AN: Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you all have a great day, and enjoy my Christmas offering! Sorry it has been so long between updates, the time has gotten way from me what with everything going on, plus I started too many stories. That, and since I am making excuses, I also left it so long between updates that I forgot what I was going to write next. I had a vague outline, but that was all, and five lines was not nearly enough, not when I hadn't written or thought about this story much in over half a year, so I left it, and focussed on other things.
Still I persevered, and after receiving dozens of PMs asking my when I am going to update, whether the story is dead, or whether they can adopt it, I decided to get back into the swing of things and actually write the next chapter! and just in time Christmas too! So yes, here we are, I hope you enjoy, and let's hope the next chapter doesn't take as long!
Then again, I have been pondering an Elder Scrolls (Skyrim)/ Lord of the Rings crossover, wouldn't that be a lot of fun! :)
Another thing while I am at it, is this. I am a part of a discord group, there's tonnes of others there, plenty of writers, admittedly mainly PJO, but other stuff too. Feel free to pop along and say hi, I'm always happy to chat about the stuff I am writing. So if you fancy it please do to join by sticking this: discord .gg / ueJFynDNGG into discord, with no spaces, or using the link on my bio.
But anyway, here is chapter 13, hope you enjoy. Please leave a review etc. If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to PM me, or if not join my discord.
Disclaimer: I do not own The Elder Scrolls, Skyrim or Danmachi
( - )
(Last Time)
With that done, Azoth then raised both hands and summoned a ball of crackling lightning in each hand, before then flinging his hands forward and releasing a pair of thunderbolts. A loud crack and then a boom sounding out as the two bolts struck and shattered both of the statues, destroying the frozen monsters within.
Lefiya turned to look at him in shock at this.
With the others too, turning to look at him, even as he continued to scan the square for more enemies.
It looked like most of the fighting was over now. Which of course meant that it was now time to clean up, and get to the bottom of just how the monsters escaped in the first place.
( - )
Chapter 13
( - )
(With Azoth)
Azoth rolled his shoulders for a moment, as he felt the cold air swirling around his bare-chested form.
The wintery air was the last remnant of his shout. Remnants that were even now dispersing, like the frozen chunks of ice that still littered the plaza floor, and being consumed by the hot sticky atmosphere that usually pervaded Orario.
It was refreshing in a way.
Where the cold might bother others, especially those not used to it, it had never bothered him.
Instead, it had always soothed him.
In fact, thinking back now, he couldn't remember the cold ever really bothering when he was growing up, just like it hadn't bothered the Nords he had grown up around.
This in itself had been a boon when he had been younger, and growing up in the streets of Riften. The cold might not have been as bad in the Rift as it was up in Dawnstar or Winterhold, but it had still been brutal in winter.
The cold had been such that the Argonians in the city had had to crowd into huts, huddling on top of one another around large fires in order to maintain their body temperatures, even as other foreigners had had to wrap up warm and smother their exposed extremities in animal fat so as to protect themselves from frostbite and the biting cold winds that blew through the region.
Winter was the greatest killer in Skyrim. Entire families had starved to death in their homes before now, trapped by the great snow drifts that swept the land. Others had frozen to death, the tears on their faces turning to ice as winter's cold talons ripped the vestiges of life from them.
There was a reason why the locals of Skyrim were tough and hardy, it was so they could survive the worst of the season. It was also why they lived life so hard; rushing every facet of it, eeking out as much pleasure as they possibly could out of every situation. Life in the north was hard and brutal. If the wars, bandits and monsters didn't get you, then starvation, disease and the cold probably would.
Letting out a deep breath, Azoth looked around the plaza.
Orario was very different to Skyrim, it was a warm, multicultural, happy place.
Or at least it normally was, right now however, things were slightly tenser.
The monsters that had previously run rampant through the streets were now dead, and now the rampage was over, the area was now filled with adventurers and normal citizens both, as people started cleaning up after the carnage the monsters caused.
