Turned out the journey to Torzoa would not be as quick as I had thought. The first day I had met Chad and Dorian, they both mentioned racing to Bronzemead overnight to investigate the falling star. I had taken that to mean that both of their homes, including the capital Torzoa, were within a day’s travel from Bronzemead.

I was very wrong.

Chad estimated that it could take as many as ten days to get there on horseback depending on variables such as weather, our ability to travel at a consistent speed, and how quickly I adapted to riding a horse.

As he had predicted, travel was slow going in the first day or so. I had never ridden a horse before, so that took plenty of time to get used to. Fortunately, I was at least a larger girl and didn’t have nearly as much trouble mounting and riding the horse had I been the size I was used to back home. All five foot, zero inches of me. Ash, with his shorter stature, had the toughest time with horseback, but he had at least ridden horses intermittently before and took to it pretty quickly.

The first day of our journey toward the capital, Chad and Dorian filled me in a bit more on the layout of Monera. Chad explained that he had been dispatched on a mission from his father to the northern fort city, Brakkash. A mission which he completely abandoned. When he saw my falling star, he immediately snuck away from his escorts in the night to rush to my location.

Dorian, meanwhile, had already been on his way towards Bronzemead from Occo. In his defense of Chad’s claims of winning their race to the star, he had been walking rather than on horseback. This was not because Bronzemead and his home of Occo were close, but because he had lost his horse in a wild attempt to court some pretty farm girl he had come across. Unfortunately for Dorian, her father had other ideas about his attempts to woo his daughter, and he had been forced to immediately abandon his latest desire. To quote his romantic spin on his misfortune, his horse became “an unfortunate but necessary loss in the gamble of love!”

Dorian then took the time to fill me in more on his home. Occo was less a city and more just a large agricultural farm. It was reportedly the size of a city but did not have many of the amenities or entertainment. Everyone who worked the grounds and fields also lived there, like live in employees. So that it would have protection from any outside threats, Occo was very near the eastern fort city. Zlestin was the largest of the three fort cities, as it not only protected one of the most important sources of food for the kingdom, but also was the first line of defense against humanity’s longest and greatest enemy: Elves. Due to this, it was affectionally known as “Elves’ Bane.”

As I had already been informed, Dorian’s family had been assigned stewardship of Occo many generations ago. When Dorian came of age at eighteen, Dorian’s father left him in charge of the hub and started living in Torzoa, to be closer to the King. He had saddled Dorian with this task in an attempt to get him to grow up and teach him responsibility. Conversely, it had the undesired effect of also making Dorian extremely bored. Thus, he made frequent trips to the local towns and villages as a means to entertain himself.

Or, to properly translate his ulterior motives, to attempt to charm any willing and available ladies out of their dresses.

Bronzemead was always his first choice if he could spare the time for the journey. He had grown attached to Noelle at an early age, but he was equally infamous throughout most of the northeastern outskirts.

This also explained his vested interests in assisting the outskirts with their increasing monster problems. He was attached to these people and their small towns, and he knew they couldn’t defend themselves adequately. A lech and shameless skirt chaser he might be, but there was also a heart somewhere inside that manly broad chest.

After I got used to the riding and we were able to start traveling at a steady pace, Dorian then took to it to put my survival training to the test. When we set up camp, I was tasked with gathering firewood and patrolling the campgrounds, looking for signs of danger or wildlife that we might want to track for a meal. After that was done, Ash and I went subjected to more combat and weapons training. Dorian and Chad wanted to make sure we both knew how to properly wield our new weapons when push came to shove. Dorian was familiar with polearms and staffs, so he worked with Ash. This left me with more combat training with Chad to make sure I understood how to properly wield Minerva.

It was a dangerous weapon. Neither of us wanted to risk losing a limb, so most of the training was spent making sure I understood the proper stances and hand positioning for swings. Chad had never fought with so large or heavy a weapon before, so his ability to tutor me extensively was limited and didn’t grow to anything more complicated after the first couple of afternoons.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After the first couple of days of travel and chatter to pass the time, we then spent a few days on the road in silence. After the fourth day of this, I was about to go crazy from just hearing my own voice bounce about in my head.

