"It does look like their conversation is going to take a while," Ruciella pointed at Leanne and the Ayulan priestess.

Though unadorned and austere, the priestess's dark green robes were perfectly accentuated by the shrubbery surrounding her. The two women were surrounded in a verdant sea of lush foliage -- heliconias and gardenias, ornamental ginger and orchids with a tight group of palm trees standing proudly behind them seemingly acting as their guardians. A gentle seaside wind blew by rustling the leaves. Ada haven't noticed any of these plants in other parts of the city or in the surrounding countryside. She wondered if there was a park or botanical garden in the temple. When she built a temple in the future, she wondered if she could steal some of the plants from here. Looking at the scene, the two women were still engaged in animated conversation though they maintained calm demeanors. She saw Leanne point her finger at the wounded dog and Sçæaisøh.

She instinctively touched her forehead and focused at the two in conversation. Suddenly, she could hear clearly everything they were saying as if she was standing next to them. Disappointingly, they were not speaking in the Divine Tongue, she had no idea what they were saying. She trusted that Leanne wouldn't give away anything stupid. She turned back to Ruciella standing beside her who was pacing anxiously back and forth. Ada asked, "Are you alright?"

"You know, I suspect we have a problem. Actually, two problems."

"What is it?"

"One, maybe Ayula won't be the answer here even if Leanne does convince that priestess to let us in. From lore, Ayula is more tolerant than most of other deities but I doubt that she would willingly heal another goddess's follower. Maybe she'll refuse outright or maybe she would want something in exchange. I can tell you that gods do like to carve out their turfs."

"Didn't realize that the gods are like crime syndicates. So you're saying that no priestess inside are allowed to heal Kayu here?"

"Maybe? Kayu isn't your follower but it does follow a master who is."

"How would they even know?"

"That brings up the second problem. I know that the gods know who the followers of other gods are instantaneously on their sacred grounds. And this is true even if you remove the Compulsion on him," Ruciella said emphasizing the word even.

Ada was confused. "Wouldn't Leanne know this too? Why would she suggest coming here then?"

"I'm not sure if you noticed but she seems to think highly of this big ugly mutt's life. Plus, she probably still holds a leaning towards her former master though she won't admit it. She doesn't seem to care that she gave away you as a goddess though"

"Well, I don't see what other choice we had given the circumstances. This is our best shot."

Ruciella shrugged. "Yeah, who knows? Maybe I'm just making a hurricane out of a waterspout. Maybe you have to try to enter through the gate there for Ayula to sense you're here. This is outside of my domain expertise. Consequences of being an ignorant heathen as Sçæaisøh here would say."

She looked over at the man who still had a glassy glazed eyes. He was looking out towards the streets but appeared to be completely zoned out. She added, "Well, he would if he wasn't under Compulsion and if he could understand the Divine Tongue. Glad your Compulsion is this strong. Pickled fish gills should keep quiet."

"I don't want him to run off or do something stupid. Better safe than sorry. Now do you want to hear the story?"

"Sure. Can you start from the beginning?"

"The beginning?"

"You did say you're a new goddess. That's a rare occurrence and it's surprising you haven't made yourself known yet."

"I'm trying to keep a low profile since I'm not too familiar with how the gods operate in this realm."

"From what I know, I'm going to say most of them are a bunch of arrogant ostrich brains."

"You think I'm an ostrich brain too?"

"No no no. Of course, not. I haven't seen you as arrogant or stupid. So, don't worry. I won't tell a soul. Not even Master Arbon. Uh, Master Obar I mean."

"You want to become one of my followers so that I can be sure you'll uphold your promise of silence?"

Ruciella's jaw dropped and her round eyes widened in surprise. "Uhhh umm...are you serious?"

Ada tried not to laugh. "I'm entirely seriously."

She shook her head stiffly. "I have to decline."

"I was joking. You should have seen your reaction," Ada chuckled.

Ruciella wiped some invisible sweat from her brow with her right hand. She sighed in relief, "Oh, good! I'm not sure what's going to happen to my magic if I become one of your followers. Besides, I'm more than content to explore the mysteries of the world as an unaffiliated mortal. Heathen that I am."

"Yeah, completely understandable. You want to hear the story now?"

Ruciella's eyes sparkled in the sun. "Yeah!"

