Arc 1 (Conception): (31) You are not Pawn but my Queen.
According to yesterday's decisions, Haku and Tuner with 10 slaves and all the hunted meat for our Shop will leave the village for the Gazina city in the afternoon. Haku will treat the rest of the wounded slaves before leaving for the city. After yesterday's meeting and events, nobody knows what we are dealing with, and everyone was feeling apprehensive about this Ancient forest. But still, nobody voiced to stop our regular hunt of deer and other animals. As we need it for our Shop. While Manoj made himself busy with his village chief work, I will infiltrate the forest against everyone's decision.
I know that I could easily slip away, but I still do not want to accidentally seen by villagers sneaking into the forest and letting others know that I broke the promise just the next day and went in the Ancient forest. I do not know how hunting is planned up until now. Therefore, I decided to follow Qunia's lead in hunting arrangement. Qunia decided that 20 slaves, Qunia and me, will be in the same group, and the rest are slaves, made another team with villagers. Two teams entered the forest from two different areas to not interfere with each other's hunts. Qunia and I directed our teams to venture deep near the boundary up to which godforsaken can go. Then, I left our hunter team, using the Ancient forest's mysterious power without slaves realizing it.
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As soon as I realized that I was separated from my team and could freely move, I run along the path to the 'Tree of Goddess.' While moving in the forest, my assassin skill enabled me to blend in the tree shadows and move without any care for wild animals. I know yesterday many concluded that we never faced attack after getting one-leaf, but taking extra caution never harms. It did not take long for me to reach the 'Tree of Goddess.'
When I came in front of the tree, this time, I was not the same, naive man. I know how unique this tree was; it could be a Goddess or devil. I do not know it's nature, but I know it far surpasses my limits. I could not help but kneel in front of it.
I prayed to it, I prayed for my Zuya, whom I do not know how to reach. I prayed for myself, who didn't know how to uses his skills and was lost even when I might have the power to find a path.
But I also wished for the well-being of my Qunia, Rena, Pata, and all the people who have helped me in my life.
While still kneeling in front of the 'Tree of Goddess', unknown to me, I was slowly seeping into a dream-like state. After completely being absorbed in this dream-like state, I was standing in a place full of clouds and could only see the light-collecting in front of me. I closed my eyes, but it was not helpful. All I could see was light. But this light was not hurting. Instead, it was a beautiful, soothing, and calming green light, and When I opened my eyes, I saw an ethereal, beautiful lady beyond description standing there. But she was shackled in chains, while her eyes were closed. But when she opened her eyes, I was stormed in emotions. It was like I am crying, laughing, sad, happy, anxious, excited, even the feelings I could not name, all together. As if all the feelings and emotions of beings in the world were storming and are filling her and were leaking out of her eyes.
While immersed in this divine feeling, I forgot everything, even the flow of time. To me, it was like gradually being overwhelmed by all the happiness in the world. I could swear that this ethereal beauty was an amalgamation of all the beautiful and happy things in the world. But the only blemish on her were those hideous shackle chains, restraining her. It was as if all the happiness and beautiful things were stolen from the world and shackled here. I just wanted to be here and enjoy the rest of my life, doing nothing but watching her. I will feel complete and satisfied. I do not care about anything. Just being in front of her was all I needed...
She slowly opened her lips and spoke. Her voice was the nicest one I heard in my whole life and said, "My child, you are finally here..." saying so, she suddenly appeared next to me in this dream-like state and touched my forehead. The whole dream space was suddenly brighter than the Sun and I was forced to close my eyes.
When I opened my eyes, I was on the ground in the same kneeling positions as I was. After a touch of Ethereal Beauty, now, I know that she really is the Goddess of Plants or more correctly an enslave-Goddess. She has filled me with a lot of knowledge, more than I asked for.
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A deity creates a world when he (or she) shed his (or her) mortal body to ascend and create Godhood. Even after getting the Godhood, these deities do not shed their emotions and hence are still shackled in the clutches of emotions like greed, fear, pride, and so on. Therefore, in this multiverse formed by all the deities made worlds, some deity attacks other weaker and new-born deities to capture their world.
There are three ways in which these deity deal with weaker deity. The first method is most risky, but gives the highest gain, in it, the deity kills the original weaker Deity of the world and absorbs their whole world into his own world. While, this method gives most rise in faith value needed to raise Godhood to a higher level, but is the riskiest method as there is always a chance that while in the process of absorption a world into another world if something goes wrong then both world or all the essential being in it can be annihilated. This will make the resulting world unable to produce any faith for Deity resulting in his weakening, not to mention that killing a Deity is very hard, and after it, the world of killed Deity will start to degrade very fast and if not absorbed in time it might vanish.
