Celeste had to admit that she was starting to see why her husband was such an overthinker. It was easy to get stuck in your head with the absolute metric ton of options available to her.
With his tendency to dig deeper, she was surprised they had even progressed in the game so far. He was likely to have spent the first week just analysing the various powers instead of choosing something.
Celeste wouldn't be making the same mistake.
Instead, she looked at her 9 available Points. Spending all of them in her current Domains would be fun, but it wouldn't expand her play pattern. Only solidify it. She needed one more Domain before settling.
She reminded herself of the costs. Lesser powers cost 1 point, Greater powers cost 2 points, and a new Domain cost 3 points.
The goddess had been contemplating the Death Domain. It would give her the more ethereal march-of-time vibe that she had been leaning into, but if that was the case, her Tinkering Domain would feel a bit out of place.
She could also pick the Melee Domain. The idea of creating weapons to use mid-combat appealed to her. She could be leaning into some kind of "Traveling swordsman" trope. However, it was a trope that best worked when you were alone, and as such, Celeste wouldn't be a good fit for it.
In her mind, the last option was Wealth. It would be an excellent option to ensure that they could establish trade with various people.
Celeste sighed. There wasn't a four Domain combination that matched her specific aesthetic.
She noticed that Jasper was looking at her, but she ignored it, focusing instead on the choice before her. She was getting into the same trap that often pulled him in.
Celeste needed to be more impulsive and be better at making decisions. She finally just picked.
Divine Death Domain [https://i.postimg.cc/x8NyBG7P/image.png]
She was supposedly their single target glasscanon, so she might as well beef up her potential.
Being the Reaper would be fun... well, fun was a strong word, but it would be a new vibe for her.
Celeste was surprised her innate power primarily functioned on the undead. Although she hadn't seen any, the fact that the AI mentioned them meant that there would probably be some.
The power to see dead or dying things within 100 meters would also be pretty handy.
Even so, Celeste couldn't wait to see the options she had for powers. With 6 points left, there would be plenty of opportunity to spend them.
She paused before looking down the list. She knew that she wanted a lesser power from the Tinkering domain as well, and as such she only really had 5 points to spend here.
Celeste could see the option to only see the top five powers, but she wanted to know all her options. She unfolded the list of potential lesser powers she could pick.
Power name Summary Read more? Keeper of the Graves You learn exactly where every corpse, undead or fragment of remains are within 200 meters and their identity in life. You can tell exactly how they died as if you had observed their death personally. If you Commit Energy you have an invincible defence against lesser undead. See full description Mantle of the Bleak Commit Energy and any lesser foe that tries to physically harm you suffers damage as an aura of death surrounds you. See full description A Pale Crown Beckons Commit Energy to call up undead, summoning parts instantly from the nearest source if necessary. See full description Scythe Hand Commit Energy and command necrotic energy as an innate weapon against your foes. This is particularly useful against living opponents. See full description White Bone Harvest Commit Energy to instantly destroy any hostile undead in sight provided they are lesser foes. See full description Withholding the Mercy Those reduced to zero hit points within 200 meters of you automatically stabilize or die as your wish. See full description
Having looked over all the lesser powers, the goddess had to admit these powers were overwhelming.
Withholding the Mercy seemed incredibly powerful, ensuring she could protect the people she cared about. Effectively, nobody could die while she was around. That would make her an obvious target since she assumed her protection would stop if she stepped out of range.
Without a second thought, she picked Withholding the Mercy, bringing her down to 4 remaining points.
White Bone Harvest also seemed excellent. An instant kill on any undead would be very effective. However, with no undead in sight, this was unlikely to be used in the immediate future.
She felt like Scythe Hand was already covered by her Time Domain and the power Withering hour, so she dismissed that as well.
A Pale Crown Beckons seemed powerful if she wanted to become a lich or that type of being, but that wasn't really what she was looking for.
Mantle of the Bleak and Keeper of the Graves seemed interesting, but the question was if there was a Greater power she would like instead.
She quickly pulled them up, curious as to what they were.
Power name Summary Read more? No Release Commit Energy and choose a visible target. They simply cannot die until you reclaim the Energy. You cannot use this power on yourself. See full description Reaping Word Commit Energy and choose a target at any range. Lesser foes drop dead , worthy foes are allowed a Hardiness saving throw to resist. See full description Summons to Day Commit Energy to call any normal mortal creature back from death. See full description
Celeste had stopped breathing for a second. She looked at the abilities, and she couldn't help but stare.
The goddess knew there were probably caveats and requirements beyond the short description listed, and she had the option of seeing a full description. However, that would leave her mucking about in menus for the next month.
This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.
She liked all three of them. She wondered what kind of death she wanted to be.
Did she want to bring people back? She had the option, but storylines in games always lost a bit of value if all the prominent characters were never in any actual danger and could just be brought back.
She decided at that moment that her version of death would have something against people that had been brought back, no matter what form they might take, be it undead or resurrection. Summons to Day was out the window then.
Reaping Word, on the other hand, would be good to have. An instant kill effect would probably be good. She picked it quickly and then also picked No Release.
Both of them seemed promising. Once she had picked them, she hesitated. Something inside her wanted to know the restrictions, and she blamed her husband for corrupting her in this way. She couldn't change her mind, but that little voice in the back of her mind told her it was good to know what she was working with.
