The very same day that Ray promised to explain her circumstances to Kelsey, the two met up in Ray’s quarters in the temple. Ray explained everything, leaving out some of the more graphic details of her introduction to the world and, of course, skipping over the truth of what had happened with Jantzen and Peter.

She also left out the part about her encountering the goblins for now. She felt a degree of trust toward Kelsey, but she didn’t trust her unconditionally yet.

Kelsey listened as Ray explained her story, her eyes going wide when Ray told of the encounter with the roc, nearly being enslaved by Jonathan’s team, and being saved by Max near the gate. She bore a thoughtful expression when Ray told the priestess of how Sister Eileen had been protecting her.

However, the part that interested Kelsey the most was when Ray told her about the new god who was speaking to her.

“You’re a Tether…” Kelsey breathed, her eyes alight with wonder.

Ray simply nodded.

“A Tether! A chosen representative of a god! If you are a Tether, then everything makes sense!”

The young priestess grabbed Ray by the shoulders and shook her with excitement.

“I understand your circumstances now. Since you trusted me, I will keep your secret until you’re ready to reveal it, even if it condemns my soul to Hell!”

Ray nodded in gratitude as Kelsey released her.

“Still, it seems that times are changing,” Kelsey noted while twirling a finger in her long, blonde hair thoughtfully. “A god who accepts monsters. Who would have thought that there would ever be a god of monsters?”

Ray shook her head.

“We’re not monsters, just different.”

Kelsey snorted.

“I know that. Humans are just scared. Vampires are faster than us. Trolls are stronger. Beastkin have better senses, and immortals are wiser and live forever. Hell, humans don’t even have the advantage in numbers. Orcs are far more numerous. All we can rely on to survive in this world is our religion.”

“Haven’t they ever considered peaceful relations?”

Ray repeated the question.

“What race would be willing to speak with us? By the command of our leaders, we kill and enslave any non-human sentient race that we encounter. The neighboring United Federation has a standing order to enslave or execute humans on sight. The dwarves disappeared from the Voskeg Mountains many years ago and nobody knows where they went. The Empire of the Dragon King closed its borders. The lanterns burn our ships if the merfolk don’t get to them first. Nagataur is occupied with maintaining its border with the Realm of the Mad God. Even Mad God’s servants won’t negotiate with us. Though we humans have never touched them, they have a strange, pervading hatred of us that goes beyond any distrust or suspicion.”

“The Mad God?” Ray asked with interest.

“He’s not actually a god, I think, but he is ancient and mysterious. The few eyewitness accounts say that he looks like a reaper. He wears a black robe, has glowing red eyes, and carries a large scythe. He was active in the Nightmare War fifteen-hundred years ago and has made a few appearances since, the most recent ones being about three-hundred years ago near the Forsaken Marshes, and seventy-ish years ago during the War of the Ages.”

“You are well-informed,” Ray observed.

Kelsey shook her head.

“I just spend a lot of time in the temple library. There are all sorts of scholarly accounts in there and they are fascinating. There is so much that we don’t know about this world because humans have mostly kept to themselves when they weren’t invading and massacring the natives.”

Ray examined Kelsey thoughtfully for a long moment, chewing on her words. Then she opened her mouth.

“Would you be interested in joining us?”

Kelsey froze, her eyes going wide.

“You mean, changing gods?”

Ray nodded cautiously.

Kelsey seemed to consider the question for a moment before rejecting the idea.

“The idea is tempting, being able to follow a god who doesn’t discriminate. I do respect the goddess very much, but not so much that I could never turn away from her.”

“Then why?”

“I don’t know anything about this new god yet, other than that it chose you as a Tether.”

“Ah…”

Ray knew she was right. She, herself, didn’t know all that much about her new god. She had a general idea that he wanted some vague concept of harmony and that he liked beastkin for some reason, but that was all she knew about his ideals. The biggest factor that made her want to work with him was that he was always there, and he sometimes helped her with advice.

But this new god hadn’t yet done anything for people like Kelsey. They had no reason to follow him when they already had another god that they followed.

“How rude,” Mort muttered. “To reject the benevolent invitation of one such as my master. My lady, you must educate her most thoroughly…”

“Quiet,” Ray ordered, shushing the raven lord.

