Chương 651: Day Six Hundred And Forty-Nine

Dear Diary, I know I've said this a bit over the past week, but life's been kinda grinding my nose into it. It always surprises me how people react to me, even though it really shouldn't. I guess even after all the shit that's gone down, somewhere in my head I'm still just Tabitha Diaz, smart ass brown girl. Yeah, I get that's not all I am, and I'm fully copacetic with seeing a buff Diana Prince lookin' chica. I've worked for that muscle, that build, that physical power.

Even if there's mystical bullshit maybe making my gains faster, and I've got even more boosting my strength from ripped power lifter to living in a world of cardboard, I still worked for it, my inner me thinks I've earned it. So I get that a normal somebody might be a tiny bit intimidated by me being kinda badass. I even get how I've got a reputation, both with Mortals and with the Divine set. As of yet nobody has argued with that 'most powerful single military force in Atlantis' designation.

Yeah, there are things that can hurt me, and some that I have to use more than the me everybody sees to overpower, but if somebody decides to get violent with my Alliance, my people, my friends, my family, my kids, my ladies, my Saffron, I can and will end them so hard they never even fucking started. I get that's the kind of reputation that can make some basically peaceful people who've lived fundamentally non-violent lives really, really nervous.

But some part of me still thinks that I'm on par with, y'know, John Wick, Jason Bourne, or any other action hero. Yeah, scary, but I'm frequently dealing with Actual Gods. Divine beings who can rewrite reality like fuckin' Neo in the Matrix.

Even the tiny voice in my head whispering 'so can you' like my very own anti-Jiminy Cricket doesn't fully let me grok that the folks like that are even more intimidated by me, because while most Mortals with a brain acknowledge that they can wind up bleeding out on the floor, that's not a normal thought for Deities. I think maybe it was Ria who really started my brain chewing on that. Her reaction at the funeral, her words about facing her own death.

My friends, maybe not all of them, but enough of them for it not to be just one scared Rabbit, are low key terrified of me. That's gonna take some getting used to, I think. If I can even really let it sink in well enough to remember it. So yesterday I asked Omar what he knew about Adrienne Crow.

Even as I asked the question, I realized that I wasn't likely to get any kind of meaningful answer, since I'd already asked Rabbit, and Rabbit had connections here, and Rabbit didn't know a whole lot about Adrienne's current whereabouts. He confirmed that, saying, "I am sorry to tell you, I know nothing of Adrienne Crow save... I believe she is an heir of the current Overlord of Rich Man's Port?" I nodded.

"Yeah, and she's the older sister of my foster daughter Ria, who'd really like her sister to attend her birthday party. So, y'know, I've been looking for her." He just leaned his elbow on the arm of his throne, bracing his chin on his fist.

"You'd really give up diplomatic advantage for your daughter's happiness?" I shrugged.

"I mean, her mom wants to know where she is too, so there's some internal political points. Although she's kinda family now, so maybe it's just co-parent points? Anyway, yeah, pretty much. I kinda suck at the whole diplomacy thing. That's why she's here." I jerked my thumb at Karen, who winced, chuckled, and waved. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. Omar just nodded.

"I will certainly have my people ask about regarding her. Do you have a picture of her?" I thought a second, then shrugged and shapeshifted.

"She looks kind of like this?" He shook his head, smiling.

"I was hoping perhaps for an image we could have our people look at, but..." He clapped his hands and called out, "artists!" A few women came out from rooms behind the thrones and set up an easel, and I stood there modeling my best memory of what Adrienne looked like. Okay, I totally cheated and asked Ria if I could see her picture of her sister, and subtly tweaked my shapeshift to match it.

While I sat there modeling, Karen started talking to Omar and Ami about trade deals, fortifications, border stuff, other boring stuff. Okay, look, I tuned out right around 'removal of tariffs'. Meanwhile over in M-Space, I sat there with Rabbit in my lap and Spider's arms around me, telling them both about our wedding and then, at Spider's gentle prodding, about our wedding night. Spider slowly worked his way around until he sat askew to me, with Rabbit, me and him in a snug little storytelling circle. Dude was...

kinda weird looking, not gonna lie. Big fat ass, kinda like one of those women who had butt enhancements. Long, skinny arms, and weird thing, though I definitely felt three sets while he was behind me, and I still kinda felt six points of contact around me. After I told the story about my wedding, he told the story of his own. Funny shit. Some time around then I realized that Spider was really giving me Johnson vibes.

It took a little bit for me to realize why, because he didn't have that weird emo goth thing going on. Eventually I figured it out; despite being objectively kinda freaky ugly, he had so much charisma that I felt drawn to him anyhow. Yeah, fat ass, freaky arms, funny shaped little head, but just positive and smiling and generally friendly. Then I told Rabbit and Spider the story of Grandma's death, her funeral, and her wake. Something kind of broke in me as both of them cried, openly, at my grief.

I wept, Rabbit and Spider holding me while I did, until we all kinda settled in to sleep. Saffron nudged me awake as the sun went down.

"You're needed at the Calverton Temple, love." I looked at my two new buddies.

"You two wanna come with?"

"You'd have us in your Temple?"

"Hey, the more the merrier. Also, I could use somebody with me for moral support, and I think Saffron and Karen are both gonna be busy with Omar and Ami."

"I am married, I shouldn't be dallying with strange women." I shrugged.

"It's a dally optional Revel. You see somebody cute and you want to dally, so long as they're down, it's cool. If you just wanna watch, that's cool too."

"Would you like us there?" asked Rabbit.

"Yeah, kinda." So my old friend Rabbit and my new friend Spider sat in the audience as I christened the altar at my Calverton Temple. They sat next to Marylin Calvert, the sister of my first Worshipper in Calverton, her sister Orla Calvert.

"Me? Really? You picked me to replace Ares?" She smiled at me, nodded.

"Of course. You're a warrior." I shrugged.

"Not really a War Goddess, though." She smiled as she settled on my lap.

"Close enough," she whispered as she leaned into me. She kissed me, and I saw her heart's secret desire. I blushed a little bit at that and said, "you know about those?" She nodded.

"Uh..." I kinda nodded at Marylin, a question in my eyes.

"She is ruler of Calverton, and this is a holy rite." Orla is a beefy woman, and apparently boosts her Endurance with Mana. Tonight's Revel only had one Worshipper, who slipped into Ecstatic unconsciousness after a night wreathed in my tentacles in all their dark glory. Not sure how I felt about Spider encouraging Rabbit and Marylin to cheer her on, though.