Chapter 168: A saintess with power, but no connection
Cass didn’t get back to sleep. Ser Hune kept him entertained the remainder of the night, and also helped Cass take off the bandages and take his first round of medicine as well as eat. Cass didn’t mind, and was grateful to have someone around who understood who he was, especially since it was a part that even Lord Blackburn didn’t know about himself.
It was silly, but it felt like something he could claim for himself. Even if it wasn’t his to begin with. He had been human, he was human. It was just...it was just a silly whim on his part.
The first to rouse was Lady Ava, surprisingly, and she seemed just as surprised as Cass was when they saw each other. She gave a nervous smile, ducking her head in acknowledgement as she turned and tied her tent flaps up again.
"Good morning, Cassian." She greeted, before clearing her throat. "Thank you for allowing me to use your tent. I appreciate your...consideration." She muttered and Ser Hune patted Cass’ shoulder, getting up to leave the two of them alone.
"I’m going to go wake up Sir Forsythe. It’s his rotation now." Ser Hune said, glancing back at Cass with a wink.
Cass wasn’t sure why she did it, until Lady Ava glanced around, nervous, and then made her way over. She joined Cass on the bench, her hands shaking from where she gripped the wood.
"You’re welcome, Lady Ava." Cass said easily. He was happy to offer her something, especially if it meant a little less of an awkward situation while they were in the dungeon.
"I..." She trailed off. "I’m sorry that you have seen some rather distasteful sides of myself recently." She said quietly. Cass stared into the blaze before them, letting her words hover in the air for a moment before he sighed.
"I am not one to judge someone going through an emotional time, Lady Ava. I just...wish you hadn’t made it everyone’s issue. With that being said, sometimes we are unable to control ourselves." Cass was pretty sure that this wasn’t the right thing to say, but they were his feelings.
When he glanced over at Lady Ava, her face was a little pale, and she too was staring at the fire. Unlike Cass, she was staring into the fire like it would fix her.
"I...I feel like ever since you woke up from your injury, everything that I am has begun to slip away." She whispered. Cass was a bit surprised to hear that from her lips. She licked her lips, swallowing, before she continued. "I’ve always had a good relationship with the gods. Whether I could hear them or not, I could feel them. It was...I was told it was a sign that I had the potential to be the next saintess." Lady Ava was speaking quietly. "As well as my own unique condition." She added, and Cass nodded.
"That is rather interesting." Cass told her, meaning it. Her lips quirked up for a second, before they fell again.
"It’s nice of you to say that." She whispered. "I’m not blaming you. I can’t blame you for something I did myself, it’s just...I noticed the change around then." She looked ill. "The voices, the gods I used to hear...they disappeared, Cass." She whispered so faintly that Cass almost didn’t hear her.
That...was a shocking revelation. Cass knew that probably had a real world consequence, but Cass wasn’t sure what it was. He just stared at Lady Ava, as she looked ill.
"I was only able to hear one voice after that. I...am ashamed to admit, I clung to it. I let it...consume me." She whispered. "I didn’t even realise I was changing until both Eddie and Fifi confronted me. I said horrible things. Things I’ve never even considered nor thought." Cass was a bit concerned as to why she was telling him all this. He didn’t have to wait long to find out.
"You...You’ve changed too, you know? But I don’t think your change has been negative, like mine has. Do you think...do you think the gods stopped talking to me because they had you to speak to?" She asked. "No, don’t answer that. I don’t want to know the actual answer. It’s selfish of me to think that I own the gods. I don’t. I’m not even a good enough saintess." Cass wasn’t sure what to say.
This was...honestly, this was the Lady Ava he had first met. If she had lost the voices of the other gods around the same time that Cass had taken over Lord Blackburn’s body...she wasn’t exactly wrong with her predictions.
Cass was also sure that those fucks were listening in on them as well. They would of course be doing that. They were the damn hero party after all.
"Lady Ava." Cass shifted, turning towards her. He hesitated, before he reached out, placing a hand on her shoulder. "You aren’t worth less because less of the gods talk to you." He started. He spoke quietly because he knew that it would be a big deal if others overheard them. "I don’t see you as any less." Cass told her and for some reason, that seemed to greatly affect her. She dropped her head and he could hear her sniffling.
"You’re...much too kind, Cass. Really. I know I’ve said terrible things to you. Honestly, it has felt like someone else has taken over my body, but I know possession isn’t possible for someone like me. I have...I have too much holy power." Cass felt a chill run down his spine at her words. They held weight.
They had tested to see if she was possessed.
