《The Divine Assistant (The Gods of Tergia, Book 1)》
Chapter 1: Guardian of the Divine Assistants
¡°God has placed the most interesting things behind fear¡± ¨C Will Smith, Actor from Old Earth, circa 2017 of the old Era (OOE)
Jessy Peal was watching T.V. On the screen were Billy Smith and a few people just sitting around talking and joking. As they joked, Jessy Peal played with the keyboard computer which was connected to the T.V. and it seems to be producing music where Billy Smith and his friends were sitting and talking and having fun on the other side of the T.V. screen.
Billy Smith and his companions commented on how well the performance was and praised others who were singing in accompaniment with Jessy Peal and were watching Billy Smith on T.V. as well. So the scene seemed to be as though the two groups were interacting with each other and using each other¡¯s activity as entertainment.
After some time, Jessy Peal Turned of the T.V. As he walked to his couch to sit, those in the room with him all left to pursue other activities, saying their goodbyes.
As he went to sit on his couch, someone walked into his living room casually and sat on his couch next to him. Before he could turn to see who it was, the person made a comment ¨C ¡°That was very interesting!¡±
Jessy Peal turned abruptly to see who it was. He immediately noticed that it was Billy Smith sitting next to him.
¡°What the . . .!¡± he wondered. ¡°What is he talking about?¡± Jessy Peal thought, ¡°why doesn¡¯t he simply just state what is interesting before commenting on it? Is he trying to test me or something? What is he doing here in my living room? How did he get in my living room? Why would he be in my living room? Why would he be having a conversation with me in the first place? OK, let¡¯s just go along with this and see where it takes us,¡± thought Jessy Peal.
¡°Hmmm . . . interesting?¡± he said, Billy Smith could not possibly have been talking about his performance on the keyboard just a few minutes ago or the singing that accompanied it ¨C whereas that was somewhat interesting, it was not nearly interesting enough to bring Billy Smith from God-knows-where to his apartment ¨C and in such a hurry at that.
The speed with which he got there was nothing less than unbelievable. If they had been interacting on the T.V., as he believed they had been, then either Billy Smith¡¯s location was a lot closer than he had thought, or Billy Smith employed some miracle to get there so quickly. Whatever the case might be, it couldn¡¯t have been the music that brought Billy Smith to his apartment so quickly.
The channel that he had selected for their viewing was at random ¨C it is not like he knew Billy Smith as anything other than a T.V. personality. The channel choice was mere happenstance and the fact that it was an interactive channel featuring Billy Smith and his companions was just random chance, wasn¡¯t it? What could Billy Smith be talking about then? The only thing that came to Jessy Peal¡¯s mind was Billy Smith¡¯s interview with Will Crosby a week ago. Was it possible he was referring to that interview? If he was, that would have some serious implications.
A week or so before this, Billy Smith had an interview with the famous Motivational Speaker and Philosopher Will Crosby in which he was able to show, as he had put it, that ¡°God had put the most interesting things behind fear.¡± It was a very pungent interview and his point, once made, was undeniably true. He showed how his experience bungee jumping off the peak of mount Neverest was only scary before the act itself.
Once the miles long diamond-wrought titanium bungee cord was secured and he actually jumped, it was, as he put it, ¡°the most exhilarating experience¡± of his life ¨C ¡°just the greatest thing that one can experience.¡±
All the fear, though, had come before he actually made the jump. After the jump, he came to realize: There was absolutely nothing to be afraid of ¨C everything before that jump was completely fear-filled but once the jump happened, the free fall was extremely enjoyable.
¡°That¡¯s what he must be talking about,¡± Jessy Peal thought. So he replied: ¡°Yes, that was very interesting indeed. God has put some of the greatest things behind fear. That was a very remarkable and impressive interview. I was greatly moved by it.¡±
Jessy Peal was very pleased to see as the expression on Billy Smith¡¯s face revealed that he had guessed correctly. He could have simply discerned what was on Billy Smith¡¯s mind but the rules prohibited him from doing so unless the circumstances were right. ¡°You have been making very insightful deep thoughts known. Those thoughts have changed the lives of many people and helped them to accomplish a great deal in their lives. As a result, many people love you. It will not be long before the people demand that you become a candidate for the god elections.¡±
Billy Smith simply smiled and said nothing. The smile spoke for itself. Jessy Peal knew now that his second guess, that is, his thought as to why Billy Smith was here in his apartment, must be correct as well. Since that was the case, the rules no longer prohibited him from discerning Billy Smith¡¯s thoughts.
