Isa stared at the screen in surprise. She’d expected her former pantheon to claim the new world almost immediately, but it seemed there had been some issues with their attempt. Considering her former pantheon was NOT the Archon Pantheon, it appeared they’d once again lost out on incorporating a new world.

It was surprising, considering Alpha was primed and ready to report the ascension as soon as it happened. Something must have interfered. Or perhaps the planet had ascended directly into another pantheon’s territory. She supposed it was possible.

It wouldn’t have been hard to pull the planet into a new system if it was claimed quickly enough, but if it showed up close enough to where another pantheon ruled…

Isa glanced up at the sky, wondering if visitors were already enroute. What would they think of a newly ascended planet that was already capable of interplanetary travel?

Isa was glad that the system provided information on the deities who had claimed the new world. She recognized a few of them, but Adrianna hadn’t been one of the more social goddesses, so her knowledge was a lot more limited than she would have liked.

When she was still Adrianna, she didn’t have any specific purpose in wanting to claim the new planet. It was simply an ingrained instinct she had as a goddess. Now that she was Isa, she really didn’t care one way or another.

The addition of divinity immediately altered the subtle undertones of the mana around her, giving it a distinct flavor that the former goddess found strangely comforting. She didn’t dare reach out for the higher energy, though she could feel it seeping around the edges of her soul. It was to be expected now that she was under the grace of a new pantheon.

Not that she would connect herself to any of the false Immortals. Doing so would only invite problems, especially after she eventually died.

And Isa would eventually die and be reborn again. Where she would turn up was anybody’s guess since she no longer had any control over her destination. She couldn’t even control what realm she’d enter, beyond having outgrown the Mortal Realm.

But she would be reborn. And unlike others, she’d retain her memories through each incarnation.

When the shuttle docked, Isa was told to remain in her seat for several minutes as the more important passengers disembarked. Since she spent most of the trip napping, Isa simply shrugged and closed her eyes. Several minutes later, her new guard called her name.

Isa followed the female guard to Commander Arcspire’s office. Thankfully, they didn’t make her wait very long, and she was soon ushered inside. Once the door closed behind her, the Station Commander motioned for her to sit.

He pinched the bridge of his nose tightly and sighed. “Yet another thing this new system is throwing at us. How are we supposed to explain literal gods to the citizens?”

Isa was almost certain the question was rhetorical, but she answered anyway. “What’s to explain? The system already did that for you. There are gods and goddesses of varying ‘strengths’ that encompass specific domains. You worship the one that best aligns with your beliefs or goals and maybe get some minor bonuses out of it.”

The older man looked at her curiously. “Where did you get that from? All I got was a general understanding of who the deities were and their domains.”

The former goddess shrugged. “It was pretty self-explanatory. Gods are real in the Mana Realm, and the system supports them in some capacity,” she said before adding thoughtfully, “I can see how that might be an issue for the Senate, depending on how things play out.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Not falling for the obvious trap, Isa shook her head. “I’m sure you can use your imagination just as well as I can. I’d rather not voice anything, given my current circumstances.”

As if the comment reminded him of their purpose there, the Commander focused his attention on the tablet attached to his desk. After a few minutes of focus, he turned the tablet toward her.

Handing her a stylus, the Commander said, “Make sure everything is correct before signing. We’ll do the emancipation paperwork first. Otherwise, I’d have to go get at least one of your parents.”

She did not take it as a threat since she was sure that was not his intention. After verifying that her information was correct, Isa signed on the annotated line. Commander Arcspire signed immediately afterward and submitted the document to the Senate.

“Congratulations. You are now officially an adult,” he said without inflection before turning the screen back toward her. It now displayed the paperwork required to officially exile her.

“I’m going to skip the long, drawn-out speech I’m supposed to go through for this. I disagreed with the decision, but ultimately, my opinion doesn’t matter. You are to be exiled. Your chip will be neutralized prior to leaving the station since only citizens are granted the privilege of such technology.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

She could tell the man expected her to balk, but she’d been prepared. With a mental prod, the nanites in her body extracted the AI in her chip and fled to her feet. Her shoes were shielded for just this purpose and should be more than sufficient to keep any EMP used from impacting the microscopic components.

Once she was sure things were safe, she’d trigger their return. She’d likely have to wait until she was processed into the Wastelands. Isa doubted the Wastelands would risk Senate technology entering their territory anyway. They probably had some way of checking to ensure the Senate’s chip was fully disabled before allowing her entry.

It’s what Isa would have done.

“I’m sorry it worked out this way. You deserve better for the contribution you’ve already made,” he said as he escorted her to the small clinic where they would fry her chip. “I added an accolade into your file for your work on Sumar. It probably won’t matter much, but it was all I could legally do.”

