Chapter Seventeen

The next morning, I woke with the certainty that I was onto something with the beaver attacks. The trickster had sent us after a beaver god, and there couldn't be a lot of them. There were barely any myths about them, and those there were rarely had names for the beavers. Wishpoosh was the exception. Native America myths could get very detailed, just like any other religious belief, and there were many characters in them. But most featured gods that were called spirits, and they had the names of the animals they embodied. So, the Beaver God was simply, Beaver.

Unless it was Wishpoosh.

It seemed too obvious that one of the few (I don't know enough about Native American myths to say for certain there's only one) beaver gods with a name was the one the trickster was sending us after. But sometimes games needed to be obvious and Wishpoosh did have cause to be angry. He'd been represented poorly.

“Is that enough?” I muttered to myself as I got dressed. “That was a lot to go through just because he doesn't like his myth. And why now? No, that doesn't make sense. If it is Wishpoosh, he must have another reason than misrepresentation.”

Which brought me back to the attacks.

“Vervain?” Odin poked his head into the dressing room. “Are you ready? ”

“Yeah.” I had on my fighting gear, just in case.

Fighting gear used to be leather garments and blades, including a sword and some enchanted gloves that sprung claw-like knives over my fingers when flung downward. But I had my own claws now, so I lent my Wolverine gloves to Torrent and hung up my sword. Leather would only get destroyed if I had to shift. So, as much as I hated it, I was wearing sweatpants and a T-shirt. It wasn't even a funny T-shirt. I didn't want to ruin my funny shirts. So, it was just a plain black T. As I may have mentioned, I hated it. It made me itch, and it had no personality.

I went downstairs with Odin and met the others at the tracing chamber. Quetzalcoatl was with us, his fiery bright hair braided back. He had been out as late as the rest of us the night before, helping as we had—under Torrent's guidance. He nodded at me, and I nodded at him. It's what you do when you prepare for war. Granted, it was just a war meeting, but it was on Earth, and that increased the possibility of an attack.

We didn't bother with pleasantries, just went in the chamber and headed over to Moonshine—the club Trevor and I owned in Hawaii. Hawaii, being outside the continental U.S., hadn't been hit by the storms. That had amazed the locals and baffled the weather people. Hawaii got hit by storms all the time. That this one had bypassed them was astonishing.

But there aren't any beavers in Hawaii.

There were, however, beavers outside of the United States. I mean, I was pretty sure there were. So why wasn't anywhere else hit?

As soon as we came out of the backroom via the “Family Room” door on the VIP floor of Moonshine, I went straight to Torrent, who was sitting with his girlfriend on a couch disguised as a tiny grassy hill.

“Where do beavers live?” I demanded of the Internet God as if he were the avatar of the Internet. Which he kinda was. Forget Alexa, Torrent rules.

“Hi, V!” Torrent said. “Uh, they live in North America, Asia, and Europe.”

I looked around at the gathering of gods. Everyone was there, including Hermes and company. I asked the group at large, “Then why was only the United States attacked?”

They exchanged looks.

“Oh! Me, me, me!” Torrent raised his hand.

I chuckled and waved him on.

“It's because the Beaver God is from a Native American pantheon,” Torrent said. “It must be. He's tied to this region of the world. He must think of it as his territory.”

“Territory,” I murmured. “Yes! That's what they're doing!”

“Vervain, could you not do that thing that annoys me to no end?” Horus drawled.

“Which thing, Horus?” I asked sweetly. “There are so many.”

Horus snorted a laugh. “The one where you draw out your conclusion because you think we know what you're thinking.”

“Ah. That one.” I winked at him. “I guess I give your intellect too much credit.”

“Could you both not draw this out and annoy me ?” Hermes demanded.

“Sorry,” I said. “All right, so I noticed that the beavers weren't attacking regular people yesterday. They attacked businesses. Specific businesses. I think they were defending their territories. Obviously, they were inspired to violence by the Beaver God, but maybe he was the one who was truly upset. ”

“Upset about what?” Hermes asked.

“Humans encroaching on beaver territories in his territory.” I waved at Torrent. “Torr, is there any information available on companies that were attacked by beavers yesterday?”

