Slight warning: This chapter contains a mild lime-nothing onscreen, merely implications. I had initially planned to have a full onscreen lemon, but that would take too much time and the story as a whole is fine and solid without it!


She inclined her head as she approached the altar, and curtsied deeply when she came before it. It still felt strange to stand in the presence of a god, as well as somewhat nerve-wracking.

She'd intended to travel to the sanctum, but Azzanadra wouldn't hear of it—he'd insisted she see Zaros right away, and that travel through the World Gate would take too much time. He'd had a point; it was time-consuming, and risky, and it was better not to go there any more than she absolutely had to.

"World Guardian." Zaros' voice, calm and even, still managed to instill a sense of awe. "Azzanadra has told me of the magic that has affected you—what is it that you remember? Tell me as much as you can."

Jaina nodded and did so, making sure to mention the scar on her stomach as well, though she tried to keep it as brief as possible. "I only hope all my insides are still there, and that there isn't something drastic going on that required me to be out of the way," she finally finished, her throat hurting a bit.

There was a short pause before Zaros spoke. "It is unlikely that the latter is so; otherwise your memory would have been deliberately tampered with. I suspect your forgetfulness was merely a side effect, presumably unintended, of what happened to you during the sleep. As for the scar, it explains much… you likely were experimented on in some way."

"What?" Azzanadra's eyes narrowed sharply, his tone half furious, half worried. "Who would… why would… My lord, I pray it isn't true…"

"We do not yet know if it is, or what the nature of the experiment is," Zaros pointed out, and turned back to Jaina. "I could perhaps recover missing details from your subconscious, if you would briefly allow me into your mind. These would only be events that you witnessed, not anything that occurred while you were asleep—the details are, however, likely to be substantial knowledge."

Jaina wrung her hands. Part of her wasn't sure she wanted to know, but if she had been experimented on, she definitely should know—her insides being intact and unaltered was something very important, and if it was particularly bad, what she didn't know might kill her.

"Very well," she said, shifting nervously where she stood. "I hope this works…"

Zaros seemed to float towards her and placed a crystal hand upon her head, and she felt a strange, imposing presence fill her mind. She didn't think she'd ever get used to the way this felt.

She didn't have long to dwell on it before the memory of parting with Zanik came to mind, and soon an unpleasantly familiar face did as well. A shiver ran down her spine at the mental image of Sliske, and she bit back the curse that had formed on her tongue and paid attention.

Her memory was still hazy; she couldn't remember the conversation, but at least now she knew he was responsible—and as the memory progressed, she shivered more intensely as she saw that he had indeed done some kind of experiment. She couldn't make out any sharp objects or surgical tools before the memory faded, but she did notice all the divination energy he'd been using.

She was still shaking and shivering with cold when Zaros' presence withdrew from her mind, and the Empty Lord floated over behind the altar. "Sliske," he said quietly. "He experimented with residual Guthixian energies on the World Guardian."

"Sliske!" Azzanadra looked ready to break something. "I swear, if he's done anything to harm her… his face will be little more than a puddle, and his head will not sit on his shoulders for much longer!"

"Patience, Azzanadra. We must consider what we know, what the consequences will be, and what her best decision is from here—her continued well-being is more important than revenge." Zaros' voice remained level and calm as he nodded to Jaina again. "What do you make of what you recall of Sliske's experiment, World Guardian?"

Jaina shifted uncomfortably and wrung her hands. "I don't know… the energies drawn from the wisps do have the power to transmute objects, but wouldn't transmuting someone's internal organs cause death?"

"He did no such thing," Zaros said. "I sensed a large concentration of those Guthixian energies within you, and I still feel it—he seems to have simply implanted the energies. All of your body's organs and functions appeared to be intact and working correctly; nothing was amiss there. However, there was a foreign object of some kind near that concentration of energies…"

Jaina straightened up, her eyes wide with worry. "What kind of object was it? Could you tell?"

