Chapter 86
Chapter 86
Max watched as Jazzjak continued to grumble, scanning whatever data he was looking at on the table he always carried. Multiple times, both he and Bob had tried to find a way to interact with that tablet and do what their helper could, yet each time, Jazzjak was right about them being locked out.
I wonder what language all that is in since our Omnilingualism skill cannot understand it. You’d think we’d be able to crack the code, especially with how Jazzjak tells us what each thing means.
Based on the data I’ve been collecting, I would guess that it’s a shifting language that changes every moment. Somehow, his mind and all the other helpers are able to figure out the code or key needed for that moment and can understand it. It’s actually well well-thought-out safeguard if one considers it as I mentioned before.
Imagine someone like ourselves or other beings with the ability to interact with the System and its threads. What kind of knowledge or potential power or problems could we cause if given those keys?
Still, I find it rather frustrating that even Jazzjak doesn’t seem to know what kind of creature was placed on our world. 80,000 years of life and no encounter or mention of such a thing in his existence.
Most of the gods he assisted were not like us. We seem to draw the very System to our doors, asking it to interact with our every move and present problems I doubt most gods will ever face. The tower was an example of this. How many other parties had ever heard of seeing so many different portals or acquired the items we did?
And yet if this is happening to us, then what about the other two black skills? What kind of obstacles are they facing? Do the Nine interact with them in the same way? Are they getting the same kind of treatment we did?
The frustration and mental sigh that Bob gave was a reminder that they were back to the same questions that they didn’t have an answer for.
Only time will tell and I’m not sure when that moment will come. We must focus instead on what is before us. A chair groaned as Sog shifted his body, drawing the attention of the other gods who were present in their gathering room.
“Sorry,” the demon said, holding up a hand. “Just… we’ve been sitting here for almost half a day and Jazzjak still hasn’t found any useful knowledge based on what Max told him.”
“It’s not his fault,” Cordellia stated. “He told us there were countless kinds of beings out there and we may never learn about all of them, even if we make it to tier eleven.”
“Tier eleven,” Fowl muttered. “And here we are, just trying to make it to tier five… what kind of time does that take?”
“To earn over four and a half quadrillion DP?” Tanila asked, smiling. “I don’t want to consider that kind of cost. Right now we’re just trying to focus on the next two hundred years or so.”
A chuckle came from their helper, who glanced up from his tablet, his red glowing eyes starting to dim. “You all make me laugh,” Jazzjak said. “I’m limited as I’ve mentioned hundreds of times, about what I can know or discuss. I’m combing through every note I’ve ever made over my lifetime. You seven are the first group to ever know about what I’m even doing.”
“80,000 years of time,” Rakonath said softly. “It is hard to comprehend how much you have written down.”
“Not as much as you would think,” Jazzjak replied. “At first, I documented a lot of details and information. And then the reality of what I had agreed to set in.” The vorpal rabbit set his tablet down on the table before cracking his neck. With a sigh, he then stared at the humanoid dragon. “I was excited to have a chance to sit where you are, being able to one day earn enough power to acquire what I was too afraid to fight for. And then I saw how quickly the gods I was responsible for all seemed to act alike. Sure, I got a few that had enough wisdom to ask for my opinion and listen to what I thought would work. The first two, I believe, were hand-picked to make my life easier because the next seven were horrible.”
Jazzjak closed both eyes, leaning his head against the wooden chair he was sitting on. “The fifth god I was responsible for killed me two days after he and I met. At first, I thought it must have been some kind of fluke. Then it happened again with the seventh god, but this time it was on the first day. After that… sometimes I might last a hundred years. Most often, things didn’t go well once the god left the safety period and discovered the hard way how right I had been about things. When those challenges came and they had nowhere to flee and the truth of everything I had told them set in, most turned against me.”
A tremor in Jazzjak’s voice carried the pain of what he said next. “Each… god… they blamed me for not speaking up. For not forcing them to listen or to go along with my advice. As if I could force a god to do anything!”
Max sat there, watching the reactions of his friends as their helper got worked up, his two ears twitching as he shouted.
“Forgive me, I didn’t mean to cause you distress,” Rakonath said softly. “I… I did not consider what my words might stir up.”
The vorpal rabbit sighed and shook his head, using his paws to adjust his black suit. “It’s not your fault,” Jazzjak replied. “I… I haven’t looked through these notes since the first few years of your arrival. The truth is, going through them opens up wounds that I have never healed from. No matter how much I think I’ll be better or that they won’t affect me like they do, the truth is, each one serves as a memory of some kind of failure. While it might not be my own actions, the truth is I have served more gods than I want to admit to and I have seen the fallout of those who do not take the path you all are on.”
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“And what about this time?” Batrire asked. “How does this time make you feel?”
