A priest of the church, who notifies her of a great trial from Geod

In times of great distress, the people of this city sought refuge in the comfort of their largest church, a place of prayer, confession, and knowledge where needed, provided by the heads of Geod’s house. Keeping someone on hand to answer the questions of poor faithful was the responsibility of the church; Guyld knew that there must be someone here to help her and that they were duty-bound to do so, regardless of her state of dress.

Her hunch that she’d find someone waiting had been on the money; a red-robed priest with a bald head, skin the color of dark chocolate, and striking, white eyes, like those of a blind person, stepped out from behind the white curtain separating the worship area to the priest’s offices. If he really was blind, that might have been a blessing for Mrs. St. Vendigeld, but judging by the way his eyes widened upon seeing her, that didn’t seem to be the case. “Welcome, my child-“ the man began in a deep, but calming voice. Before he could get far, Guyld interjected with a voice shrill and panicked enough to offset it.

“Priest Cherubin, I’ve got no time for small-talk! You must recognize that I am Guyld St. Vendigeld the Fourth, of the noble House of St. Vendigeld! The whole town is chasing me! I need protection and guidance right now: someone is tormenting me! I a-awoke standing to find myself standing naked in the square, with my father and everyone else watching! This has to be some devilry, perpetrated by a demon! I need you to first clothe me, then explain this to me, then banish whatever demon is doing this using the full strength of the holy church!” the naked woman rattled off, modestly crossing one arm across her heavy bosom and the other between her legs. There was nothing she could do to hide the exposed girth of her belly, hips, and thighs, which all quivered as she stood shivering in the parish. The bush of green hair, matching her fantastic quaff up top, was a bit hard to hide with her hand unless she neglected the more sensitive area beneath. Her arm up top wasn't fully doing the job either, as her wide areolae occasionally peeked out from behind her forearm.

“The Fourth…? Wasn’t it the Third?” the man murmured, rubbing his jutting chin with one long-fingered hand, ring-bearing hand. Seeing the woman’s sense of urgency, he decided not to dwell on it. “Bless you, it will be my pleasure to assist. Let me simply consult Geod’s wisdom on how we are to proceed.”

“D-Do you really have to?! Clothes, that’s what I need first! Can I just tug down a curtain or something?!”

The priest held up one hand to indicate that she should be quiet, before lifting that hand and the other toward the ceiling of the church. His eyes began to shine with a brilliant white light, signaling that he had been bestowed a rare gift. They said that this priest’s odd eyes allowed him to see Geod’s will directly without confusion or the need for interpretation. Therefore, whatever answers he returned after making such a communion ought to be unassailable.

Ordinarily, having the concrete will of Geod stated plainly was a huge reassurance. This time, not so much. “Hmm… Geod says that you should remain unclothed. You must remain as naked as upon the day of your birth, for it is most pleasing to him that you should learn humility-“

“Humility?! Me?! Is this not a lesson intended for my uncharitable miser of a mother?!”

“Your mother… Mrs. St. Vendigeld the Second? Does she still live?”

“No, you moron! My mother is St. Vendigeld the Third!”

“… Geod says that he believes that whether you are the Third or the Fourth, both can afford to heed this lesson in some measure,” Cherubin smiled, then crossed both hands behind his back. “Follow me, behind the curtain. I’ll show you what divine plan awaits you.”

The offer was a little shady, but Guyld would happily take it rather than to have everyone ascend the staircase outside the church for an eyeful of her newly chubby buns. She’d locked the door behind her, but it wouldn’t take long before either the people circled around to an alternative entrance or else one of the priests that normally followed her mother (her) around unlocked it and let in the masses. “A plan? Are you saying that Geod is the one doing all of this to me? Like some sort of trial?” Guyld questioned, lowering her eyebrows as she scampered after the handsome, mysterious, and increasingly annoying priest. “Has not my work for the sake of the church been adequate to prove my loyalty to our faith?”

“It is not our place to question Geod’s reasoning. Even I may only tell you his decisions, not what reasoning leads to his choosing them,” Cherubin informed the confused mother. “Yes, he insists on this trial, and by his word, this will not be the first you’ve undertaken today. Follow me, upward, through the belltower’s stairwell.”

“Th-The belltower?! Are you planning on hiding me? I’ll be trapped without means of escape up there…” Guyld gulped nervously. She knew that doubting Geod’s wisdom was not a good first step towards completing this bizarre trial she’d been tasked with, but sometimes his wisdom—especially when handed down through Cherubin—seemed pretty darn dubious. “I simply can’t be seen by the town this way, Sir! This trial has made me such a pathetic sight…”

“Perhaps part of this trial is accepting the way that you look right now?” Cherubin questioned, raising an eyebrow over his supernaturally white eye.

“I couldn’t possibly! For that matter, my own mother would scold me or disown me if she saw me in such a state… She’s always been very strict about our diet regiment.”

“Has she? Hm hm!” the man chuckled slightly to himself, grabbing hold of the handrail as they began the slow climb upward toward the bells.

The only solace Guyld could take was that the man didn’t seem to be interested in taking in the details of her nude form… but then, it was hard to tell with his eyes being the way they were.

As the warrior monks in the elder Guyld’s bodyguard ranks questioned the crowd for who might have a key into the chapel, Lenore sensed the urgency of the situation and found the right time to split with the others. Going it alone would be the best idea; for Guyld IV, seeing Guyld III or her husband would just be confusing right now, and Lenore already had plenty of experience with the elder Guyld embarrassing herself. Who better to see you quivering, naked, believing yourself to be your over 20 years younger daughter than your own therapist, after all?

Still wearing Guyld St. Vendigeld the Third’s dress, Lenore approached the back door into the priest’s rooms, hoping she’d find it unlocked. Annoyingly, she didn’t… however, she did find a lead all the same. A man’s voice and her patient’s were clearly coming from inside the belltower, winding higher up in small steps—Guyld probably wasn’t having an easy time with that steep staircase, Lenore imagined.

With any luck, Guyld had found some help… but the woman wasn’t very lucky at all today, or at least it seemed that way. With that in mind, Lenore was **** to consider the worst: what if this man had found Guyld hypnotized and decided to take advantage of her in this nude and addled state? Lenore had a responsibility to stop that from happening!

Feeling invigorated with a sense of duty and faith, the therapist uncertainly clutched the stone’s on the outside of the belltower, then tested them, first with her fingers, then her shoes, as she began to climb up with both her hands and feet. It wasn’t going to be easy… but if she could just climb high enough to enter through a window or something, she could rejoin Guyld and try to help her.

Ironically, by doing this, she was placing herself in significantly more danger than her imperiled patient, but her guilt at being the source of all of this commotion, mixed with her admiration of the woman in danger, was too potent to allow any hesitation!