Ah, so I’m in this place again.

The one with the star pyramid thing, the one that breathes. Why didn’t I remember this?

MORTAL MINDS ARE NOT MEANT TO COMPREHEND THE HEAVENS.

Oh.

Wait, what?

…

I’m pretty sure something just answered me. I know I’m unconscious again since Nyx isn’t anywhere to be seen. Didn’t it sound like... like... something different before? Like words forming in my soul?

THE GODS ARE OF THE SOUL, AND ARE THE SOUL, WHERE MORTALS ARE MERELY INHABITED BY THEM.

Great.

What does that mean?

I stare in silence while the moving lights continue their dance.

…

…

Did I die or something?

FAR FROM IT, LITTLE GODLING.

Heh?

Wait... was... I remember I felt something break, and then...

I MADE AN OFFER WHICH YOU ACCEPTED.

What offer?

As soon as the words leave my... mouth? Mind? Something? Part of my Status appears in my mind.

[Class: Adherent of Ananke]

Ooooh. Right, that thing.

So then, this is the consequences I guess.

So, you called me a godling... what does that mean?

The cosmic force does not respond. I guess I’m supposed to just, figure that out on my own then.

MORTAL FATES OFTEN CHANGE SIMPLY BY OBSERVATION. LIVE, CONSUME, LAY YOUR CLAIM, AND ASSERT YOUR PRESENCE UPON CREATION. BUT NEVER FORGET HOW IMPOSSIBLY SMALL YOU ARE. WE ARE ALWAYS WATCHING.

Wonderful! I have intergalactic stalkers!

I try to think up something else I’d want to ask a god if one was actually in the room answering questions, but instead I find my mind blanking out, along with the rest of me.

***

I’m awake.

The disinterested bustle of Gramr continues on the street, apparently completely unaware of anything that just happened. I guess that’s the power of a god for you.

The cocoon of shadows is long gone, but the light above me is much dimmer than I would have expected... I feel a light rain, but I don’t remember ever having seen it rain here before.

“You saved me.”

Hm? Who said that?

(Welcome back, sleeping beauty,) Nyx snarks.

I blink, still bleary from my jaunt through... whatever that was.

(You had another vision, didn’t you?)

Yeah.

I take in what is around me. It looks like I’m in an alley now, at least half a street back, sheltered from the overhead light. The rain continues, from an empty... wait.

(You say ‘wait’ a lot. Maybe expand your vocabulary.)

It doesn’t count if it’s in my head.

I’ve finally pulled myself back to my senses enough to process the situation. I’m laying on the ground, eyes up at the sky, with a shadow over me that appears to be smoking faintly. I can sense from its will that whatever is above me is living, probably, so I Identify it.

Stolen novel; please report.

[Nightwalker – Izahne (Paladin) – Level 0]

“What’s a ‘Nightwalker’?” I ask nobody in particular.

A small giggle bubbles above me. “It’s what you remade me as.”

“Huh. By the way, your Identify thing is red.”

I shift and try to get up, but find myself weighted down. I absentmindedly dematerialize and drift to a more comfortable height and see my paladin fall in a heap where I’d been. She lets out a small “oof”.

She’s still smoking. I wonder if she knows that?

(Yeah, she definitely – )

“Did you know you’re smoking?”

Ah, the pleasant sound of Nyx facepalming.

Izahne brushes some ash from her exposed skin and says, “It looks like this happens if I’m in sunlight.”

Huh.

Also, she’s naked for some reason. I’m guessing her clothes burned off or something. I wrap my robes around her and rematerialize myself in my academy uniform – this will have to do for now.

(Good, you’re learning. They don’t like being naked unless they’re trying to be naked,) my Assistant says.

Looks like our bond broke somehow. Guess I’ll just renew that a minute...

Izahne promptly accepts it, and then blushes... gray?

Well, whatever.

We should probably get out of this alley.

I begin reforming myself the way I do when I carry her. “Let’s return to the lair.”

She holds her arms out to me in a way that I can somehow tell is childlike, and I scoop her up. Our bond floods with what I already know as joy, and... something else?

(Lust,) Nyx informs me.

Yeah, not doing anything with that, thanks.

As we’re moving, it registers that I never did check those System messages, so I give them a look.

[Available Skill: Telekinesis (Least) used for the first time!]

[Telekinesis (Least) added to Skills!]

[You have reclaimed the Mantle of (Domains: Envy, Hunger, Night)!]

[Take your rightful place among the gods of modernity!]

