Level One God

I turned to look at the newcomer. She was tall, but not quite to my height. Her platinum blonde hair was pulled into a neatly arranged braid, and her features were somewhat ageless. She could have told me she was twenty or forty and I’m not sure either would’ve surprised me. She wore an intricately stitched robe, far more lavish than anything I’d seen so far in town. There was a silver badge pinned to her shoulder.

Lyria was staring at the badge with unmasked awe.

“I’m Circa,” she said, extending a hand toward me.

“Brynn,” I said with uncertainty as I took her hand and shook it.

She searched my face with dark blue eyes. Her gaze was intense, almost as if she were trying to read my mind. She suddenly gripped my hand tighter, and I felt a pinch in the center of my palm. “This will only feel strange for a moment. Forgive me.”

I tensed as I felt warmth flood through me, leaving tingling heat across the surface of my skin all over. My nagging cuts, wounds, and aches evaporated in a warm rush. She let go of my hand and I looked down, pulling my sleeve up in astonishment to find all my cuts and gashes were gone. Even the stab wound from Jinglefoot felt like it was gone.

“Wow,” I said. “Thank you.”

She nodded as if it was as simple a favor as offering a stranger a tissue. She tilted her head toward the box of stones. “Choosing a class for the first time?”

“We’ve got this handled, thanks,” Lyria said. She positioned herself to exclude Circa from the conversation.

Unbothered, Circa moved around to stand on the other side of me. “There are four base corestones,” she said, like a teacher preparing to lecture her students.

Lyria made an exasperated sound and folded her arms, watching.

“Sword, Shield, Heart, and Soul,” she continued. “Of course, there are also the basic crafting stones, but you won’t find those in the guild offerings.”

“There are crafting stones?” I asked. Suddenly, I wondered if I should consider using one for my second class. Then again, if it didn’t offer any combat benefits, I probably would be better off just earning enough money to buy crafted goods. Wasting the rare ability to equip two stones on the convenience of crafting my own stuff was probably a bad idea.

“Yes,” Circa said. “They function just like class corestones. The only difference is they grow faster as the rarity and difficulty of the crafting increases, rather than of the combat situation.”

“What crafting stones are there to choose from?” I asked. Really, I was just curious.

“There are only two, but they branch in many ways as they are used,” Circa said. “There are Builder stones, which can lead to things like blacksmithing, tailoring, construction, and so on. And there are Scribe stones, which involve magically imbuing items with power. Specializations can include things such as alchemy, enchanting, the crafting of temporary scripts, and so on. Nearly all of the high level crafters work as teams. One Scribe, one Builder. In some cases, they can simply buy supplies from the other crafting class, and sometimes, they must work hand-in-hand.”

“Huh. Interesting,” I said.

“But we’re here to talk about combat classes,” Circa said, cutting off any more questions I might have asked. “Each of these four stones will mold its initial path to your nature. One could spend years lost in libraries reading about the possible starting permutations. Suffice to say that your connection to the mana will guide you down an appropriate path.”

“In other words,” Lyria said, jumping in, “everybody gets different powers from the same stones. No way to tell until you bind to one.”

“Not exactly correct,” Circa’s lips were pressed thin. “There are ways to guide and mold your nature to make certain abilities a near certainty. Just as you can devote yourself to a specific discipline to nurture your corestone along certain known paths.”

The two women shared a moment of tense eye contact before I decided to clear my throat. “So it’s like a theme, then? I won’t know exactly what abilities I’ll get to start, but I can guess their general theme will fit with the stone I choose?”

“That is… close enough to correct. Yes,” Circa said.

“Is one best?” I asked. “And what do they all do?”

“A Heart stone is what I use,” Circa said. “But if your stone evolves to Rare and beyond, it will lock in a class specialization. Sometimes, you’ll be given the ability to choose. Sometimes not. Each rarity will further evolve your class and increase its power, as well as unlocking new abilities.” She lifted a palm, and a purple orb appeared in it. The orb had a symbol of a heart with tendrils snaking out in all directions. It was glowing from the inside. She removed the sword stone from the prongs and set hers down.

