Rise Of The Godking - Chapter 78 Revealed

As the dwarf king’s words faded into nothingness, Daneel found it hard to keep a straight face.

The endless vista in front of him was enticing. But the giant was clearly saying that he wouldn’t be able to go forward any time soon.

For the briefest of moments, he was reminded of all the millions of Angarians who had entrusted their lives to him. He had sacrificed them, making them believe that they would come alive once more when he had found enough power to make it happen… but here, he was almost weaker than he had ever been, and the path to achieving this goal seemed so long and treacherous that it was almost disheartening to think about.

Just a single glance back made these thoughts leave his mind, though, replaced by an outburst of self-confidence due to everything he had accomplished so far.

His body was weak, yes… but his mind was stronger than ever after going through so much. With the system and the wealth of experience he now had to draw upon, could he not climb to the peak much faster, and in a much more startling and spectacular way than anyone could imagine?

And besides… had he ever been someone who left things midway?

‘No. And I won’t begin to become someone like that, either. This is where I am right now… and I can’t leave until I’m satisfied that I’ve done my job, and repaid the trust I have been graced with. But what lies ahead? I don’t know… so maybe it’s time to find out.’

There were so many questions about this land, this world, and what he was seeing that they whirled around his head, fighting against each other to rise to prominence and be uttered from his mouth. As a result, his face became one of a student who was sitting in front of an exam, not knowing which question to pick.

Looking to his side, the giant chuckled and said, “Be at ease, brother. There are tough times ahead… but we have won a victory worth celebrating. But first, we expect that you must be filled with questions, right? Do not hesitate. Ask what you wish, and we will answer if we can.”

Slowly, with a few grunts and a considerable number of winces, the giant settled down onto the grassy ground, sighing with satisfaction when he found a comfortable position with half his back on the ground, one leg raised, and one hand on that leg with the other supporting the other half of his back that was upright, allowing his head to still gaze upon the incredible sight in front of them.

Daneel adopted the same position. As soon as he did so, he felt a slight hint of worry after seeing his brother’s condition… but he shrugged it away, trusting that the man would tell him if something was wrong.

That brought him to the difficult decision, once again, regarding what he should ask… and still unable to make up his mind, he just blurted out the first thing that came to his lips.

He clamped his mouth shut, knowing that he was about to inundate the king with questions. The giant laughed again, and looked at the beautiful sea ruefully before beginning to speak, its blue magnificence reflected in the large pools that were his eyes.

“Ah, the inquisitiveness of youth. We barely remember a time when we possessed it, too. That doesn’t mean we can’t feel it, though. Well, where do we start… how about we tell you about how we know the answers, first, so that you don’t wonder about it while we tell you what you want to hear? Alright?”

Daneel nodded. The giant grunted, and his eyes glazed over with a faraway look. He was no longer looking at the landscape outside the Graiton; no, he was looking inward, into the memories that stretched farther back than those of a mortal had a right to be, and when he found what he was looking for, a small smile played at the corner of his lips while he spoke.

“Remember that speech we gave you the first time we met? We talked about how we were proud that this power of ours was something we achieved, by ourselves. Well… the truth is that that isn’t completely true. We stumbled on the path, sure… but without his help, we would never have reached the point where we could freely absorb what we needed and become a true Glutton. Let me see… when did we first meet him? We were 25 years old, and had already spent five years knowing that there was some power within our reach, but never proceeding far enough to be able to find out what it was. It was curiosity that drove us, too, and the burning wish to change what was around us. We investigated the crystals, their power, and the general nature of the world. We had so many more questions than you… at one point, we were sure that we would go to our grave with them still buzzing around our head. But one fateful day… we were so starved that we were sure we would die, and then, we merely reached out with our body, and succeeded. Now that we look back…it seems that we should thank that ruthless guard who stole our food.”

Daneel was watching the giant, so he could see his large eyes shining, as if just the memory of what it had felt then was enough to make him forget all the pain he must be in. He chuckled for a bit, then continued.

