The next time I awoke I found myself in a real bed. I almost believed that Esturia had all been a dream. I felt light, as if I were floating on a cloud. That's one of the side effects of being affected by a great work of white magic. It makes you feel like a million gold sovereigns.

I opened my eyes and stared at the white ceiling above me. Looking around me, I saw a moderately sized room decorated with sunburst reliefs. Something tickled the back of my brain, and I remembered that this specific sign was associated with the goddess Orianna. I realized that I was probably in a church.

Sitting up, I groaned for a moment, only to cut myself off as I realized that my body didn't actually hurt, I had just expected it to. Moving my limbs experimentally, I confirmed this. I felt better than I had in over a decade.

A soft knock was followed by a man in white robes entering. Noticing my state, a wide smile crept across his face.

"Ah, you have awoken," The man said, "Welcome my son, to the temple of Orianna. My name is Brother Zhevons, I am on loan to my sister sect to minister to your needs."

"I uh, I actually feel great." I admitted, "No needs whatsoever."

The man nodded, "Sister Arefina was quite insistent that you receive healing immediately upon arrival. You have been bedridden for three days since then due to shock from having every drop of essence drained from your soul."

The man reached out and plucked a circlet from my head. It was a phylactery, and by the color of its inserted gem, I could tell that it had been completely drained.

"If you need any assistance dressing I am more than ready to help," The man said, "Otherwise, I have been directed to inform the mother upon your waking."

"I think I can handle it," I said dryly, "Thank you Brother Zhevons."

He bowed, "The pleasure has been mine my son. May you always walk in the light."

He departed and I dressed. A brief search revealed my bag, which I quickly slung over my shoulder. Don't get me wrong, I was grateful to the church for taking care of me, but I didn't like to spend more time than necessary in places like this. The Alchemists' guild already had hooks in me, that couldn't be helped, but I would be dead before I let myself get roped into the extremely complex relationship between the church and state of Aramor.

The clink of metal on stone warned me of the approach of the mother superior before I saw her. The figure that entered was not what I had imagined somebody with such a title would look like. A ponytail held back blond hair from a severe face, out of which two blue eyes regarded me sternly. Her clothes were not armor, but rather looked like the light linens and leather padding that one would wear beneath it.

"Ethan of the house Dyre." She said, "On behalf of the Sisterhood of Light I welcome you to the temple of Orianna. I have been sent to escort you to a meeting with the Mother and Sister Arefina."

Ah, then this wasn't the mother. Another knight perhaps?

"Of course," I said, hesitating, "Although if I could just go..."

She shook her head, "The Mother would be displeased if she did not have the chance to converse with you personally."

The way she said the word 'displeased' brought images of men being drawn and quartered to mind.

"Lead the way then sister!" I chuckled.

She nodded sternly and led me through the wide halls of the temple. More white with gold trim greeted my eyes. I briefly wondered how many years' worth of alchemical supplies I could buy with the stuff merely displayed on the walls. The woman marched me to another door and knocked. The oak door swung open smoothly, revealing none other than Sister Arefina.

"Ethan." She said, a smile on her face, "Please enter."

I stepped inside and was almost leveled by the sight of a carbon copy of Sister Arefina sitting behind the desk.

"Maternal aunt I'm afraid." The woman, most likely the mother superior, said wryly.

I sunk into an offered chair and spent several moments looking between the two.

"This is uncanny." I said.

The mother superior chuckled, "I'm afraid that's a side effect of heritage, and the influence of being a geomancer with a great soul."

"Oh." I said, "I guess I haven't run into a lot of great souls."

"Besides yourself." The mother superior pointed out, "Though I don't suppose a gray mage spends a lot of time looking at other gray mages. They are rather... scarce."

"How may I serve you mother?" I asked, hoping that this interview would end quickly so I could get out.

The woman raised an eyebrow at me, "Surely you don't think I have brought you here on a matter of employment. The reverse should be true. I wanted to ask how the Sisterhood of Light could assist you."

"Well," I said, "I would really like to get going. I have a long road ahead, and I am anxious to get to my destination."

A mild look of irritation crossed the woman's face, and I realized that spurning the hospitality of the church might be as bad as getting tangled in their politics.

"That is..." I searched for words.