Those that had been injured during the fracas were currently being helped to safe zones where loved ones could find them. In the more severe cases, the injured were being stretchered or carried away for healing, already he could see healing points were being set up in and around the square for those who had been badly hurt in the rampage, or in the crush of the escaping crowds.
Those that had died in the attack, however, had simply been covered with cloth for the moment, and left to the side for later identification.
Looking around, Azoth felt a slight knot in his stomach as he saw how muted the atmosphere was.
It was a far cry from the jubilant, celebratory feeling that had previously infested the city just half an hour earlier, as the citizens trawled the market stalls, gorged themselves on the festival food and oohed and aahed at the Ganesha Familia's monster show at the amphitheatre.
The difference was palpable.
In a way, it almost hurt.
He had never really, fully connected with a place before.
When he had been in Riften he had felt like an outsider. The Merish population there was only small to begin with, and those that did live there were very tribalistic. For the most part they stuck with their own kind, and kept members of the others races at arm's length.
The Altmer were stuffy by nature, or at least from his experience, and often times they had refused to lower themselves to talk to someone like him, a white haired street urchin that lacked their golden skin, hawkish features and gilted pedigree.
The Dunmer, with their dusky grey skin and dark eyes, merely ignored him. The collective trauma of their people, especially with the way the Nords tended to treat them, had made them an insular folk by nature. If you were not one of them, then you were not trustworthy, and thus they were not interested. There were expectations to this, of course. But for the most part, the majority of the Dunmer he had met in Skyrim fell into this category.
The Orismer and Bosmer were also very tribal. There were not many that lived in or around Riften, but those that did only dealt with their own kind, and only left the comfort of their own circles when they had to deal with an outsider. It didn't help that the Bosmer hated urban areas by nature, and thus stuck to living in the forests and away from the domesticated city folk. The Orismer meanwhile, had their own strongholds, and rarely ventured forth from those unless they were specifically looking for something.
As a Snow Elf, not that he had known what he was at the time, he had been alone. He had been an outcast.
His distinctly Merish features; his angular face, delicate features, and long pointed ears, had made him stand out from the humans that infested Riften. The Nords that populated Riften were suspicious and uncomfortable around him. The Bretons and Imperials, meanwhile, the few that there were, were just not interested in investing time and money into some young guttersnipe that would probably die young. Especially when the members of those races only came to Riften to barter and make money, and very rarely to live and settle down.
His lack of recognisable Merish features, however, ironically made his fellow elves just as suspicious. His skin was so pale that in winter it was almost translucent, his hair was snow white, and his eyes a gleaming violet. Aside from the ears and the delicate features, he didn't resemble any of the other Mer races.
He was the odd one out, and always had been.
Even after he had joined up with the Thieves Guild; first as a lowly pickpocket and lookout, and later as a housebreaker, he hadn't really fit in very well.
The Thieves Guild had been a rough place, the weak tended to be bullied and pushed around by the strong, and as a child he had been weak.
When it came to paying dues, he often found himself being beaten up and having his money stolen before he had his chances to cough up, which of course meant he got a good hiding and was forced deeper in debt to the Guild. A debt that could only be paid off by taking on the grunt work for more dangerous jobs.
Not that he had been the only child the Guild recruited. No, orphans and runaways were the Guild's bread and butter, it was from those groups that they recruited most of their members. Children that they then raised and indoctrinated into becoming full-fledged foot soldiers. And it was these children that had, more often than not, been the ones roughing him up and robbing him.
Unfortunately, the only way for the weak to become strong was through making friends with the strong, and then hiding in their shadow until you were strong enough to stand on your own two feet.
Which, although a good idea in theory, didn't work when you were an outcast, even within a Guild of outcasts.
Then again the same could be said for the other places in Skyrim he had visited once he had got older and had fled Riften to find his fortune elsewhere.
