A God's Apprenticeship

Danae, the Crown Princess, was smirking at her husband, Talen, Knight of the Pandion Order, one of the Militant orders answerable to the Elene Church, centered in Chyrellos. Talen was the only human, outside of her father Sparhawk, Royal Consort to the Queen of Elenia, Ehlana, first of that name, who knew that Danae was the alter-ego persona of the Styric Goddess Aphrael.

When he had learned that he was married to a goddess, (or one of her incarnations anyway) he had been a bit overwhelmed. But considering Talen's own history as a thief (before his father's boss and his current father-in-law had forced him to join the Order) and considering Aphrael was famous for being a goddess thief, he had decided that they were quite suited for each other.

Talen had been an intelligent and clever child, and he was now an intelligent and clever man. He often ran circles around anyone he wished to by outthinking them and planning that was almost flawless. He had become quite the asset to the Pandions.

The only trouble he had was that it was very hard to win an argument against his wife.

"But why now, Danae?" he asked plaintively.

"Because you will become Preceptor after Father and if I have anything to say about it. My mother got her Knight, I have my Knight. My mother's husband is Preceptor. My husband will be Preceptor. And I want to have a daughter whose father doesn't need to go and do these things while she's growing up. I'm not ready at the moment – but once you come back, we're going to start the process." She smirked naughtily. "And I know how much you like the process."

Talen groaned. He could never say no when she talked like that. "Fine," he huffed. "I will go to the other Orders and take the time to complete the missions. This is going to take months!" He paused. "What are you going to do with months of me being away?"

She laughed. "First of all, it won't take that long. You already have experience because of Father's friends and so you will be deemed sufficiently familiar with many of the things you are supposed to learn. Also, I will visit from time to time – I don't like you being away so long either. I will have a friend coming – I can feel it."

"Friend? One of the girls from the Palace?" he asked.

She laughed. "No. One of my other friends?"

"Ah! Some follower of yours or another – a Styric."

"No. A different kind of friend."

"Well, I know it's not a lover – I trust you too much to suspect that." He smirked. "My brothers, who don't know who you are, are always warning me to be careful about someone else chasing you. They just don't understand."

Danae shrugged. "You mortals have such a strange fascination with the idea. We just don't think that way."

Talen laughed. "I stopped trying to explain to them years ago. All they know is that I trust you regarding that implicitly. And they know that I won't even look at another girl – cause there's no way to hide that from my wife: It's not worth the trouble." She grinned at him, nodding in agreement. He paused. "I know! Another god. One of your Styric cousins maybe? There are a lot of those!"

She said, "Yes!" She paused and then said, "Actually not one of my cousins though. He's from much farther away." She paused, "He's actually kind of been adopted."

"Adopted? How can a god be adopted?"

Danae paused. "Well, he used to be a mortal. There's a different order of Divinity than the gods and goddesses that are on this world. One of them made him into a god. He kind of fixes things."

"Why is he coming here then?" Talen asked curiously.

"Well, I have to teach him a few things. But mostly we are going to go on a small holiday"

"Holiday? Why can't I come too?" he asked plaintively.

She smirked. "We're going to a couple of different worlds. You'd get in trouble almost immediately."

Talen nodded and then laughed. "Well, have fun with that. Now, I've got a few hours before Khalid is ready. Let's have a proper goodbye."

Harry had quite a bit more time before he had to do anything on the job he was currently on. And while going about to different dimensions and making a change was fun, he knew that he really should also do other things. He decided that he would go visiting.

It had been a while since he had gone visiting, but he concentrated on a particular friend and disappeared ….

… and reappeared in a pretty lavish looking room.

He saw the beautiful woman that was his friend Aphrael's mortal form for the moment. "Hiya, Flute."

She laughed and then sshed him. "No one except Sparhawk and Talen know that."

Harry rolled his eyes. "There's no one around." He looked around. "Where IS everyone?"

"Mother and Father are on a Royal tour of the Kingdom, checking out different towns and areas. Most of the Pandions who are normally around are following them and providing security. I just sent Talen off to spend a bit of time with Knights from the other Orders, and I've kind of made the female servants who are supposed to keep me from straying distracted with other things."

