And because they didn't need mortals, that restricted their ability to interact with them. All the Elder gods had temples and priests, just like the Younger gods, but the Elder gods didn't gain any additional power by this association the way the Younger gods did. From what the Goddess was saying, an Elder god couldn't really put a hand into the world unless it directly affected one of their own worshippers.
Precisely, she confirmed. And even with our own people, we are somewhat limited. Because we only give power, we do not get any in return, it is considered a gift and not a symbiotic relationship. That means that we can't be as demanding as the Younger gods in what we want our priests to do, mainly because it isn't something that we couldn't do ourselves. Unlike the Younger gods, we Elder gods can and do directly affect the mortal world with our power, so we don't really need priests. The Younger gods have to work through their priests to directly affect the world when it doesn't involve their portfolio of control. That's why that restriction is there, to keep us from taking our priests for granted. It keeps us humble.
"I'm still not sure I understand that," Tarrin said.
Tarrin, gods are powerful, but they're not wise, she told him impishly. Many of us are just as immature and silly as humans are. The Elder gods especially, because we really don't have to answer to anyone but Ayise. Ayise saw this, so she put limitations on us so that our actions couldn't disrupt the mortal world. Right now, I could, with a thought, kill every single living being on Sennadar. It's within my power. But I can't, because I have my own rules to follow. Kitten, it's very complicated. Let's just say that we have our own little hierarchy up here, and one of the rules is that Elder gods can't directly influence mortals. Anything a mortal does at the behest of an Elder god is because they choose to, not because we force them to.
"Alright, I can understand that. But why can't you make the Council listen to you? Couldn't you just take away their power if they disobey?"
I don't give you your power. You're tapping into the power that I maintain to keep magic in the world, so you're accessing my power without me directly giving it to you. If you were priests, and I was supplying you with your magic, then I could make you do anything I want by threatening to withdraw my support. But it doesn't work that way with Sorcerers. To answer your question, no, I can't take away your power. It's a natural ability, not a granted power. They only way I could take away a Sorcerer's power would be to kill him, and I'd rather not bump off the ruling Council. It would take me years to rebuild the order.
"Just bring in priests to convince them."
Kitten, I'm not allowed to have priests, she explained. My association to the katzh-dashi came at a price. To support the order, I had to give up priests, because an Elder god can only have one organized following of mortals. It's part of our rules. To make it a bit more plain, the Sorcerers are my priests. They do do my work, kitten. Sometimes I have to push them very hard, but they do it. The situation makes it hard for me to directly control the katzh-dashi, because I can't force them to do what I want.
"But isn't it a rule that no mortal can access more than one type of magic?" Tarrin asked. "If the katzh-dashi are both Sorcerers and priests, then that's two orders of magic."
Why, I do believe that you're right, she said in an impish voice. That does seem to violate the restriction, doesn't it?
"So you do grant power to the katzh-dashi," he said triumphantly.
Only for important religious ceremonies, she replied calmly. Consecration, rites, things like that. No, I don't grant them priest's spells. They don't need them. They are Sorcerers, after all. Not much of a threat for me to say "do what I want, or you can't consecrate ground anymore," now is it?
"Oh," he said quietly, leaning back and thinking. "I guess not."
Watching you try to outthink me is very amusing, kitten, she told him with a silvery laugh. If I weren't pressed for time, we'd be arguing all day, but I do have other things to do. So we need to cut this short.
"I'm sorry. I didn't think about that."
You are dear to me, kitten, but you're not the center of the universe, she teased. Yes, I love you. There, your fears are abated. Can I go now?
Tarrin laughed. That was something he certainly never expected to hear from a Goddess. "Well, I guess so," he said.
I'm so glad that I have your Royal permission, she said dryly. I want you to think about something for a while, my kitten. A puzzle for you.
"What?"
Isn't it curious that katzh-dashi are allowed to defy the rules? Kind of makes you wonder why.
"It does," he said honestly.
Keep your eyes open today, kitten. The answer to that riddle will be right in front of your face. All you have to do is see it.
And then she was gone, leaving him feeling hollow and empty inside.
"Were you talking to someone, deshida?" Allia asked as she opened the door to the communal closet. The fact that she was carrying her shirt in her hand and was topless didn't even register to him. Modesty was a loose concept to the Selani, and Allia had no fear of walking into Tarrin's room nude. She had done so, many times.
"Sort of," he replied calmly, and she simply nodded and said no more.
There was a knock on the front door, and Allia opened it without bothering to put on her shirt. But it was only Keritanima. She gave Allia a curious look as she came in, and her boxy muzzle had a worried frown on it. She waited for Allia to close and lock the door, then she started immediately. "We're going tonight," she said in Selani. "Things are starting to happen. We have to move."
"What happened?" Tarrin asked.
"I had an informant close to the king, and I was supposed to get some important information from her today," she said. "Well, this morning she turned up dead. She was poisoned. I think someone's trying to put a leash on my operations. I think it's Jervis, but I have no idea why. He has no real reason to interfere."
"Why do you think that?"
"Because I bought a man in Jervis' office, and by now Jervis knows about it," she replied. "He'll try to feed me misinformation, but I bought the man to keep Jervis' eyes off the fact that I'm using Sorcery to rifle his desk."
"What?" Tarrin asked in surprise.
"Lula taught me a weave that lets me see into places where I can't usually see," she replied with a smirk. "I have to be rather close to where I want to look, though. That's the only drawback. I'm literally looking over his shoulder when Jervis is reading his daily reports."