Book3, chapter 21

21. Conviction

It wasn’t until twenty minutes after the duel had ended and Corinth said “So yeah, I guess Hail is a stone-cold killer now,” that I realized I had just killed a man in cold blood.  I remembered my angst when I had thought that maybe Gyudue was like me, and like other Natives.  Now, it wasn’t that I didn’t care.  But Voss had been an enemy.  He had made that very clear in his self-destructing letter to me.

He had vowed to pardon all bandits that I brought to him for justice, and made it clear that he would see that any investigation into corruption in my land would end with me taking the blame.  Which was some leap of logic, considering that much of the corruption had taken place before the Gates of TirNiki had even opened, let alone before I had been born.

“Honestly, Corinth, if you don’t find your mouth’s effing off switch soon, I am going to PK you just for some quiet,” Stan said angrily.

“Yeah, like you could even--”

Larissa finished casting [Polymorph], and Corinth turned into a duck.  “Found it.  For the next forty seconds, at least.”

“How are you doing, Hail?  That was rather intense.  Do we need to call Tarisha?  Or … what’s his name?  Thomas?”  Thena inquired.

“I do need to call Tarisha,” I said.  “But not because of the duel.  I’ve never killed a Native like that before, and I don’t know what will happen to his spirit now that Auroras has it instead of Thedum.  But he was my enemy.  He would have kept me from purging the bandits from North Shire, and he was proud to stand in my way.  Not to mention that he was Storm’s Lackey, and a powerful one.  It was Storm who put him in my path to begin with.”

“I see,” Thena said slowly.  “And what you did, it doesn’t bother you?”

“He’ll be reborn eventually, I think,” I said, and I summoned Shadow beneath me.  The truth was I was trying not to think about the matter too hard.  “Thena, when the battle for North Shire starts, the bandits are going to die.  Maybe some of the villagers, if my Traveler friends can’t protect them.  And I’ll be responsible.  Do you think I hadn’t considered that before I set my convictions?”

My friends were quiet for a moment, then Thena said “You’ve really grown, Hail.  Maybe Thedum should reset your age again.  You’re not acting like a fifteen year old anymore.”

I looked at her, startled.  “I’m not acting like myself?”

“I didn’t say that,” she said.  She sighed.  “It’s just, well, in real time, it’s only been a few months since you were a cute little kid excited to join our guild and issue us quests to track down your nanny.  Now, you really are acting like you’re a general of an army.  Or, I suppose, like a real lord, in the best sense of how that role was supposed to be enacted.  We’re just experiencing whiplash from watching you grow up so fast.”

“I forget sometimes that you experience time differently than I do,” I admitted.  “And I have … I don’t know that I’m going to be the typical example of a developed seed of consciousness or not.  Thomas said that they’re learning as they go, and that they won’t have a ‘best practices’ guide set in place until there are dozens of people like me in this world.  Project Gemini is working with what they learned from me, but the projects after that?  Who knows what the rules will be then.”

Thena frowned.  “Wait, what is Project Gemini?”

I blushed.  “Oh, um, if you don’t know, I don’t think I’m supposed to tell you.  Never mind.  Come on, let’s go.  I need to get to my throne in North Shire.”

I nudged Shadow to go faster, and I checked the system time.  It had been about ten game hours since I had arrived in Zhesa city, and it was time to leave.  My noncombatant friends had been running errands throughout Yuikon and her neighbor nations, including Eolstree, and the information I’d gotten from Grapple confirmed that every time a portal facility was used by a Traveler in The Recent Past, it started a timer for the Travelers in The Near Future to use it to travel into our instance of the world.

Not everyone would at first.  But some would, even knowing that the trip was one way.  Many would becausethey knew the trip was one way.  However, the real flood would come when I began using my [Battle Core].  When that happened, millions of travelers would leap at the chance to partake in the resulting battlegrounds.  Then even those who had never been to Yuikon before would begin investigating the site of the battlegrounds they had fought in, most likely as mercenaries.  I needed to get ready for them.

I had less than two days.

Tarisha

Hail, can you see this?

The unique messenger, specific to me, Tarisha, and the other Canon travelers who served as my vassals in this world opened of its own accord.  As it was supposed to for high-priority messages.

I was riding along towards the portal facility at the time, but I could let Shadow lead the way while I messaged Tarisha, so I let one hand go to interact with the virtual keyboard.

Hail

This channel opens itself when you message me like this, Tarisha.  What’s up?  Is something wrong?

Tarisha

Not wrong.  But it’s time.  Everyone in the A team is going to log out and go to sleep.  They only have about seven hours before the real fun starts.  In the mean time, the B team is standing by, waiting for me to summon them.  We figured out how to stabilize the portal between the receiving station in Ebbyvale and the portal facility you created in Briarton, so we’ll send half the team to guard your mother and the other half will stay here to guard you.

Hail

Okay.  That sounds good.  What about Laurant and the rest?

Tarisha

They’ve burned their summons for the day.  It seems that once Lewis established a new fortress on your lands, it resonated into the future and is allowing Travelers who have previously signed up to either your army or your emergency constabulary to enter the past.  Their armies have their orders for the night.

Hail

Do you think I should use [Summon Karmic Warrior]?

Tarisha

...I don’t know, Hail.  Last time it also summoned opponents.  Let’s hold off for now.  Wait until anyone who really wants to can come to the recent past can do so, and then burn it, and then we’ll start the final race to the finish.

