Seconds after reading through the notification the deity blinked and at the same time willed the disruption to his vision away. When he opened his eyes the notification was gone, and the deity grinned. To the group of followers he had, and to the dark unicorn, the sight of his grin was cryptic.
After noticing the gaze of his followers upon him Althos chuckled and quietly said "Sorry, I was willing away a notification. If our pace is slow enough that you've got time to gawk at me, would you like for me to see if our guide can speed up? I'm more than happy to do that."
His followers shook their heads at him and grimaced. None of them spoke but it seemed they were fine with merely maintaining their present pace. Althos watched their reactions and then quietly laughed. Seconds after he laughed the orcish archer Ranthor spoke up and asked the deity a question.
"Althos, you get notifications too? Does that mean that even you, a god, have to deal with the system?"
The orc's question and tone made it clear that the archer, the very first person Althos had ever defeated in combat, wasn't fond of the mysterious thing known as the system. Althos's consideration of how to respond to the question was interrupted by Althos's unorthodox aid, the mysterious creature known as M.A.
[Before you say anything I've been messing with my settings and I think I may have figured out how to... well not shout at you anymore. Do you like it? I do. It's nice to not yell. Oh, and I got the system's settings changed too! There are might be some kinks to work out, but this should be easier to deal with than before.
Anyway, species who were created by gods deal with a different sort of system than you do. Their systems are a lot more restrictive than yours is. But if your power grows... who knows, maybe you will gain the power to fix that.]
Althos was shocked to hear M.A. and not feel as though he was being yelled at. It was a pleasant change, especially when coupled with the knowledge she shared with him. Althos considered it as he prepared his response to Ranthor.
"As a god, the system I deal with tends to be... lenient with me Ranthor, almost certainly more lenient than the system you deal with. So far it's been fairly pleasant. It's mostly given me access to information and taught me about my powers. And that means it gives me what I love: knowledge."
Althos's response was a bit cryptic but it also revealed to the orc that at least one god dealt with the same sort of universal mechanics as mortals did. That was an eye-opening revelation to the mortal, who nodded at the deity after the deity finished speaking and began to think about what that meant for the universe itself based on his own knowledge.
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After the group had been walking along with their dark unicorn guide for almost half an hour into the depths of the forest, Althos decided this was as good a time as any to use a potent spell he had only used once before.
As he contemplated using it, Althos recalled the only time he had used it in the past: to give Salifinos the imp the poisonous powers of his ancestors.
[Alert: given your interest in making use of the legendary spell known as Vestigial Resurrection, the system will now provide you with information about the spell's options for each of your followers. Since this defies how the spell is normally used, due to its high cost to cast on multiple targets, a new spell will be created solely to simplify this process.
As far as naming the spell goes, the system recommends the name "Vestigial Examination". The effects of the spell are simple: when used on a target or targets this spell reveals what vestigial powers any target(s) have locked away within the depths of their genes. Do you have any objections to this name?]
Althos thought it over, even as he kept walking alongside the dark unicorn, and then quickly told the system that he didn't have any objections. Seconds later the system sent him another notification.
[Initiating usage of a brand new spell, hereafter referred to as "Vestigial Examination". Scanning the various creatures in your service, beginning with your worshippers and your pet demon.
5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
Scanning complete. Commencing scanning of your followers...
7...
6...
5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
Scanning complete. Preparing results for your purview. List displaying options have been configured to be as simple as possible.
External traits:
Wings (Silander, Raverangos)
Natural armor (Bazur, Ragnor, Anthus)
Second heart (Bazur, Ragnor, Anthus)
Secondary set of arms (Ranthor)
True-vision (Gallow)
Natural camouflage (Gallow)
Elemental breath (Silander)
Horns (Raverangos, Silander)
Animal shape-shifting (Raverangos)
Artifact shape-shifting (Ragnor, Bazur, Anthus)
Suction breath (Raverangos)
Mucus mastery (Silander)
Internal traits:
Mind-reading (Gallow)
Manifestation of chaos (Raverangos)
Animal speech (Silander)
Qi radar (Ragnor, Bazur, Anthus)
Pheromone generation (Silander)
Soul-Weapon (Ranthor)
Telescopic Vision (Ranthor)
Emotional detection (Raverangos)
Consumption of emotions (Raverangos)
System commentary: After examining their genetics it seems as though Orcs live in a highly regulated society wherein mates are selected on the basis of their talents. If you wish to test this yourself perhaps you should aim to acquire a servant or worshipper who is an orcish magician. If you do and their vestigial traits include a variety of magic oriented abilities that'd be further evidence of this hypothesis. In other species, an examination of vestigial traits will produce far less predictable outcomes.