“Does anyone else hear the ridiculousness of this conversation?” Morpheus asked.

“If only it were ridiculous,” Que said.

Morph grimaced. “Yeah, you're right. Sorry.”

“I assume you want to know what the companies do, not their names,” Torrent said. “There were many dams attacked, which I thought was a strategic move to add to the flooding, but now I see that it could be more than that. Because the other companies include lumber yards, large farms, and frackers.”

“You don't have to use foul words,” Finn teased.

Torr, of course, didn't get the joke. “No, I mean fracking companies. There used to be a lot of debate over fracking. People believed it led to pollution, in addition to many other bad things.”

“Fracking is not allowed anymore because those people were right,” Azrael said with a scowl. “Are you saying that people have been illegally fracking?”

“Does no one else hear the ridiculousness?” Morph asked. “Truly?”

“I do!” Viper said brightly.

Odin shushed them. He did it without removing his stare from Az. Because Az was on the verge of going Faerie God. And if he shifted into that body when he was angry, he wouldn't have enough control over it or the Wild Magic. Not good .

“Babe!” I rushed over to Az and took his face in my hands. “Breathe. Maybe this is why the trickster is leading us to the Beaver God. Not to stop him. Not exactly. But to bring to light what has upset him.”

Even as I spoke, my eyes widened. Was that it? Was the trickster pulling another game of This Is For Your Own Good ? It made sense.

“Oh, wow,” I whispered. “That's it! That's gotta be it!”

Azrael sank back onto his seat, and the golden antlers that had been sprouting from his head retracted. Or retreated. They sank back into his skull. The others—who knew how bad a raging Faerie God would be—let out the breath they'd been holding. But I was still rolling down my hill of epiphany.

And gaining momentum.

“Find the vengeful beaver and you will find me,” I quoted. “He didn't mean it literally. We're not going to find him. I don't think we'll ever find the trickster god. He's too willy. But we'll find what's important to him. The motivation for this game. And I think it'll be important to us as well. Az, this is for you. He's doing this for you.”

Someone started clapping.

I turned to see that in addition to Hermes and his kids, Ty, Trevor's younger brother who ran Moonshine for us, had attended the meeting. That was fine. He was always welcome. Family, you know? But he'd brought his new girlfriend with him—the one Arach and I had caught him having sex with on the very hill that Az was now sitting on.

“Ty!” I hissed, cutting off his girlfriend's applause. “What the hell? You don't bring guests to these meetings. This isn't AA!”

Ty flushed as every eye turned toward him and his girlfriend where they stood, tucked back near the few trees that stood on the VIP balcony. But then he lifted his chin and drew the woman forward. “This is Modjadji, everyone,” he said. “And she deserves to be a part of this. She's a rain goddess who helped us battle the storms until she fell over from exhaustion.”

I sighed and looked around. No one else seemed upset by the woman's attendance.

“I'm so sorry,” she said, brushing back her long, thin braids. Modjadji was as gorgeous as I remembered, her dark bronze skin catching the low lights and turning her into a statue—something too beautiful to be real. Big brown eyes with long lashes blinked guilelessly, but her body was so voluptuous that she couldn't pull off the innocent girl routine. Still, her concern seemed genuine. “I didn't know I wouldn't be welcome. I'll go.”

“Vervain!” Ty snarled.

“Fine. She can stay,” I said. “And thank you for your help yesterday, Modjadji. It's nice to finally be properly introduced.”

She chuckled. “Yes, our last meeting was a bit . . . unusual, and Ty rushed me off before I could offer you my name. Please, call me Modja.”

“All right, Modja.” I turned away from her, intending to get back to what I was saying, but she went on.

“I applauded because I think you're right, Vervain,” Modja said. “When I was battling the rain—something I've never had to do before—I felt the sorrow in it.”

“The sorrow in the rain?” Torrent asked, and not rudely. He was genuinely intrigued. As a god of the Internet—the only one—he was always curious about magic involving emotions.

“Yes.” Modja came closer, into the center of the group. “I'm sure you all know how magic holds pieces of us inside it. When you're touching another god's magic that's kin to yours, you can feel them.”