"Ethan is a master alchemist," Arefina slipped into the conversation smoothly, "I am afraid I may have put him behind schedule for arriving at the Collegia Alchemica due to our little... detour."

The mother superior appeared appeased by that, "I understand. Nevertheless, the Sisterhood has a debt to pay. Great souls are not common, and saving the life of one is no small feat. We would lose favor in the sight of the goddess if we were to neglect our duty to those who have done right by us."

"To be honest mother," I said, "Sister Arefina did as much to save my life as I did to save hers."

The mother superior looked to Sister Arefina.

At this, Sister Arefina shook her head, "Master Dyre is overemphasizing my role in the matter. Though I did assist, his was the leading role in our survival."

The mother superior nodded, "Indeed. The rubble you threw up on the southern road is going to be an issue for some weeks."

Sister Arefina looked down, her cheeks flushed at the comment.

"However," The mother superior continued, "killing two great souls who had turned to banditry and assassination was a worthy tradeoff."

"Mother," Sister Arefina said, "If I could suggest..."

"Go on." The mother superior said.

"Ethan is a stranger in this land," Sister Arefina said, "It would not do for him to be without a guide on his journey. I would formally request that the Sisterhood lend him a knight-sister on his journey northwards."

The mother superior nodded thoughtfully, "I believe I have just the person in mind. Very well, is this acceptable to you Ethan Dyre?"

I nodded enthusiastically, "Of course mother."

I was more than glad to get away from this place, even if it meant travelling with one of the sisters.

"Very well," The mother superior said, "Tylee Arefina, you are hereby detached from service to the Whelden temple. Your father has requested that you be relocated to Aramor for family matters, and I have a mind to oblige him. You are to accompany master alchemist Dyre to the Collegia Alchemica, ensuring his safety in all things, then you are to report to the temple of Orianna there for further instructions."

Glancing over at Sister Arefina, I saw that her mouth was hanging down as far as mine. Glancing back at the mother superior, I saw the glint of smile behind her eyes. Sister Arefina looked like she wanted to argue, but a sharp look from the mother superior caused her to lower her eyes.

"You will depart tomorrow morning," The mother continued, "Be sure to visit the waters of life. Ethan Dyre may accompany you."

"Mother!" Sister Arefina exclaimed, shock in her voice, "The waters are sacred!"

"The waters exist for the purpose of replenishing the essence of those in the service of Orianna." The mother replied, "Need I set you a penance?"

Arefina lowered her eyes again and murmured a comment in the negative.

"You are dismissed," The mother said, "May you always walk in the light."

Without further words, Sister Arefina and I were ejected from the room.

"Come with me," Sister Arefina said.

"Of course, Sister Arefina." I said.

She paused and turned to me, "My friends call me Tylee."

I hesitated, then opened my mouth, "So, Tylee?"

She nodded with satisfaction and executed a perfect about face. I was glad for my long legs, as her quick stride would have outpaced a person shorter than I. I briefly wondered if she had hoped to leave me behind. Despite her profession of friendship, I believed that Tylee may have had more than a few reservations about me.

We were admitted into a room which held a pool that practically reeked of essence. The pool itself was an elevated basin almost three meters long and one meter wide. Several sisters were gathered around it, their hands immersed in the liquid as they drew essence into their bodies.

I received several looks of askance, but nobody spoke directly to us. Instead, any sisters not already drawing essence were lined up in front of an image of Orianna. They would kneel before it in turns, eyes closed in the matter of prayer, their swords placed tip first against the floor or held perpendicular to their bodies as they communed with their goddess.

"I don't really pray that much." I noted.

The currently kneeling sister stood up and moved to the pool, where she immersed her hands.

"It is custom," Tylee told me, "I would advise you to do so. If you cannot bring yourself to thank the goddess for the gift you are about to receive, then at least observe the form so as not to offend my sisters."

"What about you?" I asked.

She regarded me, "I already know that you serve the goddess."

"What makes you say that?" I asked.

She smiled softly and began speaking, "When hope is lost and death draws near, when darkness falls and friends are dear, who shall stand and face her foes? The pure in heart, the goddess knows."

"That sounds like a scripture." I said, "Or maybe just a poem."

She nodded.

"I could just be really stubborn." I pointed out.

Tylee turned fully to face me, her voice low, "A stubborn man will break when the endless tragedies of life beset him. A stubborn man would have found a way to save himself. You stood with me despite the cost. Your lips do not serve the goddess, but your hands do. I hope someday that you too realize this."