Lord Mortimer sighed as he was once again quieted by his master. She felt a little guilty because she kept forcing him to be quiet. He was speaking less and less in her presence, even during the times when they were alone.

“I understand,” Ray replied. “I’ll ask you again once he has established his teachings.”

Kelsey stood up, waving goodbye as she moved toward the door.

“I’ll listen when the time comes,” she promised.

Just before she opened the door, she paused.

“Thanks for trusting me,” she said softly.

Then she swung the door open and left the room, closing it quietly behind her.

Ray stared at the door long after the priestess had left. She had entrusted Kelsey with important information that she understood would cause conflict if it spread. She resolved to herself that she wouldn’t regret placing her trust in the priestess, no matter what happened as a result.

The next few days of training were more of the same. Kelsey started showing up to lessons with Master Rambalt again, though Peter refused to make an appearance. Ray continued her drills under Siegfried and sparred with him on occasion. Though she never managed to scrape a victory, she always forced him to fight at a hundred percent. If she increased her skills in fighting or in magic a little bit more, she thought that she might be able to beat him.

After five days of training had passed, Ray could almost fully enhance two arms simultaneously. She just needed another day or two and she would be able to start reinforcing her legs. Her dark healing speed had tripled, and she could now heal a paper cut in under twenty seconds. Once she could heal a paper cut consistently in two to four seconds, she planned to move on to larger wounds.

On the sixth day, there was a significant change. All the trainees were gathered in the underground training room again. Ray felt a brief sense of déjà vu as she observed the members of the Earthbreakers standing on a stone platform alongside the instructors.

After every student arrived, Siegfried stepped forward and began the announcement.

“A week and a half ago, the Adventurer’s Guild received an anonymous tip detailing the location of the nearby goblin camp.”

Ray stiffened.

“The informant gave detailed information that the goblins possess an assassin of a similar caliber to a High Templar. He requested the immediate dispatch of a silver-ranked team or higher, with a priority request to save the trainee he witnessed being captured.”

Siegfried’s eyes settled on Ray for a moment before returning to survey the crowd as he spoke.

“The guild has decided to dispatch the trainee groups alongside the Earthbreakers for this mission. Both of your teams will be required to participate in a subjugation request under the leadership of Edwin Weston.”

Ray felt her heart sink as the full extent of the task thrust upon her settled in. She glanced around and saw the determination in the eyes of her fellow trainees and forced herself to smile as well.

“That was the official stance of the Adventurer’s Guild. However, Lord Rambalt and I personally interviewed the informant and have determined that only one team of trainees will be necessary as a support group. We have decided to send Jonathan’s team while Ray’s team remains on standby. If they send a distress signal, you will rush to the scene via teleportation gate.”

Ray barely restrained herself from letting out a sigh of relief. That gave her some room to work with.

“The operation begins in three days. Use the remaining time to prepare for a full-scale extermination.”

As Siegfried stepped back, the students burst into action as the members of each party surrounded their respective leaders. Edwin and his party stepped down and approached Jonathan’s group while Helen, Ven, and Kelsey surrounded Ray.

Before Ray could start speaking, her shoulders stiffened as she heard what her god had to say.

“Ray, we’ve got another problem. The goblins are in trouble.”

***

Over the next five days after Flynn had delivered his warning, Vorg, Og, and the other recent converts had managed to subtly raise the total of baptized goblins to thirty in groups of two or three. Almost all of them were Gobber Goblins, though a few were Glitter Goblins who had been wavering as the two factions intermingled over the last several months.

Finally, the fateful day when the Glitter Court would release their official statement came. As Lord Oberon took the stage, all of the goblins in the camp held their breath, awaiting his verdict.

“Ten days ago, our tribe was approached with a proposition,” the old goblin began. “This proposition was to change the direction of our focus as a tribe from finding and serving our creator to following the edicts of a new god. We were promised the ability to respawn, something offered only to humans thus far, as well as miracles and guidance from this new god. Additionally, he promised to help us find Demestrix. In return, he asked for our faith and for our allegiance.”

Lord Oberon paused, assessing the reactions of the crowd. Most of the goblins seemed interested in the proposal, though a few visibly showed signs of disgust by spitting on the ground or gnashing their teeth and scowling.

“The opinion of the Court was varied, and we debated this topic for ten days, the time period set by our ancestors as the standard for resolving potentially life-changing and difficult conundrums. As a Court, we came to an inconclusive vote of two votes for and two votes against. As the deciding vote, I thought long and hard about what decision I should make for the benefit of our tribe.”

