As Aris entered the small Cencin family graveyard, he couldn't help but muse on the nature of the divine. He was no priest, well versed in theology and steeped in tradition. Nor was he a Cleric or Paladin, sworn and beholden directly to a divine being or pantheon. He was just a gutter-born commoner who'd come of age in a mercenary outfit, then died and was brought back to life by Black Cloak. That did give Aris something of a unique perspective.

Aris trailed his fingers over a time-worn gravestone. Black Cloak had brought him back to be a pawn in a game between Gods. That last time such a conflict had spread out into the world, it had only ended at Armageddon Reef. This begged the question; could a God be killed? Aris didn't think so, and he had three good pieces of evidence to prove it: Denedar, Merrsshulk, and Sslyeth. The gods of the Silithids had survived Armageddon Reef and the deprivations of the Overlords. No hand, mortal or divine, could kill a God it seemed.

Aris wandered down another row of headstones, looking for the name Aflia had left him. If Gods couldn't be killed, then how did they come into being? Just about every god and pantheon had their own creation story, and most of them were at odds with each other. Perhaps they were more like ideas than mortals? As below, so above? Was it that simple? Each God was given the powers that they believers ascribed to them, and they drew strength from the number and fervor of the mortals who knew of and believed in them. If that was the case then the Overlords plans for total world dominance were but a precursor. They intended to force enough people to know of and worship themselves to transcend mortality altogether. Aris paused as he realized that he wasn't alone in the graveyard.

Black Cloak himself was leaning against an obelisk. "Got it in one Aris. And you've already found the flaw in their designs, haven't you? You can't force people to believe any more than you can force them to forget."

Aris rubbed his chin, "So why do you need me then?"

Black Cloak shrugged, "is not winning a war that will make Armageddon Reef look like a snowball fight not enough? It may not come in your mortal lifetime, but it will come eventually. And when it does, the forces of the Light will need the strength to stand against the Dark. There is no end to the war, mind you, only victories that buy centuries of peace or bloodshed."

Aris shrugged, "I've heard that line before. Brings the Serene Dominas of the Jeweled Cities to mind, along with the old saying 'better the demon you know...' I disagree, the war between light and dark can be won, but only at a cost too high. Stasis and stagnation. Nothing new, nothing changing. And you know what, that's not gonna happen either. The elves and dwarves may live long enough, and be stubborn enough, to not change. The other short-lived races my not want to change. But we humans... we are never satisfied with the status quo."

Black Cloak nodded, "that's what makes you so dangerous to my kind. If there is a way to kill one of us, however impossible, you humans will find it."

Aris shook his head, "that's not true either. Gods are more than mortal, more than immortal. They are Ideas. And we humans have a few Ideas of our own. Innovation and Invention, Progress and Growth. Trebor may be small, but I think it will be the birthplace of something to make Gods and Demons alike tremble."

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Black Cloak cocked his head sideways, "the Enlightenment."

Aris noidded, "individual rights and liberty, religious tolerance, constitutional government, the separation of Church and State. These Ideas are not unheard of on this world. Most governments give some rights and liberties to their subjects and citizens. Most major cities have found ways to keep peace between religious factions. Westmarch, Glacierheart, and even the Jeweled Cities are structured around a common code of law and publicly held offices. Even here in Altheim the leading Church isn't part of the government."

Black Cloak tipped his head, conceding the point, "so the pieces are in play and the fire is set. From where comes the spark?"

"Trebor. I will make it a place of shared learning available to any and all so long as they keep the peace. Debate, not daggers, should decide arguments. And from that small fire, torches will be lit and carried abroad."

Black Cloak flicked a dismissive hand, "a human in a realm of elves? You won't live long enough to light the spark on your own."

Aris gave Black Cloak a lopsided grin, "I don't need to."

"Eh?"

Aris' grin was hungry "I already have friends that will carry the torch after I die. Allies both high and low, mortal and immortal, that will lend their strength to the cause. And with any luck, more will rally willingly to the cause as the fire spreads."

Black Cloak swept a deep bow of respect, "and there is the spark itself. The Unthinkable has been thought and said, and has moved from possibility to Inevitability. The gravestone you are looking for is the sixth one from the left end of the back row."

Aris headed for the marker, then stopped, "how did you know?"

Black Cloak pauses at the entrance to the graveyard, "I carved the Epitaph on the back." He stepped through the gate and vanished.

Aris wandered over to the gravestone. On the front was the name and date he was expecting. "Joyassa Cencin. Wife, Mother, Silverblood. 741 - 771." Intrigued by Black Cloak's comment, Aris walked behind the gravestone to check the back side. He found a half-carved inscription, a chisel, and a hammer. "A better woman than any man deserved, a better mother than any daughter had."

Aris sat back on his haunches for a long moment, then picked up the hammer and chisel to finish the inscription.

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Status Report:

Treasury: 855

Income: +105 gold per day

Amount & Source

+5 Semi-retired Agent of Altheim

+100 Food sold from Ikin

Equipment: In good condition.

Estates:

* Ikin: Village: Fishing Docks, Farms Under Construction

* Trebor Convent: no upgrades, Dedication to the Light in progress

* Colubrinus: Village: Under Construction

* Three Empty Holdings (may be improved later)

* One Old Temple (occupied by undead, traps, and animated statues)

The Ring: obsidian band with two carbuncle gems and one empty setting.