[Bungleau]

Chapter 43: The Truth Shall Set You Free

After Stackman’s adventurers had come to Missy Hissy’s rescue, saving her from Kerah’s sword and administering holy water to release her from Cet’s spell, Missy looked up at Kerah with tears in her eyes. “What’s going on?” she asked plaintively.

“My child,” began Kerah.

“Don’t call me that!” snapped Missy. “I don’t know whose child I am.”

“But you are my child,” Kerah continued, “though you may not realize it. You were not of my womb, but I was there when you were born, and took you away to become who you are. “

Missy shook her head in disbelief. “But my father...” She looked up. “What happened? Who am I, and who are you?”

Kerah responded. “I am Kerah, goddess of this world. I have been known by many names as it suited me, including the father or mother to all of my children. You are Missy Hissy, child of another flesh but a child of my raising. You knew me as your father. As I have done many times before, I sensed a presence within you at your conception and followed it through to your birth. When you were born, I knew that you had something extra inside you that made you different, stronger than most other offspring. Moments after your birth, I took you away to raise you to become that something special.”

“You took me from my parents?” asked Missy, her mind flying furiously with all this new information. “Why?”

“I have searched for centuries for the perfect champion,” Kerah said, “one who could stand tall in battle with evil. I knew there had to be a spark, a fire inside that could drive such a champion, and I tried many times. A lizard, a pig, a tiger...they didn’t last. Too much reliance on brawn. The elephant was too slow and easily defeated, while the butterfly was too flighty and couldn’t focus.”

“Lizards? Pigs? What are you talking about?” asked Missy, confused.

“The champions who came before,” said Kerah. “Ignarok was a pig in more ways than one, and when she scented trouble, she chased it instead of avoiding it. Algamesh spent too much time with love, and finally died from it. D’Soto was from the monkey race, but he relied on others too much, and failed the contract.”

“What do you mean, the contract?”

Kerah smiled self-consciously. “The contract... what better way to be sure that your champion can fight the forces of evil than to call evil onto him? I did that with each of my children, to ensure that they would be true champions and not falter at the end.”

“You... you put out contracts to kill your own children?” A strange feeling was coming over Missy, something that her zenmaster training had not prepared her for. “I say it again... why?”

Kerah’s arms opened wide. “This... all this... is mine. I found it, I cultured it, and I grew it. All the animals are here because I raised them. The fish, the monkeys, the pigs, even the rats. This was my garden, where I could rest and relax.”

Her arms dropped down, and her stare hardened. “And then HE came... Cet, ruining my garden, poisoning my plants, turning my plants and animals against me. Anephas, the most loyal of my dogs, tried to do battle, but failed. Always thinking too much, and not acting. He fought to a draw, though, and that removed Cet and his evil from the world for a while. But I knew he would come back... that he would find a way. And ultimately, he did - offering a dream of power unto the lich, who could not see beyond the illusion. I needed someone stronger, someone to make sure he leaves. The laws prevent me from battling him myself, though he breaks those same laws.”

Kerah’s eyes misted over. “So I searched, with each litter, for a pup that I could raise to do battle with him. Several were promising, but only you have lasted.” She gazed at Missy. “Do you think you would be here now, if you were raised by a goat herder on the Rattkin plains? No, you would be nothing special, no more than a low-priced floozy or a common barmaid. You have spoken with gods and dragons, seen the dead rise, uncovered ancient treasures... I have given you so much more, the abilities and knowledge you have taken to so many heights. Is it any wonder Damosh respected you? Great as he is, he saw in you his equal, and when you left, wept that he had not found you three decades ago.”

Missy felt a strange tug in her heart, as if the tiny part of her heart that shriveled when she burned the lich’s heart were suddenly moving and growing. “So let me get this straight. You ripped me from my parents at birth, and manipulated me throughout my life in the hopes that I’d be able to take care of the guy who came to play in your sandbox and wouldn’t leave? And this isn’t the first time you’ve ripped a family apart to do this, not the first time you’ve slaughtered your own kin?”

Kerah smiled. “Well, I wouldn’t put it quite like that...”

Missy stood up tall, her voice icy. “I’m sure there’s even more to you than I now know, queen of lies. Well then... I guess I’ve got a job to go do.”

She turned her back on Kerah and left the room.