Chapter 3: Divine Guidance

A hyena. As I slowly processed what I was looking at I realised that was what the mysterious woman reminded me of.

It took me a moment for two reasons: firstly, she didn’t look like the big square jawed spotted hyenas, she was more like one of the smaller types you don’t think about as much; but, secondly, because she wasn’t fully anthro hyena looking. She was sort of more like if you took an anime cat girl, made her a hyena girl instead, but then gave her a little bit of fur. 

And then I realised I was staring.

“S-sorry. I guess I’m still a little out of it,” I replied, attempting to smile until my attempt at an apologetic shrug reminded me of just how much pain I was in.

“I’m not surprised. I’m amazed you woke up after only a few hours, considering the shape you’re in,” she said, her voice soft. She had a bit of an accent, musical in a way I couldn’t quite match to any I knew.

Nodding I slowly became aware of a strange sensation on my back. But not on my—the wings. Right. I… Oh, I was in a sort of hammock. A wide and stable one. But apparently with holes for my wings to fit though and lie limp, resting on the ground.

‘My wings’ being a phrase that still felt so weird to hear.

“Thank you for taking me in,” I said as I realised how awkward getting me here must have been.

“Oh, don’t worry about that. It’s my duty as a druid after all, helping any who need it… who haven’t damaged nature,” she explained while wandering over to some nearby shelves. 

I watched as she opened a jar and took a sniff, her small nose wiggling as she sniffed.

“I… I will say that I’m not sure how to ask this, but… it would help me to choose the best ointments, so… may I ask what sort of being you are?” she asked. “I just… I’ve not seen someone like you before, so…”

“Ah… well… I thought I was human,” I replied, letting out a sigh and giving up on the effort to keep my head pointed at her. It was hurting my neck too much. “Then I… I sort of died? And… now I don’t really know. Some guy named Loj said I was a god, but I don’t think a god would get the snot beaten out of them the way I did…”

I spent a few moments staring at the ceiling, still trying to process how insane it all was. Only to realise the druid girl hadn’t said anything. I decided to lift my head again, to say that I knew it sounded crazy… but, then the way she was staring at me threw me.

“Loj? The Lord of the Seas? Y-you… you met him?” she asked, eyes wide.

“Uh… yeah. And some woman named… uh… it’s started with a G… Gozer? No that’s Gho—uh…”

“Gauza?” she offered.

“Uhh.. yeah. Yeah,” I said, my brain still a touch foggy from all the pain. Or maybe from the pain-killing herbs…

“A goddess,” she muttered. “I am treating a goddess…”

“I don’t think so,” I said, slumping back into the hammock. “Do you really think a goddess would end up in this bad of shape?”

“I… perhaps. W-who did this to you?” she asked, hurrying over to my side. “I hadn’t detected anyone powerful enough in this part of the jungle.”

“I wasn’t in the jungle,” I replied. “I was in some battle… picked a fight with the leader of the forces of… whatever they are. She was this nasty elf lady. Had a scorpion tail.”

The hyena-girl’s eyes went wide. “You… you fought the Dark Queen Nemza herself?”

“Not sure you could call it a fight. She wiped the floor with me,” I muttered, shivering as my mind remembered the pain shooting through me.

“To survive one on one combat with the Dark Queen… the Mistress of Surgess herself…” she whispered, mostly to herself.

“It was Loj’s mistake to send you into battle without warming up,” a male voice said, one rich the way Loj and Gauza’s had been.

I turned as best as I could while the druid girl spun around to see the new arrival. She then dropped to a prostrating bow upon spotting the new arrival. He was a lanky man, with grey skin that seemed carved out of stone. He also seemed mildly translucent.

“He’s been a mess since his temple was sacked,” the man muttered.

“L-lord Parazen! M-my humble home is unworthy,” the woman said.

“Oh, I am quite aware of that, but it’s where Vazehr has washed up,” the man (presumably a god?) replied.

“Uh, hi?” I offered.

He shook his head. “You really don’t remember anything, do you Vezehr?”

“Sorry. I guess the… three thousand years was enough time to forget?” I replied.

“I am Parazen, the god of knowledge and technology,” he said, and I realised there was a tiredness in his eyes. “Also known as the one Loj should have consulted before sending you into battle. I’ll admit you forgot more than I would have thought, but I had still realised you need training to be your harbinger of vengeance again.”

“If you even have the right person,” I muttered.

“We definitely do. Your current form is proof of that. As is your survival against Nemza. That power comes from you, not us. We have none to spare,” he replied, his voice showing exhaustion as well. “You need a teacher, however… there is a swordsman some distance north east of here. Seek him out and he will remind you how to wield a blade.”

I nodded. “If you really think he can help me, then… wait, uh, how far north east and does he have a name?”

“Chem,” Parazen replied. “Now, I must go. Loj has ordered I construct a new siege engine to attempt to break through the Palace of Discordance.”

With that he vanished. 

A few moments later the hyena woman rose to her feet, looking thoroughly shocked by what had just happened. She was whispering things to herself in a voice quiet enough I couldn’t quite make it out. I was about to ask her what she knew about this ‘Chem’ when she ran off across the small mud home.

She gathered up a number of… things. Plants and carved bones and more. She then dumped these things on the ground where Parazen had been.