Zaros nodded. "It was clearly artificial, and seemed to be containing the energies within you. He likely placed it there to prevent you from channeling that power—even I could not draw upon the energy without surgically removing the object, although something from inside you possibly could."

Jaina winced, trying not to shudder at the idea. "With all due respect, my lord, I would much prefer not to be subjected to surgery unless absolutely necessary…"

"Is she at risk of harm, my lord?" Azzanadra chimed in, looking puzzled and worried. "What was Sliske trying to accomplish?"

"He may have wished to test how divine energy affects her, and if she was capable of containing it," Zaros said, his eight eyes still fixed on Jaina. "Her powers as World Guardian seem to be a great fascination of his, from what we have gathered. She appears to be in no danger; the energies she contains are latent and stable, however, she must still learn of his reasons for doing this herself."

Jaina felt her heart sinking. "Does that mean I have to wait for him to come find me?"

"I'm afraid so," Azzanadra said, shaking his head sadly. "You're still only likely to find him if he wants to be found—and I have no doubt he will seek you out, though I do not know where or when."

"When you do encounter him, be on your guard," Zaros warned. "He may wish to experiment further, and that is likely to put you at greater risk."

"Yes, my lord…" Jaina reluctantly nodded, shivering at the thought of her next meeting with Sliske. Well, at least it wasn't as bad as it could have been… or at least it seemed that way, anyway.


It wouldn't do her any good to wait around wondering if Sliske might show up, not when she had important things to finish up and only two more days left to do so. That would have to wait till morning; she felt a little too tired from the day's adventuring to worry about discreet travel plans or trying to write a suitable vow—though she could spare a moment to check what might be in her basement.

As she circled around the back of the house to climb up to her bedroom, Jaina saw something move in the window. She spotted a bearded desert bandit inside by the basement stairs, wearing a dirty brown apron. He seemed to be talking to Azzanadra about something, though she couldn't hear what they were saying.

Silently she prayed that no one else would walk around the back as she climbed in her window and shut it behind her. Slipping off her bag, she noticed a puddle beside her dresser and quickly hurried over to see what had happened.

The washing bowl had been flipped over, and it was shaking where it sat. "Let me out!" came an indignant voice, and the bowl shook harder.

Jaina picked up the bowl and set it back upright, and Tiny Lucien tumbled off the dresser and into the puddle. Scrambling to his feet, he grabbed his tiny staff and scowled up at her. "Now I'm all wet, and the water's cold! Oh, this is humiliating!"

"Oh, you," Jaina said, and deftly picked up the little doll by the collar. "Come along, you've been in my room long enough."

"You dare make demands of a god?" Tiny Lucien demanded. "Unhand me at once!"

He kept squirming and ranting as he was carried, dangling by the scruff of the neck, all the way downstairs. Jaina tossed him unceremoniously into the menagerie for TzRek-Jad to pounce on before heading over to the basement stairs.

The bandit workman almost bumped into her as she approached the stairs, and he smiled shakily and bowed his head as he stepped back. "My apologies, lady; I was only doing some last-minute checks! I hope that our handiwork will please you."

"So you were working on the surprise I've heard about?" Jaina peeked down the stairs, eyeing the basement door. "I have very much wanted to see it… What would be a reasonable sum for your efforts?"

"Go ahead!" The workman beamed proudly and motioned to the stairs. "Do not trouble yourself with payment; this is a gift on behalf of Lord Azzanadra. It will be payment enough to see you pleased with it!"

Jaina still thought he could use the money, but he did seem quite eager for her to see the surprise. She smiled gratefully and ventured down into the basement.

There were still crates, barrels, and boxes stacked along one wall, but where once the underground halls had been vast and empty, two unfamiliar doors now greeted her—a white door straight ahead, and a purple door to her right. She decided to peek in the purple door first, since it was closer.

A simple shrine to Zaros, not comprised of much yet except the altar, occupied the small room. There was a note on the altar, which she picked up to read; it said that there would be time to put the rest of it together soon enough. Indeed, there were several boxes and a pair of small stone blocks yet to be carved waiting in the corners of the room.