"Keep you from straying?"

Danae rolled her eyes. "The nobles are all worried about scandal. Like I would ever cheat on Talen!"

Harry grinned. "You are a very beautiful girl. I've heard enough 'romantic stories' about the fair maiden who is married to a brute and is the swept away by here one true love and then lives either in horrible sorrow or somehow they get rid of the brute and live happily ever after."

Danae sighed and then asked sarcastically, "And this is considered romantic?"

Harry shrugged, "Usually by teenage girls who have no real concept of what it really takes to make a marriage successful. While I admit that such things DO happen on occasion, most times it's a far more sinister tale than the one eventually told. The winner, obviously, gets to write the history."

Danae shrugged. "Just give me a minute to change."

Harry nodded. "Okay." He turned around and looked away. Aphrael chattered at him even as she changed. Finally she said, "I'm done!"

He turned back and found the image of the young girl which was her favorite form to be recognized in. "Hello, Flute! Now come here and give me a hug."

Flute crowed and ran over, jumping on him. She squeezed him and kissed him innocently a number of times. He gave her a grin. "That never gets old. It's really nice having a younger sister."

Flute grinned. "You know how old I am. Younger sister indeed."

"Well, it feels that way anyway," he replied.

Getting down she said, "Why are you here anyway?"

He shrugged. "I've got some time during my current mission and thought I'd come visiting."

"It's always good to see you – unless you've been eating pork of course." She gave a disgusted pout. "I can't stand that."

He rolled his eyes. "That's one reason why I never eat it before coming and seeing you." He looked around. "How long have you had it banned from the palace?"

She grinned an impish smile. "Eight years now." She looked at him more seriously. "I do have a few things to teach you."

"Oh?" he asked.

"Yes. Harry, you're a god now, right?"

"Yes. You were there when I was made so."

"Have you ever considered that people might pray to you? Or for your intercession? Have you ever considered you might have followers?"

He looked at her perplexed. "What do you mean followers?"

She sighed and looked at him with exasperation. "You are a god. People pray to gods for help. Or even pray to them as a source of comfort. It's not good to ignore these people."

He considered that. "Er. I suppose not. What would I have to do?"

"Well, you're a god of travel. And a god of knowledge. And a patron god of free will. Have you ever considered that there are those who need assistance with those specific things?"

He protested, "I help people with that whenever I can! That's the whole thing I do."

She rolled her eyed. "No. That's you interjecting your own free will to change things. But you named yourself the God of Free Will."

He sat down across from her. "Well, when the boss explained things, he told me that I was sent to places where a bit of free will could save particular dimensions. And I've even gone out of my way to teach myself to step back and wait for the locals to decide for themselves just for that reason."

"Yes. And that's wonderful. But, there are still those who pray for someone to help them because they are feeling like free will is being kept from them. And there are those who pray for help when they feel they are being prevented from that one tiny step which would allow them to choose for themselves. While different gods and divine beings may help in particular circumstances, there are specific things which fall under your power."

Harry considered that. "I can see that. Now my question is: How do I do that? I know plenty of spells and I have learned a lot of active abilities, such as my way of traveling and another for gathering relevant knowledge when needed. What you're talking about I have no familiarity with."

Aphrael sighed. "You've extended your aura before, I assume."

"Yes."

"You've done it without it being visible to normal mortals, right?"

Harry considered that. "Well, I've willed it visible. I don't know that I've ever deliberately hidden it from view."

Aphrael considered that. "Ok, show me. Manifest an aura." Harry nodded and concentrated. In a very short time, he was visibly glowing. "Okay, that isn't quite right. You're extending magic – high level magic certainly but that's magic and not really divine power."

"I thought my magic was my divine power?" Harry replied with a bit of confusion. "I mean, the whole thing is like a different order of magnitude of magic."

Aphrael rolled her eyes. "No. Okay. Watch this – but don't use magic to enhance your eyes." She did something and then rolled her eyes. "Excuse me. I have to go and inform the stick in the mud and get permission."

Harry grinned. "Stick in the mud? What stick in the mud?"

She grumped, "The Elene God. This is one of his places. And while he gave me permission to be born an Elene this time, there are rules which I have to follow ... and violate to show you this."