No Release [https://i.postimg.cc/x1MFFmbQ/image.png]
That explained quite a bit. No release wasn't a blessing. It was a curse. It didn't bring the target back to life if there was no body to live in, meaning that any mortal that was forced not to die would have their body crumble and effectively be tortured.
That was powerful for sure, though not really what she had intended. She didn't regret her choice, though. Her attention moved over to her next power.
Reaping Word [https://i.postimg.cc/23p74HGZ/image.png]
This also came with some rather incredible power and restrictions. Celeste wasn't sure what a worthy foe was, or a lesser foe for that matter, but it seemed like it was the game's way of measuring how difficult an enemy would be without having to implement a levelling system.
The fact a worthy foe had to take damage for this effect to trigger was both good and bad. The goddess could have someone else take credit for the kill as long as they got a single hit in, but she wouldn't be able to just kill powerful antagonists if she knew their names.
Lastly, Celeste found the power of "Ten Thousand Tools".
She had been using that quite a bit in the last iteration, even though she hadn't picked it. She had been committing Energy just to have access to it. She had relied so much on it that she wouldn't waste the Energy anymore. The ability to let her other Domains influence her crafting had been much stronger than she had expected. She picked up the power and was done within an hour of loading into the game, something she could tell thanks to her Time Domain.
She smiled and slowly started to walk towards Marcusburg. She knew that Jasper would be messing about with his powers and Domains for some time, and she also knew better than to try and disturb him in his process.
Celeste had made it halfway down the hill when she spotted a curious figure.
The tall frame and slender arms and legs indicated that he was an elf, but the grey skin betrayed that he was a drow.
His eyes looked at the goddess, in her great billowing cloak, staring her down, and Celeste got the feeling of being threatened by a teenager, something that she had , unfortunately, experienced a couple of times during her job.
The drow had long black hair that hung over one of his eyes, a staff made from skulls, and dark robes. The one eye that Celeste could see was completely white.
If the Architect of Reality had to guess, the stranger would definitely be in his emo phase.
She knew better than to judge people, especially people trying to find their place in the world, based on what phase of their life they were currently in.
Celeste had a lot of students who had an alternative style, and most of them were amazing. She hoped they wouldn't be cringing too hard when they looked back on themselves in ten years.
"You dare tread on my Domain." The voice of the drow was pretty much what she had expected.
He clearly saw himself as some kind of agent for death and had come to assert his dominance.
"A human no less, and you dare think yourself the equal of one of the Ilsher?" Celeste noted the condescending tone and the bared teeth. It felt like this guy was trying to intimidate her.
"What is an Ilsher?" The goddess asked, hoping that she could find some common ground with the boy.
A confrontation seemed inevitable, but she knew he was probably misguided in some way, and she would have to try to show her authority. However, he still might be someone she could talk to instead of fighting.
"Rivvin!" He spat the word as if it was something filthy. "You know nothing of your betters, but still wield powers beyond your grasp. The Ilsher is the children of Daikia, yes, tremble at my mother's name, for she is the end of all surface born. You will kneel before those who are your superior. Each of her children has been bestowed a gift of the divine, for she has been blessed by darkness itself. Now you understand that my power is not that of a demi-god, but that of a demi-ur-god. You will fall to the darkness that is within my heart, for my soul has been tainted by the corruption that is inherent to my existence." The drow kept talking, clearly expecting Celeste to keep listening to him.
The teacher inside the Architect of Creation wanted to continue to listen. She really did. However, she could also see that he was not talking about himself but rather his perceived version of himself, meaning that she wouldn't change his mind this way.
"I am Celeste, by the way." Celeste budded in, startling the drow because she had dared to interrupt him. "What might your name be?" She asked, hoping being approachable might make for a more interesting conversation.
The drow looked at her suspiciously for just a moment before smirking. "You willingly give your name to an agent of death? That is very unwise of you. You don't seem to understand who I am or the power that we wield." He said with that mocking tone of voice that was starting to grate on Celeste's nerves.
"I am Mordecai, primogen and head of the black house. I am the reaper of the drows and the agent of death. My words are the final words that any drow will hear, and I condemn them to their final fate. There are no other, I am the Omega, the last will that none can defy." Mordecai spoke while dark power seemed to coil around his body and focus on the head of his staff.
His eyes were wide open and had turned from pure white to completely black as he pointed a finger at Celeste. The power rushing from the staff to the tip of his digit.
"And my will is that you have interfered with my Domain, and I will reap your body and mind! I command you to DIE!" A thick, coiling mass of black power rolled off his staff into a small ball at the end of his finger.
With but a thought, he sent the ball towards Celeste as he threw the condensed and unavoidable version of his Domain at her.
Celeste felt something strange as Mordecai unleashed his power. She knew what he was doing. He was using Reaping Word to destroy her. His powers with death were clear, but Celeste could feel her connection to the Domain as well.
She spent a single point of Energy, a simple moment of focus, and as the Reaping Word left Mordecai's hand, it disappeared. It simply seemed to vanish. That was a fascinating aspect of Domains. Apparently, you could cancel powers from your own Domain.
Health 24/24 Energy 4/5
Mordecai could probably do the same, simply dispelling any Death Domain power that Celeste threw at him.
However, the drow didn't seem to know this fact. His stunned face betrayed him, as he seemed overwhelmed by it.
"I... I..." Mordecai was flabbergasted, struggling to find the words to say as Celeste moved closer.
"So, Mordecai. I am willing to start over. Pleased to meet you, I am Celeste, the first god." She said, and she couldn't help but grin.