“We were ecstatic. We thought that we would change everything in one go… but imagine our disappointment when we couldn’t do it again, no matter how much we tried. We were made fun of by the enforcers. They kept seeing us extending our hands towards everything that might give us a smidgen of power; we kept failing, and trying, and failing again. In exactly one week after that incident… he was there. He tapped us on the shoulder as if he knew us well, and the words he first said to us still echo in our ears. He said…’Stop thinking, and just do it.’”

Daneel smiled, imagining the reaction that the giant must have given after seeing someone he had never seen before walk up to him and speak about his darkest secret. Sure enough, with a shudder, the man continued.

“We were scared. We’ll admit it; we were so scared that we almost peed our pants. We kept searching for him everywhere, but to no avail… until once more, we mimicked the circumstances around which we had absorbed energy that first time, and followed his advice by shutting off our mind. It worked, again! And he was back. He stepped out of the wall, startling the life out of us, and with a satisfied smile on that kindly face, he nodded and declared that he was taking us as his apprentice. Too shocked to say anything, we just nodded in return, and so… the most important year of our life began.

“Step-by-step, he taught us about what the path of gluttony was, and how we could use it to right the wrongs of the world. He was the one who found those caves, which had been abandoned after having all the energy mined out of them. He was the one who set up those protective barriers all around the city, and created a manner for those who had come to live there to survive, and travel upwards when needed. He was the one who answered all our questions, expecting nothing in return. And when we once asked why he was doing it… he looked away, and said that he was repaying a debt to the world. That was all the information he ever volunteered about himself; the rest of the time, he was intent on the future, and what we could do. He didn’t talk too much, though… so if what we tell you isn’t very elaborate, understand that it is how we heard it. He left, all of a sudden, a year later, wishing us luck. We don’t know who he was, or where he came from… but we are indebted to him. Now… we shall come to your question.”

Daneel leaned forward, unable to control his anticipation. The tale had certainly been interesting, but what he really wanted to know was just how magic worked in this world. The system had said that there were no elementary particles… but if so, what the hell had been those dots he had been seeing all this time?

As if reading his mind, the dwarf king finally gave the answer, and as he heard it, Daneel felt his throat go dry while a flash of exhilarated understanding passed through his mind, followed by one of horror due to what the man said last, before falling silent.

“We shall repeat exactly what he said, when we asked the same questions. ‘This world is not what it seems on the surface. Once, long, long ago, before anyone can remember, there was no such thing called magic. Then… no one knows what happened, but a realm that had until then been undiscovered crashed with ours, causing it to superimpose on our world, and bring to life all sorts of fantastical things that mankind began to call ‘magic’. Simply put, the sources are particles from the other side, called here due to various reasons. The way this happens is different in the islands that drift across the Endless Sea, and different in the Mainland that stands where it is, firm and unmoving. On the islands, the particles are freely suffused into the air, appearing indistinguishable from our world. Many call them elementary particles, and use them to perform fantastical feats that make them seem like gods. But as soon as they come to the Mainland… they find themselves bereft of power. Why? Because the layer between the realms is so much stronger here, and every ounce of magic needs to be fought for before it can be obtained. Because of the difference in the journey that the particles need to take to come to this world, they will seem indistinguishable to those from the islands.

‘But fret not, for if you look at them hard enough, they will seem the same. It is also due to this change that even more incredible things that are impossible on the islands are possible on the Mainland. The boundary is different, and so is the part of the other realm that one can access here. Once one is past it, the other dimension can be controlled in ways that the Islanders cannot even imagine. The crystals in all the islands contain the power to pull those particles from that realm, so they are highly valued. This is all you need to know for now… if there is ever a time when you are qualified to find out more, I will now, and I will come. Until then, work hard to free your home, and your people.’

This was the last thing he told us before he left. Before we died, we wished that we could find him again to tell him that the mission he gave us is accomplished, at least partly… but alas, we have no more time. The end is near for us, brother. From here, you must journey without us. Call everyone over. We don’t have much time…but we must make do with what is left.”