Notification: Spirit Summoning
The legendary spell "Summon Spirit" was cast successfully and a spirit, the mythical-class deity named Althos, has come to protect the people of Terra.
Deities were, or rather, are, the strongest class of spirits in existence. They stood atop the hierarchy of the collective group of races known as "higher beings". The reason why Althos answered your summons was that he sensed your desperation, your piety, and the successful casting of your spell.
He is interested in you and has agreed to protect your people, in exchange for you all worshiping and serving him. To demonstrate his powers he will now go and defeat your enemies.
As the notification filled the spell caster's mind, his eyes widened in shock. Not only was the massive creature in front of him actually a spirit... it was one so powerful that it was beyond power. It existed on a scale unimaginable to the spell caster, and he was wise enough that he knew that.
The deity studied him. Althos' eyes were filled with curiosity and joy, and his form was human but on a large scale. He stood over three and a half meters tall and was more than twice the height of even the tallest humans in the colony of Terra.
He wore a suit of armor the color of the shining sun, and held a shield in one hand and the Sword of Spring and Summer in another. Both were now long enough to be size appropriate for his current form, which was in and of itself an impressive feat. He himself was smiling, and the spell caster who had summoned him here began to feel a strange sense of calmness wash over him. Somehow... He knew that everything would be alright.
Althos rose the hand that held the shield and blessed the soldiers guarding the colony against the hostile attack that he had been summoned to thwart. And the god began to glow, even in the gloom of the night.
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The beach was quiet. It was also strangely serene, as if the chaos happening just a few kilometers away wasn't happening, or at least wouldn't have any impact on the spell caster and me. Behind me, waves lapped against the beach's shore and the sounds of distant fighting were drowned out by the sounds of the gentle sea.
I was blessing the soldiers guarding the colony, while I stared at my summoner. He was an elderly fellow named Leon, and he was theoretically as powerful a sorcerer as any I had ever met, but in practice, he was much weaker than the magic-kings who ran Retribution. That said, being a level 20 sorcerer was no joke and I knew that on a battlefield he was probably one of the stronger mortals I had met to date.
He was one of the great leaders of this colony, which was no joke given his memories. This was a hell of a place to try and make into a successful colony, and he had done his best to repel any and every threat and to safeguard his people. And now that task had fallen to me.
Off in the distance, I could hear the sounds of a battle beginning to turn around. And that brought a wide grin to my face. Without a shred of hesitation, I pointed my hand at Leon and teleported the both of us to the battlefield, all while creating a forcefield around him that would block any attack.
We went from standing on the beach to standing in the middle of a vast plain, where all that surrounded us were warriors on both sides of the conflict and a vast stretch of grass. For a single second, the warriors that surrounded us were confused by the suddenness of our appearance, even as they continued to swing at each other.
On our side were a number of men who were dressed in light fur armor. They held expertly crafted spears made of wood, but their opponents were larger than they were and had metal armor and weapons. I took in the sight of my enemies and began to laugh, the sound perhaps the first sound I had made since arriving in this world. I studied the locations of my enemies and when one of them next launched an attack that would have killed one of the warriors on my side I intervened.
I dashed forward at a speed that exceeded the speed of light and placed myself between my ally and my enemy. His spear, a long and powerful weapon made of metal, would have easily impaled the soldier who was now my ally if I hadn't been where I was. I also commanded my shadow not to attack. This battle was my chance to show my power, and I intended to use as little magic as possible while fighting my foes, at least for this specific battle.
Time began to flow at a "regular" pace again when I was already right between the two warriors, and there was a smile on my face as I rose my shield to meet my enemy's spear. The enemy's spear collided with my shield, for a moment, before I flexed my arm and then pushed my shield up, deflecting the spear altogether and throwing my enemy off balance, long enough for me to lash out with my own sword and stab it into my enemy.
I felt the person I stab almost immediately die from my blow, and though it wasn't the flashiest way I could have killed him it was certainly effective. I was a god, and I could have used that in a number of ways, but for now fighting alongside these mortals was a surefire way to earn their goodwill and that was what I was after.
The soldier I had saved nervously stammered out a quiet "Thank you!" which made me smile as I turned around and nodded at him. I then refocused on the battle in front of me and decided to become the center of attention again.
