Godslayer Lysette: Chapter 246

Chapter 246: The Calm at Dawn

Lysette stood upon the northern slopes of the Spire Mountains, looking down upon the town of Ciricu as sunrise dawned along the eastern horizon.  She took a single breath as the first light of the sun’s disc appeared in the sky, knowing that in mere days, the war which had claimed yet another of her friend’s lives would continue.

She closed her eyes and reflected upon the nascent dawn.  To the east lay the light of the sun.  And to the west, the remnant darkness of the brightening twilight.  In a sense, the sky was no different than her own sense of self, embodying duality.  For she, Lysette Barenete, was also standing at the crossroads between what might be among the most consequential decisions for the world as a whole.

On the one hand, she was Aimarion’s Demigoddess of Reciprocity.  A blazing sun meant to embody the dreams and desires of all people who cried out for a fairer, more just, more equitable world.  A builder of that world, one where the circumstances of one’s birth were irrelevant.  Where people worked in harmony to become more than the sum of their individual abilities.  Where people gained in strength through their contributions to others, not by hoarding power and resources for themselves.

But on the other hand, she was the latest of a long lineage of demons, those with the power to steal the strength and lives of others and add both to her own.  And she had, more often than she wanted to admit, used that ability.  Found ways and reasons to justify the use of that ability.  And in doing so, she was the very incarnation of ruin, the embodiment of death and destruction.  She was anathema against the gods.  She was, as one newly-deceased demigod had called her, the enemy of all of Aimarion.

Both sides were unquestionably her, and though being a blazing sun to enlighten the world appealed to her better nature, was unquestionably more in line with her highest principles.  But the path of a demon was easier, faster, more certain to bring about results.  Though, results which would be tainted by the rancorous stench of the lives she would have to take to bring about that end.

And so she asked herself the same thing that had been eating away at her since the battle with Alan the day before: To what extent did the ends justify the means?  In a war between various gods and their factions, where death and dying was inevitable, to what extent was it correct to kill in order to save others?  And, if the world would see her as its enemy no matter what she did, just because of what she was, then was it not in the nature of Reciprocity to reflect that enmity right back upon the world and the power structures which upheld it?

She took another deep breath as the people down below began to go about a peaceful morning little different from those of the previous several mornings, centering herself for a morning of Cultivation.  Her plans were upended when Nicholas approached at a swift jog to greet her.

“Good morning, Nicholas,” Lysette said.  “Are you feeling any better than last night?”

“A little.  I had a good cry after the ceremony.  Thankfully I had Kia there with me the whole night, so I wasn’t alone.  But I still feel a little hollow, knowing Kris isn’t coming back.”

“I can’t say that I know how you’re feeling.  We all process our grief in different ways.  But I can speak to my own experience of losing my sister and parents a few months back.  The pain never goes away.  The hole remains.  All we can do is to try to fill in that hole with as many connections as we can.  Like you with Kiarra.”

“Or you and Mirae?”

Lysette smiled.  “Yeah.”

“There was something else I wanted to ask of you, Lyse.”

Lysette nodded.

“Would it be possible to have a statue of Kris somewhere in the town?  I don’t think she’s likely to get more than a name on a plaque somewhere back in Domaria, but it’d make me feel a lot better, knowing that she hasn’t been forgotten, and that she’s still here, watching over us.  Watching over me.”

“What sort of attire do you want her to wear?  Military uniform, something like what she wore back at the Academy?  Something she wore back before we even met?”

“I think her military uniform would be best.  You said it yourself— she died a hero, shielding Danitha from an enemy attack with her own body.  I couldn’t think of a better way to embody everything that she held dear— her spirit of self-sacrifice, of care for others, of building solidarity.

Lysette pulled out an ordinary acorn and closed her eyes, envisioning Kristil in her final days.  Her short brown hair tied up in a military-approved bun, her immaculate attire from boots to pants to camouflaged tunic.  Her fair skin, smooth complexion, eyes which had seen great loss and suffering, and yet could still see optimism and Hope where most others could not or dared not look.

Hope…  The word had a power behind it, even as she merely thought it to herself.

Lysette willed her divine power into the acorn, requesting it to awake from its wintry slumber.  And after a moment of rolling about in her hand, feeding off her stamina and traces of Essence which permeated the world all around, the seed obliged her, putting down roots that greedily devoured the energy Lysette fed it.  And a moment later, it grew its thin, green stalk that rapidly browned as it barked over and formed the trunk and primary branches.

At this time, Lysette set the person-sized tree down and used her plant manipulation techniques to carve into the oak’s barky flesh.  First, she grew one branch into a cylinder about three feet in diameter, and thrice that in height.  With a blade of ice, she severed her raw material off and guided the new tree overlooking the village into repairing the wound her harvest left.  She followed suit with a silent prayer of thanks for its contribution before turning her attention back to the materials for her sculpture.

