Caethya breathed heavily as she stared into the endless dark below her. Her lungs filled with nothing, her hands and knees somehow found purchase on ground that did not exist, and her mind struggled to comprehend what her eyes saw and her aura sensed. Despite not being able to truly understand what surrounded her, Caethya was intimately familiar with it. Every night, in her dreams, she had had visions of this place.
At first she had thought it was the dungeon trying to trick her yet again. It had never ceased in its attempts to try to take her, turn her into one of the soulless puppets that would obey whatever twisted thing the dungeon desired. Once the woman's attention had fully settled on her, however, that quickly changed. There was an incomprehensibly vast and yet familiar presence looming just outside her mind, one that she had been searching for all her life.
The Elven-looking woman did not appear to be doing much — she wasn’t even carrying her sword anymore — and yet she was threatening to overwhelm Caethya by simply existing. Her mind still echoed with thoughts not her own, forced inside by something against which she could never hope to properly defend herself. And yet, they only spoke of apology and sadness, asking for her forgiveness for what had been done to her.
Caethya did not quite understand why the All-Mother would be sorry for anything. She should be lauded, thanked, and indeed Caetha herself had fallen to her knees to offer her gratitude for her blessing, almost even daring to ask why she, of all beings, had been blessed. The title she had been given was the reason for her rise to power, after all. Only twenty-five years of age, and she was already close to level four hundred; a feat few could ever claim to accomplish, not even other Elves like herself.
Her kind might have the initial advantage of time, but for some reason not many chose to use it to better themselves. But then, the same could be said for all the races. The pursuit of power was not something many took part in, most saying it was too dangerous.
For Caethya it had always been clear what she would do when she was old enough. She would travel, searching for the being that had given her this blessing. It might have been unreadable by the stones and only recently had she actually known what the title actually meant, but its effects had always been clear regardless.
Every reward the System gave was increased for her. She was able to gain levels faster than others, accrued more attributes per level, and had a control over her own mana that made some of the masters she had trained under grow pale. The amount of mana she could draw on had also already dwarfed that of her parents when she had been first appraised at sixteen.
There had been some confusion at the time over the garbled mess that was her title, but it was quickly dismissed as fault of the stone simply not being able to properly handle the amount of mana she held. Now that she knew for certain what the title meant, she was glad it had not been revealed at her first appraisal. Caethya had heard of the legendary being that was somehow above the other deities, but had never taken an active part in those discussions. It was a good way to get yourself on the bad side of some of the bigger churches. At least Mayeia doesn't think that way.
Quite the opposite in fact; the Goddess of Magic had been eager to meet Caethya. She had met the Goddess in person – a rare honor – three years ago, and it was then that she had gotten the cryptic hint that she should, perhaps, visit the Ebenlowe dungeon and head for the core. Did she know I would meet her here?
She shook her head and took another deep breath of the nothing that filled the black abyss surrounding her. It was weirdly soothing, filling her with a sense of calm that she had not known before. It seemed similar, in a way, to the sensations she now knew stemmed from the woman that had given her the blessing. Is this her Dominion, then?
She stiffened at the thought, slowly raising her head to look at the winged Goddess. Caethya could not claim to know much about the workings of the Gods, but being brought to what was essentially their home was most certainly not something common.
"Are you hurt, Caethya?"
The voice of the All-Mother echoed through the nothingness, filling the kneeling Elf with a new wave of comfortable warmth. Her first instinct was to resist the mana that rolled off the winged Goddess, to reject the foreign intrusion. Any attempt to do so would be futile of course; Caethya had little doubt that the being in front of her could erase her from existence with but a passing thought.
She took a deep breath and, for a brief moment, wondered how the winged Goddess knew her name, before she remembered just who the being in front of her was. After another breath, she shook her head in an attempt to clear it. Physically she was fine, despite the lack of air or anything one would usually expect to find in a world made for the living. "I-I am fine," she managed to stammer out after another moment of silence.
"...May I see your face?" There was a bit of apprehension in her voice, as well as a small pressure against the veil her hood cast over her face. Most people assumed she hid her appearance because she had somehow been disfigured, like most other adventures that made use of such enchantments.
She did not have such concerns, as any wound she had received during her adventures had healed perfectly given enough time. Even the time she had lost her hand had, eventually, left no scars or other signs of the injury. For Caethya the hood was just a means to hide her identity; it made the use of identification magic rather useless. Not that many people have such skills anyway.
