Ebonheim nibbled on an assortment of berries she scavaged around the forest: thimbleberries, raspberries, juniper berries, and huckleberries. She closed her eyes and savored the explosion of flavors in her mouth as she chewed on the sweet, juicy huckleberry. The tangy notes of the berry provided a refreshing contrast to the sweetness, creating a symphony of flavors that danced on her tongue.
She reached for another berry, this time a plump raspberry. She admired the vibrant red color of the fruit and took a deep breath before taking a bite. The raspberry had a soft and delicate texture, unlike the slightly firmer huckleberry. She relished in the contrast of the two flavors, enjoying the unique taste of each berry.
She couldn't help but let out a contented sigh as she reached for another berry, feeling grateful for this moment of peace and tranquility that almost made her forget the tribulations she endured earlier. Almost. The image of Engin and Thorsten chasing after her still lingered in her mind. They may have won the battle and caused her to retreat, but she wouldn’t give up that easily.
That’s right. She was ill-prepared in that entire ordeal, but that was all about to change. She stared in front of her, focusing her gaze on nothing in particular.
[5 Attribute Points need allocation]
[Choose 5 starting abilities]
The glowing, translucent interface appeared before her eyes, hanging in the air like an ethereal mist.
Knowing what something was, yet not knowing much about it, was not a new experience for her despite having only recently awakened. The very moment she became aware of herself and her surroundings, she always felt that she knew a little bit of everything that she encountered even though it was her first time experiencing them. She knew what the sky was, what a tree was, what animals were, and even knew the names and faces of all the people she saw in the village. But, she didn’t know a great deal about any one thing.
The Akashic System...she felt sure that it was instrumental to her birth and her role as a deity. The times that she had interacted with it, it felt like calling upon something outside of herself while also dredging into the deep recesses of her mind. Whatever the sensation, she could manifest it through her will and it reacted accordingly. Maybe it was how gods and goddesses managed their powers and domain.
“Alright, let’s get started then,” she spoke aloud to no one in particular. “Show me my attributes.”
[Attributes are only applicable while in manifested form]
[Attributes]
[Intelligence:16, Perception:23, Resilience:20, Strength:12, Agility:26, Endurance:16, Charisma:27, Manipulation:10, Wit:13]
Hmm. Her intuition had a rough understanding of what those attributes said about her, but she had nothing to compare herself with.
“What would a normal human’s attributes be?”
[Average attribute for a human is 16]
“Sixteen?!” She blinked and looked at her attributes again. So she was as smart as an average human, quite a bit better at perceiving things, was more resilient, weaker than average, quite a bit more nimble, average in endurance, a lot more charismatic which was natural, being a goddess and all, but somehow it didn’t help at all dealing with Engin and Thorsten–was this system lying to her? She probably couldn’t manipulate a child into giving her head pats. Lastly, below average wit.
“Am I a plebian goddess?”
She groaned and fell back, the remaining bundle of berries rolling off her lap. The screen lingered in front of her as she covered her face in shame.
“I don’t think I’d like the answer but, what’s the best attribute a human can have?”
[Maximum attribute for a human is 32]
She groaned again, stomping her heels on the soft dirt beneath her. “I’m not even better than the best a human can be at any one attribute?!”
Ah, but if she put her five attribute points into her Charisma, then she’d be on par with the most charismatic human. Or maybe she could put it all into Strength so she could be average. Or maybe she could be smarter, or wittier, or…
After a short time passed, she popped another berry into her mouth. “Calm down, Ebonheim, don’t be rash again. The sun is still up, and you’re in a safe spot that they haven’t been to yet. Take your time.” She nodded to herself.
Before she could decide on what Attribute to put her points into, she needed to know a little bit more about other things.
“I want to know about my Health and Essence.”
[Health] 180/180
[Passive Health restoration: 9 per hour]
[Endurance and Resilience correlate to Health]
[Essence] 41/180
[Passive Essence restoration: 9 per hour]
[Intelligence and Resilience correlate to Essence]
She pondered for a bit. “Alright, let’s try adding a point to my Resilience.”
She focused her will on feeling more stubborn and unyielding.
[One point allocated to Resilience. Resilience: 20 -> 21]
[Health] 185/185
[Essence] 46/185
[Passive restoration unchanged]
She furrowed her brow. “Hrmm, it hasn’t really changed much.” She had four points left. She could put it all in Resilience but maybe she’d be better off fixing her shortcomings. She focused inwardly again.
[Intelligence:16 -> 17, Endurance: 16 -> 17, Wits:13 -> 14, Charisma: 27 -> 28]
[Health] 190/190
[Essence] 51/190
[Passive restoration unchanged]
Well, the last attribute wasn’t really a shortcoming, but who could say no to being more charismatic. She needed every bit of it to deal with the elders anyways.
