The day was a bit awkward, the need for sheets after making an absolute mess that night required an excuse and so the staff all thought I’d wet myself. But I could deal with the embarrassment to keep Jaina out of trouble.

  Of course that caused me to have ahought. Was this wrong? I mean, she was my medical caretaker. This felt kind of uhical, at least on the surface. But I think that kinda of ethics issue is meant to keep a patient from being taken advantage of by someoh power over them and that was very muot what was happening. I also figured that Henna would keep Jaina from getting into trouble over it if shit really hit the fan, especially if I asked the General too. Which I would, obviously.

  Oter of Henna, she visited me two days ter with news and apologies. Apparently someone else with at least her level of authority was unhappy enough about me not being stupid and easily maniputed that they were causing problems for her se. She had been called to the capital for an inquiry that took three days but mao vince her superiors that I was in fact fond enough of her that repg her with someone else could very easily backfire on their attempts to recruit me.

  Somewhat hiriously, one of the only ges to her orders that resulted from all of that was that she was required to start taking e’s root, despite her insistehat she ast the age to . Which I imagine was a mortifying order to hear, though I’m certain she accepted it with dignity. Or maybe quiet s. I could see either oh her.

  Sadly, she couldn’t quite make use of being on the likely pointless birth trol with me yet. Her people found evidehat whoever had gotten the inquiry called was still trying something to interfere in her work with me and she had to focus on that. Decades of experience gave her fiuned instincts and they told her that this was something she seriously o worry about. Her mask being down with me let me see the fear in her eyes and I wondered just how bad this could get if she was that ed.

  She didn’t know who it was, they were good at c their tracks. But she did say there was a very iiail about the inquiry. The panel questioning her was mostly utterly normal and fettable. A person from intelligence, a person from the military, a person from the civilian gover, and one odd choice. Someohat was not identified, but Henna saw a ring he wore that was ong the leadership of the clergy of the old Uvtrayl gods.

  “I don’t uand. I thought the Thundering Pantheon repced them.”

  She shook her head. “The Hegemony tore dowemples and took or destroyed all the old records they could find from them, but eople worshiping and teag i for turies. There is a emple tods in Delonandra, right across from the capitol building. They just fi st year and have been training priests and sending people out to recover lost artifacts or knowledge.”

  “Does this emple have political power?”

  “They aren’t supposed to. The gover is meant to be secur and allow for people to worship whoever they want. Enough people are loyal to the Thundering Gods that trying to kick them out might cause a civil war and we have enough problems.” She sighed “But there are rumors that a small group of the clergy has the ear of several people high up. Potentially even the Prime Minister and High Marshal, our military’s ander in chief.”

  “That plicates matters further.” I grumbled.

  “True, though I don’t think we say exactly how just yet. I will say that it is possible your ges are due to being the Champion of a god, but Saints look quite simir to the god who blessed them and I couldn’t find any god that matches a description like yours. Not even close.”

  I snorted and gave a small smile, that may have been a dead end for her but it did give me some information. My night sky goddess was unknown. That would be something to tuck away for ter. “Henna, I do have a serious question for you. The whole point is to get me to defed renounce my former nation. Why haven’t you asked me to do that? I mean, we’re beyond the games at this point. Or at least I hope we are. So why not just cut to the chase?”

  “You would say no.” She smiled at me knowingly “Not as a refusal, but as a ‘sorry, but I’m far too ignorant about too many things to make a decision like that.’ sort of response. Or am I reading you all wrong?”

  I grinned wide “A, you do know me!” and she ughed “But seriously, I do want to actually know things. About Uvtrayl, about Pitrak, about the Empire, hell about the Hegemony and smaller powers. I have giant holes where knowledge really should be if I’m getting dragged into politics like this.”

  She hesitated “We have orders to keep you… distant from politics, the war, curres in general. It’s why they clear out radios from anywhere you go. ’t risk you hearing some news broadcast and f your own fug opinions.” She grumbled that st part somewhat bitterly. I started to say something but she stopped me “I know, I know, that’s terproductive with you. I’m fighting it but it’s one small detail on a long list of issues.”

  “Actually…” I said quietly, my mind had pulled me somewhere else, somewhere softer. Somewhere were my heart trembled. I heard the word radio and I had a fsh of a fragmented and broken memory. Music slow and smooth, the melody making me sway with a grin on my lips. One hand on someone’s shoulder, the other hand holding theirs, we ughed and dahe st of flowers on a spring breeze. I k was her, the girl I left to go to war. I felt that same ache in the memory as I had in the dream. “… y me some music?”

  A phonograph ying a gentle song when I had my physical therapy, Jaina got to take more of a role than usual as she was my dance partner. I stumbled a lot, nearly fell three times, stepped ooes half a dozen more. But we were both all smiles the eime. I felt like a clumsy fool but I couldn’t help but actually enjoy it.

  Two more weeks went by and I realized I’d been wrong about something. Apparently a week was six days. I wasn’t sure why I was fused by this, but for some reason I thought I was seven. But, during the twelve, not fourteen, days the record pying in my room and iherapy hall made so much more of a differehan I could have imagined. I still had the occasional breakdown. Sometimes I refused to put the prostheti. Sometimes I couldn’t do anything but lie in bed and cry for an hour. Sometimes I refused to let Jaina touch me at night, feeling hideous and deformed and unworthy of her. But there was still progress. I could walk unaided for det stretches on ft ground and pretty good with a e in most other situations. I could even climb stairs, slowly, while vice gripping a railing.

