I only recognized one of the two priests who was escorting me to the Spring of Blessings, a short woman with dark brown hair and a perpetually annoyed expression who had been around the temple for as long as I could remember. I did not know her name – in order to learn someone's name, people needed to think you were a person worth telling their name in the first place. Suffice to say that she was not my favorite person in the temple. The fact that she looked more nervous than pissed off as we walked through the hallways of the inner temple was yet another sign that today was an extraordinary day. She did not even berate me for the veil. We walked in silence down the hallways.

The other priest was not someone I had seen before – also unusual. The circle of people who interacted with me regularly was kept pretty small; usually just Emilia, Kielan, and a half dozen other priests. I could only guess that the last minute Ceremony had forced Kielan to make some creative staffing choices. The Empire was large, and priests located here at the Grand Temple, even those not on the Council, were highly ranked and often called away to support smaller temples, to bless noble houses, or even to act as divine advisors on merchant's dealings and the like. All this work brought in a lot of donations to the temple. It seemed as though at least one of my usual babysitters was on assignment today. Better still, the High Priest was gone for at least the next week if the two acolytes I had heard gossiping in the hallway were to be trusted. I only hoped that none of the other Council members were at the Grand Temple today. Just Kielan was enough trouble for me any day, and the presence additional Council members would only complicate the already volatile situation at hand.

The twelfth bell started to ring exactly as we walked up to the entrance to the Spring of Blessings, the priests on either side of me. The guards averted their eyes at my approach, as always, but there were more of them than usual – five I could see on this side alone. I nodded at them as we passed and was ignored. I felt the familiar anxiety well up in me as we approached the doors. Usually, I paused here for a few moments, gathering myself and burying all my unwanted emotions before stepping inside. I knew I had no choice but to proceed in the end, but the priests had always allowed me this tiny personal freedom. When I stopped this time, though, the priests glanced at me before each pushing me firmly forward by the shoulder in unison as they opened the doors. I could not help but startle at the unexpected and unwelcome contact, and I found myself inside, feeling off–balance and overwhelmed.

The heart of the Great Temple of the Empire was simpler than one might expect, just a small domed building made of grey stone with the spring in the center, bubbling up through cracked limestone into a pool rimmed with a low wall of plain grey stone. The light from the spring water was enough to illuminate the entire room, but there was nothing to see, just the rough stone of the curved walls and domed ceiling. There is no artwork, no furniture, nothing to adorn the sacred space. There was not even a window.

No one else had arrived yet. I stepped forward to my usual spot by the Spring facing the other entrance; the higher–ranked supervising priests always came through there, on the opposite side from where I came in with my 'guardians'. There were some days when I considered them my guards and myself their prisoner. Those days were becoming more frequent.

Seconds ticked by, and I started to fidget. Usually I had no problem staying still and detached, but today I was restless, barely keeping my over–active mind under control.

"Saintess." The dark–haired priestess was glaring at me. I had the sudden vivid idea that I could reach into the Spring of Blessings and splatter her with Holy Water. It only lasted for an instant. I blinked once and the image of her clutching at her burned skin disappeared.

––– Erik –––

I was still feeling quite cheerful as I followed Priest Kielan to the Spring of Blessings. I enjoyed watching Priest Kielan's face tighten more and more as we made our way through the temple. I even enjoyed seeing the passing priests in their robes of various shades of blue flinch whenever I glanced at them. Perhaps it was unfair to enjoy even the minor priest's discomfort, but today in my mind, they were all complicit in the machinations and manipulations of this temple and their Order. A little scare would not really hurt them anyway.

I was distracted from my satisfaction when a small, ancient–looking stone building came into view. I could sense a power from inside, thrumming through the air around us almost ominously. The feeling reminded me of the area around rift, but more potent. I knew this must be divine power, but my guard went up and I had to resist the urge to grab my sword. This humble building housed the heart of the Grand Temple, the Order of Lumina, and some would argue even the Empire itself, but I was struck by a sense of wrongness. It was the same sense I had during an incursion.

Priest Kielan stopped before we reached the doors and looked pointedly at Elias. "Only the official Imperial Representative may enter." I scoffed a bit internally but nodded at Elias, who also stood tensely, probably reacting to the divine power the same way I was. He stepped back and met Priest Kielan's eyes, clearly unintimidated. That was Elias – he stood on protocol more than most, but he despised the Order of Lumina and the Grand Temple's leadership nearly as much as I did and he never flinched under pressure.

There were six guards stationed at these doors – I suspected that this was more than usual – and they stood at the ready, not quite looking at me or Elias but clearly poised for action. I wanted to roll my eyes, but I held back, electing instead to keep my face neutral. My knights had told me often that my 'neutral' face could frighten a ghost. Priest Kielan had also modulated his expression, face blank but eyes sharp as he gestured at the guards to open the doors.

My first thought as I entered was that this was no place for humans. The empty room was washed with golden light, soft and eerie. Then my attention focused on the figures standing behind the Spring of Blessings.

Two stood back, their blue robes neither dark nor light. Mid–level priests, then. The center figure stood right at the edge of the Spring, the water's light making their the braids and swirls of white hair gleam so that it seemed as though it was the hair that was luminescent, not the Spring. The figure raised their head, ornaments sparkling with the movement. Their deep blue robes and a full–face veil of the same color were darker than even Priest Kielan's, contrasting with their hair like a night sky would contrast with a full moon. I remembered of the myth of Lumina crying in sorrow for humanity as she died, leaving the Spring of Blessings, called the Tears of Lumina in the ancient language. For a moment, my heart ached, and I imagined I could see past the veil to tears underneath.

Then Priest Kielan stepped forward and I was brought back to reality. The Saintess – for that was who she was – stood stock still with both hands locked in front of her. Right. This was the figurehead of the temple, their justification for their control over the Empire.

I hardened my expression and steeled myself for the Ceremony to begin.