, and a tiny green light appeared far in the distance. He adjusted his direction, heading straight towards it.

"Yes, I know we have little time," Grem said, his voice dully echoing through the water. "All we can do is hurry, and hope we reach Est and Casiron in time."