A Solitary God In A Dark Multiverse

The pulpit was the s.p.a.ce on which a speaker stood, from which services were led and the nave was the central area in which partic.i.p.ants in the service sat and partic.i.p.ated. I could see firm looking seats, pews, situated in the nave that allowed partic.i.p.ants to have a place to sit.

I looked out around me out of curiosity. I could see that this chapel was focused on efficiency and as such there was no gallery for non-partic.i.p.ants to watch any services that this place may perform. Instead the doors that led in and out of the chapel opened immediately into the ma.s.sive nave of the chapel.

I looked to my right and left and saw nothing beyond the s.p.a.ce dedicated to the pulpit. There wasn"t a sacristy, a room for sacred objects or clothing, and there wasn"t a vestry, a room for priests to prepare for services, either. There wasn"t even any living s.p.a.ce here. It was purely a spartan chapel which was quite intriguing to me.

Sombra was here, in her dark-elven form. And to my right was the summoning circle. I could see it because it emanated a scarlet glow and at a glance, I could see that it was made from Sombra"s own rose-colored blood. The demonic dark elf look-like grinned sensuously at me, and I could tell that she felt l.u.s.t.

She walked over to me, and so I could more readily smell the sweat on her skin, as well as the scent of another bodily fluid. I could see the cut she inflicted on herself to be able to make the circle. Droplets of her oddly floral blood were still dripping down her skin, and the scarlet liquid"s scent intermingled with that of her sweat. It was darkly enticing.

I had taken on a new form, and my new form was the regally dressed form I had made that was similar to the one I used when I had a conversation with Andrea. I enjoyed it because it was a form meant to be handsome and awe-inspiring, which differed from my usual form.

When I pretended to be human, I had to hide my strength. I had to hide my capabilities. I didn"t have to do that here. It was incredibly refreshing to be able to unleash my real power, or at least not have to be preoccupied with hiding it.

When Sombra stood in front of me, I studied her form for a moment. I had taken time to exquisitely craft her body, and to see it so close I felt tempted to take her into my arms. The scent of her blood, mixing with her sweat, was oddly pleasant and I couldn"t tell exactly why but I suspected it was because of me and my personal tastes that I felt it smelled as pleasant as it did.

Sombra wore "clothes" fashioned from solidified darkness. I didn"t make them either, so I had to suspect that this was a power she possessed. They were intriguing because it looked like someone put silhouettes of clothes onto her shapely body rather than actually dressing her.

"Master..." She whispered, breathily, in front of me. I smiled at the demon and was surprised when she wrapped her arms around me. I was considerably taller than her, in my current form anyway, and so she wrapped herself around my waist and chest.

My current form was clad in armor I had fashioned while transforming from darkness. That didn"t stop my demon from hugging me tightly, and it didn"t prevent the warmth of her body from reaching me either. I smiled at the creature, and knew that it was craving a reward. And a part of me felt like giving her the rewards she craved.

I was acutely aware of what she wanted. Even if I hadn"t been a G.o.d of l.u.s.t, I"d have been able to detect it. Her heart was hammering in her chest, there was a visible blush across her face, and she was subtly trembling. I could also feel a part of her chest harden and push against the surprisingly skin-tight armor she wore thanks to my sense of touch and the sensitivity of my skin.

I looked down at her and studied the curvature of her dark lips. She looked up at me and I watched her grin as her tongue snaked out of her mouth. It was a thick thing, as dark as the rest of her body, and she winked at me as it traced her lips before sliding back into her mouth.

It was at that moment that we were interrupted by the sound of the doors to the chapel opening. I wasn"t surprised, but I did grin at my small servant who twisted her head angrily at those who dared to interrupt us. The reptilefolk who entered the temple felt the chill of the demon"s glare.

"There, there... I"ll properly reward you when we return to my tower." I promised, whispering temptingly into the little demon"s ear. I wasn"t lying either, as I realized almost instantly what a proper reward would be for her: a new cla.s.s. One that tied the two of us together even more and further reinforced our relationship as master and servant.

