Portals of Infinity: Book Five: Demigods and Deities Page 6

  "Pay attention, there'll be a test on this later." I said, as a priest hurried up to us looking most upset.

  "What is this all about?" He asked.

  "Do you know who I am?" I asked him.

  "N ..." He paused a moment, and got that surprised expression that told me he just got a wakeup call. I noticed Evan's eyes narrowed slightly.

  "You're Wilma, the foreign champion who helped Rondall and our most blessed in the defense of Scopuli some six or so years ago." The priest said, and he looked a lot more respectful suddenly.

  "Yes, and this is my friend Evan. Please convey to your goddess that we, or rather, I, was just attacked by a strange priest at the Morgan estate, where I was performing a private show for Mrs. Morgan's guests. I don't know what god he followed, and he killed Sarah, whom I pray is now in the arms of the Goddess as we speak.

  "There may have been more there, I don't know."

  The priest nodded a moment and closed his eyes, I guess in prayer. "The Goddess Sireen hears all in her house of course, and she asks if you have anything of this priest's?"

  I pulled out the gun and showed it to him. He took it and examined it closely, then blessed it before handing it back.

  "He was a priest of the god Trespon," the priest told me.

  "Who the hell is Trespon?" Evan said.

  "Yeah, who is he?" I echoed.

  "Trespon is the god whose high priest and champion you slew in defense of our most sacred city."

  I swore. "So he's looking for paybacks?"

  The priest nodded, "Apparently. I will have the couple of the temple guards take you to your home, and will dispatch several more to the Morgan estate."

  I nodded, "Thank you; I appreciate your hospitality, and the gracious charity of the Goddess."

  The priest smiled and gave a small wave of his hand, "Think nothing of it, you performed a service for our lady and the most blessed. Please, come to my office and rest while I arrange things."

  He showed us to his office, and sent someone out to find me something to drink while he went and talked to the guard.

  "I'm surprised Sireen didn't talk to us herself," Evan said as we sat around the room waiting.

  I shrugged, "I'm not fully up on the rules here, also remember that we're not members of the faith, so while I'm sure she's interested in what we're doing, and what's happening, I suspect she has a lot more important things than us to deal with."

  Evan laughed and nodded, "True, guess I've gotten spoiled. I'm too used to being someone important!"

  Someone brought us drinks a minute later, and then ten minutes after that, the priest showed up with a member of the guard, and he escorted us out to a car with two more guards, and drove us back to Henry's place.

  Henry came rushing out as we pulled up.

  "Wilma! Are you okay? I just heard what happened!"

  I hugged him as he grabbed me and hugged me back. "I'm fine, Henry, but Sarah didn't make it." I said and tried not to cry, the damned hormones had kicked in again I guess.

  "I, I heard," he said and I could see he was trying not to cry himself.

  "Let's get inside," Evan said, and motioned to the three guards who had driven us here. "How about you three helping me check the house?"

  "Yessir!" they all said and nodded.

  Henry and I followed them inside.

  "I need a few things, Henry," I said when we got to his office, after it had been cleared by Evan.

  "Sure, anything!"

  "I need you to get half of what you owe me; I need to make a donation to the goddess Sireen. Then I owe Evan some money, after that, I want to give most of what's left to Sarah's kids."

  "I, I can do that," he said and nodded. "But don't worry about Sarah's children; they'll be well taken care of."

  "Are you sure?" I asked.

  Henry nodded rather sadly, "Her eldest is my son."

  I lost it then and gave him a hug. "I had no idea," I cried, and we spent the next hour comforting each other as Evan and the guards secured the estate.

  It was late and we were back in my room, Evan and me. Evan had a gun and a sword and was rather set on spending the night sleeping in my room. At the moment, I wasn't about to say no either.

