Chapter 50 - There Is Another Way

"I figured as much." Zell said. "She claims to be a god that created all and that she values life. Yet she commanded me to slaughter my own family and to slay the demon lord as well, when they may be a peaceful solution."

"She is not as she seems." Obsi explained. "Both of the chief gods have the powers of creation and destruction. It is their duty to maintain the universe so that life can prosper. Think of them as gardeners, sometimes you must prune a tree's branches for the health of the overall plant. She refuses to do that. She only wants to plant new seeds and create new things. She leaves them to their own devices and then fusses when they no longer worship her, or if the other god chooses to trim the branches."

"So that's why?" Zell said.

"Yes." Obsi replied. "But fear her not, as long as you live you will not have to face her. She is trapped within the realm of the gods where mortal souls cannot tread."

"But she sent me there recently." Zell replied.

"That should not be possible…" Obsi said thinking to herself. "Tell me did you at that time have anything of the divine within you?"

"I had the powers of time and space and housed another goddess within me." Zell said.

"Ah, that is the reason then." Obsi said. "Makes sense now. She did not actually summon you; she summoned that god. You were attached so you got sent as well. If you are no longer combined with the divine, then you have nothing to fear."

"That's great." Zell smiled. "So, I do not have to do as she says?"

"I mean you will have to face the music when you leave this world." Obsi said. "Humans live such short lives. I am sure her punishment for you will be harsh if you refuse what she says."

"So, I should still do as she said." Zell sighed. "There is no telling what horrors she would do to me, or my past family."

"What if you couldn't die?" Kaitlyn asked.

"If I couldn't die?" Zell said softly. "If I couldn't die, I would never see my family again…"

"That actually might be the best solution." Obsi said. "If you lost your mortality, she would not be able to punish you. She also would not attack your family sense you would never know about it, and it would defeat the point. Aside from that I am sure she has already lost track of them."

"Still, I would be giving up my happily ever after." Zell said. "I would never see my wife, or my kids, or my grandchildren again. I don't think I could do that. Besides, it's not like there is a way for a human to live forever anyway."

"Well, there is." Kaitlyn said. "At least I think there is. Grandpa told me of an island far across the sea that has a magic pool that gives a mortal eternal life."

"That is true." Obsi said. "It is within the dragon empire. The pool of divine grace, it is the reason we dragons live forever, well unless someone kills us. If a human were to drink from the waters, it would grant them the same longevity that has been afforded to us."

"So, wait." Zell said. "I thought you said dragons were divine to begin with. That is how you knew of the gods."

"Yes well…" Obsi could be seen blushing. "It is an old tale passed down from my people. First the two creator gods made the lesser gods beneath them. They were their family. As many families do, they wanted something more. So, the creator gods made pets for their family. That was us, the dragons. After they grew tired of us, they created their toys and entertainment, the mortal races. We were ignored after a time and left the divine realm. We went from planet to planet until we settled here."

"So where did the pool come from?" Zell asked.

"The ravages of time does not affect those within the divine realm." Obsi said. "However, we were no longer in the divine realm, we were here in the mortal worlds. My kind began to grow old and age. Not wanting to give up our eternal life some of us broke back into the divine realm and stole a piece of it. They placed it in a pool of water and the water itself became blessed from the divine realm. When we drank from it, we regained our youth, and stopped aging."

"How did you break into the divine realm?" Kaitlyn asked.

"I wasn't born yet." Obsi said. "I have no idea, only the elders know how to enter the divine realm."

*Thud* Kilgon could be heard falling onto the ground. "Ouch!" He yelled. "I fell asleep with all this damned talking. So, you got some magic god water, and you can make mortals live forever. That is all you need to say! No need to draft a book on the subject! What are we doing? We going to get the magic god water stuff or we going to fix the human problem?"

"I need to think about that." Zell said. "We will go to the nearest kingdom as we planned. I will think about what to do after that. First we need to start and take my sister's power away."

"Sounds good." Kaitlyn said.

"If you decide to pursue the water, know that I cannot go with you." Obsi said. "I fear what my kind would do to me with my past failure and now telling a human our greatest secrets."

"Like I said, you are a party member now." Zell said. "I will protect you."

"Thank you." Obsi said. "I really mean that."

"Don't forget I am protecting you as well, Lass!" Kilgon said.

"You still flirt, after you just called me boring." Obsi sighed. "You have quite the pair on you dwarf."

"That I do, Lass." Kilgon said. "If you like I can show you how I use them later."

"So how important is the dwarf to you?" Obsi asked. "Would it upset you if I killed him?"

"Please don't kill other party members." Zell sighed. "Kilgon, try and keep it in your pants."

"Bah!" Kilgon said. He marched to the front and motioned for the others to follow him.. "Follow me then, I'll take you to the kingdom as promised."