### Sex God Saga 4
### Welcome In, Now Fuck Yourself
SATURDAY:
Five minutes after getting up, the tiny old landlady Seiko Yoshida knocked on his door with a bright grin and handed him a basket of luxurious breakfast goodies someone had dropped off. It came with a card from the Onyx that just said 'Sorry' with a smiley face.
Paris revealed his impatience by texting 'Did you get it?' before Theo could even unpack the basket.
The sleepy blond shaman decided to toy with the Stygian's patience a bit more, stepped out of his sweatpants and took a pic of his backside in the thin, wall-length mirror the apartment's entrance had come with.
Then he actually asked his boss for a vacation starting immediately. On a Saturday of all things -- the busiest day. Having one and a half no-shows actually helped make his case but he wasn't sure there'd be a job for him to return to.
### ### ###
Keith showed up with a white Mercedes.
"How many cars do you own?" Theo asked, aghast.
"None. My dad runs a garage. Technically my day job."
Keith wore a much too big, stiff button shirt with a print on the edge, open over a white tank top which was tucked into black pants, held up by a much too long, red belt. His inverse cross earring was still present, with a jewel studded ring on the other lobe.
Theo sank into the seat with his slightly hole-y jeans and washed out jacket.
"Is your dad Knowing?"
"Yeah, ex-shaman. He's not with the order anymore. No bad blood, he was just done." The Asian prettyboy looked at Theo with a smirk of mischief. "I'm technically keeping an eye on him so he doesn't turn all Demonist on us."
"Is that a concern?"
Keith pulled away from the Chinatown gate. "With dad, no. But if they're not retirees, freeflying shamans are usually bad news. Hellsingers, Bonespinners, Withergnosts... More so since Harpersfield is fucking flooded with demons now. You saw team alpha in actions. They don't have time to fill up on V, so they gotta beat demons up like thugs."
"Godrick seemed in his element."
Keith chuckled. "Sounds like him. So, my plan for today is to take you on little maintenance missions across town. Sound good?"
Theo felt pathetically reminded of the time he had volunteered to help mop the school gym after a bunch of guys including his very straight highschool crush had been given that task as punishment.
"Great," the blond said. "I have some questions about wisps, by the way." He pulled out the receipt which was starting to look worse for wear. "This little guy is still hanging out. I thought they don't stick around that long."
Keith shrugged. "You might have a fan. Some Outsiders become loyal. Or it's turning into a demon. We'll keep an eye on it. Good practice."
### ### ###
They picked up Willow, a young black woman with red locks in her frizzy hair. Her flimsy pastel clothes were contrasted by a wide belt in the pansexual-pride colors. She wore a denim jacket with pins like 'protect trans kids' and 'no masters no slaves'.
"So you're the newbie," she said, getting into the car's backseat. "Been a while since I met fresh meat. I'm Willow."
"Theo."
"Met a Stygian yet?"
"Some of the Belleroses."
"Goddess-dammit, I can never be first, huh? Well, *I'm* not an Onyx Skies lady. Let me guess, Bianca?"
"Paris. We had a..." Was it okay to mention? Did he want to?
"Not finishing the sentence? You fucked?"
Theo became embarrassingly horny at the memory. "So... Bianca is the 'queen' right?"
"Not mine, but yes. I guess she wouldn't bother introducing herself to you. You don't seem like the high class type. And you better take that as a fucking compliment."
Keith chuckled. "I figured you two would get along. Willow is not your average Stygian or shaman. She's a champion, especially chosen by a goddess as servant."
"Ohn," Willow said. "Goddess of summer. But summer's on the way out so Ohn'll be going semi-dormant. We're giving her a snack on the way to bed."
"Is she to you like Melisandre is to Keith? Or more like a familiar?"
"She is her own," Willow said. "I wouldn't accept it any other way. It can't be a Keith-Melisandre thing since a meager human is too small a vessel."
"Ah, right."
### ### ###
Theo's notes:
Muses (sometimes classified as Fae, Dryads, Archons etc) are lesser divine beings, too powerful to be controlled by a single human. To 'hire' them may require building a shrine, caring for an area, embodying a virtue, solving a riddle, etc.
Anything up to the size of an elephant can be hidden or turned into a sanctum by a muse. They possess knowledge (literature, toxicology, etc), alter matter or may bestow abilities like shooting beams of light ("or making the chicks fly your way" -- Keith, getting a smack from Cor for that one). They often appear as humans but can also inhabit a tree, horse, flock of doves, small moor, all dreams in an orphanage, the pollution of a city block...
The difference to gods is that gods cannot be bound to a human body at all. They are simply too great. Their sanctuaries can be completely cut off, becoming demiplanes -- including entire buildings or caverns. They usually appear as large beings and may embody justice, illness, curiosity, respite, art...
They almost never interact with humans directly.
"Arrogant bastards." --Keith
"Maybe they're socially awkward." -Cor
### ### ###
Ohn lived in a residential area, in a strip where two back yards almost met but left a foot of space between picket fences.
Using mediumship, Theo managed to enter the demiplane on his own.
An oak grove the size of a football field, where faintly purple crystals grew from the ground like shrubs. Fireflies danced around a central grand oak. Paper lanterns hung around the perimeter trees, casting a warm glow even in daylight, as the sun's rays fell through the foliage like every single beam had been handpicked for dramatic effect.
Ohn was a sphinx of a sort. Eight feet tall, more lynx than human but with various human-female features.
Willow skipped toward the goddess and Ohn rolled over for belly rubs.
"Don't try that," Keith whispered. "Champion privilege."
"I wasn't going to."
"I'll do the gardening," Willow said, her voice raised, hands in the sphinx' belly fluff. "You boys scan the rim for anything worn out."
Willow had brought a box of gardening tool and a short wood ladder was already at location. While the woman put on a bib overall, Keith and Theo scoured the trees along the edge.