She didn’t feel any different. Maybe it was because it didn’t increase by much.
At least now she knew where she stood compared to humans.
“Is there a way for me to see the attributes of humans?”
[Divine Ability: Divine Sight (Rank II)]
[Effect] Reveals the aura of the target. Concentrating on one target will reveal its basic information and Attribute distribution. If the target is one of your followers, more information can be revealed.
[Duration] 1 hour
[Cost] 5 Essence
“Ooh! It’s at rank one right now, how can I increase it?”
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
[50 Quintessence cost to increase from Rank I to Rank II]
[Current Quintessence: 719/8000]
Quintessence. Out of all the things she inherently knew about, this one was the most intimate to her. Quintessence was prayer and faith manifest. Much like how plants grew from the light of the sun, gods grew from the accumulation of Quintessence.
She felt that iota of rapture acquiring just a single Quintessence from Doyle’s prayer earlier. Seven hundred nineteen. That number represented the villagers' faith in her and she cherished every point of it. It bothered her that she would have to spend some of it to make her abilities stronger or if she wanted to have more powers.
"What happens after I've gotten eight thousand Quintessence?"
[After acquiring 8000 Quintessence, you are eligible to increase your divine rank from Lesser God - Dawn Stage to Lesser God - Ascendant Stage.]
[Additional abilities will be unlocked after each rank increase.]
[Accumulated Quintessence will be reduced to zero and a new limit of 16000 will have to be met in order to ascend to the next divine rank.]
After eating the rest of the berries, Ebonheim left the small clearing and headed southward for a change of scenery. The direction led further into the thick forest but she wanted to visit the small lake that was there.
She walked across the dense foliage unimpeded. Leaves, small plants, and branches seemed to shift ever so slightly away from where she would step.
[Forest Stride passive active]
She smiled. A handy ability, given that the village was in a forest. It helped in her escape earlier as well. She probably had more abilities that she wasn't aware of, but she'd find out once she reached her next destination.
----------------------------------------
The forest grew thicker and denser as she continued to walk. The trees were evergreen and so dense that it was hard to see the sky through them. It was difficult to remember just how long it took for her to reach the lake.
Ebonheim made a habit of taking random paths as she walked so that she could learn more about the forest and its inhabitants. She saw many small creatures on her path, each denizen allowing her light footsteps to pass uncontested.
She soon found herself at the edge of a small lake—The water of which was crystal clear and cold to the touch. Ebonheim took a moment to sit down on a large fallen log near the shore. The bark was smooth from long exposure and felt comfortable under her butt. She pulled her feet up and rested them on her knees, letting the sunlight wash over her face and skin.
She looked up to the sky through the trees and noticed a small bird passing by overhead. It swooped down towards the water, plopping itself gracefully onto the surface of the lake.
Ebonheim looked back at the water, watching the ripples move outwards from where the bird had landed. Apart from a slight distortion from the fading ripples, the water was like a mirror, showing her a reflection of herself and the forest around her. She found it peaceful.
She closed her eyes and leaned back, letting her feet dip forward. The cold water from the lake was a pleasant contrast against her skin to the heat of the sun. After a time resting like this, she opened her eyes and gazed peacefully at the shore. The gentle waves lapped softly against the shore.
She reached underneath the log and felt around for a suitable target, before pulling out a small, flat rock. She flicked it out onto the water, watching it skip once, twice, five times before finally sinking below the surface. After a few moments, the ripples spread and faded until all that was left was the calm surface of the water once more.
Ebonheim placed both hands on her hip and stood proudly. "Twenty-six agility right there! Hah!"
Silence greeted her.
"Hmm, what was I going to do again? Oh yeah." She wanted to see what abilities she currently had.
[Innate Abilities] Manifestation (Rank I), Demanifestation (Rank I), Divine Sight (Rank I), Domain Administration (Rank I), Domain Knowledge (Rank I)
She already used the first three, but the last two were foreign to her.
[Domain Administration (Rank I)]
[Effect] Administrator privilege to all Bound objects within your domain
[Domain Knowledge (Rank I)]
[Effect] Basic understanding of all objects and denizens within your domain
"Oooh, I know the second part. That's probably why I knew who Doyle, Thorsten, Engin, and the others were even though it was the first time I'd met them. That's pretty useful. The Administration part though, I'm not so sure about. Can you give me an example?"
[Error. No Bound objects within immediate vicinity]
"Guess I'll have to find one. Probably on my own too. Thanks." She sighed.
She looked back up to the sky and noticed another bird. This one was bigger than the first, flying much higher up. It swooped down over the lake and with a flutter of its wings, landed nearby.
