Chapter 068: The Beginning of End
Of course, it wasn’t about the blood at all. Gods of the White Pantheon despised blood sacrifices just as much as Inri… and even Overtyrant. No good side God expected something like that. I mean, why should they? It was barbaric, unhealthy and unhygienic.
It was about blood as a symbol of life, willingly given up for your God. But it wasn’t TRUE martyrdom. Gods generally disliked people simply throwing around their lives, even for them. They didn’t give them lives for them to waste them like that, right?
There was a difference between getting caught by some violent nonbelievers/heathens and get your head chopped off for refusing to reject your God… and actively searching for the violent nonbelievers/heathens to get your head chopped off and get into a short line to your afterlife.
But it was still martyrdom. Enough for the summoning to work, but not enough to bring him over in full power. He had 20 or 30% of the power he could normally wield while manifested in Reality.
Freedom
Unique
Category: Light
Type: Demigod
Threat Grade: Mithril X
A member of a limited, closest circle of most trusted servile demigods of Shimmer, Imperial Goddess of Light, Sun and Order. Weakened by an imperfect summoning, but still a power to be reckoned with.
A Seraphim.
According to Christian angelology (I personally had serious doubts about it being medieval religious-themed fanfics on the Bible, to be honest) the most powerful angels, surrounding the throne of God himself. With three sets of wings. Even Satan was supposedly hailing from the type of angels that were beneath them.
Here… well, the angels were Shimmer’s domain for some reason. Inri had Shepherds. But the part about three sets of wings remained. Two and a half meters in height. Wore a glistening white robe with golden ornaments… that he could probably switch into a glorious golden armour capable of withstanding anything short of a tactical nuke - at least if he was at his full power.
He could be ten centimetres high while wearing tattered rags... and we would still feel like we wanted to drop on our knees before him. His presence was tremendous.
Well, Demigods was pretty much Gods. People literally prayed to the being in front of us and sometimes got their prayers answered. They even had dedicated domains, like Gods themselves but more limited. And lost 99% of their power when manifested in Reality to avoid dealing damage to it.
I could feel the magic on Lena’s slave collar disappearing instantly… together with most of her combat skills, at least until we’ll find another one for her. Freedom. Huh. He probably broke all mind magic and slave collars in… few kilometres. At least. He is literally a manifestation of their exact antithesis.
Then, our defensive magicks were broken instantly. He didn’t hurt us, but he wanted to show us our place. He could annihilate all of us with a thought… but he didn’t do that. For some reason. It wasn’t even his own power. It was too strong to be a spell of his current, crippled self. It was merely a part of his status of demigod. His authority. The reflected shadow of his true self in the Dark.
We understood the message. The fighting froze. We all looked at the being in front of us. For an overwhelming majority of us, this was the most direct contact with the more ‘practical’ part of their religion in their lifetimes. Those that will survive - and will understand what was the being they saw - will describe that to their children. That will pass the stories for generations to come.
Nobody’s going to believe them.
The Seraphim moved over to the body of the Prophetess. She was lying on the ground at the edge of the summoning circle. Still alive, but about to bleed out.
He didn’t heal her. It would be counterproductive. It was her self-sacrifice that brought him here. If she was healed, he would be banished back. She was on the verge of death, which allowed him to cross… the power he could use here was going to grow at least a small bit after she dies.
I couldn’t see or hear what he did to her. But when he rose again, he carried her in his arms. She was obviously dying.
She was also obviously at peace. The look on her face told me everything. She knew what was going to happen for her now.
Eternity. The biggest reward one can win in this world.
“Normally, I would have you all killed.” He said. To us. Not to the cultists. I felt that in his words. “You are enemies of freedom. You serve Ambryxis. You help him continue his disgusting tyranny, either by your actions… or by lack of them. My lady, however, was adamant about me not touching any of the Tyrant’s puppets in the room that I was summoned into.”
He means us.
I don’t see any reason for him to spare people serving a deity like Ambryxis, that’s almost literally Tyrant’s vassal. The only Gods that Shimmer despised more than him are her siblings - Shadow and Malice. And Shimmer’s approach to her enemies is painfully close to Overtyrant’s.