Before the [Status] view had been enabled, skills like [Identify] were the only means to get a quick view of someone's level and their most prominent title, should the person have one and the user of the skill have it at a high enough level.
Caethya pushed herself off of the solid nothing below her, settling in a proper kneeling position and pulled her hood back, revealing her black and silver hair and the pointed ears of her Elven heritage. Why the Goddess had not simply looked past the veil was not something Caethya knew, but neither would she question the All-Mother.
The winged Goddess took a step closer, the movement somehow enough to close the not insignificant distance and bring her directly in front of the now kneeling Elf. She lowered herself and very slowly stretched out her hand to brush an errant strand of hair out of Caethya's face.
"I hope your life has not been marred by undue hardships," the All-Mother said, her eyes darting around, trying to find something that did not reveal itself to Caethya. Did I do something wrong? She unconsciously balled her fists at the thought, a motion that did not go unnoticed by the winged Goddess as she quickly withdrew her hand and took a step back.
She was so close to getting answers. The only person who could give them was in front of her, and yet Caethya could not find the proper words to voice her questions. It should have been a simple thing, just open her mouth and ask: 'Why me?'. Was there a reason for her to gain this blessing? Did she somehow miss a hint as to what she was meant to do? Or, perhaps, this all came to be because the All-Mother was bored and wanted entertainment? But why would she ask for forgiveness, then?
Her swirling thoughts were interrupted by the voice of the fiery-haired woman that not only looked very similar to the All-Mother, but was also familiar to Caethya despite her inability to place where she might have seen the woman before.
"I believe she needs a bit more time to calm down, mother. Meeting you and then being transported here is undoubtedly quite shocking to any mortal."
"Perhaps," the All-Mother murmured quietly, not taking her eyes off of the kneeling Elf. There was obviously something more she wanted to say but kept to herself. Caethya had no reason to believe that the being in front of her was in any way disappointed with what she had done, but her mind still defaulted to that line of thinking.
Stolen novel; please report.
That the All-Mother, the one she knew had made everything that surrounded them — or at least played a significant role in its initial creation — had asked for her forgiveness was simply ignored. What had she done that would require the forgiveness of a mere mortal? Why would she even ask that?
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Aperio did not take her eyes off the kneeling Elf. The woman had told her that she was fine, only to then react with what the winged Goddess interpreted as rage at her touch. Perhaps she was a slave as well?
Not many people besides her own daughter had made attempts at touching her. There was a good reason for that, too, as the first one that had tried was no longer among the living. That death had been one of the reasons why she had come to Ebenlowe, but now it seemed that it had been largely forgotten. Or the [Grandmaster] made it quite clear that they should not mess with me.
She pushed those thoughts from her mind and refocused on the woman in front of her. Caethya. Aperio had not heard the name before, of course, but she still felt something familiar from the woman. Probably my mana inside her. She still wasn't sure if by 'granting them a fraction of your magic' the System meant that they had access to mana of higher purity or simply possessed innate skills that closer resembled what she did with magic.
The Elf slowly straightened herself, but remained kneeling. She eyed Aperio for a moment longer before finally deciding to speak. "Why do you ask for forgiveness?"
It was not what Aperio had expected. She sounded genuinely confused, clearly not understanding why she had asked to be forgiven on their first meeting. It also implied that her life might not have been ruined like Maria's or, what Aperio considered more likely, that her magic was messing with their minds.
For ruining your life? Touching your very soul without permission? Forgetting what I have become and giving in to curiosity? There were many things she could choose from which would require forgiveness, and yet she could not bring herself to say any of them without knowing what kind of life the Elf in front of her had lived.
"For setting you on a path before you were even born and bringing you here," Aperio finally said. It was not a lie, per se, but neither was it the whole truth. In the end, it was simply the best answer she could come up with at the time that did not require her to endure more absurd feelings of disgust and wrong.
Caethya's brows drew closer as she lowered her head in thought. It only lasted for a moment, however, as she quickly lifted her head again and met the eyes of the winged Goddess.
"I will not forgive, but thank you for blessing me with this gift," she said. "I do not know why you chose me, but I am grateful that you did. Your touch has allowed me to reach heights that few can even dream of, survive wounds that would claim any normal person's life."