As she muttered a rapid prayer I couldn’t tell if she was paying respects or engaged in a warding effort. Either seemed about as plausible with her manic look.

I decided to let her finish before trying to talk.

“So… uh… do druids and gods get along?” I asked.

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She blinked, seeming to only then remember… either my presence or my supposed divinity.

“Heh… heheheheh…. uh… heheh,” she began, her nervous laugh cute, if a bit high pitched. “I… it’s spotty. Let’s say that. But… at the moment we are on the same side. The Forces of Discord are a common enemy.”

I nodded. “Well, if it’s any consolation… the gods I’ve met generally kind of seem to be a bit pompous, so I understand not caring for them much.”

“But you’re…”

“Apparently ‘Vazehr, Goddess of Justice’. Who got exiled thousands of years ago because the other gods didn’t like me… which kind of says something about them,” I said, kind of muttering the last part. “But, up until yesterday, I was just a human girl named Emily.”

The druid woman blinked, clearly confused. So I gave a brief rundown of what had happened as she began to re-dress my wounds. At least as best as I understood it myself. 

Seeing her shock at the story at least helped me feel like my own overwhelmed state was justified. 

Unfortunately feeling more grounded about it all let my mind wander to the implications of it all. Specifically, about how I’d left Lena and Kris back home… and how they thought I was dead.

How I was effectively dead. At least until I managed to train enough to save this world. A task that felt nearly impossible. 

Overwhelmed, I wound up crying. Apparently this new body ran on something closer to estrogen than the one I’d been stuck with before, if the ease at which the tears came was any indication.

“D-do not cry, Lady Vazehr,” the druid girl said. “I am certain you will be home before you know it.”

“… Emily,” I half whispered. “I’d like to be called Emily. It’s the name I picked out myself, after all.”

She nodded. “La—Emily.”

Apparently she’d read my expression, which was good.

“Thank you… I… I didn’t get your name,” I said, blushing a little as I realised how much I’d talked about myself.

“M-my… I’m… I’m no one important next to you, L—Emily,” she replied, seeming to shrink into herself.

I gave her a flat look. “You’re the one who found me lying half dead in the jungle and brought me in out of the kindness of your heart… though, even if you weren’t, you would still matter.”

She gave a stiff nod, seeming quite overwhelmed. “A—Aara. Aara of the Zoi Jungle.”

“Aara… that’s a lovely name,” I said, smiling.

---

As much as Parazen probably wanted me to leave immediately, I was in no shape to do so. I was still in enough pain that it was a strain just to sit up to eat when Aara brought me a light lunch. 

I ended up sleeping on and off for the next few hours, waking up when Aara needed to change my bandaging or had some food for me, but otherwise being largely out of it. 

By the next morning, though, the pain was starting to subside. I pulled myself out of the hammock and onto my feet, feeling restless. Aara was asleep still, her bed tucked away in a corner on the other end of the earthen home.

I was certainly stiff as I walked, but it felt more like the aftermath of one of my rare trips to the gym rather than the overwhelming pain of yesterday. 

As such, I decided to head out for some fresh air. 

Though, even with the sun barely rising, it was fairly warm and humid here. It made sense, it was the jungle, but I was still slightly disappointed. 

I did notice a small well worn path cutting through the jungle and heading off towards some water, down the hill we were on. Or in. Looking back at the home it was built half into the earth itself, the addition made out of some sort of thick mud or clay. I couldn't say what type of earthen construction it was, not really being an architecture specialist. But I did think it looked cute.

I headed down the path, hoping the pool might help that area be a little cooler. Reaching the water’s edge, I saw that there was a small waterfall a short walk up. A waterfall surrounded by exposed rocks. Which had many small pools, fed by the mist. 

A thought struck me and I headed over, hunting for a large and flat enough puddle. One where I could see my reflection.

Which I found.

And I couldn’t help but stare. The face I saw… it… that was me. I had known the face I’d had before was mine. Obviously. But I had never felt it.

I had been told that hormones were going to help. That they’d let me see me in the mirror, but… well, I’d barely started.

Even then… I wasn’t sure they’d ever manage this. 

Realising I now had horns and pointed ears did nothing to distract from how right the reflection felt. If anything, I swore they added to it. The golden skin. The shining eyes. All of it slotted into place in an absence I hadn’t realised had been there.

Maybe I really was Vazehr. 

Though I refused to let it mean I wasn’t also Emily. I was just, maybe, both.

“Th-there you are!” Aara’s soft voice called out from behind me, shaking me from my thoughts. “Oh. When I woke up and you were gone… you really shouldn’t be walking this much already.”

I turned to her, wearing a smile on my face from what I had seen. “I feel much better today.”

“I—well, I suppose you are a goddess… but I still think you need a little more rest,” she said.

I didn’t protest as she led me back to her small home. 

Sitting on the hammock, I watched as she removed my bandages. We both marvelled at how wounds that should have left scars had healed to little more than bruises.

I also blushed as I truly processed my current body. Even with the soreness and bruising it… it felt so much more comfortable than my old one had. It was the type I had only dreamt of before. An athletic build, with genuine hips and a proper chest. 

I quietly hoped I could talk some of the gods into letting me keep it when I went back home.

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