Ability summary: Some of these abilities, particularly the internal and shape-shifting ones, are immensely powerful. Qi radar is an ever-active detection ability that renders any attempts by living creatures to sneak up on whoever wields it useless. Artifact shapeshifting allows its users to transform their limbs into weapons, shields, and other artificial objects.
Manifestation of chaos gives sentinel demons ranged attacks using the power of the abyssal chaos of their home realm and if used to paint an area in chaos it can corrupt an area. Animal shapeshifting allows users to take on the traits of animals including the claws of crabs, the stinger of scorpions, and the thermal vision of serpents.
Powerful sentinel demons once possessed the ability to detect emotions, a powerful sort of radar-like ability in its own right, and to consume those same emotions. They could also prevent escaping foes from fleeing by using their breath like a vacuum to draw in smaller foes and devour them outright, or to slow larger enemies until they could be torn apart.
Mucus mastery grants frogs and their evolutions total control over their mucus allowing them to make it poisonous, paralytic, into an aphrodisiac or inflict other status conditions on those hit by it or weapons coated in it. Elemental breath allows its users to exhale gouts of flame, electricity, acid, mist, or frost.
An archer with a soul-weapon will never be unarmed. And a long-range archer with telescopic vision has the potential to become an amazing assassin if properly trained and nurtured. That second pair of arms is a very strange vestigial trait but definitely not a bad one. After all, a long-range archer with four arms could wield two bows at the same time.
The rogue's vestigial traits are also fascinating. You could train him into a powerful assassin and knowledge gatherer by resurrecting those traits.
Any and all of these abilities are incredibly powerful. The system urges moderation and caution in how to approach granting these abilities to their potential recipients.]
Althos's eyes went wide as he finished reading the notification, and as he looked at the incredibly wide range of abilities his followers and worshippers could be granted with but a simple casting of a spell.
This was perhaps the first time the deity felt the true weight of his powers. He cautiously thought through the options he had.
What can I do in this situation? Obviously I should tell them about the options they have, but even that... I suppose I can start off by telling my own worshippers and Raverangos about the options before them, but what about the siblings? Their vestigial traits are mostly external but their lone internal trait is so astounding that even I can understand its usages.
And Raverangos's manifestation of chaos is probably the single most interesting ability of them all... so far I've only ever met one demon but if my basic understanding of the internal trait is correct that means that if we find a place we want to meet other demons in, I can order Raverangos to use the ability many times and then we just wait.
As Althos thought through the situation in front of him, the demon whose lost-ability was at the forefront of the god's mind wasn't really thinking about anything.
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The sentinel demon moved quadrupedally behind its master. It was creeping behind Althos, and its eyes and nose were directing it towards any nearby plants. The creature lumbered behind its master, largely unfocused on what the being who had offered it chances to commit violence and an opportunity to feast on a bear was doing in that exact moment.
It was creeping so that its face could be close to the surface of the forest. It would use that proximity to sniff the ground and move its long arms in the direction of nearby, loosely hidden vegetation so that it could pull out and eat any earthy treats the forest would have hidden from it if it wasn't actively looking for snacks.
At that moment the creature didn't feel like a primate to the orcs who served its master, but more like a gigantic pig. They heard the noises it made while scarfing down plants, and the swinelike noises it made whenever it sniffed the ground in pursuit of even more vegetation. Both were distinctly piglike, and even the creature's movements weren't unlike those of a wild boar.
The demon was sapient, but as it moved to sate the hunger that was plaguing its mind it definitely didn't seem that way. That was perhaps the first moment in which the creature Althos viewed as his pet truly felt, to Althos's companions anyway, like a mundane animal as opposed to a sapient creature with inscrutable goals and a distinct, aggressive attitude.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
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Silander was next to her master and wasn't paying the demon her master had tamed any mind. She was instead studying the forest around her.
Much like her master she found the forest fascinating. To her master, the appeal of the forest laid in the diversity of life that lurked within it, but to her the appeal of the forest was the myriad of sights it presented to anyone who knew how to look.
The great frog had powerful eyesight. As she studied the forest around her she noticed a variety of things. She looked up at the trees around her and she saw the holes that insects and other animals made in the trees. When she looked at the branches of those trees she saw and studied the nests of birds who were out hunting, mating, or merely exploring the forest around them.
When she turned her attention to the ground she saw diminutive ants nests. If she really focused she could see the individual ants, many of whom had coloration that granted them a bit of camouflage, going about their lives and like the demon behind her and her master, roaming about in pursuit of food. Knowing that behind her, Ravernagos was voraciously devouring any food he could find she felt a pang of pity towards the ants.
