December 19 20201
The God Hachiman of Rhozgelia
The Lonely Captain Houshou Marine Part II
It was a cold and rainy night as several figures slept and huddled around a fire for warmth in a cave in an unspecified location. One of them lay on the ground with shallow breaths; it was the Druukhari girl and at her sides were the disgraced Goddess Aqua and the Mages Megumin and Shiranui Flare. The former sleeps with her back leaning on the wall and her lap was Satou Kazuma sleeping peacefully, a blanket over the two of them. All of them were close to each other to get as much warmth as possible and they had slept early because of their exhausted bodies from the ordeals that have just gone through. It was still around five hours before midnight.
But there were two among them who were missing. Namely, the Captain and their mysterious comrade who has been a pivotal part of the team and capable of incredible feats.
A mop of green hair moves and slowly looks around. Uruha Rushia was in the gentle embrace of the Crusader Darkness who was requested by her adoptive Brother to watch over her in the meantime while he surveyed the area. The little Necromancer carefully removes the older girl's arms from her and quickly and quietly crawls away from the group.
"Finally, they're asleep!" She thinks to herself and pumps her little fists into the air. "Nii didn't summon Suu-chan and he didn't place a monitoring ward and spell on me this time!" The girl chuckles to herself victoriously and tightens the ties which hold the two layers of robes on her in place, before stepping out of the cave and into the light rain. She looks up to see the stars were covered by clouds, complete darkness and fog from their current high altitude.
"Hmm, if Nii were here, he can just make all of these go away…"
Uruha Rushia chants a spell that he taught her, a simple spell that makes an invisible barrier over oneself for protection from the rain. She chants another by using the bones from her Conjurer's bag as a catalyst and throws them on the ground. The bones glow with necromancy, coming together to form the skeletal body of a bat. Its empty eye sockets glow with light and become a focused beam just enough to see in the dark and wet terrain. The little girl was looking for a specific species of mushrooms that she had seen in the area earlier today, she was planning to make a potion from them to help the Druukhari girl recover faster. She wanted to do something to help instead of just depending all the time on her adoptive Brother.
"I can't let Nii do everything by himself! Rushia-chan can do something too!"
She starts going down the rocky path since the cave was overlooking the area where the ship had gone down. It's a miracle that they were able to crash land on a suitable place instead of onto the flat and steep sides of the mountain itself. The wind was stronger than she expected yet she pressed on. Being part undead herself, she is immune to disease and has a tolerance for low temperatures. She doesn't know the exact reason, but she is aware of the limits of her body. Her adoptive Brother doesn't have the heart, to tell the truth to her just yet.
The first place that she goes to is the ship's path as it crashed and felled trees in its wake. It was further down and east to the ship in the more forested area with tall and sturdy trees. She wonders if Faeries lived in the area and maybe she can ask for their help, but since the ship she was on had greatly damaged the forest, she highly doubts it. Though it would be a different story altogether if a certain someone were with her.
"Nii knows their language and they seem to respect him for some reason. Maybe they owe him a favour or something. Not to mention that he did that." She muses.
It was far from the truth yet it still had meaning.
When the Faeries and other nature spirits threw themselves at his feet many weeks ago, Hachiman was relieved and a bit embarrassed to finally meet those that know him. They flew all around him and sang praises of his return despite being missing for nearly two hundred years. The sudden influx of faith and love shook his divine core and revealed one of his true forms in a brilliant display of godly power. They revere and worship the female aspect of his Divinity, so it couldn't be helped that something would happen.
