Compared to their flight from Amberwell, their travel on the road over the next couple days is positively uneventful… and quiet. Awkwardly quiet. Its not like Sophia WANTED this to happen or anything… but they didn't exactly have need of horses up in the Heavens. The Heavens weren't nearly as big as the Mortal Planes were, and even for the parts that were somewhat far away on foot, one could usually just will themselves there with a simple burst of divine power. No mounts necessary.

  Fortunately, the stable master had a rather large stallion to sell them, on top of a saddle made for two people. It wasn't exactly cheap… but Oren had made quite a lot of coin off of betting her, so they were set all the same. And it was probably still cheaper than two saddled horses would have been.

  Still, there was definitely something a little awkward about riding behind Oren as they made their way down the road through the rest of the day before stopping and making camp for the night… followed by more travel on horseback the next day. Sometimes Oren would hop down and just lead the horse by the reins while letting her occupy the saddle by herself, but most of the time she just had to suck it up.

  … She was pretty sure going off of stories she'd read that usually the passenger went in the front of the rider when two people were riding a horse, but as previously mentioned, it wasn't like she had any firsthand knowledge of such things… nor did she necessarily want to kick up a fuss. Not when she still found herself contemplating the events back in town.

  Sophia was starting to feel like she might have judged Oren too harshly. He really did have her best interests at heart, and more than that… he wasn't nearly as bloodthirsty as she'd been taught to expect from Otherworlders. Sure, there was the wanton slaughter of those God Hunters back when they'd first met, but even there he'd tried to show mercy. And it wasn't like he'd taken any pleasure in the killing either. He'd been downright stoic as he slew each of her hunters.

  That was all to say… she forgave him, even if she had yet to say it out loud. She forgave him for betting her in the card game with Gentleman Grays, and she also forgave him for being so forward as to grab her and leap out of a window with his hand covering her mouth. All things considered, he'd made the right call and they'd escaped without anyone else needing to die. That had to count for something, right?

  However, just as Sophia is starting to develop something of a good mood late into their second day of travel… it's like the universe itself is stepping in to correct her. As though the cosmos are saying "no, no you fool… you don't get to have nice things."

  They come upon it near the tail end of the day. Just as the sun is setting over the horizon. Buildings in the distance. When Sophia first sees them, she perks up a little in excitement. Maybe they won't have to make a camp tonight, maybe they'll actually get to sleep in normal beds.

  With her arms holding Oren from behind so she doesn't fall off the damn horse and break her neck, Sophia feels him stiffen up when he notices the village too. But she doesn't understand what his reaction really means at the time. Instead, she makes something of a fool of herself.

  "Looks like we might get to sleep in a real bed tonight, Oren!"

  "… I wouldn't be so sure, Goddess."

  Blinking, Sophia can only be confused until they finally get close enough for her to pick up what his far better eyes were able to see from leagues away. The buildings that remain standing are blackened and half-burnt down. The village, in fact, starts a lot further out than she originally thought… but the outskirts have been completely reduced to ash, only the barest remains of ruins left behind to signify that structures once stood there.

  The road changes from dirt to soot in short measure, with Oren keeping them going even as they enter the burnt out husk of a town. From the look of things, the place was burnt down weeks ago. Sophia doesn't see any bodies… until they get deeper in and find the first pile. And then another. And another.

  The fires have burnt the corpse piles down to smoldering heaps of bone fragments and ash, but its still obvious what they are, especially when a half-charred skull peeks out of a mound here and there. Someone came here and put this entire village to the sword. They slaughtered the inhabitants and then burned the corpses in a mercenary fashion to prevent the spread of disease. Then, they burned down the town too for good measure.

  "W-Why… why would anyone do this?"

  "Religious differences, I suspect."

  Oren gestures and Sophia stiffens up as she looks to where he's pointing. With a choked cry, she all but flings herself off the horse, only really saved from a bad fall by Oren grabbing her by the nape of her neck when she starts to drop forward and setting her down more carefully. The instant her feet hit the ground though, the Minor Goddess is off like a rabbit, darting forward as though getting there any faster will somehow save what's already been desecrated and defiled for weeks.

  Finally reaching her destination, Sophia drops to her knees in front of the half-ruined statue, sobbing as she reaches out for the plaque beneath it with trembling fingers. The statue itself has been broken beyond recognition. Nothing above the waist remains, with the torso head and arms completely removed and gone. Judging by the sheer amount of stone fragments around the base, someone took several hammers to it after it was broken off.

  The plaque is vandalized as well, but not so much that Sophia can't make out enough letters. Even then though… she would recognize who the statue was supposed to be. Even if there was nothing left, she would be able to feel it. Because beyond the ruined statue sits a stone building that was clearly the center of this village, the place where everyone congregated… a church.

  And not just a church but a church to her father Law, who the statue had clearly once represented. The King of the Gods, worshipped by the inhabitants of this village for being a God of Justice and Righteousness. The sort of deity that one could build an entire society around, that one could look to and know what to do and what not to do under his aegis and his protection.

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  … Except Law was dead. There was no more divine protection for his followers.

  "God Hunters must have come through. I see signs of a fight… the villagers didn't just give in or surrender. Maybe they were even offered a chance to renounce their god and refused it. And so they all died."

  Sophia flinches at Oren's somewhat emotionless depiction of events. She can see it… fuck, she can see it all too easily. Her Father was an inspiration to so many. Both among the divine and among the mortals down here beneath the Heavens. How could he not be? Law had ruled over Creation for thousands of years. He was GOOD. Those who followed him were similarly good.

  "It was my father… they worshipped Law in this village. And the God Hunters m-murdered them for it."