The god elections were a thing of legend. Only a few people in the entire history of Tergia had been nominated to the elections and even fewer have passed the testing to be confirmed as gods of Tergia. These ¡°gods of Tergia¡± were gods, not in the absolute sense that people used when talking about the ¡°True God that created all things¡± ¨C such as when Billy Smith had said ¡°God has placed the most interesting things behind fear,¡± but were gods of Tergia because they were the ones that, through the history of Tergia, had been tasked with meeting and defeating all external threats to the world of Tergia ¨C in the history of Tergia, those have been very great and many.
Some people might say a better term for them would be ¡°Heroes of Tergia¡± ¨C except that these ¡°Heroes¡± were endowed with far superior powers ¨C powers that were nothing short of divinity once they were confirmed as successful candidates of the god elections.
Those individuals that make the above argument also state that calling these Heroes ¡°gods¡± was sacrilegious. But like it or not, ¡°god elections¡± they have been called from antiquity and try as anyone may to change it, the name had stuck with the public and had never changed.
¡°As true as that statement you made to Will Crosby is,¡± Jessy Peal continued, ¡°God has also put some great horrors behind fear as well,¡± Billy Smith¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°What do you mean?¡± He asked, looking Jessy Peal directly in the eye, his interest piqued. ¡°What do you know of the Tiel?¡± Jessy Peal asked.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
¡°The Tiel?¡± Asked Billy Smith, his interest deepening, ¡°Who or what is the Tiel?¡±
Jessy Peal walked over to his large T.V. screen and placed a finger directly on the display while he closed his eyes and seemed to mumble some words under his breath. The screen came on, brightening until it was shinning like a small star ¨C then the whole room changed. Suddenly, they both seem to be outside in a great wide plain.
Billy Smith looked around - to his right, there was a great plain. To the left, though, was a breath-taking scene.
The landscape stretched out with rolling hillocks covered with fine grass that terminated in a little area filled with trees overflowing with greenery. In the background of that, was a towering waterfall with water that roared as it hit the floor of the waterfall. The water from there formed a stream that flowed down into the trees and seem to divide many times to water the trees and the greenery. Then it converged again into one stream as it continued down and stretched into the horizon.
Beautiful as that was, it held no comparison to the beautiful creatures that were bathing, playing, and some seemed to be working on the little rivers and at the waterfall.
They were bi-pedal with faces that were rhombus shaped with the height of the faces being about four times longer than the width. They had two stalks attached to the top of their heads closer to their faces; they had two parallel perpendicular slits on their faces in the same location as on a human face where a nose would be, along with two shinning lidded grey eyes.
Their mouths were lipless but in the same location as a human mouth. Their skin had a wet looking beige texture. They had two hands, each with three digits ¨C an opposable thumb-like finger and another two fingers ¨C though the fingers were a lot longer than human fingers. On their heads, there was no hair, just a smooth continuation of skin. There were no obvious ears. They wore transparent clothing that seemed to be a part of their bodies but covered them much as human clothing would. They moved in very graceful strides. They ranged from half a meter in height to about one and half meters in height. The one that seemed to be babies were smaller than half a meter in height. Every motion they made seemed to be part of a dance.
As Billy Smith was mesmerized by the scene, there was a great booming sound that startled him out of his reverie. He turned looking up in the direction of the noise to see a great craft coming down to land. At first, he wondered what kind of craft that could be. He had never seen anything like it before. Sure, Tergia had many space-faring crafts, but he had never seen anything like this one before.
He saw something that looked like an obsidian ball with pointy rough spikes. It descended with great speed and crashed into the meadow creating a crater several meters wide and deep as great plums of dirt, dust and sand flew into the sky.
The creatures that were working and playing by the waterfall started fleeing, screaming, shouting and running around in great panic. Those creatures who seemed to be mothers picked up their young from the stream and ran with them, seeking places to hide.
The obsidian ball suddenly had an open hole in it ¨C out of it, creatures jumped out. The creatures had no specific shape except that they were bi-pedal and had multiple appendages ranging from one to as many as eight. They were grotesque looking and seemed to be amalgams of other creatures.
