Unwilling Eldritch Horror of Fortune

Being teleported so often, I had thought that it had me inured to the worst of the disorientation, but whatever means that the cultists had used to transport us was horrible to the extreme. My head felt like it had gone through a three-week drug-fueled bender, and I had to have Noe nullify the worst of the sensation before I threw up on the floor, I had a role to play again, and that was not how I wanted my first impressions to be. I saw that my friends had endured the transition better than I had, although, from the slight frowns on their faces, it was probably just as unpleasant.

True to their earlier words of following my discretion, they didn’t voice their distaste. It was times like this that I was so thankful that I’ve been working with nothing but competent individuals thus far, even on the Aspirant side of things. I took a deep breath and refocused my attention at the task at hand.

Our original plan was to come in diplomatically, that was what we told the Conduit to get this meeting, but things changed when we realized that the Origin Matrix was in the background doing who knows what. Perhaps an even-handed approach was still possible, but I think that given our current lineup, the shock and awe angle would be a lot more effective, and after discussing it in more detail with my friends, we all agreed to go along with my crazy plan, even if they were worried about my part in it.

However, relying solely on shock and awe could only get us so far. The gods would be too guarded against us, and getting real information out of them would be difficult. That’s not even mentioning how we would be able to differentiate facts from lies. Plus, I wouldn’t put it past the Trash Matrix to put safeguards in place that prevented harsh interrogations from yielding results. That meant that one of us had to infiltrate the gods while everyone’s attention were on the other three. It went without saying who was the best fit for the infiltrating job, even if my friends were not happy about the risks I would have to take.

I took my place behind my friends and took a more diminutive stance, with my head low and shoulders slack and meek. I needed to play my part correctly for what was to come. It was a good thing that I kept a relatively low profile since my journey here.

In front of the four of us was a massive temple that seemed to be made out of pure obsidian, and in the background was a swirling mass of stars and celestial matter. From way up high, almost imperceptibly so from our low vantage point, were a set of three figures. They were too far away for me to make out clearly, but I could just about make out about a dozen more standing behind the three, perhaps minor gods or their attendants. All the while, thousands upon thousands of souls whirled and wailed in the air, and it was clear that they meant to impress or unnerve us with this display.

“How stable is this dimension?” I asked Q in a whisper as we continued to survey the situation.

Q paused for a moment before replying, “Better than the mortal realm before, worse than most of the Stages we use in the Trials. It’s good enough for what you need done.”

“So enough that we can cause some havoc without destroying everything. That’s good enough. We’re going with our first plan then; Xalla, think you can manage to make an entrance?”

The girl nodded slightly. “I can’t go fully Prime here, but I think I have just what we need. Just give the signal.”

I grinned. “Good, and Q, stand back and make sure that things don’t devolve into that earlier mess.”

“Understood.”

I looked at our final member. “Molly, can you find out who’s the most expendable on their side while Xalla does her thing?”

The woman chuckled. “Already done. It’s the figure in the very back corner, the one beside the one in the red robe. We can sacrifice that one without issue.”

“Then let’s get the show on the road. It’s time to let these gods know that we’re the ones in charge in no uncertain terms.” I turned to the Xollon and gave her a thumbs up. “Xalla, you’re up.”

The gods hadn’t reacted to our presence thus far, maybe thinking we were taking in the sights and were overawed, but that would be a mistake they’d never forget. I hedged my bets that these evil deities would be overconfident and, more importantly, arrogant. So far, everything pointed to the fact that I had been right.

They only had second-hand accounts of our actions so far, and I bet they didn’t fully believe in the prophecies of their foes. They probably thought most of the information had been propaganda. I suspected that the Order gods would have welcomed us in a much different manner, but perhaps it was better this way. Fear and dread worked just as well as respect and admiration at times. Of course, I had other ideas in place in case my assumptions were wrong, but I was inwardly thankful that my first and most concrete plan was correct.

Xalla got rid of her skin suit as she walked closer to the gathered gods. They looked startled to see her Secondary Form, but boy were they in for a treat when they saw what she was about to do. Then again, I was as well, most of the knowledge I had about the Xollon had been lost when I went to sleep, so I only knew the bare basics about their anatomy and abilities. All I knew was that Xalla was about to do something fun.

I was certainly not disappointed.

Xalla's form expanded at an alarming rate. Her small tentacles grew to become the size of tree trunks before expanding further to the size of a grain silo. Soon, a terrifying entity covered almost all of the visible space around us, and an eldritch screech emanating from her glistening maw shattered the floating souls around us. I knew she was on our side, heck, I was even dating her, but that new form sent shivers down my spine regardless, and that wasn’t even the full majesty of a Xollon’s Prime form. I couldn’t even imagine, probably quite literally now that I was in a human body again, what her true body looked like.

