Chapter 277: 267.1 Interlude – Gathering of The Domain Holders

 

Lumoof assembled the group that now forms the inner circle of Aeon. In a place not far from Freshka. Lumoof looked around the quiet room in one of many secret Valthorn fortresses around the Central Continent. Edna was the first of them, and Lumoof the second. Then came Stella, Roon and Johann. Alka. Now Ezar and Kafa. 

Eight of them, lifted from mere mortals, and now transformed into demigods. 

Alka was still asleep, waiting for his revival. So, the seven gathered. 

The air in the room was thick with power, that anyone else would feel as if their air was suffocating. But each of them felt nothing. Their domains protected them. 

There was a sense of comradeship that they shared in the great struggle of their kind. Aeon’s words. Revelations, really, of what the greater system was, only amplified the urgency and importance of their cause. The demons could essentially unravel the entire system, once they conquered enough worlds. The gods, elevated to a different system, are resisting, but have handicapped themselves. 

“Should Aria or Lillies’ avatar be here?” Roon asked.

“No. They would not understand.” Edna said. “Our power was gained through war. Through Aeon’s assistance. Theirs from a longer period, from things outside war. How do you two feel?”

Kafa glanced at Ezar, both peers. “Incredible, and yet, overwhelmed.” 

Roon just gave the two a pat on the shoulder. 

No words were said, but they’ve all been there. 

“I will not spare you the niceties. At this point, there’s really no point. The scale of this war is far, far larger than even what we first expected. Each time Aeon pushes a little further, we’ve only see this war’s scope expand.” Edna said. “When Aeon first spoke of his goal, he only sought to end the demon’s invasion of Treehome.”

Lumoof nodded. “And yet, it only set us on a path of even more invasions. We are still not safe.”

The two new domainholders gulped. 

Stella nodded, and then she spoke up. “I asked Lumoof to gather us here for a few reasons. Aeon believes we have time.” Stella said. 

The new domainholders looked at each other. 

“But my sense now, it is a risky gamble. We don’t know how much time we have, and what is the current balance of power between the demons and the gods. My models suggest that the demons already control around one fifth of the known realms, and they continue to expand. We need to start invading demon worlds, and free them from their demon mothers.”

Kafa and Ezar looked at each other. This wasn’t too bad. “So we need to start retaking demon worlds.”

They’ve seen the demon mothers. They’ve fought simulations in Aeon’s [Dream Academy]. They could do it. 

Edna looked at Stella, and then at Lumoof. "Is Aeon listening?"

Lumoof paused. "At the moment, no."

"Good. That’s just the battle part. There's something Stella isn't saying."

The domain holders present gulped. Lumoof looked at Edna, and sighed. “Edna, let me handle this.”

Edna just smiled. “Sure.” 

"Aeon relies on us, to ensure he doesn't stray." Lumoof answered. “More specifically, he needs our presence to tell him where he has gone wrong. As someone who has shared minds with Aeon- it is an overwhelming sensation. To see time as if it’s just weeks, to see all the worlds at once, to feel all the things altogether. It’s absolutely overwhelming. Even with all my expanded and borrowed mental abilities, it is still too much to take in.”

Roon and Johann looked at each other. So did Ezar and Kafa.

“So, Aeon tunes it out. Aeon delegates certain thoughts to his mental assistants. Some of them, to us, to the Valthorns. I’ve shared those thoughts, and at times, I tremble at the power and knowledge I have at my hands.” 

All the domainholders gulped. The bomb was coming. Edna only sighed. 

“I alone cannot be Aeon’s moral guide. I share too much in his thoughts. I lean too close to his power.” Lumoof answered. “I try, but there are days when I blend into that avatar mode, and I feel his thoughts, his senses, his ideas, and I feel like I am him, and he is me. Though I believe in Aeon’s divinity, I do not believe in his perfection.”