Solitude, Markarth, Windhelm, Dawnstar, Morthal, Whiterun, Falkreath, Winterhold, none of these places had felt like home, even after he was reborn as the Dragonborn and became one of the strongest of the strong.
No, not a single one of them had felt like home, not even after he had bought property in several of the cities, a place to call his own, and had made a name for himself, and even got himself a few titles.
Instead, he had always felt like an outsider, like a stranger who just didn't belong.
Often, he had only felt accepted for what he could do for other people, and what he could offer, and not for who he was as a person.
Here in Orario, although he had only been here a month, it felt different.
These people didn't know what he was, or who he was.
Nor did they seem to care.
Instead, they saw him for who he was, and what he had built himself up to be.
There were so many races in the city that he didn't even stand out either.
Instead, he was a face in a crowd, judged on who he was and not what he was.
Sure, it could be argued that his high level had something to do with his acceptance.
But he didn't think so, Hephaestus and her Familia had accepted him with open arms, even before his Level had become known. On top of that, he hadn't sensed that any of the Familia wanted to use him, or were only cosying up to him because it benefited themselves, and he had good senses for that kind of duplicity.
Instead, they felt genuine; they were all just generally decent people, people with similar interests to his own. When they dealt with him, they dealt with him as an equal.
It was strange in a way, but he liked it.
He had spent his entire life in Skyrim, and yet it had never felt like home. There had always been an underlying sense of danger and conflict in the country, and an undercurrent of tension.
A month here though; in this alien and unfamiliar city, and he felt comfortable and relaxed.
This place felt more like home than any other place he had been before.
More so than even Jorrvaskr, the home of the Companions, and the only other place he had felt truly accepted.
Shaking his head at that thought, Azoth tore his thoughts out of his past and focussed back on the here and now.
There was work to be done, injured to be transported and areas to secure.
From what he had heard, the Goddess Freya had already donated a few hundred doses of healing potion to help the wounded. Not long after Freya's offer some of the other gods, like Ishtar and Loki had done the same.
Despite their generous offers, however, there were still hundreds of wounded all across the city.
Those with minor wounds were being bandaged and treated the old fashioned way.
The more seriously injured were being looked after by healers and given potions.
Nodding his head as he took in the situation, Azoth decided on his next course of action.
The Ganesha Familia had already secured the area the monsters had escaped from and were already checking through the lists of what had escaped. While they had been doing that, and others had been helping the injured and dying, he had been searching the area for remaining monsters with the Loki Familia and Beckendorf.
Now that was done however, and the area had been secured, he was back in the main plaza, and it was time for him to help in a different way.
With that thought in mind, he started to head towards the nearest healing station.
"Hey Azoth, where are you headed?" Beckendorf called as he saw him break off from the group. Looking back, he could see a grim look on Beckendorf's face as he naturally started to follow his lead.
"I'm going to help," Azoth replied, glancing back at the dark skinned teen, his eyes flicking down to the borrowed sword and the stolen cleaver he now had thrust through his belt, before shifting back to his face.
"Oh, and do you know much about healing?" Bete asked petulantly from behind him.
Bete, along with Aiz and Tiona, had also joined them on their search. For all the werewolves posturing he was a strong fighter and a highly competent tracker, add in his heightened senses, senses that were probably better than his own, and he was the ideal person to have along on a search and destroy mission. It was just a shame about his personality.
Aiz and Tiona had also tagged along, though for different reasons.
Aiz, he suspected, had joined them as an excuse to escape the clutches of her overly affectionate god, Loki.
Tiona meanwhile, he assumed, had just come along to stave off her own boredom, and because she was still wanting to fight.
"I know some things," Azoth replied mildly, glancing behind as he walked, only for him to notice that the other three were following along behind him.
"Uh huh, so now you are a healer too, on top of being a pro brawler, smith and mage, tell me, is there anything you can't do?" Tiona rolled her eyes, her arms crossed in front of her, as she then gave him an expectant look.