And then I gently kissed the creature"s forehead. When I did, I felt her immediately begin to calm down.

Partially as a response to the kiss, Sombra began to lean back against me. And a few seconds later, the demon entirely dissipated and faded into my shadow again. She suddenly and rather unexpectedly left me alone in front of the reptilefolks I had gathered to my side. I sighed and looked out at the gathering reptilefolk as more and more began to enter the chapel.

It took a few minutes for the reptilefolks to finish gathering into the ma.s.sive s.p.a.ce.

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By the time the last surviving inhabitant of the connected caverns had entered the chapel, the place was overflowing. All of the pews, fashioned from solidified darkness, had been filled to their maximum capacity, and creatures were sitting on the floor as well.

I chuckled and counted that well over five hundred reptilefolks were in here. That said, in total there were well over three thousand reptilefolks in the encampment, a gigantic number and many of them were right outside of the chapel, listening to the best of their abilities to learn what was to happen to them and their families.

In total, just over 85 of the creatures had been cut down by my forces. I felt their souls within me, and in time I knew I"d need to figure out what to do with those souls.

I looked out at the crowd, and then cleared my throat. When everyone"s eyes fell upon me I smiled and began to speak.

"h.e.l.lo, my name is Althos. I am the new G.o.d you all serve and worship." I declared, channeling my inner pride still and using it to make it clear that I spoke the truth. I also activated one of my favorite powers, "Religious fervor", and gave the interior of the chapel a distinct blue tint.

The reptilefolks looked at me in confusion and I chuckled at them.

"I am the source of the dreadful army that you all faced. You fought for your lives bravely and boldly, and for that I am here to welcome you all into my service." I began, revealing that I was their dreadful foe. Many of them then began to glare at me, and I smiled back at them.

"I want you to know that I recognize that you are angry with me. That is fine. Just like you are angry with me, those you enslaved were angry with you. I came to you to deliver death and justice. I have done those things. Now I am offering you a new future. One which your leaders decided to pick. I am strong, and you are weak. That is the way of the world." I calmly stated, making direct eye contact with the angriest reptilefolks I could see.

"Your leaders opted to have you join my forces in one way. There was another way by which you became mine. Believe me, your leaders chose the more pleasant option" I informed the reptilians I was making eye contact with. For a second there was a murderous glare in my gaze, and I watched the anger in the lizard-people I was talking to slink back in favor of fear.

"I am a G.o.d. G.o.ds are spirits of unfathomable power. I fought against you all not only to liberate your slaves, which I did, but also to test the power of my own minions and to begin to build my own empire." I informed the creatures I had a.s.sembled. They began to gasp when they realized that I had freed their slaves from their cruel clutches.

While they were gasping, I focused and asked a question to the domain of magic specifically.

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"So, I want to conjure demons. I intend to conjure demons I can easily control, so probably succubi, incubi, and praereptor demons. I want them to be my enforcers in this community. How can I do that?" I asked the domain of magic.

I felt time slow to a near halt as I waited for the domain, the one that I felt was among the greatest of the domains I could influence, to reply. When the reply came, I personally felt like a minute had pa.s.sed, though I knew that was impossible.

"Well... The way you"re going about it is unorthodox, but if you summon a total of fifteen separate demons you"ll gain the first tier of influence over the conjuration subdomain. And the subdomain has granted you access to a few mid to high ranking spells that are suitable for your intentions." The domain explained, sounding somewhat tired for some reason. Then it chuckled at me.

"You are such an odd G.o.d. Oftentimes many past deities went for magic like conjuration and evocation first, to gather personal power quickly. And here you are, coming into being possessing power over healing, and acquiring both necromancy and alteration before you acquired evocation and conjuration abilities." The domain said, amused by the odd circ.u.mstances of my life so far.

I chuckled, equally amused by the oddities that led me to this particular cavern underneath the surface of the planet. It was an odd set of circ.u.mstances to be sure, and I couldn"t blame the domain for laughing. That said, I appreciated my growing magical abilities and I actually intended to use some of them here in this cavernous lair.

