"Malus!" the Ancestor roared, the entire building shaking.

  "Gah!" Atzi covered her ears.

  The Ancestor crossed his arms again as Atzi recovered.

  Only moments later, Malus stepped into the room. She looked entirely poised, almost bored.

  "Oh. Oh fuck, it's her..." Atzi whispered to herself.

  "Do not scream in this place as if some wild beast," Malus spoke directly to the Ancestor. "Why have you called for me?"

  Atzi took a few deep breaths, trying to work out how to phrase things in such a way Malus wouldn't kill her on the spot.

  The Ancestor replied first, "I must speak with the Saintess. Bring her here as well."

  "She is busy, but I shall relay your words to her," Malus said.

  The Ancestor bared his teeth. "I wonder if it is you or her who disrespects me like this? I am a god, same as she. Have her speak to me in form."

  So this is the power of etiquette. Even though he's acting polite he's fucking with her and she can't easily dismiss it.

  "Even if it angers you, I cannot disturb her from her critical business. Great Ancestor, I can only ask for your understanding in this." Malus did not look nervous at all, but she did look slightly annoyed.

  "U-um. Y-your ritual worked," Atzi spoke up.

  Malus's head snapped to her. Atzi flinched away from her gaze before she could stop herself. "Who is this? Do you give her permission to speak?" she asked the Ancestor.

  "I do," the Ancestor replied.

  Malus huffed. "What ritual? Be quick."

  "Your r-ritual to revive the Saintess worked! I-it's just she... latched onto the nearest person and... I was walking o-over the street above, and..." Atzi slowly angled herself behind the Ancestor as she spoke.

  Unlike the last time Atzi revealed this, Malus looked totally calm. She blinked once. "Is this a prank? From you, Ancestor?" she said with almost disbelief.

  Atzi quickly started describing the Saintess, since that had worked last time. "S-she has black hair and green skin and-"

  She noticed, barely perceptibly, that one of Malus's hands slowly curled into a fist. Yet she otherwise remained entirely composed.

  "It is no 'prank'. She told me many things. That it was the Saintess's fire gems that were responsible for the destruction of Novae. That the Saintess died. That she is the new prophet." The Ancestor paused. "Of course, if this were true, the Saintess with you would need be false," the Ancestor simply said. "Fetch her. And let me confirm."

  "I-it's someone else wearing the bandages!" Atzi nodded rapidly.

  Malus smirked. "Very well. I shall put an end to this silly concept. Since this is so important to you, I shall fetch her."

  "That's-" Atzi blinked. "Eh?!" Is there some way to fake it? She had the fake Saintess at the godscouncil before…

  Malus left.

  The Ancestor did not look at Atzi while they waited in silence.

  Finally, Malus returned, the bandage-wrapped Saintess behind her.

  Even if I know it's a trick, it's still ominous seeing the Saintess as I used to imagine her this close. Atzi glanced at the Ancestor, who stood still, and back at the Saintess.

  Suddenly, the Saintess's appearance flooded with a holy aura so bright Atzi was forced to close her eyes. "N-no way... h-how's she faking that?" Surely he can see through the trick, right?

  "I see… that is surely the Saintess's energy," the Ancestor replied.

  "Eh? Eh?" Atzi panicked, going for a last ditch effort. "M-Malus! Sostra is going to be destroyed in six days. Your- the necromancers you hired can't hold the gate back any longer than that. A-and it'll kill everyone."

  Malus remained placid. Steady. She didn't rise to Atzi's words.

  "And she can see you lying like this. Lying in a way th-that'll get everyone killed," Atzi tried to guilt trip her. To get Malus to cry again like last time. To admit it.

  The Ancestor turned to Atzi. "You may still be the Saintess's prophet. You and Malus shall both unleash her holy energy yourselves. Only the true prophet would be able to."

  "B-but I can't do that! She never taught me how!" Atzi screamed. She still tried to summon it- nothing. She couldn't even feel the priestly powers the Serpent had granted her.

  The Ancestor's brow furrowed. "I know not why you have lied to me, lizard. I listened, for you knew things I wished to listen to. What you hoped to gain, perhaps it was this moment of glory before your death."

  "I'm not lying! Last time she really did-"

  Quicker than Atzi could react, the Ancestor grabbed her by the neck. She couldn't speak, his grip so tight it choked the words out from her.

  Atzi gurgled, eyes wide in fear.

  The Ancestor lifted her up. "As thanks for finding my prophet's brother, I shall grant you a painless death."

  With a single twitch of his thumb, he snapped her neck.

  -

  Atzi screamed into the void, "That bitch! How did she fake that?"

  The true Saintess floated before her. "I don't know..."

  "We really, really need to figure out some way for you to give me that prophet stuff. It'd make this so much easier." Atzi groaned into her claws.

  "I'm sorry…" the Saintess replied.

  Atzi looked up. "...Shit. It's not your fault. I'm just pissed off with Malus."

  "I wonder why I loved her," the Saintess said idly.