He glowed and became very tall, growing to nearly four meters and his physical appearance becoming that of a woman's; shapely, mature and in her prime. Her hair black as night had streaks of gold and crimson, grew long until it became a bundle on the forest floor where flowers bloomed. Instead of her Noble robes, she was now clad in a raiment of white and gold of divine origin and beauty far surpassing anything a mortal can create. Her face became the embodiment of beauty itself, no words can accurately describe them, nor any painting can give it justice that a Goddess demands and deserves. Eight immensely long semi-transparent butterfly wings appeared on her back and a crown of gold and white flowers floated onto her head. Her breath was enough to bring dead plants back to life as all around them Divinity-infused trees elegantly sprouted from the ground and reached for the heavens, bearing fruit with high healing properties. Her pure white eyes were like the Sun themselves and any who were blessed enough to look upon them felt relief and unexplainable happiness as tears of joy fell from their eyes. The Earth itself seemed to celebrate her return as the ground raised until she was looking down on the Faeries and nature spirits who were cheering her name and singing.
"Hail the Goddess! Mother of Rhozgelia and daughter of the Earth Mother! Lady of the Heavens and Clouds and the Peaks! Protector of the land and skies! Slayer and Warden of the White Demon! The Great Surveyor and Curator! The Lady of Serenity! Inheritor of the Mantle of Maranur! First among the Vala! Our Sword and Shield against the horrors of the Warp! Our light of day and guardian of the night! Hail the Goddess! Hail the Goddess! Hail the Goddess!"
The Faeries sang in a chorus of cheers and cries. The returned Goddess watched everything with a beaming smile, her only regret is that Mai isn't here to witness all of this with her. Some of her memories slowly but surely returned like a trickle of water. She remembered that in the old days, she took this form for the first half of the year to celebrate the summer and solstice, good harvest, the coming of the new year and other important events, and then switch to her male aspect on the second to join the other heavenly powers in council. Though her appearance was undoubtedly a woman's, she was still the same eighteen-year-old boy who had woken up in this world months ago. Well, unless the Divine being that he merged with forcefully takes over and locks his consciousness away.
"Uwwaaah, I knew this was going to happen sooner or later. Well, I guess this isn't bad. Fufufufu, I'm divinely gorgeous as well!" He would always think to himself with a smug chuckle in his time spent with the Faeries.
Rushia giggles at the memory while walking through the dark forest. She was so enamoured by the revelation that she couldn't speak for two days. The little girl had wanted him to stay in that form, mainly because he was so pretty. Frankly, Hachiman always declines her requests because he still feels embarrassed by the act.
"Nii was so pretty, or maybe I should call him Nee. Hehehehehe!" She asks herself out loud. "I wonder if I'll become pretty like her when I grow up…"
After spending an hour flipping over logs with her other skeletal familiars, she finally finds the first mushroom of the night as well as useful flowers and herbs that can be used for remedies. Uruha Rushia was startled when lightning lit up the sky for a moment and felled a tree in the distance. Despite the sounds of the rain and wind, she heard the unmistakable sound of the tree snapping and falling. She wasn't scared but it reminded her of the danger. She also picks up two cool-looking rocks to bring back to her adoptive Brother and Satou Kazuma and a mouse for Chomusuke.
While she was searching the cold and wet forest floor with her undead entourage, a fell voice in the air makes her stop and listen. It vaguely sounded like a person groaning in the distance and carried by the wind. Though her current situation makes it impossible for her to figure out the direction that it came from. Especially the rustle of the branches and leaves overhead as well as the occasional fallen branch and twig. She hears it again, and then again. The hairs on the back of her neck bristled when she heard a crashing sound as her familiars stood up alert. It was quiet for a few minutes until she heard another metallic sound crashing and falling onto the rocky and hard ground.
She breathes out a sigh of relief. "Ah, that scared me. It must be the debris from the ship being thrashed around by the wind." She says and orders her familiars to go back to work. The cave where she came from was southwest of the fallen ship. She had taken a shortcut and was quite a distance away from the two vantage points and she was moving westward in her search. A few hours later, she finally found enough and made a beeline back to the cave, summoning an undead mountain goat to help her reach it faster. She was slightly cold when she arrived and a bit hungry, her robes were a mess and her boots were covered in mud. Everyone was still asleep to her relief. After setting aside her things, she laid down slightly closer to the fire right next to Satou Kazuma and put his arm over her.