I only had time to read [Epic] Lifeweaver and see a very long list of active and passive abilities, each with its own rarity and tier associated below. Circa picked the stone back up, and it vanished smoothly, presumably returning to her slip space.

“A Heart stone will often give you some ability to heal yourself and others. At first, you may have no offensive capabilities at all. As you progress, it’s quite common to gain methods of self-defense. A Soul stone, on the other hand, is relatively unpredictable. Typically, it provides a mixture of magical abilities that can aid allies and harm your foes. As you’ve probably guessed, a Sword stone is focused on offensive capabilities, and a Shield stone is focused on defense.”

“Thanks so much for your help,” Lyria said tightly. “I can take it from here. He’s my problem.”

Circa’s eyes were pure ice. She reached down to Lyria’s wooden badge and touched it with a long, well-manicured fingertip. “It’s odd for a Wood ranked guard to feel so confident in her ability to tutor another Wood. Wouldn’t you agree? I believe it would be best if I took him from here.”

I raised my hand—why was I raising my hand? “Just jumping in for a second,” I said. “When you say you could take me… what do you want to do with me, exactly?”

Circa gave me another one of those intense glares. This time, she looked like she was confused. “I thought perhaps you wanted guidance from somebody more experienced. I overheard you were considering joining the guild. I’ve been a member for quite some time. I could mentor you if you wished.”

Lyria put an arm in front of my chest and wedged herself in between Circa and me. It was silly because there was an entire counter’s worth of space, and the three of us were jammed together like sardines now. The small red-headed guard was squished between us, trying her best to stare up at the taller blonde woman.

“Frankly,” Lyria said, “I don’t trust your intentions.”

From Lyria’s tone, I thought she might actually be trying to protect me. It was honestly a bit endearing, considering I doubted she could stop a Silver ranked adventurer, even if she wanted.

“Perhaps I should be the one questioning your intentions,” Circa said. “A town guard attaches herself to a promising, handsome young man and refuses to let one of her superiors guide him?”

“Promising?” Lyria sputtered.

Handsome? I thought. Nice.

“He can hardly cross the street without getting himself killed if I’m not helping him,” Lyria said.

“Hey,” I said, trying to interject. “That’s not strictly true.”

“The fact that you can’t sense his potential is all the truth I need. You’re wasting his time. Maybe you should go guard something. I’m sure even a girl of your limited talents could handle that.”

“Towns and cities need guards. We protect people while your type runs around for personal gain and riches. Somebody needs to be at the gates when danger comes knocking.”

Circa straightened. “And others prefer to go out and clear that danger from the world rather than wait while it gathers in strength and attacks at its leisure. You could not even begin to guess the terrors my kind snuffs out before they reach your gates.”

I cleared my throat. “Advice never hurt anybody,” I said carefully. “What if Lyria gets to keep making sure I stay out of trouble, and Circa can answer my questions? Everybody wins, right?”

Circa and Lyria continued their stare-off for several more tense seconds.

Lyria finally shook her head and turned back toward the three-pronged corestone device. “Do you want to read the rest of their descriptions, Brynn?” she asked.

“I need to have a word with him. In private.” Circa took my arm and dragged me down the bar a few steps. Lyria tried to follow us, but Circa shot her hand out in a way that was definitely threatening. A few people nearby froze, watching the exchange with worried looks.

Lyria threw up a hand in annoyance and waited out of earshot.

“Does she know who you are?” Circa asked in a hushed whisper.

I narrowed my eyes. “Lyria?”

“The girl, yes. Does she know?”

I narrowed my eyes. “Maybe you should tell me who you believe I am.”

Circa gave another jab of her hand, making Lyria take a reluctant step back. Lyria looked so pissed with Circa that she might just draw a weapon.

“Seraphel,” Circa whispered.

Oh. I was not expecting that.

My thoughts raced. I could deny everything, of course. But why would she bother luring me in by promising to help me? Why not simply wait until I walked out of this place and bash my head in if she wanted to harm me? And she already seemed completely convinced she was right. Would denying her claim even do any good?