Each of them seemed to have a great mouth with many jagged sharp teeth that seemed special made for ripping and tearing. Their skin oozed stinky mucus that dripped as they ran. Their speed, though, seemed to be designed for hunting. In a few seconds they chased the fleeing mass of creatures that were at the waterfall. When they caught some, they ripped into them and started eating them while they were still alive, ripping off arms and legs, and eating them whole as well as their innards.
One of these creatures took a baby from one of the other creatures that were at the waterfall and ripped off its head and threw the head into its maw, crunching down on it. Billy Smith could hear an audible pop as the baby¡¯s head was smashed. Then it placed the baby¡¯s neck against its maw and sucked the blood from the dead carcass¡¯ neck while squeezing the baby¡¯s body. Immediately, everything froze.
Billy Smith threw up. When he looked up after heaving many times, he heard Jessy Peal¡¯s quiet voice. ¡°I am sorry I had to show you that, but you had to see it for yourself to fully understand who the Tiel are,¡± he said. ¡°Won¡¯t you say the people of Humye had good reason to fear the Tiel?¡± He calmly asked Billy Smith.
During this entire showing, Jessy Peal had observed Smith closely. He had closed his eyes and let out his senses, probing Billy Smith¡¯s emotions and thoughts, gauging his reactions to the sights, sounds, smells, and tactile information he was receiving. ¡°Yes,¡± he thought, ¡°this one would make a good candidate for godhood. I will help him if he meets the forms.¡±
¡°So, those things ¨C the ones with the big mouths and stinky skin ¨C those are the Tiel?¡± asked Billy Smith, as he regained his equanimity. ¡°Yes,¡± replied Jessy Peal in one word.
The scene vanished. They were back in Jessy Peal¡¯s apartment. ¡°Tell me why you are here, Mr. Smith,¡± Jessy Peal said. ¡°You didn¡¯t seek me simply to tell me how interesting your interview was, now, did you?¡±
¡°You know why I¡¯m here, Jessy,¡± replied Billy Smith.
¡°Well, I¡¯ll give you this: You sure did your homework, Mr. Smith,¡± said Jessy Peal, ¡°You even know my name. But regardless, Mr. Smith, I cannot help you unless you spell out why you are here. The forms have to be kept. We all must abide by the rules,¡± Jessy Peal continued.
¡°I have come to earn the assistant. What must I do to earn the Divine Assistant?¡± Billy Smith asked.
The Divine Assistant was a creature that helped candidates for godhood succeed in the god trials. The god trials where the last part of the god elections where the candidates demonstrated their fitness to be gods of Tergia.
The god elections were only elections in the sense that the first part required that the majority of the population that voted elect a candidate to be tested as a god of Tergia. Their similarities to an election ended there. Every single candidate had a chance of making it. There were no limited spots to become a god of Tergia, just limited people passing the trials. Every individual that was elected to candidacy was tried individually and had to pass the trials on his or her own. They were not even told, often times, all that was needed ¨C they had to figure it out for themselves. For example, no one was told about the Divine Assistant.
Those that became candidates had to figure out that they existed, that they were needed, and figure out how to go about getting one of them. The knowledge of the existence of the Divine Assistants was a highly held secret. Even prior god candidates that found out could not repeat the knowledge to anyone. There were devices and procedures in place to make sure of this. The Divine Assistant was not mandatory for candidacy; it just made success as a candidate more likely.
Of all the candidates in Tergia¡¯s history, only one, Killian the Mighty, ever passed candidacy without a Divine Assistant ¨C all others that tried the feat without one, either died or failed their candidacy. All those with the Divine Assistant, to date, have passed candidacy without exception, although there was no guarantee that having it would make one pass. The public, of course, was unaware of this.
So, the fact that Billy Smith not only knew of the Divine Assistant but was here in Jessy Peal¡¯s apartment asking him what he needed to do to gain one spoke volumes for Billy Smith¡¯s candidacy. It also explained why Billy Smith arrived in Jessy Peal¡¯s apartment in such a seemingly mysterious manner ¨C he did it to be impressive. The more impressive he was, the better his chances of success. Jessy Peal smiled to himself as he rubbed his hands together. This young man was impressive indeed.
