Tree of Aeons

Chapter 305

Year 277 (Part II)

I couldn’t immediately decide on the White Statue’s offer, and at this point, there was not enough trust between us to even begin offering it a position. In short, we barely knew each other, and we would have to wait for a few rounds of safe ‘hero-returns’ before we could seriously consider his offer.

So, that was what Lumoof did. A simple visit, where we remarked that we appreciated the offer, but we were unable to decide on it, until we had built up a history of cooperation and trust. We would like to see it deliver on its promises to spare the heroes, and from there, decide how to move forward. 

The White Statue understood, and didn’t seem hostile. 

A part of me feared whether it would retaliate for rejection, but then, if it did retaliate, then that solved whether it was someone we could work with, since it did not respond to what was a reasonable request.

The problem was, Hawa had removed the World Faith System’s future hero summons, and thus, there was no real way of testing whether the White Statue would hold up it’s end of the bargain.

On some level, the White Statue was not yet a threat. It had hero-level combat strength, which made it very powerful, but it didn’t have the means to move to worlds. If it did, then it had all the components necessary to establish an entity like the Valtrian Order.

Other than its past records of killing heroes, in aggregate, a White Statue-like empire throughout the multiverse would be a net benefit, just like Raph’s angels.

There are forces within the Valtrian Order uncomfortable supporting an entity that could one day grow into a force that rivaled our own. 

But that is nature, isn’t it?

There will always be competition, and those unable to compete have to find their own niche. 

For me, I was comfortable letting these existences grow. I saw them as good, and it was not as if we were the only power around. There are still the old gods, and though the old gods are more ‘clustered’ in nature, they still formed a powerful force that would hinder the expansion of potentially expansionist empires.

I believe it may be a good idea to send the White Statue to one of the demon worlds, let it experience what are the types of foes we face, and the lines of our war. Eventually, I would let it have it’s first expansion, to one of the many new worlds that we encounter.

I thought about Raph, and the angels, and wondered whether it was wrong for us to just avoid them altogether. Maybe I should revisit them someday, because by just ignoring them, did I just sweep the problem under the rug?

Maybe I did. 

Maybe we all did. 

Knowing that, I thought about the White Statue and Raph. 

Raph and the Angelworld leaned strongly authoritarian, and in hindsight, that may be what is needed during a period of chaos, especially dealing with a populace that is not familiar or able to operate within more collaborative methods. 

From those experiences, and having seen the White Statue’s Empire, my previous action of ignoring them is unlikely to be fruitful. Instead, engagement and guiding them towards a peaceful coexistence would be better for the world as a whole. I believed that the multiverse was big enough for everyone, and even if it wanted to grow, there’s the demon worlds that could be reclaimed to feed all their ambitions. 

Ignoring them and letting them sit in their own worlds may be a solution. Destroying them was also one. 

But I didn’t think destruction was a good idea. 

Would I be better than the demons if I destroyed other races that could’ve helped against the demons? 

So, we should do what civilizations do. Diplomacy and engagement.

We should engage with both Raph and the angels of angelworld and also the White Statue and his empire. 

They could still be enemies. But at least we’ve given them and their societies a chance to prove themselves.

***

Meanwhile, the Valtrian order’s priorities shifted to the rest of the peripheral worlds. The Valtrian Order deployed my nodes on the chosen worlds, and so we began our expansion. 

I watched with great amusement as the mages of Magisar attempted to rebel against us, and was quite happy with how Lausanne dealt with it.

But it did quite suck that many of the interactions eventually ended with, “We have the big guns.”

Lumoof didn’t seem to mind. “If we have the divine on our side, it is best we show it. Power must be known, and must be seen used. Only then, will the people remember it.”

But Lausanne didn’t. It was not her ideal outcome.

***

Lausanne, Magisar

The single event reshaped the thoughts among the Magisarians. The mages that survived that event went back with their views of the Valthorns thoroughly changed. She could see it in their face, the mix of horror, awe, and strangely, hope. 