But… Freedom can’t slay the ‘Tyrant’s puppets’ without betraying me and my party to the world. After all, how would we explain why we weren’t killed? And if we were killed, how would we explain why we weren’t dead, despite meeting a demigod of Shimmer? Even those knowing of resurrections would have problems believing that Demigod couldn’t overrule them.
“I’ll spare you then.” He continued. Is he… speaking to us? As in… me and my party? The Ardent Flame? Shimmer is in the Take Down Ambryxis group as well?! “This doesn’t extend to all other puppets between this place and Ambryxis. I will lose the battle against him, unfortunately.” WHAT?! “That’s how it has to be. But… this doesn’t mean that he will win. The city will fall soon enough… as long as the obstacles will be eliminated. As. Fast. As Possible.” This. Was this a message to me? I was still trying to figure that out, when he looked back at the cultists. “And you will help with that. Come.”
They left.
They left just like that.
I guess cultists had little reason to not follow the words of a pretty much literal deity that they worshipped. When it told them to go, they went obediently.
Hand of Freedom. So you had to take that literally. Heh.
I collapsed on my knees. I was kept straight mostly by adrenaline. When Freedom walked out, it just… stopped. I wasn’t the only one. Everyone left the room fell on the ground instantly. Some on their knees. Some fell down completely.
Holy shit. I seriously almost died there.
Now that I think about it, it was because of the location. Much more magic in the air than on the surface. More than in magical anomalies, even. It must have amplified his… natural charm, I guess.
“What..wwas that!?” Vasyr was the first one to speak, surprisingly.
“Dddemigod.” I managed to utter. “Mmmassively scaled dddown demigod.”
Let’s give the NPCs time to swallow the news up.
***
It took us maybe half an hour to get our shit together enough to be able to stand, walk… and even fight, though everything stronger than whiteguards would have absolutely murdered us with a single finger.
The dungeon-dimension served its purpose. Mr. Cuddles was about as dead as a daemon can be, and Freedom shut the door before Agony, denying her access. No risk of apocalyptic daemonic incursion. At least, not now and not from this particular place. It was slowly fading out. Unless something powerful moves in - unlikely, things of that power level are rare - it will disappear within a few weeks top. Or, to be exact, it will freeze permanently in its current internal outline, though many overly magical things (like, too ‘alien’ torture implements) will probably dematerialize.
The fortress was abandoned. Silver badges we left? All dead. They all probably fell down dead the second Freedom walked out of the dungeon. Practical lesson about why exactly Imperium absolutely refuses to send adventurers beneath platinum badge against things on a demigod’s level of power. Numbers are utterly meaningless.
Cultists probably felt his mental calling, grabbed winter clothing and provisions and moved out immediately. Most likely to pay Ambryxis a visit.
***
It took as a while to start our march back. We had to dig a lot of graves. Cultists were gone, after all, and we weren’t exactly interested in going back fast enough to actually run into Freedom’s host. The gravedigging was at least 50% excuse for our loyal Ambryxian to avoid hating our own cowardice… and 50% for us all to have an explanation after we reach Ambryxis.
It’s not like we had any chance with Freedom, right? Making sure there won’t be a host of undead roaming the countryside was quite important.
Finally we walked back. I wasn’t even surprised when Simea started interrogating me about Shimmer. The rest of my party was obviously listening as well. Ugh. I’ll keep it short.
“Shimmer?” I sighed. “You know the typical way the monotheistic deity of light is pictured in fantasy? The type with PURGE ALL THAT DISAGREE approach?” She nodded. “That’s Shimmer. Just like Shadow she got a bit… infected with Malice during his botched abortion. Pretty much a fanatic purifier, very trigger happy when it comes to Black Pantheon servants, undead, and Aberrants. Also a fanatic of equality and meritocracy, plus a pretty egotistic person. Though as all myths claim, she is almost as good as she sees herself as. Also, the White Pantheon jailer, there is a prison in Skyhaven, beneath her citadel, where a literally infinite number of daemons, aberrants, the Dead, and so on is imprisoned.”