"Bullshit Level Sixes," Beckendorf added.
"Nah, this doesn't have anything to do with his level. All the other Level Sixes I know have become specialised. I'm pretty sure you have to, to get to that level. Sure, they can do other things, but mainly they just specialise in what they're good at. But the amount you can do, it just doesn't make sense. Just what kind of skills do you have?" Bete grumbled, his brow furrowed as he inspected Azoth suspiciously.
"You're not supposed to just ask someone that, it's a little personal, you know," Tiona shot back, elbowing the werewolf in the ribs.
"Does it really matter? Fact is he is our Familia's Ace, and also, kind of awkwardly, our newest member," Beckendorf laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.
"Which means he was already this strong before he even came to Orario." Bete added, his lupine eyes still boring into the back of Azoth's head.
"It can happen, I knew a pair of Level Fives who were born and grew up outside of Orario, and besides, Tione and I were both Level 3 when we got here." Tiona spoke up, a slight frown on her face now as she gave him a speculative look.
"Yeah, and how did you get that strong outside of the Dungeon?" Bete asked, his grey eyes now on Tiona.
"That's none of your business." Tiona replied bluntly, her normally excitable and vibrant eyes growing colder as she turned to Bete and coolly met his gaze.
Ignoring the byplay, Azoth continued his journey to the nearest healing point, which just so happened to be in the centre of the plaza the last of the monsters had been killed in, by him.
Stepping over the last few melting blocks of ice, Azoth ignored the speculative looks he was receiving from some of those present, including the goddess Loki and several of her Familia members. Instead, he continued over to where the injured had been laid out, some of them moaning and groaning as people tended to them, while others just lay quietly, already unconscious or asleep.
Looking around he could see that there were a lot of injured people, probably nearly fifty in this part of the city alone, and these were just the ones that had been too injured to move, or to leave under their own power. The number didn't include the dozens of prone shroud covered bodies he had already walked past, those that were not lucky enough to survive the escaped monster's rampage.
Whoever released those monsters, or allowed them to escape, they had a lot to answer for.
Sighing at the sight of so much pointless death and pain, Azoth entered the nearest triage and approached the closest wounded person he could see.
He wanted to help.
Looking down at the wounded person, he quickly saw that it was a young, brown haired child, or maybe a pallum, he wasn't entirely sure.
Either way, whatever she was, she was badly injured. Looking down at her, he could see that she had curled up on herself in pain. From just a glance, he could see her body quivering, even beneath the blood soaked white coat she was wearing. She was also, he noted, clutching a hastily wrapped arm to her chest.
Running a hand through his messy white hair, Azoth knelt down at her side.
"Is it just your arm that you hurt?" He asked softly, reaching out as he spoke and gently placing his hand on the small girl's shoulder.
In response, she flinched.
Wincing at the response, Azoth withdrew his hand.
He'd never been good with children, not even when he had been a child. Call it a general disassociation with kids, something which had been born from his own isolation during his upbringing, or him just being incredibly awkward. But he never knew how to talk to them, or what to say.
They weren't like adults that he could laugh and joke with, his standard fall back when he was feeling awkward, the humour would likely both be inappropriate and pass over their heads unnoticed.
Instead, they were undeveloped, highly emotional and incredibly fragile.
"Look," Azoth began again, his voice still soft as he pondered over what to say next. "My name is Azoth, and I'm here to help. Now, I have magic, and can use it to heal you if you want? I could probably even fix that arm up for you too, if you'll let me?"
Shifting about at his words, he caught a glimpse of the girl's nervous, suspicious hazel eyes and some curly brown hair as she glanced at him from beneath her white hood.
"So, what's your name?" Azoth tried again, with forced patience. There were lots of other people around that needed help, and he didn't want to just wait around trying to convince some brat to let him heal her. At the same time, though, he couldn't just up and ditch this girl just because she was being difficult. He might not be a healer by nature, but he liked to think of himself as a good person at least.