It was partly why she hoped to avoid that card. 

But she knew she couldn’t. The mages were still eager to fight. She saw, even in spite of the strength she displayed. Even if she swimmingly overwhelmed the Tower masters, some people would die that day. Unnecessarily, because of lies from their old leaders. 

It was why she ultimately asked Lumoof to activate Aeon’s Avatar. 

But it has consequences. 

It was not the first time she met people with such a reaction. She saw this same reaction in those subjected to Aeon’s Perspective. The nobles were all unable to fathom an existence so much greater than themselves that they lost their ability to fathom it.

Gods.

Lausanne sighed. She was privileged in a way different from others. She grew up watching the big tree in her village grow into the ginormous existence that protected their world. To those around her, Aeon was always a god, and they couldn’t see Aeon as anything else. She too, believed in Aeon, but unlike others, she had seen Aeon’s failings, and knew that even gods have flaws. 

She saw how it was done, for most parts of the way, and thus she could see even a powerful existence like Aeon wasn’t unreachable. 

A part of her wondered to herself whether this was the difference between those who could be domain holders, and those who couldn’t. Somehow, she believed she could be one. No. She saw how it was done, and knew it was entirely possible. Those who aspire to be domain holders must make it a part of them. An innate belief that the gods aren't something that cannot be reached. 

Yet, as she looked at the now subservient mages, she wondered whether such an act would cut off their ability to rise. 

The Magisarian mages would be sycophants. The new ‘zealots’.

 She heard of the news through their Valthorn information network. The White Statue imprinted a mission on those it met, woven into their souls. Lausanne knew that Aeon’s Perspective, and using Aeon’s presence on low-leveled existences was pretty much the same thing. 

It was an equivalent of a blunt smash into their soul. It was the equivalent of a battering ram breaking down the seemingly impervious castle gates. No one forgets something so clear. 

Even the Tower Masters. 

The slight trembling in their hand. The awkward jerks when she approached. They remember that moment. 

An imprint.

It was no different to the actions of the White Statue. 

The presence of a domain holder affects all those who encounter them. Everyone felt the way their existence warped and influenced the world. Because they do. 

Lausanne feared that there would come a time where Lumoof and Aeon were so powerful that the mere sight of them would turn those with weaker wills and minds into golems, and so, it is important that the use of Aeon’s Avatar be limited. 

“Lady Lausanne.” The mage knelt in front of her, and there were ten others behind the mage. He didn’t kneel before this, but he was there during the day of the crushed rebellion. All of them were “I- I wish to atone for my sins. We were fools for believing the Tower Master’s lies.” 

Fear. Worship. Lausanne had seen so many mages who probably went back to their homes and realized that they would have died that day. 

It was pathetic. 

She shook her head. Her goal was to save lives, and she did so. There was no point coming to the peripheral worlds to save them from the demons, and later on kill the natives due to infighting and rebellion. 

It defeated their purpose. The peripheral worlds were not theirs to ‘claim’. Yet, as she looked at the sorry mages who came, maybe they were already dead. 

She didn’t believe those who had their wills broken had the capacity in them to be one of them. Not with what their task called them.

In her eyes, Aeon’s goal of extracting talent from the people of this world would have to wait for the next generation.

“If you wish to atone for your mistakes, do your job well, and teach your children well.” Lausanne answered, feeling a little resigned. It was a little sad, but for Magisarians with their human-like lifespans, it would just be a few decades. 

The mages nodded, and thanked her profusely. She had to resist a sigh. She wondered when Central would finally send over a [Mage Lord] to run the place. 

She shook her head. No. She shouldn’t think of her escape. 

She’ll do her job well, until her part is done. 

***

Alka finally walked on the lands of Delvegard. 