“And if I say I have no idea what you’re talking about?” I asked, feeling like my heart was thumping in my throat.

“You left an order of watchers to await your return. I am one of those watchers. I know your face. But…” her expression darkened.

I sensed some kind of conflict there. “But what?”

She shook her head slightly. “There’s a small other matter I need to deal with, but it’s not important right now. I could… help you. Serve you, if you wished it.”

“There’s just one problem,” I said. “I don’t remember being who you say I am. So if you’re lying to get me to admit something because you’re sent to kill me, there’s no point. I forgot it all, anyway.”

“I intend you no harm. If you command it, I’ll obey.”

I stared at the woman. I tried to think through how this could be a trap. If she was sent by some kind of enemy of a god, would she even care if she was wrong? She would go full T-1000 and kill everybody who might be Seraphel. What would be the purpose in trying to trick me?

If she wanted information, I had nothing valuable to give her.

The only real angle I could picture her having would be if she was working with one of the other prestiged gods. Maybe they wanted information on the other gods?

But, again, if they wanted me dead, why bother with trickery or information gathering?

In the vast list of possible reasons she could have for approaching me, I felt like I could use Occam’s Razor, here. The simplest explanation was the best explanation.

If she intended to harm me, I would’ve probably been dead already. So she must not have intended to harm me, and that meant I might as well trust her and hope she could be a useful ally.

“That is… very kind of you,” I said. “But I’m not sure you’re understanding. I remember nothing. All I know is I apparently… made a choice that wiped my memory of everything after I originally arrived here. All I have is my old life.”

Circa’s eyes flashed with worry, but then her forehead creased, and she nodded. “The writings told of this possibility… I had hoped… It doesn’t matter. Your order is not what it once was. There have been complications in your long absence.”

“What were you doing here in Riverwell? Looking for me?”

Something passed over her expression, but she smoothed her features quickly. “Right now, my goal is to assist you.”

“Alright,” I said softly, glancing over my shoulder at Lyria, who was watching us carefully. She didn’t seem to appreciate our private conversation at all. “I feel like I shouldn’t believe you, but I can’t figure out how the hell you would know to call me that name if you didn’t really know something.”

Circa nodded. “I am telling you the truth. I assure you. Though I must admit I didn’t expect to find you so… diminished.”

I became suddenly aware of my simple robe, shoes, and general state of un-impressiveness. I scratched at my hair, feeling a little embarrassed. “You said I left watchers? What were you supposed to do when you found me?”

“That part was somewhat debated. The primary writings were lost when Ithariel struck down the divine houses. We had depictions and statues of you and the knowledge that you would return. More than that, I don’t know.”

“And that was enough to keep the order going?” I asked, feeling disbelief wash over me. “For 300 years?”

“Gods are not easily forgotten.”

I thought about Lyria’s words and how she doubted The Nine were even real. Gods might be more easily forgotten than she thinks.

“If I may make a suggestion?” Circa asked.

“Yes?”

“You shouldn’t walk around with your face on display. It has been long, but Ithariel has watchers everywhere. He waits for you all to return, and he’ll send the Molten Hand if he so much as suspects one of you is back.”

It seemed like my choice was either to wear the helmet that might make people try to mug me, or to wear the face that might bring down the wrath of a god on me.

I summoned the helmet to my hands.

“Voidgaze,” she whispered. “My ancestors passed down a painting of you wearing this. It hangs in my personal space… You wore this during your rise to godhood when you were still a Gold."

I raised an eyebrow. Either she could identify it somehow, or she really did recognize the helmet. Her connection to Seraphel seemed even more legitimate with that bit of information. “So… don’t wear the helmet? Will people recognize it?”

“No, I think not,” she said. “Some will know it's a Gold-quality material known as voidsteel, but the helmet could be explained away with the right excuses. Your face could not.”

I slid the helmet on.

Lyria leaned around Circa. “What’s she saying to you? Why are you putting that thing on again?”

“Quiet, girl,” Circa snapped.

“Um,” I said, leaning close and lowering my voice. “Can I divinely ask you to be nice to her?”

