Runemaster 3

(Click here to read the previous installment in this series)

"First of all, I would like to say that I deny all the slanderous allegations of misconduct that have been directed against me. And second of all, I'd like to tell you why." The familiar voice of the deific being seemed oddly distorted, as if heard through deep water. Aden realized he was dreaming just as the smoky form of the god materialized before him.

They were standing on a vast beach with gently crashing waves. The dark of night extended far to the horizon, and a pale, unfamiliar moon rose high above their heads. Looking down, Aden realized he was in his old body for this dream. Though it felt like just yesterday that he'd been reborn, a burst of nostalgia filled him, along with renewed gratitude.

He looked up to see the god's harried smile and tried to speak, but found that he couldn't. The being before him continued his speech, "You see, I am a twin, which is to say that my brother and I constitute a twin god. One god in two nearly identical forms." At this, he snapped his fingers, and an image that looked almost exactly like him appeared right next to him. It had different clothes, but everything else, down to the long, black hair and glowing golden eyes, was the same.

"I embody the spiritual, transcendent aspects of death, whereas my brother rules over the physical, tangible parts. Though we both have dominion over death, we differ in our specific responsibilities within that domain, for I specialize in rebirth and the cycle of spirits from death to rebirth, while he focuses on destruction and the opposite half of the cycle, life to death."

He took a deep, dramatic breath before continuing, "My brother is, quite frankly, much better at his job—but let's be honest, it's a much easier job, destroying everything. Here I am, trying to establish a balanced cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, spiraling endlessly into one eternal whole, while all he has to do is kill things or convince them to kill each other.

"And that is astoundingly easy. As much as mortals like to cling to life, you'd think they'd be less attuned to the destructive part of death, but sadly, it is not so. Life clings to death, even more so now that my brother has found his own avatar, one he is confident will not be murdered in its infancy."

The image of the god's twin was joined by a hooded figure standing half a head shorter. Aden couldn't see anything through the darkness beneath the hood, but it seemed to exude a pervading sense of foreboding. In spite of all this, the figure seemed oddly familiar, as if he'd recognize the person anywhere.

"You see, avatars increase a god's connection to the mortal realm. Where you walk, I walk, in a sense, but it's more than that. Each spirit that touches that of an avatar in the mortal realm gradually becomes attuned to that avatar's deity. This connection with mortality nourishes us and grants us power, to an extent.

"Mortals can be attuned to multiple aspects of divinity, like the god of nature and the god of cows, at the same time. Often, they'll even be attuned to 'opposing' aspects, like light and dark. But death is unique, as no mortal can ever be attuned to both twins; one or the other must win them over in the soul."

"To accomplish that from the realms where we are bound is nearly impossible, except at the time of death, when we receive the souls that wander our way. Even then, we mostly only receive those souls that are already attuned to our specific aspect of death, and it is quite rare for either of us to receive the other's spirits. It's really just a lot of waiting.

"With an avatar, though, the battle for the souls of men becomes much more active." The scene shifted around Aden, the sky now a deep red. Smoke rose on the horizon, and all around him, men fought and screamed and died. "An avatar is a conduit for the power of their deity. Lending that power to mortals is always a massive risk, but in the case of my brother's power," he gestured at the battlefield around them, "even a little can have catastrophic consequences."

Time passed in the surrounding scene, each moment a blur, until as far as the eye could see, there was nothing but ash and dust. "After my brother's previous avatar nearly destroyed all of creation, we both entered into a pact-bound accord to neither raise nor select another avatar for one thousand years, to give the world a chance to recover the balance. The other gods stood witness and swore to enforce the pact, should either of us break it, for none of their domains were untouched in our previous conflict."

"Unbeknownst to me, my brother planned all along to betray my—" the god paused, sighed, then corrected himself, "Okay, so it wasn't entirely unexpected that my brother would betray my trust. Regardless, he chose an avatar early. I would never have noticed if I didn't already doubt his word. He was only able to avoid retribution for breaking the pact because of a technicality: he considered the pact fulfilled because his previous avatar had been thirty years old at the time of his death and our subsequent pact. By his reckoning, the time of our contract had already passed."

"I was blinded by my own intentions, so I did not see the trap that he laid for me. I am only able to choose an avatar now, a full sixteen years early, because I consider his actions a breach of contract. I petitioned the other deities to mete out the promised punishment, but..."

The scene shifted to show a room with seven gilded thrones, each a masterpiece decorated with various scenes that seemed to depict the corresponding god's domain. A woman clothed in a robe made of leaves and vines sat upon a throne depicting growing things of all sorts: plants, animals, and people. A brightly burning man in crimson armor sat upon a throne depicting fire, heat, and battle. Aden noted their domains and their appearances one by one, and he watched as, one by one, they rejected the death god's petition. Many of them simply laughed at him.

"The court of the gods as a whole places great value on cunning, and they simply dismissed the breach of contract as a clever move on my brother's part. 'Young gods like you must all learn this lesson,' they told me, 'The court of gods is no place for fools.'"

The scene faded, and they once more stood upon a tranquil beach amidst gently crashing waves. "Luckily for us, I am no fool, only an optimist. Though my brother may have fourteen years' headstart by the physical reckoning, I'd say we still have the advantage, for my brother lacks my powers of rebirth, which put us approximately forty-two years ahead of him in spirit."

He smiled at Aden conspiratorially, "I know that may not sound terribly hopeful to a mortal, but you must never underestimate the power of the spirit. The physical body is bound within flesh, blood, and bone, but the spirit is boundless. Many a man has exceeded the limits of a physical body merely by tapping into the endless stores of his spiritual body. Simple men call this magic, but nothing could be more mundane, more foundational to mortal existence."

The death god spread his arms wide, as if presenting a prize, "And that is the short of it. I would have left time for questions, but I fear that with your parents so near, and your language skills so advanced for your age, the act of speaking to me in your dream may cause your body to repeat the words as you sleep. Then we'd really be in for it."

"In parting, as a minor consolation, I offer you this advice: a balanced soul is always in its element. Now, go: you are called to bind this world and its people to the proper cycle of death and rebirth, to rebuff the efforts of my brother and his servants as they seek to establish a final death for all that lives. Undo the damage that he has caused, and bring new life to this dying world, for the balance must be restored."