Held in Icarus’s arms, I was grateful for the thick fur that covered my vulpine form, as the chilly mountain air grew even colder the higher the winged man flew.

The shame of over being carried was easily overshadowed by awe as the group flew over snow capped mountains. Even so, I was relieved when the mountain range gave way to a sprawling expanse of flat plains, and the Tengu holding me began to descend.

The mountain Icarus indicated as our destination was low on the mountain range, and as we flew towards a large flat plateau near the mountain's peak, I could see the tiny buildings of a town in the distance. The plateau we landed on was rocky, with sparse vegetation, and a heavy layering of snow.

As Icarus’s boots hit the ground, I squirmed in his hold, pushing away from the winged priest, who obligingly released me. Landing on the ground, I immediately realized my error as my body sunk deep into the snow.

Laughter filled the air as I retook my human form, and with flushed cheeks I summoned Pyr to melt the surrounding snow. The frigid cold grew warmer as my fire wisp darted around my body, melting away the snow with gleeful vigor.

“So, this is where Dreadmere planned to build their castle,” I observed, looking around with interest.

“From what I was told, I believe it is so. This plateau is the largest, and as you can see, the town of Bovia is south west of the mountain.” Icarus said, pointing to the town in the distance.

It's a nice location, close to a town, but also isolated enough that only dedicated disciples will be inclined to visit. Even with the added benefit of snubbing Dreadmere, this is a good place for a temple. Walking away from the group of Tengu, I moved towards the center of the plateau with Pyr melting away the snow in front of me.

Then again, anywhere is better than Airus at the moment. I sighed, remembering I still needed to inform Darius about what I’d done. As I pondered how I would go about explaining why I’d left the city as I had, a niggling feeling that something was wrong continued to nag at me.

“Ah, shit! I need to go back to Airus.” I exclaimed, pinching the bridge of my nose in annoyance, as I recalled what I was forgetting.

"Back? We just got you out of a highly volatile and hostile situation. You forsook the city, and you want to go back?” Icarus asked, looking over at me with wide eyes.

"I kind of forgot something back there.”

“Is it important? I mean, if it’s something that can be replaced, then it is best you not go back.” Icarus suggested, and I sighed, chewing on my bottom lip as I wondered what I should do.

"Er, well, I guess we could replace him. I mean, one annoying vampire is as good as any, right?” I asked, mentally going over different excuses as to why I shouldn’t go back, and get the vampire.

“Vampire? You left a person?” The sandy haired priest asked, and I nodded knowing I would need to go back to get him, regardless of how annoying I found him at times.

“High Priestess, do you speak of the vampire from the Eternia guild who was imprisoned?” One of the Tengu guards asked.

“That’s the one,” I confirmed with a sigh.

“I do not believe re-entering the city would be wise. If you are intent on having this vampire at your side, I shall see if I can arrange its release.” Icarus offered, his gaze shifting to the guard who’d spoken. “Henry?”

“I’m sure I can persuade the guards to release the dark creature into my care.” The Tengu confirmed, flexing his wings as though preparing to take flight.

The dark creature? Are Tengu not also dark creatures? They are Yōkai demons, same as I am. So I don’t see how they can claim vampires to be dark, when they are also the same. I pondered, furrowing my brow.

“High Priestess Kadia, do you wish for me to send someone to bring this creature to your side?” Icarus prompted.

"I’d rather him not be at my side.” I muttered, under my breath. “However, it’s preferable to leaving him locked up.”

“Then I will send Henry to collect him,” Icarus agreed. “My patron has told me to offer you any aid you require this day, as he is most pleased with his payment.”

At Icarus’s confirmation, the Tengu now identified as Henry took off, flying in the direction we’d come.

“I’m sure he is,” Trismegistus grumbled. “That annoyance took off with three bottles of my best wine.”

“Can’t you just poof some more into existence?” I scoffed, not seeing what the issue was, or why the other god couldn’t just make his own wine.

“That is no longer the case, even as gods we are restricted by the laws of Aither now the world is fully formed. I cultivated that wine personally,” Trismegistus sighed. “If this is the location you wish to relocate the temple, then place down the staff, and let us be done with this. I have other matters to attend to.”

