What makes a God? This is a question I have asked myself time and time again as I pursue the highest of peaks. I have scoured the holy texts and ancient monuments. I have seen the Mountain of Adam and the City of Micheal. And yet, in few places have I found divinity closer than in the tale of my ancestor, Adam an Erduk. Divinity is not merely power, nor is it control. Those are simple. True divinity is creation. God became divine through the creation of the universe, and Adam an Erduk too became divine through the creation of his own. A world of words and ideas. A world, while less corporeal than physical reality, held a metaphysical weight almost its equal. He reached the brink of ascension only to fail at the last step. Why?
The stars are perhaps the greatest physical representation of divinity. They are balls of pure matter and energy, constantly shifting states in accordance to the laws I once shaped. Pieces of the primal light that created the canvas of reality. Over the ages I have infused them with the echoes of the worthy, turning the starry sky into a kaleidoscope of remarkable paths. The seeds of divinity lie within that kaleidoscope, the half-finished creations of long-dead men shining down.
Adam an Erduk was born under those stars. And the stars baptized him in turn. That was my first memory of him. A child reaching to the distant heavens, chubby fists opening and closing as if to seize divinity.
He was destined for greatness.
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He grew up quietly, often staring, for hours on end, at something nobody else could see. He was a prodigy, eagerly soaking up lessons from his mentors and watchers. Books disappeared at a frightening rate and by the time he was merely ten his retainers had run out of things to teach him.
“What's next?” young Adam asked his mentors.
The group of people gathered around him chuckled. Old and young they represented some of the brightest minds in the world. And they had been utterly surpassed by a boy not yet in his teens.
Rufus, a bearded old man that had taught Adam math crouched in front of him,
“We have no more to teach you, child.”
Adam blinked,
“But surely there is more. Look around us. I hardly understand anything.”
“And neither do we.” Rufus replied calmly.
“Then what use are you?” Adam replied with the innocent curiosity of a child.
Rufus chortled, not taking any offense,
“We were merely here to get you started. To share the meager knowledge we hold and reveal the vast expanse yet to be discovered. Your recognition of that expanse means we have succeeded.”
Adam fell silent, contemplating Rufus’ answer.
Finally he spoke,
“Then what now?”
Rufus smiled,
“Now you are free. Investigate what you wish and learn what you can. Create something new.”
Adam smiled.
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The process of true creation is much more involved than most know, taking a lifetime of work and dedication. All creation is built upon what came before, whether that be the old foundation of a building or the empty void. Therefore, the first step to creating something is to understand all that came before it. A task of a lifetime alone. Then one must learn to apply that understanding. Use it as a lever to change the world around them. They must connect it to the greater order and put their understanding into context. Knowledge in a void benefits no one. Finally, when one has understood all, learned to apply it, and put it into context, they reach the bare minimum requirements to attempt a creation of their own.
They earn the requisite insight to strive for divinity.
—-----------------
Adam stood at the precipice of a tall tower, observing the bustling city below. Below him stood a nervous looking man,
“Young master,” he begged nervously, “Please come down. It's not safe.”
Adam, now 13 years old, absentmindedly waved a hand as if swatting away a fly,
“Don't worry. I’ll be fine. I have an excellent sense of balance. Sir Darkhan made sure to drill that into me” he chuckled.
Then he sighed,
“When will dad be back?”
“Right now” rang a deep baritone behind him.
Adam spun around as fast as he could, drawing a startled squeak from the nervous administrator, to see his father behind him.
His father, Gabon an Erduk, Archduke of Parrick, was an impressive man, rippling with muscles. Yet despite his bulk he had one of the keenest minds Adam had ever seen. The brilliant azure eyes he shared with Adam were his most distinctive feature, supposedly a gift from the progenitor of their storied lineage. At his waist he wore a strange curved blade sheathed in pure steel. Adam had never seen his father draw it, and when he asked him about it he was simply told,
“It's not a blade meant to be used. Merely a… warning.”
Adam threw himself into his fathers arms with a happy yell. Gabon picked him up and swung him around.
“What have you been up to?” he asked excitedly.
“I’ve been trying out new economic systems!”
“Oh really?” he Gabon asked with amusement, setting Adam down.
“Yeah! Neil!” he yelled, making the nervous man jump,
“Yes, young master.”
“Tell dad about the increases in production and wealth.”
“Oh yes. Due to the policies implemented by the young master. Uhhh…” he fumbled with his papers, “give me a second.”
Adam pouted as Neil struggled with his papers.
“Ah! Here it is. Ok, production is up 300%, crime is down 98%, and 99% of citizens report feeling much happier than before.”
“Percent?” Gabon questioned.
“A measure of a proportion of a whole.” Adam quickly supplied.
“Ah. And how much did this cost?”
“That the thing,” Neil said, “It's actually making us money.”
Gabon raised an eyebrow.
“How does that work?”
“Come on, i'll show you” Adam interjected eagerly, grabbing Gabon by the arm.
“You just need banks and loans and…”
----------------------------------
War came with a thundering boom.
Adam flinched back as flames licked the old stone walls, feeling their heat against his bare skin. The walls, once impenetrable bulwarks, fell short in this new type of warfare.
The light of Jazarin’s star shone far indeed.
Behemoths of metal patrolled the skies, machines of never-tiring death. Light constructs of canvas and wood streaked through the skies, raining fire from high above.
The Archduchy of Erduk was outnumbered and outgunned.
But they fought back anyway.
Gabon an Erduk assumed lead on the field, reaping lives with guns and steel.
And Adam an Erduk, at the tender age of 18 was named high commander of the Erduk forces.
Adam, drawing upon the vast knowledge he had accumulated, quickly reorganized the army to face the new threats. Bastilla bolts were aimed at the heavens, destroying flier after flier. He reorganized the ground troops to more guerilla tactics to outmaneuver and surround the slow beasts of metal. He even ramped up production and morale at home to keep the garrison supplied with both men and supplies.
For months the Fraldian army besieged them, and for months it was repulsed.