Ayila slept for a long time and woke up before dawn. She fed the pony once, gave it a fair bit of water, and raced on towards her village.

Dreaming of her gods brought her a lot of solace. Her determination had never been so great. Even with that being the case, the dark pendent’s corruption tried to ruin her mood.

Aliya thought back to when they fought the were-creatures in the forest. She remembered when she released her holy fire and then a dark voice whispered to her and her white flame became black and then vanished before it could hit her target. She couldn’t recall a moment in her life before that where she ever felt so worried and disgusted.

Next, was the spiritual battle she had when she summoned a magical weapon in the shape of her foot. The black aura tried to consume her spell again but her prayers pulled her through and she refused to allow the impurity to take hold of her goddess’s magic. The cleric had wanted to rest after something so exhausting but knew she couldn’t because the team still needed her.

Finally, was after she had gain consciousness the first time after Fern’s explosive mishap. She felt her life fading and decided that she was going to use her ultimate form of healing. She had sliced into her forearms to allowed her blood and life to drop to the ground.

Tyora, the Goddess of Life, started to used the crimson liquid to heal her faithful follower. Aliya relaxed as she waited for the magic to heal her but then that damned dark voice echoed in her ear. “Kill yourself,” it said. “Sacrifice your life for me. No one wants you here anyway. Why do you think they tried to kill you?”

Haunting thoughts invaded her mind. She began thinking of the Jellybeans. Meowlynn and Fern had both tried to burn her alive. It was as if she was a hag in the forest being burned at the stake for wicked rituals.

Did the other magic users hate her for having a god? Did Kira even want her in her life anymore now that she had new companions? Was Ciylia going to try and steal this evil pendant and sell it or keep it, unleashing its corruption across Asmir? Was Gene going to use her as a sacrificial pawn to pursue some unknown personal goal? Were her gods throwing her away?

Her eyes had fixated on the green light in front of her. It was trying to heal her as it always had before. She pushed through the depressing and paranoid images and focused solely on her faith in the goddess that had visited her. The encounter with Tyora allowed her to suppress the darkening force. Once that was done, a warm feeling washed over her body. Her eyes met Kira’s before she passed out from exhaustion.

Her thoughts nagged at her but she pushed them away and focused on the pony’s hooves galloping against the earth. The foothills in the distance were becoming more clear by the hour. She would banish this darkness away so that she could save others from the plague that took her biological family.

After a couple of days, she arrived near the edge of the forest. “Great job,” said Aliya to the pony. The gnome dismounted from the steed and patted it gently. She grabbed onto the reins and guided the miniature horse to the first tree of the forest.

“We need to find a guide,” the cleric whispered to herself. She scanned the trees and the ground until she saw a small rodent. A squirrel scurried about looking for food to eat. Ayila crouched down low and made some high pitch sounds and odd gestures. More animalistic squeaks came from the squirrel as it pranced over to the gnome.

Being a gnome from the forest, she was taught how to speak with tiny woodland critters. These small creatures served as guides to Hillfar because her elders place a sacred barrier around the village and the surrounding forest. This magical barrier made life forms that possessed a certain amount of intelligence confused and disoriented. The closer they got to the village, the greater the effect. This simple defence kept Hillfar safe for many generations and the number of wanderers that accidentally entered to a minimum.

Aliya couldn’t ever recall someone coming in from the outside though she knew it happened. This was because gnomes from her village would invite gnomes from other communities to live and mate with them to avoid inbreeding. Though Hillfar was largely a gnomish village, some gnomes would choose halflings, dwarves, or humans as suitors. Only once did she hear about a gnome marrying an elf. As for her, Aliya wanted to end up with another gnome or a halfling.

After a bit of chittering, the squirrel began to guide the gnome to her home. A few minutes into the trip, her sense of direction disappeared. Her mind kept screaming to turn back, that she was traveling in circles or that she had seen the same tree multiple times. It was becoming mentally taxing to force herself to follow the little creature in front of her while it made twists and turns around the trees. The pony on the other hand was unaffected by the magic and nonchalantly went wherever Aliya dragged it to.

Paranoia started to set in when she lost her ability to estimate time. She didn’t know how long she had been wandering nor how far she was from Hillfar or the edge of the forest. The cleric wanted to jump onto the pony and ride in a straight line but she was certain that in her current state, her version of a straight line would be as accurate as a stumbling drunk’s line. Luckily, her movement wasn’t so terribly impaired and she could continue to follow the squirrel.