He stroked his long, grey beard thoughtfully, his expression showing his distaste as he released his verdict.

“I now declare the official stance of the Glitter Court. We will allow the presence and proselytizing of missionaries for this new god, but we will not tolerate conversion by the sword, nor will we allow missionaries or proselytes to exercise dominion amongst our people. Additionally, we will not tolerate secret practices or seditious elements.”

Vorg and Og exchanged glances. Og nodded and stepped back into the shadows. He moved over and tugged on the sleeve of Lexi’s shirt, alerting her to his presence. She didn’t understand Goblin so they had decided that Og would let her know if things were getting dangerous.

“Time to go,” he muttered in garbled English.

“It has come to our attention that there is a group of goblins who have embraced this new god. This, by itself, would be fine. However, they moved about secretly and gathered their forces behind closed doors. It is concerning to the Court that this group would strive so much to act without our knowledge, and we must question their motives. To that end, we have decided to temporarily suppress this group while we investigate. Fortunately, our informant provided a list of the names of each goblin who is participating. I will now read aloud this list and I would ask the goblins surrounding these individuals to suppress them if they refuse to cooperate.”

Before Og and Lexi could move far, Og felt a hand grab his shoulder despite his concealment. He looked back and saw Trog staring at him sadly.

“Og and Vorg,” Oberon called out.

Og sighed, raising his hands to show that he would go willingly.

“Jug, Yog, Rogog, Pog, Frank, Irg, Nogg…” the Lord began listing off names. As each name was called, the goblin raised their hands and allowed themselves to be taken. In accordance with their vows to the new god, they would do what it took to live in harmony. They had decided beforehand that they would accept whatever decision the Glitter Court made.

As this continued, Lord Cedric came up beside Lexi.

“As our guest who is allowed to proselytize by law, you may choose to remain free or to be detained with them. We will respect your decision, but we would ask that you refrain from operating in secret in the future.”

Lexi felt lost as she watched the people she had baptized one by one being rounded up. She felt a tinge of guilt welling up, realizing that if she hadn’t performed the ordinance, none of these goblins would be in trouble. If she had waited a few more days or perhaps if they had operated more openly, this oppressive atmosphere might have been avoided.

“I will stay with them for now,” she replied.

The Martial Lord reached out and gently grasped her wrist with his clawed fingers.

“If you will follow me, I will guide you.”

Lexi allowed herself to be dragged, shuffling behind him as they moved toward an area near where the Glitter Court met. The area was being cordoned off with slabs of stone that were being manipulated by goblin elementalists while the goblins whose names were called were led into the enclosure.

Cedric released her, motioning for the young beastkin to enter. Lexi stepped into the prison and watched as the walls moved higher and higher. After the stone reached a height twice that of the average grown human, the stone began to stretch out over the area to form a roof.

Lexi stroked the shackle on her wrist and the rattling of the chain mingled with the scenery to bring back unpleasant memories.

Vorg tapped her arm, pulling her attention away from the prison being formed around them.

“I’m sorry, Lady Leximea. I did not guess this.”

“It’s fine,” Lexi muttered in reply. “I can understand their reasoning. My father despised secret organizations forming in our tribe because it undermined his authority and often led to trouble and death.”

Vorg let out a deep sigh, chuckling to himself scornfully.

“This time is the same.”

“What do you mean?” Lexi asked, tilting her head to the side as her ears twitched anxiously.

Vorg scratched the side of his head.

“Ahh, how should I say…? Did you see Flynn out there?”

Lexi shook her head. She hadn’t seen Flynn or the other two members of the Court. She hadn’t seen Shaman either, despite the importance of the event.

“Glitter Goblins are not all of same opinion. Flynn is extreme while Lord Oberon and Shaman are in the middle. Glitter Court has three middle and two extreme. This causes many fights.”

Lexi furrowed her brow as she tried to guess what Vorg was hinting at.

“So, the extremists were overruled by the moderates and that led to our current circumstances. Is there more to it than that?”

Vorg let out another deep sigh.

“Your father was a leader?”

Lexi nodded.

“He was chief of the Bloodclaw tribe.”

“Then you know. Politics is dirty. Losers do not like losing.”

