Atlas thought about the proposal, it was tempting but there were also some things which didn’t add up, for example, if the gods of that world were immortal, how came that this god had to seal himself into the orb to avoid dying? Besides what use was for Atlas becoming a god in another world, when his enemies were on Earth and he had yet to take revenge on them? As he thought of that, he denied with his head and gave his answer to the god.
Atlas: "Your proposal is very tempting, but I’ll have to refuse, my enemies are here, in this world… and they are still breathing! If you come again after I’m done dealing with them I’ll possibly accept your offer. Thanks for healing me and saving my life though, I owe you one!"
???: "I’m afraid you’ve been misunderstanding something young mortal… you have no choice in the matter! I’ve been kind enough to tell you in advance so that you’ll be able to fully comprehend your presence in that world, and why you were transported there. But understand this very well, Atlas, this is going to be done with or without your consent. That’s just the way it is…"
Atlas: "Say what? You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me! You bring me here on a whim, heal me just to use me as a tool for doing a work you’re unable to do, or you just don’t want to… Do you really think I’m gonna put up with this crap? Keep dreaming, man!"
???: "MODERATE YOUR LANGUAGE, MORTAL!"
Atlas: "S-Sorry…"
???: "Hear me, and hear me well! This manifestation is just the last remnant of my consciousness, for it died the very second my power was sealed into the orb. You could even say that I’m already dead. As for you not having a choice in the matter… It seems that you are unaware of it, but you started absorbing my power from the orb when your will to live synchronized with the one on the orb, that’s why your wounds were healed! Make no mistake here, boy, my control over the power of the orb was very limited before your synchronization with it, and after the synchronization… well, I almost don’t have any anymore! This means that even if I wanted to, I lack the ability to stop the process, which means you actually don’t have a choice in the matter, but neither do I!"
Atlas: "So that’s how it was… if that’s the case I really can’t do anything against it… But I need to bid farewell to my family, and of course, I must collect a debt which must be paid with blood!"
*Such a bloodthirsty young man! Caring with his allies, yet cruel and unforgiving with his enemies? Well, although that’s not an attitude befitting of a god, it will help him to pass as an inhabitant of that world!* The god was greatly surprised at Atlas’ change of attitude towards his enemies… and he thought that those who might get on Atlas’ bad side would need every bit of help they might be able to get… and still wouldn’t be enough to escape his wrath!
???: "If it’s just taking care of some minor matters like those ones, there might be a solution. Despite the fact that I can’t stop the transfer of knowledge and power to you, nor your transportation to my former world, I can at least delay the world transport magic… but only for 5 minutes at most. Whatever you have to do, you’ll have to do it within that lapse of time!"
Atlas: "Are you for real? Or is this some kind of trick? Can you really do that?"
???: "Is quite complicated to do it, but yes, it’s possible. Do you want me to do it?"
Atlas: "Yes, please!"
???: "Ok, but first you must completely absorb the power and knowledge contained within the orb. That’ll trigger the world transportation magic, and only after it’s been triggered is it possible to delay its activation."
Atlas: "I don’t understand… Won’t that magic transport me to the other world as soon as it’s triggered?"
???: "It seems that you don’t know much about spellcasting… When casting a spell there are two processes which must be accomplished for a spell to manifest its effects. Those processes are the triggering (what gives form to the spell: chants, magic circles, runes…), and the activation (what gives enough energy/mana to the spell for it to manifest: it directly influences the time needed to cast the spell). The amount of mana required to cast a spell is fixed and it’s different for each spell, but the rate of the mana output for the spell varies from one individual to another, and the lower the output rate, the more time will be needed for the spell to manifest. But the world transportation magic is so complicated that I can’t risk lowering the mana output any more than to buy you five minutes, so whatever you are going to do, it would be safer if you finished it in four minutes instead."
Atlas: "Four minutes, got it. Now, can you tell me how can I speed up the process of absorption from the orb?"
???: "Mortals, always being impatient… Ok, you just have to say out loud: 'I, Atlas Herion, fully accept this power and promise to fulfill my duty as a new god in the world Nirvatarus”'
Atlas: "I, Atlas Herion, fully accept this power and promise to fulfill my duty as a new god in the world Nirvatarus."
As soon as Atlas finished saying those words, the orb melted into a black liquid and the black flames fused with it. Then, the black liquid entered into Atlas’ body and he fell on the floor screaming in pain. Atlas felt like every cell within his body had been set on fire, so he couldn’t help but scream, he didn’t stop screaming until the process was complete and his human body transformed into that of a god. The duration of the whole process was only an hour, but he’d never ever forget it for it had been the most painful experience he had ever experienced. As soon as the process was complete, a blue box popped up in front of his eyes:
*Ding*
Congratulations!