An unknown amount of time later, Aliya’s mind gained clarity. A slight pain throbbed within her skull as the fog that suppressed her senses lifted. The helpful rodent squeaked happily at feet and then climbed up her body to rest on her shoulder.

In front of the cleric was a small wooden box attached to a tree. The gnome knew that it was put here to reward the creatures that helped guide people to the village. Aliya walked up to the box and opened it. Inside there was a wide variety of nuts and dried fruits. The woodland critter squealed with joy and scrambled down Aliya’s arm and collected a few nuts. Finally, it climbed down the cleric and scampered proudly back into the forest.

Aliya fixed her gaze beyond the tree with the reward box. She knew that after about ten minutes of walking she would emerge into the clearing that held Hillfar. The cleric wanted to sprint there but her body was tired from the ancient magic tampering with her mind. Luckily, for her, she didn’t have to walk there because she had a wonderful steed with her. Aliya mounted the pony and guided it out of the wooded area.

She quickly broke through the tree line and was at the edge of Hillfar. All the houses were made of wood and earth. Some gnomes preferred to live in more human style homes whereas older gnomes enjoyed the slightly underground homes that were shaped like dimes on the surface of the ground.

The only structure that was different was the church. It was made of smooth white stone and was much larger than the other buildings. This was because the church was the heart of the community. Everyone attended on special days regardless of faith. Also, it was the most sought-after workplace because working for the gods was seen as the highest honour within Hillfar.

The holy building housed many faithful gnomes and the various ministers. Each of the seven gods had a minister that was solely devoted to serving them and was tasked with spreading their dogma and teachings. Despite Aliya recently favouring Tyora, the Goddess of Life, as her primary god, she never actually focused on her teachings until after she left. While growing up in the church, the cleric mostly stayed in Kyron, the God of Health’s area. This was due to her surrogate father being the minister of Kyron.

The pony slowly trotted through Hillfar and headed to the church. Many gnomes waved at Aliya as she passed and she shyly returned the gesture. Once she arrived at the church, she dismounted her ride and handed the reins to a male acolyte standing near the main doors. “Please bring her and take care of her,” pleaded. “She traveled far to bring me here and must be tired. I can pay for the best food.” Aliya grabbed her coin pouch.

“No need sister,” smirked the acolyte. “You are serving the gods on a sacred mission they have bestowed upon you. Anything you need, the Church of the Holy Seven will gladly provide.” Both gnomes bowed their heads in silent prayer. “Welcome home.” The gnomish man lead the pony towards the stables and Aliya opened the front door to the building.

The inside of the church was in pristine condition. The white stone glistened in the light that entered through normal and stained glass windows. Coloured light from the stained glass refracted around the open space and created a serene atmosphere.

It gave a bizarre but familiar feeling as Aliya scanned the room. Its purpose was to make the visitors feel as if they left their troubles behind them when they entered. To make them feel as if they entered a magical place where they were free from the hardships of everyday life. Even the incredibly sleek and well-polished pews helped bounce the light.

The seven gods were immortalized as statues at the front of the church, just behind the altar. From left to right there was:

Tieron, the God of Weather. He was a gnome that wore weird slick materials. It allowed him to remain unaffected by the constantly changing weather around him. He was a druid like Fern but his magic was purely dedication to weather manipulation. Using this magic he helped regrow forests and stop droughts granting him a passage to godhood. Since he became a god he used magic to help Fiora grow exotic plants.

Fiora, the Goddess of Nature. She was a wood elf that spent her life teaching people about nature and its beauty. She wore clothes made of plants but was mostly depicted in the nude. Aliya’s knowledge about why she ascended was vague but she did know that when her mortal body died, greater goddesses of nature allowed her to serve under them. She will use her powers to create hybrid or super plants to try to help Kyron cure some diseases.

Lorain, the God of Death. He had a human male visage as he was birthed by gods. The statue depicted him in shredded robes with a knife in one hand and a syringe in the other. He is stuck being a minor god due to his desire to be an angel of death. He seeks to end the pain of the mortal coil and rewards those who cut the lives of beings in suffering short.

Kyron, the God of Health, stood in the centre of the deities. One of his jobs was to keep Lorain in check so he didn’t spree kill mortals because of a bit of suffering. This relationship also caused them to become friends and they would talk for hours about illness, cures, suffering, and pain. He also made sure people were kept as healthy as possible.

