The jaws of the trap closed as its main consciousness sought to meld with my own. The dark choir opened the floodgates when it was at its most vulnerable. They assisted me in channeling raw Entropy, the foundation of my power, into the mana-form of a most complicated spell. As this energy surged, the void whispered madness, as something was simultaneously drawn away in a chaotic symphony; the intrinsic identity and the essence of the Mimic. It was they, and not I, that cast the threads of the Drain spell, each tiny thread latching onto a string of the Mimic’s conscious thought before hungrily tearing into it.
It was taken completely by surprise, for human duplicity was still a foreign concept to it, and it could have never predicted this moment. For a second, I felt its fear before it was completely overwhelmed, as its consciousness was sucked out of it and lost to the ether.
I had, for all intents and purposes, destroyed its consciousness and whatever it was that made the Mimic a Mimic. I shrieked internally in delight for a victory claimed, though the understanding of how I did what I did was fleeing me.
I was me, and not an us. I was a human, and not some sort of amalgamation of man and monster. I was pure.
Up above me, Iasis crowed happily as she floated in lazy circles. With a smile, her divinity descended, stopping just above head height.
“Wonderful, now truly you are stained in my colors. I have beaten my sister on this turn!” she crowed with childish joy.
She doesn't know. She doesn't know. She doesn't know. I kept repeating myself like a mantra in my head, fighting back a smile of satisfaction. The gods were not omniscient and it seemed that even they could even be tricked.
“Now, I guess there is nothing for it but to be on your way. Your very existence will be a walking prayer to me, the greatest of Divines. Know it to be an honor and a gift,” she intoned.
“I live but to serve,” I answered wearily, glad that my helm hid my features.
“How delightful, I see that the Change has transformed you for the better. Much better. I see you have finally learned some respect, even if it makes you a little less interesting…” she pouted prettily. “Now, tell me would you like bear my Grace? It is a more powerful thing than my sister’s.”
There it was, the true design behind all of this ridiculous nonsense. The true monster before me clearly wanted to trap me in some kind of Faustian bargain. I tried to summon the defiance to refuse, but my curiosity was stronger.
“What advantage does your Grace have over mortal-made alchemics or common spells?” I asked cautiously, my voice hoarse from my ordeals.
The Goddess quivered with rage, closing her eyes for what felt like an eternity. When she opened them, slowly and deliberately, I was met with the full force of her ancient, malevolent gaze.
"You dare to treat with me as if this were a market square, mortal? You would choose the clumsy imitations that only mimic what I, a Divine, could bestow upon you? Do you believe it takes merely an immortal body to bear the burden of time beyond your mortal span?" Her words were more of a declaration than a question.
She tossed her head back and laughed, the night of her hair fanning out behind her. "You wouldn’t be the first to walk such a path! Truly, your brazenness knows no bounds."
"Avaria would have me as a puppet and slave. What can you offer me? I may be, as you say, a mere mortal, but I am no fool. What do you want?" I insisted, forcing the words out.
Inside my helm, I smiled a secret smile. I had learned a crucial lesson: a Divine could be tricked more than once. Mine was not a hopeless quest.
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Her smile turned lascivious and beguiling once more as she floated closer, pressing her supple body against the unyielding hardness of my armor. Never before had I felt such a powerful, demanding need. I marshaled all of my will to resist. Yet, as if controlled by unseen strings, I found myself removing my helm and hooking it to my waist.
"Much better," Iasis purred, grinning before whispering into my ear, "Nothing too odious, my child... all you would have to do is..."
The words that followed pierced my ears, sharp and unbearable—words no mortal was ever meant to comprehend. Blood trickled from my nostrils as I collapsed to my knees. With just a few words, my Health had dropped by over fifty points. Gritting my teeth against the pain, I felt a primal fear take hold of me.
"I hope that was instructional," she said, her voice cold as winter’s breath. "That was a fraction of a fraction of eternity. Let it serve as a reminder that without us, you mortals are nothing. Know your place and the cost of your petty defiance."
"But what mother isn’t forgiving?" she continued, her tone shifting. "I forgive you, Gilgamesh of Uruk. You will leave now, for I have much to consider." Iasis smiled, her unnatural golden, slitted eyes filling with a strange sadness.
"Leave us... my prayer made flesh," she whispered, retreating into the deeper darkness, her form becoming less real, more transparent.
“One of Vari’s virgin whores waits for you on the sands with a few other mortals. You would do well to end her, or perhaps do whatever you wish with her… Ah, and there is a new den of your kind at the end of the long water. You may go there and spread my glory. Go forth then, my Gilgamesh, you will find safe passage from the Guardians and the Praxis down that path. Remember to always take the left,” Iasis instructed, pointing imperiously to a passage that had mysteriously opened behind the altar dedicated to her. Moments later, she faded from sight.
Her words hit me like a splash of water in the desert, and relief settled awkwardly upon me. So engrossed was I in my struggles that I had forgotten completely about my companions. Up until now, a part of me had thought them dead, swallowed by the great worm. If I had, however, thought about things rationally, I realized my quest to escort Larynda had not failed, which meant that she was still alive. And, if the girl was still alive, then it would have meant that others who had been in proximity to her were also. It was high time to focus on the path before me.
Pushing down my concern for my companions, I peered ahead and could barely see the passage, for the glow of the golem corpse had dimmed considerably. Nonetheless, I forced myself to walk on, glad that I had a means to get out of this dark and forsaken place. I had had enough of the gods for a moment, sworn promise of vengeance or no.
For a few moments, I considered recasting my Holy Aura, but thought better of it because of recent company. I had to at least keep the thin veneer of acquiescence, or the Goddess might be less accommodating.
With my heart burdened by recent events, I lumbered on with a clank of metal, starting upon this dark path with no small amount of trepidation. With no good source of light, my hand guided the way as I felt along the unnaturally smooth stone walls.
Once I judged I had traveled a suitable distance, I decided to finally take stock of my situation. In need of light, I pushed down the hungry pulse of Entropic aura, a pulse that had grown to follow the beat of my heart, and released Holy Aura. Determination filled me, a sense that I was doing right, and the light of the spell illuminated the way. Under the light of divinity, I took inventory.
Despite the casual violation of my will, my encounter with Iasis left me with a glimmer of hope. From her, I had learned that it was possible to achieve a form of immortality without the aid of the Divines.
Also, I had my blade, a lethal weapon capable of warding off the mightiest of monsters in my hands, a well-made dagger and a fancy crossbow that was useless without any bolts.
How long would I need to travel before I could find a source of water? Iasis had disappeared before I could ask her any relevant questions to my current situation. The gods of this world were certainly stingy in their aid…
Where was the mimic? Was the thing inside of me and eating at me from within? The potential horror of the situation ran laps in my mind as I searched for its presence, and felt a shifting under the skin of my hand.
Quickly, I removed my gauntlets and touched the hand that had made contact with the monster. It looked normal to the naked eye with no unusual markings, but I could feel something new, but now unquestionably dormant, within me. Then, tendrils of something vile undulated just under the skin in rippling patterns that thoroughly disgusted me. I had to stop myself from dry-heaving, thoughts of this moving within my hand almost unmanning me.
Hissing through my teeth, I prepared myself for what I had to do next, grateful that I had kept enough Mana in reserve for a Heal spell. As I raised my sword, Iasis’ whispered words echoed in my mind, freezing my arm mid-motion. Snarling, I brought the blade down to sever the infection that had taken root in my hand, the last of the taint that was the gift of the Mother of Monsters.