Closing the door quietly, Jaina thought about her other altar room upstairs—not that she used it for actual worship, though she still wasn't sure she wanted to show Azzanadra. She'd never let anyone else in there before, not even the butler… No, she shouldn't think about that now. It would be good to put together a proper shrine to Zaros, though his help would be much appreciated for that, and she might need to install a magical lock on the door in case any guests were to wander into the basement.

Curiously she headed over to the second door, and when she opened it, she couldn't help but gasp. There, taking up most of the space in this new room, was the largest bathtub she'd ever seen. It was big enough, she surmised, to fit at least three people! There was also a small sink, a basket of soap beside the tub, and a towel rack on the wall, but it was the bathtub that stood out the most.

Jaina sat down on the side of the bathtub, wondering what it might be for—well, she noticed it seemed to be Mahjarrat-sized, or, on second thought, had space enough to just barely fit two Mahjarrat. Wait—that, or more likely… She felt her face grow red-hot as the implications finally crossed her mind.

"Oh, don't get so embarrassed," she muttered to herself, her face still burning. "Really, I should be used to such matters by now…"

She still had an awkward smile plastered to her face as she headed back up from the basement, and at first she could only nod to the hopeful-looking workman. It took her a couple moments before she managed to stammer in gratitude.

"Ah, you didn't have to… this really is surprising… th-thank you for your hard work…"

"I do appreciate it, but you should thank Lord Azzanadra as well," the workman said with a smile, brushing off his apron a little. "I shall leave the both of you in peace."

With that he headed for the front door, and Jaina waved after him, wondering where Azzanadra was anyway. Did he have any other surprises planned for her at the moment?

She found him in the parlor, perusing one of the many bookshelves once again. He was carefully selecting three or four books off the shelf, and paused to look through one of them more closely. A sad sort of smile flickered across his face as he read.

Quietly and curiously she crossed to his side. "What's that you're reading?"

"I have been looking over the memories of my kin," he replied, still focused on the book's last few pages. "I did not think I would find one that would bring me even the slightest bit of joy, but…"

Closing the book, he set it down—she could see now that it was Akthanakos' memory—and turned to look at her. "That contract… who could be responsible for it? My lord regrettably did not know, and I'm quite sure it's not Sliske; he's always known how to gather information on his own."

"I-I regret it." Her voice was quavering, and she felt a small burning sensation in her mouth. "I'm sorry… I meant no harm, but I never should've…"

"Do not hurt yourself again! I do believe you, and given what imperial contracts were like, you were very brave to try to tell the truth—but this is, unfortunately, something I must investigate on my own, when time permits. It would be wise not to speak of the matter further at the moment, for your sake."

Jaina nodded reluctantly, her mouth still feeling like it was burning. "Yes… I wish it didn't have to be that way… but I wish a lot of things didn't have to be as they are…"

She pulled him into a hug, closing her eyes to revel in the magical warmth he always seemed to be radiating. As she felt his strong arms wrap around her, she couldn't help but sigh contentedly.

When they pulled apart, Azzanadra turned to the bookshelf again. "I have yet to see much of your library—there are books here detailing matters I know little of." He selected two new books and smiled her way. "Shall I keep you company as we read? It is the least I can do for you at the moment."

Jaina smiled a little and nodded. "Oh, of course… let me get my book…"

She found The Serpent's Coils on the end table where she'd left it. As she was flipping through the pages to her bookmarked spot, she suddenly felt herself being gently pulled away from where she stood, causing her to gasp and nearly drop the book. The initial surprise soon faded though, and she relaxed at his touch and allowed him to ease her down and to the floor so that they were both curled up on the rug.

"What was that for?" she asked, smoothing her skirt out a bit.

"I see no reason why we cannot sit together while reading," Azzanadra pointed out, pulling her firmly into his lap. "I presume you have no objections to your current position?"

Jaina smiled shakily, feeling her face grow a bit hot, and shook her head. "N-no, not at all… I simply didn't expect this…"

"Does it truly surprise you that I would want you close by?" he teased, letting his hand catch in her hair. "I have missed your touch as well as your presence, you know."

