Chapter 210

I sat down in one of the smaller meeting rooms with Cecilia and Tarklin later that evening. The elf looked normal outwardly but I got the subtle impression that he was a little bit nervous about this conversation we were about to have.

Tarklin looked around the small room and sat down on the other side of the round table. "Do you mind if I silence the room for this meeting?" he asked.

I nodded. "That would be for the best."

A [Zone of Silence] encompassed the room and blocked out all outside sounds. I appreciated the warning because other people using the spell around me still put me slightly on edge. I wondered how worried about this meeting I should be. I was planning on telling Tarklin pretty much everything short of Fortuna's involvement in the Tamin church. Cecilia sat down to my right, halfway between the two of us. She's kind of become important to both sides of this conversation, she had the most to gain and everything to lose from this meeting.

Tarklin cleared his throat. "So, let's start by clearing the air. When we first entered Goldenhearth I left Cecilia there with the intention to observe you and do her best to help you out if she could. Is it safe to assume that you were discovered?" he asked, turning to Cecilia.

"Well... I was discovered but not until I had taken a rather drastic step. But I think I'm getting a little ahead of myself," Cecilia said. "Either way, I completely lost sight of her for most of our time in Goldenhearth but I stayed near the gates waiting for a word on her leaving town, which took longer than expected. I had almost assumed I missed her just as her companion Sibyl in the other room started looking for uunas to pull Lilith's carriage. Naturally, she took me on as their driver and it wasn't until halfway to the capital city that I was forced to reveal I had been spying on her for you."

"Forced to reveal yourself?" Tarklin asked in confusion. "How so?"

"Well..." she turned to me, looking for help.

"Let's start from before that," I said. "Before we entered Goldenhearth you had discovered that I was a [World Traveler], you worked out one of my secrets there on my own." Tarklin nodded in confirmation, so I continued, "But that was only one of my secrets. The other, and frankly more important secret, is that my species is unique. I'm not just a [World Traveler], I have an origin title as well."

Tarklin's eyes trailed up my horns and fixated on them for a moment before he regained eye contact with me. "You look very close to a beastfolk but it sounds like that's not truly what you are then," he ventured.

"No. My race are called succubi, succubus in the singular. And I'm no longer the only one. Nearly everyone in the other room except for the twins and Lorriene are also succubi. Including Mimi," I continued.

"So it's a species that spreads to other races somehow? You're not suddenly replacing people like a changeling are you..." His eyes settled on Cecilia as if to catch her in a lie. I was a little surprised, I hadn't expected him to jump to a bodysnatcher theory but I'm almost a little surprised I hadn't.

"No. Lilith didn't replace us. She improved us," Cecilia interjected.

Tarklin's eyes narrowed on Cecilia. "How can I tell—"

Cecilia sighed dramatically. "When we first met you hit on me in front of everyone. When I told you that I was actually your adopted cousin you avoided me for a week until I tackled you and pulled you into the stable, where I forced you to talk with me. While we were there you told me you intended to leave the country as an adventurer one day and I called you stupid for it at the time."

Tarklin's face went red and he turned away to avoid looking at her.

Cecilia turned to me to further explain. "Incestuous relationships, even if they're through adoption rather than blood are considered incredibly taboo. Everyone understood what had happened and didn't think he was a pervert or anything but that didn't stop them from teasing him incessantly for weeks, even after we made up and got to know each other a little better."

"I know some people who still bring it up," Tarklin half-growled out.

"Does all that prove that I haven't been replaced by some copycat?" she asked.

Tarklin sighed. "If you were replaced then at least she did a good job of keeping your memories intact. I guess I'll believe you're really my cousin. Even if you do look a little different now."

"Getting back on track..." I said. "After the transformation, Cecilia was forced to reveal herself to me as part of the oath she took to become one of the succubi. Cecilia had mentioned a prophecy when we talked about it. One that I think may be about me."

Tarklin suddenly looked serious. "Are you actually a demon then? Somehow turning others into demons as well?"

I shook my head. "I am not a demon, anymore. The prophecy about me that I heard from the Tamin church said something similar. That 'Lilith' was born a demon. As you already discovered, I'm a world traveler, but I was a human in my past life. This body was 'born' here as a demon but when I came across an actual demon for the first time, I, as Sorsette put it, 'rejected it as my kin' and the system recategorized me as only a Succubus. I am no longer a demon and I don't share any common goals with them. Right now I'm most aligned with Sorsette, hopefully corroborated by Talis who protected me when Silva killed the king."

Tarklin rubbed at his temples. "This is a lot of information to process. You're saying that you're actually the Lilith from our prophecy but that you aren't actually a demon?"

I shrugged. "I don't know what your version of the prophecy says but I sound pretty similar to the one I heard from the Tamin church and two of the 'Order of Lilith' members in the other room seem to think so too."

"Okay," Tarklin said. "I'll share our version of the prophecy as well since it seems relevant."

"A new era of strife is ushered in when the mother Lilith claims the hearts of the lowest of people. Those who fight in her name rise above the elder families that claim birthright to the seats of humanity and she leads civilization to enter a new age."