"Why?" The girl asked.
"Why what?" Azoth replied nonplussed. It was not the answer he was expecting.
"Why are you helping me?" She continued, her pain seemingly forgotten for a moment as she instead questioned his motives of all things.
"Because I'm not a dick," Azoth said bluntly, making the girl jump slightly, even as she once again looked around at him, her curiosity now warring with the suspicion and pain in her gaze. "I have the power to help you, so why wouldn't I do it? I'm not a selfish prick, if it costs me nothing but some time to help others, why wouldn't I?"
"You're an adventurer." The girl stated, as if that simple statement was enough of an explanation.
"I'm a blacksmith first." Azoth shot her down, his lip quirking upwards in amusement. Technically speaking he was a thief first, and then a bandit, and finally a warrior and blacksmith third, with a little bit of barely competent mage thrown in at the end. But when it came down to it, forging and creating new things interested him far more than monster hunting. It paid better too.
Unfortunately, due to the whole Dragonborn deal, he didn't have much of a choice in the matter, it was difficult to avoid the call to action and focus on being an artificer when your very soul itself lusted for battle. On top of which, exploring and adventuring came with the added bonus of loot, including new weapons he could examine and new materials he could test out and experiment with.
"Fortunately, I've also picked up some magic over the years, including two handy little healing spells." Azoth continued with a smile.
Turning over, the girl shifted her body, so she was now facing him, her suspicious eyes still locked onto his own. "You're an elf."
"Well duh, what gave it away, was it the ears?" Azoth replied dryly. Oddly enough, in this world he didn't stand out at all. Where in Skyrim, he was always the odd Mer out. Here he just looked like an albino elf, something which people barely paid attention to. "And you're either a midget, a child, or a pallum?"
The girl scowled in response, her pain momentarily forgotten.
"I'm going to guess pallum then." Azoth smirked, before with a grin he held out his hand. "So like I said before, the name's Azoth, what's your name short stuff?"
"Despite what you say, you are still kind of a dick." The girl replied, before wincing and clutching her wrapped up arm closer to her chest.
"That's probably true, now how about you stop being stubborn and let me help you out?" Azoth said, rolling his eyes.
"What'll it cost?" The girl shot back.
"Just your name will do," Azoth replied, once again rolling his eyes.
Narrowing her eyes, the girl glared at him for a moment, before finally, grudgingly, she offered him her arm. "It's Lili, and I'm watching you."
"Good to know," Azoth said, before taking her arm carefully in his hands and gently unwrapping it. "Now, let's see what we're dealing with."
"Broken, a monster hit a building, the falling stone hit me." The girl grunted, wincing and almost withdrawing her arm as he continued to take off the makeshift bandage -which, as he unwrapped it, he discovered to be a scarf.
"Shit happens, at least you're not dead." Azoth said bluntly, eyeing the girl's arm. It was definitely broken, and badly at that. It looked to be broken in at least two places. On top of that, her flesh was red and swollen around the breaks, and the surrounding flesh was almost yellow, a sure sign of bruising. The arm was essentially a mangled mess, he had seen an injury like it before, only that time it had been caused by a mammoth stepping on a companion's arm. Without magic, or very skilled medical attention it would heal crooked, and leave the girl crippled for the rest of her life.
"That's comforting." Lili said sourly.
Azoth hummed in response.
The girl had, attitude. A part of him liked that though, as it meant she had personality.
Holding back a snarky response of his own, he narrowed his eyes in concentration as he kept the girl's arm steady with one hand, whilst he used his other to cast 'Healing Hand'.
Keeping his mind focussed, and drawing on his Magicka, he watched as his right hand took on a shining golden glow, with wisps of golden magic flowing off it like water, even as he placed his hand on to the girl's injured arm and willed it to heal.
This spell was one of the only two healing spells that he knew. The first was focussed on healing himself, it was good for remedying small injuries. This one, however, he had learned as it allowed him to heal others. It was a useful spell to have for when he dragged other people off on his hair brained adventures.
