strongest Will wielder in this country. Arglaria also has a strong Will wielder. She is called Aravia, or more commonly, High Priestess Aravia. She has been around just a few years fewer than I have so I know her very well. Although I am just Count here, and we have a King, I control this country completely. The Kings tend to be the first targets if a foreign Will wielder comes here trying to take over. Being a step or two away from the throne is a better long term strategy for me. The Kings here have pretty good administrative skills that I have had bred into them over the centuries. They do a great job, but the real power is mine. In Arglaria, it is Aravia’s. Every seven years or so she sends a raiding party over the border, commonly in fifth month. That’s why I visit the fort in fifth month. She wants to see if I am still alive and whether I can still retaliate. I always do, or she will send a bigger raiding party.” He coughed and took another angle. “Aravia likes to have her goddess worshipped by men. Men who pay a big sum for the privelige. If they are really good looking, Aravia will let them worship her goddess through her. Lately, she has started acting a bit irrationally. That is one of the drawbacks of a very long life; in the end, sanity starts to crumble. With Aravia, I needed to make an emphatic statement, so I went to the nearest temple and destroyed it completely, along with all the priestesses and anyone who got in our way. That is what she understands. Hopefully, it will be longer than seven yearsnow seven before the next raid.”
Art thought, “He must have killed hundreds as well, without remorse. Is that what powerful people must do?” Then out loud, changing the subject quickly, he asked, “Can you really turn me into a girl?” The Count looked over at him and drew his horse even closer. “I can, but you would be imperfect. You would look like a girl, but you would be unable to have babies, and you would still think like a man. What’s more, you would be able to change yourself back eventually, unless you found you liked it!”
Art blushed furiously. “No chance of that!” was the reply that came with more vigor than he intended.
Art was quiet for a while, and eventually it was the Count who broke the silence, “Anything else you want to know?”
“The only thing that is urgent is I would like to know what you have in mind for me next?”
The Count sighed, “There is so much for you to learn and do. Even I do not know where we should start with you. You have done very well so far, so I think you’ll do well. I think a stint in the temple learning healing would be good, but there are so many other things you need to learn. Mostly you have to discover things about yourself, and that is something most people try not to learn. I believe you are fifteen. You are only fifteen once. Enjoy what little is left of your childhood. I wasn’t too keen to grow up and you shouldn’t be!”
Two days later they came to the Count’s capital of Red City. Art had seen a bit more acceptance, and had been talking with quite a few others since his talk with the Count. He noticed coming into the City that the Count seemed quite popular and even stopped to talk with some people as they rode past. He observed the City. It was clean. It was tidy. It didn’t smell. Everything was arranged neatly, but he saw nothing red to name the City. Their goal was a palace that looked nothing like the fort. It was really just a huge, well appointed house with no fortifications at all. Art thought, “No one has ever tried to attack the Count here.”
There had been only one other big building that they had passed, and he had been told that that was the Temple. “The Temple to whom?” he had asked.
“The Temple of Healing,” had been the simple reply. The Temple had been big, but it wasn’t exactly impressive. Art recalled his talk with the Count and remembered, “High Priestess Aravia.” He thought she
Art thought, “He must have killed hundreds as well, without remorse. Is that what powerful people must do?” Then out loud, changing the subject quickly, he asked, “Can you really turn me into a girl?” The Count looked over at him and drew his horse even closer. “I can, but you would be imperfect. You would look like a girl, but you would be unable to have babies, and you would still think like a man. What’s more, you would be able to change yourself back eventually, unless you found you liked it!”
Art blushed furiously. “No chance of that!” was the reply that came with more vigor than he intended.
Art was quiet for a while, and eventually it was the Count who broke the silence, “Anything else you want to know?”
“The only thing that is urgent is I would like to know what you have in mind for me next?”
The Count sighed, “There is so much for you to learn and do. Even I do not know where we should start with you. You have done very well so far, so I think you’ll do well. I think a stint in the temple learning healing would be good, but there are so many other things you need to learn. Mostly you have to discover things about yourself, and that is something most people try not to learn. I believe you are fifteen. You are only fifteen once. Enjoy what little is left of your childhood. I wasn’t too keen to grow up and you shouldn’t be!”
Two days later they came to the Count’s capital of Red City. Art had seen a bit more acceptance, and had been talking with quite a few others since his talk with the Count. He noticed coming into the City that the Count seemed quite popular and even stopped to talk with some people as they rode past. He observed the City. It was clean. It was tidy. It didn’t smell. Everything was arranged neatly, but he saw nothing red to name the City. Their goal was a palace that looked nothing like the fort. It was really just a huge, well appointed house with no fortifications at all. Art thought, “No one has ever tried to attack the Count here.”
There had been only one other big building that they had passed, and he had been told that that was the Temple. “The Temple to whom?” he had asked.
“The Temple of Healing,” had been the simple reply. The Temple had been big, but it wasn’t exactly impressive. Art recalled his talk with the Count and remembered, “High Priestess Aravia.” He thought she
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