"I wonder where Nii and Marine-nee are. I hope they're okay. It would be nice if they had each other for tonight since it's pretty cold…" The little Necromancer thinks to herself before the tiredness of her young body finally drifts her off to sleep.
I wake to the sound of chirping birds, a pleasant way to start the day. Looking down, I see Marine's bright red hair as she rests her head on my chest with the covers over us. Her arms and leg were on top of me and using me as some kind of pillow. Her breathing was slow which means that she is still fast asleep.
I recall the hours of intimacy and love that we shared when it was still dark out and can't help but smile.
I think I've only had several times of real sleep ever since coming to this world and this is one of them. Gods don't need sleep; I just meditate or retreat into my dimension where my thoughts become real or read through my towering libraries.
But waking up on a warm bed with a woman in my arms isn't so bad. Mortals should appreciate their lives more. Unimaginable Divine powers capable of bending the word itself and immortality is good and all… But the simple pleasures such as the one that I'm experiencing is much better in my opinion.
I lay in bed basking and feeling happy from the moment for some time. The rain seems to have stopped early in the morning and after using my mind to remove the plank of wood that I used to cover over the window, sunshine and the cold morning air enters the room. Marine shifts in her sleep and rubs her cheek on my chest while muttering something under her breath. She is quite a heavy sleeper and started snoring loudly an hour after closing her eyes. And she was also very…energetic and didn't hold herself back. Impressive really, I think she'd give Mai a run for her money. I don't want to wake her because she looks so peaceful, but the sun is already up.
I also want to take a bath, for obvious reasons… I spotted a nice waterfall last night which came from a glacier further up high in the mountain. I think Marine would love it.
I start poking her cheek and playing with her hair. She frowns and cutely scrunches up her face in annoyance. A few minutes later, I hear the rhythm of her breathing change and she pinches my side with her fingers.
The red-haired girl takes in a deep breath before pulling the covers over up and completely hiding under it.
"Good morning," I say but instead of receiving a sweet reply, she groans and grumbles like a stingy old lady. She intertwines her leg with my own to make it easier for her to prevent me from getting up. She starts feeling around for my hand and takes it and puts it over her more slender frame.
"Marine, we should go. The others are sure to get worried…" I try to become the voice of reason but she just makes a low sound and shakes her head. I sigh, trying to figure out another way to get her out of the bed so we can go on with the day. I would gladly lay in bed with her all day was it in different circumstances, but things don't always go as we want them to. I perk up at an idea that randomly popped up in my head.
She makes a satisfying sound when I put my arms around her and slightly move her up. But it was just an act for me to get closer to her ear. With her in the right position, I lean down and whisper directly to her ear.
"Yeah~! Yeah~! Just like that~! Oh! You're messing up my insides~!"
Her reaction was immediate.
Marine stiffens from my words and I feel her eyes go wide at being reminded of them.
"Stir me up~! Make me your woman~! Ah~!"
She stiffens again, this time harder. And yet she still hasn't told me off for my teasing. On the place where her face is resting on my chest, I feel her cheeks heat up. I lean down again, trying to recall every word that she moaned out while we made love.
"Ah~! The tip of your cock is kissing my cervix~! I love it~! Hurry up and cum~! Give me your cum and I'll have your babies~!"
She finally snaps and throws off the covers to the floor. But instead of seeing her embarrassed, annoyed and telling me to shut up, I see a very different expression on her face. I didn't expect her to feel this way so early in the morning, especially after she collapsed and instantly fell asleep from exhaustion only hours before. Houshou Marine looks at me with a lustful grin and steam coming from her mouth. She licks her lips and I see hearts in her eyes before lurching forwards and shoving her tongue inside my mouth.
Shit!
