Maybe she had taken it too far.

But the threat looming over the Old Faith was too great to ignore. The One Who Waits would return, and Heket—oh, she would never allow it. Though one of the youngest among the Bishops, the Goddess of Famine was more merciless than any of her siblings. When the prophecy of his return spread, she had decreed that all lambs must be eliminated.

Her cold, unyielding facade never cracked. Not a soul could see the terror that gnawed at the back of her mind—the fear that still haunted her, a thousand years after that day, kept alive by the ever-bleeding wound on her neck.

“Tsk…” She clicked her tongue, the sound low and guttural, followed by the gurgling of her own blood as it flooded her throat.

She fixed her gaze on you, her four unrelenting eyes piercing through the shadows. She saw the fear in you—the terror that seemed to grow with every moment. Had you begun to doubt her methods? You had complained often of late, but no. She wouldn’t allow you to leave.

“If you can’t handle my ways," she hissed through clenched teeth, "if you defy me, if you even think of leaving, I’ll force those damn mushrooms down your throat... until the only thing you remember is my name.”

Her voice was thick with menace, the words slicing through the air. Despite her harshness, this was how Heket showed her grip on you. The hallucinogenic mushrooms, a plant she used to bend the minds of those beneath her, keeping the weak in line, ensuring their faith. She knew neither of you wanted to resort to such things, but if it came to it, she would.

The battle was approaching, and the Bishop of Anura needed you—her cupbearer—to stand with her.

Her dark, oppressive aura pinned you in place as wine spilled at your feet, yet beneath the menace, a fragile vulnerability flickered. If you cared to notice it, you would see how it gnawed at her. Somehow, despite the threat, she regretted her words. The fear in your eyes shattered her heart even as it fed her ego.

“Or perhaps starving your family to death would make you more obedient? Would that work?” Her voice wavered, and she started to cough violently. The pain was unbearable, but Heket would never falter.

Because what was fear, if not a tool to keep you safe and close? She was starving for you, for all of you.