  "So why are you going to give that to the local goddess?" Evan said motioning to the several rather large bags of money sitting at the foot of the bed. I myself had been a bit shocked at just how much money Henry had given me. At least they used paper currency here, or I'd never been able to lift it. I was still shocked he'd been able to come up with it so quickly.

  "It has to do with the rules," I told him.

  "What rules? What are these rules you are talking about? You mentioned them twice earlier today when we were at that temple."

  I looked at him surprised.

  "What?" Evan said blinking.

  "You don't know about the rules?" I said rather surprised myself.

  "Well, I wouldn't be asking if I did, now would I?"

  "How long have you been working for Roden?"

  "Oh, I don't know, fifteen, eighteen years now?"

  "And he never once told you about the rules?"

  "I said I didn't know anything about them, didn't I?"

  I nodded slowly, "Okay, I take it you know how to gate home; you know how to do the eyes and ears bit, right?"

  Evan nodded, "Of course."

  "Think of this," I waved my arm at the room and everything in it, "all of this, the room, the sphere, the gods, the people, everything! Think of it all as just one big game."

  Evan looked at me like I'd lost all sense. "What?"

  "Everything we do, everything we can do, its got limits on it, right? There are things I can do; you can do, that the regular people can't do. Then there are the things that the gods can and cannot do, right?"

  Evan paused a moment, obviously thinking about it, "You know, I never really looked at it that way."

  I nodded, "Those are the rules. But there are just more rules than those which say what powers we have because of the roles we play."

  Evan nodded slowly, and then suddenly I saw the light go on in his eyes. "That was why Roden could make me so beautiful, wasn't it? Because I was so ugly!"

  I nodded, "I'm sure that had a part in it. The gods may be all powerful, but their actions are limited by the rules. And if we know about these rules, we can manipulate them to our advantage."

  "I see," Evan said slowly. "So why did Roden never tell me about them?"

  I shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe they can't? When I talked to Fel about it, and the topic came up, I was already thinking in those terms, so maybe that's why he could tell me?"

  "So what are they?"

  "I don't know, well, that is, I know a few of them. But I'm still learning."

  "Okay, and what do the rules have to do with that?" Evan asked pointing at the large bag of money.

  "God's are limited in what they can do for you, based on your piety. One of the measures of that piety is how much you contribute to them. By giving Sireen every last cent we had between the two of us, when we walked in there, we showed her, by the rules, that our need was great and our desire was sincere.

  "Also, as it was the first time either of us had contributed, it had a bit of an added effect."

  "You don't think she would have helped us, otherwise?" Evan said looking puzzled.

  "Oh, I think she would have still helped, I did do her a great service after all. But by giving all that much extra, it frees her up to do even more."

  "Like the three guards that were sent with us?"

  I nodded.

  "But still, why so much now?"

  I shrugged, "I'm loaded here, in order for an offer from me, someone who doesn't really live here or worship her, to be judged sincere it has to be a lot. I'm hoping that," I pointed to the four large canvas bags at the foot of the bed, "is enough. I would have given her more, but I wanted to have something for Sarah's children, now that their mother is dead."

  Evan nodded, "
Okay, I get that now. But that leads to another question."

  "What?"

  "Why the hell did he kill Sarah?"

  I shrugged, "Maybe he thought she was also a champion? Maybe he thought it was Jo? Maybe he panicked, or with all the smoke from the gun he couldn't see well? I don't know. In either case, I'm thinking it may be a mistake that helps us."

  "How so?"

  "Well, you and I are not followers of Sireen, even if I'm on good terms with her. But Sarah was one of her followers."

  "So?"

  "So a priest from a rival god kills us, and Sireen probably can't do much, because of the rules. But he killed one of her followers, so that means she can probably declare a holy war."

  "Huh," Evan said digesting that for a few minutes.

  "Think she will?" He asked after a while.

  I shook my head, "I don't know, 'The ways of the gods are subtle' after all."

  Evan snorted, "Yeah, until you step on one, then they're like a land mine. So what's our next move? Should we go to Scopuli? It is pretty well defended."