¡°For that, Mr. Smith,¡± said Jessy Peal, ¡°you will have to successfully complete a quest.¡±
Chapter 2: The Quest
¡°A QUEST?¡± asked Billy Smith, ¡°what quest?¡± ¡°Patience, Mr. Smith,¡± replied Jessy Peal, ¡°first of all, we must perform the necessary.¡± Billy Smith looked at Jessy Peal with a dumbfounded expression, ¡°we must use the restroom? But why would we need to do that?¡± Billy Smith asked. Jessy Peal stopped, turned around and gave Billy Smith a gimlet stare. ¡°Maybe I was wrong about this one,¡± he thought to himself. He continued to look at Billy Smith without saying another word. ¡°Oh ¨C I see, you don¡¯t mean that ¨C what is the necessary?¡± asked Billy Smith. ¡°A much better question, Mr. Smith,¡± replied Jessy Peal, reconsidering his prior thought, ¡°you must agree to a binding oath or you will not leave this place alive.¡±
Immediately, something that seemed to be liquid metal flowed across the walls of the apartment room they were in, covering every door, window, wall, floor and the ceiling. From Billy Smith¡¯s perspective, they seemed to be completely shut in, cut off from the outside world.
Billy Smith looked around the apartment, trying to see if there was any way out ¨C he found none. He looked carefully at Jessy Peal ¨C ¡°Can I take him?¡± he wondered. The hairs on his neck stood on end. He felt a bone deep fear. He mastered his emotions, calmed the beating of his heart, controlled his breathing, and asked, as calmly as he could, ¡°what oath?¡± ¡°Good,¡± thought, Jessy Peal, ¡°he can control his fear. He is going to need that,¡± he thought.
¡°Repeat after me: I shall never repeat anything I learn about the Divine Assistant, in word, deed, omission or commission of any act, thought, or in any way convey the knowledge to any other person, or being ¨C intelligent or unintelligent, sentient or not whether I am alive or dead. This also applies to anything I learn as I go through the candidacy for divinity.¡±
Billy Smith stood there for what seemed like eternity digesting what he had just heard. Ok, so he understood why they might not want him to repeat what he has learned about the Divine Assistant to anyone else, but what is the deal about intelligent or unintelligent beings? What is that about? And what does sapience have to do with anything? For God¡¯s sake, how could he possibly repeat something to anyone if he was dead? And why would they include the rest of the candidacy in the oath? He was here for only the Divine Assistant ¨C he had not even been elected as a candidate for godhood yet. He looked at the apartment room again and concluded that he really had little choice. If he intended to leave this place alive, he must swear the oath. He might be able to take Jessy Peal, but he truly doubted it. It was not just anyone that was given guardianship of the Divine Assistant, after all. It was also unlikely that Jessy Peal had not taken that possibility into account. Undoubtedly, he would have prepared measures for that eventuality ¨C the mere fact that they were now locked in the apartment and separated from the outside world was evidence of that fact. Billy Smith repeated the oath.
¡°Very good,¡± said Jessy Peal, as he touched Billy Smith on his forehead with his right index finger. A chill ran down Billy Smith¡¯s spine as his skin tightened and his ears popped. He had vertigo for a second then it passed.
¡°Tell me how you found out about the Divine Assistant,¡± asked Jessy Peal, in a seemingly casual way. Billy Smith tried to remain silent but felt a great compulsion to speak and reveal all he knew. He opened his mouth to tell Jessy Peal and found that he could not bring his thoughts together to recall how he found out. When he stopped trying, the knowledge came rushing back in. When he tried to tell it, the knowledge seemed to disappear again from his thoughts.
¡°Good,¡± said Jessy Peal, ¡°you are now properly bound. Now we can proceed. As I said before, you must complete a quest. If you complete the quest successfully, you gain the Divine Assistant. If you don¡¯t, you will have to continue your candidacy without it. The terms for succeeding are very simple: Before you die ten times, Humye must be free of the Tiel. If they are not free on your death the eleventh time, you have failed your quest and you will be returned to Tergia. You will not be allowed to try the quest ever again. Do you understand the conditions as I have explained them?¡± asked Jessy Peal. ¡°No I don¡¯t,¡± replied Billy Smith. ¡°The conditions seem . . . I don¡¯t know, impossible? How can I accomplish the freedom of Humye if I die even once? How am I to get to Humye? Where is Humye? And how will I be able to get them to listen to me? ¨C I am obviously human but the people there don¡¯t look anything like me. Is there a time constraint? Do I have to finish within any given time period?¡± asked Billy Smith.