Her face grew even hotter, and she looked up at him with a curious half-smile. "Is that what you were trying to tell me with the… additions to my basement?"

"Ah, you've seen the surprise?" He brushed a couple fingers across her cheek. "You did tell me that your bathtub was too small to fit more than yourself. Should you wish us to share a bath, you have only to ask—I would be happy to oblige."

Jaina felt her heart flutter at the thought, but at the same time she couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive. Although she was getting used to their relations, she was used to letting him lead, and still felt a bit nervous at the prospect of making any kind of amorous advances herself. He knew far more what he was doing than she did… either way, she didn't feel quite ready to think about a bath, together or otherwise, yet.

"Can we read for a little bit first? I'm almost finished with my book…"

She rested comfortably against him with her head on his chest and let herself slip back into The Serpent's Coils. She had read a bit more before bed last night—it wasn't too far to the end, and the climactic final battle was just around the corner too.

Where she'd left off this time, Janni Pravada had gotten a druid to make an antivenom from a few of Zulrah's scales, which she'd managed to get the last few times she faced it—she hadn't been able to kill the serpent yet, partly because it spat potent venom that even strong antipoison could only slightly dull, partly because it could temporarily take on a crystal form that resisted magic. The battle scenes had had more to them than that, though—Zulrah could not only speak, but had gleefully monologued about how it would rule the world and all would become one with it. Some of its lines had sounded almost like it was trying to seduce her.

That wasn't the most ridiculous part so far, though—that had come in the most recent chapters, in the form of Ohn, the former leader of the Tyras guards stranded in Zul-Andra. He was said to have been a sacrifice early on in the book, but apparently he'd somehow survived by trying to drown himself in the Poison Waste swamp rather than be eaten, being washed out to the ocean, and ending up accidentally fished up by a fishing trawler. Even with the close calls she'd really had, Jaina still couldn't buy that he would still be alive after all that.

Of course, it was obvious why Ohn was still alive—so he could be a hastily tacked-on love interest. The last thing he and Janni had spoken about was strategies to deal with Zulrah's magic-resistant crystal and armored carapace forms respectively, as well as freeing the Zul-Andra dwellers from the taint of the "sacred eels" it used to brainwash them—and then they had randomly confessed their love seemingly out of nowhere, and now they were getting married in the current chapter. They had only been acquainted for three days, too! Whatever people might think if they knew she was seeing a Mahjarrat, Jaina could at least take comfort in the fact that she hadn't ever been inclined to marry anyone so hastily, let alone someone she'd known for three days.

"So you are a hero to the elves now as well," Azzanadra remarked suddenly, his voice proud. "I had only heard of the restoration of their city from hearsay so far, but I certainly suspected you were responsible!"

Jaina looked up and over at the book in his hand, recognizing it as The Voice of the Elders. "Yes, I was," she said, nodding, "but I'm surprised you would want to read that one and not something like, say, the firsthand account of Zaros' arrival to Gielinor…"

"I know that story all too well; Arrival Day was one of the greatest celebrations in the empire. You would have enjoyed the festivities… There was always a performance of the story of the arrival by Senntisten's finest dancers, exotic food, and fireworks that lit up the sky after sundown…" He had that wistful, longing look in his eyes that was always there when he spoke of the empire. "I shall tell you more later. The elven lands—and, for that matter, the elves—remain largely a mystery to me, as does their goddess. My lord did not speak of Seren more than he had to, but he seemed to know her and did not wish harm to come to her lands or her followers… he did not disclose more than that, though."

"Seren… well, she's currently in need of re-assembling," Jaina said, biting her lip. "I wonder if I'll be needed for that… I'm guessing I will be…"

"Your presence will likely be requested for it either way, although I am unsure how she will be made whole if her body is currently a city." Azzanadra sighed and looked despondently down at the book cover. "If only Senntisten could be re-grown as the elven city was, with the people intact… on the other hand, I do not think it would be right to build a city out of parts of Zaros…"

Jaina couldn't help but imagine a purple crystal city, larger and more impressive-looking than Prifddinas, but the image was fleeting and rapidly faded away as she looked at her lover. He looked so sad, so forlorn, and she wanted nothing more than to comfort him as best she could.

