NOVEL NEXT Chapter 156: Repaying The Lugarians
As they emerged and the portal crackled shut behind them, Kyubi sobbed and the guilt exploded in them, then she threw her arms and tails around them. "Thank you two so much! I never thought I'd hear Lord Tsukuyomi's voice again, let alone sense his divinity."
"Don't thank me just yet Kyubi..." Carl said as he opened a portal to Lugaria. "His divinity is like nothing I've seen before, I need some time to examine it."
"Carl, you have almost six-hundred years to figure out the greater blessing Ki-ko needs for spiritual ascension."
"Yeah, just six-hundred years, I hope it's enough." Carl said, separating and stepping through the portal to Lugeria.
Klaire and Kyubi stepped through the portal after him.
"Carl, is it really that complex? How is six-hundred years not enough time?" Klaire asked, genuinely intrigued by his perspective.
"It's not that six-hundred years isn't a long time, it's that six-hundred years isn't six-hundred years."
Realisation hit the two of them. "So you're worried that we might end up somewhere that makes it pass quicker for Ki-ko than us."
"That or vice-versa. She's so adventurous, it's only a matter of time until she goes on her own adventures, probably dragging her siblings along for the ride..." Carl sighed, trailing off as he claimed the world of Lugaria.
[ PLANET HAS BEEN CLAIMED ]
[ PLANET HAS BEEN NAMED LUGARIA ]
"Yeah, you aren't wrong. I guess we need to set some ground-rules for when they start setting out." Klaire said with a little disbelief.
"Indeed, Raziel and Tiamutael keep her reigned in to a good extent, but Ki-ko is definitely the ring-leader. Should we find someone to go with them?" Kyubi was proud of her little girl's confidence, but she also knew that kitsune were prone for getting themselves into trouble.
"Yeah, she won't be happy if we send someone as powerful as Aegis, she'll want to feel like there's a chance they could get in trouble. I thought about Squidge and Levi, but she respects the authority of her big siblings..."
Carl led the way through the desert, the once soul-searing heat of the desert, now having little more effect than walking from outside to inside.
As they walked, Kyubi periodically created some water for them to drink and made them stop to partake.
"Why Kyubi? I'm going to pee myself if you keep making us drink."
"Well, you two seem to have forgotten that humans aren't built for deserts. Lillim told me that I should make sure you both drink plenty when in deserts to stop you getting dried out..."
"Kyubi, that's because we sweat. We aren't sweating, so we aren't getting dehydrated." Carl said with a chuckle as Klaire began squirming. "When did she tell you that?"
"When I first came here to be with yo- to join the household."
"A bit late to be shy about it. I hope you aren't trying to make me feel guilty for being oblivious to your feelings."
Kyubi kissed him, then looked at Klaire. "Want to have Tiamutael pick you up and send you back, I'm really sorry I didn't understand what she was saying."
"Yeah, I think so and don't worry about it, it's our fault for not asking sooner."
When they were back and relieved, they were able to enjoy the stroll now that Kyubi wasn't waterboarding them at regular intervals.
"Carl, can I ask you something?" Kyubi asked as they watched a herd of the strange Lugarian fauna trek through the desert.
"Kyubi, you can just ask, I'm not going to keep secrets."
Kyubi went on to ask if his soul had changed since they first met, a little confused that her attack worked so well at their first meeting, after seeing it in all its glory. Carl simply shrugged, unable to say one way or another.
"What I want to know, is how the hell did I open the portal here? That's the second time I've done it without thinking."
"I was wondering about that myself." Klaire asked.
"I was hoping you hadn't realised, unlike Klaire, you don't have the advantage of learning from an ancestor's experience. You need to get there on your own, but until you do, we'll help you whenever you need it." Kyubi said as she looked around.
"I'm really glad to hear that, because I have absolutely no idea where we are, I've just been enjoying the stroll."
As Kyubi and Klaire laughed, they each took one of his hands. "Well then your instincts are incredible, we aren't too far away from where we used to live, it's just difficult to tell because we didn't restore the landscape completely."
"Well I definitely owe them a grand apology."
"You're giving them ownership of their world, that's about as grand as it gets."
It wasn't long after that, that they reached the Lugarian's, at which point Carl tried to make the apology to no avail. It was then that Carl decided to have Tiamutael send Gillian over to translate.
"Just like the day I agreed to join you..." Gillian said as Carl explained what he was trying to do and with a nod, Gillian translated. "...Right, he says only gods have the right to worlds. I don't think it's going to work guys."