“We can’t trust her,” Circa countered.

“Just a second,” I said to Lyria, who opened her mouth to argue, but threw her hands up in annoyance as I shuffled farther away with Circa again.

“Do you think a random guard in Riverwell is likely to be a spy for Ithariel?” I asked her.

“She could be,” Circa said seriously.

“She already saw my face. As far as I can tell, she’s mostly just excited about not having to deal with me when her assignment is over. If this Ithariel guy left watchers for me, wouldn’t he teach them what I looked like?”

Circa finally looked a little less certain. “There’s still no reason to involve her. Let her finish her assignment, and move on.”

“The reason is that she could be a valuable ally. I have a feeling about her.”

“A feeling? Does this feeling originate from above or below your belt?”

For someone who seemed to think of me as “her lord,” I appreciated the backbone. “She’s pretty, but I’m not interested in her like that. I did this to myself,” I said, gesturing at my body. “I doubt I did it so I could go back to Wood rank and flirt with pretty girls. I intend to get stronger and find out what the hell made me do this. And I’m going to need people I can trust along the way. And there’s no better time to start recruiting allies than the present. It’s not like I have to tell her anything that could come back to screw me over.”

“She’s a guard. What if she refuses to travel with you?”

“Well,” I said. “That’s true… But I’d like to see what she says. Maybe we can give her a vague idea that I’m involved in something important and see if that’s enough to catch her interest.”

Circa let out a long breath through her nose. I could tell she didn’t like this, and I understood it. I really did. But I also told myself I would trust my instincts. They were enough to get me to godhood once. My instincts right now were telling me to search for friends and allies when I could.

Circa leaned to the side, looking at Lyria, who was angrily glaring at us.

“There is something we could do to ensure her silence,” Circa said slowly. “If you insist on trying to recruit her to your cause.”

I squinted. “We’re not killing her, Circa… That would be counter-productive, not to mention—”

“No… a magical technique.”

I raised my eyebrows. “What kind of magical technique?”

“One I prefer not to resort to. It would still be simplest to avoid involving her.”

“Look,” I said softly. “Lyria could have gone and drank herself silly at a tavern instead of following her captain’s orders to keep an eye on me. She didn’t. She cares about doing a good job. She could’ve murdered me or tied me up for ransom when I fell asleep in her bathtub, but she didn’t.”

“Her bathtub?” Circa whispered, eyebrows drawing together.

“Bad example. But you mentioned you could do something to keep her quiet, right? What did you mean?”

“A magical technique known as Oathbinding,” Circa said. She sounded reluctant, though. “It would ensure she couldn’t repeat what we tell her to anyone.”

“So… all the good parts with none of the negatives?” I asked.

“He is wise,” Circa said in the way of a disciple reciting a prayer. “His ways are mysterious and pure. His path is known only to him, but his path is clear.” She lowered her eyes, nodding.

“Alright?” I asked, locking eyes with Circa. “So if I ask Lyria to come over here, you’ll be nice to her? And we can talk more about this Oathbinding thing in a little while?”

Circa nodded, so I waved for Lyria to come back over and join us.

Reluctantly, she approached us.

“Circa was just talking about the mentorship thing some more,” I said. “She’s going to be nice enough to advise me on which corestone to pick, too. Oh, and she agreed to come along with us to my personal space for the loot party.”

“Loot party?” Lyria asked, disbelief clear on her features.

Circa gave the slightest curtsey, which made Lyria look even more baffled.

As casually as possible, I moved back to the three-pronged corestone viewer. Now that my helmet was on, I could freely inspect things and people again. I didn’t realize how much I’d missed the ability already. I snuck a glance at Circa.

[Human, Level 50 (Silver)]

Next, I looked at the corestones in the wooden box.

The descriptions were just as bland as the one given by the three-pronged device, so I turned my attention to Circa.

“When you described the classes,” I said, “I was most interested in the Soul class. Would that be a bad idea?”

