Chapter 235: Burnt Out

Fortune’s Favored spent a good hour discussing the pros and cons of the various actions they could next take. Now that they’d uncovered an obviously serious level of corruption in the military, the question had come down to whether they should immediately return to Far Felsen or continue the search for the allied avatar located somewhere in the mountains. Their debate went on for so long that halfway through, Willa approached them to join in on the conversation, having finished getting all the details she could out of Jonas.

Willa hadn’t been happy with Jadis. In fact, if her expression was anything to go by, she had a lot to say that wouldn’t be all that friendly. However, the captain was clearly both a pragmatist and a professional. She didn’t bother chiding someone who she had no authority over to begin with. Instead, she focused on giving her own input for the situation, at least for the moment.

On the one hand, Willa wanted to get back to the city and report her findings as quickly as possible. Jonas’ testimony and her account of what they’d seen were vital evidence that Vraekae needed to pursue action against an illegal smuggling operation that could potentially have some high-ranking backers. Capturing Jonas alive was a major boon to the investigation since whether his testimony was true or false, his mere presence in the mountains served as evidence of wrong-doing and supported Willa’s eyewitness testimony of who she had seen in the mines. The main reason for the rush, in Willa’s argument, was the fact that the soldiers down in the tunnels would likely report that Jonas had been taken and the leadership in charge of the operation could try to cover up their actions once they knew a witness to their crimes was unaccounted for and was potentially in the hands of people who could use that information against them.

On the other hand, Jadis didn’t want to throw away her chance at finding an ally who could help her with her connection to the gods. Not that she could explain the details to Willa, but her expedition was ostensibly out in the mountains searching for Nephilim “survivors” from her falsified backstory. There was a built-in time crunch to her cover story thanks to the coming winter. If they ended the expedition now, she wouldn’t get another chance for many months, not until winter was over. By then, the person Jadis was looking for could have left the area, or worse, be dead. They were in a hostile, demon-infested forest, after all.

Ultimately, the decision came down to two points. The first being, Jadis wasn’t willing to let Vraekae’s wishes blatantly override her goals anymore. The Magistrate was powerful and very much the lawful authority of the land, but Jadis wasn’t going to just bend over and take it because of a few threats and implications. She had her own plans, and a D given mission to boot. Vraekae’s objectives just weren’t a priority. She was willing to help Willa and the other soldiers because they were good people but not to the point of completely throwing away her own ambitions.

The second point, which Aila made in support of Jadis, was that there was no indication that the corrupt soldiers knew about Willa and her investigation. No one had seen Jadis or the rest of the group that had been sent down into the tunnels. In fact, they had a decently good cover for their actions thanks to the bandits. The soldiers were no doubt far more likely to assume that the attack had come from the bandits trying to get their captured companions back versus an investigation group sent by Vraekae. After all, Willa had been sent north as a protection detail for Jadis and Fortune’s Favored.

By the end of the hour-long debate, they’d come to an agreement, though not one that everyone was happy with. Like most things in life, it came down to a compromise.

“It’s settled then. We’re going to set out for the second location tomorrow,” Dys announced with a firm nod of her head. “We’ll search that area for no more than three days. After that, whether we find anyone or not, we’ll skip the third location and head back to Far Felsen.”

“Agreed,” Willa said with a frown. “If it will help move things along quicker, my troops and I will aid you in the search once we get to this second mountain.”

“Just a shame you can’t help us get to the mountain faster,” Syd sighed. “This wagon is a bitch to pull.”

Syd emphasized her statement with a couple of knocks on the wooden beast. Her action caused Alex to squirm inside of its glass cage where Syd had set the little demonling aside during their discussion.

“If it were in my power,” Willa let out her own weary sigh. “In truth, I’d rather we immediately ride out on our horses with that fool Jonas in tow. If we had our equipment still, I’d take the risk.”

“Too many demons around for that,” Aila interjected, repeating a point she’d already made. “Besides, those bandits could still be in the area. It’d be pretty embarrassing for you to be caught by them again, not to mention far more deadly.”

“True,” Willa said mildly. “In any case, I have arrangements to make with my men. Goodnight, all.”

After turning to go, Willa stopped after taking just a couple of steps. She turned to look up at Jay, Dys, and Syd, a serious expression on her face.

“Just so you three know, if any of you had actually tried to torture that man, I would have stopped you. Weapons or not.”

“Fair enough,” Jay answered after a tense pause. “I think… I think we went too far in the heat of the moment.”

“You did. But it was just a threat, and one not seen through. A threat to a fool who deserves the gallows is something I can let pass. There are others of more import than me who would not have taken your words so well. Bear that in mind for the future.”

With that final word, Willa turned and left Fortune’s Favored to their business.

Now that she’d had an hour to cool her head with some calm, rational discussion, Jadis was starting to feel more and more like a complete and total bitch. Had she really threatened to torture that man? Really? She didn’t consider herself to be some paragon of virtue or anything, but torture? What the fuck had she been thinking?

Not much, she had to admit to herself. She was just… angry. Angry, frustrated, and in a lot of pain. She still hurt, even though her health had been restored to its maximum. Jay’s body was still a mass of burn scars since Eir hadn’t used her restoration spell on her yet and the feel of her too tight, disfigured flesh wasn’t just uncomfortable; it legitimately hurt her to move.

“I, uh, I think I’m going to go rest now,” Jay said lamely, suddenly feeling awkward. “Let me know if I’m needed.”

“If it’s an emergency,” Aila said. “But go get some sleep. All of you.”

