A Solitary God In A Dark Multiverse 59 More Than Meets The Eye

[To be clear there is no precise word for what you are, as nothing like you has ever existed before. You're a sort of... omni-higher-being. A creature who could potentially have the powers of a number of an unknown number of higher being types. Possibly all of them.] My companion explained, carefully using imprecise language. But now I had a question.

"If nothing like me has ever existed before then did no higher-beings ever breed with another type of higher-being?" I asked, curiously. It sounded, to me anyway, like I was just a hybrid.

[Whenever interbreeding occurred the children that were created were either exceptionally powerful mortals or a higher-being that was a member of one species or another with a handful of powers of the species of their other parent. And you have no parents. Which isn't unheard of for G.o.ds, but it's still uncommon.] Said the system, patiently working to help me understand my own uniqueness.

"So wait... functionally, what does this mean for me?" I asked, curiously. The system chuckled before next beginning to speak.

[It means that when we say that no limits affect you we mean it. As an... ultimate higher-being, there truly isn't a power-cap we could imagine affecting you. We've also quietly hypothesized that this is limited to your other wild traits, especially 'Shapeless One'. It would make sense for this weird trait of your genetics to have influenced your lack of a true form.] My first friend revealed.

I took advantage of this moment to aim a casting of "disease bolt" at Calorron, waited for it to collide with him, and then immediately healed him of whatever disease he just received. I figured I might as well take advantage of this moment, as I wasn't frozen even if everything else was.

I smiled as I received the notification about the domain of disease, and mentally refocused on my exact surroundings, as opposed to reading through the thing right away. And the system began to speak once more.

[Right now the domains and I can detect two distinct other sources of power beginning to come from you and we have theories about their causes. One of them is a surge of deep elemental power, which we suspect is the first sign of you being an elemental overlord, an elemental of G.o.d-level power.] The ent.i.ty that resided in my mind explained.

[This power first started emanating from you when you first gained influence over the subdomain of earth. It's likely that as you gain more influence over the other elemental subdomains this'll increase in potency until you start manifesting the powers of an elemental overlord, which are all reality-defying elemental powers.] The voice told me.

[The other source of power we picked up on is that of powerful natural energy, the sort a.s.sociated with the fey. This started emanating from you last night, so we suspect that its because you gained fey worshipers last night. It's possible that the more fey worshipers you gain, the more... fey power you'll gain. Eventually, this could manifest in you gaining the powers of an archfey, a monarch of a fey court.] The system said, quietly and reverentially. I had questions.

"So wait, you're making it pretty clear that I'll be gaining new powers from this. Are the powers that I would gain from these... additional sets of t.i.tles and responsibilities distinct and mutually exclusive from my G.o.dly powers?" I asked, curious to learn about what was being revealed to me, and all of its intriguing implications.

[Yes. As a G.o.d, if you ever became omnipotent, you'd gain the power to make the sorts of creatures we just talked about but their abilities would be distinct. Now they wouldn't be. If we're correct, and we are, then you're on your way to gaining a virtually unlimited number of powers. The road ahead is long, to be sure, but at the end of it lies a sort of omnipotence no ent.i.ty ever imagined possible.] The thing announced, confidently.

"What other kinds of higher-beings are there?" I asked, hoping to get a clear answer. I was almost immediately disappointed.

[There are several actually. More than mortals realized. The big ones though are the G.o.ds, demon lords, archdevils, archfey, elemental overlords, angel kings, archon queens, and the outer G.o.ds.] The voice revealed, teasing me with the suggestion that there were others.

"Why did you tell Raiz before you told me?" I asked, knowing that this conversation was gradually beginning to wind down.

[Ugh. We were hoping you had forgotten about that. We told her because she kept asking what you were, and Truth told her that you were more than a G.o.d, because... well she's Truth. She wasn't able to fully explain it, so Raiz took it as you being a hybrid higher-being rather than something that has well and truly never existed before.] The system told me, explaining it quite simply.

"So... what now? Do we know of a way to test if I truly am as limitless as you say I am?" I asked, a few seconds after my companion told me why Raiz was told bits and pieces of the truth about me before I was.

[Well... The way for us to test it is for you to continue building your power. Ultimately it seems like whatever ambient powers are hidden away within you begin to make themselves known to us when you gain influence over the right domains and subdomains and gain the right types of worshipers. So, for now, you need to continue building your power.] The system told me, uncertainty audible in its voice.

[It's possible that in time you'll be asked to undertake epic-level quests in order to truly gain mastery over the non-G.o.d higher-being powers we suspect you'll eventually unlock. These quests will probably involve you going into the a.s.sorted dimensions that the non-G.o.d higher-beings once controlled. Places like Deep-Stone, the Wildlands, and the Heart of Darkness.] The ent.i.ty said, whispering those names reverentially.

I was quiet for a good while after it said this. I knew there was a question I had wanted to ask, but I couldn't quite articulate it. It was related to something that I had noticed, but couldn't quite verbalize. But eventually, after perhaps a few minutes of silence, I was able to put words to it.

"What is the difference between a G.o.d and a spirit? It seems like we use those words kind of interchangeably." I asked, aware that we had described Cosecha as both a G.o.d and as a spirit depending on to whom we were speaking. I heard a gentle laugh emanate from the system.

