It was a highlight, yes. I did a lot of throwing up during those days. My recovery was not easy. I certainly threw up in front of God more than I would have liked.
...No. [she looks at the ground, a complicated, sad expression on her face.] He was always very kind to me. He never wanted me to call him God, either, or Lord, or to be excessively formal. He wanted me to call him Teacher, and see him like a mentor or a father, I think.
Hm. Well, the King Undying was a human once, about ten thousand years ago. He became a God when his necromantic abilities reached a level that allowed him to perform Resurrection. Ten billion had died at the time he ascended, the collapse of all life and civilization. But he restored the lives of thousands through his power, and those he resurrected went on to found the Nine Houses.
He is immortal, he has nigh complete power over life and death, and the star at the center of our system, Dominicus, burns only through his power. But he cares for the descendents of those he resurrected as something like a kindly father. This is why he is God.
[this is all true but he is also the bbeg of this series. it's fine.]
She's dying in your arms. The only person who's ever cared about you, ever been kind to you. Death is something so commonplace in this society, you know this, and yet your heart is shattering in pieces.
You beg her not to go, not when you haven't even done anything to repay her for all that she's done for you. In response, she smiles. She tells you, now that you're all grown-up, you don't need her to look after you anymore.
And then, she disappears into pieces, disintegrating into the wind.
You're hardly left with time to grieve. The conflict rages around you, and dimly, you're aware--this is the end of the human race. But as self-centered as it may be right now, you can't bring yourself to focus on that.
Not that your mother, who just murdered --------, would let you, either. She grabs your arm in an attempt to lift you up from where you were staring at the ground, and she yells at you to stop crying and to follow her. -------- is gone, and she is "her" now. But she isn't--never will be.
A man steps in to defend you. Rarely has anyone ever, except for the mother figure you just lost (and of all people, it would be someone you're terrified of), so you barely know how to react. Your mother isn't intimidated, however, having taken on --------'s power. Even her appearance is hers, as she transforms before your eyes: what was once a comforting face now becoming a source of fear.
The man warns you that what she has done--stealing this identity--will destroy her physically. She doesn't listen, and instead, she blames you. You ruined everything, and so you must take responsibility, she says. If it weren't for you, she wouldn't have had to kill --------. As frightened as you are, you can't even muster up any words.
Then, suddenly, the chaos from the conflict around reaches here. Flames blaze, immediately disintegrating your mother, while the man attempts to shield you. Even so, the fire is evidently taking its toll on him; neither of you will survive like this.
But then -------- appears again, as she begins to dispel the fire. It's not your mother, who would only take on that form to torment you. It's her, truly her.
And gradually, you understand. This is a dream. Some of these events never happened. The rest, though--these are memories you lost. And as the pieces click in place, you start to wake up from the illusion, in more ways than one. The nightmare is finally over.]
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I hope he didn't hold it against you.
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It sounds like he was unusual.
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Can I ask what makes a god a god where you're from?
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He is immortal, he has nigh complete power over life and death, and the star at the center of our system, Dominicus, burns only through his power. But he cares for the descendents of those he resurrected as something like a kindly father. This is why he is God.
[this is all true but he is also the bbeg of this series. it's fine.]
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I see. So godhood is something that you can ascend to, so to speak.
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What does a God mean to you?
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[and then without further ado, a memory plays:
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...Who is she?
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mildly,]
Someone who looked after me when I was young.
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It can be crueler, the distance.
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