¡°Those are all very good questions,¡± replied Jessy Peal, ¡°first, you will be temporarily granted the powers of a god of Tergia. That means that when you die, you will be able to come back for ten times. On the eleventh time, you will not come back on the world of Humye, but you will come back here, on Tergia. If you complete your quest before your eleventh death, you can also come back to Tergia.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.
As for how you will get to Humye, I will send you there. You will have an aide to help you both keep track of your quest¡¯s progress and help you track your growth. It comes in the form of an old style MMORPG interface and will seem as though you are playing an MMORPG.
We have found that this is the best way to help god candidates acclimate to their new powers and allow their minds to absorb what they are capable of as gods of Tergia.
It also gives you an idea of what life will be like as a god of Tergia and allows you to decide if that is what you truly want. You will resurrect as you would in those old-style MMORPGs but make no mistake, it is not a game.
Those old style MMORPGs used to be concerned over issues of game balance and all that nonsense ¨C since it is not a game, don¡¯t worry about such things. Acquire any ability you can, build any devices you can, do anything you need to do to free Humye ¨C just remember to do it by the traditions of the gods of Tergia.
Humye is a real planet that exists on the other arm of the galaxy far away from Tergian Unity Space and the people that live there are real and need your help to become free of the Tiel.
When you arrive on Humye, you will have the ability to choose how you look and you will be able to alter your appearance for brief periods of time after you select the initial look. After the first selection of looks on Tergia, to those that know you, you will still look like yourself. To everyone else, you will look like that initial choice of appearance you will make.
As to how to convince them to listen to you, that¡¯s one of your tasks to figure out. But don¡¯t worry, you will get a little help on this later.
Now we come to the time limit ¨C there is no time limit. But keep in mind that the god election is first and foremost, an election. You need the majority of voting Tergians to elect you to candidacy. If you are gone for too long a time, they are liable to forget about you and your deeds. Let us say you stay there for a hundred years ¨C by the time you return, most of those who knew you would be dead. Whereas that may not stop you from being successful, it would certainly not help you,¡± replied Jessy Peal, ¡°Do you have any other questions?¡± he asked. ¡°So, the faster the better?¡± asked Billy Smith. ¡°Well, not necessarily. If you are fast but fail the quest, then there isn¡¯t a benefit to the speed. But if you are too slow and still pass the quest, then you face an uphill battle for candidacy. So, be fast but not so fast that you fail the quest,¡± replied Jessy Peal, ¡°any other questions?¡± asked Jessy Peal. ¡°No ¨C I think I got it now,¡± replied Billy Smith. ¡°Could I really be gone for a hundred years? Won¡¯t I be dead of old age seeing how longevity treatments are unlikely there?¡± wondered Billy Smith, ¡°but maybe I will also get the agelessness of the gods of Tergia,¡± he thought but did not voice it to Jessy Peal.
¡°A few more things you should know before you go,¡± Jessy Peal said, ¡°You will also fail your quest if the Tiel destroy Humye before you save it. By this I mean if there is no more intelligent life on the planet of any note, in other words, a civilization, or the planet itself is destroyed. Also, if you prove yourself worthy, the Divine Assistant will make itself known to you while you are on Humye and help you with your quest. It will not truly become yours until you return to Tergia.
Well, then, are you ready to begin?¡± asked Jessy Peal. ¡°Well, I will go get my gear and say my goodbyes since this might take years, it seems,¡± replied Billy Smith. ¡°Ha ha ha,¡± laughed Jessy Peal, holding his abdomen as he laughed, ¡°I¡¯m sorry my boy. Since you have gotten this far, you only have two options ¨C to go on the quest, or to give it up forever and forfeit it. If you choose the second option, it will be as though you failed the quest and you will never be allowed to try again. If you select the first one, I will send you to Humye to begin your quest,¡± Jessy Peal said, ¡°so what will it be?¡±
Billy Smith stood there looking pole axed. He considered discontinuing the quest there and then. What about his family and friends? What about his acquaintances? What about his business dealings? What will happen if he was to suddenly vanish for years? How will his family take that? Will life be the same when he got back? Was this goal he was pursuing really worth all of that?