Lexi cast her mind back to her childhood years. People had different opinions that they believed were facts, and when they didn’t get what they wanted they would cause problems. Her father had always seemed stressed dealing with one problem or another. The issues would pile on top of each other and, if he failed to manage them properly, things got out of hand.

Comparing that to their current situation and layering in Flynn’s words from several days ago, Lexi gasped.

“How long do we have?” she asked, fidgeting with her tail nervously.

“Maybe tonight.”

***

As each goblin was baptized and joined the ranks of my followers, a wave of invigorating energy surged through me. After these long weeks of stagnation, I was finally growing. The holy power gauge that was always in the corner of my vision was expanding and growing denser. The total holy power available increased with each person who was baptized, and the gauge filled up as I received their prayers.

Interestingly, after roughly ten or so people were baptized, I stopped receiving prayers directed toward nobody in particular. I still received prayers from Steve because he was directing them toward me, though he wasn’t fully aware that I existed yet.

It would seem that the system aid for finding potential followers was removed now that I had a basis for expanding my religion.

I would have confirmed this with Auto, but…

“Hey Auto, you there buddy?”

Silence. Auto hadn’t spoken to me for a while. I was absorbed in building my teachings and following the events happening on the surface, so I hadn’t spoken to him in a while either. I couldn’t say when he left but the fact was that he was no longer here, and he hadn’t said a word before disappearing.

He called himself a training and observation unit. While I wasn’t sure why he would no longer need to observe me, I felt a sense of pressure from the realization that my ‘training’ was apparently finished. Simultaneously, it felt like a burden was lifted. Ever since I came to this world, I was out of my element. I had to be careful and timid because I couldn’t accurately predict the consequences of my actions.

With Auto leaving, it was proof that I now knew enough. My training was finished, and it was time for me to become more active. I wasn’t sure if he would ever come back, but it didn’t matter. Listening in on the conversations around Ray in Cairel and around my followers in the goblin camp, I was very aware that something big was about to go down.

It pained me to see that the reason the goblins were being detained was that they had become my followers. I had seen enough corrupt politics back on Earth leading up to the rise of the Director. Extremists never got anything done on the surface because they are too busy slandering the opposing side. Even if they pretended to compromise, it was just another way of saying that they would get their way outside of the public's attention.

I would wait and see before forming my opinion on Oberon, but Flynn was exactly the kind of degenerate that pervaded the governments of Earth before the Director cleansed the system. It was because of people like him that the general population initially embraced that dictator’s rise to power. I was also his follower until he went crazy with power. We all did, every member of the resistance.

We realized it too late, and he gained some sort of power from the gateway. After that, he personally took to the battlefield and wiped out every army that faced him. The gateway was destroyed so that no one else could obtain the power that he did. He bulldozed through politics with overwhelming force and overturned all his opposition with bloodshed.

The ethics of his methods aside, I had to give credit where it was due. The man got things done.

Personally, I had mixed feelings when thinking about the Director. If he had died after he cleansed the government of America, he probably would have gone down in history as a great man. Had he died after he conquered the rest of North America, he still would have been a great man, but flawed.

But alas, he didn’t die and now every person on Earth could see him for who he was - a ruthless, cold-blooded killer and a dictator. When he inevitably traveled down the path of all dictators in history, he would only be remembered for his cruelty and not for the great acts that elevated him to his position.

It had been a long time since I had thought about the time before the Director started rising to power, but the actions of the goblins reminded me. There was a reason I had supported that man and his radical ideas.

If there was one thing I hated, it was deception. Hiding small things wasn’t a big deal. Having Ray hide the fact that she was a Tether… that kind of thing didn’t bother me either. What bothered me was the type of deception that was happening right now before my eyes.

I felt my form begin to vibrate as anger welled up inside of me.

“Ray, we’ve got another problem. The goblins are in trouble.” I spat out.

I looked around the goblin camp and saw Flynn speaking to Cosmo, Lord of the Hunt. Since they were outside of earshot of any of my followers, I couldn’t distinguish any of their words, but it was obvious from their vicious expressions and barely concealed anger that they were planning something.

I used to look the other way and say I didn’t know enough, but that wouldn’t work this time. My training was finished. I knew enough, even if it didn’t feel like it.

Whatever was going to happen, it was going to happen soon, and I would not look the other way.