When she looked for other sights on the forest's floor she'd sometimes see bushes shaking and hear the soft footfalls of creatures smaller than her. She'd catch glimpses of squirrels and could see just the snouts of small foxes peeking out from within thick bushes or in incredibly shallow fox dens.
Silander's mind was focused on memorizing these sights, and not on the fear that persisted in her brain of the powerful unicorn that her master had apparently talked into guiding them towards other living creatures. She didn't trust the creature, and the fear she felt towards it had a role in that that wasn't small.
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Silander's vestigial traits were interesting as well. If Althos wanted too he could grant her the ability to fly. He could also empower her to gain total control over her mucus, the substance that made her poisonous and that made her have the potential to be a skilled fighter if she were trained in both Gallow's style of fighting and the fighting style of the orcish siblings.
Althos knew that by empowering Silander with her vestigial traits he'd be making her a more diverse member of his party, and also giving her the ability to speak to animals. If she gained that ability, that combined with her climbing ability would make her an even more unique member of his party.
As the deity reflected on this the deity considered what he himself wanted for her. She wanted to be a worshipper of his, it's just that at this early stage of him learning about gods neither of them had a concrete meaning for this yet.
If I resurrect Silander's ability to talk to animals... doesn't that mean she could chat with them and maybe even convince them to worship me? She could become an ambassador of mine to animals!
This realization made Althos grin. Althos enjoyed meeting animals and knowing that he could potentially gain more worshippers just by empowering one of his pets was something that was quite pleasing to the deity.
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The orcs were behind the demon. The trio of brawlers was marching in tandem, in order of youngest to oldest with the youngest being closest to Althos and Qut.
They weren't particularly paying attention to anything. Instead, they were each deep in thought, though how deep in thought depended on the orc in question.
What does Althos's power mean? Are there limits to it? Can it grow? We've felt his empowerment before when he granted us a strange boost to our attack speed and strength. If we worship him... does that affect his power? I recognize that in theory, since he's so strong AND he's a god, he should be worshipped... but should I, an orc, be one of his worshippers?
Ragnor reflected on the limits of his knowledge about Althos and Althos's godly powers, as well as considering the implications for an orc to turn from remembering the ancient and long gone orcish deities to worshipping a new and active god.
Althos being a god makes a certain kind of sense. And him being a newborn definitely makes sense. But what will he do from here? What are his objectives? What does he want to be known for? Does he actually understand what it means to be a god?
Bazur's questions were more direct and more focused on Althos himself.
Althos... seems to get along with beasts better than with humanoids. Who he doesn't fight is weird. He didn't fight the wolves, he didn't fight this unicorn, and he didn't fight Silander. But he did fight us, he fought the demon he tamed, and he fought that bear. Does Althos decide to commit violence on a whim?
Anthus was making use of his imperfect knowledge of Althos to try and determine any patterns he could make note of regarding the creature's behavior. It wasn't going to work though, because Anthus failed to regard Althos as what he was: before the deity was a god, he was a newborn.
Newborns weren't exactly known for behaving stably. All Anthus could really do was try and help the deity mature and hope that in time the creature matured to the point of having reliable patterns of behavior.
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The orcish siblings only had two vestigial traits of any real interest to Althos. The qi radar and the artifact shape-shifting abilities were of interest to the deity, but Althos could easily wait to grant the siblings those powers.
Althos was mildly annoyed that Bazur hadn't started worshipping him, even if he understood why the orc needed time to process the news that the deity was, in fact, a deity. Althos was actually scheming something as a sort of soft punishment to the orcs for holding out on him.
Maybe if I tempt them into worshipping me I can persuade them to give up their pride and become my arms... I think the traits of granting them natural armor and secondary hearts will be seen by them as powerful gifts. If I give them those for free and tell them of greater abilities if they just worship me that may just do it. Yes... that might work!
As he reflected on the scheme gradually coming together in his brain he and his group of minions were unknowingly getting closer and closer to where Qut had stored the goblins it had come across earlier that day.
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Gallow was listening to the sounds of the forest. He had long since unfocused his vision and used it exclusively to stay close to his party. In exchange for unfocusing his vision, he had focused his energy on picking up nearby sounds.
If Silander had passed time by seeing things around her, Gallow passed time by listening for things. His hearing was sensitive because of the conscious choice he was making to pick up even the faintest nearby sounds.
He heard not just the footfalls of wild animals like foxes, badgers, and squirrels, but he heard them manipulate their environments. He heard squirrels harvest acorns, foxes dig into the dirt at their feet, and badgers eating food in tiny holes they dwelled in.