“So, all three of you are supposedly decedents from a line directly borne from the Gods and the Goddess? Are there other family lines from other Gods? Or are Obarith and Ptarkin the only other ones?”

Dorian twisted around in his saddle, a large grin on his face as if he’d been waiting for me to ask such a question. He then slowed the pace of his horse so that it would be side by side with mine.

“I wondered how long until that question came up! There are twelve Gods. Thirteen, if you count the Goddess, but very few do. Six of Light and six of Dark. They are polar opposites of each other, almost like opposing forces. Obarith, the God of light and life, has his twin, Oryx. And Ptarkin, the God of harvest, has Pteropus, the God of Famine and disease.”

“Each of the Gods was supposed to be a counterbalance to each other,” he continued, “And the Goddess was supposed to be a neutral counterbalance to the whole Pantheon. When the God’s started their war with each other thousands of years ago, she actually stayed completely neutral.”

He shook his head, “All anyone has been able to do is speculate, but no one knows why she didn’t take opportunities to intervene. They fought for thousands of years before it ended. There was so much death and destruction, and not once did she lift a finger.” He looked at me with a cautious eye before adding, “She’s Obarith’s wife, you know…”

Had I not been riding a horse, I would have stopped in my tracks. This was something she conveniently forgot to mention! I mentally paused a moment, rolling this new information over in my head, before asking, “So why did she stay neutral if she is married to the God of Light?”

“That’s what many scholars and people much smarter than you or I have debated for many, many years.”

Chad, who hadn’t really shown an interest in our conversation up till now, called back venomously from the head of our group, “It’s a simple answer: the Goddess is a traitor.”

The comment caught me off guard, and I looked away from Dorian to study Chad. He hadn’t turned his body or head to address us for that statement. His body language did not betray any other emotion or feeling contrary to what he had just hatefully spewed out.

Before I could respond to this latest comment, Dorian piped up, “Now now, Chadwick! Everyone knows the Crown’s thoughts on the Goddess’ perceived betrayal of Obarith, but try to at least have an original thought of your own, for once?”

At this, Chad finally spun back to look at us, his face twisted and angry at Dorian. But he said nothing, only held his leveled gaze at him for a few moments before turning back to face the road again.

Dorian leaned over to speak to me again, but with a more hushed tone so as not to aggravate Chad further, “For at least a few generations, the Crown has preached the belief that the Goddess abandoned Obarith and the other Gods of light in their time of need. And by abandoning them, she also, by extension, abandoned Man. The Crown has viewed it as a slight for as long as I can remember. Several generations at least. Worship and admiration of the Goddess isn’t banned per say. The Crown doesn’t have the balls to outright pass such a decree. But very few practice it openly.”

At that, we both looked back at Ash, trailing behind us. I hadn’t been sure if he was listening, but if he had been, the spaced-out gaze on his face sure hid it well.

“Bronzemead is the only place in the kingdom I know of that openly worships the Goddess, despite it all. It is the only location in Monera that has a temple still dedicated to her.” He then nodded at Ash, “If it weren’t for the Magos’, both with Edward’s connections to building maintenance and Catherine’s line to the Goddess, it probably would have fallen into disrepair ages ago.” At this, he then winked at me, “even before you leveled it yourself.”

I flushed a bit at this and was glad that the town had been so quick to rebuild it after it’s destruction. A thought then came to me, “Is Ash the last male in his line? Are there other male descendants?”

Dorian shrugged, “Who can say? While a male is rare, Goddess descendents like Catherine, with multiple children of their own, are pretty commonplace. Despite not being a desired source for an heir or son, you’ve seen what they look like. They don’t have to work that hard for a mate if they really want one.” He nodded over at me, “Until you arrived, Noelle was easily the most beautiful woman in town, rivaled only by her mother. Her sisters are going to be the same.” He groaned aloud to himself, “Anya is going to be a heartbreaker! Not only did she have her mother and Noelle as strong women in her life to learn from, now she’s attempting to emulate you?”

He smiled again, and got back on track, “I wouldn’t worry about our Ash though. I’m sure he’ll be able to find himself a lady friend before too long.” He waggled his eyebrows very suggestively at me, before subtly glancing back at him, “You know, males in his line are just as fertile as the women.”

