Sebastian glanced around, the world… looked normal. After a brief hesitation, now that the small bird was gone, he returned the princess to Concubine Ofelia.
Ofelia clutched her daughter to her chest, quickly bundling her close in the chest wrap all while kissing her fussy child's forehead.
Devlin forced himself to suppress the budding hope. Gripping Leonard's wrist before he could speak, he shook his head motioning for silence. Devlin watched the foxes, he'd made sure to check some of the trees and soil before the sight had faded. Everything in the immediate vicinity had been purified. That meant, Ashton and the female could free the souls. Even if only in small batches.
Devlin recalled the dragon… none of the birds had engaged it…but… with the snake here… It hadn't even taken five minutes. They needed to figure out a way to replicate the phenomenon in the capital. No… first they had to find the primary enchantment.
Amin gave a soft cough to redirect everyone's attention to the giant snake… slithering away. Apparently now was not the time for questions. "Majesty, perhaps a few of us should remain, we might be able to recreate some of the spells cast. If the purifying fire can be copied…" He trailed off.
"Do it. The rest, follow." Lucian ordered moving to his near panicked destrier. It took a moment, but soon the rest were mounted up following the snake back through the forest.
Lucera glanced around as she directed her mount closer to Zane and Rommel, "Remember when the water in the mountain made me nervous… I think the concentration was so… dense it made me uneasy."
Rommel kept his sights on the quickly disappearing snake tail… feathers? Anyway, "But that guard, his arm didn't have… those things." They'd thought of that but the guard hadn't been anymore tainted than the rest of them.
Lucera frowned, "The water isn't meant to be bathed in, it had to be… absorbed. Digested. The taint is… basically a parasite. It doesn't seem to be able to replicate itself, it must have limited a lifespan."
Zane nodded, "That's why they need yearly sacrifices. That makes sense, so theoretically… if the people can go a year without being contaminated…"
"It's most likely not that simple." Noelle cut in as she closed the gap between their groups. "I do think the deal with the goblin king was to have them redistribute the taint since the purge. However, that dragon… I'm sure it was actually one of the dragonkin who'd ascended. The taint… is just the necessity. A way to keep the masses compliant. Removing the taint would only open everyone's eyes to the truth. Not fix the actual problems."
Lucera frowned, that made sense. It might cause more panic if everyone was suddenly free of the Lindorm church's influence. Many might choose to continue the sacrifices… especially since there wasn't a better alternative. Until there was tangible hope, the taint… would keep the masses in check.
"If Lord Nix and Lady Beloved are showing off that they can purify the damned souls, even free their souls. That is the empire's hope. We need to figure out a way to help them realize it. If Lord Nix leaves, purifying the damned will be meaningless. They'll just be forced to absorb more of the dragon's blessings." Rommel reasoned watching the imperials plotting up ahead.
"They would still need someone to kill the dragon. It wasn't until the dragon was torn to pieces that Lady Beloved's flames had any effect. All three are needed…" Noelle reminded. A fighter. The snake god was either a fighter or a leader.
Zane stared pensively after the group… despite his current misgivings regarding Lady Alaina and even his own family… the idea of a literal god leading the empire… seemed like a bad idea.
Noelle kept the sneer from her face, and more importantly, from her voice. "The Ophion tribe has been reclusive for longer than all of our nations history combined. It may be good to have a god oversee the empire for a few thousand years. Hopefully they all become so… independent."
Rommel glanced at the foreign princess. "That might… actually be ideal. All of our nations would then know exactly who was in charge. If the birds, snakes, and foxes remained… none have shown any interest in war…" The more he thought about it, the better the idea seemed. If this was all according to Lord Nix's plan…
Neolani watched the snake. Her lion mount was constantly on edge, even with her reassurance. The tension between Ashton and the snake god had disappeared. Ashton was… offering up Beloved… recommending her to a snake to mate. The idea of more flying snakes was unsettling, but that may be because in her tribes lore, snakes were insidious.
Alexei was bemoaning the chafing his inner thighs were suffering. His skin was sunburnt, scabbing, blistering, and now chafing. If this was a reminder to not be eaten, he would not soon forget it. Alexei glanced at his Regina, her tension had skyrocketed. The exact opposite of what Ashton, the bird god, and even Beloved had all insinuated. Unfortunately, he didn't know how to fix… anything.
Sebastian took a moment to realize… the swelling of his knee had disappeared. There was still some dull pain, but it was barely noticeable compared to even a few minutes ago. When Lady Ofelia gave her majesty's horse a wide birth Sebastian frowned. Her majesty… was flushed, clearly trying to force down her anger.
Ofelia kept her mount from moving until Duke Carlos passed, then she fell into step behind the group. Her personal priest was gushing, quietly, over how the forest had come back to life already. Had the priest not mentioned it… there was bird song again. The crows, vultures, the gloomy oppressive silence was all… gone.
Sebastian met Lady Ofelia's gaze of wonder with a small smile of his own. He was coming to enjoy all manner of bird song. Perhaps, if no one was offended, he may inquire about filling his manner with birds. Maybe even the ducal estate should start to leave bird seed out.
Caius kept pace with the large snake. He noticed the growing number of marked feathers. Now why, oh why, would the birds need so many feathers? Caius reminded himself constantly to not wrinkle his nose at the snake musk. Aiya! We get it! The white birdie is yours! A few of his kin had been given the side eye when they showed their… unappreciation for the strong musk.
Novak approached the largest fox. Caius, lord of lust. "Lord Caius, a word?" He asked not bothering to keep his mount out of bites reach. The fox would be able to catch him no matter the distance.
Caius barely glanced over the human assassin, "Aiya, I will eat you if you waste my time." He was surrounded by musk, unable to cuddle his Little Snack, and all his kin were laughing at him.
"Were the souls… destroyed?" Novak decided to get the point. An unhappy beast of sin was not an ideal conversation partner.
Caius rolled his eyes, "Aiya, no. They were sent for reincarnation. Though if they get reincarnated into this place again, aiya that would be a pity."
Novak gritted his teeth as he continued, "Is there a way to replicate the two fires? Or at least set them free? You wield soul fire as well, correct?'
Caius huffed, "Oh sure, free them like that! They'd be rabid if they could even reincarnate. More likely they would just go around madly attempting to steal another body. Or just attacking anyone with a soul."
Novak grimaced before he bowed his head, "Thank you Lord Caius." Novak didn't bother asking again if the fox could recreate the fire. Even if he could he probably wouldn't. Novak also wouldn't trust the fox to keep to his word anyway. He relayed the information to Jakub.