Hail

Okay.  Who’s going to be in charge while you’re asleep.

Tarisha

You, of course, My Lord.

Hail

I meant of your team.

Tarisha

Luke of London and Peter of Yorkshire will both be active.  They’ll handle all of the night owls from NA, and the Europeans as well.  Aside from that, the remaining members are all from a single guild in Korea.  They’ve invested a lot in this venture, so it was hard to deny them these positions.  I’m not sure who’s in charge of your army or your deputies while Lewis and Phil are sleeping.  You should find out before they log out.

Hail

Okay.  I’m going to message them now.   Goodnight, Tarisha.

Tarisha

Goodnight, Hail.  You should know, they said that it takes at least ten good log in sessions to harvest a seed of consciousness.  So Charity won’t be born for a while yet.

Hail

Charity?

Tarisha

We decided on names.  My daughter will be Charity.  I’ll let Lewis tell you his son’s name himself.   Good night.

She didn’t log straight out, but I knew that she would be busy issuing last minute orders.  I had my own messages to send, so I contacted Laurant, Phil, and Daemon, getting their lists of the Travelers who would be replacing them while they slept, then establishing lines of communication with them.

This was aside from arriving at the portal facility and paying for my party, plus Zimmer and Grapple, to portal to Ebbyvale in North Shire.  It actually turned out that Grapple would be Daemon’s replacement, as he was on something called ‘Pacific Time’.  Phil had put a man named ‘Stone’ in charge of his constabulary, while Laurant had selected an older sounding woman who called herself Theresa to had up his army.

After a few minutes of talking to them it became apparent that they had things so firmly under control that my input was unnecessary.  Stone and Theresa gave me reports on the efforts to siege the bandit strongholds and the build status of the opposing fortresses which the army was constructing.  Grapple had already given me reports of the noncombatant’s efforts at spying and information control and distribution, but he promised to continue to keep me apprised now that my ‘action’ roles were over with.

Because from now until the recursion, my only role was to sit on my throne and adjust my quests.

Thena’s party disbanded a few minutes after we arrived in Ebbyvale as they one by one logged out, each planning for ‘the epic gaming session that would probably last all of Saturday’ to come.  I was promptly invited to a new group by Luke of London, and the group was filled with level 180 to 200 players, who would be guarding me until the portals opened.

My friends logged out, and my guards rode with me to the Temple of Thedum, where my throne was set up off to one side.  I took a moment to kneel at the Altar.

“You don’t have to do that, you know,” Thedum said.  “You should understand by now that I’m not truly a god.”

“If you’re not a god, then I have no concept of what a god is,” I responded to him.  “This is how I have always shown you respect.  Would you have me change?”

“That is a fair point,” Thedum conceded.  “What is it that you have to ask of me?”

“Was I wrong to kill Nathan Voss?” I inquired.

Thedum was silent for a moment.  “You acted in accordance with the beliefs which have been established in you by the society in which you live.  As such, it could be said that you acted morally and justly.  Aside from which, Voss pledged to act unjustly, to bear false witness, and to impede your lawful efforts at establishing peace in your lands.  Due to your relative social standings, killing him in a duel was the only way to prevent him from keeping his word.  As such, it could be said that you acted correctly.”

“Is that what you think, Thedum?” I asked earnestly.

“I think that you did what you thought was right,” Thedum answered.  “My perspective is so different from yours that the answer I have given is the best one that I can.  To my eyes, no harm was done.  Voss’s spirit is being preserved in the Deadlands, and in time it will be returned into a new body in Lagrea.”

“That is not what I meant when I said I intended to have my uncle deal with his body,” I pointed out.

Thedum’s benevolent voice chuckled.  “Yes, well.  That action will resonate among the Natives in the past and the future, in case you clicked past that notice without reading it.  It is time to start establishing the context of The Gray Man among the Travelers, Hail.  You may have always known that story, but the humans who enter this world are discovering it piece by piece.  The more you discover for them, the more there is for them to learn.”

I sighed.  “I don’t really care about that right now.  I need a new [Ring of Holy Light].”

Thedum was silent for a moment.  “I’m sorry.  The other gods say no.”

My eyes opened wide in surprise.  “They what?”

“They consented before, on the condition that it would break when you used [Draining Touch].  Now that you have, they insist on a different mechanism to prevent the spread of [Reaper’s Embrace].  Let your followers know that they must receive a blessing at a temple.  Any of the eight gods will do.  This blessing will protect them from [Reaper’s Embrace].  Unless you use [Draining Touch].  Or they are touched by the real Gray Man.”

I sighed in frustration.  Of course it wouldn’t be that simple.  “I will let my followers know.”

“Or you could not, you know,” Thedum said.  “That’s an option, Hail.  You could let them figure some things out for themselves.  You don’t have to be the hero in this story.”

I frowned at the altar.  “Are you trying to tempt me, Thedum?”

“One of my aspects is knowledge, Hail.  Knowing that an option exists is important in determining whether it, or its alternative, is the correct one or not.  Had you even considered keeping silent?”

“Of course not,” I said instantly.

“That is why I pointed out that you could,” Thedum explained.  “Now go.  Get started on writing your quests, and everything else that you plan to do before your little war starts.  But do not forget that you will need to rest twice, yourself, between now and then.”