“Not at all. More than others, the Soul path will cater to your nature. It can sometimes be weaker to start, but with proper training, focus and ambition, you’ll likely outpace the other classes in time. It’s generally accepted that evolved Soul stones are some of the most powerful.”

I looked at Lyria, who seemed like she was still fuming. “What is your advice? Anything I should know before I pick a corestone?”

“Most people never make it out of Wood rank. If you don’t, Soul will be the weakest and least reliable choice by far. You’ll tend to get situational abilities that you have to slowly build your equipment around to maximize. Sword will guarantee you some abilities that pack a punch early. Heart will mean you have good job opportunities that pay well since all walks of life can use talented healers. Shield is… well, Shield requires a special kind of crazy. When you make your worth by taking hits, you’re flirting with death. But people put a high premium on a good Shield user, so…”

“Hmm.” I stroked my chin. When I used to play games, I was always a sucker for the economic approach. I liked taking greedy risks early that would get me ahead late. The idea of squeaking by with the bare minimum so I could overwhelm my opponent with explosive growth at the last possible moment was my style. But this wasn’t a game. I had to keep reminding myself as much.

Still… I thought about the prestige path I’d chosen. It certainly seemed like something I would pick. It was a path of starting slow and finishing strong. Wouldn’t it make sense if my class synergized with my prestige path? Besides, I had the benefit of getting to pick a second class. I could see now why that was such a huge boon. I could make the risky choice with one stone and then use my second one for something more practical to help survive the weaker growing pains of a Soul stone.

“Alright, I’ve decided,” I say. “I’m going to choose the Soul class.”

Lyria didn’t look like she agreed with my choice. If I couldn’t choose two classes, I would share the sentiment. But from the sounds of it, my class would shape itself to my nature to a degree. I didn’t want to risk choosing two polar opposite approaches, either. If the Soul class was more well-rounded, it would likely synergize better with items that might benefit a Heart class.

Of course, I was pulling almost entirely from my knowledge of video games to make my assumptions, but the logic felt sound enough.

Circa nodded, taking the Soul stone from my hand and placing it back in the box. “Very well. But I wouldn’t suggest signing this contract of binding with the guild. You can fulfill commissions as a freelance adventurer and earn nearly the same pay rate without the quota.”

“I need this corestone, though,” I said.

“Fortunately, I have two corestones I haven’t sold yet. One Sword, one Soul.” She produced them in her palm.

I stared down at them, mouth practically watering. I’d already made a decision about what I wanted my second class to be, though. I wanted to pair my Soul stone with a Heart stone. If I found myself on my own again, being able to heal my own wounds would be more valuable than any other abilities. I also had to remember that I needed to be discreet about having two classes equipped. If what Circa said was true, I couldn’t necessarily advertise that I was one of only eight beings on the entire planet who had activated prestige mode. I could ask her about the second stone when we had a moment alone.

“You’re sure?” I asked.

“I’m certain. Please,” she said, lifting her hand a little.

“Uh,” Lyria said. “Why are you so interested in Brynn and why are you willing to give him a corestone for free?”

“Investing in a promising student is the same as sowing seeds for harvest. With fertile soil, hard work, and time, the teacher and student both reap the rewards.”

“By eating the harvest,” Lyria said slowly. “You’re not planning to eat him, right?”

Circa gave Lyria a dry look. “In intellectual circles, my example is what is called a metaphor. Those who read books often use them to convey complex messages. That was a metaphor, and I do not plan to eat him.”

Lyria glared. “I know what a metaphor is.”

“Anyway,” I said, hoping to cut the tension by bringing their focus back to the stone. “If I equip this stone, can I ever take it off?”

“You can,” Circa said. “You’ll be tethering your mana to the stone, just like a piece of equipment. Learning to use your abilities is a complex process, though. It’s uncommon for anyone to switch stones after they’ve made progress with it.”

I honestly hadn’t felt like I was tethering anything to my equipment, but I figured I’d take her word for it. I focused on the stone and thought about equipping it.

A cold wave ran across my skin, and the stone winked out of existence. A new notification appeared.

[Attunement successful] “Soul” Class Corestone equipped.

[Skill(s) Unlocked]

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