I utilized my powers over anger to fill the warriors I was supporting with righteous fury. It was easy enough to do, since they hated their foes. All it took was for me to make them feel the anger and fury they had felt each time one of their allies fell to a spear or sword belonging to their rivals. And then I lifted my sword into the air and let out a bestial roar, calling out for justice for those who had fallen.
I myself entered a rage, utilizing one of the abilities I had been given as a berserker. I felt fury begin to seep into my every cell, and I let out a loud rallying cry. And then I dashed forward, right as my allies were reinvigorated by my actions and my foes were frightened by them.
Some of my enemies turned their attention towards me, and hurled their spears in my direction, before leaping away from their foes and drawing much shorter-ranged swords. I laughed, and when the spears were in mid-air I blew them away using my powers over the air and physics to keep their weapons from coming close to me, sending them away from myself or my allies with ease.
For this battle I wanted to fight alongside my allies, as I knew the contents of their hearts. They were simple warriors. They'd be more swayed, more inclined towards me, if I stood beside them and fought, in their eyes, as a "man" fought. It was an annoying thing to have to do if I was being honest, but it was a quick and effective way for me to acquire their loyalty. I covered the area with my "Religious fervor" power, and took advantage of this to practice my martial abilities.
I began to launch the counterattack of my side, by lifting my sword into the air and calling down a bolt of lightning to strike and infuse my sword with electrical energy. Once my sword was crackling with nature's power and fury I began to run at my enemy's, slowing myself down enough for my allies to track me with their eyes and warding off the infantile attacks of my enemies, who could also track me with their eyes.
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I approached the closest warrior to me who had the misfortune of being my foe and leaped at him, raising my sword to cut him down. He roared in anger and frustration and rose his sword to meet mine. I brought my sword down and sliced through his sword as if it were made of paper. My sword struck him in his shoulder and with my ultra-strength, it was easy for me to cut him down. He fell, his body cut in two, and as I pulled my sword back I killed him instantly using my newfound powers over death.
"Is that... all you have, inhabitant of Atlan?" I asked, even as I absorbed the memories of my foes and learned their names, language, beliefs, and knowledge. I lifted my sword and pointed it at the next wave of my enemies, even as my own warriors reached me and dashed past me to take on their hated enemies themselves, newly invigorated and encouraged by my own display of power and the fact that I was their ally.
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The creature who had appeared on the battlefield with the elderly conjurer named Leo was in every sense possible a god of war. He wore armor that covered him from head to toe in gleaming metal, carried a mighty and mystical sword, and held an obviously magical shield. He was a confident, stylish, and skilled warrior. And more importantly than anything else, he was brave.
He charged into battle, refusing to stand behind warriors or to give orders from safety. He was instead, in the eyes of his new admirers, the soldiers fighting alongside him, a brave commander who was in the thick of battle. He took on powerful enemies, those with the courage needed to resist his attempts to make them feel fear and he manhandled them with almost frightening ease.
Althos' sword was lightning quick, and he himself used it to cut down enemy after enemy. He dashed into clash after clash with various Atlans, and beyond that, the creature was fast enough to protect his soldiers when they found themselves imperiled by his enemies. Althos would fearlessly intercept various enemy attacks that he knew would have otherwise slain one of his allies, before either killing the attacker or creating an opening for one of his soldiers to act on.
The god of war was an inspiring sight. His motions were not just efficient, due to synergies between art and war he was able to appear handsome and awe-inspiring even while slaying living creatures and each of his motions were graceful. He wasn't a rampaging serial killer, he was an inhumanely beautiful and fluid warrior who made each of his kills a work of art.
He was a dexterous warrior, who against the most skilled warriors the people of Atlan sent to attack the colony would perform seemingly impossible acrobatic acts to dodge attacks. One particularly skilled warrior who fought him used his spear as a staff to try and throw the god off balance, and in response Althos lept on the spear and kicked the warrior in the face, causing his head to explode. Althos enjoyed the combat, and by the time only a handful of warriors remained he had killed over three dozen Atlani men singlehandedly.
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The warriors of Atlan, the civilization that opposed the people of Terra's efforts to colonize this area, were brave but they weren't foolish. When only a handful of them remained the warriors began to retreat. They hurled their weapons at my men, in an attempt to distract us more than hurt us, and threw themselves backwards while spinning in mid-air to try and give themselves a few seconds to run.
