So apparently, removing the wraiths that were existentially draining the land’s mana allowed that mana to restore itself, which recreated the potential for spontaneous life.

At least, that’s what Abaris hypothesized and then explained over an hour and a half of talking very quickly and breathing almost as quickly. I half expected he was going to pass out at a few points.

It’s at least interesting to know that I don’t even have to do much to restore this plane. Basically I just need to exist, and not spread my presence over the whole place – at least not Domain: Hunger, since it looks like that spontaneously produces more wraiths.

(Before you ask... technically you could just let the planes continually produce more wraiths and then treat them all like more ghost traps, and continuously build mana that way,) Nyx interjects.

For once, I actually wasn’t planning for that, although I did think of it.

(Sure you did.)

I sigh my usual cloud of ash, interrupting my party mage’s ongoing overly-complicated academic tirade.

“So let’s cut to the chase,” I say before he can pick up where he left off, “you’re saying that clearing out the old wraiths lets mana happen which lets life happen. Got it. So why are we talking about it instead of sweeping the lands here to clear them out?”

He hesitates for a moment before responding. “Well, if my third hypothesis is correct, it won’t be nearly that simple. Let’s test it though: why don’t you try calling them now, from right here?”

I’m not really sure what he’s getting at since I already cleared this area out long ago, but I humor him and will for nearby wraiths to return.

And they do? What?

My Assistant tsks. (You shouldn’t be surprised. Places that have large amounts of residual negative emotions just naturally spawn them, don’t they?)

That’s... well shit. How the hells am I going to deal with that?

I stop and think for a moment. Can I increase my range somehow? I tried doing that yesterday, and didn’t have any luck with it... I can move pretty fast in my dematerialized form if I’m not carrying anyone, maybe I could try to cover a larger area that way? Maybe I could disperse myself into a larger area and then...

Oh!

“What is it?” my death knight asks, apparently somehow picking up that I’d had an idea.

(Probably because you’re a lot more physically expressive than you think. For someone born without a humanlike body, you use a lot of facial expressions. People tend to spend time learning how not to show everything like that, it can work against you.)

Huh.

Interesting, but not important right now.

I turn to Izahne. “I think I might know how I can clear a larger area much faster. I’m surprised I didn’t think of this sooner, since I already know it works for Skills. I imagine it would probably work for this as well, so I’m going to try it.”

Without another word, I create a fresh wraith from my ash and mana, and instruct it to quickly drift one mile in the fourth cardinal direction from the town, the direction we haven’t yet traveled. It does so without complaint as expected.

My two nearby party members just watch it go.

Less than a minute later, I can feel that it has reached its destination, so I retest what I’d done in the dungeon near the academy: I use a Skill through it, in this case Telekinesis, to lift a clod of dead soil and then set it back down. It obviously works, so I move to phase two.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

I focus my will, and the shape of the call, the summons for my subjects within sensing range. And sure enough, dematerialized wraiths in the soil, the desiccated trees, and even the air itself all burst into the nearby area with incredible speed and rapidly roll like a heavy fog to swarm around the new spawn.

“Phases one and two are successes. I can not only use Skills through my spawn, I can also project my will through them and therefore call others through them.”

I’m answered by widened eyes all around.

“Now, what remains is to create more spawn, enough that I can scatter them around and –”

“Wait,” my wife cuts in, “can you project your will through the old ones?”

…

Oh.

1.

I give it a try, specifically targeting one of the old wraiths near the new one.

And sure enough, it starts repeating my call as well.

I grin. “Yes, I can.”

But I’m pretty sure I can do that one step better.

“I have an even better idea though.”

I can change their instructions too. They’re very simple though... I can’t give them too much to do, or they’ll just end up standing there doing nothing – I've already tried. Too much more than ‘circle the town and attack anything that isn’t (small list)’ just confuses them. I’ve considered trying to make more intelligent spawn, but I’m not in the mood to deal with consequences of rebellious super-wraiths right now, so I’ll save that experiment for later.

Carefully, I begin crafting a pattern of instructions.

First, it travels half a mile in a random direction. After that, it projects a burst of my will – basically a prerecorded message for them to gather to the one projecting my will. Next, a short time later, it projects a second burst of my will to convey the same instructions to the others. And finally, it will return to me and await further instructions.

Hmm, yes. That should work!

(You’re definitely forgetting something,) Nyx predicts.

You always think I’m forgetting something.

She shrugs dismissively and replies, (Guilty as charged.)

Anyway, it’s time to test this thing. I offer the instructions to the newest wraith, and instruct it to begin.

And immediately pass out.

***

“Are you sure?” Pearl dumbfoundedly asks.

I shrug back. “Probably. We can test it anyway. If I can’t do it now, I can figure it out later.”

Abaris looks more skeptical. “How? How exactly is that possible? You did say you failed apotheosis... how can you impact the heavens?”

“Let’s find out,” I say as I stand back up and begin heading for the elevator. “If it can work, it will work.”

The three others join me as we exit my lair. The empty sky of Gramr greets us, along with the never-ending foot traffic.

Bystanders are probably going to be terrified by this, but I can’t say I particularly care, and so I focus my will, and reach for the sky.

“{restore moon}.” It doesn’t need to be anything complicated and so I leave it as simple as possible.

And for a moment, the shadow of something large and round appears in the night sky.

“What’s that!?” one of the nearby humans blurts, having seen the change.

Others beginning dashing for nearby buildings in a mad scramble, shouting things about planar incursions? What?

And then, not even one whole minute later, I feel my will wavering, strained to the limits. And the dim, distant lunar body vanishes. Confusion replaces terror for a great many of the humans, and after a while they resume their night-time wanderings.

Huh.

“I guess that didn’t work,” I say as my three companions bodily drag me back into my lair.

***

Hmm?

I lift my head and groggily look around at what is definitely my bedroom. What just happened?

(You had a dream, idiot. Get used to it,) my Assistant snaps. (At least you’re finally awake.)

Are you awake when I’m not?

(YES!)

Oh. That sounds obnoxious.

(Yes, yes, it’s absolutely maddening, now get up.)

Fine.

I float up from the bed and head toward the common room. When I enter, my party jumps up with a shout from the cushioned seating.

“You’re awake!” the healer says excitedly.

Abaris simply smiles and sighs in relief.

With a nod, Omorth says, “Good. It was a matter of time, but good.”

I return a deadpan stare, then look around the room. “Alright, I have questions and observations.”

They silently wait for me to continue, so I do.

“So, observations. First, and this is definitely a hypothesis... my will appears to be a limited resource, I can’t just spread it out between every single wraith on the plane and expect it to work, I’ll just end up passing out again probably. Second, I’m capable of dreaming, at least about the past. Third, System Assistants appear to stay conscious while ascendants sleep – or at least mine does, it may be different for others.”

“I see, I see,” Abaris nods thoughtfully, “the first unquestionably makes sense considering present and past results. The second and third, fascinating! And yet, anecdotal given many sentients don’t experience dreams despite requiring sleep... We already knew about the third, considering there have been other System Assistants capable of speech on historical record.”

Huh.

“Questions then. How long was I out?”

“Five days,” Pearl immediately answers.

“That is, not a short time. Huh. I’ll have to be more careful in the future. Second...”

I look around the room one more time.

“Where is Izahne?”