Aperio knew not where the woman had suddenly found the conviction to talk like she did. It was a welcome change, however, as it revealed that her blessing — Does it count as one? — actually did some good. Now she only needed to figure out if it was her mana influencing the person in front of her to make them more agreeable or if they were simply frightened that she would will them out of existence should they not say what she wished to hear. There was, however, something she wanted to know.
"Your family did not shun you for having a title they could not understand?"
"Why would they?" Caethya asked, raising an eyebrow at the question. "They follow Mayeia and she does not care for what the System says, only what you do."
And the title made you stronger so in their eyes it's more than fine. Aperio wasn't sure if she really liked that approach either, but it was undoubtedly better than what Vigil, Inanis, and the rest of what Ferio had so liberally branded as traitors did. The fact that a Goddess did not care what the System said somehow unsettled Aperio however, especially when it was one that supposedly ascended around the same time as Natio.
Maybe she wants to hide the fact that the System can ascend someone to Godhood? It was a plausible answer, as the existing deities did not seem to like competition. Perhaps they will have to deal with Laelia one day though… Probably Caethya and Maria too. All of them had received a rather sizable chunk of very potent mana from her after all. Maybe even Arden, though he has less than the other three.
Saying that she was not interested in seeing the people she had accidentally blessed ascend to godhood would be a lie, but Aperio would still not inform them of the possibility. At least not now. If they proved to be sane enough, it would be an option. But isn't that messing with their lives even more? Telling them or not, both would influence them to follow certain paths, something she had wanted to avoid doing.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a slight mental nudge from her daughter, asking if she was alright. Aperio waved her concerns off, simply shifting the thoughts she had about three potential Goddesses to her daughter.
A slight giggle from Ferio got the attention of Caethya who opened her mouth to speak, but was silenced when the Goddess of Light and Life herself spoke up. "Nothing you have to concern yourself with, sister."
The words of her daughter gave Aperio pause. ...Sister? Caethya? Why her, but not Maria? Or is it just sister-in-faith, and I'm overthinking things? Something told her that Ferio was thinking more along the lines of an actual sister rather than just a fellow woman who happened to believe in the same Goddess.
A gentle touch of her mana conveyed her question to her daughter who, after a brief moment of silence, replied with what Aperio had apparently told her about how she came to be.
It wasn't that different to what had happened to Maria or Caethya. Instead of touching a soul that was floating in the river waiting for its next turn at life, Aperio had created one. The fact did not sit entirely well with her, as it only further solidified things she did not like but already knew. But, it did indeed answer why her daughter thought of the kneeling Elf as a sister.
Should Caethya ascend to godhood — something Ferio apparently assumed was just a matter of time — there would virtually be no difference between the two of them. Just that I did not raise her myself. Which, while not that common, was not unheard of in the world of royalty and high nobility. There was another thing that made them more equal, something that hurt far more greatly than many things had thus far.
I also cannot remember raising Ferio.
"Sister?" The confused voice of Caethya returned Aperio's attention to the present.
"Perhaps one day," the winged Goddess said, foregoing an explanation. "Before we return, I have one favour I would like to ask of you." After she had received a hesitant nod from kneeling woman, Aperio continued. "I would appreciate it if you did not tell the others who I am. I would like to enjoy the few days of privacy I have left before word spreads down here."
"Of course, I will do as you ask," Caethya said, then hesitated briefly. "May I know why you are here?"
"To destroy the dungeon," Ferio replied. "For good."
The Elf's eyes widened at the answer, her head quickly swivelling between Aperio and her daughter.
"Would you like to join us?" Aperio had not really thought about what this might entail, but the shock and frantic expression that had settled on the young woman's features lead her to believe that destroying the core before she had a chance to get there would not be good.
"I would… but what about the rest of my party?"
"The offer is only for you; the reason I am here is not something I wish to share with complete strangers." This might be the first time she had met Caethya, but the bond she shared with her made trusting the woman that much easier. Any lie would easily be seen through. "You can confer with them once we return. We shall wait until you have come to a decision."
With those words, Aperio waved her hand at an empty patch of space. A small flex of her mental muscles was all that was required for reality to turn in on itself and a portal to the fiftieth floor of the Ebenlowe dungeon to form.
Taking a step closer to the still kneeling Elf, Aperio held out her hand. "Come now."