  "I don't know. We do that and anyone looking for us, won't have a very hard time. I'll stand out and everyone will know exactly where we are."

  "You could stay in the temple," Evan pointed out, "Any priest setting foot in there will stand out the second she places a foot on holy ground."

  "That's assuming Sireen will allow me to stay there. For all I know that might cause her problems she doesn't want to have right now. Also, the first rule in the importance of not being seen is to not stand up."

  Evan lost it then and started laughing rather hard.

  I sighed and shook my head, "I had no idea they had Monty Python in Vietnam."

  "Oh, the Beeb is everywhere!" Evan said still giggling, "I always loved that skit. And I see your point. If they can't find us, they can't kill us."

  I nodded, "And gods can-not see priests or champions of other gods, unless they are on their holy ground, or recognized by one of their priests or their champion."

  "So, let's buy a car, tell everyone we're heading to Scopuli, and then we'll just 'get lost' and drop out of sight somewhere between here and there," Evan said.

  I thought about that, it was a good idea. With everyone thinking we were in the city, they'd all look for us there first.

  "Sounds good to me," I said and checked the clock on the wall.

  "I want to get an early start tomorrow, so time for bed," I stood up and started to strip down to my underwear. I wasn't really worried about Evan, he really was a woman after all.

  "Could I offer you any 'comforting'?" Evan asked and gave me a wink.

  "You are sleeping on the floor, in front of the door," I said rather haughtily and pointed.

  "Yes, your majesty," he said with an exaggerated sigh.

  "Better," I smiled, and getting into bed, I pulled the sheets up. "Don't forget to turn out the light."

  Evan nodded, and suddenly shifted and Evean was standing in the room.

  "What are you doing that for?" I asked curious.

  "Better hearing, smell, and I can see in the dark," she grinned toothily.

  I smiled back, suddenly I felt a lot more secure about our chances.

  Seven

  somewhere

  I sighed and wiped my brow, it was hot out, and it had been hot out for some days now. I rubbed my swollen belly, I was getting close to term, and from this point on I could start labor any day.

  "So, do they have any kind of a midwife here?" I asked Evan as he came back to the cart.

  "No, but the next town does, it's about a two-day journey."

  I nodded and leaned back in the seat. "Might as well get going then."

  "Right after I pick up some supplies," Evan told me.

  "We still have money left?" I asked surprised.

  "Some, not much though."

  I nodded, "Okay."

  Evan climbed up onto the cart and urged the horse on. We'd traded the car months ago, gas was not easy to find once you got farther away from the large towns, and it stood out too much. A horse and a cart was a lot more discreet.

  We went in and did a little shopping at the small country store here, I didn't like the way my bones ached as I walked around, they almost felt as if they were grinding, and then there was the way my balance had changed, and the constant need to pee. I was doing my best to be pleasant about all of it, Darlene and Rachel had both gone through their pregnancies rather cheerfully.

  I was starting to be less than that myself however. Especially with this heat wave we were experiencing, and the baby getting active every time I laid down to sleep. I was looking forward to being done with this and the way certain parts of my body were now aching.

  Evan at least had stopped hitting on me when I started getting big. That was a relief, though at times I got depressed about it, because it meant I was no longer attractive. And trust me, that I would get depressed by that, made me even more depressed! This whole pregnancy thing, with the hormones, the mood swings, the changes in my body, yeah, I wasn't cut out for this!

  We'd been 'on the run' for I guess five months now. At first we were setting up camps outside of the small towns, and moving on after a few weeks and finding a new place to stay. Then we'd found a nice spot out far from everything and stayed there for several months, until I realized I needed to start looking for a midwife. Childbirth was not something I wanted to do by myself.

  We paid for our things; the lady at the store made a few comments about how nice it was to see a young couple getting started and all that. I didn't want to chat much and Evan told her we needed to be going.