Suspecting it would be unwise to push the gods waning patience any further, I slung the bag I carried off my back, and retrieved the staff from the enchanted space within. Staff in hand, I slammed the end into the ground, channeling my mana through it.

The ground shook with the impact of the spear hitting the ground, and the Tengu took flight like a flock of startled birds as a beam of golden light shot down from the sky above us. Even with my eyes closed, the blinding light was almost too much to bear, as it penetrated past my eyelids. Trismegistus’s power flowed around me, but to my relief, it was the staff he used as his conduit, and not my mana core.

As the god’s power and mental presence faded, I cautiously opened my eyes to peer around at my surroundings. Before me stood a life sized statue of the old god, its form just as it had been in Airus, with its left hand clasped around the staff. Releasing my own hold on the staff, I took a step back to gaze up at the building before me with a feeling of disappointment.

I’d expected Trismegistus would create something more grand, befitting the new location, yet the temple before me was the same single story building it had been in Airus. How was this meant to be a glorious temple seen for miles? This tiny temple wouldn’t even be visible at all after the next snow fall buried it.

With a sigh, I looked upwards, searching the sky for the Tengu when a second beam of light broke through the clouds. Seeing this light, I expected it to hit the temple, causing it to morph into something grander, but the light did not land on the newly formed temple.

Instead, it spread over the peak of a mountain beside the one I stood on, and I watched in awe as a beautiful building, with spiraling towers of white formed with the light. Now that’s a temple! I thought with admiration, wondering why Tris chose to build a second temple on the nearby mountain.

“It would seem we are to be neighbors,” a voice called from above me, and I looked up with a frown as I saw Icarus flying down to land beside me.

“Neighbors?” I questioned, raising a brow at the sandy haired man.

“My patron has deemed this place worthy of his grace,” Icarus declared, gesturing to the building on the mountain beside us.

His patron? That wasn’t Tris's doing then? Looking away from the beautiful building with its gleaming white towers, and back over to the single story, gray stone building that was my own temple. I couldn’t help but feel I’d chosen the wrong patron god.

“Are you really going to let the puny god of light show you up like this, Tris?” I demanded, glaring at the stone statue which depicted the god. “You are the almighty, and all knowing Trismegistus, the grand teacher! The father of alchemy! The…”

Blinding golden light burst from the skies, and I gave a mental cheer as it hit the temple. The ground shook, and the buildings of the temple rose higher, the outer walls of the temple gleamed as golden lines ran across the stone forming intricate designs. As the temple of Philosophia Naturalis continued to rise, another flare of light lit up the sky, aimed at the temple opposite us.

Three more lights followed, each hitting different peaks of the mountain range, and I watched mouth agape, as more buildings began to form. Dozens more lights appeared as more buildings appeared, and the entire mountain range seemed to tremble as the gods built their temples upon its peaks.

“What is this, some kind of divine pissing contest?” I snarked, clinging to the statue of Trismegistus as the ground continued to tremble, and shake.

Trismegistus had given up attempting to out-do Vēdiovis's temple when the other gods began building their own temples, but I’d long since stopped caring that our temple was the smallest of those forming on the mountains. There goes the neighborhood, I thought, watching as another mountain became engulfed in dark clouds, which faded to reveal a massive skull, with its mouth wide open. It would seem that even the dark pantheon was getting in on the action, and adding their temples to the mountain range.

When the mountains finally ceased shaking, I crumbled to the damp ground, resting my forehead against the base of Trismegistus’s statue. The muscles in my legs ached, and I felt the urge to expel the contents of my stomach as the world appeared to spin around me.

“Well, you don’t see that every day.” Icarus declared, and I glared at the man, who’d managed to avoid the shaking ground by circling above it on his accursed wings.

“Somehow I feel you’re to blame for all this,” I accused, remembering he’d been the one to suggest this location for Trismegistus’s temple.

Shrugging, the winged high priest folded his arms behind his neck as he gazed out at the temples dotting the mountain range.