Nobody ever escaped. Many tried. Shadow also tried to get back her adopted daughter - a primeval vampire - out, but it didn’t work. Rules were rules, after all, and they explicitly forbid prisoners from ever getting released. That she hated Shadow didn’t help - they had a long history. Long enough for Shadow to try and strangle her with the umbilical cord during birth (according to some myths, that is).
“So, essentially, lawful good to its extreme.” Lena commented.
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“Well… yes.” I had to agree with that, Shimmer was essentially a personification of the words lawful and good. “Though in the world where Doomplaces are a thing, and there are murderous daemons roaming the countryside, she does have a pretty expansive religious niche. In terms of Gods, when there is demand there is also supply.” I looked with a wry smile towards Leria. “You aren’t planning to convert, right?”
She answered me with a look of disdain. Then sighed, and looked somewhere else. Hmm. She is… awfully silent recently. Weird. I’ll investigate, though not now.
Suddenly I understood the words of Freedom. The last part, about eliminating obstacles. It was a sudden gust of inspiration, that happened merely because he knew that I was going to understand in that particular moment as long as he worded it in precisely that way.
Interesting. Why? They are pretty silent recently, and keep eyeing us with a tint of hostility, but…
Oh. It started when the fact that I was a Chosen One spread. So they… I see.
I looked at Syna and used her ability to read my lips. Her eyes opened wide when she understood the message. Then she smiled, showing her fangs.
Uh oh. I guess she likes it.
***
The perfect occasion to strike come quite quickly. While most of us wanted to go around the village, few were stalwart about checking out if Freedom had visited the village… and if there was something left of our non-combatants.
Vasyr and Vhera wanted to go check out their slave. I decided to follow them. Lybaer decided to follow us, but his last remaining teammate didn’t. I guess they will split soon enough. The trauma was too much.
Little was left of the village. Half of it was burned to the ground. Freedom probably gave the villagers a choice between renouncing the evil of Vanvyra or dying. Then burned those who refused. The rest probably fled or repented before him. Probably honestly, as his presence was… enough to ensure people were shaken enough to make decisions about changing their life.
There is a reason why Skyhaven is considered the bad neighbourhood of The Heavens, just like Pandaemonium - Malice realm - is considered the bad neighbourhood of Gehenna. Both are logical extremes of their respective pantheons. Both are disliked and even fought against, but they barely care. Malice is still 100 times worse than her.
Vasyr’s slave was there. Sitting behind the burned house. She lacked the collar - Freedom’s influence probably broke all of them in the vicinity. Together with all sorts of mind control short of full mental sculpt.
Vasyr hurried forward. Shouted her name.
She rose. Ran towards him.
Both Vasyr and I noticed the knife a bit too late. She stabbed him in the chest, right between the armor plates. Pushed the knife inside all the way to the handle.
The ensuing scuffle could have only one outcome. A backhanded blow of Vasyr sent her flying. She hit the ruins of the building with her back and collapsed down on the ground like a marionette whose strings were cut.
Vasyr fell on his knees and pulled the knife out as we reached him. He didn’t look good.
Poison?
It will only make our job easier.
“What a surprise.” I said. “Her loyalty lasted only so long as the collar control. What a shock that you can’t buy love with money, isn’t it?”
“The antidote.” Vasyr rasped. In pain. “Find. Please.”
Shit. I don’t know where she got that poison but it was some serious shit. Did Freedom give it to her? That would mean bending rules of the Great Game so far that they would totally break. Even relaying to us a message from Shimmer like that meant bending them a lot.
“What are you waiting for?!” Vhera pushed through people of my party and stood close to Vasyr. “I know you have ton of antidotes, so…” She failed to end the sentence, as Leria suddenly drew her sword, coated it in aura, and then decapitated her. She stood right behind her, so Vhera failed to notice what was happening.
Lybaer looked paralyzed with shock. Yeah, can’t blame him.
As her headless body collapsed, Vasyr looked up at me. His face was contorted in pain.
