Headed by a Snake



Krysaos fully believed in Tycon's ability to turn a shite situation into something survivable. 

He believed in that man more than he believed in gods. 

"Well... I appreciate your high opinion of me," Tycon said, inclining his head.

Yes! That was it! Tycon was *definitely* holding out on him. 

"So? Tell me what'cha got LT!" 

"I... really don't know what you're expecting, Krysaos."

Krysaos threw his hands up in frustration, "F*ck, guy. Quit it with this suspenseful shite! I wanna live!" 

"An admirable goal," Tycon nodded-- "especially considering the circumstances."

Krysaos held out one hand, the other hand stroking his stubbled chin. 

"Let me guess-- the mcguffin you're hiding is in your spatial ring?"

"My spatial ring contains food, basic adventuring supplies, and ritual materials," Tycon explained-- in the most boring manner possible. "Oh, and I might have a few First and Second-Circle wands left over from my last campaign."

"Is there-- I dunno, a lance that one-hit-kills anything with lizard blood in there?" 

"No such miracle weapon exists," Tycon raised an eyebrow, "but if it did, I'd like to order a thousand."

"Then you gotta have... some... kinda... uber-powerful, forgotten artifact? --something scrounged up from the bottom of a dungeon? --something ANCIENT that works a DOZEN times better than anything we have now!"

"We have no such thing," Tycon sighed. "And that's not how technology works. Ancient Tyrion Divine Armors may be exceptional for their size and resilience-- but they're armed with modern weaponry and their insides are fitted with modern arcanotech. 

"Then... what *do* we have?" Krysaos asked. 

"We have the armies of several nations banded together under the figurative flag of the Wyrmslayer Alliance," Tycon answered succinctly.

"No artifacts, at all?" Krysaos smiled gingerly. 

"...We have that cursed stick I retrieved from Wroe's dead corpse. I gave it to Chantal."

Oh.

That disgusting, wrong-feeling thing.

Even thinking about it put tingles down his spine. 

Krysaos did not envy that woman. 

"Alright... but if you didn't bring any special weapons with you," he said... "You at least recruited some super-strong followers, right?" 

"You."

"I mean, besides me."

Tycon slowly tilted his head, "Then you're referring to... the rest of Sol Invictus? The main body has fallen in with our eastern forces. They should be arriving soon if they haven't already."

"No," Krysaos waved... "Not what I meant... I was talkin' about..."

His words got caught in his throat. 

Krysaos was about to say something obvious-- but it was so obvious that he wasn't sure it was safe to talk about. 

"Hesitation, Krysaos?" Tycon frowned.

"D'ahhh? Let me finish, guy," Krysaos replied, "You're... the Commander, Tycon. Where are *your* people? Your-- y'know *retinue*?"

ραΠdαsΝοvel.cοm He considered asking the guy if *he* was the one being hazed. 

"...You were expecting Iyuri, perhaps?" Tycon suggested.

The Sea Serpent girl that talked like a baby and was too stupid to have a human form? No, Krysaos did not want to see her. 

"N-no," he said quietly... "But I dunno... Tycon, didn't you have... a Hero or three?"

"...And where did you get that information?"

"Uh..." 

That was the reason Krysaos was hesitating. 

There was something weird about Tycon's eyes-- something magical. Whenever he got *really* upset, his eyes took on this unblinking intensity that Krysaos really, *really* did not like. 

As cliche as it sounded... it felt... predatory. 

It made him, a literal god, uncomfortable. 

"I heard it... somewhere," he said, averting his gaze. 

...Tycon loosed another deep sigh, "Very well. Keep your secrets. I've no reason to doubt you, old friend."

"Y-yeah," Krysaos muttered. "That's right."

"Never mind the heroes, Brother-Captain. The stories of the past may remain, unchanging. But in the coming suns, we shall be the masters of our own fates."

"Ahhh... hm..." 

Maybe he really was just overthinking everything.

Having god-senses was really screwing up his judgment. 

Krysaos let out a deep, relaxing sigh-- and he felt better, almost immediately.

"You're right, LT."

"I'm always right."

"Man-- f*ck all this prophecy shite!" Krysaos groaned, "At the end of the sun, I ain't never gonna run away from somethin' that don't exist."

"...I'd like you to restate that for clarification, if you would."

Krysaos shook his head... and though he still had mixed feelings, he put on the best smile he could manage. 

"You and me against the world, LT?" he said, holding out his hand. 

Tycon didn't hesitate. 

He clasped Krysaos' outstretched arm at the wrist.

"Us against the world, dear friend."

That was nice.

The whole thing-- it was nice. 

Then a series of splashes came out of the water, f*cking up the moment. 

"The f*ck is that?" Krysaos cursed aloud. 

