To Worship a Goddess

Rudsis woke up in a bed. His head killed him, and he moved a hand to it, but took it away as quickly as if he'd touched fire. The bump on his forehead was swollen, throbbing, and extremely tender.

He groaned.

"He's awake," said a youthful voice.

The face of a man came into his view. It looked vaguely familiar, but Rudsis didn't care to try to place it in his memories. Instead, he sat, and saw that he was in a house. There were one grown man, and two children with him.

"Careful," said the man.

"Water, if you have it," said Rudsis.

One of the boys ladled water from a bucket to a cup, and handed to Rudsis. The guard drank it eagerly, letting some of it spill from his mouth.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"Well, in my house, sir. In the city of Crown. A couple of guards left you in the street, and I recognized you as the guard that saved us."

Rudsis' eyebrows went up. The man had to be the husband of the woman he'd avanged, but even looking straight at him, it was hard to tell. "I'm sorry I could not save your wife," he said contritely.

Sadly, heavily, the man nodded. "It's not your fault, sir. And she didn't help herself. All she had to do was what they told her, but she refused."

"They dumped you with that," said one of the children pointing at the wall.

Rudsis looked, and saw the sword of his king leaning against it.

In silence, the guard took a few seconds to remember everything that had happened at kinghall. Then, he looked at the floor. There were stains of blood on it, where the followers of Treni had died.

"Are you hungry?" asked the father.

"How long have I been unconscious?" Rudsis swung his legs over the edge of the bed to sit with elbows resting on his knees, head low.

"It was sunup when I saw you lying on the street. It's midday now."

"I might as well eat, then."

The father handed Rudsis a wooden plate with a slice of cheese and bread on it. "I'm sorry. We have neither much, nor meat at the moment."

"No need to apologize," said Rudsis. He knew perfectly well that most of the city folk did not eat as well as guards. He took his eyes from the food to look around at the house. It was small. A bed had probably been brought out from one of the two adjoining rooms for him.

"More water, if you would."

"Yes, sir."

The same kid poured more water and brought it to him.

"What's happened while I was unconscious?"

"Some more of those people with robes came around, accompanied by guards. They told us that the city was now ruled by the goddess Treni, and that we had to pray to her. They stayed here to make sure we did."

"Hmm." Rudsis nodded. The bread was dry, as was the cheese. The water was dull. He looked around in vain, hoping to catch the sight of a wine vessel. "You prayed?"

The man hesitated. "You understand…"

"Of course I do. The city has indeed been taken, and I can't do anything to protect you if you refuse."

"Thank you, sir."

"Is that all that's happened?"

"Yes, sir."

The food somehow soothed Rudsis, and by the time he was done, even the headache faded slightly. The father gestured at one of the boys, who took the plate and stepped outside to wash it.

"Sir…" the father said tentatively.

"Hmm?" Rudsis forced his demeanor to be patient, but his eyes were weren't. He needed to think about what his next steps would be.

"Is that a sword? The king's sword?"

Rudsis stared at the man for a few seconds, then nodded.

"Is he—"

"Yes!"

The children started at Rudsis' raised tone. The man looked concerned, perhaps a bit shaken, but it was clear he was more worried than scared about the injured guard.

"Forgive me." Rudsis looked down, ashamed. "I was here and failed to protect your wife. I was also there, but failed to protect king. I'm cross with myself."

"Is she truly a goddess, then?" asked the father with a dejected tone as his shoulders slumped. "This Treni."

"I can't doubt it. She defeated me single-handedly. Which she could have actually done literally. And our spears simply shattered against her body."

"No…" The man covered his mouth. "No, it can't be. She was right."

"Who?"

"My wife, sir. Her family told stories from long ago. Hundreds of years, if you'd believe them. Gods had come hunting down an order of witches, because they were the only ones that could kill them with a single word."

"Hm." Rudsis only grunted to make the father think he was attentive. The truth was, he didn't really care about stories. "Do you know if the killings have stopped? Or if anyone's been killed for a reason other than not praying to her?"

The man shook his head."We've been busy, sir. The ashes of the pyre are still hot."

"Forgive me." Rudsis smacked his forehead and lamented it immediately. He let out a pained gasp, and tears escaped through his tightly shut eyes. "Damn it!"

"Lie down, sir."

"I'm fine," Rudsis said through his teeth. "I'm fine. Forgive me, truly. I just want to make sure that whoever survived is safe. I can't do anything for those that have already been killed, and my anger won't let me think straight."

"Gods want to be worshipped because it makes them stronger, sir. As long as we comply, we should be safe. At least for now."

"What do you mean?" Rudsis breathed in deeply, and out profusely in an attempt to lessen the pain he'd caused himself.

"The stories of my wife, sir. She used to tell ones where there came a time when praying to the gods was not enough, and they demanded human sacrifices."

Alarmed, the guard opened his eyes, and the pain of his forehead was almost forgotten. The two boys were sitting on the floor behind their father, ready to jump to action if they were ordered to do something. Rudsis imagined them being sacrificed to Treni.

"I need to find her," he said.

"Who, sir?"

"Treni said there was a person left alive that knew how to kill her."

The father nodded slowly, frowning, eyebrows furrowed. "She used to tell a story of a witch that survived the hunt. But this happened hundreds of years ago. She, her mother, and grandmother would always discuss about it. One thought it was 500 year ago, the other 200, and so on."

"Would the witch still live?"

"The tales say they could use their magic to live forever. But there was another tale about that same witch being eaten by an monster."

"No. Treni said she was still alive, and monsters are not real."

"Until last night, I thought gods were not real, sir."

Rudsis ignored that. "Do the tales say where this witch lives?"

"An old, dark forest. It's said that she killed a god in this very city, and that was the last time she was seen. Perhaps she hid herself in the forest nearby."

Rudsis sighed and let his head slump. The forest nearby was endless as far as anyone knew. Even standing on the guard towers, one could not see if the ocean of crests ever stopped.

"I would advice against looking for a witch, sir. They're not any better than gods. Like I said, they know how to kill gods, and they also know how to kill monsters. They protected the people of cities and towns, but at a price."

"What price?"

"A man and a girl had to be given to them each year. He would be sacrificed in a ritual that would turn her into a witch."

"No matter." Rudsis stood and checked his footing. It was as sure as ever. After moving his legs, arms, neck, and stretching his back, he determined it was only his head that afflicted him. Thankfully, it was not serious. "No matter," he repeated. "After I take care of Treni, I'll kill the witch and rid the world of two evils. You should escape while you have a chance, and take as many people as possible with you. If what you say about worshipping the gods is true, I don't think anyone will be allowed to leave the city soon. Treni won't want to lose her resources."

"Where to, sir?" asked the father.

Rudsis did not know how to answer that. Had he bothered to asked Krenen why he'd forgiven the thief he was supposed to punish, and where he took him, Rudsis might have been able to help these folks.