Quietly she slipped a hand into his and snuggled closer, setting her book aside for the moment. Reaching up to cradle his cheek, she traced a couple fingers along his face stripes, and then leaned up a bit to softly nuzzle him. He relaxed at her touch, uttering a long, low, contented sound that could best be described as a purr.

"Miss Jaina?"

Never had such a small, soft voice been so startling. Jaina shot bolt upright, immediately turning in the direction the voice had come from, and then froze.

Little Julia was standing there, a platter full of what looked to be miniature chocolate cakes in hand. She was staring at the both of them with a very curious expression.

"Hi, Miss Jaina," she said, waving with a smile. "I brought you something… who's the big bunny-hat man? I thought he was a kitty at first…"

Azzanadra stiffened at the description of his hat, but he quickly regained his composure. "My hat is very important, little one."

"He's right, you know," Jaina added, sitting up a bit straighter. "Um, well… Azzanadra, this is Julia; she's one of my neighbors…"

"I live next door to Mr. Bert the sandy man," Julia clarified. "My daddy's a watch-a-man up on the tower! My mommy stays home and takes care of the house, and my Nana makes food for everybody!"

She approached the two and held out her platter proudly. "Here, have some of my chocwate cupcakes! All the cake pans were getting washed, so me and Nana put the batter into cups and baked little mini cakes!"

Jaina smiled awkwardly and selected two of the little cakes. "Th-thank you… They look just as good as a big cake…"

Julia beamed and motioned to the platter again. "You should have some too, Azza-zazzazz… um, Azza-zizza-zazzle… um… Mr. Weally Important Hat Man!"

Azzanadra chuckled softly and shook his head. "Ah, no thank you; I'm not hungry… I'm sure Jaina will want more of them, though…"

"You're not the first to give him cake," Jaina said, feeling her face grow a bit hot at the memory. "Um… not that I mind you visiting, but isn't it past your bedtime?"

"Daddy said it was awight for me to finish baking the cakes and bwing them to you first," Julia replied. "Where'd Mr. Weally Important Hat Man come from? Is he your pet? Why is his name weally hard to say?"

Jaina tried to stifle a laugh, failing quite miserably at it. "Oh no, nothing like that… but…" She straightened up, her voice growing serious. "You mustn't tell anyone else you saw him, okay?"

"How come?" Julia asked, blinking. "He seems fwiendly…"

Jaina smiled a little, but kept her voice firm. "Promise me you won't tell…"

Julia looked thoughtful a moment, and then nodded. "Okay, I pwomise…"

Jaina swallowed and took a deep breath before she spoke up. "He's quite friendly, yes… and very dear to me, too. We are to be married soon… but…"

"Weally?" Julia's bright green eyes lit up, and she was practically bouncing in place. "I'll make the cake! It'll have three layers, with lots of white icing and pink woses…"

"I-I appreciate the thought, but it's going to be a secret… If anyone saw you baking the cake, they would start asking questions…" Jaina shivered at the thought, inadvertently pressing closer to Azzanadra for warmth.

"How come it's a secret?" Julia stopped squirming, her eager smile fading. "Is it because he's a secret?"

"Your parents and neighbors would fear me, little one…" Azzanadra was shaking his head. "Humans these days seem to find my kind fearsome, and the locals here would be no different considering Hazeel and Khazard… I can be fearsome at times, but I greatly prefer things not to come to that…"

"Daddy told me about big meanie Khazard who lives to the north," said Julia, wrinkling her nose. "He's one of the dweaded Mask-kerjat, and he steals people and makes them get hurt for fun…"

She eyed him curiously. "But big meanie Khazard is ugly and smells bad… You're not like that at all, Mr. Name-is-hard-to-say! Why would anybody think you're scary? Are you a dweaded Mask-kerjat too, and that's why people would get scared?"

