Chapter 90
Chapter 90
“That is… disturbing,” Jazzjak said as he tapped his furry chin. “A world of those kinds of creatures.”
“But haven’t you had to serve one of those gods before?” Fowl asked.
“I have… but…” Their helper paused and grimaced. “Part of what makes those like me such a good helper, is that over time we start to… reflect aspects of those we serve. The longer I am with you, the more I’ll start to be able to predict what you’ll need, understand your desires, and act accordingly. I’m sure when you manage to talk with the two gods from your old world about their helpers, they will tell you how valuable one can be.”
“And would their helpers have earned enough power to become gods?” Cordellia asked.
Jazzjak’s head bobbed from side to side, his left ear flopping over. “Most likely… any god who lives 500,000 years would have earned a lot of Divine Points, and that should be more than enough to let a helper reach this stage.”
“So wouldn’t they want a god to fail after they acquired that much power?” Fowl asked.
“No,” Rakonath answered with a grin. “I’m guessing it keeps adding up and gives you an advantage when that finally happens, doesn’t it?”
Max watched as their helper chucked and shrugged.
“I wish I could answer such a thing, but rules and all,” Jazzjak said with a wink. “Besides, can you imagine the kind of knowledge and experience that a helper would have to start with? I mean, we’re talking about someone who's seen the upper tiers of godhood.” “Shame we didn’t get one of those,” Max teased.
“Yeah… a real shame,” Sog added.
“Oh, go hump an ogre,” Jazzjak said.
Everyone chuckled as their helper managed to say one of their phrases without needing help.
“So, back to the point of this meeting,” Tanila said, tapping the table with a finger. “We’re going to face gods like those. And the worlds they own won’t want to work with us. How do we deal with those kinds of worlds?”
“I wish I had the answer,” Jazzjak said, pointing at Sog. “But as your husband and our dearest demon friend pointed out, I don’t have that kind of experience. Max managed to negotiate with them and convince them that all he wanted was access to the panel so I could help if needed. I’d still love to hear the whole story.”
“Welcome to the team,” Batrire said. “Trust us, we’ve all gotten the ‘it worked out because I’m Max’ line before.”
Ignoring the looks he was receiving, Max shrugged. “None of that matters for now. I thought it was bad enough facing the bird gods on Naga Reef, who wanted to take my power for their own. I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like as we all start collecting worlds and have to deal with any other gods who are there also.”
“Which is why we’re training so hard,” Cordellia stated. “But what I want to know is, can we bring other gods with us if we need to try and claim power on a world we acquire?”
“My short answer is most likely,” Jazzjak replied. “That would be seen as an attack, though. Imagine if your world suddenly had two other gods show up with… Thuyja? How do you think either of the other gods would have viewed such an act? Trust me, there will come a time when each of you will have to defend your own world and doing so means fighting someone stronger or who brings allies.”
Their helper tapped on his tablet, and an image of Siricco, the falcon god Max had defeated in the arena, appeared. “There aren’t many foolish gods who live long. Someone like Siricco quickly learns the hard way that it only takes one mistake… one miscalculation or choosing the wrong opponent to end their life.”
“Refocusing,” Max said as he turned his attention from the god he had killed. “I’m going to keep sharing everything I encounter because those lessons are probably not ones other gods share.”
“So you don’t think Phaiuis or Ockrim will teach us?” Fowl asked.
Max frowned, waving his hands in the air. “I don’t know. Part of me believes they will because of who I am, but if I weren’t a black skill holder, would we have gotten the help that we did? I’m certain that some gods, like a few that Jazzjak has had, didn’t get the kind of love that we did. Think about Igarra and how she locked the tower so that others couldn’t climb it. Why would a god do that?”
Everyone turned to look at Jazzjak, who held up his paws, palms out. “Don’t ask me!”
“So you don’t have any ideas?” Cordellila asked.
“I mean… I do… but part of me isn’t sure completely,” their helper replied. “She appeared to be focused more on the arena and less on her own world's development. By limiting the growth of her world and gaining most of her Divine Points from the arena and the fights within it as well as any items she trades or sells, it helped make her less of a target.”
“Because no one sees her as more than a trade world?” Sog asked.
“Not exactly,” Jazzjak sighed. “It’s…. She’s a dragon and many wouldn’t know her age. She stayed at tier one which means she’s been pouring her DP into stats, skills and other stuff. Part of me wishes I knew how old she was so I could try to guess what her income was.”
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“And she didn’t have any other worlds,” Max said.
“Not necessarily,” Jazzjak replied. “I’m not sure if the system ever transferred ownership of any world to you or simply gave you DP from her and the other gods or however else it happened. The fact you had DP to start with is incredible and I wouldn’t waste time trying to figure that one out.”
