“Oh, that’s wonderful,” Rose replied, turning and smiling at the succubus happily. “I didn’t think you’d be quite that fast, but it’s good that you’re back. I could use some help.”
“Anna suspected that you might have overworked yourself, so she got some just in case,” Tina explained, still grinning. “Now, what did you need help with?”
“Ah, that does explain it. As for me…” Rose hesitated, then admitted, “I just realized that I don’t think I can apply the eye shadow correctly. Since this creates a long-term color, I’d rather not smudge it and waste any, so I was hoping that you’d be able to help apply it.”
“Of course! Using the red to match your hair, is it?” Tina asked, looking at the makeup and nodding in understanding. “How dark were you wanting it? Barely visible or heavier?”
“Well, I’m thinking somewhere in the middle… would you mind starting light and slowly darkening it until we get to where I want it?” Rose asked hesitantly.
“Sure. We can start with one of your eyes, then do the other once we’ve got things perfect.” Tina said confidently, picking up the applicator. “I think this will be a beautiful color for you, Rose.”
As Tina was preparing the applicator, Rose considered the woman. She was a lot happier now, which was confusing. Tina had seemed happy enough before she’d left the room, but now she was practically giddy. Finally, Rose decided to say something.
“Tina? Is something going on? You’ve seemed incredibly happy about something ever since you got back,” Rose asked, unable to suppress her curiosity.
“Oh, of course there is! Anna told me that Queen Estalia is coming to visit the spire soon, and I’m incredibly excited to see her again!” Tina said, her enthusiasm only seeming to increase as she spoke, practically bouncing in place. “She’s the most beautiful, kind, and powerful woman I’ve ever known!”
“Queen Estalia?” Rose asked, dredging her memory for details.
She knew there was a region by that name in the hells, and that was where they were, but details on the domain hadn’t been very important. If she remembered right, the archdemon in charge of the domain had never fought on the front lines, and while some demons from the realm occasionally were encountered, they didn’t appear in huge numbers. What she remembered also implied that it was a domain more focused on recreation and trade, too.
“That’s right! She’s the patron of our order, our goddess made flesh!” Tina said, flashing another brilliant smile.
The praise made Rose worried, and she asked nervously, “Will… will I meet her?”
“Almost certainly. She likes to visit everyone when she’s here, to be certain they’re well-treated.” Tina’s voice held no doubt, prompting mixed feelings in Rose for a moment. “You’ll love her, I’m sure of it! There’s no one else like her in the world.”
“In that case, I’m looking forward to seeing Queen Estalia,” Rose said, pushing her worries to the back of her mind. But it also brought something else to mind, as she realized that if she was going to meet an archdemon, she’d best make certain that the woman wouldn’t smite her out of hand. It added a bit of impetus to her desire to make herself beautiful, so she smiled and said, “Now, what do you need me to do?”
“Just close your eyes and hold still,” Tina said, her tail swishing happily. “I’ll tell you when I’m ready for you to check the colors.”
“That sounds good to me,” Rose agreed, closing her eyes readily.
She’d never imagined the hells could be so restful.
Chapter 21
After another two days, Brialla finally was well enough to go back home, and if Isalla was being honest, she was amazed that the young woman was able to leave so quickly. She’d seen what Kanae had been forced to do to keep the young woman alive, after all, so seeing her able to walk around so quickly was startling. Certainly, she wasn’t able to walk easily, but that she was mobile at all was impressive.
Still, her departure had, at least initially, led Isalla to believe they’d be left alone again, but that was when the townsfolk had descended on Kanae in force. For almost a full day, they’d shown up with food, offers to sharpen Kanae’s axe, and other gifts. It took Isalla a while to realize it was their way of repaying the healer, but she figured it out in the end. Kanae didn’t refuse anything except for the most extravagant of gifts, but even so, by the end of the day the table was piled with food, additional clothing, and a handful of tools.
“What is this? It looks like it’s just a bracelet, but the wood is odd,” Isalla asked, examining a bracelet and frowning curiously at it. The wood looked nice, but the strange thing was how there were hundreds of tiny holes in its surface.