That said, as a G.o.d I wasn"t ever just in one place, doing one thing. Even as I spoke to the domain of magic I was beginning to formulate actual schemes about how to best and most effectively influence the world around me.

The truth was, I could influence a considerable number of things already. I didn"t doubt that in comparison to youthful G.o.ds of the mythic age I was probably weak but I had a number of advantages compared to them and to other creatures.

The first advantage I had compared to the G.o.ds of the past was that I was alone. I was, apparently, the only G.o.d in existence. And as far as I knew I was the only higher being in existence. So I didn"t have to worry about following the rules that the G.o.ds of old bound themselves too for the sake of lessening inter-divinity conflicts, nor did I have to compete with them.

The second advantage I had was that I possessed a bizarre mishmash of powers. This included, but wasn"t limited to, the fact that I was on my way to becoming an elemental overlord. I could now answer all sorts of prayers ranging from prayers for healing, to fertility prayers, to prayers for good harvests. These powers allowed me the power to be creative, and now I intended to be.

I took a deep breath and then activated my power to split my mind so that I could focus on many different things at once. I wanted to begin to observe the universe I was in more readily and more actively, now that I had secured myself my first victory against a defined enemy.

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The sensation of splitting my mind was an admittedly odd one. It felt as though I was physically in two places at once, and I wasn"t. Instead one of the "places" I was in, was the quietness of my own mind. I didn"t intend to let my mind stay a quiet place though.

The second I was done splitting my consciousness, I did two things of note. The first was that I immediately activated my "domain-sense" power, but I did so fully this time. And the second was that I opened my mind to prayers and other desperate pleas to the cosmos for intervention.

With regards to domain-sense, I didn"t pick a single domain or subdomain to focus on. Instead, I chose to open my eyes to all of the notifications my potent power had for me. I immediately received an almost comforting flood of notifications and alerts. I took it all in stride and absorbed the information into myself.

In doing so, I felt my mind expand considerably and for the first time, I gained a true awareness of the planet I found myself within. And that brought a smile to my face.

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Torus was a fascinating planet. And now that I possessed influence over things like air, fire, biology, death, and other domains and subdomains I could fully appreciate the planet I found myself on.

I received an uncountable number of notifications per second, and my mind nearly instantly adjusted to allow me to make sense of the notifications. The constant flood of information became an understandable, albeit swift tide of alerts that I was able to make sense of and actually sort through.

That said this wasn"t a perfect process. I still didn"t know the shape of this world. I didn"t know the number of continents or nations it possessed, nor did I know all of the inhabitants of the planet by name. But I possessed a wealth of information and knowledge.

The knowledge I possessed was incredibly enhanced and expanded by my choice to use my domain-sense ability. And all of that knowledge made me feel... over the moon. Positively triumphant in fact.

I gained an immediate awareness of an almost uncountable number of animals, animals located throughout the universe. These animals included bears, wolves, countless insects, and distant hordes of vermin. And with the knowledge of their existence came a quick realization: I could easily reach out and gain quintillions of worshippers throughout the universe. And that filled me with pride.

More than that though, I gained plenty of other types of awareness. I was acutely aware of the location of every poison in the universe. I was aware of the type of poison, its quant.i.ty, and its effects. I could sense poisons throughout Puerto Rico, especially underneath the Island, but poisons existed on top of Puerto Rico was well. A few vials could even be found in Comillas.

I could also sense every disease throughout the universe, and every attempt at healing diseases throughout the universe. Both of these bits of knowledge filled me with pride. After all, if I wanted too I could cure every disease. I was a bit saddened that I couldn"t reach out and inflict anyone in the cosmos with a disease, but I knew that in time I"d gain the power to do so. I just had to be patient.

More fascinating bits of knowledge that I acquired through my bold decision to use domain-sense included the ident.i.ty of every alchemist in the cosmos, the ident.i.ty of every rebel, and every necromancer. Those bits of knowledge felt like keen gossip, that I stored away in the back of my mind. I could feel the potential of those bits of knowledge and I intended to make full use of them soon.