Tycon didn't turn around-- not immediately. His face soured even worse than usual, though. 

"It's come out of the sea," he said, "Isn't that your purview?"

"F*ckin-- ugh. It's... man, shut up."

Krysaos didn't need to look to see what it was. He felt it. 

He realized, then, that it was kind of weird to... *feel* the presence of a bunch of religious folks. 

It was a group of sahuagins, web-footed sentients with scales and fins. 

There were eleven of them... and...

And... 

Bah.

And unfortunately, Krysaos recognized one of them. 

In fact, he was the one who gave her a human name.

And her name was--

"SEA GOD!!" the female sahuagin shouted, "Becky[1] has come for PILGRIMAGE!!!"

"That's a rather high-level word in the common tongue," Tycon mused. "Pilgrimage."

"(OH SEA GOD!!)" Becky screamed, "(Grant us your eternally wet blessings!)"

At that, Becky and her sahuagin companions got down on their knees and placed their foreheads on the sand. 

"I believe my understanding of Aquan is lacking," Tycon said. 

Krysaos had a very similar line of thinking. 

"It's, uh... it's probably not as lacking as you think," Krysaos said, shaking his head. 

The situation called for him as the Sea God to... do something. 

Still... he was new, so he wasn't 100% sure what that something was supposed to be. 

Krysaos took a step forward... and he waved his arm-- like, thrice as slow as a regular wave. 

It was... a godly wave. 

"Good job, everyone. I, as your benevolent Sea God... grant you... whatever it is you seek. Now uh... get outta here. Go on."

"WE COME FOR FOREVER MERCY!!" Becky insisted. 

She insisted so loud that her voice cracked. She was like the reverse of a siren. 

"Maybe they mean blessing?" Tycon suggested, "The translation is close enough."

"Do you guys mean... blessing?" Krysaos asked. 

"No no no no no...." the sahuagin said, raising her head. "Becky... speaking... is genius!"

That wasn't what he was asking, though? 

...Tycon shared a dubious look with Krysaos.

"Genius speaking!" Becky insisted, "Becky speaking is... very... very very powerful speaking!"

"Very well," Tycon nodded. 

"By my socks," Krysaos cursed under his breath.

He crossed his arms and lifted his chin, "Alright. And... are you guys asking for a general, all-purpose 'mercy'? Like a gift for showing up to the party?"

He turned to Tycon in an aside, "Kinda rude, don'tcha think? --to ask for a mercy without giving anything in return?"

"Sea God, I feel the need to remind you that the selfishness of the gods is why we're in this current predicament."

"...Fair."

Becky gave a full-on, kinda creepy grin. There were a whole lot of sharp, spiny teeth in that sahuagin mouth.

Krysaos wondered for a second what it'd be like with her in bed.

--but ONLY for a second. 

No more than a second. 

"We... bring... the HEROES OF LIGHT!!" Becky exclaimed. 

Krysaos tilted his head, "Did you?"

"You... did... what?" Tycon asked. 

He was grinding his teeth... and there was a furious vein bulging in his forehead-- both of which were super unsettling. 

The guy only reacted strongly when it came to two things: food and dragons. But it seemed like talking about the heroes was a new third? 

But the heroes? 

Krysaos turned back to Becky, "So... where are they?"

Becky turned around, gazing out at the waters. 

"(Where'd they go?)" she asked aloud, "(Weren't they just behind us?)"

Krysaos pursed his lips and nodded. 

It was dumb of him to be disappointed, knowing who Becky was. 

He sensed a few life forces in the water; that was probably them. 

Waving his hands (in his Sea Godly way,) he formed a huge, swirling whirlpool in the bay... and after a short moment, a trio of water spheres rose out of the sea. 

The people-balls sped towards the beach as if they were shot out of ship cannons. And upon hitting the sands, they opened like eggs, revealing three intact and uninjured humans. 

"LOOK!" Becky screamed, "Happy birthsun!!"

"Oh, for the love of--" 

Krysaos took a breath. If Tycon had no problems being stone-faced and professional all the time, he could do the same.

"Becky, it's not my birthsun."

No one was listening to him, though. The other sahuagins got swept along Becky's excitement and they were all shouting and hollering about their hopes and dreams. 

Birthsun wishes, probably? 

--"May we all live a long life!"

--"I want to fall in love!"

--"May our harvests be ever bountiful!"

Harvests? Did the sahuagin grow crops underwater? 

But anyroad... Krysaos immediately recognized the trio that washed up on the beach.

He'd read their details in military documents, their histories in bard songs, and their deeds in tavern tales. 

He was looking forward to meeting them. 

--the gods-damned heroes of the Realm. 

[1] Becky: Best Girl Becky was first introduced in Chapter 629.

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