His left ear twitched, and Jazzjak took a moment to reply. His bottom jaw bounced slightly before it stopped. “Hope is a powerful and dangerous thing,” their helper replied. “I have hope that you all will do something none of the others could. I’ve watched you raise champions who defeated the tower… the TOWER! And while that task in and of itself is impressive, your champions did that in the time of the safety! To try and explain how impossible that is… It’s like saying tomorrow Fowl will never drink alcohol again for a thousand years.”
“Wait, what?” their dwarven warrior asked, shocked. “Why are we talking about something like that? And why me?”
A few chuckles came from the others as Jazzjak motioned at Fowl with a paw. “See! Even he understands why that seems impossible and doesn’t make sense. I’ve witnessed only two parties defeat the tower in all the gods I served and none of them were within the period of protection.”
“Our champions were a bit… different,” Max replied. “Still, I’m not trying to downplay what you’re saying.”
“No, I get it,” Jazzjak stated. “The group that ventured into the tower was far stronger than any I have ever witnessed and the fact that they knew what they did is evident of the wisdom and knowledge you all possess.” A smile formed on the vorpal rabbit’s face. “I can only imagine how that fight went if things happened as you all expected.”
“That ugly brown spike,” Tanila muttered, smiling. “And yet Miranna was excited to wear it… she is so your daughter.”
A few chuckles came from the rest as Max shrugged, his torso and the normal-looking shirt he wore vanishing, replaced by brown leather armor with a massive spike on one shoulder.
“Please… we all know this looks dashing.”
A groan came from his wife, and after a few seconds, Max stored the offending piece of armor.
“So, back to what you were trying to find,” Sog said.
“Ahh, yes, that,” Jazzjak replied. “The truth is, I can’t find anything in my notes or in any of the information the System gives me access to about the being that was attacking Radiant Steppes. What I can tell you is that someone had to have spent some serious Divine Points to have it show up there. Everything I can recall or discover is that most of the time an attack like that takes place, it isn’t by chance.”
“And why would it not be by chance?” Fowl asked.
“Because what would happen if you accidentally seeded a world with one of your children, only to find out that world belongs to a god who is strong enough to fight back against you?” Jazzjak answered. “The problem is, Max isn’t strong enough or able to visit the archons and discover where this one came from. You know that I’m not one to simply bet on something unless I’m certain the odds of winning are almost a guarantee. I’d be willing to bet this wasn’t random.”
Which means we are most likely right.
And that someone is targeting us… but it can’t be Death.
Have either of you two considered that it might be the Void god? Since we believe he is the one who sent Zogooruth, perhaps he is intentionally doing this to slow your growth down.
Max frowned and sensed the others looking at him.
“Bob?” Cordellia asked.
“And Rakonath,” Max replied. “We were just considering who might have sent such a thing to that world and why they would want to slow down the speed at which I’m gaining DP.”
“And did the three of you come up with anything you might want to share?” Cordellia asked, frowning.
“No… nothing more than the usual suspects,” Max stated.
Jazzjak cleared his throat, waiting till everyone was looking at him. “We need to move past this for now. In the meantime, we might learn more, but anything else would be pure speculation, which is not how you want to base your thoughts. I have some ideas on how Max might be able to learn more, but we’ll deal with those options in a month or two. For now, we need to focus on what was learned.”
“That Max has a target painted on his chest?” Fowl joked.
“Besides that,” their helper replied. “It’s about world management and the need to interact with them more than he has. Had he traveled to the worlds consistently, then Max would have been able to destroy the infestation before it cost him DP and time. When you have more than one world, you’re going to have to find a way to manage them effectively. You will have me to assist, but as the number of planets grows, you’re going to find that you must also have others in place to help with notifying you of problems and situations.”
“Similar to the woman, Kathleen, who serves as the mother in Phaius’s temple back on our world?” Max asked.
“Yes,” Jazzjak said. “You can give someone like Edward or any of the other kings or queens who manage your capitals, items, like the ring you have, to communicate when necessary. I believe you mentioned that Phaius was made aware of your black skill rather quickly.”
“From what I gathered, yes,” Max replied. “Though I’m not certain who informed him. It could have been either of the queens or Kathleen.”
“It doesn’t matter who told him, just that they did their job, notifying a god and letting him know of a potential problem that would require direction from him,” Jazzjak stated. “Each of you is also going to learn that the problem with managing multiple worlds is that it costs DP to keep all of them running smoothly. And that is before you reach tier six and things change.”
“Like what?” Fowl asked.
Jazzjak winced and shook his head.
“What our fluffy friend is trying to say but can’t,” Max said, “is that we might be facing other gods working against us and our worlds.”
“You took the words out of my mouth,” Jazzjak said. “Now then, who's up for some world management lessons?”