“I’m afraid it’s time to terminate our cooperation.” I said to him. “It was nice, but you’re much too smart for my taste. And I’m about 75% sure you invited me to this expedition to check out if someone in my group was a Chosen One; that you considered something that might… topple the balance when Ardent Flame and Crimson Blades finally clash. I don’t exactly know what you were planning to do once we return, but I’m almost sure it wasn’t something pleasant to us.”
“Y...you fucker.” Sigh. “You self-righteous bastard. You think you have the chance with Ambryxis? That y...you will magically fix the world according to your whim? You…”
Simea slit his throat from behind. His words drown in sudden gurgling. Much better.
“Ah, ‘self-righteous’.” I sighed. “The typical way the average evil asshole refers to those that are actually better persons than him and are trying to make the world at least a bit better place. Trust me, I know that better than anyone, since I both used this on other people and have had it used on me. Do me a favour, though. Next time somebody calls your bluff, use ‘holier-than-thou.’. Sounds much better.”
He seemed like he was about to collapse on the ground, so I grabbed him by his head. Rough treatment, but… he barely deserved any better.
“For your information, I do not consider myself a good and moral person.” I continued. “But… I’m trying to improve myself, and that means a lot. You should have seen me in World’s Requiem.”
I kneeled before him and leaned over his ear.
“My nickname back then was Eliphas.” I whispered to him. The others shouldn’t hear that. “Eliphas the Depraved. Favourite Chosen One of Deviation.” I moved my head back. The shock in his eyes was almost… delicious. “You tried to play in a much higher league than you deserved, friend.”
Then, with a burst of Destruction Magic, I blew his head off like a bottlecap. No need to have him suffer more than this. It already gave me too much pleasure, so..
“Alright. Pleasure is over, now time for business. Aurora.” She looked at me with her almost empty eyes. I took two slave collars from my inventory - which saved them from being broken by Freedom - and threw them at her. She caught them easily. “They should resurrect somewhere near the village. The deaths locked their magic for a while, but hurry. Put the collars on them, then go east as far as you can and sell them as slaves. Preferably to someone preparing to go to Northern Aevaria. Or wherever else far away from Ambryxis.”
The alternative was keeping them imprisoned and then throwing them unarmed to a nearest Glitch. Though... well, there was a moral difference between killing someone in self-defence or to stop an attrocity when no other options was left, and executing a person like that. When there obviously was an alternative.
Few years of being on an receiving end of slavery (especially in Doomplace) might teach them a thing about value of human life. Hopefully. And even if Vasyr somehow escapes, he will now believe me to be a smarter and stronger pervert that sees to gain high standing - after all, he probably knew the kind of thing I did in the last game. Or at least he will have troubles figuring out if I'm an atoning crusader or a perverted mastermind of silent takeover. It's win-win regardless of what happens.
Aurora saluted me and walked away. Now, Lybaer.
“So, is that the moment when you silence the witness?” He tried to be funny but I could feel him trembling. He knew he saw something he shouldn’t have. How hard it was to kill him and then pull a collar on him? We could even overpower him and put the collar without killing him… though I preferred to avoid trying to take anyone alive like that. It gave them too much of an opening.
“Depends. I have a business proposal.” He looked at me with hope. “Take over Crimson Blades for us.”
“Wh… what?!” My party looked at me like I said something… preposterous. Lybaer was more straightforward. “You know that’s impossible, right?”
“Why?” I smiled. “Your leader just… left. And now you will return on a white horse… while bringing terrifying news of glitches that he hid from the guild. Expose his corruption, use that to wipe out his supporters and close co-workers. It should be enough to give liberals a head-start. And make you someone important. You don’t have to become a supreme overlord of the Blades like Vasyr. But… be high in hierarchy. And work with me. To make this city a bit better of a place.”
“Uhm… I g...guess.” He didn’t look … awfully convinced. “But you know I could also… uhm…”
I looked at him. Calmly. The last shreds of his own calmness collapsed under my look.
“Vasyr already tried to fuck with me. With us.” HUMILITY, FOOL. You are not alone in that and you better fucking remember it. We already had the period of internal solipsism and let’s not return to that. “Do us all a favour and don’t be like Vasyr.”