  Even now, Sophia can feel flickers of her father's presence in this place. Its how she knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that this was a church to Law, and a community that worshipped her father and followed his teachings. And all of them had died for it. It just… it wasn't fair. It wasn't RIGHT.

  "… We can keep going, if you like. Travel for another hour or two before making camp. We don't have to stay here for the evening."

  She recognizes that Oren is trying to be kind. Frankly, Sophia is half-tempted to take him up on his offer. Roughing it for another night in the woods sounds preferable to staying here in a lot of ways. But… she can't do it. They'll have to move on in the morning, she understands that much, but for tonight at least she needs to be here.

  "N-No… no, we'll stay here for the night if that's okay. In… in the church."

  Oren hums his confirmation… and that's that.

  -x-X-x-

  As it turns out, the church is just as ruined as the rest of the village. The walls were made of stone, but the roof was not. From the outside, the church looked relatively intact. But the inside… well, the roof is collapsed inwards obviously, and the first few blades of grass are already starting to grow in the dirt and ash where the ceiling is open to the sky.

  They wind up making camp anyways, just with the stone walls of the church surrounding them instead of trees and wilderness. Sitting there by the campfire under the moon and stars overhead, Sophia stares into the crackling flames and swallows thickly. Finally, she breaks her silence.

  "Oren… what do you believe the difference between justice and vengeance is?"

  There's a long pause before Oren finally answers her.

  "… Where I come from, justice was supposed to be about fairness and impartiality. It was supposed to be unbiased… about what was actually right rather than what felt right in the moment. In comparison… vengeance would be about retaliation and personal retribution. About letting your feelings get the better of you. My world's greatest philosophers would say vengeance only promoted cycles of violence. A very common phrase back where I came from was 'an eye for an eye will make the whole world go blind'."

  It takes Sophia a moment to parse the unfamiliar quote. An eye for an eye, meaning equal retribution doled out for every bad thing done to you. But when taken to its logical extreme… she supposed she saw the logic. Say your father was killed by another man. And so you kill that man. But then his daughter comes after you. And your brother goes after her. And her son goes after your brother.

  Cycles of violence, yes. But…

  "What do YOU believe though? Don't think I didn't notice you never actually said you agreed with any of that."

  Oren smiles slightly at being caught out, though its gone in a flash. If Sophia didn't know any better, she would have thought the Otherworlder didn't want her to like him or something. N-Not that she DID like him… he was just a means to an end, ultimately.

  Finally his hesitation passes and Oren sighs.

  "… I think in a lot of cases, justice fails. Nobody is perfect and justice, as a whole, is a system that must be perpetuated by imperfect people. There's going to be mistakes. Fuck ups, if you will. That's why I think there are times when vengeance picks up where justice leaves off. When justice fails… vengeance is what picks up the slack."

  Sophia… liked that. Or rather, she wanted to like it. By her father's name did she want to like it. It spoke to a dark part of her, a small kernel of hatred and anger and grief that had only been growing since that day in the Heavens when she lost everything. And yet, she cannot ignore her domains. She's a Minor Goddess of Wisdom after all, and that part of her is screaming that Oren's words are not that wise.

  … But they are rather fair in a way, another traitorous part of her whispers. Her Domain of Wisdom is quite certain of itself in this matter. Justice is good, vengeance is bad. The end. But her Domain of Equity is a lot less sure of things. On the one hand, its like Oren said, justice is supposed to be about fairness and impartiality.

  On the other hand, it's like Oren also said… sometimes justice fails. Sometimes those who are meant to uphold justice do not succeed. Sometimes… sometimes the God of Justice is killed unjustly in his throne room by a monster.

  Sophia's hands curl upon themselves so tightly that her knuckles whiten and her fists shake as she digs her nails into her palm. Her chest is tight with emotion for a moment… until she feels a featherlight brush against her cheek and along the back of her neck. Gasping and jolting up onto her feet, Sophia looks around with wide eyes, even as Oren immediately rises as well, his hand on the pommel of his sword as he looks around to.

  "What? What is it?"

  She blushes when she realizes what happened. Shaking her head, she sits back down.

  "My father. Or at least, the fading remnants of his presence here. I felt him for the briefest of moments. Even as fragments of his power, he tries to comfort me."

  A smile lifts Sophia's lips upwards… but it does not reach her eyes as she looks at Oren with unshed tears.

  "I think you are right, Oren. Sometimes justice does fail. And sometimes when that happens, its up to vengeance to take the reins."

  Looking vaguely nonplused, the Otherworlder shifts back and forth on his feet for a moment before sitting back down as well.

  "I suppose, yes."

  His response is quiet and uncertain, but Sophia doesn't pay it much attention. Her thoughts are already onto other things… bigger things. Survival is still her priority. She needs to make it to her refuge, to stay ahead of the God Hunters and find a place where she can finally recharge her divine power without fear of being hunted down and caught in the process.

  … But even once she's fully empowered again, Sophia is forced to acknowledge that she's not a fighter. She won't be slaughtering God Hunters by the dozens any time soon, and she's certainly not going to be able to storm the Heavens and face the God Killer if he's still up there. At least, not if she wanted to have any hope of survival, anyways.

  And yet, that doesn't really matter does it? Because for all that Sophia is not a fighter… she has one with her now. A consummate combatant with limitless potential and enough training and strength to both fight when he has to fight and evade his enemies when he does not have to.

  The God Killer took everything from her. There can be no justice when the Heavens stand emptied, coated in the blood of her father and the rest of her kin.

  But vengeance… vengeance was still possible. And what better way to end an Otherworlder… than with another Otherworlder?

  A/N: Oren: "I just need her not to get attached or find out I'm the God Killer."

  Sophia: "I just need to cozy up to him so he'll slay the God Killer for me!"

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