"Of course. I do not think I could be myself and ever stop. Though - I feel much older now, and at this moment very tired, and it is an even more daunting task than I realized. I am not sure how long it will take. I hope you will make sure I do not resign myself to slowing down."

Sigh. "I think I will go for the Starstone, though. Not immediately, but quite soon. I wish I could take a year, or ten, just to - be human - but I do not have much more time left in this body, and - I would not have all the suffering people in the world wait just because I am weary." 

"There is a year or ten of work to be done in Cheliax that will be harder, as a god."

"There is an ally who I would trust with it, as thoroughly as I trust myself. It may still not be this year, that I go, if it proves thorny in Cheliax, but I do not intend to leave them governed by one insufficient to the task." 

She pulls back from the hug. "I will have you know it is actively a lot of work not to read everything in your mind when we are doing this."

"Oh, I was assuming that you were reading everything in my mind and my willingness to speak with you accepted that as a precondition. I should tell you this part anyway, I think, Abadar is aware and it is strategically relevant. Nethys also knows but only in the sense that He knows everything in all the worlds." He takes a metaphor-deep breath. "Leareth is - myself. From another world, another history, but a remarkably similar one, though his tale is at the point before where I became a god in mine. I had many levels of contingency-plans to win the war by an overdetermined margin even without his help, of course, but I did not even need to touch most of them, thanks to his aid. Anyway, he does not rule a country in his world and his local gods dislike him - I think even our gods find them impossible to work with, Abadar at least. I do not think he would mind moving here to inherit my realm, though I have yet to pose him the question directly." 

"It's a lot less frustrating to read you but I really want to be someone you'll talk to! 

- and that - makes sense of the bits of the war that I think everyone was most taken aback by. I - wish he were Chelish, I think it matters, but probably less than it matters to actually be competent and trying.

My country, Aroden, my people - there were so many children, who understood, who would've done so much for the world, and it would kill them, if I chose them, and maybe it would have been better anyway."

"I know, Iomedae. I know. I watched it happen from across the sea, and I knew what it meant - every piece of it." Sigh. "If there is someone else who is competent and trying, I will consider them too, but - I cannot justify staying human another few decades just for that, and I doubt that Asmodeus will have left me much to work with in the shorter run." 

"I've picked a few. But - not anyone ready to run a country next year, no. It's going to take such a terribly long time, to fix." She bites her tongue. "I'm glad you're impatient. I don't know if it's right but I think it's good for you. It'd be - looking backwards - to stay there as long as they needed you - and there's so much to look forward to! I want to tell you all about it. I mostly can't, now. But someday soon."

"Someday soon," he agrees. "I am so pleased to speak with you again." Pause. "Do you wish to have temples in Cheliax? The offer is open to all - well, all non Evil gods - but your church in particular I would welcome." 

"Yes, definitely. Lastwall can't lend you much in the way of military force because there's trouble in Ustalav, but we should have temples. I can use the existing ones, though they'll need some redecorating." 

"Of course." He smiles, tiredly. "Is there anything else we ought speak of, now?" 

"I think not, if we're going to speak properly again soon. - Milani."

"Yes. I know. I ought speak to Her as well, I think, but - I am looking forward to it less than I was to our conversation. Oh, also, before I forget - thank you for invading Hell. It bought us a great deal, I think." 

She nods. "A day's notice would've been very useful, for that."

"I know. I am sorry." 

"I love you. Be careful. And come home, soon."

And she pulls away and he's alone in his head again.

Leareth, again, Gates to his previously assigned bedroom in the winter palace. This time, though, he strides out into the hall as soon as he's caught his breath, and tells the first servant he sees that he would like to speak with the pharaoh, please, of course at the pharaoh's convenience, and he can Gate himself to the other palace if that is convenient for his Highness. 

The startled servants will confirm that the pharaoh is at the other palace. People...can't Gate there, though?

He was able to Gate out from the teleport-in spot last time and thinks he can find his way from there, but if they would rather escort him he's of course fine with that too, the war is over and this time he's not in nearly so much of a tearing hurry. 

Oh, if he means the dedicated Teleport spot that's fine and he's allowed to go himself, if he'd like.

Leareth thanks them and Gates to the Teleport spot and then heads back in the direction he remembers the nice servant leading him before, looking for someone he can inform of his presence. 

He can run into a guard pretty promptly and get a message passed from there and get told where to sit and wait for the pharaoh.

It's about half an hour. 

"Leareth. Congratulations."

(Leareth's brain is slightly less full of troop positions and mage exhaustion levels this time, and he manages to remember to prostrate himself and wait until acknowledged and told to sit.) 

"Thank you. I think it went very satisfyingly well." He can't help smiling. "Did you hear about how we dumped the entire Chelish army in Nirvana? I am very proud of that piece. Also I was unconscious for half an hour from that Gate, which was suboptimal, but Vanyel rescued me." 

“I did hear about that! It has been rather widely heard-about, by now. An astoundingly clean war.”