Ada thought that her enthusiasm was endearing. With that, Ada related the tale of her arrival and her ensuing journey. She covered most of the story except for what her other realm was like. She did relate to Ruciella that she was sent here to improve the world by the one God. Ruciella's eyes grew even wider on hearing this and she nodded upon hearing Ada's purpose here. Whether that nod indicated understanding or approval or both, Ada would ask later. Ada was surprised that the usually talkative girl didn't interrupt her even once throughout the recount of her journey. Ruciella looked to be utterly engrossed with her eyes fixated on Ada. Once Ada concluded, which took less than ten minutes, there was a period of silence.

Ruciella looked like she was taking time to digest the words. Ada swiveled her head and gazed at Leanne. They were still talking. Perhaps Leanne was negotiating what Ada could provide Ayula in exchange for the healing. She hoped that it wasn't something that would be too unreasonable. This sounded like a quest in one of those RPGs where in order to do one thing, you have to do something else for someone else first. How clichéd if so, Ada thought. Her turned her back and returned her attention to Ruciella. Ruciella saw Ada's focus return and said, "Sorry, took a moment here. You've gone through a lot in the last few days. How are you doing?"

Ada chuckled. "That's a good question. Overall, I feel like I'm doing alright. A lot to understand and figure out but that's what I was expecting."

"Do you miss those you left behind in the divine realm?"

At this, Ada paused. She didn't expect this to be the first question that the girl would ask. Family and friends were something Ada had tried to avoid thinking. God had put her mind greatly at ease with relating to her the differential time passage in the two worlds. Nonetheless, upon this reminder by Ruciella, she couldn't help but feel a pang of longing. "I won't lie. I do. But I have a task to do here before I can return. And also God did tell me that time passes slower in the divine realm compared to here so they wouldn't miss me unless I take several millennia to accomplish this here."

Ruciella muttered in a low voice to herself. "Time dilation. That's interesting. I thought I read something in the ancient archives."

This girl have the same issue as me in talking to herself, Ada thought. She probably didn't realize that Ada could hear every word and Ada was going to keep it that way. There was no need to reveal to someone she just met every power she possessed. Ada cleared her throat. "I'm a little surprised you asked that question."

"I don't know. It just came to me. I remember arriving at the Academy for the first day and not knowing a soul. It was pretty scary. I felt like a minnow surrounded by a battery of barracudas. The Academy is far from my home town and I hardly ever saw my family or friends. But eventually I found my footing and survived ... and, dare I say, even thrived."

"Well, that's very kind of you. I'm sure you have other questions."

"Oh, a million and one! I'm not even sure where to begin. What's your powers to start with? The one God said you're a goddess of computation. What does that mean? From the powers you've described and what I've personally seen, there doesn't seem to be much of a difference between that and controlling the elements."

"That's only seen from the outside. There's something called the System which governs this world. I didn't go into detail on how I transformed the elements."

"Can you explain?"

"I think this will take a bit longer than the usual Q&A. I'm not sure if we have the time right now."

"Speaking of time, how long are they going to take? Our fight took a tenth of the time of this 'negotiation'. This is why I prefer physical duels to verbal ones."

"I think you're not bad at verbal sparring as well," Ada started to say but stopped when she saw Leanne leaving the priestess and approaching them.

"Finally! But I'm glad that they took their time long enough for you to tell me the whole tale."

"Yeah, me too," Ada said. She turned to the man and said. "Come, Sçæaisøh and tell Kayu to follow us."

The man turned around slowly and the dog followed his motion. His rotational speed was so slow that by the time he turned around, Leanne have walked back.

"What did she say?" Ada and Ruciella asked at the same time once Leanne was within earshot.

"Sorry that our conversation took a while. She has agreed. She will let us in. However, there is a condition," Leanne said with an composed air.

This time Ruciella beat Ada to the question. "What condition? Does she want to make a deal?"

Leanne nodded solemnly. "I could not hide it from Goddess Ayula. She knows that Ada exists and is here. However, I can tell you that she does not know your capabilities or what kind of goddess you are."

"I told Ada that might be the case and yet you brought Ada here anyway knowing that your master wanted to stay under the radar. All because of this big ugly mutt," Ruciella glared at Leanne and pointed at the dog.