Harry nodded. "I can always take you to Sarsos – that's pretty Styric all around."

She considered that and said, "True." She walked over and sat in his lap. "Okay. Take us to Sarsos."

Harry decided to try something new. Instead of his normal method of moving, which he knew could be quite flashy, he tried to move as an act of will, divorcing himself from the phoenix-given aspect of his being.

Aphrael, sitting in his lap, looked at him curiously. "I'm trying something." She shrugged and kissed his cheek once more.

He immediately noticed a spark within him when she did that. He knew that Aphrael's kisses were an aspect of her own divinity. They allowed her to connect herself to those whom she favored. That spark he followed inside of himself and he found the wellspring of beingness that it connected to. It wasn't his "magical core" per se, or even his physical being. It was something that was … other. And concentrating on that, he once again applied his Will.

The Ageraluon, or the Council of One Thousand, the high priests and priestesses of all Styric Gods and Godesses, were arguing about … something. Sephrenia, the High Priestess of Aphrael, one of the better known goddesses, was quite bored with the entire session. There was no matter of great import being discussed, just another tedious matter regarding the Tamuls and their "heinous demands." Most of the Thousand knew that this was a stupid argument: The Tamuls didn't really interfere, the benefited greatly, and they were completely safe from being overwhelmed by other groups.

Some people just liked to complain. As the whiny man who represented … some god or other … was doing just that: Complaining. And he had a particularly whiny voice which grated on her nerves.

She was very near withdrawing so as to give her ears a rest when something happened to distract the Ageraluon.

In a seat off to the side, a man appeared on one of the benches. On his lap, he had a little girl. She recognized her immediately. "Aphrael!"

The young girl crowed, "That's exactly right! See? That wasn't so hard!" The girl turned her head and saw the woman. "Sephrenia!" The girl jumped down and rushed over and threw herself at the woman, peppering her with kisses.

The man who had come with her stood up and spoke in perfect Styric. "My apologies for the interruption. I was receiving instruction and, through chance, arrived within these chambers. This is entirely my fault. I shall retrieve her and we shall retreat as needed."

Another man stood up and replied, "Nay. Divine Aphrael is of the Thousand and her arrival cannot be a distraction. Any of the Thousand is welcome at any time."

Harry bowed briefly. "While I thank you for your words, it is probably best if we withdraw so that you can complete whatever it is that you are doing." Aphrael waved at him and led the woman out.

The man who had stood said, "I am curious, however. I am Tralam, a High Priest for my god – as are the rest here. May I ask who you are? And perhaps what race of man? Your accent is unfamiliar to me."

Harry chuckled and was about to answer when the man who had been originally interrupted said, "What does it matter? He interrupted. He apologized. He is probably one of those Elenes that Divine Aphrael allows to worship her to swell her followers. Let the barbarian leave us so that we can complete the business at hand!"

There were immediate cries of protest at the rudeness of the man. Regardless of who he was, he had arrived with one of the Thousand and it was obvious that he was not a brute.

Harry looked at the man and smiled. "Well, all I am willing to say is that I am from no land that you have heard of. I erred, yes, but I apologized. I would ask that I be treated with some common respect. It is not hard to use polite manners when there is no reason not to use them."

The man sneered. "You interrupted us. There is no reason to be polite to you."

Harry decided to ignore the fool. He looked back at the man who had asked and said, "My name – one of them anyway – is Marek Ilumian. Sometimes Maarek. It was pleasant to speak with you, Tralam." He turned and moved to follow Aphrael. He paused a few feet from the door and turned. "Oh, and to completely answer the question you asked: Technically I am not of any race of man. I am a god." He flared his physical aura, adding magic, so that it was obvious to all and then he changed to his phoenix form and sang out a loud trill before flying out of the room.

There was an enourmous silence that had enveloped the chamber that he had just departed from. And then there was a cacophony of sound that began.

He found Aphrael and Sephrenia in a nearby garden. There was a certain amount of joy between the two as they spoke. Harry found it quite endearing. He resolved to give them some private time before interrupting and so spent a bit of time flying around the area and disturbing the various creatures. Finally, however, he heard Aphrael mentally call him and, concentrating, he disappeared and then reappeared next to the two. He sang a short song and then changed back into his normal form.

