The servant bowed and departed quickly, clearly relieved to have completed his task without incident.

Finn gathered Thalia and the Mnemosyne with minimal conversation. All three of them had been waiting for this summon, and none needed time to prepare. They'd been ready for days.

The carriage that waited outside the manor was deliberately unassuming, well-made but not ostentatious, the kind a prosperous merchant might use for everyday business. Nothing that would draw particular attention.

They climbed in, and the driver set off immediately toward the town center.

The moment they rolled past the estate's outer gates, Finn raised an eyebrow.

Seven days. Just seven days since he'd last seen this town, and the transformation was staggering.

He leaned toward the carriage window, studying the changes with a raised brow.

A statue of the Goddess Luna had been built in the town square, serene and beautiful, one hand extended as if offering blessing. The statue stood in clear partnership with the Shadow God's existing monuments rather than replacing them. The message the statues symbolized was clear for all to see: two deities working in concert, not one supplanting the other.

But it wasn't just the statue. Everywhere Finn looked, he saw evidence of the merger. Banners bearing Luna's crescent moon hung alongside the Shadow God's eclipsed sun. Shops that had displayed only shadow iconography now showed both. Even the people's clothing reflected the shift, some now wore garments that incorporated both silver and deep black, blending the two faiths into a unified aesthetic.

The carriage slowed as it navigated through a congested marketplace, giving Finn time to listen to the conversations spilling through the window.

"—the Shadow God Himself, descended fully into our world—"

"—during the Incarnation ceremony, they say there was a divine spectacle unlike anything witnessed in generations—"

"—my cousin was there, said the entire temple shook with His presence—"

"—we're blessed, truly blessed to live in times when the God chooses to walk among us—"

An older woman's voice cut through, pitched loud with the confidence of someone who enjoyed being heard: "—And His partnership with the Goddess Luna! A love story for the ages!"

"I heard," a younger voice responded eagerly, "that He descended specifically because Gods cannot love the same way mortals do. That He wanted to experience true emotion before claiming Her hand—"

"No, no, you've got it wrong," a third voice interjected. "She descended first, drawn to our God's divine magnificence, and He followed Her down out of devotion—"

The stories spiraled from there, each version more embellished than the last. Divine courtship. Moonlit meetings. Passionate declarations. The truth, whatever it actually was, had been buried beneath layers of soap-opera-like romantic narratives until it became indistinguishable from pure fabrication.

But underneath the fantastical elements, a core message remained consistent: the Shadow God's presence had been waning, His faithful had been worried, and now He had descended personally to guide them through troubled times. And in doing so, He'd formed a divine partnership with Luna that would protect and strengthen them all.

It was masterful propaganda. Taking a crisis — the Shadow God's diminishing power — and spinning it into a tale of divine sacrifice and romantic devotion. The believers weren't questioning why their God had weakened. They were celebrating His choice to become mortal for their sake.

Finn closed the window after a while. He'd heard enough embellished tales. Soon he'd get the real story from the source itself.

The carriage rolled on, climbing the slight incline toward the temple district.

When they finally arrived, Finn studied the Shadow Temple with fresh eyes.

Or rather, what used to be purely the Shadow Temple.

The building itself remained largely unchanged — dark stone construction, sharp angular architecture designed to evoke shadows cast by harsh light. But the entrance had been dramatically altered.

Two statues had been added, now flanking the main doors. On the left, the Shadow God rendered in black stone, His features carved purposefully in the likeness of the Holy Son. Young, handsome, commanding. On the right, Luna in white stone, her expression serene and lovely. And between them, their hands were clasped in partnership, fingers intertwined.

So that's what he looks like, Finn thought, studying the Shadow God's statue. It was the Holy Son's face, after all, though it was now elevated to divine representation.

They dismounted from the carriage and entered the temple, where they were led straight to the back and began descending.

Finn's mood shifted as they went down the first flight of stairs, then the second, then the third. His senses sharpened. His muscles tensed despite conscious effort to remain relaxed.

The descent triggered visceral memories of the hole at the borders. The underground facility where they'd fought Nocturne and Thalassa's incarnations. Where Casmir, Deacon, Himothy, and Keeva had betrayed them.

It wasn't only him. He also noticed Thalia tense instinctively. They were both still affected by that experience. Only the Mnemosyne seemed entirely unaffected. She remained unmoved, as if disconnected from reality and seeing things only she could.

Why do these temples always build downward? Finn wondered, trying to distract himself from his slight agitation. Why not towers reaching toward the sky?

Perhaps it was symbolic. Shadows requiring depth. Secrets buried rather than displayed. Or maybe it was just a thing with the local architectural tradition that he didn't have enough context to understand.

Their guide — a priest in Shadow Temple robes who'd met them at the entrance — said nothing as they descended level after level, silently leading them deeper until finally, after what felt like descending at least ten stories, they reached a vast corridor.

The space opened up dramatically after the confined stairwells. The corridor stretched at least a hundred feet, wide enough for a dozen people to walk abreast comfortably, with doors hidden in shadows by the sides.

But their main goal was the far end, where massive double doors waited. They looked heavy, ornate, covered in relief carvings that depicted scenes Finn didn't have time to study properly.

The priest walked directly to those doors and pushed.

They swung inward with surprising ease despite their apparent weight, and noise rushed out to meet them.

Conversation. Laughter. The clink of glasses and plates. The sound of celebration in full swing.

The priest stepped aside, gesturing for them to enter.

Finn, Thalia, and the Mnemosyne walked through together, and the doors closed behind them with a solid thud that announced their presence to everyone in the hall.

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