One demesne, one divihere is no one who will disagree with that, however I would reframe things. Epa once had a God of Rivers, who reformed only one year before the Great War ended into Tethya, Goddess of Rivers. Guguo has o cim the title though, instead each stream has its own guardiay in the same vein of our Fortress Spirits.

  My own belief, and Saranael agrees with me, is that Epaality operates on a more ceptual, rather than material scale. Whereas Guguo is filled with traditions and are legalisms that make magis blush, Epaality be summed in Saranael’s new favourite revetion: “All I know is that I know nothing.” There is another case for it though, Guguo is older than Epan nations. Through ‘one demesne, one Divine’ we reason that whereas Guguht about its guardian spirits and Divines for locations first and closed down its route to the most powerful, Epa effectively cimed the graitles: Of Rivers enpasses all moving freshwaters in the ti. Iniri is the gra example, we will never have an Of Flowers, Of Trees, Of Oaks because her demesne enpasses all flora.

  Arascus came to this realisation first, and he did not share it. Of ons was sin. Of Swords came about first, thus a se of Of ons was taken. We will never have the grand sughter deity again. Instead we have Asna, Labrys, Pridwen, the rest of them. I wonder if it was a calcuted move. An Of Swords will be ily more powerful than being separated further, into the demesnes of Scimitars, Sabres, Short and Longswords and so on.

  I am gd certain Divines have e to save Epa from itself. Because Helenna is here, we have her rival Mam, but I much prefer this situation than having the unified Of Obsession. Kassandora and Fortia are another example, one of them must be kept alive, because to risk both dying at the same time and ref into something akin to Of flict is too dangerous.

  - Excerpt from “Doting Divinity”, written by Goddess Alsaria, of Light. Written in the first decade after the Great War. Currently in Kirinyaa.

  Helenna looked out the window of the private p the sea of clouds below them. This high up, there were always cloud, but it was only an hour flight from CR to Nanbasa. B, but Arascus was ing too. The pne was what Neneria had e ba. Whatever pne had dropped her into Olympiada obviously couldn’t nd there, so her team merely stole one from the skyport.

  Good for them frankly. The White Pantheon was the only p the world with pnes designed specifically for Divine needs. The couches against the windows were so tall grown men could daheir legs off the side. The ceiling was built to give Alsaria headroom, which meant that Arascus only had to ine his head slightly if he stood up straight. He wasn’t though, he rawled out on the couch opposite the isle.

  Supposedly rich mortals had private bars in their private pnes, but everyone in the White Pantheon could empty a bar in an hour if they were in a sour mood, which they usually were. Instead it was ets. ets upon ets in the back, filled with anything and everything. Helenna looked up from her wine gss and at Arascus, he was watg her drink in silence. “I’m surprised you’ve not ented yet.” Helenna said.

  “What about?” He asked. She tapped the gss filled with red wine in answer and he merely shrugged. “No one’s a child here, I expect you to not to turn up to meetings drunk.”

  “Of course I won’t.”

  “I know.” Arascus said. “That’s why I’m not going to say anything.” Helenna ughed as she took a sip of the wine. For a Divihat was a quarter of the wine.

  “So what will we be doing?” Helenna asked as she reed. CR was fortable, but there was little in Arda that pared to the fort the White Pantheon could provide. They really had made a good choice stealing this one.

  “We need wyers.” Arascus said with a sigh. “I’ll give you two months on this o it’s your job. I don’t care how you do it. I’d prefer no deys but time will be made if you need more.” Helenna ughed. Who did he think she was? Lawyers? Give her a day for something that small. “Kassandora representing herself will be a bad look. She could do it, she’d win, but it simply wouldn’t look good in the long run.” Arascus tinued. “Everyone knows she’s petent, but mortals only take a certain amount of Divine petence before they start to feel patronized.”

  “I uand.” She had heard the pn. If Kassandora was to coup the try, it would be better if it looks like she’s saving it from itself. Not that she’s so overp that Kirinyaa is simply better in her hands. That sort of logic bred anti-Diviiment.

  “But obviously the issue is we ’t…” Arascus stopped for a moment. “Lawyers get to see the case. It’ll be more trouble than it’s worth if we’re trig our side as well.”

  “So you want wyers for the long run.” Helenna said fidently.

  “Treat it is if someone like Sokolowski knows, the wyer will know. We hat level of fanaticism.” Helenna swirled the gss. That would prove harder, especially among the Kirinyaans themselves. They loved Kassandora, but it wouldn’t sit right with them that they’d be plotting against themselves. Again, not a case of them being unfit for the job, but it would open up a of worms they could avoid ter down the line.

  “We’re taking Kirinyaa over though.” Helenna said. “Is it time to start calling the favours in?” She smiled at him and sipped her wine again. The gss ran out.