“I suspected a few gods would form their temples alongside yours, and knew my patron would for certain. I don’t think there is any location on the continent where there is a lone temple.” He admitted, and I scowled at him as I pushed to my feet.

“While I am grateful for your aid, high priest Icarus, I believe the time has come for you to depart for your own temple.” I said, struggling to keep my tone polite, as I waved a hand at the gleaming white stone temple of his patron.

“Indeed, it is time I departed. There is much to be done after all,” he conceded, his gaze fixing on the temple. “I’ll need to re-arrange the clergy somewhat to accommodate this new temple, among other things.”

“Then I will bid you farewell,” I murmured, inclining my head, and trying to regain a little bit of dignity.

“Until we next meet, High Priestess Kadia. Mayhap, I shall see you at the next summit should your patron choose to attend this time.” The winged high priest of the light god said, inclining his own head, before he leapt into the sky, followed by his paladins.

Watching the group leave, I wondered what it would be like to live as one of the winged race. How did their wings hold them aloft? Was their anatomy different to normal humans? Were their bones hollow as birds were? Shaking my head as I pondered these things, I turned towards the newly formed temple. It may not be as grand as those of the other gods, which now adorned the mountain range, but it was still an impressive sight.

Standing inside the temple, I found that whilst it was a lot larger than the previous temple in Airus, its layout remained much the same. The most obvious change inside the hall of origin, was the dual staircase leading up to a wide balcony at the far end of the hall. Ignoring the stairs for now, I focused on the temple's layout within my mind to gain an understanding of the changes.

Each of the outer halls, which were split into the three disciplines, now contained three separate levels, with the first two levels consisting of the central library, and the three rooms split off from there designated as workspaces. The third level of each hall was accessed from a staircase leading up from the first, and second level libraries. This final level’s central room appeared to be a dinning hall, with the room on the right being used as kitchen, and the one on the left a communal bathroom. Last, was the room to the rear of the dinning hall, which was a communal sleeping area, with bunk beds, each with a small cupboard for the disciples who would reside there to keep their personal items.

The new staff quarters to the left of the entrance hall consisted of a first floor dining hall, and kitchen, which connected to two levels of sleeping quarters above it. To the right of the entrance, had been where my personal quarters were, but a quick look at the layout showed I’d been relocated to above the hall of origin. No doubt intended for the use of higher ranked clergy, each room of the right tower contained the same study, bathroom, and bedroom layout as had been in my previous rooms.

That left the new high priestess quarters which were accessed from the balcony which overlooked the hall of origin from the second level. Ascending the stairs, I ran my hands over the smooth banister, gazing down at the hall below from the balcony. Only the front half of the hall could be seen from the balcony, which overlooked the orrery, and the passageway which led into the temple.

Entering my new rooms, I found myself in a brightly lit library, with an ornate wooden writing desk positioned in the center of the room. The library was small, being only quarter the size of the hall of origin, but it was larger than it had been in Airus, and all the books were still lining the shelves, so that was something at least.

At the rear of the room, placed behind the desk, was a doorway which concealed a staircase leading upwards. Directly above the library was a laboratory, which I was happy to note was the same size of the hall of origin. Which was much larger than the lab in Sēkrit, and Caruan. Shelves lined the walls, with a large furnace in the center of the room, directly over where the orrery sat in the hall below.

The next level above that was a fully furnished bedroom, with an en-suite bathroom, and kitchenette. While the final level of the high priestesses quarters was the last of the five story building. Looking around the sparsely furnished room, I concluded it must be a mixture of an observatory, and a ritual room, with its large runic array carved into the stone floor.

Leaving the high priestesses quarters, I walked across the hall of origin, and proceeded to visually inspect every inch of the new temple. Of particular interest was the hidden level below the hall of origin, which could only be accessed via a door to the right of the clergy’s quarters.

The lower level appeared empty of anything, aside from a door that appeared to lead nowhere in the mental map of the temple, but upon opening, led into a long dark tunnel.

Yeah, not going in there alone. I decided, closing the door, and retreating back up to the hall of origin, where I used the amulet fused into my left palm to seal the door that led to the lower level.