"I-" The girl muttered, her eyes widening as she saw her arm starting to glow, the bruising rapidly receding, even as her bones painlessly cracked back into place and melded together.
Fortunately, it was not an expensive spell to cast Magicka wise, it also didn't need much in the way of guidance, or medical/ anatomical knowledge. A person's body knew what it should look like, all the spell did was supercharge the body's natural healing process by using his Magicka as opposed to the person's own vitality and energy. It also had a handy side effect built into it by its creator, and those that improved on it later, of numbing the area of the body it affected.
Unfortunately, it was also limited in just what it could do.
It could mean minor to moderate wounds, but wasn't as effective on more grievous and gruesome injuries.
"And done," Azoth said with a smile, withdrawing his hand thirty seconds or so later.
The girl's arm was now completely healed, and there wasn't as much as a mark on her.
"I-" The girl tried to speak, sitting up fully now, her brow furrowing as she gazed at her now uninjured arm, before looking up at him, a befuddled expression on her face.
"Don't worry about it, just try to avoid collapsing buildings next time." Azoth grinned, ruffling her shoulder length, curly brown hair, as he did so - her hood had fallen down after she sat up - much to her displeasure. "See you around, Lili."
The girl initially just huffed in response, however, as he turned around he did just about hear a meek, muttered, "thank you" as he headed on to the next patient.
Smiling at that, Azoth shook his head. She might have an attitude and a bit of a chip on her shoulder, but the pallum had a good heart, that or she at least had good manners.
As he started to move onto the next 'patient', however, he sensed someone watching him closely and looked around, surveying his surroundings.
Loki was watching him.
Previously, when they had first re-entered the plaza, he had seen her latch on to the returning Aiz like a limpet. Now, however, she had released Aiz - allowing the doll-like blonde to edge away and join her captain, the short blonde pallum, and the other bustier Amazon sister - while Loki now just studied him closely.
Similarly, the captain of the Loki Familia, Finn, was watching him too, even as the remaining members of their Familia, including Bete and Tiona, helped to return the plaza back to some semblance of order by using their enhanced strength to clear the remaining rubble and monster corpses.
Beckendorf, meanwhile, stuck by him, hovering over his shoulder as he moved onto the next patient, a kind faced, animal person - possible a dog person - with a broken leg.
As did the elf girl, Lefyia, who he also noticed had moved to follow him.
Her face was still pale, and her expression was fatigued, but she was still standing, and was apparently quite content to watch him work while she regained her energy.
Looking over the rest of the plaza, he could see that Riveria had also started healing the injured, as had a small number of other adventurers, those capable of using healing magic.
"How's it going?" Azoth asked the younger elf, his gaze returning to Lefiya, even as he gave her a warm smile. He didn't know the girl well, but she seemed sweet.
"Fine, a bit tired, but fine." Lefiya replied, her blue eyes fixed on him. "What about you? That was… that was an impressive bit of magic you did earlier with the ice…, it was more powerful than anything I was able to do…"
"It wasn't magic," Azoth said shortly, finishing off his healing of the animal person, before moving on to the next patient, pausing only to make small talk with his new 'patient', before he continued speaking to Lefiya. "It was a…, what would you call it…, a unique skill I suppose."
"That was a skill?" Lefiya asked quietly.
"It would explain why there was no aria." Charles added with a shrug, referencing the chant most magic users here seemed to use. "I'm guessing it's the same thing with your healing? That's a pretty handy skill."
"Shouldn't you be helping the others?" Azoth asked dryly, his attention shifting to Charles as he finished sealing a bloody thigh wound, and ruffled the hair of a small child. This one he knew was definitely a child, as he could see the boy's grateful mother cradling him.