Despite all of the knowledge I gained in one instant I didn"t just want to gain knowledge. I wanted to begin to subtly influence the world. And I knew that one way I could do that was through listening too and answering prayer. And so my mind wasn"t just inundated with new knowledge, I also began to actively listen for requests for divine intervention. And those came rushing in as well.

My mind was rushed with prayers from all over the universe. I had opened my mind up to prayers as fully as I had opened it up to my domain-sense ability. And prayers and other forms of begging for intervention flooded my mind as fully as notifications related to my domains did.

I could hear all manner of requests thanks to my ability to hear prayers. I heard people pray for relief from nightmares, people pray for love or to at least satiate their carnal desires, people pray for health and dealing, and even prayers for aid in revenge. It was incredibly interesting and satisfying to sort through all the prayers that were transmitted to the cosmos. But something about it was odd.

As I sorted through more and more prayers I felt a question develop in the back of my mind. And when I read my three-hundredth prayer in a minute I decided to ask the question I had.

"How is that mortals still know to pray? Even the oldest mortals don"t remember the G.o.ds and other higher beings right? How can they remember something as specific as prayer?" I asked, directing my question to the domain of faith. The domain had an immediate answer for me.

"Extraplanar beings. They are the ones who taught mortals who forgot about prayer how to pray and the importance of prayer. Every world in this universe was visited by extraplanar beings of every alignment and type in the days since the end of the mythic age. For various reasons and to varying degrees of success they taught mortals to keep praying even in a cosmos that lacked a higher being." Explained the soothing voice of the domain of faith.

I listened to this explanation and chuckled. I suppose it made sense that someone was responsible for telling mortals how to commune with the G.o.ds in an age of G.o.dlessness.

I decided to take a moment to look at the new spells I had access too. I figured I might as well use this time to familiarize myself with the new tools at my disposal. I mentally tapped on my grimoire, as eager as ever to learn about what new things I could do.

[Welcome Althos, here is your list of conjuration spells:

Portal (You can create a portal to another dimension. This spell is the first of your spells to allow for interdimensional travel.)

Summon (You can use an existing conjuring circle to summon a type of extraplanar being of your alignment, or in your case an alignment over which you have influence over. This being is a real member of their species and isn"t bound to you. It can freely resist your commands, though some types of extraplanar beings will freely obey you due to your power and the domains and subdomains you have influence over.)

Create (This conjuration spell allows you to create facsimiles of things you can summon. These things serve you, and eventually, dissipate into nothingness. You can use this power to create phantom-versions of things like succubi, praereptors, and eventually, other things you"ll gain the power to summon like angels.)

Soul Armament (This spell is the upgraded version of the spell that lets you summon your staff. With this spell, you can conjure armor and weapons alike from your soul. That is especially potent in your case, since you can strengthen your soul using the soul domain and souls you acquire using the variety of powers at your disposal.)]

While filtering through prayers and countless notifications the other part of my mind, the more outward-facing part, was hard at work establishing the rules of the temple I had built to myself.

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"This chapel is one of my gifts to you. It is a neutral place where conflicts with each other are set aside and where the newest of my servants, demons, will reside." I told the gathered lizard-creatures. They looked at me in shock when I explained that I was going to bring demons to serve me. I studied their faces for a moment before opting to continue speaking.

"It is true. I can summon and tame demons. Indeed, I am already obeyed by one and I intend to one day be obeyed by many more." I explained, smiling at the stunned creatures before me. It was at that moment that I turned to circle next to me and cast a spell.

I closed my eyes, and rose my hand over the circle while mentally activating my "Summon" spell. When I did so, a new alert filled my vision.

[Multi-part alert:

First, by opening your mind to both the full might of domain-sense and to prayers you"ve impressed upon both the domain of knowledge and the domain of faith. The domain of knowledge is actually one of the self-contained domains so you don"t need a cult to advance in it.

This is a way of saying that you"ll be able to embark upon the quest to unlock the second tier of influence over the knowledge domain soon. Congratulations! Also you"ve unlocked a new t.i.tle pertaining to your usage of domain-sense and you listening for and too prayers.