  "If she heard you say that, maybe she'd actually help for once." Atzi gave a sad smile. She clicked at her scales with a claw, trying to think of what to do.

  "What if you found the necromancers she's working with?" the Saintess asked.

  Atzi hit her fist into her other claw. "Right. Right, they helped with the ritual, and they're not as totally insane as she is. Maybe that's the trick?"

  As the Saintess once again faded away, Atzi resolved to try her idea.

  -

  "Out, out!"

  Atzi groaned. "I'm not in the mood." She picked herself up and slumped away. "Dying on the first day feels so awful…"

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  "Is that worse than dying normally?" the Saintess asked.

  Atzi realized it had been an odd thing for her to feel. "...I guess not." She still felt like she was wasting her time, though.

  As she made her way to the inn, she considered what to do immediately. Okay, screw the Ancestor, I need to talk to the Serpent about all this. I need someone who's enough of a scheming bitch that they can understand when someone else is being one, but not so much of a scheming bitch that they scheme against me.

  When she stepped into the inn, Hemm looked up at her. "Atzi! You look horrible. No sleep?"

  "No..." Atzi just crawled upstairs without another word, eventually flopping into bed.

  ===

  She awoke to the sounds of the Serpent's procession outside the inn.

  "Blugh." She was still tired, but she got dressed and headed out so she could go through the motions.

  Everyone was too loud and Atzi felt dizzy watching the same parade for yet another time. When one of the Serpent's bodies turned and winked in the crowd's direction, Atzi paused for a moment. Then she drew her head forward and aggressively winked, forcefully enough that she heard the thud of her own eye closing.

  The Serpent ignored her entirely.

  "Oh come on!" Atzi screamed as her plan walked on past. The people next to her in the crowd backed away.

  "I'm a tasty treat. I am," Atzi mumbled to herself as she slinked back to the inn.

  Hemm looked up at her. "That was quick. Just wanted a peek at the procession?"

  "I got turned down! Me!"

  "Huh? By who?" Hemm looked confused.

  "The Serpent! She definitely saw me, too. Did I sleep in and mess up my hair too much or something?"

  "...You tried to hit on a god?" Her confusion changed to bewilderment.

  "It worked before!"

  "What?!"

  "... Shit." Atzi held up a clawed finger. "Uh, I'm sworn to secrecy on the details there, sorry."

  "Atzi! You can't just tease me with something like that!" Hemm looked upset.

  "I didn't mean to, I really did get sworn to secrecy on the details..." Not that she cared about that, but then she'd have to explain the looping and she knew how badly that always went with Hemm.

  "Uh-huh." Hemm clearly didn't believe her. "Did you want to eat?"

  "Yeah..." Atzi sat down, muttering to herself about how the Serpent clearly didn't know a good thing when she saw it.

  Hemm made her soup with flies in it.

  As she ate, Atzi noticed something strange. Hemm almost never seemed to make her the same food between loops.

  "... Hey, Hemm, why'd you pick this soup in particular?"

  "Huh? Oh, you looked a little sick, so I thought it'd be good for you."

  "Oh. So you don't have a set menu planned out, you just wing it based on what feels like it'd be best?"

  "Yeah. Why, do you want something in particular?"

  Atzi shook her head. "Nah, I like eating what you pick out."

  "Well, thank you." She gave a smile.

  Atzi yawned. "Still don't feel great though, I'm gonna go for another sleep. Maybe check out the festival at night..." I'm going to find Kurgi and tell her in advance about the shapeshifter thing. That asshole has it coming.

  ===

  At night, Atzi did her usual trick of hopping the fence and finding the party she knew Kurgi would be at.

  There Kurgi stood in all her sluttish glory, two giant scaled ears that looked like eyes on top of her head, chatting up a mixed group of people. Atzi was glad to see her - she was tired of people acting smarter than her.

  Atzi approached. "Wow, are you a daughter of the Serpent?"

  "Huh? Yeah! Hi, I'm Kurgi. Who're you?"

  "Friend of Scabiel's, sorta."

  Kurgi's eyes widened in joy. "Oh! Oh, oh, oh! Is she here?" Kurgi looked around, excited.

  Atzi shook her head. "She gets here tomorrow. Hey, wanna go somewhere more private? Just to talk. Unless...?"

  Kurgi blinked, then grinned. "Oh wow, even I'm not that quick. But I like the style."

  Atzi heard a few grumbles from the others Kurgi had been chatting to. I'm so good at this. Ladies love me. She grabbed Kurgi, claw in scaled hand, and dragged her upstairs. Once they were alone, Atzi told her, "The Shapeshifter's prophet isn't too happy about you and Scabiel."

  "Whaaaa? Why not?" Kurgi pouted.

  "He thinks you're 'stealing' her."

  "Oh." Kurgi gave a cute laugh. "I guess I am." She bonked her own head and stuck out her tongue.