I forgot that this girl is a massive masochist during our time together! My plan backfired! No wonder she would get incredibly aroused when I called her a multitude of names at her behest…
"My personal use onnahole cumdump cumslut bitch-in-heat nymphomaniac cocksleeve succubus-in-disguise cock-addicted horny pirate…" and all other names that are too vulgar to even speak of… Not to mention that she would claw at my skin with her fingernails and bite me with her sharp teeth when I was pumping in and out of her or hold me down when she was on top. Let's not even get to the parts when she demanded me to slap and choke her…
Even Mai wasn't this rough…
Mortal women are scary!
Marine yelps and instantly pulls away when I send a weak electric shock up her spine. I used the chance to put a hand on her shoulder lest she takes my lips once again.
"So much energy at so early…" I say to myself while watching her recover. She narrows her eyes and squirms through my hold but I manage to stop her with a finger to her lips when our faces were a mere breath away. "I never realized that the woman that I made love with doesn't even know how to greet me in the morning..." I say with a cheeky grin and take my finger off her lips.
She mirrors my expression and giggles, some strands of her hair falling to the sides.
"Good morning~." She says and plants a chaste and loving kiss on my lips as I return her intimate act.
"Sleep well?" I ask as a blush appears on her pretty face, her smile also widening in the process.
"Yeah. The best I've ever had no doubt." She giggles as I ruffle her hair affectionately.
"I can attest to that. You slept like a log and your snore was so loud I feared that that ship would collapse from it."
Her eyes go wide and she pulls back a bit, the blanket falls from her shoulders to reveal her exposed and beautiful chest. "Wha-?! Really?!"
"Yup, you sounded like a whale." I chuckle when she covers her face on my chest from embarrassment. She starts muttering things like she very rarely snores and wonders out loud if it's from the High Elven wine that we drank together.
"Whale? Those animals leaving in the sea?"
"Yeah, have you ever seen them?" She shakes her head in reply. "They're large and beautiful beasts and live in families." I go to great lengths to accurately describe them and even thought of bringing her into my dimension to see them projected from my thoughts.
She nods and smiles, listening intently with keen interest. "You know lots of stuff. Now I'm curious to see them for myself."
"Perhaps I can bring you to the sea one of these days. I'm sure Rushia would love to see them too." Marine makes a melancholic smile and laughs.
"Ahahaha. Rhozgelia is landlocked remember? We only have rivers, lakes and inland seas here. Plus, it would take roughly a year and a half to reach the ocean by aerial transport. Not to mention all the border documents that we need to present…" We talk for some time before she untangles herself from me so I can sit up. Marine blushes and winces when she sees the numerous scratch and bite marks that she gave me all over my body.
"A-Ah… Sorry about that. I got too carried away." She laughs awkwardly while touching the hickeys on my face and neck.
"Don't worry about it. If it makes you feel any better, I did bite your neck and draw blood…" She laughs again and absentmindedly touches the two puncture marks on her neck directly where her major arteries are. Her lifeblood tasted exquisite and can be considered as a high-level catalyst. With it, I managed to get some magical energy that I stored in my mortal core. When Mages are low in magical reserves and are at risk of complete magical drain which can cause death, they can consume the blood of other beings that carry magical energy. While my existence might contradict the usual laws of the world, my physical form is human. And even though the magical energy that my mortal core carries is enough to level entire cities, I would prefer having as much of it as possible. No matter how little I get from drinking Marine's blood.
The last time I got careless, I got ambushed by my brothers and barely escaped with my life. My Divine Core was heavily damaged and my arms and legs shattered and scantly maintained their form. I was so weak back then that Mai can't even manifest into the physical world properly.
I'll never make that mistake again.
I was brought back from my internal thoughts when I feel a gentle and soft hand over mine. I turn to see Marine's gold and red eyes looking at me with concern.
"H-Hey, are you okay? Are you mad…?" She asks with a small voice and scoots closer as I feel the warmth from her naked body. "A-Are you upset? I'm sorry if you are…"
I quickly shake my head and plant a reassuring kiss on her cheek while pulling her close. "Oh no, no no no. I'm not upset. Just a random thought that passed my mind that's all."
She makes a relieved smile and puts her arms around my waist. "I see…" I hear her make small sniffing noises like a cute little animal and looks up at me.