At that, I furled my brow. I knew what he was suggesting, and he was attempting to be cute, but instead, it just made me annoyed.

He ignored my obvious frustration with him and switched back to our earlier topic, his voice now back to it’s normal volume.

“So, where were we before we were so rudely interrupted by our fair princeling. Ah yes! The pantheon!” He shifted his weight a bit in his saddle to make himself sit up straighter and seem more important.

“Alright, you know about Obarith and Ptarkin. The remaining four Gods of light are Zannister, Matthius, Sapphis and Alustan. Sapphis is our God of water. His descendants are the merfolk, whom we have an uneasy alliance with. They guard our western borders vigorously and, if the Crown is to be believed,” he glanced in Chad’s direction, “they are a major reason we haven’t made progress in exploring the ocean or any possible lands beyond, as they have hindered us at every turn.”

“You know, considering your father’s position on the King’s council, one would think you would doubt Our decrees less, Dorian.” Chad again added to our conversation without actually turning to address us.

Dorian called back out a challenge, “Explain pirates then!”

The sound of pirates had me more than a little excited, and I looked to Dorian expectantly. Dorian noticed and quickly moved to put any perceived fears to rest. “Don’t worry, my lady. Our pirates are only named as such because their sea faring actions aren’t sanctioned by the Crown. They really are nothing more than merchants. But whatever they are, the mers largely leave them alone and they sail the sea as they please.”

I nodded. “They report anything interesting further out West?”

Dorian scratched his chin in thought, “Nothing the Crown will officially admit to, but there’s got to be something out there.”

Dorian mentally acknowledged it was probably time to let the subject rest, as Chad was starting to fidget in his saddle again.

“Matthius is the God of crafting and his descendents are the Dwarves.”

“Dwarves live here too!” I exclaimed.

Elves, Merfolk, Dwarves. This world was getting more interesting by the minute.

“They have only been seen sparsely for the longest time. They haven’t shown a desire to be seen or interacted with as a race since shortly after our last big war with the elves a few hundred years ago. That war persisted for a while after the God’s war was over and they allied with us during that time. The dwarves and elves have their own beefs with each other, and the Elves animosity against the dwarves is even greater than their hatred for us. Even after our war was over, the Elves continued to aggressively hunt them down, and they have been in hiding underground for ages.”

I mused about this for a while, wondering if I would ever meet some dwarves or elves and what encounters with them would be like. I was also very curious why there was such hatred from the Elves shown towards us and the Dwarves. Dorian didn’t give me long to ponder however, as he continued his lesson.

“Zannister is probably viewed as the second most revered God of Light by the Crown, as he stands for justice, law and discipline. His family line are stewards of our military, as you would expect.” He coughed a bit before adding, “you may meet their joke of an eldest son once we get to Torzoa, if you are unfortunate enough.”

This sparked my interest.

“What makes him a joke?”

I grinned and decided to have some fun at Dorian and Chad’s expense, “He can’t be as bad as the two of you.”

Chad again spun back, but his face had just shifted back to one of seriousness. “This is one of the few things Dorian and I agree on, so take heed! If you meet Kit, keep your wits about you.” He again turned to face the road again but offered another warning. “And if he touches you, check all your pockets. And don’t be surprised if that ‘touch’ makes you wish it had been Dorian instead.”

My eyes widened at that. Who was this son, descended from a line of one of the Gods, whom Chad and Dorian showed such caution and disdain?

Dorian had also shuddered beside me. “He speaks truly on Kit. He puts even my appreciation for the female form to shame. Dare I say it, but he might have felt right at home at Roscoe’s ‘Wish’.”

Dorian moved on, “Alustan is the last God of Light that has a direct line with mankind. He is the God of knowledge and is worshipped heavily at our college city of learning, Prirart, which is overseen by his descendants.”

Sensing a theme, I asked “And their son?”

Dorian exhaled greatly, and I could almost hear Chad’s eyes roll in his head as well.

“Julius.”

I was almost afraid to ask, “And who, or what, is Julius?”

Dorian blew out his cheeks, “How to explain this? He’s abrasive and rude.”

“Like Chad,” I added.

