Sheeva visits the Edenian temple

The elder gods had the fate of the realms to deal with and Sheeva was not prepared to run the risk of being conned by a sorceress. Divine intervention was necessary regardless, therefore Sheeva departed from Outworld to find the fertility goddess. Queen Sheeva travelled to the Southlands of Edenia in search the ancient Edenian temple.

The temple fell into ruin after a terrible storm and earthquake caused most of the inhabitants to flee for their lives. The terrain surrounding it remains treacherous. Some venture to the sight for archaeological purposes, others seek the fertility goddess. But few stick around for long. The soil is difficult to till, water is scarce and rocky mountains have cut off the area from easy access. The journey into the crater that houses the Edenian temple is a lonely one.

While the wildlife is beautiful, the forces of nature are unforgiving. Heat fatigue catches up to Sheeva unsuspectingly, causing her camp by the riverside early on her first of exploration. The journey towards the center of the ruins is easier than penetrating the crater. Stone paths remain in some areas guiding her towards what once was a city square, now reclaimed by vine and jungle plants.

Statues surrounding the vicinity are covered in moss. Sheeva wonders about aimless admiring the ruins until her eye catches a stone slab erected like an obelisk. This structure appears newer than the rest and preserved well with smooth edges. Sheeva scans the area around the obelisk, spotting a second black stone slab just like it not too far away. They appear to be in row leading somewhere.

Sheeva follows the row of stones until they end at a gold statue holding a plate. The plate has an image of fire carved into its face thus Sheeva prepares a fire spell and ignites it. An enchantment sealing an entrance into the ruins glows behind the statue while the stone door rotates, revealing a flight of stairs leading down towards an underground temple. Two torches inside the passage ignite themselves.

Sheeva walks down into the temple. The atmosphere is unsettling as the only sound she hears is the roar of the torch fires lighting themselves as she presses further and her own footsteps. The staircase leads into an open room where a black stone statue of the fertility goddess sits, legs agape. She appears to be wearing only a veil for her face and some underwear.

Four torches surrounding her throne ignite as hieroglyphs all around the room glow a golden yellow. The most prominent hieroglyph on the wall shows a man and woman kneeling before the throne.

A triangle lights up on the ground in front of the throne. Sheeva takes a deep breath and kneels inside the triangle, patiently awaiting for the fertility goddess to emerge. The stone statue cracks loudly. Fissures bursts forth until the black stone disintegrates, awakening the fertility goddess underneath. Both her underwear and her veil are bright pink. Her yellow eyes shine like gold. Their golden brown skin is stunningly smooth. The fertility goddess stretches her arms and glares at Sheeva desirously.

With a high pitch voice, the goddess says "I am Futaba, goddess of fertility, love and fire. How may I be of assistance Shokan?"

Sheeva is at loss for words. Determination has gotten her this far but she hardly prepared what she would say to the fertility goddess.

"I am... Queen Sheeva and... I um... My people could face extinction soon unless we are able to produce more children!", Sheeva fumbles.

"How so?", Futaba asks as she crosses her legs.

"The males are dying faster than we can breed them. Shokan females outnumber the males 5 to 1... I feel that I have failed them. All I am able to teach is fighting and war. It is all I have ever known before ascending to the throne,” Sheeva confesses.

"You travelled from Outworld to seek my blessing?", Futaba asks.

"Yes your holiness,” Queen Sheeva replies

"I admire your tenacity but do not be so harsh on yourself- Outworld is a savage place. In another life, I once lived in Outworld as a mortal like yourself,” Futaba explains.

“You were once a mortal?”, Sheeva responds surprised.

“Indeed. Elder goddess Kitana pulled my soul across time and space to aid the mortals in this era. She granted me divinity. And with the powers bestowed upon me, I believe I have a solution. I cannot make your race reproduce faster but I can increase the number of viable mates by transforming your females into hermaphrodites. I will require tribute,” Futaba proposes.

Queen Sheeva had not thought such magic possible. Changing the gender of a large quantity of the population would radically change the fabric of Shokan society. How would she know who to transform and who not to? Would the hermaphrodites be treated as competitors to the males?

The countless possibilities would result in completely rewriting laws counted as sacred to Shokan tradition. But it was these same traditions that could doom them... was this proposition worth the risk? What would be the cost? And what her people think of this suggestion?

If there was one thing Sheeva learned from being an aid to prince Goro before his untimely passing, it was decisiveness. She had to make up her mind now. Queen Sheeva was not returning to Outworld empty handed.