  “With politis, go ahead. Burn them.” Arascus firmed. “Anyone you sider easily repceable, I don’t think I have to tell you not to burn the manufacturers and people like that.” Helenna smiled to herself as she poured anss. The man was smooth indeed, he just told her who not to burn whilst plimentihis was the sort of thing Alsaria would write out a list for and still be angry when Helenna purposefully found an annoying way around it to remove someone important.

  “I know who be repced.” Helenna said, she sipped the gss. And so, she would do a good job. Had he tricked her into? Had she agreed? She didn’t really know, but this style of leadership far suited her.

  “Kassandora will need legal dots relevant. She mount her own defence.” Arascus said then trailed off. He extended his arm and moved his fingers about. Helenna passed him the witle. “But it is Kassie.” He took a swig.

  “Too all or nothing.” Helenna said as Arascus emptied half the bottle in a go.

  “Took the words out of my mouth.” He said. “The only people who don’t appreciate a delicate touch are those who haven’t felt it.” He said with a smile as Helenna ughed, her hair turned red.

  “I’m very delicate.” Helenna said. “It’ll be done.”

  “Tomorrow, you should have assistance arrive too.” Helenna’s eyes widened. Assistahat word was only used when she was the assistance.

  “Who?”

  “Kassandora is sending soldiers to you.” He said fidently aied the bottle. “She’ll know who to pick.”

  Helenna raised her too a farcical level. “You know me, I expect the best.”

  “We have standards here.” Arascus said. “We only get the best.”

  “Best enough to do it in one month?” Helenna asked and Arascus chuckled.

  “I’ll take you out to dinner if you do it in one month.” Helenna smiled. She erfectly aware she was being pyed right now. No one spoke to Divines like that, and especially not to Helenna. Even Iions and Forces would lower their heads and pretend not to see her wheered the room. Did they think she cared? If she wao be modest, she would! And this ma a challenge like that? How could she not take the bait?

  “That a bet?”

  “Bets take two sides?”

  “Then dinner’s mine if I ’t.” Arascus ughed as he stood up to get a bottle.

  “Then I’d start making reservations if I were you.”

  She knew she yed, but sometimes, being pyed was even more fun than doing the pying.

  Fer k at an a battle site ihick forest. Dark furs had died here. Dark furs and more her pack. She told them she would visit o was done. Now a hundred more to go.

  Helenna waited at her hotel when the men arrived. They said they’d be here seven, thirty ohey were seven thirty oo the damn dot. That’s how you knew you were dealing with Kassandora’s types. Only Maisara’s Padins could pete with that level of stupid little precision.

  Twenty Kassandora had sent, they’d be sleeping four to a room. Five rooms, Helenna took the penthouse suite. She said that it’s because it was the only ohat mao fit a Divine, but that wasn’t really the case. If all the rooms fit Divines, she would still be in the penthouse. They saluted her as they would their anding officer and Helenna made an unamused face. “Do you know what you’re doing?” She asked.

  “Yes Goddess!” The lead man replied, still holding the salute. He was dressed in standard uniform, a green shirt, green shorts, boots for walking through ash, still dirty.

  “Do you know why you are here?” Helenna snapped.

  “To assist in aion I will not say in public.” Helenna rolled her head from side to side. Amazing, really.

  “So why are you dressed like that?” Helenna asked. The man still held the damn salute.

  “Goddess Kassandora sent us off like this.” He said. Helenna ughed, well she’d send them ba dresses then. How would Kassie enjoy that?

  “Do you knoolitis wear?”

  “Yes Goddess!”

  “Get to shopping then. Here’s a card.” She pulled a bank card she had prepared for them. Well, someone had prepared it for her, but Divines usually got things free of charge. The mahe salute still. Helenna bli him, he did not blink at her.

  “Are you seriht now?” She asked.

  To think the Goddess of Love would actually have to be pulling military salutes.

  Arascus looked through his letters. There was one from Helenna, handwritten, wax seal unbroken. If it was important enough to have one of Kassandora’s soldiers hand deliver it, it must be good. He broke the seal, the inside smelled like perfume. That was cssically Helenna.

  And as he read it, he burst out into ughter. What a move. He would have hought of it.

  Heleered a room in Kirinyaa’s parliament. The ceilings were high, the doorframes could fit Alsaria, the table was huge, there was a grand chair akin to a throne already prepared for her. And around it sat the most iial politis, not the popur ones, but the old guard. The ones who knew how to pull strings, the ohat Helenna had made sure would get a nice slice of the recimed nd from the Jungle. She had e early, she usually did for meetings. But mortals had a habit of ing even earlier than Divines when the meeting was being hosted by a Divine. Kassandora’s soldiers followed her in, each man in a prim suit and looking as respectable as the men around the table.

  Turning wyers into Kassandora’s men was a tough job. But turning Kassandora’s men into wyers would be far easier. After all, there was only main roadblock, they had to be Kirinyaan nationals. And that was a mere bureaucratic speedbump.

  Had something so simple as bureaucracy ever stopped the march of Love? Helenna took her seat and reshuffled her papers. “Gentlemen, I am gd you have e. I have an issue that pains my heart.”