"Hey, can we…umm…" A light blush dusts her cheeks as I tilt my head at her.
"?"
"Did you happen to see a river or something in the area? I think we should take a bath first… I feel a bit icky… Because you know… Ahahahaha…"
She pouts when I laugh and I reassure her that I did see one up north. As I was putting on my trousers, we remember that in her haste, she had literally ripped off her clothes last night. I put on my robes over her which were too big for her size, especially the sleeves where she can't even show her hand without pulling on it. She makes a funny expression when she notices me staring at her too long.
I feel a strange yet warm feeling while looking at a woman wearing my clothes…
"Let's go." I get up from the bed and make my way towards the door. I stop when I realize Marine is still sitting on the bed, whistling and looking to the side and fiddling with her pointer fingers.
"Marine…?"
She quips and studies me with her gold and red eyes. "Y-Yeah… About that… You can fly, right?"
"Yes."
"Can you carry me there?"
"Of course. That's the plan." I shrug and she makes a sigh of relief, but freezes when I make a follow up question. "Did you hurt your legs?"
"N-No! No, I'm perfectly fiiiiiiiiinnnee!" She erratically waves her hands around as I sit back down on the bed. She was acting strangely and I would like to help her out if I can. Marine eventually breaks after I continued staring blankly at her with a confused expression. "You looking at me so innocently with that funny face…"
She sighs and crosses her arms around her chest. "My legs are numb." She mumbles out.
She stays quiet after that so I ask her to explain herself. "They're too weak and I can barely move them."
"What?" I ask in an alarmed tone but she just blushes and purses her lips together. I put a hand on her forehead to check her temperature, as well as checking her pupils and her pulse. My left eye glows as I scan her body for any damage, her bare skin, muscles, bones and internal organs becoming visible to me. She is in peak condition so listening to her say all of that baffles me. Marine makes a frustrated sound and lightly slaps my shoulder.
"W-We were too rough despite it being my first time a-and now I can't walk!" She exclaims and covers her face with her sleeves.
I slowly nod at her words, cursing myself for not seeing the true meaning behind them. "Oooohhh… I see."
"You literally fucked me up. Sorry for the language." She grins and opens her robes where she puts a soft hand on her lower abdomen. The necklace that I have her glints as if to draw my attention to her bountiful chest, and I look down to see a bit of her pubic hair. Her grin widens and she giggles when she catches me looking and leans in to whisper directly to my ear.
"I can't say that I disliked it though, hehehehehehe~…" She purrs and playfully bites my earlobe. "I can still feel some of it deep inside me~…"
*stare* "Hmm, is that so..."
"Yes~!"
"..."
"..."
"Yeah but these were your exact words: I quote, 'Mess me up until I can't walk for a whole week!'" I say and burst out laughing.
Marine's face bursts into red and puts her hands over my mouth to shut me up for good.
Unlike Rushia who is deathly afraid of heights, Marine was quite fine with being carried while I flew to the waterfall. Even as I went sped past the clouds and did movements akin to aerial acrobatics to prank her. She screamed and yelled, but it was from the thrill and excitement. The place was more beautiful as the light from the rising sun reflected on the water's surface and the cold early morning fog over it. Despite the freezing waters, she bathed and said that she always prefers the coldness of it to 'shock' her body awake. Our bodies steamed in the cold water and I helped her wash her hair. We bathed together of course, and it was inevitable that her desires would resurface once more.
We had a 'quickie' to her insistence which lasted for an hour. I'm pretty sure that it wasn't a 'quickie' anymore since she refused to let me go by locking her legs around my waist... At this point, I'm not sure if she was telling the truth about not being able to feel her legs.