"No need, pretty much everything has been done by now." Charles shrugged, "Though I should probably find the others. Not that I'm all that worried, Lisbeth and Leo are both Level 2, Erhard is Level 3, and Tsubaki is a Level 5, between the three of them they should've been able to look after Welf and each other. But with things as they are, and this being caused by sabotage…, well I don't know…"
"They'll turn up, as you say they're tough." Azoth shrugged, moving on to the next wounded person. "How are you doing anyway, Lefiya?"
"Like I said before, tired," Lefiya replied quietly, a glum expression on her face as she looked around at the plaza. "Fighting those plant monsters took a lot out of me, and then I was healing, but the Luna Aldis spell I was using is a taxing one, and now…, now I'm just tired, and almost out of Mind."
"You've had a long day," Azoth said. He wasn't sure what else to say. There was obviously something bothering the girl, but he didn't know her well enough to guess what it was. "I'm sure there are a lot of people grateful to you for what you did. If you hadn't stepped up and fought those monsters, then who knows what would have happened."
"That's easy coming from you," Lefiya sighed tiredly, rubbing at her eyes. "I was struggling to keep them down, and then you just come out and destroy them in an instant. What kind of skill even does that?"
"A very powerful one, that's what." Loki answered for him, her voice making Lefiya jump and Beckendorf swear as she appeared between the two of them, her fox-like features twisting into an expression of amused curiosity as she looked down at him. "Just who are you?"
"Azoth, a member of Hephaestus's Familia." Azoth replied bluntly, his gaze on Loki.
He still didn't fully understand or trust these gods.
Hephaestus was the one he knew best, and she seemed decent enough. Hestia and Loki were the only other ones he had had marginal contact with, and seemed… alright. Despite that however, he still found them a mystery.
On the outside, they appeared human, and yet they could bless mortals with inhuman levels of power. They were a contradiction. The Daedra and Aedra could do the same, but they never willingly appeared weak. The Aedra remained separate from the mortal plane and only ever gave their blessings to those that worshipped at their altars. The Daedra occasionally took human form to mess with mortals, but it was little more than an illusion, or them temporarily possessing the body of a mortal. They would never deliberately weaken themselves by taking on a mortal form, even to mess with mortals.
These gods, however, had given up their place in heaven, had sealed away the vast majority of their power and had taken on mortal forms by choice.
They were nothing like the divine beings he knew.
"And a former member of the... what was your old goddess's name again? Meridia? The Meridia Familia?" Loki pressed on, apparently oblivious to her thoughts. "Funny, I've asked around, and no one has ever heard of her before…"
"Yes, her name was Meridia," Azoth said shortly, his gaze on the red haired goddess for a moment, before dismissing her and her insinuation, as he instead turned back to Lefiya. "And as for what skill it is, well it is a unique one, and that's all I can really say."
"A person's status is private," Charles added, his gaze on Loki. "It's between them and their god."
"Hey now, no need to be all suspicious, I wasn't prying!" Loki quickly replied, raising her hands in a sign of her innocence. "I just came over to see how little Lefiya was doing, and caught the trail end of your conversation."
"Uh huh," Azoth hummed, his gaze on Loki.
"That, and after the help you gave my kiddos, I was going to extend you and the rest of your Familia an invitation to join me and my kids for a feast at the Twilight Manor!?" Loki pressed on, a vulpine smile spreading across her face.
"Lady Loki?" Lefiya asked, her eyes widened in surprise.
Beckendorf blinked and looked uncertain.
"Well, why not? Our Familia's are allies, and will be going on a little jaunt in the Dungeon together soon. Why not have a night to celebrate?" Loki continued enthusiastically. "I'll pass on the invitation to Hephaestus so don't worry about telling her yourself?" She pressed on, overriding anything he or Beckendorf could say, as she instead threw her arm around Lefyia's arrow shoulders and started to guide her away, "We can make a whole evening of it!"
Azoth and Beckendorf shared a look at that, even as they saw the duo leaving. Or rather saw Loki bouncing away, her arm still resolutely around Lefyia's narrow shoulders, the elf girl's long brown hair, still tied back in a ponytail, waving from side to side as her goddess jostled her.