Azrael exchanged a look with Kirill and Odin, while many of the other gods nodded.

“The god who cast those storm spells is sad, terribly sad,” she went on. “It almost felt wrong to counter him, but pain is no excuse for hurting others.”

“Why is he sad?” I asked.

“I think you've already answered that,” she said. “He's the Beaver God and his little ones have been suffering.”

“But why now?” Odin asked.

“Because the Faerie God changed the world,” I said. “He wiped out most of the things that harmed the planet.”

“Yes!” Modja pointed at me. “Yes, exactly! The Faerie God made things better. He is a villain to many humans. They argue over him, their desires for wealth outweighing their morality. But the animals have no such hindrances. They wholly appreciated what was done to the planet. The Earth itself rejoices.”

Shivers ran over my skin. This goddess was one of those who was more in tune with nature, and I loved that. I responded to it. And she was supporting my husband too. How could I not be pleased? But it was her words that went the deepest; they resonated in me.

“But humans always find a way to fuck things up,” Modja went on. “Their greed drives them. Even the Faerie God can't keep them in line forever. The world is too large a place for one person to rule, even if that person is a god with Wild Magic. Because we are not truly gods. Not even him.” She looked around. “We know that. We are not omniscient. We cannot watch everyone all the time. So, the Faerie God has had to put his faith in human leaders. They are better than they once were, but only because the Faerie God has made them fear him. And fear does not keep people in line forever. Even if it did, rulers must rely on those beneath them to police their people. And even the best law officers cannot catch everyone.”

“You're saying that no matter what we do, there will always be criminals to deal with,” Az said.

“Yes. But, specific to this situation, humans are breaking the new laws and hurting creatures under this god's protection. I imagine it is even more infuriating for him because you gave him hope.”

“And now his hope has been shaken,” I said, looking at Az. “The Beaver God isn't the one we should be hunting.”

Az nodded. “This is a complicated situation. On the one hand, I don't want to set a precedent by doing exactly what this god wants. If I do, then other gods may attack humans to get my attention next. The Beaver God could have simply come to me, and I would have helped him. Instead, he hurt many people and threatened the ecosystem. I can't let that go unpunished.”

Modja's expression went glacial as she asked, “Who are you to enact punishment?”

I looked back and forth between Modja and Az, wondering if she knew he was the Faerie God. Most people, even gods, didn't.

Azrael narrowed his eyes at her. “I'm the god who rebuilt the world. I've taken responsibility for it. You just said that this god created the storms because of me. I have become the law here. I rule the rulers. Punishment is part of ruling.”

“Is it?” Modja cocked her head at him.

Okay, so she wasn't surprised by that bold and, frankly, arrogant statement. She must have already known who Az was.

“Yes.” Azrael stepped over to her. “If I make laws but don't enforce them, there is no point in having them at all.”

“Ah,” she said and nodded. “Crime and punishment. But who should be punished? The god trying to do right by his magic and charges? Or those who have hurt the innocents he's trying to protect?”

Everyone went silent as they waited for Azrael's response.

“That is the question that has plagued philosophers for centuries,” Azrael said. “Is a person who does something wrong for a good reason morally good? Should I excuse violence if it's done out of love? And if I do—which, of course, I'm inclined to—how do I justify that to the innocents who were hurt? Don't they deserve justice too?”

Modja blinked, her steady expression faltering.

“Yes, you understand now,” Az went on. “When you start making exceptions based on motivation, you lose neutrality and neutrality is necessary to rule. You cannot play favorites or let your heart sway you.”

“Cool judgment,” Modja said. “I see why it makes sense to you. It's easiest. You have rules and you stick to them. But did you not nearly destroy the world out of love? Did your wife not do the same out of pride and greed? You are not fit to judge coolly.” Her expression softened as she laid her hand on Azrael's chest. “You know what's right, Azrael. It's here. Listen to your soul, if not your heart.”

Azrael stumbled back, staring at the goddess with wide eyes.

“Az?” I grabbed his arm, noted how shaken he was, then glared at Modja. “What did you do to him?”