She watched as it walked towards her, its beak opening with a loud squawk. Ebonheim didn't flinch or jump away, only staring at it. The bird cocked its head to the side and looked at her in return. It hopped up on the log beside her and looked down at her.
Ebonheim leaned forward and extended her hand, patting the bird on the top of its head. "Well hello there," she said.
The bird snorted and took a few steps back, sitting down on the log again. Ebonheim continued to pet it. "You don't have a name do you? No worries, I can give you one. Now, what should your name be?"
The bird looked at her with curiosity before suddenly squawking and opening its wings. It took off into the sky and disappeared.
"Wha– you didn't want me to name you? Come on, I'm a goddess! You could have been blessed or something." Ebonheim ruffled her hair and chuckled to herself.
As she continued her laughter, a rustling in the foliage followed by a wet, squelching noise from behind her caught her attention.
"What is it this time, a doe? Well, you're not gonna get away from me naming you-"
Ebonheim looked over her shoulder at the thicket of underbrush. Her eyes widened as she saw a strange creature protruding out of the foliage. It was about six feet tall, vaguely frog-like in appearance, and had mottled green and brown skin that blended in with the surrounding trees and brush. Its skin had a slimy texture, as if covered in a layer of mucus, and appeared to be thick and tough.
The creature's arms and legs were long and slender, ending in sharp, clawed fingers and toes that dug into the ground as it moved. Its body was thin and wiry, with a hunched posture that gave it an almost predatory appearance.
Its head was wedge-shaped, with a wide mouth that opened and closed in a never-ending cycle. Its eyes were a bright yellow, and they glowed with an otherworldly intelligence, giving the impression that it was far more cunning and intelligent than its bestial form suggested.
As the creature turned towards her, its lips pulled back, revealing rows of sharp teeth, long and curved, protruding from its gums like the tines of a fork.
"Um, well met. You don't happen to be a denizen of my domain, are you?" she asked though doubtful of any friendly response.
It let out a piercing shriek that echoed through the forest. Its voice was a guttural, croaking sound. It was somehow both terrifying and hypnotic, drawing Ebonheim’s attention towards its slitted eyes.
The creature's skin rippled and bulged as if something was moving underneath its surface, causing its appearance to shift and distort.
It charged towards her.
Ebonheim sprang backwards, landing on the lake shore. The creature followed and lunged at her. She dodged to the side and felt the cold water splash against her ankles.
"Aaaah! That's not a normal animal, what is that thing? Why is it attacking me?!"
The creature jumped again at Ebonheim but she ducked and dodged out of the way. It attacked her with either its claws swipes or large bites with its maw which was wide enough to swallow her whole.
"Alright, alright, I get it! You're a monster and you don't want me to name you. Fine, fine, I'll stop."
The creature croaked at Ebonheim and took another leap. This time, it came from the side and landed on the log, its maw wide open. It lunged for her but she jumped back and barely avoided the attack, its claws merely a hair's breadth away from giving her neck some gills of her own.
She screamed and scampered toward the forest. This was the second time someone or something had chased her except this time, the pursuer was more able-bodied. She briefly glanced behind her and saw it barreling through the thickets, its headlong rush just barely keeping up with her forest stride.
She ran as fast as she could, but it was still on her tail. The long legs of the creature gave it a clear advantage over Ebonheim's short nimbleness. She kept running and dodging.
Did she have anything to fight back with?
[No offensive abilities acquired]
[Choose 5 starting abilities divided between Active and Passive Abilities]
[Active Ability list: Ailment-Cleansing Pulse, Self-Regeneration, Element Re—]
"I don't have time to pick and choose! Something's trying to eat me!"
Her lungs started to burn as she sprinted for her life. She glanced back in time to see the creature lunge at her. She leaned forward and rolled her body to the side, tucking into a ball. It jumped over her and landed where she had just been standing. It turned its head around to see her and hissed.
Ebonheim took a moment to catch her breath. She was panting and her heart was beating rapidly. The creature stood up and walked closer, its eyes narrowed in determination. It lunged forward as Ebonheim maneuvered behind a tree. The creature collided with the tree with an audible thud, momentarily dazing it.
That was all the time she needed to double her efforts and continue her escape.
She happened upon one of the trails the villagers had paved and turned her direction to head towards the village. It recovered, and was once more in pursuit.
Wait. Why was she running away from a mere monster? She was a goddess. Surely, she could take it on and defeat it herself. What threat could a frog-beast pose anyways?
A second frog-headed creature burst through the bushes right behind the first and joined the chase.
"Thorsten! Bjorn! Engin! Save me! I don't care if you put me back in that cage. HELP!"