11 The Grey Saint

Twenty-four. It's a strange thing for someone to say randomly to a bird on someone else's shoulder. I don't believe for a second that it is a random thing, though. How could she know which prize I'd pull? Is she... psychic? I have telekinesis, so it isn't absurd to think that other people might have something like that.

She pushed herself to her feet with a mischievous gleam in her eye. "Excuse me for a moment," she says to me and reaches out, grabbing Cara by her auburn hair and pulls her into a deep, much more than friends, kiss. My perch is yanked out from under me leaves me, leaving me flailing slightly until I land on the back of a nearby chair. More hooting, whistling and catcalling follow. I admit it is rather eye-catching.

Finally, the intense lip-lock ends with Cara stumbling back a step breathing heavily with pink cheeks and a slightly glazed look after weathering that severe tongue lashing. The other woman, supremely satisfied with her performance, gently wipes her lips before returning to a knowing smile that whispers decidedly naughty intentions.

"Why don't we take this back to my office," she says. "so I can debrief you in private."

Shes' not even trying to hide the innuendo. What a bold woman. I was never that bold when I was human. That's not to say I was a wallflower or anything; I was social, but not ram my tongue down someone's throat social. Although it looks liberating, I don't think I've ever possessed that level of confidence. Damn what other people see or think, it's none of their business.

I look around for a better place to wait for them to finish whatever illicit activities the woman has planned for Cara. Speaking of which, what about Jori? Isn't Cara dating her? Is Cara a player? There really is so much I don't know about her. Our conversations were more about survival and the world and were less about personal stuff. Maybe when the drama is over, and I've learned to regulate my volume, we can have some girl talk.

"Morgan, why don't you come with us," the woman says.

Um, cause I'm a bird, and that's just weird?

Pfft. She snorts before controlling her laugh. "I meant you could open your prize there while I talk to Cara about the situation."

Now, I'm starting to think she can read minds.

"Don't worry. I can't read your mind."

She did it again.

Cara reestablished her equilibrium and looked at me. She still looked flushed. "It's okay; she's just playing around."

I hop back up onto Cara's shoulder. To other people, she probably looks like the strangest pirate they've have ever seen, or maybe they assume I'm her familiar. That might be a good cover to avoid too much attention. Maybe I should start practicing saying "nevermore" or something.

I guess it doesn't matter. I'll deal with it when it becomes an issue. More importantly, I really want to open the egg, but something tells me that it's best to do it privately.

The top floor of Jager House is the office and living quarters of the branch guild master, Natalie. In case someone missed it, the cat-eared woman with no qualms about public displays of affection is Guild Master Natalie, and the posh office we find ourselves in, complete with a balcony with a stunning view of the bay, is hers. Oddly, there is a perch set up in the sitting area like she was expecting a bird to come waltzing in at any moment. It definitely has to be some sort of mystical hoodoo fortune-telling Oracle at Delphi ability she has. There's even a bowl of fresh water there.

There's also an empty bowl as well. Are there a lot of pet birds in this town? This seems like something I'd find at a pet store back on Earth, not in some fantasy world port town. The first person who asks if "Polly want a cracker," is getting a Quill Barrage to the face.

"I hope the perch is okay. When I found out that you were coming, I had a friend whip it up really quick," Natalie says. When did she find out I was coming? "I have to admit; I'm really curious about what you got."

Cara, of course, is even more confused than I am. However, the fact that she knows about the reward, even what number is printed on the reward, but doesn't know what's inside the reward is interesting. My curiosity must be written on my semi-expressionless face because she suddenly giggles. Giggles, like an anime schoolgirl, watching her friend swoon over a guy she likes. What? I like "slice of life." Fight me.

"As much as I have some advantages in terms of information," she says. "I don't know everything. Especially when it's got a Transcendent tier divine seal on it."

I have no idea what that means, but it sounds impressive.

"What's going on?" Cara asks.

"Your friend, Morgan here, is a Blessed of Karasu, The Raven Queen. It comes with occasional benefits, especially since the twins seem to have taken a shine to her."

I think that's the first time I've heard the goddess's name. Sounds Japanese. Too bad I don't have access to the internet, or I'd check. I look back to Cara, who is looking at me with a bit more wonder in her eyes than I'm comfortable with and shrug. I know being blessed by a goddess is a huge deal, but I still don't like the idea of the first friend I've made in this world looking at me like that.

I fly over and land on the perch, pull the fuchsia egg with the aqua 24 out of my storage and put it into the empty bowl. Both Cara and Natalie rise up on to their tippy-toes to look at what, to me, looks exactly like one of those plastic Easter eggs that people put candy in and hide for kids to go searching for during that holiday. I suppose I should crack it open and take a look at what candy I get. I hope it's not peeps. I frigging hate peeps.

CRACK!

'Well, that was louder than I thought it'd be.'

Cara and Natalie lean forward, trying to get a better view while still staying more than ten feet away. The egg splits through the 24 and pops open, revealing a... small marble? It's a bit underwhelming for such a big noise.