"It will, just tell them we accept no offerings, worship or reverence of any kind." Carl said as he looked back to Klaire and Kyubi, who smiled and took on their more inhuman forms, whilst Carl took on his Ice-form.
As expected, the Lugarian's primitive understandings led them to initially try to worship them, but Gillian passed on the message that Carl gave him and they stood quickly. "Well, anything else boss?"
"Just tell them they have friends, if they need any help, they should ask the guardian I'm going to leave behind..." With that Carl, made another of the holy-scale wyverns that he used to create Equinox. "...Their name is Luger, he will remain and ensure no one tries to harm the land."
Gillian translated, then Luger flew off to explore the world it was charged to defend.
'Creator, tell them I will visit regularly. Could you make something they could ring to summon me in an emergency?'
Carl then created a gong and asked Gillian to have one of them strike it.
As one of them stepped forward and struck it, the Lugarians were confuse that it didn't seem to make any sound at all, but then Luger appeared and landed. "I can hear that well, it will suffice. Friend of my creator, can you teach me the language of these people?"
"I would do happily, but it might be difficult since I can't open portals like these guys."
Kyubi transformed back into her human form, then approached Gillian. "If you two come with me I'll draw a recollection circle, Luger can use it as many times as he needs to if I carve it into stone."
"Let's head back to the area that's still scarred from my fight with Dracula. If you draw it in the ground, I'll transmute it into mana retaining crystal. Gil, tell them we're going to educate their new guardian on their culture, make a point of saying that trying to abuse their guardian's power will earn our hatred."
"You got it boss..."
With that, they departed the Lugarian village that was once their neighbours and headed to the place where their HQ once stood.
When they were done creating the platform for educating Luger, they bid him farewell and left Lugaria.
"You know guys, think I'm going to miss those guys, I quite like the Lugarians."
"What are you talking about? You can still visit whenever you want."
"Yeah, no thanks. They think I'm some kind of divine messenger, my ego would explode worse than Alysse's."
They all laughed, agreeing that an egotistical Gillian was the last thing they wanted to be dealing with.
The conversation then came back round to the matter of the pact signing, which Gillian was very excited about. He spoke about how Bahamut's understanding of racial nuance was everything he had in mind when he threw himself into studying languages and negotiations.
"Well, we're glad you found a mentor, try not to annoy him into cutting you loose."
Suddenly Bahamut's voice called out. "So I am to mentor Gillian?"
"Only if you want to."
"Hmmm. I don't have the kind of relationship with Aldra that Tiamat has with Omedra. He seems to only desire peace which is admirable, but sees diplomacy as a waste of time since "It's obvious peace is better for everyone", I believe were his words."
"Yeah, he's pretty straightforward, he might actually be a better teacher. That simple and direct idealism of his would pair well with impressionable kids."
"Why not reassign him as Equinox's teaching assistant?" Bahamut suggested.
Carl laughed for a good while. "Sorry... I didn't even know Equinox was teaching regular classes, is he teaching them how to destroy the crowns because Cocytus is too orderly for his liking?"
"No, I teach divine subjects..." He said as he appeared by way of portal. "...After seeing and hearing how the committee withholding knowledge of such things proved such a detriment to your development, I thought that it might be good to provide some foundational knowledge to the future of the faction."
"I mean, yeah, that sounds great, I was honestly a little worried there for a second."
"Creator, do you really see me as such a reckless individual since that day?" Equinox spoke with a tone of unfamiliar vulnerability.
"No, I was joking Equinox, I actually wouldn't mind you teaching them a bit of foundational self-defence either... Actually we were talking earlier about the likelihood of our children going on their own adventures soon, why don't you take the whole class on a mock adventure?"
"That might be a good idea, either you know your children very well, or you've seen the plans young Kitsunoko has been drawing up."
When Carl, Klaire and Kyubi shook their heads and groaned, he knew it was the former and not the later.
"Yeah, talk to Mum Leanna. Ki-ko has a magnetic personality and is a persuasive little fox. It's better everyone has some survival training, before she leads them into something they aren't prepare for."
"Of course, I'll mention it to her at dinner later, we were planning something similar with Noah and Blaine anyway."
"Get Kon to send some material specialists to help them, maybe a vampire to act as less destructive back-up."
As they spoke Bahamut noted it was nearly time for the elven gods to arrive. "Have some faith in Equinox, he is an incredibly insightful individual, we could see that from the moment of his creation. We have guests to prepare for."