Hymn of the Elder Gods

No Rest For the Weary (Part 2)

If Eve survived this, she was throwing the damn phone away.

Keyword being if.

The Sanctifier stood, unfolding a second set of hands out from beneath the cloak. Between thin fingers, it held curved sickles which looked dull in the sudden lack of light. The first pair of hands remained firmly clasped, palms touching. Unseeing, the creature's head nevertheless turned exactly to where Eve was standing.

Stay calm, she told herself, digging in her pockets. Looking for something, anything she could use as a weapon.

She'd only brought a piece of chalk.

"Ahaha," Eve laughed, nerves cracking her voice in the middle. "Didn't know you were guarding this. All a misunderstanding, I assure you."

"What are you?" the creature said, in a voice that was clear and lovely, but holy shit, Eve didn't think she'd ever heard one speak before and that made this situation all the more terrifying. She'd been spoiled by the minor monsters that had been leaking through to earth.

"A tourist?" There was no change in the sanctifier's expression. She could sense the blatant disapproval anyways. It tickled her chest and made her heart go tight, as though any second it would give out beneath the pressure.

"Lies." A simple declaration, but one with no doubt in it whatsoever. Eve frowned thoughtfully. Sanctifiers had, essentially, one job. To borrow the strength of the elder god they served and cleanse that which the elder gods deemed...extraneous. The fact that she was still alive meant it had not made a decision one way or another.

She could use that.

Eve studied the intricately carved armor along the sanctifier's front, and it waited quietly. The air smelled charred. Half truths. If it even suspected she could be an enemy, it could destroy her. Gritting her teeth around a shudder, she shrugged, struggling to make the movement casual.

"I am here to see a companion." Aska would take issue with her phrasing, but she wasn't here to tell her off. The excuse would have to do.

"This quarter has been emptied."

"I got lost."

"You do not live here?"

"I do not," Eve said, in a careful voice. "I am only visiting on business."

"And what might that be?"

"Research." Eve said, and this one was more of a lie than the rest. She hoped it was not obvious, and watched for any changes in the creature's expression, finding none. Thankfully.

"Indeed, a popular thing to be conducting as of late. Though I cannot fathom why so many have taken interest in Cropis. A small town, all things considered."

Eve blinked, clearing the dryness from her eyes and kept her heartbeat carefully steady. "A millenia of time drives even the most logical of beings half-crazed with boredom."

At her response, a languid sort of confidence settled into those long, muscular arms. The prayer fell apart. Eve wasn't sure if that was a good thing.

After a creeping, drawn out pause, one of the four palms gestured dismissively outwards.

Exhaling shakily, Eve began to walk away. She'd gained a half-dozen paces on the sanctifier before that voice, soft like velvet, rang out anew. "Where did you say you lived?"

Something was wrong. The creature was too calm. Her instincts yanked at her, spreading chills across her skin. Was it more dangerous not to answer? "Beyond," she said, vaguely.

Soft, plush lips, curled into a tight-mouthed smile. "Lies," the sanctifier purred.

Eve broke into a run, still half-convinced she might be able to get away.