"She's an odd one, isn't she?" Charles muttered.
"Suspicious, more like," Azoth corrected.
"She's harmless." Riveria clarified, her melodic voice making the pair of them jump and turn around.
"What the hell!?" Charles shouted, nearly leaping out of his skin.
"Nine Hells, actually." Riviera replied with a slight smile.
Catching the reference to her well-known moniker, Azoth rolled his eyes.
He hadn't thought the prim and proper elf was capable of making a joke.
"Have you finished healing?" Azoth asked, deciding not to comment.
"I have healed all that need it," Riveria nodded, brushing a lock of long green hair over her shoulder as she looked down at Azoth, and offered him a shirt. "And I've brought you a spare shirt."
"Ermm, thanks," Azoth said, taking the offered shirt uncertainly.
"You're currently half naked, and it is distracting." Riveria said, answering his unasked question.
"Is that distracting in a good way or bad way?" Azoth asked with a grin.
From beside him, he could hear Beckendorf whistle and mutter, "the balls on you…"
Riveria gave him a flat look in response, even as he pulled the simple woollen shirt over his head.
It was a perfect fit.
"And like I was saying before, Loki is harmless. A prankster and mischief-maker, yes, but otherwise she is harmless and well meaning. She is merely curious, we all are. You are an anomaly, Azoth. A high level adventurer doesn't just appear out of nowhere, yet here you are, and not only are you high level, you also have an impressive set of abilities, skills and magic. You're a mystery, and Loki hates those. That's no doubt why she is inviting you to the Twilight Manor. Subtly is not her strong point, nor does she know when to give up. I have no doubt that she will dog you until she finds out what she wants." Riveria said, her green eyes surveying him calmly.
"Then she'll be disappointed. My secrets are my own, and not something I will just give up, and certainly not to assuage a curious goddess." Azoth said bluntly.
Riveria smiled mildly. "I will warn you now, she is tenacious."
"Well, fortunately, I'm stubborn." Azoth shot back.
Her smile widened at his answer. "Then I look forward to seeing you at the Twilight Manor soon, it should be an entertaining evening."
With that said she gave him another smile, a nod and then bade him farewell.
"What is it with elves and being weird?" Charles muttered to him.
Azoth gave him a flat look in response, before with a sigh he looked around at the rest of the plaza and patted Beckendorf on the shoulder. "I'm not sure what else we can do here, let's go catch up with the others."
"Right," Beckendorf nodded. "And then we should probably get back to the Familia and talk to Hephaestus, she'll probably want some warning before Loki ambushes her."
( - )
AN: So what do you think, a bit of a chilled chapter after the action of the last chapter, I know, but hopefully you still like it.
Not much to say other than that, this was a difficult chapter to write as I had to juggle around a lot of characters. That said I think I hit all the notes. This was more of a Character Development chapter, with minor set up, as you might expect the next chapter will be a bit more meaty. There will be more conversation and interactions, more exploration of the Loki and Hephaestus Familia's and then we've got a Dungeon dive, some more smithing and even a little interaction with the Bell and his little group.
Plenty to look forward too!
Also before people ask, the pairing is still undecided. I have ideas, but nothing set in stone. I'm going to let the story develop naturally and decide what makes sense. I've found I prefer it that way as opposed to contorting and twisting the story so it includes the pairing I want.
That said, I hope people did enjoy the story and continue to read.
Please leave a review, comment etc. If you have any questions or suggestions feel free to PM me, I'm usually good at answering them.
Also I am on a discord with a load of other writers, so if you fancy popping over to ask questions or offer suggestions about this story, or any of my other ones, or to find new authors you might not have come across yet, please feel free to use the link in my bio or the link at the top of the page.
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next year!
Greed720.
P.S. if you like this please check out my brand new Elder Scrolls/ Lord of the Rings crossover!