“U...uhm. Okay.” He sighed. “Well, I guess the liberals will truly get a few points, right?”
Aaand... he began rationalizing it. So, he’s on board.
***
The slavegirl that helped us take down Vasyr unfortunately hit the building a bit too strongly or was hit by Vasyr with too much power. I don’t know exactly it happened, but she was dead.
Well, she at least had an occasion to get her revenge. Was she a parting gift from Freedom? She underwent too much of a change for it to be fully natural. De-powering her slave collar was one thing, making her attack Vasyr was something else. Maybe deep down she always hated being a slave, and Freedom simply had these feelings resurface?
Free will was an important part of the Great Game. Gods could brainwash mortals to do their bidding with a snap of the finger. But… that would be stupid, as others would simply undo the brainwashing and apply their own.
Slightly influencing someone was something else. Minor things, from sudden thoughts ‘what if what I’m doing is wrong’ out of the blue, or other people preaching in front of us were allowed. Or ‘signs’ - Robinson once compared that part to that half-melted Bible found in the ruins of World Trade Center, forever opened on the ‘turn the other cheek’ part. But since both sides did that, it was still all up to the mortal’s decision in the end.
Most of them didn’t care about the signs at all. Made sending them later on the bad parts of afterlife easier. They had millions of occasions to get better, it’s not the God’s fault they ignored them, right?
But this… was too fast of a change. But I guess we’ll never know the truth.
We left. Our group’s non-combatants were… no longer a case. Since all of them - besides that one slave girl - were slave owners that feared retribution following the fall of Vanvyra, nothing of value was lost when Freedom destroyed the village.
We continued our march towards Ambryxis.
***
Freedom - what a straightforward name - understood that he had to hurry. It was a demigod, a weakened one but still a god. It was different in nature than simple daemons, even if some of them could rival him in strenght in his current state.
I doubt that there was any guardian deity, archdaemon, archmagician, Awakened or higher ranked priest in Aevaria that didn’t know he was here. And most magicians, stronger daemons and high ranked adventurers probably knew that something great happened, but were yet to understand what.
It’s probably hard to hide a continent-wide debuff to Mind Magic.
Ambryxis knew as well. And was probably busy painting his pants brown. The call to all adventurers and soldiers that weren’t in Ambryxis to come back immediately was already sent, but it was going to be a while before they come back from anomalies or the surrounding countryside. And a while more before they could come back with some joint defensive strategy.
Adventurers lose a lot of their worth without being able to plan how to corner beings that were much stronger than them. Plus even archmagicians like Black Hand and Sapphire required some time to figure out how exactly they should respond to an attack of that magnitude. They were - like all archmagicians - prepared for a lot of things, but not for everything.
They obviously had general plans against enemies of that power level, but they had to modify it to counter this particular being powers and strengths. Throwing around fireballs was only a small part of their power. Most of it was knowledge and whole storerooms of items, alchemical ingredients, artifacts, technomaturgic devices and so on that they gathered during their long lives. Finding useful ones and preparing them for use required time.
Freedom wasn’t planning to let them do that. He marched through the shortest route towards Ambryxis. Local cult forces heard his call and marched from all directions to join him.
Sure, it was the middle of a Siberian-like winter. But he was a demigod. Wherever he tread, Reality bent its knees. He brought Skyhaven with him. There was a trail of warm temperatures and sunny weather remaining after him. And he seemed to conjure an infinite amount of food out of thin air.
Well, this certainly helped with his logistics. He didn’t have to bother with supplying his army with food at all. So no carts filled with food, no need to send foragers (that in winter had to steal from locals).
So he marched quickly. Very quickly. Faster than us.
Freedom’s host was also accompanied by daemons serving him. Angels, archangels. Several dominions, each of them able to fight Mr. Cuddles or Smiling Man singlehandedly. Prism drakes. He used one as a stead. Going for a rainbow dragon would be too much in his current state.
We knew that because he encountered survivors. They made up for the overwhelming majority of pre-Freedom population, at least until we left the former Vanvyran dominion. Once we entered the lands controlled directly by Ambryxis…
...Things got nasty.