“Do you think she’ll endure, Hanna?” Lena asked her quietly.

“Yes, she’ll endure. Solange is a master of the body, and knows how to wring sensations out of my tired flesh. Kata may be sore and bruised in the morning, but with Sol’s personal attention, I would be surprised if she thought of herself as someone brutish and unattractive.” She grinned.

“That is exactly what I hoped for. Kata is so reserved, even if we need to cuddle for warmth in the winter, she’ll make things awkward.” She sighed softly. “All I really want to do is loosen her up a bit. If she can unwind that rigid personality, she can have some fun in the future. And be able to come with me to Haven.”

“Solange is a much sought after companion for the evenings, but she’s quite particular. If she said yes to training your guardian, she wanted to be the one to do it. Not out of obligation, but out of her own hungry desire.” Hanna sighed softly. “I usually sleep in her bed, so I’m giving up my time with her.”

“Then prepare to give up more in the future, Hanna.” Lena smiled a small smile. “The goddess and I are going to ravage that pair of hers like no one else.”

*****

“YOU BET WE WILL!” Kyrie yelled out, and growled. “Hungering after someone else other than me!” She looked down. “EAT, RACHEL!” Rachel chirped as she had lost her focus and listened to the goddess speak.

“Still not concentrating on what you’re doing?”

“Deacon Ayn, that’s not fair! She’s talking about the Empress! I want to know about her too!” Rachel whined, so Ayn walked up right behind her and slapped her behind. “Eep!”

“Please your goddess. If you’re good, you’ll be allowed to go to the bar and be snacked on tonight. If not, you’ll be off to the forest and become the prey.” Rachel pursed her lips.

“Both of those are still good things, Ayn. Being hunted, or being a snack are pretty much the same thing. The difference is the number of hunters doing the eating.” Ayn rolled her eyes, and pushed her face back down.

“Then if you focus, you can choose! You are not going back to the world below until we’re sure you won’t give something away far too early!” Ayn said fiercely. Kyrie nodded.

“Better. Rewards are given to obedient ones. I wonder why she doesn’t realize the more she disobeys, the less likely I am to reward her with time down with the Empress?” Rachel pouted, but kept her head down. She was already called a brainless idiot more than once that day, and not by the goddess. Her sisters can sometimes be quite direct.

“How is the Empress, goddess?” Ayn decided to ask.

“Sol has helped her to subdue her guardian.” Kyrie said softly.

“I see. I am not sure if that is a good thing or not. I know how possessive you are over the Empress, and how you want all her firsts. Won’t sending that pair of breasts only inflame her hunger and push things ahead too quickly?” Ayn asked her bluntly.

“She wants to share the pair with me.” Kyrie said with a grin. “She wants to ravage them with me.” Ayn nodded with a smile.

“Then she thinks about you first, goddess. This is a good thing. But you should go see her. Let Rachel go to the bar. The Empress should see the one who’s eyes and hands have been on her, and protected her for so long.”

*****

“Hello, Mia.” Lena said to the girl. Mia saw the chair being pushed into the kitchen by Hanna.

“Hi. Where is Kata?”

“She’s a bit busy with a new visitor. In order to give them some privacy to chat, I decided to come over and talk with you. Mia, this is Hanna.” Lena introduced Hanna to the child.

“Her eyes are strange.” She said with a slight frown.

“She’s from Haven, Mia. That place the goddess takes her followers.” Mia’s eyes opened wide.

“Really? Why is she here then? Isn’t Haven a nice place?” Mia asked innocently.

“It is, Mia. The goddess asked me, and my sister Nicci, to help Lena around until she heals and can get around on her own. You see, Lena is important to the goddess, but it’s not her time to come to Haven.” She explained.

“Really? So those stories are lies? That the goddess eats little children?” Mia asked innocently. Hanna nodded.

“Yes, that is a lie. The goddess doesn’t accept children unless they are dying already. Once, a long time ago, a young child, a follower of the goddess, was quite sick. When she was about to die, the goddess took her to Haven. She grew up, and now serves the goddess right in her throne room.” Lena tilted her head.

“Have I met her, Hanna?” She asked.

“Not yet. You will eventually. Ayn is a loyal Deacon, and travels all over Haven to talk with the Others.” Mia sighed and smiled.

“Is there good food to eat there?” Mia asked from a child’s standpoint.

“There is. There are farmers, hunters, bakers, carpenters, furniture makers, blacksmiths, all kinds of people. Haven isn’t like here though. The deer are fast, and when they are hunted, and harvested for their meat, the goddess dissolves the remainder, and a new innocent deer is reborn to keep the population stable. The farms grow wheat, and veggies, and they supply the cities, while the cities supply furniture and tools. There is no silver to spend.” Mia frowned.

“Then how does it work?”

“The farmer takes what they need, and sends the rest to those who need it, or who use it in the bakery. Then they request farm tools, and the blacksmith makes them. The wheat eventually gets to them in the form of bread. The blacksmiths don’t do the job to make money. They do the job because they like to work with iron, and their sisters need the tools. It works really well. If someone doesn’t want to do the job they’ve been assigned, they will be assigned another job, and someone else will take over that position. Everyone works hard to please the goddess, and she makes sure we are happy as well.” Mia sighed softly.

“I had no idea. Can I join the temple?” Mia asked Hanna quickly.

“Don’t ask me. I live in Haven. See Lena here? She’s the High Priestess now. If you want to live here, she’ll make sure you’re taken care of properly, and when it’s time, she’ll send you to the goddess where you won’t grow old, or ever die.”

*****

“She’s quite cute.” Hanna said softly as Lena patted Mia on the head, encouraged her to wash up, and go to bed.

“Yes, we will need to find Mia another girl companion. It’s lonely here for her. When another joins, she can live with Mia in the initiate’s quarters until they both become acolytes.” Lena smiled softly.

“It will take a few generations to get the numbers up, Empress.” Hanna said softly.

“I know, but as long as the temple has a good start, and the Others come to look in on them from time to time, they will thrive again. I want to see her smile, Hanna.” Lena said softly.

“I know. She enjoys pleasure, but her real smiles are rare. The Others make her laugh from time to time, but you make her smile.” Hanna said in a low voice.

“Well, she makes me smile. Her hand is at my back, and she’s got her fingers all over me.” Lena pursed her lips. “Nicci once said that if someone doesn’t refer to me as the Empress, from that place, it would anger her. Will she move on them?”

“Not move. More like take her fingers off the people who want to make war.”

“I see. She protected me that way too. Does she know who murdered my parents?” Lena asked with only a slight turn of her head.

“The wealth he stole will be bled away. Do not worry. He will not profit, Empress.” Hanna said softly at her ear. “The goddess would not let them hurt you like that.”

Hanna knew this was true. Right now, a mercenary band to the east had readied their troops for a raid, a tribe to the north had their scouts out, and the king to the south had his troops in training.

In the words of her goddess, if something she put in place would not perform its duties, then it no longer had a reason to exist.

That included the Empire of Krov.