"Aeon doesn't make very good choices." Edna said. "Perhaps he has become too focused on the demons, or perhaps our lives are too short that what seems like a short moment of suffering doesn't matter, if the goals are achieved. When years are just weeks, a year of suffering feels like nothing.”

Lumoof looked torn, but nodded.

“That’s where I need all of you to come in.”  

"We, the domain holders, and his inner circle, are the only ones that can steer him back. To remind him that there are other perspectives. To balance the needs of those present, and those of the future. To take things back to the small, instead of the big picture. Because, from Aeon’s zoomed out perspective, it’s all just little bumps in the sand."

Ezar spoke up. "Aeon would not listen to me."

"No. You’re wrong. He will. Because you are now a domain holder and a member of his pantheon, and believe it or not, he trusts all of you." Lumoof said. "We are the ones that can accompany him on this quest. We are the ones that will be there for the day we put an end to the scourge. Do not sell yourself short, Ezar. We must speak, because Aeon, unchecked and out of touch with time, will be-."

Edna completed what Lumoof couldn’t put the words to. “Horrifying.”

"Horrific?" Kafa gulped. "That seems a little- harsh."

Edna looked at Lumoof. "The stakes have only increased with time, and Aeon prioritizes our survival. The difficult choices, such as that whole incident with Ken, that hero-friend, we will just see more of them in the future.”

The priest and Avatar nodded reluctantly. "Aeon is a creature of nature. And its sole unwavering ethos is survival. Above ethics. Above values. Above morals. All these things are that can be discarded, if the circumstances deserve it. He would sacrifice thousands. Millions. If it ensured the rest survived."

"And there lies the clear issue. It’s all up to us in the end." Edna said.

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“Us?”

"You may feel overwhelmed, Ezar and Kafa. You may feel this power is immense. It will feel terrible that I am pouring cold water on your achievements. But it is our reality. Even as we stepped into the realm of the gods, we were just at the first step. We are still too weak. Aeon was blackmailed by Chung into keeping Ken alive against his will. The reason that can happen is simply because we were too weak. We needed that selfish hero.”

The domainholders glanced at each other.

“We must achieve combat power equal to or above the heroes."

“I spoke to him before Aeon allowed him to pass.” Stella elaborated. “To Aeon, keeping him alive was like a doctor putting a man on a horrific medical treatment for a week or two. It’s nothing. He doesn't think it’s a big deal. Maybe to us, extending one’s life by a week or two through painful medical procedures isn’t suffering. But that is Aeon, on a larger scale, with longer timescales. Very few things are a big deal.”

Very few things are a big deal.

“But Ken lived it. Years, he endured Aeons’ energies swirled in his body, forcing him to live against his will.” The void mage continued. “It was intense. It is suffering, even if most of it was asleep.”

Stella looked uncomfortable. "We understood the circumstances. The Demon's Comet was too dangerous, and Aeon needed all hands and all the tools. But it is a terrible choice, and in the future, we will only have more such choices. This time, it was Ken’s life. Some day, it will be someone else."

“Worse, some day, it’ll be more than the life and suffering of one person. All because we are weak." Edna repeated. "Strength, is the answer. Aeon doesn't think so, and would not say it so bluntly that we are weak, but in the larger scheme of things, our contributions have been limited."

"What do you have in mind, Edna?" Roon said. 

"The hurdle we need to cross is simple. We must be able to take on a demon king without assistance. That will allay the bargaining power of the heroes, and prevent future blackmails from less friendly heroes. The present group of heroes are generally on good terms with us, with the Order, but someday we will face heroes that turn against us. I even suspect that Chung would turn against Aeon very, very soon." Edna explained.

The remaining domain holders are quiet. Ezar and Kafa have secretly practiced battle against heroes, and generally came out to a loss, or at best, a stalemate under perfect conditions. The sheer firepower of a hero was insane, and in combat simulations, only Lumoof, Alka and Edna managed to win in specific circumstances. 

Alka mainly wins by taking the heroes down with him. 