“But… what if a god dies and no one defeats him… is that possible? Fowl asked. “I mean what happens to worlds without gods? Or a god?”
Max looked at his friend and smiled.
“What? Is that a stupid question?” their warrior asked.
“No, it’s a fair question,” Max replied. “I wondered that myself a few times but never considered asking it.”
“A godless world…” Jazzjak muttered. “I’m not sure what that would be like.”
“So you’re saying there aren’t any?” Cordellia asked. “I mean a world where a god doesn’t reign over it and get Divine Points from it?”
Jazzjak shrugged. “Not something I’ve experienced or ever discussed. Most of my time is spent trying to keep the world and the gods I’m responsible for alive. We don’t usually have philosophical questions or moments like these.”
Rakonath’s fingernail tapped the table twice. “I agree. We’re spending too much time on stuff like that. What I want to know is if we’re done here? I have a clutch of eggs to help transport.”
“You sure you don’t want help with that?” Max asked.
His dragon shook his head, still smiling. “No… It means a lot that you would be willing, but what we’re doing is very special to my kind.”
“I still don’t understand why you’re letting them leave,” Fowl stated. “I mean… do you really think they’ll outgrow that area so soon?”
“It’s not about soon but that we will,” Rakonath replied. “The amount of fish and wildlife my kind eats daily continues to increase. While we have the blessings to help increase the spawning of the fish in our waters, eventually we would reach a point where it would take too long for the lake to recover. Just like a farmer who doesn’t rotate his crops and soil, it may lead to a loss of years of food because they didn’t prepare ahead of time.”
“So how many are leaving again?” Cordellia asked, placing her hand on Rakonath’s.
“One hundred and fifty. They’ll also be taking twenty-five eggs with them. Two of my elders will be responsible for the new area, and eventually we’ll see about finding a place on the other continent that more can spread out upon.”
“Do we need to do that?” Fowl whispered to Batrire.
“Eventually,” Jazzjak stated. “While dwarves are slower at reproduction, all of your races will need to explore this world and find new places for them to settle down. That is when a world starts to… level up, as you call it.”
“Do you know how many other continents are on this world?” Sog asked.
“Technically… yes,” their helper replied. “But I cannot tell you exactly where or the exact number. System rules and all. Part of this is learning to identify areas that might contain different ores or materials, which allow your world to progress. I believe Max mentioned the one world where they have giant… trains, which transport people and goods around the land. You’ll need to help your people to develop shipbuilding, setting up trade routes, or coming up with magical means to transport over distances.”
“The adventurers' guild,” Max whispered to Tanila.
She smiled and nodded. “Oh, I remember the first time you experienced that. I wasn’t certain if you might throw up.”
“Wait, a story I haven’t heard about Max?” Sog called out. “Someone better tell me this one!”
“I guess this meeting is adjourned,” Jazzjak said as he hopped out of his chair.
As the others rose and a few gathered together, Max moved to where Rakonath was. “I wish you luck with this move. Know that if you need me, just call for me.”
His dragon nodded and patted his shoulder twice. “You would be invited if you transformed into our shape, but I’ve seen you fly… and well… it’s not pretty. Besides, we don’t have that kind of time to wait on you.”
A chuckle echoed inside Max’s head.
He is right. You depend too much on the flight skill and don’t move your wings like you should.
That’s because I’m not a dragon…
Which is why you’re not invited.
Rakonath’s answer was simple yet Max felt the sting of being denied a chance of experiencing it.
“I understand. I’ll be waiting to hear how the new place looks. Eventually, I’ll head over and check out a few things myself.”
As Rakonath left, Max turned to see Tanila with her arms crossed and staring at him. “Am I in trouble?”
“You’ll need to be a bit more specific,” she replied.
“Am I in trouble for something specifically?” Max said, winking at her.
Tanila rolled her eyes. “Yes. You promised to help me with some runes and items. For someone who professes to love me so much, you sure seem to try and get out of helping.”
Max held up his two hands in surrender. “I’ll admit… I might be a little bit more excited about watching Rakonath and his kind fly across the ocean, braving storms while carrying eggs and wyrmlings. But you’re right. I did promise help, so I’ll gladly give it.”
She grunted and poked him in the ribs. “We’re going to have to work on how you respond. For that, you’re stuck with me for the next few days.”
A chuckle came from Fowl, who mouthed you’re in trouble to Max.
Sometimes I swear that dwarf gets smarter every year.
And then he opens his mouth and says something to remove that thought.
Yes… yes he does.