Aphrael looked at him and said, "Someday, you'll have to teach me how to do that."

Harry grinned and said, "I'm certain that you could do it fairly easily if you tried."

Sephrenia bowed and said, "It is wonderful to meet you, Divine Marek."

He rolled his eyes as Aphrael sniggered. "Really, there's no need for formality when we are alone." He motioned to her sister. "Really Flute was teaching me some things about my station."

She looked at the girl who had an impish smile and returned an exasperated smile of her own before looking back at him. "Still, I should probably thank you. I was getting quite annoyed at the idiot who was speaking." Aphrael giggled again.

"Well," he said, "I can understand that. He was kind of insulting to me after you two left. I ended up ignoring him. Tralam, however, was rather polite and helpful."

Sephrenia nodded. "Did you tell them who you were?"

Harry grinned. "Finally. Right before I left. I thought the insulting fool should be aware he was insulting a god." Harry paused. "Do we know where he lives?"

Sephrenia replied, "His house is fairly well known."

He looked at Aphrael. "What is the protocol about pranking the followers of another god? He was insulting to me without being willing to learn who I was. I should probably endeavour to rectify his lack of manners."

Sephrenia and Aphrael looked at each other. Sephrenia said, "Well, technically, gods are not supposed to act against followers of other gods but the fact that you are visiting from another world kind of throws things into a bit of confusion. The rule is in place so that no one starts a war between two sets of followers without permission. It's considered extremely rude and disrespectful."

Harry sighed. "If I did something, Aphrael might be blamed."

Aphrael shrugged. "Maybe. His god is one of my more stodgy cousins. I'd authorize it – but it's probably more trouble than its worth."

Harry nodded thoughtfully, and then suddenly smirked. "Hey, Flute? How about if we depart from that room? I kind of got what you were telling me. I'm going to try locating someone praying for my assistance; I'll probably start with one of my analogues because that will be easy. You can come with me and have some fun – there are no rules about pranking gods where we are going. But I'd like to leave that idiot with a gift."

Spehrenia asked with some trepidation, "A gift?"

"Sure! Something to let the world know how great he is. He'll be able to flaunt his status to everyone." Aphrael smirked at him and raised her arms to be picked up. He did so and they made their way back.

Harry walked back into the room carrying Aphrael and leading Sephrenia. The room became still as they entered. Tralam stood again and spoke. "Diving Aphrael, Divine Marek. Welcome back."

Aphrael just grinned and waved even as Harry spoke. "Thank you. I was just about to leave. I have another world that I am off to. And while it won't last more than a split moment for this world, Aphrael has agreed to come along and help me out with something. Still," he took on a slightly malicious smirk, "I wanted to leave a remembrance of my visit. Considering how important he feels he," he motioned with his head toward the arsehole who had been rude whose name he had no interest in, "is, I thought I'd leave it with him."

He was going to exaggerate a bit. Explaining movies would be too complicated. But he thought he could work it correctly to express his annoyance.

He looked at the arsehole. "In a number of worlds, there is music that is often used to indicate the importance of particular people. The leader of one people has a song called, Hail to the Chief for special occasions, another one has a song called God Save the Queen, which is actually her people's national anthem. Another one has a special song associated with his arrival. And I thought it appropriate for you." Harry waved his hand and two lights appeared next to the man. "They will last a week. Wherever you go they will play a special song as you walk. It's called the Imperial March. It's very grand. Of course it usually is a signal for people watching that they should tremble as he's not a very nice man – chief enforcer to a despot and all that.– but it's still a very stately song. For the next week, everyone will know how important you are wherever you go as it will play whenever you walk. Have fun."

With that he concentrated and then disappeared, still holding Flute.

The whiny bastard had a very hard week. He had prayed to his god to dispel the creations but his god refused – he had made his god look bad in front of the priests of the other members of the Thousand.

He actually stopped going anywhere until the week was over. Even when he had to pass his water in the middle of the night, he had to resolve himself to waking up the entire household as he walked between his bed and the chamber pot and then back.

He was quite relieved when the two lights disappeared and there was no more music.