[G.o.ds are a type of spirit. G.o.ds are the strongest kind of spirit actually. And lesser spirits survived the end of the mythic age. So it's easier for many mortals to understand that you are a spirit rather than hoping that they understand what it means that you are actually a G.o.d.] The system told me.

I nodded at that, right before the system asked me one quick question.

[Are you ready for us to unfreeze time? Or do you have any questions?] The thing asked.

"If it takes me gaining more influence over the elemental subdomains, can you tell me how to gain the first tier of influence over them?" I asked, while finally beginning to look at the details of the subdomain of disease.

[Nope, I cannot. But you can learn how to gain influence over them yourself if you just work towards it. Just submerge yourself in water, set something on fire, and fly. Remember, gaining access to the quests is supposed to be easy.] The thing told me, and I swore I could hear a grin on its lips if it even possessed any.

[But anyway, finish looking over the disease domain's powers and then we'll unfreeze time.] The ent.i.ty announced. A part of me wondered how I'd go about even accessing the quest to gain influence over the domain of time, and unsurprisingly the system was silent when it came to that.

I knew it could still hear me, so I let it be. For now anyway. I turned my full attention to the domain notification I had received earlier.

[Details about the disease domain:

The disease domain governs all manners of sicknesses, conditions, and disorders. As such it is... one of the domains that are potentially cataclysmic if used by a G.o.d that seeks to bring devastation to a community, civilization, or even entire planet.

There are three domains and one subdomain that together comprise a quarter of ent.i.ties known as the "Apocalypse Quadrangle". The domains of death, war, disease, and the subdomain of agriculture all wield powers that can decimate planets even at their lowest tiers of influence.

To gain influence over the disease domain it is necessary to build two sorts of cults: cults devoted to the creation and spreading of diseases, and another cult devoted to combating diseases. This is a domain that is influenced both by spreading and combatting what it governs, which isn't uncommon among some of the... eerier domains and subdomains.

Disease domain pa.s.sive powers:

Cure disease: No disease is beyond your power to heal. Magical, or non-magical, you can cure diseases and can restore someone to health. Magical diseases you cure are added to the disease you can infect someone with, but you can't manipulate them or gain mastery over them just yet.

Non-magical disease manipulation: This power is a vicious one that allows you to seize and control diseases. You can minimize or even eliminate symptoms of a disease, including making the whole thing asymptomatic, but causing carriers to remain infectious.

Inversely you can also magnify the effects of symptoms and increase the overall deadliness of the disease in question. Eventually, you'll be able to add symptoms to diseases, both magical and nonmagical diseases and magical and nonmagical symptoms.

Non-magical disease mastery: This power is one of the more unusual mastery powers. You become a lord of pestilence but that doesn't mean that you automatically control all diseases.

In order to master diseases, you have to learn about them by encountering creatures infected with them. When you do, and you cure the diseases they suffer from or you magnify their effects, you gain mastery over the sicknesses that plagued them. Whenever you encounter someone suffering from a disease of some sort you ought to use your ability to manipulate non-magical diseases.

Parasite dominance: This synergistic power is a fusion of the subdomain of vermin and the disease domain. It functions similarly to the power from the Hymenoptera subdomain that grants mastery over unevolved ants.

Unevolved parasites such as mosquitoes, mites, lice, and more automatically become your worshipers and servants the minute they become aware of you. This power functions retroactively as well so when time is unfrozen you'll automatically gain many new worshipers.

Corruption of the mind: This synergistic power allows you to cause heightened libido to be a symptom of any disease, and to transform any sort of disease into a s.e.xually transmitted disease.

Pestilent aura: This aura is devastating to your enemies, even though it might not seem like it. It infects enemies with all manner of maladies, like boils, rashes, a fever, and other, worse symptoms that linger after the encounter.

Magic granting: You have been granted access to a number of evocation and necromancy spells that spread diseases. You can grant these spells to your followers.

Disease domain active powers:

Magical disease infection: You can infect someone with a magical disease. In order to gain knowledge and influence over magical diseases, you must cure them using your power to cure diseases. This is a twice-every-twelve-hours power.

Madness burst: This synergistic power is the result of the mind domain, the chaos domain, and the disease domain mixing together to create a cruel power. You can use cracks in someone's mental health to drive them mad, and smash their sanity. Not everyone is susceptible to this power, but with each tier of influence you gain over the domain, more people become vulnerable to it.

People driven mad by this lose their previous alignments and neutrally aligned worshipers of yours who seek to enact your will, as they hail you as their lord. Your voice can be heard by them across any distance, and they obey any commands you give them. This power can be used four times per day, but its effects are permanent unless you undo it so be careful.

Magical symptoms: This power allows you to infect eight people per hour with magical conditions.

You can currently infect people with two potent magical symptoms: slow-moving petrification that gradually transforms those infected by it into statues, and a condition that infuses living creatures with unlife energy and if left untreated would transform victims into ghouls, vampires, or zombies, as determined by you when you infect them. You can infect people with these conditions in battle.

Disease domain blessing and curse details:

Blessing someone with a disease domain centered blessing bestows them with either immunity to diseases, or causes them to become immune to any negative symptoms from any diseases they are currently suffering from but it also makes them highly infectious.

Cursing someone using this domain is vicious and it ensures that they'll get infected with any sort of disease carried by anyone they come across. This curse also magnifies their personal infectiousness and the negative effects of any diseases they either contract or had already contracted.]

And as I finished reading the notification, time resumed. The first thing I heard was Raiz continuing to speak.