Once the initial shock of what had occurred passed for the gathered gods, and they realized that we did not have their best intentions in mind, the three main gods started to act. From my limited point of view, most of it was blocked by Xalla’s massive figure, I could just about make out energy bursts and various arcane assaults being launched at the Xollon’s form. The air around us was ablaze with holy, or unholy in this case, energy, and I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand up from the ambient discharge. It didn’t take a genius to see that the gods went all out on their initial attack.

Not that it matters at all. They might as well have been spraying Xalla with a water gun for all the damage they did, and it only took a casual - scratch that - a very delicate swipe from her main feeler to shatter their offense… along with pretty much everything else in the surrounding. Once the dust had settled, the three main gods and their dozens of followers were sprawled on the ruins of their temple, and any fight they thought they had was completely gone.

Q nodded, which told me that the plane was still stable enough to continue with the next part of the plan. “I hope you know what you’re doing, Walter. We won’t be able to help you much past this point… and I apologize ahead of time for what I’m about to do.”

“You still have my charm,” Molly added, “So remember that if things go awry, you have me as a backup. I hope you know what you’re doing, Walter.”

“Just remember to follow the plan as best you can,” I added quickly while the situation was still chaotic, “Only communicate with me if things really derail, I can improve as needed, so don’t worry there. We can’t take any more risks going forward, there’s something special about this place, and we need to find out what it is, and why Origin would go out of its way to hide it.”

My two friends nodded.

Xalla had shifted back to a more manageable form before giving me a comforting nod when the gods were distracted by the dust and debris. All the attention was on the Xollon woman at the moment, and she couldn’t afford to talk, but I knew she was wishing me luck as well. And speaking of luck, it was time to put the Absolute Luck Skill to the test. I activated it immediately and almost flinched when I saw that the charges dropped by almost 1000 without me doing anything. I had precious little charges left at my disposal.

What’s going on, Noe? Why’d the Charges go down so fast?

“To ensure that your plan works as effectively as possible, my Host,” the system answered, “I had to make some small changes to casualty. Do not worry, you should be good from here on out.”

Right, I had almost forgotten just how powerful the little voice in my head was. I just wish I still remembered how on earth I had managed to create something like her in the first place, and I had a suspicion that Noe was, if she had all her shards, would be stronger than my fully awakened self. But I could contemplate those things later, I had a job to fulfill now, and if Noe’s right, then my plan should work out just fine.

My friends had ditched their disguises now, showing, much to the dismay of the local gods here, their terrifying true forms. I still remained in my meat suit, looking so oddly out of place that the attentions of the gods and their servants were focused on me momentarily. With my posture and body language all signaling fealty and subservience, plus the fact that I was obviously physically different, they were all wondering who I was and, more importantly, why I was with these eldritch invaders.

Q was the first to address the gathered gods.

“We have come to your world, and we are displeased!” he shouted, he had put on his old Admin persona again, and it was a majestic sight to behold.

There was no response from the other side, they didn’t know what to say with how vague Q’s declaration was. Good, the man knew how to disorient and confuse people, which, now that I think about it, was probably a very useful skill to have working as a Site Admin. It was good to see him back in his element after that slump, and I allowed him to take charge.

Satisfied that all eyes and ears were on him, Q continued. “Your race, your creations, and you yourself hold so much potential, yet there is still so much disagreement and strife. You, who rule above the mortals, are busy bickering and fighting against your peers when you could use that time to improve your realm, and that disunity has stimeid your growth! Yet even when the lot of you stand united for once, you are still unable to unify the realm and defeat your enemies. That is pathetic!”

By now, the gods had recovered enough of their wit to stand up and study us properly. Their leader, a withered crone of a being, was still trying their best to stay composed, but to give her credit, she was the first one to speak up.

“We cannot gain an advantage against our foes, and it is not from a lack of trying,” she said, her voice harsh and cold, “Every plan and ploy we had developed had been foiled by our opponents ever since they summoned that strange Chosen individual. The abilities of our cursed brethren have risen exponentially, and we are still unable to figure out the cause of their rise.”

“And that is why we are here,” Q continued, “Someone from outside your realm is interfering with the natural development of your plane, and that is unacceptable. We are here to even the odds. However, just as the benefactors of your enemies do not act directly, we cannot either. I am sure you do not need to be told why.”

The gods winced when they remembered the damage our entrance caused.

“Then what can you offer us, if direct help cannot be allowed?” the crone asked.

Q gestured to Molly and she chucked the unconscious Hero and his party members out of whatever place she was holding them. Q pointed at them, then at me. That was my cue to take off my guise and return to the human form. The gods almost gasped when they saw that I was of the same species as the Chosen.

Q smiled. “We have their little Hero captured, and we have someone of the same species working for us. I think you can make the connection yourself, but let me explain just in case…”