She turned and drew her sword and touched the point to the stone of the floor. Kneeling, she began to offer her own supplications. When she arose, she gestured for me to do likewise. I sighed and brought my staff to bear, then knelt before the image of the cloth robed woman. I closed my eyes, fully intending on waiting a few moments, then rising.

'Greetings outlander,' A voice spoke in my head.

My eyes flew open. Well, they tried to. I found my body completely paralyzed.

'Orianna?' I asked.

A gentleness washed through my body, and I realized that I was speaking to something far beyond my ken.

'Do you seek purpose?' She asked.

'I... yes.' I thought, mildly horrified by my own candor, 'All my life.'

'Then arise my champion. Protect my daughter.' Orianna spoke with a voice like searing light.

'How?' I asked.

A moment of clarity, like the impression left after a lightning strike. I felt something below my right eye, then a wave of comfort.

White magic.

'Go,' The voice of Orianna said, 'You have been faithful to the call in twilight, now walk in my light.'

My eyes fluttered open. I rose to my feet unsteadily, looking over at Tylee, who had been waiting for me.

"You could have sold it a little better," She whispered, "You were only there for a few moments."

"It felt longer," I admitted, "Just out of curiosity, what is the relationship between the Sisterhood of Light and Orianna?"

"She is the mother of all living," Tylee said, "Therefore, we are her daughters."

"That's what I thought you would say." I said, "Let's prepare."

Despite having burned through all of my essence, I required considerably less time with my hands immersed in the living waters than Tylee did. Though for appearance's sake, I remained until she showed signs of being ready to depart.

Tylee left me outside the room with a swish of gold-trimmed white robes, citing her need to prepare her armor and weapons for travel. Watching her go, I realized that she moved with a solid kind of grace. Although Tylee had been trained as a geomancer, she had not neglected the arts of grace. I absently patted my satchel, which was stocked with several rounds of the best strength and speed enhancing elixirs which I could create.

I was due for one of each, especially considering the fact that I had just burned through a significant chunk of my speed potential by quaffing a level two speed potion.

Left to my own devices, I decided to wander. The halls of the temple were more spacious than anything I had seen in Esturia so far. I lost myself in my wanderings, my staff tapping out a steady beat in time with the musings drifting through my mind. It was some time before I came to what I assumed was a sort of chapel. I would later find that there were in fact five of these, four of which depicted her as harnessing one of the cardinal elements.

The last, and the one that I visited, was devoted to her personal patronage of practitioners of white magic. The room had quiet solemnity, and I was drawn to the statue of the goddess which lay in the center of the circular rows of benches.

The statue depicted a woman of immense beauty. As a fellow craftsman, I couldn't but help admire the mason's work. She was worked in pure, white marble, and the robe in which she was dressed was realistic enough that I almost thought it would start billowing in the wind along with the hair which flowed down her back.

"Did you bring me here?" I asked, looking up into the gentle stone face.

No answer.

"You were right," I said to the woman, "I never realized it in my previous life, but I wasted years in a desperate attempt to find some kind of purpose. For something that would be significant enough that I would get off my worthless backside and put in some effort."

"I thought I had found it in Vern," I said, "I was happy there you know? It was nothing more than a glorified essence harvesting operation, but it was a place that I could call home. It's funny, the first place that I felt like I made a difference, was also the first place to actually push me out."

I hung my head down.

"How can I protect Tylee?" I asked, "Even with the gift of white magic, there's nothing special about me. My great soul is almost useless for the purpose of defending others. Gray magic is not intrinsically protective, and white magic, what I know of it, is not much better. Don't you have anyone better to send?"

'I have you...' A quiet voice whispered through my mind.

I gripped my staff, "And a fat lot of good that will do anyone. As I am, Tylee would spend more of her time protecting me, rather than the other way around. What am I supposed to do?"

Silence.

I departed from the presence of the goddess, it seemed that I was to receive no further divine direction. I decided that I would indulge myself and be bitter about the whole situation. Tomorrow would be early enough for me to start contemplating how exactly I could undertake the herculean task the goddess had laid upon me.

One thing was for certain. Somebody wanted Tylee Arefin dead. If I was going to protect her, I would need more than a bag of parlor tricks.