Now the second part of the alert is more... familiar? It"s about the spell you just used. What sort of demon would you like to summon? If you know the type of demon you have in mind, and you want to search for a demon of that type who possesses certain characteristics this is where you can do that. Just inform us as to what you"re looking for.]

Reading this alert was surprising to me, but it was also exciting. As I read it I began to think about the sort of demon I wanted to call to my side to be one of my agents amongst the reptilefolk. The only thing I had come in knowing ahead of time was that I wanted to summon a succubus or an incubus. I hadn"t thought I"d be able to requests beyond that.

"Hmm... I suppose it"d be best if I summoned someone who I"d be able to make mine easily. So an impressionable demon with a bit of loyalty... For a demon anyway." I remarked. I wanted someone who"d be an inquisitor of mine, an agent I could trust who"d want to see my will enforced and who would cow the reptilefolk into fearing me and my powers.

I paused and considered what else I wanted in a demonic follower. This ultimately led me to think about what sort of a cult I wanted to develop amongst the reptilefolks.

"Hmm... I have a good cult with the goblins, so I suppose this ought to be an evil cult? Balance." I thought, chuckling. "But what does that const.i.tute? Logically, I could incorporate the summoning circle into my worship, and have the summoning of demons be a part of my faith, but what else?" I asked myself. I spent several moments in silence considering what to say next.

And that was when I realized what I wanted. And it brought a smile to my face. I immediately began composing a message to the system, annoyed that I wouldn"t be summoning my first inquisitor just yet. But in the end, what I was about to summon was worth waiting a moment to acquire an inquisitor.

"I want a succubus who has as pious a personality as possible. I will make her into the highest priestess of a culture of necromancy and demon-worship. I will make her into a cleric of mine and give her the necromancer cla.s.s as well so that she can become an extremely skilled necromancer." I told the system, opting to change my focus for now.

[Understood. We have the perfect candidate. Summoning her in 3... 2... 1...] The system replied right as the summoning circle began to emit ruby-colored smoke. The smoke continued to flow out of the circle for a few moments while an undeniably feminine silhouette appeared within it.

I could see through the smoke and I was impressed at what I saw. Standing in the center of the circle stood a naked woman about one and a half meters tall with silver skin, huge horns jutting out of her head, a sinful smile pursued on her lips, and slender hands on her waist. She had a tempting figure, and I could detect l.u.s.t radiating out of her.

She looked out in front of the circle and was fixated on the reptilefolks that looked at the circle in awe. I could tell by the way she gazed at them that a part of her was enjoying the attention. In fairness to her, the suddenness of the circle flaring to life had done a good deal to distract from me and my general presence.

It took the smoke a few moments to dissipate and reveal the succubus in all of her unearthly beauty to the reptilians who stood before her. When it did, she gazed at them a few moments longer before turning to me and bowing low, exposing her a.s.s to the gathered lizard-people.

"h.e.l.lo Althos. My name is Lilim. Allow me to pledge myself to you, and to be the first of my kind to pledge myself to you as your faithful servant. Do with me as you wish, oh dark lord of l.u.s.t and dreams." She uttered, speaking my name and the t.i.tle she had chosen for me with genuine reverence.

I was taken a bit aback by this but I was also pleasantly surprised. I didn"t entirely trust the beautiful succubus, but the fact that she knew about me was convenient.

[She is telling the truth. She was the person that the spell chose, she knows about you because she was informed by me, about you and what you are. If you can grant her power, she"ll be yours.] The system explained, causing me to smile.

"Ambition huh? I like it. Easily manipulable, unscrupulous, and direct. Easy to work with." I muttered, speaking the truth. I found people with pride easy to deal with and convenient allies to make. I suspected that the beautiful succubus and I would get along famously.

"Welcome to my service Lilim. I am more than happy to accept you into my church." I told her, grinning all the while. I was also speaking the truth and I was genuinely happy to have acquired my very first succubi servant.