“It’s fine,” Isa said. “I really do understand. Like I said before, this is probably for the best.” After a few moments of silence, Isa added, “I hope the new pantheon helps everyone. I really do think the dungeons will become an issue if they are ignored. There is a God of Dungeons listed. Maybe someone could pray to him and learn more.”

Commander Arcspire seemed to consider her recommendation for several seconds before saying, “Perhaps.”

Her new guard followed her inside the clinic and waited as they made her wear a collar that continuously sent EMPs for fifteen minutes to destroy her chip and any loose nanites. That would normally be plenty of time to ensure the technology was rendered inert.

She didn’t blame them for not realizing how easy such a method was to avoid. In all honesty, she’d expected something much grander and more effective, especially considering her background. Then again, there were probably very few psionics within the Empire.

“The next shuttle to the Wastelands is in two days,” the guard informed her after she left the clinic. “You’ll be confined to a room until then. Meals will be brought to you. Your room is constantly monitored by AI. It will notify us if you do anything questionable. Just relax and maybe watch a few movies on the screen. It might be the last time you get a chance to do something like that.”

Deciding to take the guard’s advice, she relaxed in the room for the next two days, watching all the movies she never got around to seeing.

She was tempted to use the time to practice magic, but she didn’t want to draw any additional attention to herself. She was being given a free vacation. After years of study and training, Isa could certainly use a vacation, even if it did leave much to be desired.

----------------------------------------

Isa was not surprised when she was led to a large cargo ship two days later. She was aware that the Wastelands maintained trade with the rest of Gentrius via the space station, even if it wasn’t openly publicized or as infrequent as Commander Arcspire implied.

Space for passengers was limited, but thankfully, only thirteen other exiles were joining her on the weekly trip. Since there were twenty spots available, there was plenty of room for Isa and the others.

Isa had hacked into the manifest for the previous weeks, so she knew the number of people being exiled had far exceeded twenty per week in previous weeks. The people in charge had to reserve a second, smaller shuttle to fit everyone during the last few trips. This was the first week since the ascension that the manifest wasn’t full.

It had only taken a month for the Senate to locate and exile all the undesirables.

As expected, the person handling her intake checked to verify her chip was inert before allowing her to exit the shuttle bay. Her fellow new exiles seemed interesting, though she hadn’t been allowed to interact with them much on the shuttle. Every time someone tried to talk to the others, the guard assigned to the flight would send a few gentle shocks to their seats to remind them to remain silent.

It was the worst treatment she’d experienced to date, and even that was ridiculously mild compared to some of her former lives.

Once they disembarked, Isa and the other passengers were placed in a room and told to wait. It only took a few minutes for the first name to be called. Lucky for Isa, she got to go first.

Isa followed a serious-looking woman down what felt like a mini-labyrinth. After several minutes, the woman stopped at a numbered door and knocked. Without waiting for a response, the woman opened the door and ushered Isa inside, where a friendly clerk was waiting.

“Isamie Stone?” the smiling woman asked. Isa nodded as she felt something brush her mind. “Wow. It’s not every day we get someone with your credentials joining our community. It says here you have a recent commendation for your work creating an atmosphere on Sumar?” the clerk asked with a touch of incredulity.

“Yes. We got it established just a couple of days ago,” Isa said.

“Why would they exile someone like you?” the clerk asked, raising a brow. The mental probe pushed a little harder. Isa immediately recognized it for what it was: mind magic.

“I offended the wrong person, it seems,” she replied. That was the exact phrase Commander Arcspire had used, and she consciously brought forth the memory to reinforce her claim.

“Yes, I can believe that,” the woman said before asking a few basic security questions.

Though there was no going back to the Empire, it seemed the people here had something worth hiding. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be so cautious with new arrivals. It made her wonder what they’d done to screen people before the arrival of magic.

Once the obvious questions had been covered, the sensation of something probing her mind disappeared, and the clerk smiled brightly.

“Sorry for all the questions,” she apologized. “We’ve had an unusually high number of new additions to Horizon in the last month.”

“Horizon is what you call the Wastelands?” Isa asked, causing the other woman to make a face.

“Yes. This place is by no means a wasteland. The Senate just calls it that to be derogatory. In fact,” the clerk smiled mischievously, “I believe you’ll be quite surprised to see it is anything but a wasteland. In many ways, we are much more advanced than the Empire.

“The Senate has spent so much effort stomping out creativity and ingenuity, but it has been to our benefit. Many of the new citizens we’ve welcomed have pushed Horizon to new heights. The last couple of decades have been particularly exciting on that front,” the clerk said proudly.

“You must have hidden it well,” Isa said, thinking about the satellite footage she’d observed. Nothing she saw indicated an advanced civilization beyond the rest of the world, so she was interested to discover what the young woman meant.

In response, the clerk smiled playfully. “You’ll have to wait and see. But first,” she said, returning to her purpose, “let’s get you registered and find a role that suits you.”