He heard the soft motions of insect wings in places beyond the sight of the group due to natural obstacles like bushes and trees, and he also heard the motions of his comrades as they strode through the forest.
Ranthor was focused mostly on walking. When he did look away from the rest of the party the archer looked at the sky. The party was in the depths of the forest and only occasionally did the forest's trees clear in such a way to allow the orc to see through the forest's tree line and actually see clouds and birds flying higher than just a few meters over the party.
The orc wanted to see the clouds and since he couldn't he didn't care to look around.
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Althos was a bit surprised that both Gallow and Ranthor had some distinct abilities. He absentmindedly stared at the floor as he walked beside the unicorn and thought about the vestigial traits Gallow and Ranthor had.
So my worshippers have some neat powers. How should I go about granting them their powers? I particularly like Gallow's abilities... I'm not fully sure what an assassin is, but I can imagine that the camouflage ability when coupled with mind-reading could have neat implications.
It was at this point that the party's dark unicorn guide came to a halt. Upon realizing that the beast had stopped Althos' non-demonic allies looked around, yet none of them noticed any major differences from where they were now to where they had been before.
Althos himself looked up from the floor and at the unicorn who had served as their guide. Then he turned his vision towards what laid in front of him.
Raverangos turned its gaze upwards and at the forest path in front of it when it noticed that the unicorn and its master had both stopped. Its eyes pierced through the illusion, but it took the brutish creature a second to truly process what it was seeing.
Althos and Raverangos were the only members of their party who saw through the illusion unaided. Althos starred for a second at the four creatures who lurked just out of the sight of his non-demonic allies and pet. Their bodies were covered in odd-looking dark armor and their backs were turned. Althos had never seen anything quite like them before.
Then Althos looked at Qut in confusion and spoke softly to Qut in its native tongue, the grotesque language that both Qut and Raverangos spoke.
"Hey Qut, why have we stopped?"
Upon hearing Althos' voice the beast turned its ruby-colored eye on the god and spoke to him in the same tongue. Its voice was also quiet, though Althos doubted that was to not alert the strange creatures lurking in front of what may have been Qut's lair.
"We are where I stored the goblins. They are... within that cave."
At that moment Qut's eyes quietly shone for a split second while the air in front of Althos's companions shimmered. Then the illusion that had fooled the mortal members of Althos' entourage slowly melted away, revealing the true nature of the place the creatures stood in front of and exposing the creatures to Althos's allies.
Althos' mortal allies had temporarily doped by a clever illusion that relied on the habit of sentient beings to look for patterns. It had shown them what was in effect a loop, an illusion that showed those it tricked what they were already seeing: a safe and fairly unmarked path through the forest. And in exchange, the illusion hid the cave that was now revealing itself to the party.
What the orcs saw when the illusion was totally undone made Gallow want to pull out his dagger again. It made the orcish siblings tense up and move forward so that they were closer to their master.
It also made Raverangos grin, his monstrous maw opening in surprised delight. Silander moved closer to her master. And Ranthor quietly pulled out his bow and pushed it forward so the weapon was visible to the creatures who were curiously examining Althos and his party.
Raverangos pushed forward until it had imposed itself halfway between the creatures and the party of its master. Then the demon stood up on two legs so that it rose to its full height. When standing at its true height the demon was a massive creature.
Its broad and muscular back stood tall in front of the party and once again the demon truly stood out in comparison to the rest of Althos's servants, worshippers, and his other pet. Silander watched this unconscious display of might and felt jealous of the creature's strength and the odd sense of reliability she felt it emanate.
The demon spoke two words in the language of its homeland that any self-respecting demon would understand and be mildly delighted to hear.
"Dark-elves."
Its guttural voice was loud enough to be overheard and the creatures its statement was about turned around and saw Althos, his retinue, and both the dark unicorn and the demon. They looked at the diverse crew with inscrutable expressions.
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Althos was silent as Raverangos stepped forward and imposed itself between Althos's followers and the strange creatures. Even after his demonic pet spoke he didn't react, even though he did hear what it said. At first, the deity studied the cave behind the creatures Raverangos called "Dark-elves" more than he studied the creatures themselves.
The cave had a tiny entrance, barely tall and wide enough for Raverangos if it crawled on all fours, to a tiny and possibly artificial portion of a grassy hill that was surrounded by an odd clearing in the forest, a clearing that Althos suspected might have been artificially made.
In looking beyond the creatures in front of the entrance to the cave into the cave itself Althos's peerless vision allowed him to make out a few details within it, including a thin campfire and a cage full of tiny, green-skinned creatures.