"Mahjarrat, yes." Azzanadra slowly nodded. "Mah-jar-rat. Sound it out slowly, and with practice you should be able to say it… though you still might be unable to spell it without help…"

"You'll understand more when you're older," Jaina said, not wanting to try to explain all the details to such a young child. "I know I shouldn't be asking you to keep secrets from your parents, but I'm scared of what will happen if everyone finds out…"

"Don't worry," said Julia cheerfully, handing Jaina another little cake. "Your secret's safe with me! I won't tell anybody about Mr. Name-is-hard-to-say! Or that he's a Mah-ja-cat!"

"Thank you so much… you don't know how important this is to me…" Jaina patted the small girl softly on the head, her grateful smile growing wider. "But you need to get home to bed before your parents get worried… You're welcome to visit whenever you wish, but you do need your sleep!"

Julia yawned and nodded, setting the platter down on the end table. "Night, Miss Jaina! I wish I could go to your wedding and make the cake…"

She waved a bit tiredly and headed for the front door, Jaina watching her go. At the sound of the door shutting, the purple-haired mage relaxed a little, resting comfortably against her beloved once more.

"Your small friend is very inquisitive," Azzanadra remarked, that familiar look of remembrance in his dark red eyes. "She reminds me of what the young temple students were like. They always had many questions for me—what was it like to be the Pontifex Maximus, did I really get to see Zaros frequently, how did I come up with sermons, why did they have to eat vegetables instead of sweets all the time…"

"I would hope they weren't made to eat cabbage." Jaina winced, trying not to gag. "My family wasn't that well-off when I was little—my father had fallen into debt, and he made his living working various odd jobs around Lumbridge—so dinner every night was really disgusting, watery cabbage soup, up until I was five and old enough to go to school."

She wrung her hands, looking up at him. "I didn't mean to digress… it's not surprising that they would want to ask questions. I still haven't run out of things to ask you yet!"

Hardly had she finished speaking than her thoughts turned once more to the basement. Should she ask him about that? His warmth reminded her of the closeness they'd shared quite a few times before, and it had been awhile… on the other hand, it might seem a bit sudden…

"Is there anything you're particularly curious about at the moment?"

There were indeed quite a few things she wanted to ask him, but the contract would prevent her from some of them unless she watched her phrasing closely. The young adventurer thought carefully, not wanting to induce magical pain again… and then it occurred to her. She had a question, one she'd wondered about for some time now, and she knew just what she would ask when she had her answer.

"Azzanadra, I know you were the Pontifex Maximus, but how were you addressed when spoken to? The way you'd call a king 'Your Highness,' or the duke of Lumbridge 'Your Grace,' I mean. Not that I'm saying you were the same as a king—in fact, you must've been way more important than any old king…"

"I understand what you mean," he said, nodding. "When directly addressed, I was properly called Sanctissimus—'Your Holiness.' The word literally means 'Most Holy One,' but it was used in the same manner as 'Your Highness' would be used for a king, so either is technically correct. Not that you need to worry, of course; you are welcome to call me Azzanadra, or any pet name you wish."

"I know, but the champion of Zaros deserves respect, whether he's my beloved or otherwise." She smiled brightly and rose to her feet, pausing a moment to collect herself before she spoke. "Well, Your Holiness, if I might make a small request," she said, curtsying deeply, "will you share a bath with me?"

Azzanadra softly laughed and slowly stood up, purring as he pulled her into a hug. "I would love nothing more, although you don't need to be quite so formal when asking about it."

Jaina returned the embrace, feeling reluctant to let him go as she gazed up at him. It surprised her how much eagerness and anticipation she felt—had she ever been quite this excited before? At least she didn't have much to do to prepare.

"I'll meet you in the basement," she said, smiling and giggling excitedly. "I have a little surprise of my own in mind!"

With that she headed upstairs to her room to change, unable to think of anything but the look on his face when he saw her next.