“You do not know this yet, but it is possible to claim a nexus. When you do so, you are able to influence how the system interacts with the area that feeds that nexus. This comes in a myriad of forms, but a good nexus controller greatly enhances the progression and survival rate of those within the areas near them.” Ares tried to say more, but frowned, “With you being near the primary nexus you could greatly influence Earth-3’s progression, even going so far as to…” Ares continued, but Drew could no longer understand what was being said. It was only at this point that he realized that Ares and Themis were not, in fact, speaking English, but rather some other language that his mind was interpreting as English.
Whatever it was that had been allowing for that translation was no longer working. Ares looked at Drew’s face and frowned, “You could not hear that last part, could you?” He glared at Themis, who shrugged slightly. Drew wasn’t sure what the interplay here was, but clearly, Ares wanted to share more than Themis was letting him. The two conversed back and forth several times while Ares grew visibly angry. Themis’ tone was adamant, but his entire body held a large amount of tension as if he were afraid of the other man. With a final growl of anger Ares ceased talking, and then after a few quick breaths, continued, and the translation magic re-engaged.
“My apologies, Drew. Themis has reminded me that there are some things I cannot tell you. Suffice it to say, that it will be in you and yours best interests to claim the central nexus as soon as possible.” Ares paused long enough to shoot Themis one last glare and then steepled his fingers.
“Now, I think Themis told you that I would like to offer you a position as my page with the assumption that you would become my squire when you are promoted to an appropriate level.”
Drew nodded his head, “Themis did say that. The way you say it makes it sounds like I have a choice in the matter?”
“Indeed, no one is going to force you to become my squire. As the commanding officer of the fleet which governs your world, I have primacy, but I assume that the others will also make offers when they have discovered I have already done so. Although the others may try to snatch up some of the earlier split versions or wait to see what later splits produce.” Ares shifted the hologram and it zoomed out. Various star systems were shaded in hundreds of different colors. “These are the Protectorate Pantheons. Each color represents a different iron fleet. Eventually, if you survive and rank up as I expect you will, you will build your own fleet and be assigned a territory, as is the mandate to every member of our Order.”
“Until then, you should know a little of what we fight. Humanity is the youngest of the known awakened species. But, we have some of the largest territory, due in large part to the fact that we are the only race which has given birth to an Assault Mage. The protectorate is surrounded by older and more established races who are jealous of our power. We are also one of the few awakened races that we know of without allies. There may be more, but our attempts to explore are usually met with stiff resistance.”
“Our enemies are numerous; the largest group we face here in the Orion-Cygnus arm of the Milky Way Galaxy are the Daoine. They have several member races, but the main belligerents are the Elatrin, Da Danann, Spyry Jyon, and Piksies. For the most part, we spend our time fending off their fleets, although we do get the occasional Bauk refugee armada or Azura pilgrims.” Ares paused considering, “The fact is, every assault mage we find means we can expand human territory. You and your splits will be the means by which quadrillions of humans will get a chance to live in relative peace.”
“You are free to choose your allegiance to any pantheon until you become a squire, at which point you and your mentor will work together to train your fleet. But I hope you will stay here, where you can protect your home planet. In any case,” Ares paused and straightened his posture, “I, Cassius Felix Ares, hereby offer you a position as my page on Olympus, and with that offer you the donum duplici. The first represents my faith in you, and it will ensure your integrity in the battles to come. The second is from the Order. It was entrusted to me with a gravity I cannot easily describe. You are to insert it immediately and never utter its name.”
A blinking notification appeared in front of Drew’s eyes, informing him that Ares would like to trade him two xatherite: one called stricto mentis clypeus and the other simply called aeon.
Xatherite Crystal Name: Stricto Mentis Clypeus
Xatherite Color: Green
Xatherite Grade: Rare
Xatherite Rarity: Limited
Type: Mental
Effect: Creates a shield around the bearer’s mind that prevents unwanted mental intrusion.
Mana recharge time: Not applicable.
Xatherite Crystal Name: Aeon
Xatherite Color: Violet
Xatherite Grade: Intermediate
Xatherite Rarity: Singular
Type: Divine
Effect: The beginning of the path.
Mana recharge time: Not applicable.
Drew stared at the two xatherite for a full minute. The first was impressive enough, but what on earth did aeon even do? It was the first xatherite that didn’t seem to meet the naming convention he was used to, as a primitive grade without an adjective preceding it. The description was completely unhelpful; the beginning of what path? It was a violet, but it didn’t say what it changed. What exactly was a divine type xatherite? He had only seen magic and physical before, and now he had two new types: divine and mental. To buy time, he asked, “What responsibilities will I have if I accept this gift?” Drew kept the frown off his face as he considered what this man, this god, would want of him.
“Your only responsibility will be to survive, to grow so strong that your people are safe, that they need not fear the reapers in the night. To ensure that Humanity Prevails.”
Chapter Thirty — Return
Drew accepted the transfer of the xatherite and another notification appeared.
Drew Michalik-3 has entered into a mana-bound contract with Cassius Felix-9 (Ares). You are never to discuss the xatherite you received from him on behalf of the Order of the Dragon. Doing so will result in death.
Ares smiled at him, “Excellent, we don’t have much time, but Themis will take the pain of the slotting from you. But before he does that, I have some words of advice to you as my page.” He pulled up the holographic display of the Human Protectorate’s territory and zoomed in on a portion of the Orion-Cygnus Arm of the galaxy. “This is my territory. My fleet protects just under two hundred human populated worlds across all 23 dimensions, for a grand total of several trillions of human lives. All of that goes away if I die; my fleet would be completely unable to defend against the predation of the Daoine, Bauk, or Azura.”
“The life of an assault mage is not an easy one; we are the strength of humanity. My fleet alone contains more humans then lived on the Earth you knew before Advent. I send people to their deaths regularly. They follow my orders, putting themselves in harm’s way because they know what is at risk, and all of them would die to protect me.” Ares frowned, looking down at his hands, “I tell you this not to brag; they do their duty as I do mine, but you need to realize how important you are. Your life is worth more than those around you.”
“I know that where you are from, they believe that all men are created equal, that all lives have equal value. Perhaps there is some cosmic arithmetic where that is true, but, as you are the means by which trillions upon trillions of lives will be saved, your life is equal to those trillions of lives. You must change your thinking; for if you die, you are condemning those trillions to die with you. You are worth more than they are. It is not something any of us asked for, but it is a truth that we must live with.”