I threw back the robes that she was wearing for the meantime back in my Gate and pulled out another one. A purple Kimono with floral designs complete with its interior apparel as well as some accessories to keep her hair in place. It was thin and cool and also smaller to accommodate her slim body. I was happy when she said that it's lovely. When I'm bored and retreat into the depths of my mind, I like making Kimono and Yukata with all sorts of designs. I may not be able to go back to my home, but at least I can create something that reminds me of it and lessens the homesickness in my heart. I, on the other hand, am wearing my usual white and gold robes printed with red bands on my sleeves and legs.
With the both of us fresh and ready, I carry her into my arms and fly back to the cave where the others are. We arrive to see them preparing breakfast and still groggy from just waking up.
"Oh! You're back!" Usada Pekora is the first one that sees us gracefully land on the ground, her voice catches their attention as numerous pairs of eyes fall on us. All of the girls start rushing towards us with the exemption of Darkness, Aqua and Rushia.
"Woah! Marine! What're you wearing?! You look so pretty!"
"Hey, where'd you get that? Did you do something to your skin? It's like you're literally glowing!"
"It's so silky smooth..."
Our red-haired Captain blushes from the compliments and smoothly laughs them off, saying that she found them in the cargo hold of the ship. A magic circle appears behind me, and out comes one of my Familiars that are in my service. A young Chocobo hops out, still young and plump with its baby feathers still on its body. The bright yellow bird looks at me in the eyes and bows.
"Young Master," a young female voice speaks in my mind. "Lemonplume, at your service, yes."
I reach out with my left hand while the other one carries Marine. "Lemonplume, good to see you. How are your fellows?" I ask while my companions look at us with wide and surprised eyes. They look at me curiously as I verbally speak with the large and puffy bird.
Lemonplume makes low clucking noises when I scratch the area under her beak. "The great winged serpents are dormant and sleeping as always, yes. All is normal, yes."
"Wonderful. Do you mind carrying this young lady for a little while?" My Familiar nods and goes on one leg as I put Marine on her back where she makes herself comfortable on her soft feathers. Lemonplume is very cute and chubby-looking due to how young she is. Rushia and I saved her as a hatchling when her parents passed away because of a landslide. My affinity for nature sped up her growth and she grew to this size in only a week. When she hatched from her egg, she was the size of a watermelon. Now she's nearly two metres tall. When I asked her, she was more than happy to serve me.
My companions couldn't help but touch and caress her feathers, marvelling at how soft she felt. Marine, in particular, squeals with delight and rubs her face on the Chocobo's back. Chomusuke hisses at the bird but Lemonplume doesn't even glance at her. Perhaps not even noticing the small cat.
"Young Master, may I ask if this one is your mate?" She asks after eyeing the redhead with interest and is pleased when she receives head pats from her. "Your scent is on her, on hers on you..."
I grin. "Something like that."
They ask us so many questions and I leave it to Marine who is doing her best to come up with logical explanations. When asked why she and I have similar clothes, she stutters and her words become incomprehensible. Megumin comments that she and I look like a newlywed couple, which causes steam to erupt from her ears from the embarrassment. I see a blur of green hair dive in between her legs from behind Darkness and starts dashing towards me. Rushia leaps and latches onto my leg, the blonde Crusader and Satou Kazuma yelling in surprise.
"Oi! You little brat!" Kazuma hisses and clicks her tongue. "Genji! This little sister of yours did something pretty dangerous!"
I look down at the little Necromancer on my leg and arch my brow questioningly. "Rushia… What did you do?"
Darkness has a slight frown on her face and goes to her eye level. "Rushia-chan, what you did was very dangerous you know? You could have gotten hurt. I could never face your Brother if something ever happened to you… He specifically asked for me to look after you while he was gone." She chides in a mother-like tone.
"But I'm safe! I had my undead servants as my bodyguards!" She says in a high-pitched voice. Now that I take a closer look at her, her hair is a mess, there are some tatters and small leaves on her robes and her leather boots are wet and muddy.
I soon find out that she had stuck out in the middle of the night to look for some alchemy ingredients that can help the Druukhari girl recover. It was raining last night, not to mention cold and windy. A simple misstep could have gone terribly wrong. While do feel pride in that she went to such lengths, I still wasn't pleased. I open another magic circle above and Suu-chan plops onto my head.