“Hm? Oh, the whisperwood bracelet? You haven’t seen one before?” Kanae asked, looking up from a basket of vegetables, then paused before continuing. “Come to think of it, the tree doesn’t grow outside the hells, does it… that would explain why.”
“What’s whisperwood? You’re right that I haven’t seen it before,” Isalla agreed, looking at the bracelet and turning it over in her hands.
“Whisperwood has an odd property which allows it to store sound that’s released when the wood is burned,” Kanae explained, stretching for a moment, her back popping audibly as she did so. “The trees tend to howl like the wind when they catch fire because of it. If you harvest wood from a whisperwood tree, though, you can cause it to record something by immersing it in warm water for about five minutes, then pulling it out and speaking to it. So long as no one repeats the process, when burned, the wood will speak whatever was said. It’s usually prized when someone is trying to send a message that they don’t want overheard, since even if you have magic that restores the wood from ashes, it doesn’t reclaim the message.”
“Oh, that’s neat! Why would they give one to you, then?” Isalla asked, examining the bracelet with renewed curiosity. If she thought Roselynn knew how to use one, she might consider trying to send her a message using whisperwood. Unfortunately, she doubted that Roselynn knew, so it wouldn’t be very useful.
“I have no idea, but it might be useful in the future. Stranger things have happened. As it is, the vegetables are far more useful,” Kanae said, nodding in satisfaction. “I think a good soup is in order.”
“That’s something I wanted to ask, actually. If the townsfolk give you gifts like this rather than paying for your help, how do you make money?” Isalla asked, looking down at herself guiltily as she examined her clothing. “You paid for my clothing and sword, so I know you have money, but…”
“Ah, that’s not a problem. I mainly make money by selling healing salves and other alchemical elixirs to caravans heading up Hellmount, and they pay well for them. What they don’t use, they sell there, since many of the things I make require ingredients that are far less common in the mortal world.” Kanae said, smiling as she looked at the next basket. “I also get paid by some of the townsfolk, since they can afford to do so. Everyone knows that if they need help, I’ll do it, but none of them want to abuse my generosity. Since I don’t like relying on just those who can pay, I invest some of my income into the trade house in town, and whenever a consignment of goods to the capital or the mortal world makes money, I get a portion of it. Between those, I’ve made a healthy sum over the years that I’ve lived here. It may not be much when you consider my expenses from month to month, but it adds up over time.”
“Oh, that would do it, I guess. I thought… well, I’m not sure what I thought, exactly,” Isalla said, relaxing slightly as she considered what she wanted to say, relieved that Kanae was doing well. “I was just afraid I was being a significant drain.”
“Not really, no. A minor one, perhaps, but you’re much better than many of the guests I’ve had over the years,” Kanae replied, her tone light and almost amused now. “It’s ironic, considering our situation. Most angels probably would have tried to kill me by now.”
“Yes, well… most angels haven’t been betrayed by their own before,
” Isalla said, bile rising in her throat, and she swallowed hard before continuing, watching Kanae’s gaze sharpen. “We did decide to discuss this after everyone else was gone, right?”
“True, but based on what you just said, let me take a moment to ensure no one is nearby,” Kanae told her, standing up with a grim look on her face. Isalla opened her mouth but shut it again and decided to wait instead.
Kanae slipped out of the house for a couple of minutes, then returned, nodding in satisfaction as she looked at Isalla. “No one’s near the house, and it’s growing dark, so we should be safe from eavesdroppers. The house is warded against most common scrying, so we should be safe from anyone overhearing that way as well.”
“Ah, is it really that dangerous to talk about?” Isalla asked, her worry growing. “I mean, it’s not like it’s that big of a deal, is it?”
“You told me you fell directly from the heavens over Hellmount and into the hells. That means that you were somehow dropped here, likely from a portal they opened to the mortal world,” Kanae said, taking her seat again, a pensive look on her face. “I don’t know how, but obviously they did it. You also spoke of being betrayed, and that… well, I could easily see someone deciding that they need a pretext to start another war and throwing you down here. The last major war started with something similar, from what I’ve heard, including some backstabbing by both factions. That worries me.”