Then Billy Smith remembered the face of that young child that was bitten off by the Tiel. The young mother that was slaughtered and eaten while still alive. He also saw in his mind¡¯s eye all those who were at the waterfall that were butchered. He made his decision. His family, friends, businesses and everything else may miss him, they may even fall apart, but they will most likely still be alive or in existence. The people of Humye, though, did not enjoy that same fate. If there was anything he could do to improve their lives, or the chance that they will continue to exist, even if it would cost him his own life, had to be worth it. In fact, it would be a small price to pay for such a reward. His one life weighed against all the lives on Humye ¨C seeing it that way, it seemed like a very simple choice to Billy Smith.
Meanwhile, Jessy Peal was examining all these thoughts that were going through Billy Smith¡¯s mind. He was sure now that he had been right about Billy Smith¡¯s candidacy for godhood.
¡°I will go now,¡± said Billy Smith, determination evident on his face. Jessy Peal smiled and snapped his fingers ¨C the liquid metal covering the walls of the apartment all rushed towards Billy Smith, covering him completely. The liquid entered his nose, his mouth, his ears and he could feel it entering his eyes. Then he lost consciousness.
Chapter 3: Welcome to Humye
Billy Smith opened his eyes to bright light coming from his right hand side. He seemed to be lying on something soft and comfortable. When he looked down, he noticed it was dried grass that looked almost like straw. There was a notification obstructing a portion of his view:
Welcome to Humye
Welcome to Humye ¨C you have successfully arrived at your destination on Humye. You must now select an appearance, and a name.
Please speak your name: _
Billy Smith looked down at his body ¨C and noticed for the first time that he was no longer dressed as he was before he came to Humye. He was now wearing a short trousers and what appeared to be a t-shirt. Billy Smith thought about his name for a while. He knew that whatever name he selected now will probably be the name he will continue to have even when (he refused to think of it as ¡°if¡± but rather ¡°when¡±) he became a god of Tergia. On the one hand, keeping his name will allow him to keep a connection to his past. Then again, if he did become a god of Tergia, most of those he knew will be dead after only a few years, two hundred at the most, whereas he would still look like a young man ¨C probably he would look much younger than he looked now. He made up his mind. He would be known from now on as Vahlia.
¡°Vahlia!¡± he said into the air. A new notification showed up on his screen:
Welcome to Humye Vahlia
Please select your appearance: _
Then there was a selection of creatures that looked like those in the vision that Jessy Peal had shown him ¨C hundreds of varieties of looks. Some short, some tall, different skin hews, and an option that said: Customize. He selected that option. A new image came up. There was a picture of one of those creatures from the vision again. This time, though, it had a resemblance to his actual face. The label on the top said: Vahlia as Kopati.
That must be the name of the species, then. They must be the kopati. He made a few changes, placed his height to about a meter and a half, and pressed the ¡°accept¡± button. Immediately, his appearance changed. When he looked down, he noticed that even to himself, he now looked like a kopati. He had the long frame of a kopati ¨C even if a little more muscular, he also noticed that he was now wearing the same seemingly transparent garment he noticed other kopati wearing in the vision Jessy Peal had shown him. On closer examination, he saw that the clothes weren¡¯t transparent at all, they just had a similar coloring to his own color and so they appeared transparent. He also noticed right away that the colors to his skin changed slightly based on what he was feeling and the color of the garment changed to match. ¡°It must be a protective adaptation,¡± he thought. ¡°But I thought people who knew me were supposed to see me as a human?¡± he wondered. ¡°Maybe that only applies to other people who know me, not myself,¡± he thought.
For some time, he wondered about that. Why would other people who knew him when he was a human see him as himself whereas he would see himself as a kopati? Could it be that the reasoning was to make sure he could be recognized by his old friends whereas he could more easily relate to those he was suppose to save? What was he now in actuality? Was he in an actual human body, or was that body replaced by a kopati body? As he recalled before coming to Humye, he felt as though he was dying in Jessy Peal¡¯s apartment ¨C what had really happened? Did he die there and was reborn here? Was that even possible? But wasn¡¯t he human before he had made his customization?
Billy Smith stood up and looked around. He was in what appeared to be a cave ¨C he looked in the direction of the light and saw a door-shaped opening. He walked through the opening into the light. He found himself in a wide circular chamber with a bright ball of light hanging on nothing in the center of the room. On the ground was a circular metallic wall about two feet high right underneath the bright ball of light. The silvery wall was enclosing an opening in the ground that was filled with some kind of liquid-like material.
