What villainess am I?

Chapter 10 - Baptism by fire

Can you imagine being ripped away from a time you once lived? It is as if pulled fresh from a dream, memory, and nostalgia colliding to take away fear and doubt of safety, to have that sense of security, the warmth of doubtless care, and into the cold uncertainty of futures unaccounted for and pasts unknown a maelstrom of confusion and bitter untruths.

I sit before a priest of my Father's retinue who speaks to me about the rituals I will partake in and if I understand the consequences. My eyes glaze as I barely address his questions, not least as I am still a child. I still hold myself to the idea of a babe, one without knowledge or understanding; though I fail at it in some cases, it is not without a great effort.

Alice holds me, as has become commonplace, close to her chest with some hesitance towards the priest, the last encounter fresh in both our minds. He speaks well of Father's intentions, yet he doesn't explain more than the superficial acts required of me.

"-With this, you shall enter the hall last after the Duchess and High Priest. After such, the presiding priest will hold his hands to place the Adumbration upon you."

As the priest states the last of the acts, it catches my ear in curiosity- I ask, "Adoombrathon?" My lisp causes me to cringe for a moment before he answers with a smile he lacked during our entire conversation, even to note no sense of emotion appeared on his face till now.

"The Adumbration is a mark of the gods, a blessing of things to come; it defines or details a destiny suited for the initiate and brings them nearest a god for worship to guide their hand."

He stands proud and offers his hand to me, the back of which holds a curled cat, "As I have an Adumbration of Mi'ta, I preside over the rituals and daily duties. Mi'ta has her hands within the church's heart as its healer and protector. If you are anything as your Father, a blessing of the highest gods may be conferred upon you!"

As he speaks, I reflexively pull into Alice, his soul tainted like the other priests. His faint body pulled away like a hunched beast, his eyes hollow as he came close to view; as he saw my reaction, pulling away dejected as he stared at Alice and me again, his words falling into a monotone voice once more, "Of course, it is never certain what you will get, it always depends on the fate the gods divine for you."

As he finishes speaking, he stands, looking off before bowing, "I shall take my leave then, Young Lady; let us hope your name and blessings bring fortune and prosperity to these lands."

Alice's eyes follow the man, his gait long and flowing with an almost smoke-like appearance. As he fades from view, I shudder, my body relaxing with his departure. An impossible sense of relief fills my heart, unintentional as it may be; the lengths the priests go to for their gods horrifies me.

"How is it they wish for your induction, yet saught your death not a week ago?" Alice shakes her head, sighing as she looks at my shivering form, my body out of my control since it relaxed; I fear it may become a common occurrence with the malignities laid before me, the caste of priests who torment or defile their souls, gods who see such without stopping their followers. Alice pats my small head, and I fall into her, my frame like jelly. I thank the gods of this world that, though my fate brings the kindness of others- The cost it incurs, however, is terrible, the nightmares and terrors lying behind the visages of good people, the fear of dying again. My hand reaches, scratching my skin, the feeling of it flaking sending a shiver down my spine as the memories creep in.

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With a knock at my door, I turn my attention away from my ledgers, waiting for whomever it is to enter or request entrance,

"Your Grace," I hear, "the Young Lady is well, though I question the necessity for the baptism so soon. She is a child; what mind of hers could understand the powers we gain upon the initiation?"