Tyora, the Goddess of Life. A close friend to Kyron and some believed that they were lovers. The goddess would sometimes interfere with Lorain if she felt the death was going to be unfair, especially to her own followers. She just wanted to allow life to flourish as much as possible which is why she became close to Myra.

Myra, the Goddess of Fertility. She was seen as a monster goddess because she had the appearance of a female goblin. She was shown as a plain girl with a giant belly, wide hips, and saggy breasts rumoured to have milk that can stave off hunger for a year after one feeding. She was important in stopping the extinction of many races including some forgotten races including goblins themselves. Goblin tribes haven’t been seen in hundreds of years though the odd goblin can be seen in some cities.

Finally, Baron, the God of Wisdom. He was the other monster god of the Holy Seven being an orc. Despite racial stereotypes, he was seen as one of the most intelligent beings to exist. It was rumoured that he was originally the leader of the Holy Seven and even hand-picked the minor gods to be make up the seven.

The reason Kyron was seen as the current leader was because Baron understood having a monster leading the group would have lowered the group’s chances of being a successful religion. A god of health seemed to be a more logical choice to promote the group. Also, Kyron’s practices were easy to do whereas Baron’s were extremely strict.

After she soaked in the nostalgia, Aliya walked to the front of the church and went down a hall on the left. The corridor allowed a view of a gorgeous tree that for some unexplained reason grow various fruits on it. This was primarily a place of prayer for Fiora, Goddess of Nature. There was even a statue of Fiora there. A group was currently kneeling in prayer. The sight sent a feeling of warmth throughout Aliya’s body but also made her jealous. It had been a couple of years since she shared a moment of appreciation for her god with others.

At the end of the corridor, it went to the right. This hallway was where the ministers’ offices were. The offices were arranged in the same order as the statutes in the main chapel. So, Tieron’s minister’s room was at the beginning of the hall and Baron’s was at the end. The cleric went to the middle door and knocked softly. A few seconds later, she heard a man’s voice, “Come in, child.”

She opened the door and entered a small office. The room was cramped but well organized. A bookcase filled with religious lore, testaments, and poetry leaned against one of the walls. A lovely redwood desk sat in the middle of the room with an old human male sitting behind it.

Aliya peered at him sympathetically. This was her surrogate father but it made her sad knowing he would be dead far before she became an old woman. Even if he lived to be 100, she would outlive him by hundreds of years. In fact, it was the only reason she had originally hesitated leaving Hillfar. She wanted to be there for him at his passing to join the gods. The thought of him dying while she was gone tore her heart to shreds.

“Father,” cried Aliya with tears of joy running down her face. “I’m so happy to see you are still well.”

The elderly human male bursted out laughing, “Of course I’m fine. I’m a minister to Kyron. If a god of health could keep me in tip-top shape, I’m afraid all hope would be lost for me.” He paused and his face suddenly changed from happiness to confusion. “My child, my darling Aliya, why have you come back so soon?”

“I need your help,” whimpered the cleric. “I ran into a problem and my connection with the gods has been fading. It’s because of this disgusting thing!” With rage, she threw her holy symbol onto the table. It was almost fused with the dark black-winged amulet.

Her father stared at it for a bit. He then said a prayer and grabbed it. A disturbingly painful expression passed across his face before it returned to its gentle and calm state. “Please make yourself at home. I have to prepare some things.” He stood up, stumbled briefly, then walked around the desk.

“I’ll be ready by dinner time,” her surrogate father told her. “Well you are waiting, I’m sure Delta would love to see you. Also, get yourself a replacement holy symbol. This one is destroyed.” He ruffled her mossy and slightly dirty hair before giving her a light kiss on the forehead. “You always had a habit of wrecking or losing your symbols,” he teased.

Ayila’s face went beet red which was an accomplishment due to her bark-toned skin. She found it extremely embarrassing that she lost my symbols than she cared to admit.

“Thank you father,” she grinned. Then the old man left, leaving Aliya in the office by herself. She went behind the desk and sat on a stool that was hidden away. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of being in the spot she spent most of her childhood. All she could do now was wait for her father to help her. Hopefully, he would be fine, it worried her that even her father reacted to touching the object even though their gods were fighting it.

She prayed to the Holy Seven while sat on her stool pretending to watch her father work like she did when she was a girl. For the first time in a while, she focused her main prayer to Kyron and asked the god to protect her father during this difficult time.