Billy Smith walked towards the light. When he was about five meters from the bright ball of light, Jessy Peal appeared in front of him. ¡°I see you arrived safely and have even chosen your appearance,¡± said Jessy Peal, ¡°very good. Now we will give you the information you need, perform a quick tutorial, and you can begin your quest,¡± he said. ¡°Before that, would you mind answering a few questions for me?¡± asked Billy Smith. ¡°It depends on what they are,¡± answered Jessy Peal, ¡°what¡¯s on your mind?¡±
¡°First, I am assuming that I am now on Humye. Is that right?¡± asked Billy Smith. ¡°Yes it is,¡± replied Jessy Peal.¡°You said before that people who knew me would see me as human ¨C but when I look at myself, I see I look like one of those people you showed me ¨C the kopati? Well, if I¡¯m supposed to be recognized as human by other humans that know me, why do I see myself as kopati?¡± asked Billy Smith. ¡°You kind of answered your own question there, although you might not realize it,¡± said Jessy Peal. ¡°You will be seen by other humans who already knew you as human,¡± he continued, ¡°have you noticed that you are no longer human?¡± he asked Billy Smith.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Billy Smith looked down at his hands, legs, arms, and felt his face and touched his antennae on his head again. ¡°I guess that answers a lot of my questions about whether I am in another body,¡± he thought. When he looked up, he saw that there was now a full-length mirror standing next to Jessy Peal. ¡°Thank you,¡± he said. Then he went over to the mirror to look at himself.
What he saw there was a kopati that bore a small resemblance to what he looked like as human. He thought the resemblance was in the shape of his face, his eyes, and the structures of the bones in his kopati face.
So, Billy Smith concluded that what Jessy Peal was saying was that only humans who knew him before he came to Humye would see him as a human but anyone of any other race will only see him as kopati ¨C including himself - since he was no longer human.¡°Whatever!¡± he thought, ¡°does it really matter anymore? When I succeed I will be human again.¡±
¡°Is that all?¡± asked Jessy Peal, ¡°can we continue now?¡± ¡°Well, not quite,¡± replied Billy Smith. When he saw the exasperated expression on Jessy Peal¡¯s face, he added quickly: ¡°Please wait,¡± he said, putting both palms up in the universal ¡°stop¡± sign, ¡°I think you will believe this is important too¡±. Jessy Peal controlled his facial expressions and the frustrated look melted away from his face. ¡°What is it, then?¡± he asked. ¡°Well, before, you said that I can build anything I want, learn anything I can to save Humye, but I must remember to do it according to the traditions of the gods of Tergia,¡± said Billy Smith. ¡°Yes I did,¡± replied Jessy Peal, ¡°so?¡± ¡°Well, only that I don¡¯t know the traditions of the gods of Tergia,¡± Billy Smith said.
Jessy Peal turned around and looked at Billy Smith. ¡°How could you be a human, born and raised on Tergia and not know the traditions of the gods of Tergia?¡± he asked Billy Smith with a frown on his face, ¡°We make it a point that the traditions are known by every Tergian. In fact, they are many of the components of the Tergian education system,¡± said Jessy Peal. ¡°Well, yes. But what I have heard so far is really just rumor. I don¡¯t know officially what they are. I don¡¯t want to fail my quest because I did something I heard about as being part of the traditions only to find out later that it was not,¡± Billy Smith said.
¡°Very well, you make a good point,¡± said Jessy Peal, ¡°I will give them to you very briefly, then. The main points of the traditions are based on principles first espoused on Old Earth Millennia ago ¨C that the strong ought to support and protect the weak, that one should do onto others as one wants to be done to them, and finally the principle that is the basis for all judgment in Tergian law: Anyone violating the above principles and costing another or intending to cost another their lives or property forfeits their own rights to both life, property, and the expectation of just treatment. Of course, mercy is encouraged where it can be justified and where mercy will produce a benefit for the greater good. This is the traditions of the gods of Tergia in a nutshell. Do you understand?¡± asked Jessy Peal. ¡°Yes I do,¡± replied Billy Smith. ¡°Do you have any questions?¡± asked Jessy Peal, by now used to Billy Smith asking questions over almost every explanation. The truth is that he preferred that Billy Smith ask question than have the young man fail the quest. There was a lot riding on this quest, and he was hopeful that Billy Smith will succeed.