  Oh! The e! A gift from Henna. Aricraft wohat made me grin like a child on her birthday. It was a somewhat heavy metal ring with some kind of purple protective coating, about as wide as my hand with fingers spyed out. But if I pressed a rune on the side and eled a point of Mana into it, half of it twisted aside and down and just kept going until it iral shafted e with a fortable curved grip. The thing was very solid iher ring or e form and I imagi could put up with a hell of a beating. ive one if it came down to it for that matter. It came with a leather holster meant to strap into a belt, so I could carry it around at all times. It erfect, an emergency walking aid that wouldn’t feel obstructive when not needed. My dear General got a very nice kiss from that. Though sadly, didn’t have time for more that day either.

  There was additional progress with Polyglot as well. I ractically fluent now, almost every sentence I overheard being easily uood fully, even subtext was starting to e across to me. Though, it didn’t make me as happy as I thought.

  Far too many people clearly disliked if not ht hated me. Many because I itrak, most because of my unusual appearand rumors of being a Champion of some unknown patron. I talked to Jaina about it and she educated me on the subject as best she knew. Champions of the gods were a retively known and uood thing, all known historical ones showing up, deg their allegiance, and for the most part, helping people while advang their god’s goals. But other beings could have Champions too.

  Demigods, the children ods who had no divine calling oals yet, very rarely made Champions as they were effectively kids or teenagers, just running around and having fun and expl themselves. Champions were not something that would matter to them excepting iremely strange cases.

  Arch-Lords however, they liked making Champions. Incredibly powerful Mana-Infused beings could bee an Arch-Lord and gain a touch of divinity without being true gods. Elementals, Demons, Angels, Fey, and a few other, rarer beings could do so but their goals were often at odds with the mortal races and their kingdoms. Not necessarily directly, iionally antagonistic, but frequently at least inpatible. So their Champions teo cause problems, even if they weren’t overtly hostile.

  Since I hadn’t announced myself as serving some god and no-one knew of any gods that looked like me, assumptions and rumors were all over the pce. The most on arently that the Empire was actually ruled by demon worshipers and I was a Champion of their Arch-Devil god king, here to corrupt Uvtrayl from within.

  It seemed that it was only some very strict words from the military to the staff that kept folk civil. Which was a whole ass problem. That was not going to work for long. This was going to fester and rot and grow until it burst and put me and everyone near me in danger.

  Thankfully Henna came the day in the early evening. She walked into the room with a briefcase and a grin, which died as soon as she shut the door and I spoke.

  “You o get us the hell out of here.”

  She blinked and tilted her head. “Right this sed or do I simply o start making pns?”

  “Who the hell do you have talking to the people here? At least a quarter of them think I’m a devil w for the Emperor.”

  She looked fused “What are you talking about, the story I’ve had spreading is you got Championed by a Fae-Lord as a joke.”

  “Well apparently that story isn’t making the rounds because that’s not in any of the rumors I’ve heard.”

  She slid into the seat o me with a slightly amused look “And who’s been reying these rumors to you?”

  I narrowed my eyes and said in oteva “I’ve just been listening to the people who think I ’t uand them.” Helenna’s eyes widened “My ges gave me Polyglot, I’ve been keeping it a secret. One I hope you’ll keep. But the point is that I’ve picked up that people are scared and it’s only vague threats from your people keeping them behaving.”

  “I haven’t had my people threatening any-” She stiffened “Shit. They must have moles in my cell here. Gods damn it all to the abyss! This job is hard enough without my own fug side stig their di it!” She shouted, then took a breath to calm herself. “Okay, agreed. I’ll get us on a train tonight if I , tomorrow at the test. You’ll be less fortable in my HQ, but safer and within an area I have far more trol over.”

  I breathed a sigh of relief. “Jaina es with, assuming she wants to that is.”

  [Itra, and Vikkel should at least be observed as well. They are friendly with us and might be accused of colboration or corruption even after we are gone.] Carmil’s words brought up what I was about to, love that brilliant girl of mine.

  “Itran is one of my people and will e with us, but the others I’ll make sure of.” She paused for a long moment. “About Jaina- No, no this isn’t the time.” She mutter more to herself than me “We talk orain.”

  [I look forward to it my dear General.]

  “As do I.” I echoed Carmil, giving Henna a warm smile that she returned after a moment.

  “Don’t know how you do that. Been doing this work before you were born and somehow you slip right under my armor like no one has since I was a teenager.”

  “Hey, I’m a Champion you know, along with a few extra surprises that wait till we’re safer.”

  And with that she was off. She worked fast and two hours ter Jaina and Doctor Francova and Henna and myself in a wheelchair were loading onto a train as the sun lowered to the horizon. es and reds streaked through the sky and slowly darkened, as if the world itself was saying goodbye to this chapter of my life. Though what the one held, I had no idea.

  End of Arc 1 – Pain and Growth