  Atzi leaned in closer. "Anyway, he's an asshole, and I'd rather you two avoided his little trap. He's gonna show up tomorrow disguised as her. Probably in the afternoon. So if Scabiel shows up and starts acting like a total bitch out of nowhere - it's not her, it's him."

  "Wooow." Kurgi's eyes sparkled. "Okay! Thanks for the warning!"

  Atzi grinned. "Any time."

  Suddenly Kurgi grabbed her arm. "Hey, you ever have spicy blood?"

  "Spicy blood? That an Artaxtan dish?"

  Kurgi laughed. "Sort of. It makes you hallucinate. It's really fun!~"

  Atzi was curious. She knew about most drugs, so this one must be fancy and expensive. "Oh, you have some?"

  "Yeah! Want to try?" Kurgi offered, digging into a pocket.

  "Sure." Atzi shrugged. "What's the harm?"

  Kurgi handed her a translucent package in the shape of a bean, but the size of a thumb. It was filled with what looked like actual blood.

  Atzi grabbed it and sniffed it. It didn't smell like blood, but it did tickle a bit.

  "Just eat it," Kurgi urged her.

  Atzi put it up to her mouth and squeezed the not-blood onto her tongue. It tasted spicy, as the name implied, but much closer to milk than blood.

  Atzi gave it a few seconds while Kurgi consumed a packet of her own. She didn't even squeeze it, just tossed it in her mouth and chewed.

  "So... when's it kick in?" Atzi asked.

  Kurgi grew two additional heads. "Pretty quick!"

  "Gah!" Atzi stumbled back. Her vision began to blur, Kurgi and the room melting away into a cascade of colors. She closed her eyes. And-

  "Atzi… why did you do those things?" she heard the Saintess ask her.

  Atzi regained a little composure upon hearing the familiar voice. "I was curious, I guess? She said it'd be fun."

  "...You died again."

  "I... what?" Atzi opened her eyes, seeing the void. "When? How?"

  "You went around stealing stuff for fun and shouting at people. And then someone stabbed you."

  "... I did? Oh." She scratched her own scales. "I guess that's how I act without any inhibitions..." She gave a pathetic laugh. "That stuff must have been pretty strong. I've never really been that messed up before, 'cause of my dragon's blood."

  "It was weird. Even I felt it. It must be magic. I've never experienced anything like it before." The goddess's voice sounded distant.

  Atzi realized she'd gotten the Saintess high. Malus is going to fucking kill me. "Sorry! I didn't realise it would work on you! From now on, no magic drugs." Atzi sighed. "And I sure keep dying early again. Guess figuring out what's going on made me a little reckless." She whipped her tail from side from side to side as she came to a resolution. "Alright, no more deaths till at least past the godscouncil."

  "At least it didn't hurt for you this time," the Saintess offered. "You were laughing as you bled out."

  "Well... that's nice, at least." Kurgi sure could have warned me that might happen. She truly is an airhead.

  For what felt like the thousandth time, the Saintess faded away.

  -

  "Out! Out!"

  Atzi sprung up. "Sorry. I fell asleep due to all the drugs I was taking. I'm leaving now."

  "Crazy druggies!"

  Atzi wandered off without a care. "For once, you're right, lady."

  Atzi felt much better than she usually did waking up from dying, and figured she'd take another chance with the Serpent. The last time had to be a fluke. She still wanted a nap, though, before approaching the Serpent. It could be dangerous. If she'd learned anything from the previous few loops, it was that she couldn't rely on things going the same way every time.

  When Atzi got back to the inn, Hemm looked up at her again - same old, same old. "Hey Atzi, you look...relaxed? What's with the dirt?"

  "I'm gonna get a bath and go to sleep for a bit." Atzi stretched.

  "Okay…?" Hemm watched her lazily head upstairs.

  ===

  After the bath and sleep, Atzi once again headed out to the Serpent's procession.

  With a proper wink back, the Serpent whispered to her prophet, and he approached her.

  "The Serpent would like your company," Andrew said with what Atzi now recognised as exasperation.

  "Yes!" Atzi skipped forward. Andrew simply stared at her.

  When she reached the Serpent, the goddess grinned at her. "My my, you look excited to see me." Another one of her bodies spoke, "So cute. I could just eat you up."

  "I'm sure you could." Atzi winked again.

  The Serpent made a happy hissing noise. She grabbed a flower being thrown through the air and stuck it into Atzi's red hair.

  Atzi laughed creepily. I like this kind of treatment. She planned to take advantage of being spoiled until she could get the Serpent alone to reveal things. Pity she'll eat me if I let her fuck me. She briefly wondered how strong she'd need to become to be able to avoid that. Maybe if she could find a ton of gems at the very start of a loop?

  "So what say you do a delicious meal and then… maybe more?" The Serpent offered her, tickling Atzi's tail with one of her own.

  "Oh, I'd love that," Atzi absentmindedly said. She was already thinking about the conversation, trying to remember which points to hit on, as they made their way towards the Serpent's temple.