Bad Gods by Gaie Sebold

Author:Gaie Sebold
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Fantasy
Publisher: Rebellion Publishing Ltd

Chapter Twenty

I looked at Enthemmerlee, down there in the reeking dark. “Ah,” I said.

“You do not believe me?”

“Does it matter?”

She looked thoughtful, then smiled again. It was an extraordinary smile, so sweet and open it should have looked childlike, but didn’t. “No, it does not matter, but it is true, nonetheless.”

“So why are you here?”

“It was necessary for me to stay out of the way, until the time of transformation.”

“So you made a bargain with the sewer-crawlers who run this place, so you’d be out of sight? Am I right that you need to remain – how can I put this – ‘untouched,’ for the transformation to take place?”

“Untouched?” She blinked. “Oh, unmated, you mean?” She shook her head. “No, it is not a matter of virginity. If I remain virgin, according to what we have been able to discover, I will only die.”

“Only?”

“It would be a waste,” she said. “It has happened before, in the family bloodline; yellow-eyed girl children, not mated in time, through fear, or ignorance. If I mate only with a Gudain, then” – she gestured at herself – “this is what I remain. To become what I can be, for the transformation to be complete, I must be mated, at the time of transformation, to two men; one Ikinchli, and one Gudain. You understand? Then it will happen.”

I managed to close my mouth, after a moment. And opened it again. “That’s why they were so eager to get you married.”

“Yes.”

“Why wait until Twomoon? Why didn’t they just mate you off as soon as possible?”

“Because until then I will not be...” – for the first time, she blushed, a soft greenish glow in the firelight – “physically capable.”

Well, she looked similar to a human, but Ikinchli had two cocks, after all. Who knew what was the case with Gudain, or indeed with her, who was neither one nor the other? I had no idea what was going on under her robe and didn’t think it was the time to ask.

“You really want to do this?” I said. “To become something else?”

“I have thought very hard. As Itnunnacklish, I can do so much more for both my people than I ever could if I remain Gudain. The transformation will be hard, I know, and painful. I may die, even if everything is done correctly. But I have to take the chance.”

I said, “You know, being turned into an image... well, it doesn’t always work out the way you expect. Trust me, I know this.”

“Symbols have great power.”

“Broken symbols do, too. If you survive the change, the Gudain may try and kill you.”

“Yes,” she said, “but even martyrdom can have its uses. Although I would prefer to avoid it. One can do so much more alive than dead.”

It was a moment before I could talk. “You’re a very brave young woman,” I said. “And if that’s really your choice, I’ll do what I can to help.”

“The mating must take place at the right time, and somewhere I will be safe for several days.

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