“Really? I never heard about that. I’m not sure, though…” Isalla said, frowning as she debated on what to do or say. Most angels would think that telling Kanae anything was a betrayal, but Isalla also didn’t want to hide how bad the situation was from her host. Besides, she liked Kanae.
“Mm, that’s what I heard. One of the archangels died suddenly, and the new archangel of war blamed the demons and started a war. Now, I’m not saying some archdemon didn’t try to have the archangel of war assassinated, but the chances of success seem slim, as does an archdemon not taking into account the likelihood of the mantle being passed on,” Kanae said, shrugging. “I’ve never heard a certain explanation of what else helped start the war, but that’s one of the major suspicions.”
“I… hadn’t heard about that before. I don’t think this is the same, though,” Isalla said, blinking and thinking about what Kanae had said. She’d never heard just what led to the War of Decimation, but for the moment she put it aside, instead taking a deep breath and continuing. “I was assigned to the Evergardens, as the head investigator of crimes there. I shouldn’t say head, since I was the only investigator and I didn’t have training, but that’s what my title was.”
“The Evergardens? I’ve never heard of them,” Kanae murmured, and Isalla grimaced.
“You wouldn’t have. The Evergardens are on one of the most remote continents in the heavens, farthest from anything worthwhile. They’re not worthless, mind you, but… producing most of the food common folk eat isn’t exactly glamorous,” Isalla said, swallowing hard and admitting unhappily, “Being assigned there is something of a punishment, and not being trained for it, I’ve long thought that I was being set up to fail. I don’t want to talk about why I was assigned there, though. It really isn’t applicable.”
“Everyone has their secrets, Isalla. It isn’t as though I’ve told you everything about me, you know,” Kanae replied calmly, sitting back in her chair and watching Isalla thoughtfully. “I suspect that the Evergardens are a bit more important than you thought, though. Why else would you have been betrayed there?”
“You may be right. It took a while after I was assigned there, but I started hearing odd whispers, about things that are blasphemy among angels,” Isalla explained, hesitating for a long moment, then continuing reluctantly. She really didn’t like talking about this, but she had to. “Whispers of an angelic god, who glowed with a brilliant gold light. The whispers seemed to indicate that the deity would rebalance the heavens, allowing those of the weaker choirs to rise, and the angelic orders to be humbled. It’s the sort of thing that can cause harsh reactions from above, and the whispers were widespread enough that if I came to the Council without proof, I’d be punished for my failings. So I began to investigate.”
Kanae nodded, and there was something in her eyes that made Isalla fall silent. Eventually she shrugged and continued. “I realized then that several members of the Council were appearing in the Evergardens without being announced, then returning to the High Halls. They certainly weren’t telling me about their presence, which was worrying. Fortunately, I had a friend I’d made, a woman named Haral. She confessed to me that she knew something, but wanted to speak to me in private, because it was dangerous.”
“I imagine that didn’t go well for you,” Kanae murmured, and as Isalla blinked at her in surprise, the demoness smiled and pointed out, “You did say betrayal before.”
“Well, yes. I didn’t think of that, but you’re right. I took the time to send a letter to my old commander to be safe, but I went to meet with Haral, and walked right into a trap,” Isalla admitted sourly, feeling slightly sick again. “I gave a good accounting of myself, but Haral backstabbed me, so I barely dealt with one of them. They’re the ones who did… well, everything that you’d seen done to me. They threw me off the continent, too, likely in the hopes that others would think I’d rushed into the hells to try and regain my honor. I still don’t know why, though.”
“That’s interesting. Dangerous, but interesting,” Kanae murmured, sitting back in her chair, looking thoughtful.
