“Good day, General Rethais! For what reason are you gracing me with your presence today?”
Rethais stood in the doorway to Reniir’s home. Or rather, what was left of it. The walls were still standing, but not much else was. Furniture had been thrown around and smashed, window frames were buckled and bent and the stairs no longer existed. Most of the homes in this area were in the same sort of state, but the fact that Reniir was still living here made no sense.
“What… what happened?”
Reniir shrugged, not seeming too fussed. “Ah, it is not too bad. Not compared to the rest of the universe, which we no longer have!”
“Your… your house is… not a house…” Rethais stuttered.
“It is fine.”
“It is NOT fine…” Rethais rubbed his head, then sighed, deciding to remain outside. “We need to talk. About our futures and the future of the Rethavok.”
Reniir blinked, then stepped outside, leaning on the door frame. There was a door but it was not connected to anything, and was just resting against a nearby wall.
“And you have come to little old me? Hm… Is this why that voluptuous serpentine deity was hovering around the other day?”
Rethais nodded, then sighed, falling silent. He knew Reniir well. Reniir was a good vok. Kind and optimistic at all times, despite his demonic looks. But… Reniir wasn’t the right person. At least for the job that Rethais had in mind.
“She is… looking for someone to be an Ambassador for the Rethavok. The Gods are creating some sort of council consisting of all remaining races. I am going to… go back to being High General again. But I need someone who has all of our best interests at heart, someone who speaks for us all. And I think that this would be a good job to… offer to you.”
Reniir gave Rethais an odd look. “Surely there are plenty of other options? Your kids spring to mind.”
“Well, you are…” Rethais paused again. “Apparently you are family as well. At least, the Allbirther seems to believe so. Whether it is true or not, I do not know. What I do know however is that you are a good Rethan and I think this ambassador job will be good for you. Even more so since you are… living here on your own…”
The odd look didn’t go away. In fact, Reniir grew suspicious. “I feel like you are not… telling the truth somewhere.”
“Because I am not. The Allbirther wanted me to convince you to become High General. In my honest opinion, I do not think the job suits you. It is a stressful, horrible job that I would not want to put on anyone else. Yisini offered me the ambassador job, but I would rather go back to a job I know and understand, rather than have to train someone else up to take my place.”
Reniir hesitated, then smiled. “That is for the best. I do not want to be High General. At all.”
“No one does…” Rethais sighed, tugging uneasily at his stomach wrap. “We are all… scared of yet another godly intervention. The scars from Kenon’s takeover will not fade. But I am already scarred, a few more will not hurt me the way they would someone else.”
“That is very noble of you, General Rethais,” Reniir continued to smile. “And for that reason, I will accept your offer of ambassadorship. It is the least I can do to assist you.”
Rethais smiled a little, pleased by this good news. “Thank you, I appreciate your acceptance… But we need to get you cleaned up, before we do anything else…”