“We need to keep a watch on—” Syd started to say but was abruptly cut off by a stern word from the redhead.

“No. Go to sleep. All three. We can handle the watch without you.”

Jadis didn’t argue further. One look at Aila’s expression told her that to do so would be a monumental error. Almost sheepishly, yet still trying to maintain some air of dignity, Jadis let herself be sent to bed like an unruly child in need of a nap.

The camp that had been set up inside of the cave was much more cramped than any they’d done outside. There was no room for their tent-wagon setup. Places on the cave floor had still been made for them all to rest though, with Fortune’s Favored separated from the soldiers. That wasn’t where Jadis was directed, though. Instead, Aila and Eir both made sure that Jadis’ three selves all went inside of the wagon, sequestering her from the rest of the camp.

It was a tight fit, but in short order Jadis’ selves were wrapped up in blankets on the floor of the wagon interior, their limbs tangled together in a still-life version of a mosh pit. As overcharged as Jadis’ mind was with the worry of everything that needed to be done, the moment she closed all three sets of her eyes, she was lost in the darkness of a dreamless sleep.

At some point, Jadis half-woke to the sound of a whispered discussion. She could hear Aila and Eir talking, and Kerr as well. She smiled, reaching out towards her lovers and found warm hands that held her own as she drifted back into a deep sleep.

In that timeless way of unconsciousness, Jadis woke from her sleep to the sound of a gentle humming. Someone was running their fingers through her hair while singing a wordless tune, quiet enough to not wake her. It took Jadis a few moments to orient herself, but as her awareness slowly came back to her, she realized that Jay’s head was lying in Eir’s lap, the priestess the one responsible for the song. Her other two selves were both wrapped up tightly around Jay, turning her into a solid mass of Nephilim.

“What’s that song called?” Jay asked, her eyes half-open and unfocused.

“The Peace of Forgotten Places,” Eir paused her humming, though she kept combing her fingers through Jay’s white hair. “A favorite of mine, one that my mother would sing to me often when I was a child.”

“It’s lovely,” Jay murmured.

Eir resumed the song, flowing through several more wordless verses as the tune repeated itself. Jadis simply listened, not thinking about anything as her mind drifted in a calm mist of peace. Eventually, when the song came to an end, the gears in Jadis’ brain began to turn again and Jay quietly blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“I really fucked up earlier, didn’t I?”

Eir paused, one hand still holding Jay’s hair while the other moved to her brow. The priestess ran her fingers across Jay’s eyebrows, smoothing them out gently as she quietly contemplated Jay.

“Yes, you did.”

“I shouldn’t have threatened that man like that.”

“No, you shouldn’t have,” Eir said as she began stroking the top of Jay’s head. “Do you understand why?”

Jay opened her mouth to answer, then froze. Her first instinct was to say it was wrong to torture someone, even if they were an enemy. But she didn’t think that was the answer Eir was looking for. Not the only one, at least. Staring up into the face of her beautiful, lovely, elven companion, Jadis thought back to what she’d said in the heat of the moment. Her face fell as she came face to face with the memory of just how monstrously she’d acted.

“…for a lot of reasons,” Jay admitted as her throat tightened up. “Not the least of which, I was going to force you to heal him so I could hurt him even more.”

Eir simply nodded, her expression placid as she continued to run her fingers soothingly through Jay’s white tresses.

“That was a cruelty I never expected to hear from you,” Eir told her. “That would have been a terrible position for you to force me into.”

“Yeah,” Jay said quietly. “Sorry.”

“Anger and violence aren’t always the way forward,” Eir said as one finger traced the line of Jay’s chin. “You are a powerful warrior. Potent and full of strength, you can take what you want with brute force. But you are also full of kindness. You are gentle and loving to those who are close to you. Your grace and mercy even extends to the lowliest of creatures, treating that demon hatchling with more compassion than any demon deserves. That part of you should be just as known to the rest of the world as it is known to me.”

Jadis wasn’t all that sure about Eir’s assessment of her personal traits, but the loving way the priestess spoke soothed her while at the same time reminded her that she did need to do better. She’d been far too frustrated with the situation and had taken it out on both the hapless idiot soldier and Willa, neither of whom deserved her wrath.

“I’m sorry,” Jay repeated. She gently disentangled her hand from her other selves and took a hold of Eir’s hand, bringing it close to her lips so she could kiss the palm. “Really. I’m sorry I said those things. I won’t do it again.”

“You were lost,” Eir said as she brought Jay’s hand up to her own lips. “Now you have come back to us. Should you stray again, I’ll simply have to knock some sense into you.”

“Please do,” Jay smiled.

“Also,” Eir frowned slightly as she shook her head. “Don’t let yourself grow so worn again. If you are tired and hurt, don’t hide the truth from us. You are not an island, nor are you expected to be our perfect protector. Depend on us as we depend on you.”

“I’ll try to remember that,” Jay said solemnly.

“Also,” Eir continued with a wry smile, “would you please try to make amends with my cousin? I truly think the strife between you two needs to come to an end.”

“That turbo-bitch is the one who needs to make amends with me,” Jay growled as her brow furrowed. “She’s the one that—”

“Jadis,” Eir warned as she forcefully smoothed the frown out of Jay’s brow with her hand.

“Okay, okay. I’ll think about it.”

“Good,” Eir smiled. “Now, I believe it is well past time for you to eat something. Breakfast should be ready by now.”

“That sounds good,” Jadis agreed as three stomachs rumbled as one at the mention of food. “But first, I think I have a few people to apologize to.”

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