Cass’ mouth was a little dry as he spoke next.
"Exactly. You have too much holy power. I think...you aren’t exactly wrong in worrying that I might have had a significant role in your disconnection, but I’ll tell you a secret." Cass leaned in. "We’re planning to go to the capital after this. There, you can go to the main temple and try to speak to them. I’m sure you’ll have a different reaction there. If that’s the case, then you can start trying to repair the damage you have done to your relationships. Lady Fiona seems to be a rather forgiving person." Cass told her and Lady Ava’s shoulders shook.
"I don’t know if she’ll forgive this." Lady Ava said. She reached up, holding onto Cass’ hand tightly. "I’m so sorry. I’ve done so many things that I regret. I truly wanted to get close to you as a friend, but I feel like I’ve not only put my foot in my mouth, but my whole damn leg." Cass almost laughed.
He did feel like it might be inappropriate, but it was a hell of a joke, and she wasn’t wrong.
"I won’t argue that." Cass muttered, and she let out a bark of laughter. She raised her head, wiping her eyes with her free hand as she met Cass’ gaze. She seemed...calmer. Softer.
"I don’t know why, but being around you makes the...the bad thoughts fade." She muttered and Cass was quite surprised to hear that.
"Bad thoughts? Like, harming others thoughts?" Cass asked and she bit her lip.
"Well, not physically." She replied and Cass was beginning to think that maybe she wasn’t far off on the worrying about possession thing. Wait a second, who the hell was she talking to, what kind of god was she talking to if they were telling her to harm others?
Cass’ eyes went wide, and he was about to warn Lady Ava when the tent next to Cass and Lord Ridgewood’s opened. Vespertine crawled out, his eyes narrowed as he glanced around, a hand above his face.
"Ugh. The sun woke me up." He muttered. Cass looked around. The sun?
The whole time that Cass had been out with Ser Hune, the sky had not changed. Not at all. It hadn’t gotten darker nor brighter. Cass was sure it had something to do with the dungeon nearby, but hell, it was nice to have a vampire nearby just for the fact that they knew when it was daytime.
Lady Ava snorted, before she let out a peel of giggles.
"Leave it up to Eddie to know when the sun is out." She joked, and Cass watched as Vespertine’s expression shifted. It wasn’t quite shock, but it was something close. Maybe...there was something lighter there. Hope? Cass wasn’t sure, but Cass could tell that Vespertine was reeling from it as Lady Fiona opened her own tent, and Lord Ridgewood opened their shared one.
Lord Ridgewood seemed a little upset as he came out of the tent.
"I touched your blankets. Did you even sleep in the tent?" He asked, not even greeting Cass. Cass smirked.
"Well, turns out, I got chills so bad that my teeth were chattering. I got up so that I didn’t wake you." That seemed to surprise the others, including Lady Ava.
Which, surprisingly, the lingering issues that Cass had, were gone. Strange. Cass stared at Lady Ava while she stared at him. Both of them seemed lost in thought, before footsteps approached their camp.
"Ah! Good morning, heroes. I was worried that you might need some help waking up, but it is good to see that almost everyone is awake." Cass glanced over to find a few priests entering their small encampment. All of them were smiling, and given how early it was in the morning, Cass didn’t like that.
He hadn’t slept, so it was different, but the fact that they were smiling so early in the morning? Cass didn’t like it. He wasn’t a morning person, and he had very little outright trust for those who were.
Coming up from behind the priests was the familiar form of Sir Forsythe, and he seemed annoyed at the priests blocking his way. Cass felt his lips pull up as Lady Ava got to her feet, moving towards the priests.
"Thankfully, we are all good risers." She said warmly, the smile on her face feeling different. Cass realised that she hadn’t smiled like that in weeks. He didn’t think just a few minutes by his side could have done that.
The priest looked around, his gaze falling on the blanket clad Cass, and his smile faltered.
"O-Oh my. To see the famous red eyes in person. I-I am truly honoured." He muttered, and Cass didn’t like the sound of that one bit. Lady Fiona’s expression darkened, as did Lady Ava’s, and both women came to stand in front of Cass, blocking the priest’s sight of him.
"Was there a reason you came, Priest Daniel?" Lady Fiona’s voice held an edge to it, and Cass wondered if he’d missed out on anything while Lucian had woken him up in the carriage? It felt like it. Damn it. Why was this Priest Daniel interested in his red eyes? Was that a big deal or something?
Fucking hell. He felt like for every one thing he learned, seven more curiosities popped up. He hoped that wasn’t the same for the actual dungeon.