"If we can do so, it would allow us to fully move away from the fading gods and the need to support heroes, because we can do so ourselves. It will also give Aeon better options, and we can then steer Aeon towards better decisions."

Ezar asked. "How far are we from that?"

"For you two, at least 50 more levels.” Edna answered. “For me- I’m not that far. Lumoof and Stella too. If each of us can reach level 200, my current knowledge indicates that is the point when we are on par with the heroes. In a straight fight, we can hold our ground, and depending on what powers we receive, even produce the damage and destruction we need.”

“Oh Aeons.” Roon looked at Edna. “So when’s the next demon king? I didn’t need a pep talk, but now that I got it, I want to go kill some demon kings.”

“The one on Mountainworld.” 

“Yes. But that’s not all. We will go and free up more worlds, take on the demon king, and collect a loose alliance of allies. Aeon needs new worlds, and he takes too darned long to decide.” Edna explained. “Stella-”

“Yes, yes. Aeon already wants more void domainholders. We’re getting there.” Stella said. “Void mages don’t grow on trees.”

“I wish they did.” Edna laughed. “I really wish they did.” 

Edna smirked. “No matter. The issue of the other worlds is important to us. Us domainholders will be Aeon’s emissaries to the new world. Aeon- I sense a growing resolve to handle things more decisively, but I fear for those worlds.”

Kafa sat, and sipped his thick tea uncomfortably. 

“These other worlds, worlds that do not have domainholders, or have weak ones, their fate is an eventual doom. The gods will fade, and they will fend for themselves. Ultimately, our decision on how and what to do with these worlds, determines the lives and fate of those who live on them. If we ignore them, they may live on, but some day, they will be destroyed. If we establish relations and decide to maintain a position, we can support their defense, and hopefully, train some of them up into future domainholders.” 

Edna stopped just to drink her cup of water.

“I know Aeon believes that each world deserves a choice on what they want to do, and if they want to fend for themselves, they should be allowed to do so. But that’s Aeon’s thoughts. If you are asked to choose to establish a presence on a world, deal with all the troubles that come with it, for that remote chance of saving them in the future, would you do it?”

Roon looked at Edna like she was an alien. “Shit Edna, I didn’t think it’s that-”

“It’s just the harsh truth. Aeon’s presence is like giving an orphan child an opportunity to train to be a Valthorn. Most of it turns out to be average. But some of us are here today.”

“-man- If only-”

“Aeon doesn’t have clone seeds for all the worlds. Even with the node trees, there are more worlds out there than we can count. We will be visiting more worlds with Stella’s powers, and that is the weight of our choice. If we feel strongly about something, we must speak to Aeon, because those are lives that will fade away unnoticed.” Edna explained.

Lumoof glanced at everyone, and chuckled. ”With Aeon’s Level 250 choice, he would only be assaulted with more information, more decisions, more worlds. I hope there are more of us here, eventually. Because this duty weighs heavily, and I’ll need all of you to help scout the path ahead. I don’t mean just Ezar and Kafa. I mean all of us. Because we need all of us to act as a stabilizing force for Aeon. Combined, Aeon will definitely listen.”

Stella nodded. “This meeting wasn’t meant to put you two on the spot. I generally echo Edna and Lumoof’s thoughts. Only together, we can balance this ship. Because there’s nothing else.”

Kafa tapped his chest. “-I may not know whether I am up for it, but I will try.”

Ezar nodded along.

Roon and Johann looked at each other. “You three should really tell us more about all that shit that goes on in your heads. You can’t just unload this on us suddenly.”

Lumoof smiled. “I apologize. But after tapping into Aeon’s avatar mode a little too often, I realize I cannot be trusted to be objective. I need all of you.”

Roon and Johann gulped. “Well, I’ll tell you for sure if you fucked up.”

“Please do. Worlds get fucked if we fuck up.” Lumoof said, mimicking their language. “It’s a burden too heavy for me to bear.”

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