And I should really learn to stop jinxing myself as black smoke pours out of the marble, forming a thick viscous cloud that reaches out towards me. I flap my wings, but the cloud accelerates and latches onto me like an octopus.

Cara calls out, "Morgan," and tries to step forward but is held back by Natalie. The cloud flows over my wings and legs, crawling up my body towards my face. It occurs to me that I've seen this in some old movie with that guy from those movies where they kill his puppy and steal his car, so he goes on a killing spree. In that other movie, though, the stuff crawls up over him and down his throat, and that's how he wakes up to the real world. Maybe that's what this is. Maybe I'll wake up in the real world, and this will all have been a weird dream.

Oh god, it's almost there. I can feel my heart racing. It's closing in, and I feel claustrophobic like I'm suffocating already, and it's not even there yet. Oh shit, it's starting to cover my eyes. The last thing I see is Cara, and it looks like she's screaming and struggling to get to me. Even Natalie looks nervous, that can't be good, but she's holding Cara back. That's good. Keep her safe. I don't know if- Oh god, it's here! It's in my beak. I feel it sliding down my throat. I thrash, but the cloud-like goo has got me locked down. I'm like a duck drowning in an oil spill. I can't- I can't brea-

It's dark. My body feels light like I'm floating on a calm sea. This isn't death. I remember death, and it felt different from this. This is something else. I try to look around, but the darkness persists.

"I must say, this is rather unexpected," a resonant voice says. It seems to come from everywhere at once and pulse through my body. It would be extremely disconcerting to any normal person, but I've been in the presence of a literal goddess, so it mostly just tingles a little.

This seems to be similar to that dream state I entered before when the goddess gave me a brief primer on the system. In that case, I should be able to talk, and how better to start a conversation, than with snark. "You think this is unexpected? Try being in my feathers."

Oh, hey, it worked.

"..."

I've left them speechless. That will get us exactly nowhere. "So, care to tell me what's going on or...?" I ask, leading the conversation.

"Hmm? Oh, sorry. I'm trying to figure out what you are. You seem to have a pre-sapient beast's body, the mind of a human, and the soul... The soul is the most confusing of all. It doesn't precisely conform to human or beast, and yet it doesn't match that of a zoikoi or any other that I've seen, though there are similarities with a few."

"Yeah, my soul got messed up, and the goddess sorta stitched it back together again with some spare parts she had on hand. She also sorta implied that since she used premium-grade parts that I'd be pretty badass later, once I evolve."

"Which one?"

"Which one, what?"

"Which goddess?"

Which goddess? Is this person for real? "Um... the one that likes crows?"

"..."

"..."

"So moving on. You have been chosen to inherit my great legacy. Since you have the support of that goddess, this seems to be a rather fortuitous encounter for you."

"Um... hang on. You said I'm inheriting a legacy." The only legacy I saw before the whole spinning thing started was... "Are you that frog girl- frog princess person?" I ask warily. I don't really want to hang around with frogs all the time. They're kind of... gross.

"What? Frog- You mean, Maria? No," they say. I may be surrounded by darkness, but I get a distinct impression that they're holding their head. Probably shaking it as well. I'm familiar with this; my mom used to get this way a lot.

"Okay, so you're not the Frog Princess. That's good. Who are you then?" I ask, trying to bring the conversation back on track.

"I am the legacy of Saulomgrey Hallosaynt, known as the Grey Saint," they say with a note of pride in their voice.

Are they for real? "Solemn Gray Hallow Saint? Holy shit," I say, with a flat voice. "What kind of edgelords were your parents? What, were you born during their goth phase or something. I thought my name was rough, but you win. No wonder you took Gray Saint instead. Still heavy on the edginess, but not a full-on vampire and velvet fetish at least."

Every sentence seems to deflate Grey Saint a little more. I can practically hear the air coming out like a balloon with a slow leak, which isn't hard to hear since it has been silent since I stopped talking. It occurs to me; I might have been a little harsh. Whoops. Can I claim teenage insensitivity and get a pass on this? Damn it. Now I feel guilty.

"So, um... sorry about that. Sometimes my mouth gets ahead of my brain. Just forget I said anything."

A second later, a sigh echoes across the darkness. "It's fine. Honestly, I have no idea what a 'goth-phase' is, but I can make some guesses, and it isn't entirely unwarranted. I've always thought my name was a little over the top. That is why I preferred Grey. Short, simple, easy to yell on a battlefield."

"Did you spend a lot of time on battlefields?"

"A fair amount. I mostly specialized in infiltration, but I was a celebrated combatant in my day. I could analyze an opponent and strike their weak points with a great deal of precision. I had a gift for assassination, but it wasn't something I took pride in," they say with a nonchalant pride.

Why do I feel like I'm at a therapy session, suddenly? Grey goes on like this for a few minutes, recounting some of their exploits. I'll be honest; if what they say is true, they were quite the badass. Infiltrating dragons' lairs, exposing corrupt officials, battling against overwhelming odds, and helping the poor and downtrodden throughout it all. They were like a magic-powered Robinhood.

Maybe inheriting their legacy would be kind of cool.