Ror was never the type of woman who waited patiently for anything. She chewed on her thumb as she paced back and forth in front of the door. It felt like that girl had been in there for hours, which meant that Noh was right. In the back of her mind, Ror secretly hoped that there had been a misinterpretation of her reading. After all, fortune telling wasn’t an exact science and there were plenty of places where signs and omens could be misconstrued. If only the girl would come out. The longer she stayed in there the more truth there was behind the reading. Their goddess was soon to be gone, for the survival of the truths they were going to need to appease the Sun God, and that appeasement rested on the shoulders of a girl who hadn’t even joined their ranks as a full Shadow Woman yet.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, halting her steps. The sudden urge to snap at whoever it was who grabbed her came over her. Her hostility took hold of her like a startled jungle cat, but before she could lash out she was met with Shannon’s steady gaze.

“You’re unnerving Noh,” He said in a low tone. Ror’s eyes fell to the Shadow Woman’s face.

The Right Hand let out a slow sigh, trying to compose herself. Noh was already giving up her daughter, she didn’t need to make this process any harder on her. Ror nodded a bit, trying to calm her restless nature. She wished she could be in the room, to have a better understanding of what was going on, what the Goddess wanted of them. Appease him. That was the only message they’d gotten. How was this girl supposed to appease him? No matter what solution she thought of, there was a less than ideal outcome.

Minutes melted into hours as they stood outside the sanctuary. They couldn’t hear a single word being spoken behind those heavy doors; if there were even words to be said. The silence that swam amongst the group was suffocating. Ror knew that all of them could feel it. Conflict had sparked in their lives and they could do nothing but toss a towel on top of the fire and hope that it was enough to smother it.

Finally, after an eternity, the doors opened. The girl stepped out of the dark room. Tears were trickling down her cheeks and she was shaking down to her bones. Noh was the first one to her side, wrapping her arms protectively around her daughter, enveloping her and trying to hide her in the safety of a mother’s embrace. The girl was muttering, incomprehensible even without the fabric of Noh’s cotton robes smothering her voice.

Ror turned to the two other members of the inner circle. Shannon’s face hadn’t shifted. He was good at controlling his emotions when he needed to. Generally a laid back and relaxed man, he knew when to let his emotions free and when to keep them hidden beneath a mask. It was why he was the Left Hand and not she. Her emotions were as loud as a crack of thunder. She couldn’t have covered her worry if she’d wanted to.

Manesc looked guilty in a way. It wasn’t that any of them had anything to feel particularly guilty about. They were the players in the game and the naive child was the piece. What were they to do? The threat of one god having absolute control was greater than all of their lives combined. It was bitter and disgusting, but this child’s life was a speck of sand in the greater weight of this solution.

“Nethira,” Ror finally broke the silence. Someone had to. They had to know what happened in the room. “We need to know what happened. Here, take a seat, I’ll get you some water,” She offered. She went to get a glass of water from the pitcher in Manesc’s office before returning.

It seemed that being allowed to cry had calmed her down a bit. Nethira still shook, the cotton swaying against her like the waves of a stormy sea. She held the cup in her hands but didn’t drink from it.

Shannon approached her, kneeling down to her level. Ror didn’t try to interrupt him. It was probably for the best that the most delicate of them handle this cracked glass situation. “Did she come to you, Nethira? Did she speak to you?” Shannon asked. For his careful movements and gentle tone, all he got was a furious nod in response. She hunched forward a bit and a soft sob broke anew. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” She whimpered.

“You’re sorry for what?” Shannon asked with not a hint of annoyance or blame in his voice. Ror was grateful for that. If it had been her, her tone would’ve surely caused problems by now. At least she was wise enough to know when to keep her mouth shut.

“I killed her! It’s my fault she’s dead! I took all of her power!” She shouted out. The sudden outburst got a look of alarm from all of them, except Shannon. He was a rock in the turbulent waters.

“You did no such thing, Nethira,” He said. “Our grand Goddess had a plan and you were a part of it. We knew that. We just didn’t know to what extent. You took nothing from her but what she gave you.”

“But...after she gave it to me the room went cold and quiet. I couldn’t feel her anymore, and I couldn’t stop shaking. I feel ill and tired! It must be a curse for having what I’m not supposed to have!” She cried out, nearly dropping the cup of water in her hands. If...If the goddess really did pass on the truths to Nethira it was no wonder she was shaking like that. Her heart would be beating with the breath of the earth and on a day with so much energy she must’ve felt like her entire body was fighting to separate at the joints.

“What did she say to you, Nethira. It’s very important that Manesc, the Right Hand and I know everything,” He said. There was a sternness to his voice but he kept it in check well. He put his hand around hers, holding it steady. The cup stopped rattling.

“She….She said….that the balance of life had been nearly destroyed. By killing….killing the other gods Cors had taken too much power. She said it had corrupted him. He will destroy without mercy if he isn’t stopped,” She muttered, finally lifting her head to meet Shannon’s soft gaze.

“And what of you. You have her power now, what does she need from you?”

Nethira took a deep breath. Shannon clutched her hand a little tighter to comfort her. “She said I had to carry what was left of her power. She said I had to take her place. . . That I need to restore balance.”

“The Coriast Temple will kill her the moment they learn she’s become an avatar,” Ror said. Her words struck through the child like lightning.

“That’s if they know what’s going on. We can’t jump to that conclusion,” Manesc argued.

The girl's eyes fell down to the cup again. Shannon’s keen intuition caught the unspoken statement. “They know, don’t they Nethira,” He said. Though his words should’ve formed a question they were far from inquisitive.

She nodded slowly in response. “He’s already here.”