Dragon (S)Layers Ch. 21

"It won't be pleasant, Amah, not at first. But you will never become infirm, you'll never become too weak to stand against those who'd do evil. You will be the sword and the shield. Amah, your patron needs you."

"I- I failed-"

"Not yet you haven't, no Amaranth. Take my hand, your fight doesn't haven to end here."

Amaranth felt a surge of weakness and light in one fell swoop, threatening to erase everything she was with it's blinding power. Her body was becoming a distant thing, like a pair of gloves that no longer fit, sliding free from her hands as cinches came undone. She raised her hand from the dirt. Richard needed her.

Isira shot the woman that same dirty glance, picture perfect even on her impossibly beautiful features. She grabbed Yamma's hand and pulled it back just out of Amaranth's reach. "Gotta be careful about these things... You take this pact and you're going to pay for it."

"H- How?"

A smile pulled her lips. "That's a good girl. You're never going to age, you'll never have children." She held Yamma's wrist even as the girl tried to pull away. "Your goddess will give you power but She'll ask a lot more in return- she's a slave driver, imagine that- and then..." She paused for a moment, eying Amaranth with a saddened expression. "Then there's the death."

"She doesn't need to hear this-"

"You can't stop me. Now behave." The goddess let go of Yamma's wrist, planted a kiss on the short woman's throat, still eying Amaranth. "I'm going to let you in on a dirty little secret; you're going to trade your soul for what you're going to get in return. Your powers aren't fueled by your patron, but your soul... When your soul is exhausted, and I promise you, it will eventually, you're going to cease to be."

"Isira, please-"

"Tut, tut, she needs to know this kind of thing-" The ravishing beauty turned back to Ammy and, with a gentle, sad smile, she said, "You'll never age, but you're going to die one day, whether you use up your powers or you're killed. When that happens, dear Ammy... Oh, dear girl...

"There is no word for what happens to your soul, at least none we gods know. You cease to be. It's a price unlike any other... I urge you to think about this, your goddess is going to accept you either way, you don't need to take it!"

But Richard...

Isira's expression flattened, wary and uneasy for a moment. "There are a lot of people who could benefit from your being alive. It's true."

Could she read Ammy's fading mind? Including him? He's alive isn't he?

The goddess smiled sadly, casting a glance to Yamma.

Yamma offered her hand once more. "For Richard and Isis."

Isis?

It would have been her name...

Amaranth raised her hand, reaching for Yamma. Isis was a beautiful name...

And Dame Amaranth Yanoseven was no more.