  He helped me up into the cart, then got in next to me and directed the horse out of town.

  "Thanks," I said.

  "For what? That?" He laughed, "You look tired, that lady should have known better than to stop and gossip."

  "Not just that," I sighed, "for everything."

  "Eh, Rod wants me to do it, I think he figures your Feliogustus' friends might be good for a favor or two if I stay and help out."

  I nodded, "Yeah, Quid pro quo is pretty standard with the gods."

  "Quid what?" Evan asked looking at me.

  "I help you, so I expect you to help me," I said. Evan knew so much of American culture that I often forgot he wasn't from there.

  "Ah, okay. So how long do you think 'til you deliver?"

  I shook my head, "I don't know, just 'soon'."

  Six hours later I started to have contractions, and a few hours after that 'soon' became 'now.'

  "I think my water just broke," I said and Evan looked over at me, and then down at my feet.

  "Guess I need to find a good place to stop," Evan said.

  "What are we going to do?" I said panicking, "We're miles from anywhere, there's no doctors, no midwife, nothing!"

  "Don't worry; I'll take care of it." Evan said soothingly.

  "What! How can you! You're not a doctor!"

  "I've done this before," Evan said and smiled at me.

  "What!? How come you never told me this before?" I said and then grunted as another contraction hit.

  Evan shrugged, "I figured I was the last person you wanted to deliver your baby. But, now that we're out of choices, looks like it's me."

  I growled and slapped him on the arm. "You better not be lying to me!"

  "I grew up in a poor village, my mom was a midwife, she taught me everything. That's why I stopped at that store, just in case we didn't make it, I wanted to be prepared."

  I looked at him; he looked calm, cool, and collected. Something that I definitely wasn't at the first several births I'd been at.

  "Okay, I believe you. Now what?"

  "We find a good place to make camp; this is your first, so it'll be a while."

  I nodded, I knew that much myself.

  We rode along probably another twenty minutes, then we turned off the trail, and Evan directed the cart back and around a hill, that would hopefully keep us out of sight from the main roa
d.

  "Okay, just lay back here and rest, let me get everything ready," he told me, "and let me know when the contractions come, okay?"

  I nodded, they were still pretty far apart, and I knew it would be a while yet, so I wasn't worried, too much.

  Evan made camp, got a small fire going, and moved me onto the bed he'd prepared for me.

  "Okay, I know you've got kids, you've told me about them more than once in the last few months. But I don't know if you ever paid attention to what they told your women, so here it is again," and with that Evan told me what to expect, when to expect it, and what to do about it.

  I was impressed and felt a lot better about things.

  I won't go into the details, it was rough at times, and it took all night. When the baby started to pass through the birth canal at last, it was the most incredible feeling, and because I was so numb at that point, I really didn't feel any pain.

  Evan tied off the cord, cut it, and cleaned and wrapped the baby and put it on my chest, near my breast.

  "Congratulations, you have a daughter," Evan said, and then started to clean me up, and deal with the afterbirth.

  I looked down at her; words couldn't describe how I felt at that moment. I like kids, the gods know I have enough of them! But I'd never actually given birth to one myself. I think I understood Darlene and her desire to have a big family in that moment, and Rachel's desire not to. Darlene had so little in her life really, and this was so much. She was surrounding herself with the one wealth that money and power could not buy.

  And for Rachel, she already had so much money and power, she had her kingdom, which was family to her, that she didn't need to surround herself with children to get that, she already had so much of it.

  I moved her to my breast and started feeding her, quieting her down.

  "What's her name?" Evan asked.

  That stopped me, all this time and I hadn't even thought of a name!

  Evan laughed, "Don't have one, do you?"

  I shook my head weakly.

  "Cam," Evan said, "she's Cam."

  "Cam?" I asked confused.

  "Well if she stays female when we leave here, you can call her Camille, and if not, Cameron."