“This is nice.” Alka said as he watched the chaos that unfurled in the valleys below. [Lord] Sundus accompanied him, as were a few other dwarves, and they sat at the vantage point. The vantage point was protected by magic, and so the group saw it fit to bring wine, food, and tables. They all had binoculars or other sort of viewing tools, and watched from their comfortable location, while eating. There was a war between two of the dwarven nations, and they brought out a few of their big guns. Both factions deployed their gigantic war machine. “But it’s so impractical.”

Sundus shrugged. “The dwarves fight their wars this way. They don’t do much covert warfare. It’s pure mechanical weaponry and power.” 

“Perhaps no one with other ideas would get sufficient funding and resources.” Alka said. The way resources were allocated in Delvegard favored those who preferred to build big war machines. It made them gain levels, and their craftsmen could then go on to build even bigger, better war machines. 

“Most likely. I’ve met a few low leveled crafters and they were fairly amused when asked to build other things.” 

“If we could show them other ways to fight this war, they’d quickly adopt and copy the new designs.” Alka said as he activated some kind of spying skill.

Sundus paused. “Should we really introduce new ways of killing each other to the dwarves?”

Alka laughed. “Fair. Have you wondered what it’ll be like if one of Aeon’s carriers came here?” 

“You think- With all due respect, it’s not a good fit, sir.” The Dwarven Lord stopped, a little surprised. 

“It isn’t. It’s a joke.” Alka smiled. “But now, have you ever wondered what the dwarves will do?”

Sundus realized the question was serious, and momentarily sat there. “They would naturally turn their weapons against us.” 

“But the beetle carriers fly high above these dwarven contraptions.” Alka said. “Barring the crystal weapons of the dwarves, there is hardly anything that could hurt them. Now, beyond that, these carriers are expendable. Consider what will happen to the politics of this world.”

“They will band together. But, we’ll be like demons.” 

Alka said. “And that’s the problem. How do we stop people from fighting each other? In almost every world we’ve been to, it is always a powerful force enforcing social order, because fighting is advantageous to the rebels. The one who cooperates and exists peacefully with their fellow men takes longer to get what they want, while the rebel who fights just takes and gets it now.”

A classic prisoner’s dilemma. If everyone cooperates and coexists peacefully, there is potential to have even more than the spoils of war. And yet, because there is no way to enforce trust and peace without weapons, and the one who behaves peacefully is almost always at a disadvantage, everyone is then forced to prepare for war, which diverts resources away from a place of wealth. 

“So, we can do what Aeon did on Threeworlds and Mountainworld. Establish a colony and recruit people. Then, the natives turn on us because they fear our rising power, and then, they remember to keep their distance for a while. Is there a better way?” Alka asked. “Would it be better if we came in with overwhelming force, so that we are seen as invaders, and force the locals to obey?” 

Sundus frowned. It was true what they did now on Delvegard was more of the same. Slow expansion by establishing a small base of operations. 

“Or, we take what we want. The talents. The resources. How do we undermine what sustains the war on this world?”

Sundus paused as he realized it was similar to how the Order drained the vassal wars of its fire. By taking out the winds. “We steal all the void weapons. That would absolutely cut off all the supply of Sunsteel and Sunmetal, and the existing nations would have to resort to old weapons.” 

“That is one. Two, we begin a wide scale collection of the talented crafters. Recruitments. Spies. We need to give the talented crafters of these dwarven worlds reason to leave, and also a damned good reason to join us. The academies are valuable, but its contents can be stolen. It is the people that we need. People who we can redeploy to build new types of weapons for use against the demons, instead of fighting these repetitive wars.” 

Sundus nodded. “So, first, we need to engage in wide scale theft of weapons, and a good amount of private visits.” 

“Great. Glad you see it my way.” Alka tapped the Lord. “Can I count on you to make it happen?” 

Sundus shrugged. “I’ll treat my best.”

“Good. As for me, I’ll infiltrate one of these craft academies, build up a dossier of talented individuals, learn their secrets, and then, when we are ready, we’ll convince those we can, and rebuild a version of the dwarven academies somewhere secure.”

***