¡°Yes I have a few questions,¡± replied Billy Smith. ¡°So, does that mean if I can show that someone intended to kill someone else, or rob them of their property that person no longer deserves to live or have any property?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes,¡± replied Jessy Peal, ¡°although you really don¡¯t have to be able to show it at all. Everything you see, know, and think is recorded. It will be examined only when there is a question regarding a judgment you make and only information pertaining to that judgment will be examined. The rest remains strictly private. So, if there is sufficient information to convince you of something, it is usually enough, though you might be questioned if it is believed you didn¡¯t investigate thoroughly.¡± said Jessy Peal. ¡°I see. And if I cannot kill the person for whatever reason, I no longer have to treat them with any consideration for justice?¡± he asked again. ¡°Precisely,¡± replied Jessy Peal. ¡°Ok. I understand completely. Thank you for clarifying and thank you for your patience,¡± said Billy Smith. ¡°You are quite welcome,¡± replied Jessy Peal.
¡°Remember as you go through this entire process ¨C including the candidacy, that you will have the powers of a judge, jury, and executioner. Whereas some may think that is too much power, you are being observed and you will be brought under harsh judgment if you are in violation of the traditions of the gods of Tergia,¡± Jessy Peal said.
¡°Now, let me tell you a little bit about the MMORPG interface you will be using, send you on the quick tutorial, and then I will give you information that will be vital to your quest so that you can begin immediately.
Just like all MMORPG, your abilities will depend on your primary statistics. There are a few basic stats that you start off with but as you advance, you will continue to discover new stats. In those MMORPG, there were usually limits to how many stats you can have. Since this is not an MMORPG and game balance and such things don¡¯t matter, the amount of stats you will have will only be limited by your experience in with the interface. As long as you are a god of Tergia, you will have an opportunity to find new stats. So, the only real limits you will have will be those placed upon you by your inexperience and circumstances. Your basic stats and their levels will only be determined once you complete the tutorial. That includes your gear as well. Depending on how you do on the tutorial, you will gain abilities, stats, and gear. You may even pick up some skills ¨C although that is unlikely.
You will also gain experience points. These will be what allow you to increase in your levels. After each level increase, you will gain seven ability points and three skill points. You can use ability points to increase a particular ability to a higher level. How much the ability increases depends on that ability. The ratio of ability points to ability level increase varies ¨C you will have to discover what it is as you go along. Ability points and skill points are similar and can be converted at a ratio of 1:3 ¨C one ability point will give three skill points.
Skill points are used to increase a particular skill you have learned to the next level. Skill and abilities are very similar; they vary slightly because depending on whether or not you are using mana, or stamina, with them. Usually it¡¯s mana for ability and stamina for skills although there can be a bleed over from time to time ¨C the exceptions that prove the rule.
Oh, right, mana. Mana is one of your basic stats. It is a measure of how much energy you have available to use on an ability. In reality, this truly measures energy stored within nanites in your body that can be channeled to perform a function, though you don¡¯t absolutely need to know that.
You also have an inventory. The size depends on the strength stat. The greater your strength, the larger your inventory is. To open your inventory, just think ¡°inventory¡± and you will get a mental image of your inventory. To equip things from inventory, simply imagine what you want to equip and think ¡°equip¡±. To put something into inventory, just reverse the process and say ¡°put into inventory¡± or something similar ¨C the interface understands what you want and you really don¡¯t need any words, just the intention will suffice.
There are other basic stats, but you can read up on these on your own ¨C just think about the stat and wonder what it is, or just think ¡°basic stats¡± and you will get a list of them. That covers the quick run-down about your interface. Do you have any questions? Oh, yes, before you ask ¨C all your stats currently have question marks. That¡¯s because you haven¡¯t completed the tutorial yet. When you complete it, the system will determine your base stats and those should change. Now you can ask any questions you wish,¡± said Jessy Peal. ¡°I have played those old-style MMORPGs and I think I get the basic idea. Thank you,¡± replied Billy Smith.
¡°Very well, we will now begin the tutorial,¡± said Jessy Peal, as the entire scene changed again.