So, the other two options are used by most such Deities. The second method is to enslave the original Deity of the world and get all the faith from the world by brainwashing the essential beings in it to worship the new invading Deity. In this method, invading Deity has to make sure that due to lack of faith or attachment to the world original Deity does not commit suicide. Therefore, it requires a lot of work to be done by invading Deity even after enslaving the original Deity. This method might give less faith value than the first method but it is much safer than the first method and give more faith value than the third method. In the third method, invading Deity after defeating the original deity makes it, his subordinate deity. This creates a Pantheon of Deities with him being the Chief or main Deity while other places are acquired by his Subordinate Deities. In Pantheon Deities System, Invading or Chief or Main Deity gets about half of all the faith generated in worlds of his subordinate deity and his subordinate deities as fighting power to make him strong. So, while the first method was rarely used but second and third methods were equally popular as they both excel in one or another way to increase invading Deity's power.
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After her lifelong struggle and cultivation, Goddess of Plant finally reached the stage to shed her mortal body and be a Goddess to her own world. While she was reincarnated in a divine-Deity body, and her mortal remains filled with her power to transform into this world and act as her power source of faith for Godhood to reach a higher level, and our world was never created by God of Creation and Space-time. He was the invader God who invaded this new world of the Goddess of Plants and enslaved her as she refused to be her subordinate God. To make sure that Goddess does not die, he enchanted with his magic few ancient forests in this world, which keep any sentinel and powerful being from invading or destroying it. These forests make sure that the Goddess of Plant will remain alive, and so does the world as a whole. He also gives his church order to make sure that she will never be a goddess worshipped by sentinel beings of this world.
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After knowing this, I could not help but feel strange. All we know about Gods of this world was falsely created by an invader god to ensure that he gets what he wants, faith. There were also many Questions like, then what about other Gods? But what could I do even if I know? These were things beyond my control or imagination.
Then again, why can Qunia and I enter this Ancient forest? And will our hunt of animals and foraging for herbs here affect the Goddess of plants? Will it anger the invader God? Knowing how pitiful the Goddess of our world was. In a sense, she was our Mother, a mother of all beings in this world, created from her body. If Goddess could not protect herself, was this not our duty to protect her, like how, when a mother grows old, her child must give her a peaceful life she deserved. But in this world, we were worshipping the very God who wronged her, day and night.
It was true that now, she can not protect others, and I was in dire need of protection after learning that my association with her could harm my loved ones and me. If invader God finds out about this, what will happen to me, Qunia, Zuya, Pata, Rena...? Will it even matter in this world how strong I am? What was I in front of God's power? Nothing, not even as significant as an ant. I was losing my mind after feeling the hopelessness I was in. The Goddess of Plant sensed my state though her connection to this forest and trees and forced me to enter a dream-like state, again.
Now, I was standing in a place full of clouds and I could again hear the beautiful voice of Goddess, "Kola, You are not a pawn created by other gods to do their bidding but my Queen in this world-chess they have created. Take a sapling of this tree and keep it around, and I will always provide you with divine protection from other Gods. Grow strong my child, and fear none."
And I woke up. I saw many small saplings and large plants of the tree I have been worshipping all this time, as said by the Goddess in my dream. I took one of the saplings with soil still around its roots and left the forest. Not even one animal attacked or even noticed me in the forest while I was walking freely with the sapling in my hand.
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Soon, I reached the place where slaves were and asked him for Noah's location. Then I asked Noah to take care of this plant after planting it in a pot. So that I could easily carry it to Gazina city. Now, I was unsure what to do, as it was absurd to tell anyone that all that church has been teaching is wrong, and Gods you worship are invader Gods who have enslaved our true Goddess. Then, I remember what Tuner said to me about matters of God. So, I decided to be quiet for the time being and only to open to others if I am sure that they will not sell me out and are ready to accept what I may tell them.
I did not say anything about both of my dreams to Qunia, even when I saw her. But they keep on repeating in my mind, and I was not able to fall asleep. When Qunia asked, "How was your visit to 'Tree of Goddess'?" I could not help but tell her only that, "It went well, Goddess has given me a small 'Plant of Goddess,' to keep with us all the time to pray." lightening the burden I was felling from keeping Quite. And so I all the secrets of the world were buried in my heart and mind.
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Next day,
Now, there was no need for me to stay in Merata village as everything was settled here. As for Haku and Tuner, I decided to meet them in Gazina city and ask them what they found. So, Qunia and I will leave for Gazina city in the afternoon and left all the local management to Noah and other older slaves. Pata and Rena will take care of anything related to villagers with the help of Manoj.
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