After reciting the prophecy, Tarklin continued, "Our version of the prophecy never names you as a demon, only as 'the mother Lilith.' The elves of the Northern Greens only considered Lilith to be a demon through cross-referencing other prophecies that we discovered about you. Unlike many of the other races, our memory is long and there are far too many stories of prophecies being misinterpreted or turning out to be entirely wrong. Oftentimes, it is only in retrospect that we come to understand how a negative interpretation could even be true in the first place. That's why we were much more wary of treating 'Lilith' as a potential instigator of this 'new era of strife' as our prophecy states. The interpretation of 'the lowest of people' takes a different connotation in our reading than others, but other versions pretty consistently mention her as helping the disadvantaged rather than criminals and cultists as the wording would suggest in our version. But, to us, the most important feature of our version of the prophecy is the part about 'the seats of humanity' because in our tongue, that is a very specific way of wording things. Humanity is a very specific phrasing that is separate from how we call ourselves. This wording means that even if 'the mother Lilith' ushers in a new era of strife, it is more centered on humanity than elvenkind. The phrase 'leads civilization to enter a new age' could be interpreted either positively or negatively, but is usually used positively in our tongue."

Tarklin cracked his neck and sighed. "All of that is to say, demon or not, Lilith isn't necessarily the enemy of the elves by the optimistic readings of our prophecy, and if elvenkind is at odds with 'the elder families' of humanity, she could very well be an ally. When we came across a group calling themselves 'the Order of Lilith' and saw they were interpreting the prophecy to mean that she would come and free people from slavery, that gave some credence to her being a potential ally if she had already claimed their hearts in a way we viewed positively. The first time I heard your name, I was already intrigued. As someone who was already looped into all of this prophecy nonsense, I recognized your name right away and decided to watch you for myself. There wasn't a lot to go on initially but I saw you slaughter demons and save a noble girl not long after we started traveling together. If I compared you to all of the prophecies I knew about you, you would be flying in the face of all of them, including ours, which is well within the possibilities elvenkind were prepared for."

"So when we were being forcibly split up in Goldenhearth you left Cecilia to look after me, for better or worse," I said.

"I did," he agreed. "But I already had a fairly positive view of your character by then. I decided it would be a good opportunity to tell the Queen about it while I was there delivering the young lady Morrister to her. After I told her my initial impressions she all but commanded me to return to continue keeping watch over you. I hadn't expected my suspicions of you to be confirmed so straightforwardly, but I do appreciate it."

I shrugged. "I trust you, and the way things have been going in the short time I've been in the capital so far, I'm starting to think gathering as many good allies as I can seems like a good idea."

"I would agree," he said with a nod. "This country is about to be in turmoil. The guards of this town and the church will only be able to keep things in check without the king for so long before people realize their ruler is dead. With no heirs, the rights of succession are more like a helpful suggestion than anything anyone would treat as binding. The meetings about what to do in this situation didn't stop when you left the room, there have been arguments about it all day and many messages sent to the Northern Greens about it. I wouldn't be surprised if my people attempted something as extreme as occupying parts of the kingdom."

"Better the elves than the Tamin church," Cecilia added.

Tarklin shrugged. "I agree but the three of us are outsiders in these lands. It is easy for us to feel this way. Especially when we so vehemently disagree with particular institutions here such as the slaver's guild."

I scratched the base of my horn, "Did Feylaria Winethorn tell you about the mission she suggested to our group?" I asked.

He sighed. "Yes, unfortunately. I don't really approve but I can see both why she would offer it to you and why your group would consider it. I'd like to tell you not to risk it at this stage but I also know that you're probably looking for an excuse to get involved. I heard what happened with the cult of Amphores in Goldenhearth so I'm aware that you're eager to get in their way as well, but I worry you're going into a three-way fight with only my rival house to back you up."

"Should I be worried about the Winethorns backstabbing us?" I asked.

He shook his head. "No, I believe you can trust Feylaria to do what she promises to you. Which is why she probably told you she will cut you loose and disassociate with you the moment you run into trouble. If you're willing to risk the terms she's giving you, you should go for it. Just know that there will not be any unexpected support from her if you're caught."

"So you think I shouldn't do it then?" I asked.

Tarklin narrowed his eyes at me. "You're really putting me on the spot, aren't you Lilith? No, I don't think you should, but I think you will anyway. So if you're going to do it, I'll just tell you to be careful and watch your own back."

I sighed. I think I did want him to talk me out of it.

"Let's move on," I suggested. I then began to tell him about the transformation, the oaths I have people give me, and all the benefits and drawbacks that entails. He was curious about it and asked some questions about how drastic the changes are and I explained how different Sibyl had looked when I had originally met her. Bella's changes were still the most drastic but I didn't like to tell people she used to have the body of a male without her explicit permission.

Tarklin leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling. "If your abilities can restore limbs, heal severe sicknesses, and even restore youth... would you allow me to bring people to you from time to time? There are a few people I think would be willing to take on the burden of joining your family..."

I studied his face for a moment. "I'll allow you to bring people to me... but I make no promises I'll accept anyone."

He nodded. "Good enough for me I suppose," he replied with a smile.