Lady Ianite was more impressive in real life than in any of the picture's or paintings of her. She carried a sense of power with her, one that made you know that she was the one in charge, and you were just along for the ride. Katherine swallowed as she and Jordan kneeled in front of the goddess' ornate chair, in the central room of the temple. It was a large, ornate room, walls mostly covered in purple and gold tapestry's, many showing depictions of former champions. There was a stained-glass window behind Ianite, the light purple colour of the glass coating everything in a soft violet light. This was where most of the religious services were held, and Lady Ianite would sometimes hold meetings with her followers in it.

"My Champion, Katherine, please stand." Ianite said, waving her hand. "There is no need for formalities, especially at this time." Katherine stood, sharing a nervous glance with Jordan. Ianite seemed worried about this news that she was going to share with them, and a god being nervous was not a good thing. "You may be aware, but Dianite has always been... possessive over his champions. His anger at the taking of his champion has blinded him, and he has committed a horrible, horrible act." Katherine swallowed nervously.

'What did he do, my lady?" Katherine asked quietly, her palms sweaty. She wiped them of on her pants as Ianite continued.

"He has devastated a small village of my followers, one that sits almost right on out border with Dianite. He... Dianite slaughtered almost all of the civilians. Men, women... even children were not safe from his rage. Few were sparred, and they are now safe in Ianarea." Ianite spoke, her voice trembling ever so slightly. Jordan gaped at her, not knowing what to say. Katherine was in shock. How could Dianite have done this? Killed almost everyone in a town? The very thought of it was making Katherine sick. "My Champion, you will work with me to help prepare for when Dianite comes to bargain for his champion." Jordan nodded sharply. "Katherine, please try to take a few days off for yourself. I have no upcoming mission for you, so please rest." Katherine smiled tiredly at Lady Ianite, nodding her head in agreement.

"Thank you, my lady." Jordan said, with Katherine murmuring a similar phrase. Ianite nodded to the two of them and waved them away.

"I'll call you if I need either of you." She said, before teleporting away to meet with some of her many advisors. Katherine clapped a hand over her mouth, still in shock from the news Ianite had given them. Jordan walked over and pulled in into a hug. Katherine let out a quiet sob, her shoulder's shaking slightly. Holding her tightly, Jordan pressed a kiss to her head, blinking slightly to quell his own tears. The two held each other for a long time, comforting one another.

When Katherine pulled away, she wiper her eyes hastily of her sleeves, wanting to seem strong. If her eyes were slightly red, Jordan didn't mention it, choosing instead to offer a hand to Katherine, who let him interlace their fingers. He kissed the top of her head, before speaking.

"C'mon, let's get back to the ship."

-

Tom had made sure that he had all his things before the ship stopped moving. There was lots of movement for a short while, before a few pairs of footsteps came down the stairs. He glanced up to see a couple of heavily armoured guards making their way to his cell. Tom swallowed slightly, before he stood.

"Champion." One of the guards spoke. They had fancier amour than the other three, the helmet having purple lines running across it. Someone important, Tom thought. Another guard was fiddling with a key, before the important guard held up a hand. "You will come with us peacefully." They asked, although it was much more like a command than a question. Tom nodded.

"I won't try anything." He said, and they seemed to trust his word. The door was unlocked, and the guard gestured for him to walk out. He exited the cell, glancing around as two of the other guards moved to be beside him, the other in front. They started walking, and Tom followed, not wanting to upset any of the guards. The five of them quickly made their way off of the boat and onto the streets. People moved out of the way when they saw he guards. Just like home, Tom thought. After a surprisingly quick walk, they come upon the temple. Tom just stares up at it, all grey-purple stone and large windows, and gulps. It's more intimidating than he thought it would be. He's marched through several hallways, until they come up to a rather unassuming door, and one of the guards quickly unlocks the door, and Tom is guided inside. It's somewhat small, and all there really is in the room is a bed with lilac sheets, and a small desk near a window that overlooks the courtyard. There was, however, a door on both the left and right sides of the room.

"This will be your room for your stay. Bathroom's the right door, and closets on the left. There's some fresh clothes in the closet, but they're medium sized, so they might not fit." Tom nods, glancing around the room some more. He's got white curtains, so at least he can have some privacy, and there's a light grey rug in the middle of the room. "All of your meals will be brought to you here, and you are only leaving this room when Ianite asks for you. Understood." Nodding again, Tom replies.

"Yeah. I got it." The guard nods back at him, and all four of them leave the room. A slight clicking sound could be heard just after they closed the door behind him, and Tom thinks that they've probably locked him in here. He goes to check the closet, and, just as the guard had said, he finds a pair of light coloured linen pants, and a thin t-shirt. Grabbing the clothes, Tom heads to the bathroom. After almost a month of traveling, he would finally be able to bathe. Tom was so ready for that.

-

Katherine frowned when she saw Rupert just leaving the docks as her and Jordan arrived. He glanced up at them and smiled, waving the two of them over.

"How're you two lovebirds doing?" Rupert asked, smirking a little as Katherine rolled her eyes.

"Fine. Is the crew all gone already?" She replied, glancing around the docks. Other than the usual merchant ships that are both loading and unloading boxes, she finds she can see none of the crew. Rupert nods.

"Yeah. I was just closing up, but now you're here too." Katherine chuckled a little, before she realized something.

"What about Tom?" Katherine asked, concerned. "Who's going to help him while he's on the ship tonight?" Rupert blinked, before he realized that the two of them had left before they could see Tom get escorted out.

"Oh, some Ianite's guards took him, the same ones who were talking to you before? They said he'd be staying at Ianite's temple while this whole thing goes down." Katherine nodded, the worried look on her face leaving. Rupert frowned a little as he noticed the slight redness in Katherine's eyes. "Everything alright?" She nodded, and let out a little sigh.

"We just got some sad news. Dianite's destroyed an Ianitee village." Katherine said, crossing her arms over his chest. Rupert looked to Jordan, shocked, but Jordan only nodded.

"It's true. We heard about it from Lady Ianite herself." Jordan added, glancing back at Katherine.

"Gods...." Rupert whispered, shocked. He couldn't believe that Dianite would go that far just because he was mad. No one in their right mind would think that a god would let themselves get overcome by their emotions. It just seemed too low for them.

"He's mad." Jordan whispered, quiet enough so that only the three of them could hear. "Dianite is just going to keep on hurting people until he gets to Tom, and he won't care who they are. He's going to cause a war."

(Two chapter's in a day! It's very addicting to write this lol)