“Agreed. I was just… well, I was hoping to get to the outpost north of Zintas, the one you mentioned. Firewatch is commanded by Roselynn, my old commander,” Isalla explained nervously, her emotions tangled. Roselynn hadn’t replied to any of Isalla’s letters, but Isalla still had feelings for her that were as strong or stronger than her growing attraction to Kanae. “She’s the one I sent the letter to. Heck, even getting her a message would be good, since I told her I was going to contact her again afterward, and obviously I didn’t.”
“Truly? That is interesting, and quite the coincidence that it’s so close. I’m going to have to ask a few questions and see what I can find out. Getting you there might be… difficult, considering how finicky the kingdoms are about spies, but I’m sure there are smugglers,” Kanae said, smiling slightly. “A message might be easier.”
“I agree. I’m hoping she can make use of the information I have, but…” Isalla shrugged, feeling slightly helpless in addition to her discomfort.
Kanae didn’t answer, sitting back and staring at the ceiling. Isalla didn’t say anything either, looking at the things on the table. Part of her thought that a few of the shirts there were sized for her, which was odd. Unless a few people were grateful to her, which seemed unlikely.
“Do you know what the difference between archangels, archdemons, and mortal gods is?” Kanae asked suddenly, looking at Isalla.
“Um, I know that the mantle of each can only be passed to one of their own… faction, for lack of a better term. Only an angel can become an archangel, only a demon can become an archdemon, and only a mortal can become a mortal god,” Isalla replied, blinking at the seeming non sequitur comment. “Also, the mantle can’t be destroyed, though the remains of the predecessor can be hidden to keep the mantle from being claimed.”
“True enough, though incomplete. One of the things that neither angels nor demons like to discuss is that mortal gods are more powerful than archangels or archdemons. Not only do they gain immortality, the mortals gain powers that are subtly more potent than their counterparts,” Kanae said, stunning Isalla, who opened her mouth. Kanae wasn’t done, though, and continued. “The issue is that angels and demons are innately slightly more powerful than mortals are, so the difference doesn’t appear until they reach the same level of skill. That being said, if an angel gained a mantle equal to that of a mortal god, or somehow managed to convert a deific mantle… they might not be unstoppable, but it would shake the foundations of the heavens and hells.”
> “That… well, I haven’t heard that, but assuming you’re right… could they really do that?” Isalla asked nervously. “I’ve never heard of something like that before.”
“Just because something hasn’t been done doesn’t mean it’s impossible,” Kanae said, her voice calm. “I don’t know that it’s what they’re trying for, but it’s something to keep in mind, even if we can’t do anything at the moment. Thank you for trusting me, Isalla. As it stands… well, we’ll just have to wait. I’ll see what I can find out about getting you to Roselynn.”
“Thank you,” Isalla replied, feeling relief slowly work its way through her.
Kanae didn’t reply, but Isalla hadn’t expected her to, not with how distant Kanae’s eyes were. No, not distant, the angel realized. She could see tears in the demon’s eyes, suppressed but present, and Isalla suddenly couldn’t help feeling guilty. She didn’t know what exactly she’d done, but she’d obviously hurt Kanae somehow.
She hesitated for a moment, then stood. Kanae focused suddenly, tilting her head as she watched Isalla, but she didn’t speak.
Isalla didn’t allow herself to hesitate or second-guess herself, and she simply leaned down and gave Kanae a kiss. The demoness stiffened slightly, then relaxed, her lips warm and smooth, with the same scent that Isalla had noticed before, and a slight taste that was similar to the apples she’d had before. It was almost intoxicating, and Isalla held the kiss for a moment, then broke it off.
“Isalla?” Kanae asked, sounding slightly dubious, and Isalla smiled at her.
“Would you care to join me in the bath?” Isalla asked nervously.
At that, Kanae smiled as well, and happiness surged through Isalla.
Chapter 22
Kanae was having trouble sleeping. She stared at the ceiling above her, slowly counting to herself, but it wasn’t helping with sleep. It wasn’t what had happened over the last few hours… no, her time with Isalla had been pleasant, and the demoness smiled as she looked over to see the angel’s back in the darkness, feeling the warmth radiating from her. It was… comforting, that someone might care about her.
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