"Suu, be a dear and watch Rushia for me. Keep her from doing anything dangerous when I'm gone. And don't leave her side, whatever the circumstances."
The slime moves akin to a nod. "Will do, Young Master!" She replies cheerfully and hops onto the ground, her body taking the form of a little slime girl. I open another Gate and robes similar to mine fall on her head which she immediately wears with some clumsiness.
"Honestly, I don't put a monitoring spell and observing Familiar on you for one night and this happens…." I sigh and face Darkness and Satou Kazuma, who have already grown used to seeing me open my Gates and summoning my Familiars. "Sorry for her behaviour, I'll make sure to discipline her."
The little girl makes a drawled out and dramatic wail of despair. "Noooooooooo!"
While she was stuck to my leg, Darkness and Satou Kazuma said that Aqua urgently needs to see me. And after finally letting go of me and taking the Blonde's hand, they go over to where Marine and Lemonplume are. I hear her shriek of delight at seeing the Chocobo who responds by tapping her talons on the ground excitedly upon seeing the green-haired Necromancer.
Aqua was still beside the Druukhari girl further in the cave, she has dark circles under her eyes and barely moved her head to greet me. It was warm and dry thanks to the fire and beside her was a mortar and pestle which Rushia must have used.
"Genji-san… Y-You're back..." She flashes me a weak smile and almost collapses to the side had I not moved just in time. I sense that she was severely lacking in magical energy, so I give her a tiny portion of mine and channel it directly to her chest through the tips of my fingers. Her core responds as a blue magic circle appears on her chest, receiving magical energy from my golden one. She opens her eyes tiredly, her head on my lap.
She tries to speak, but I shake my head. "Ssshh, you've done enough. Thank you for looking out for her, now it's my turn." Aqua smiles weakly and closes her eyes from the exhaustion and the strain she endured on her Core. I stop after a little while when her breathing relaxes and she finally falls asleep. Her magical reserves go to normal levels as I sigh with relief.
"To think that she would use her own very limited Divinity and magical energy to stay away all night to care for this girl…" I whisper and look to the Druukhari girl in front of me, still very much weak and clinging to life. "Normal healing magic can never fully assist in the recovery of a being that's just had its soul reversed from the disease of the Warp… Only by borrowing the vitality of another soul with high compatibility properties can that be achieved."
She has now earned my utmost respect because of her selfless act.
Right now, Aqua is so weak that I can just close my eyes and absorb her Divinity, Title and Authority. I have done that to my Brother Maranur, who died in my arms and gave me his remaining powers. And also to some of my siblings and my treacherous Kin. The millions of people who cried out with their last breath during the Great War, calling out my name to save them from their death... While I fought my Kin, the mortals fought on the ground and in the sky with their banners, heralds and sigils; massive battleships exchanging fire and artillery pieces trading volleys as armies clashed with armoured machines and magical creatures. I can hear the voices of all the people who love and worship me. And it just makes their voices of fear, despair, dread and terror all the more painful to hear when they echo in my mind and death overtakes their body. The fact that I was too preoccupied to help them gnaws at me from the inside. The light from my eight wings didn't shine on them when they passed, and I can only hope that the servants of death and the Valkyries managed to ferry them to the Realm of Souls.
With my return to this world, I vow to never let anyone under my protection die such a horrible fate.
It's a good thing that Marine's soul was compatible, and with it, I can revive this poor girl who is in a coma-like state. I have to wait before doing that, I want Aqua to witness me do the ritual and to know that she played a key role in saving this girl's life.
She is a fellow Goddess after all, concerning my female aspect.
And that also makes her my sister.
References so far: HOLOLIVE, Konosuba, Goblin Slayer, Overlord, No Game No Life, Ushio no Tora, Warhammer40k, Elder Scrolls, The Silmarillion, Final Fantasy, Bleach, Fairy Tail, Monster Musume and Fate.