Dorian smiled a bit, “He’s arrogant.”

“Like Chad.”

“And he’s super focused on his work and the betterment of himself.”

“… still feels like Chad.”

Dorian’s grin continued to grow, but he came to Chad’s defense.

“And yet, would you believe it, he’s still worse? He’s the oldest of the four of us and, if it doesn’t involve his studies or work, he wants next to no part of it. His dedication and desire is such that he has made an effort to cut out all distractions. It’s a major reason why he’s 25 and not yet attached!”

He shook his head, incredulously, “I couldn’t imagine being his age and still not knowing the touch of a woman! And on purpose!”

He then gave me a warning look, “I’ll also be surprised if he’s not been forced to visit the Capital, anticipating our arrival.”

I spun my head between the two of them, “Wait, what? Why would Julius, or Kit, for that matter, know to anticipate us?

A light bulb clicked on.

“Or me.”

I focused on Chad, a worried expression on my face, “What did you do?”

Chad actually stopped his horse to give me his full attention, and we all stopped to hear him out. This was something serious.

“I sent a missive ahead to Father, announcing our impending arrival.”

At this, I gave him a look of disappointment. I knew things were going to get hectic once we hit Torzoa, I just had thought I’d have more time to mentally prepare.

Chad immediately moved to defend himself. “I had to give him something! An important reason why I abandoned my mission to Blackwall! Meeting the shooting star and having her be sent by the Goddess herself is one of the few things that could satisfy him!”

“You sold me out.”

I had crossed my arms and was angrily pouting. Dorian seemed unsurprised. He obviously had been in on it. I decided to log it away for later that he also neglected to tell me.

“Look, the purpose of our visit was going to come out quickly once we made it home anyway. I don’t understand. Why are you so upset about this?” he asked.

“Because you kept it a secret! You didn’t think to tell me what was going on!” I yelled back.

Chad urged his horse into action and concluded with, “And why should I have to include you with anything? Blessing of the Goddess or not, you are still just a woman after all.”

I lifted my hands in a clawed, grasping motion and started to vigorously shake them at his retreating back. Next time the Goddess talked to me, I was going to inquire about learning to telepathically make his head explode.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We arrived at Torzoa after nearly eight days of travel, but I was able to see it from afar well before then. It was a massively walled city. Mankind had spent years, perhaps hundreds of them, expanding it’s borders before ceasing it’s outward expansion and moving on to build more cities and territories in the surrounding plains that had become Monera.

It was built around a single small mountain. At the peak was an enormous temple that Chad quickly identified for me as the home of Obarith. When I had asked for clarification on “home” instead of just a place where he was worshiped, Dorian added that the Crown held the superstitious belief that Obarith, himself, actually resided at the temple. Chad was livid with the accusation that the Crown could possibly be mistaken about anything regarding their own God, but Dorian just shrugged off his mounting anger.

Chad’s mood had been darkening day by day since our much earlier discussion of the Gods, Julius, and Kit, and had been a moody, brooding thundercloud. Nearly any topic discussed since then just seemed to further rile him up, and Dorian, Ash, and I had taken to ignoring him completely.

Which preceded to further piss him off. You can’t win sometimes.

A little way down from the smaller mountain’s peak were the impenetrable walls of Chaddington Castle. They were completely wrapped around the peak so that it, and Obarith’s temple, were only accessible once inside the castle grounds. They appeared composed of sheer white rock that seemed to jut up from the mountain itself and had been carved to function as standard fortress walls so soldiers could staff and patrol them. Great banners hung from the walls, trimmed in gold with fields of white and a roaring golden lion’s head profiled on them. From our great distance, I couldn’t make out the castle proper inside the walls, but Chad assured me I would be impressed.

The capital city also wrapped around the mountain, descending further from the outlandish temple and castle at it’s peak. I was familiar with the city design observed and would have been shocked if the quality of life and financial status of the citizens didn’t decrease the further down and away from the mountain one traveled. If the imposing wall that encircled the capital was any indication, the city extended out from the base of the mountain for a great distance. From our position a few hours ride away, everything that could be observed was cleanly washed white. If my experience with books and fantasy tales was anything to fall back on, I doubted the purity of the surface properly reflected what lay within.