I used telekinesis to reach out and knock down the thrown weapons, and when my warriors saw this they moved to chase down the foes. I rose a hand and filled the warriors on my side with a desire to let the enemies go. I had other plans in mind for my enemies than for them to die here, and I reached out with my deific abilities and infected each of them with "Demonic Infection", the same powerful disease that had once plagued Troik and opened his mind up to possession from Sombra.
The warriors who were fleeing stumbled when the infections first hit them, but to their credit they were able to not fall when hit by the magical malady. It was an impressive feat, I had half expected them to stumble. Instead they were able to keep on running and as they did I rose a hand, the one carrying my sword, into the air. As my enemies fled I decided to perform another miraculous act.
I created a vast mystical shield, using my potent powers over abjuration, that encircled the entirety of the colony I had come to protect. It manifested as a sparkling wall of dim light that was noticeable in the darkness of the night. In the eyes of my mortal allies, the light appeared to come from the ground itself and rose up into the sky, covering the colony my new, soon-to-be worshipers, had managed to create until now.
The warriors, noticing it springing up, were shocked by its sudden appearance and those of them who were closest to it backed away from the thing. I audibly chuckled, and began to speak, allowing the newest members of the Althonite Empire to hear my voice for the first time.
"You all did well surviving the attack by the people of Atlan. I know that even if I hadn't been here, the attack would have been repelled." I stated, honestly. The attacking Atlani were fierce warriors, and they would have killed some of the Terrans, but they wouldn't have won. Leon approached me, the barrier that protected him still glowing and ensuring he remained safe from any enemy attacks even now. His eyes were wide and reverential, and he fell to his knees in front of me.
"Althos... You have only just arrived, and yet you helped repel an attack by our foes without an explanation on our part, and without allowing our side to incur even a single casualty... Thank you, oh mighty deity of war." Leon said, thanking me profusely. As soon as the word "deity" left his lips, the warriors around me blanched. They looked at me, fear and awe mixing in their gaze.
"Deity?" One of them muttered before I activated one of the powers I earned when I achieved my current level of influence over the domain of knowledge, an event which occurred when robots devoted to me created a monastery dedicated to preserving knowledge in a factory world, uncommanded by me but merely inspired by my obsession with knowledge. I allowed each of the warriors who had fought in the battle to level-up.
For a brief instant, each of them radiated warm, gentle, healing light, as my powers washed over them and I bestowed them with a notification that alerted them to my true identity in my capacity as the eternal emperor as well as the reality that they had just leveled up.
They sighed as they felt potent healing energies seep into their flesh, and as their energy was restored by a simple, single usage of a healing ability of mine. Seconds after they read the notification that filled their mind's eyes, they fell to their knees before me, now aware of my true power.
I felt their hearts be swayed by my powers and by the display I had put on for them. Some of them dedicated themselves to me here and now becoming Althonians, and others were almost convinced to do so, while some people became zealots who saw me as a god of justice, hope, and life, someone worthy of their devotion and in doing so became Althonites.
I smiled at them and pointed for the warriors to return to the proper, fortified, safe, part of the colony. We had a lot of work to do. I knew that the first thing I needed to do was begin to get my bearings here, and for me to do that I needed but a moment.
I created a phantom copy of myself and made it invisible while creating it. Mentally I ordered the thing to go to this world's sun, and allow me to activate "Stellar awareness" here. I was in a galaxy far from anything I considered home, and utilizing "Stellar awareness" would give me a small bit of peace of mind. It was the first such ability I always used when on new worlds, so that I could learn the world's geography and demographics without revealing my presence.
My phantom copy vanished, teleporting to the world's sun, and granting me the precise clarity I sought. As my mind filled with knowledge, I internally laughed and began to study the world I had arrived in. It was a fun place, with only two continents on a single landmass, and a vast ocean covered in small islands.
This world was as magical as Torus, and also had strange empires just like it did. But weirdly, this world's empires were all led by humans, who appeared to be the dominant species on this planet. Given the relative weakness of humans compared to creatures like orcs, their short lives compared to creatures like dwarves and elves, and their lack of knowledge compared to dragons, it was odd for them to be dominant in a world where power reigned supreme and vast empires led by powerful warriors existed.
I was going to need to research how this was possible, but I had time. I intended to be here until the day I defeated Selena. And now I just needed to get started creating my own faction, and becoming the anti-Selena, a deity of goodness who protected and healed people. And I had plans to do that quite quickly. A smile crept across my face as I readied myself to go and gather more followers.