Modja held up her hands. “Nothing, I swear. I just spoke from my heart to his. ”

“She's right,” Azrael whispered. “I can't base my decision on laws alone. And yet, this god must be found and dealt with. If not, we will all look weak, not just me.”

“Deal with him then,” Modja said. “But deal justly and kindly. Treat him as you would your child.”

Azrael looked at me.

I shrugged. “I can't say that I wouldn't have done the same to protect the ones I love.”

“What the fuck is happening right now?” Hermes demanded. “That beaver knows who took my snakes. We need to find him. Period. I don't care what you do to him after we find him as long as we get a name out of him—the trickster's name.”

“He's right,” Odin said. “We're putting the cart before the horse. Leave off on the punishment talk. We need to find this god first. Then we can decide what to do with him.”

I frowned, glancing at Modja. Her impassioned words had been moving, but they'd also taken us off course. What did I know about her beyond her name and magic? Nothing.

As the group got back to the topic of finding the beaver, I went to Torrent and pulled him aside, taking him into the stairwell that led down to the over-day rooms and the tracing wall.

After I shut the door, I asked, “Can you look into Modjadji, please?”

“Already did, V.” Torrent grinned. “As soon as Ty introduced her, I investigated. She's a rain goddess, as she said. Mother to the Balobedu Tribe in South Africa. She sends a gentle rain to nourish the crops of her people but also floods and storms to their enemies.”

I nodded. “That tracks. It explains why she's so passionate about gods protecting their charges.”

“Yeah. And why she advised Az to treat that beaver god like his child. She's a mother goddess. It's in her nature.”

“A South African goddess,” I murmured. “And the trickster posed as a Nigerian god. The connection is noteworthy.”

“Yes, I agree. It's a little suspicious. But maybe that's what the trickster wants us to think.”

I grimaced. “You're right. The very fact that he chose to hide as a Nigerian god should exonerate all African deities. He's probably Norse.” I snorted. “Or Christian. Actually, that would make complete sense. We started with them and were led away. Maybe the trickster started with the Ark and kept Jerry's tablets because he's an Angel.”

“Or a Demon.”

“No. No way. Luke's people chose to follow him. I can't imagine any of them turning on him now.”

“But if they're crazy and they think they're actually helping, maybe they don't see it as a betrayal.”

“Dang it. I hadn't thought of that.”

“Or it could be the complete opposite,” Torrent said brightly. “The trickster could have taken the guise of someone close to him, knowing that you wouldn't expect that. Maybe it was his way of protecting his pantheon.”

“Ugh!” I tossed my hands into the air. “So, we're back to suspecting everyone.”

“Yes,” Torrent said. “Everyone who isn't one of us. And yes, that includes this rain goddess.”

“Damn it!”

“That being said, she used her magic to stop the rain. Credit must be given for that.”

“Unless she did it to throw us off her scent and get in good with Ty.”

Torrent sighed. “Intrigue. It's always been too complicated for me.”

“Because you're a good man, Torr.” I patted his arm. “Intrigue is always difficult for good people to unravel. You just can't think like a bad guy.”

Torrent went grim. “Only because I try very hard not to be bad, V. I was made by an evil god, remember? Iktomi will always be a part of me. He lives through me. His magic gives me life. And so, I will always be part bad.”

“Torrent, you've just described what it's like to be human,” I said gently.

He blinked. “What?”

“We've gone over this already. Obviously, this is an issue that's rooted deep in you. You need to work it out on your own. My words won't get you past it. But I'll say it again. I'll say it over and over, as many times as you need to hear it, Torr. You have a part of your creator inside you, but you are not him. He is not you. Like every child, you can either follow your parent's lead or make a different life for yourself. As you said, you try very hard not to be a bad guy. And it's that choice that makes you good. It's simple, Torrent. Be good and you are. I know that better than anyone.”

Torrent laughed. “Yeah, I guess you've said something similar to me before. But sometimes hearing something old in a new way helps it sink in. Thank you for your persistence, V.”

“You're my friend, Torr. I will never give up on you.” I hugged him. Then I sighed as I eased back. “So, what do we do about this rain goddess? ”

Torrent glanced at the door. “What's that saying about enemies?”

I grimaced. “Keep them closer than your friends.”