[Global message: Be it known to all that the Mantle of (Domains: Envy, Hunger, Night) has been reclaimed!]

[Warning: SYSTEM Integrity Compromised!]

[Warning: Foreign material detected within Anima and Akashic Self!]

[Fatal Error: The Rite of Apotheosis has failed!]

[Divinity (UNKNOWN) has overridden mitigation procedures: (One final gift.)]

Uh. What?

(It makes sense if you think about it. A past you subsumed a god and got into the Record through their soul. You are the foreign material, and apparently you being in there to begin with broke the rite apotheosis the same way it’s apparently been breaking your reincarnating.)

Sure, but I think we’re skipping over something here.

(You mean the rite of apotheosis? There’s a few ways to do it. I know, I researched it when I...)

Nyx trails off into a sigh.

Take your time.

She takes a long breath before continuing. (No matter which route you take, you need to possess enough divinity to make the change to begin with. You ate a literal god’s soul, so that’s definitely enough there. For the rite itself at that point you need to have a god vouch for you, and it looks like your benefactor handled that. The way they chose to enact the rite is what you already know. You took a follower as an Agent.)

Wait, so basically just doing any uh, ‘godly thing’ would count!?

(No?)

I sigh, and the ash blows behind me in the wind.

Fine. What else changed?

(Your Vessel trait changed, now it says ‘Vessel of Nemesis’.)

Heh? I’m my own Vessel?

(Apparently,) she shrugs. (Also you have a line about having a Mantle. Oh, and a title about being a sworn enemy of Themis? I’m sure that’ll end well.)

Yeah, I figured as much. Gods don’t like when you take their toys, I should know.

I continue drifting in silence for a while. As we approach the lair, I have the thought to check Izahne’s Status as well, since I can do that through our bond.

[Status]

[Name: Izahne Sebelle Emari]

[Race: Nightwalker (Indra, Least)]

[SYSTEM: TYPE C – Level 41 – XP 1160/42000]

[Inherent Skills:]

[Drain 0]

[Natural Weapon 0]

[Class: Famine’s Blade – Level 0 – XP 0/1000]

[Class Skills: None]

[General Skills:]

[Dimensional Storage 2]

[Identify 26]

[Stealth 12]

[Language]

[Interplanar Common]

[Eldra Indigenous]

[Indra Indigenous]

[Shadowborne]

[Traits:]

[Fresh Start]

[Blessed of Envy]

[Blessed of Hunger]

[Blessed of Night]

[Mana Thirst]

[Titles:]

[Agent of Nemesis]

[Betrayer of Themis]

[First Among Kin (Queen of Hunger)]

[Foe of Justice]

[Left Hand of the Queen]

[Queen’s Consort]

[Stolen Agent]

Huh.

I drift through my lair’s entrance and down the elevator. When I’ve reached the common room I set Izahne down and reform myself to sprawl out on the sofa Pearl insisted we needed. Why am I so exhausted?

(Do you really need to ask?) my Assistant chides.

I sigh and take a Consume nibble of my paladin, who promptly collapses to the ground.

…

Was she weak or something? She’s definitely still alive...

(Can you just think about it? Most of your Domains are now Mantle-empowered. Of course your hunger-related Skills are going to be amplified. Also, were you paying attention?)

To what?

(She has Mana Thirst.)

So?

(SHE HAS NEVER FED.)

Ooh.

Wait, I can pull vitality through our bond... and it was always one-way, but I’m what, a fucking god now? Almost a god or something?

(What are you getting at?)

I focus my will and force some of my own vitality into our bond, and Izahne visibly relaxes on the floor. I try to lift her with my new Telekinesis Skill but it looks like it’s not quite strong enough to lift her outright, so I instead lift her with a pair of feelers without getting up. I’m tired, and I just gave away vitality, it’s fine! It's definitely fine!

“Is somebody here?” accompanies the sound of a door opening.

My paladin is the first to respond. “Hello Abaris, we’re back.”

“Aha. You, uh. You look different,” he says.

I sit up. “Perfect timing! You know lots of stuff, what the hells is a ‘nightwalker’?”

The obounis freezes.

“You know,” I point at Izahne, “like her? What is she?”

Abaris’ slowly swivels his head to me, and then back to Izahne before he quietly says, “What exactly happened? How?”

I shrug. “I stole her from Themis. Oh, and I guess I’m a god now, sort of. But that wasn’t my question.”

And his response is the sound of him hitting the floor. I don’t know what I expected.