As if in understanding, Kayu stared at Ruciella and growled menacingly. Ruciella pointedly ignored the dog and continued to glare at Leanne. Leanne flinched but said nothing.

"Calm down, Ruciella. I already knew that I would have to reveal myself sooner or later. It just happened to be sooner."

Leanne sighed. "I'm sorry, Ada. I thought that you would have to walk through the gate for Goddess Ayula to sense you. It turns out her presence is stronger than I expected here."

"That's alright. So what does the priestess want?"

"The priestess is not the one in charge. She simply translated the words implanted in her mind by the Goddess Ayula."

"So Ayula was talking in her mind?"

"Yes, most gods rarely talk to their followers so directly like this but I am not surprised with your presence arriving here so unexpectedly."

"Hmm, I think I need to master that skill. Will make things easier between us two as well."

"I am sure you will master it," Leanne smiled.

"So tell us? Stop dilly-dallying. What did she say?" Ruciella asked with a mixture of curiosity and anxiety.

"For her healing service, the Goddess Ayula said that she wants you to retrieve an artifact for her. She was quite vague on what the artifact actually is."

"And if Ada doesn't?" Ruciella asked.

"I can talk for myself," Ada admonished gently. She continued. "Same question as Ruciella. What if I don't?"

"The goddess Ayula typically stays neutral in all conflicts between gods but she did warn that should you not fulfill your side of the bargain, she would tell the other gods of your existence."

"How long do I have? Do I have to do this on my own?"

"About a century. That is a short timespan for her. You can have any allies you wish. Ayula herself was generous enough to offer some assistance."

"Free healing?" Ada thought that this is becoming like one of those RPGs where the characters always have a safe ground to return to heal for free.

"No, unfortunately not. She would provide us information on the other gods."

"Information is key to any potential conflict with the other gods in the future. I'll take it. I agree to the terms."

"Holy mackerel! This is amazing! Can I join you?" Ruciella asked.

Leanne's eyebrows quivered. "What about your school?"

Ruciella shrugged. "I'll just have to convince some professors and the chancellor of the Academy. Shouldn't be hard since I'm sure they're all more than happy to get me out of their hair for at least a semester or maybe even two."

Leanne had a look of stern disapproval. "You seem to take pride in having a flagrant disregard for authority."

Ruciella shrugged again. "Well, when authority is full of ostrich heads and fishbrains, what would you expect an intelligent curious and beautiful young lady to do?"

"Institutional structures exist to ensure harmonious order. Those who come before us have attained years of knowledge and we who have less years can learn much if we calmly listen. For you to have no respect ..."

Ruciella's chuckle interrupted Leanne. "Wow, I wasn't expecting a lecture from you on respect. Let me see ... who was it that decided on her own that saving a worthless mutt's life was worth the risk of revealing her goddess's identity?"

"Let's talk about this once we're inside. Kayu isn't getting any better." Ada quelled the growing quarrel before Leanne could reply. She sighed inside as they started walking. These two were powerful allies but Ada wished that they would get along.

When they stood in front of the Ayulan priestess, Ada saw was no trace of fear on the priestess. Perhaps having a goddess talk directly into her head dispelled all her fears. The woman bowed and smiled. "Welcome to the Temple of Ayula of Czitu. My name is Shutana Aurela. Divine one, we are honored to meet you. Our divine Goddess Ayula awaits inside."

Ruciella almost leapt in the air. "Holy mackerel! In her physical form?"

"Yes, our goddess states that this is an occasion which is most proper for her to be here in person. As a gesture of goodwill ... " the priestess said. She finished the sentence with a wave of her hand.

There was no sparkling lights or glowing magic. Ada turned around and saw that Kayu now looked to be perfectly normal, which meant strong and scary. In fact, he looked better than before with his sleek untattered fur and powerful pronounced limbs. Surprisingly, with his newfound strength, he did not growl at them or cower from Ada. The priestess explained. "Do not worry. This creature is in perfect health. Ayula has also tamed his primal instincts while he is here."

"Oh good, I was tired of having to hear his annoying growl," Ruciella muttered.

Ada returned the bow. "Thank you, Priestess Aurela. We are honored to be in the presence of your goddess. Please lead the way."

The woman opened the other set of the double door to give enough room for Kayu to go through. She stepped through and gestured to the five. "Honored guests, please follow me."