You’ve successfully absorbed the divine power of the lost Ancient God Atlantis, thus becoming a god yourself. You’ll be transported to the world Nirvatarus in five minutes.
5:00
4:59
4:58
Atlas: "Oh, fuck! He was speaking the truth! I’ve gotta hurry!"
He quickly teleported to his aunt and uncle’s house and appeared in his own room. He created a RPG-like dimensional storage system which he named “inventory”, and stored all his belongings on it, from his laptop to his underwear. He didn’t think they’d be of any use for him in Nirvatarus, but it’d help his plan to put his family at ease. When he was done, he checked the timer.
4:19
Atlas went to his cousin’s room, kissed her on her forehead and decided that he had to do something to keep her safe in the future, even if he was unable to be by her side to protect her. After giving it some thought, he created a golden little bracelet, with complex engravings in silver, on the baby’s left wrist. Then he checked again the timer and went to the kitchen.
3:51
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He took a piece of paper and a pen and started writing a letter:
[Dear aunt Mary and uncle Li Tiang,
Please burn this letter as soon as you finish reading it.
Right now is 3:00am, and I don’t have the time to explain face to face, so I’ll tell you what I can in this letter. The first day of the trip I got lost in the forest and came across something that could jeopardize my life, so I’ve been put into the witness relocation program. I’ll be given a new identity and a new life, so you will never see me or contact me ever again.
The bracelet I’ve put in Liz’s wrist is very special, it cannot be removed, and it’s made of a special material which will grow along with her. Don’t worry about that bracelet, it’s harmless to her, but it will always keep her well protected. Now that I can’t protect her myself, at least that way I know she’ll be safe and sound even in my absence. Don’t let anyone know about the special features of the bracelet. That would be as dangerous as not having it, or even more!
I love you all and I wish you a lifetime of happiness.
Kisses and love,
Atlas]
After he finished writing the letter, he left it on the table, checked the timer once more and teleported out of the house.
3:14
3:13
Atlas appeared in the middle of the room of the inn, and the first thing he did was to cast a soundproof barrier on the walls, floor and ceiling so that no one would hear the bastards scream. He shouted to wake them up and when they did, they found out that they were unable to move their bodies. Atlas allowed them to sit on the beds and then restrained them again. They couldn’t understand the situation, but they knew it was a really bad one, for them.
Marcus: "Who the fuck are you? And what did you do to us?"
Sam: "Yeah, that’s right! We’ve never seen you before, so why are you attacking us?"
Mike: "Please don’t hurt us! We’ll pay you any money you want, so don’t do anything to us!"
Atlas: Hahaha, sorry, I shouldn’t be laughing but the situation is just so hilarious that I can’t help myself… To think that, in less than a day, you’ve already forgotten the face of the person whom you killed and whose body you threw into a well, it’s both hilarious and angering. But then again what could I expect of a trio of serial rapists who hide behind their daddies’ money and power to do whatever they want?
When they heard Atlas say those words they realized who he really was, but they couldn’t understand why his appearance had changed so much. Besides didn’t he just admit he had died? If that was the case, how came that he was standing in front of them, speaking to them and restraining their movements without any tool whatsoever?
1:39
1:38
Atlas: "I’m running out of time here, so yes, it’s me and I’m here to get payback. But don’t worry, I won’t kill you, although when I’m done with you, you’ll wish I had!"
Those words terrified them, they were well aware of their sins, and if he really had come back from the grave to get payback, what could they do to stop him when they couldn’t even move?
1:23
1:22
Atlas: "Well, let’s begin!"
Atlas had already planned what he would do to them, but he had very little time and he couldn’t torture them as he wanted… but then, he recalled the pain he went through when his human body changed into a god’s. If he couldn’t make them suffer for a long time, the next best thing was doing something to them which would make them suffer for the rest of their lives.
He used his new godly powers to activate the pain centers in their brains and they started screaming. He then proceeded to reroute their bodies’ nervous system, and made it so that every information received by any of their senses would be registered as pain by their brains. That’d mean touch, smell, taste… even pleasure, would become pain for them. From then on, they would live in a world filled with nothing but pain. Just as he had previously said, he made them wish he had killed them.
1:01
1:00
0:59
After the trio lost even their strength to continue screaming, Atlas dispelled the barriers and teleported back to the cave. He looked around but he didn’t see any magic formation or circle that indicated the presence of the spell.
0:23
0:22
0:21
He went towards the pedestal, and then he noticed the magic circle laid around it. Atlas leaned against it and waited for the countdown to reach 0.
0:02
0:01
0:00
*Ding*
Transportation to Nirvatarus will now take place.
A bright light enveloped him as the magic circle was fully activated, and when the light dissipated, Atlas was gone.