She then focused both inward and outward.  Two of her deific consciousnesses focused on a reconstruction of Kristil in her military garb within her mind’s eye, while the other three available prepared the fine manipulations of Essence needed to carry out her task.  First, she carved out a general outline of a human form.  Then, she began adding more and more detail, making sure that each cut matched the mental image she maintained.

With furious celerity she cut and carved and occasionally regrew the oaken material, willing it to take the shape of Nicholas’s late sister.  Dawn gave way to morning as she continued her task, and Kiarra, Mirae, Lilia, Serrena, and Rayleigh had all gathered to watch by the time she had finished about an hour and a half later.

“What do you think, Nicholas?” Lysette asked.  “I know it’s just a wooden statue right now, but I don’t trust myself to carve metal or stone with any degree of proficiency.”

“It’s…”  Nicholas furrowed his eyebrows.  “It’s–  Not how I would have presented her, with her eyes looking upward toward the distance and the forlorn expression upon her face.  But I think it really suits her after…”

“That’s how you described her last night.  Thinking toward the future, looking ahead, imagining something better than the world we were given.  I wanted to represent her not as she was, but as the best version of herself, the Kristil that she aspired to be at her best.  A reminder that each of us can be better and do more than we often think we can.”  A reminder to me of my better nature, and what I have to defend.

Mirae took Lysette’s hand into theirs and planted a kiss upon their cheek.  “It’s beautiful, love.  You should do one of me next!”

Lysette interlaced her fingers with those of her partner, letting their twinned silvery betrothal rings glisten in the morning light.  “The problem with that, love, is that I’d have to make a statue of you in ice to properly capture your radiance.  And, with springtime fast approaching, it would be far too ephemeral for my taste.”

“Indeed,” Mirae said.  “Our love is to be forever lasting.”

“D’awww,” Lilia said.  Her eyes all but sparkled.

“And I thought we were sappy,” Nicholas said.

“Don’t say that like you don’t like it,” Kiarra said, crossing her arms.

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it, Kia.”  Nicholas pecked Kiarra’s cheek.  “I certainly enjoy your affections.”

“Oh for the love of–”  Serrena shook her head.  “And just when I was acclimating to these two lovestruck idiots.”  Serrena gestured toward Lysette and Mirae before sighing.

“Is there anything wrong with that?” Rayleigh asked.  “Should I make a note of that somewhere in your doctrines?”

“My doctrines?”

Rayleigh nodded.  “I’ve been trying to compile a list of your teachings to put together in some sort of scripture.  It was actually Amalia’s idea; she’s been doing the same for Lyse and I decided my goddess needed to have something similar.  Plus, I can’t allow myself to be outdone by anyone else, now can I?”

Serrena nodded.  “No to both of those questions.  Just please tell me that you’re not planning to come onto me either now or at any point in the future.”

Rayleigh vehemently shook her head.  “While I can admit that you are far from unattractive, you have made your opinions regarding any sort of intimate relationship extremely clear.  I would never even deign to defy my goddess’s wishes on such matters.  Though I was wondering whether your doctrines demanded a vow of celibacy.”

“No.  I’m not one for dictating that sort of thing to anyone who wants to follow my teachings.  As long as my disciples commit to self-improvement and betterment, I don’t really care what their underlying motivations are.  Besides, I’ve learned from a certain blonde-haired annoyance that there’s value in Ambition for the sake of others, rather than just for its own sake.”

Rayleigh nodded and marked some sort of shorthand note on her forearm.

Lilia turned to Mirae.  “I will do the same.  I only apologize that I had not thought of the idea sooner.”

Mirae blushed.  “You needn’t apologize, Lilia.  I’ve been so busy lately myself that I haven’t had much time to think about doctrines or even the idea of founding a religion.”

“Anyway,” Rayleigh said.  “I’m feeling a bit pent up after the last few days.  There’s been all this stuff going on and war is supposed to be coming here next and I need to get some practice in or I’m going to get rusty.”  She turned to Lilia.  “I challenge you to a sparring match!  Fight me!”

Lilia stepped back a half-step.  “Why me?”

“Because this is a good opportunity to test ourselves and demonstrate our progress as Cultivators to our gods.”

Lysette looked at Lilia, then at Rayleigh.  The latter was quite a bit stronger, and had greater expertise with her techniques, due to Serrena’s constant and sometimes brutal training over the past several months.  She then turned to Kiarra.

“Kiarra, would you join Lilia in sparring against Rayleigh?  I think that would make for a far better match.”

“Ah,” Serrena said.  “I agree.  That would make for a better contest.”

“I believe in you, Kia,” Nicholas said.

Kiarra crossed her arms and shook her head.  “Welp, I suppose I have no choice in the matter now.  Lilia, let’s do this thing.”

“Alright!  Rayleigh, we accept your challenge!”

Chapter 245: https://www.patreon.com/posts/114418248

Table of Contents: https://www.patreon.com/posts/101896170

Chapter 247: https://www.patreon.com/posts/114551144