Althos saw that these creatures were wearing carefully constructed armor that would have made them difficult to spot in the forest. Their green-skin and the green-armor they wore would have made them challenging to spot in the forest, but here they stood out against the light of the lit campfire and the darkness behind them.
Althos gave each of them a visual once-over and confirmed that none of them appeared to be on the verge of death but they certainly weren't comfortable since the entire group was crammed into a single cage. Still, for now, that'd have to do.
Althos's thoughts on their condition were quite simple. The deity also went ahead and thought up the very beginning of a plan quite quickly.
So long as they are alive, I can get what I need from them. Once these... dark-elves in the way are no longer in the way I'll go and talk to the goblins.
Then the deity fully turned his attention to the four dark elves who were apathetically examining his party.
The company of dark elves was gradually beginning to rest their vision on Althos himself. He took a few seconds to study each of them.
As far as Althos could tell there were two dark elven women and two dark elven men. All four of them wore similar and ornate suits of armor that looked to be made of a strange organic compound and was painstakingly crafted. Althos's powerful vision could make out stylized markings on the suits of armor that were most likely intended to reveal who the armor's wearers were.
Though there were minor differences in each suit of armor's distinct markings commonalities between the suits included themes of spiders, daggers, and that on each of the four suits over where Althos presumed the elves hearts were located there was a single image of an eye the same color as Qut's.
The armor was thin but something about the stylized nature of the armor and the indifferent way the elves watched the party suggested that they firmly believed in the defensive power of their equipment.
In examining the suits of armor Althos noticed that they seemed to fit the dark elves perfectly. It was as if the creatures were wearing a second skin.
Althos looked at the faces of the elves and noticed that each of them had different but similar skin colors, but their suits matched their complexions perfectly. The deity wondered if that was magical or if the creatures somehow worked to maintain their complexions to match to their armor.
Part of what gave away the sexes of the dark-elves was the armor they wore. The armor of what Althos assumed were the women of the group didn't have preset indents for abdominal muscles like the armor for what Althos assumed were the men did. Additionally, Althos's sharp vision revealed to him that the armor of what Althos thought were the men was wider around the area of the groin than the armor of what Althos suspected were the women.
Both elven men and both elven women were armed. Althos noticed the weapons each of the dark elves had on their person. The men casually held thick looking clubs that were outfitted with what Althos assumed were some sort of razor-sharp metal that was the color of midnight. Althos with just a glance that getting hit by one of those could hurt his servants, and he wondered if the weapons would also be able to do damage to Raverangos.
The women carried elegant looking glass daggers. Their appearance contrasted sharply with the dark skin of the elves themselves as the daggers seemed to shine and shimmer when exposed to the sunlight, which Althos learned when the women rose the daggers in front of themselves as if in self-defense.
All four of the elves were good looking. They had few similarities in terms of their appearances but they all had the same striking ivory-colored hair, and both men had muscular physiques that pushed and strained against their armor which had the effect of ensuring their muscles never fully relaxed so long as they were prepared for battle.
Both women looked at a glance to be youthful, though the orcs and the demon knew better than to rely on physical appearances to try and judge the age of an elf. At this point, the elves were slowly approaching the party so it wasn't just Althos who could assess their appearances.
The facial expressions on the faces of the men betrayed no particular surprise at seeing Althos's party and gave away no fear or bloodlust as they approached the strange and diverse group. They had the trained gazes and attitudes of calm and clear-headed warriors who felt that emotions were a distraction in the heat of battle.
One woman had human-like eyes that in the light of the sun, currently at its highest point since it was almost noon, looked to be a pleasant shade of brown. The other female dark elf's eyes, as they caught the light of the sun, appeared to be cold orbs that only allowed one color to shine through: a shade of blue one might expect to see in a frozen lake.
The men had the same eye color. In the light of the sun both of their eyes shone a shade of black that one might have expected to see in the eyes of powerful devils.
All four of the dark elves had smooth and angular faces that wouldn't have been out of place as part of statues in some grim art collectors macabre private gallery. They had high cheekbones, deep eyes, and full lips that ran a variety of shades. The women, in particular, had the sort of plump lips that many mortal men would have found entrancing to look at and that even the orcs in Althos's party found a bit charming.
Within seconds the group of elves was in front of Raverangos, and they stood there silently. From what Althos could tell they were conducting what the god felt was an astoundingly calm assessment of their situation given that they had randomly come into contact with a racially diverse group containing a demon, which Althos assumed probably wasn't an everyday sight for them.