Chapter Eighteen #2
“Not for gods, Vervain. It will be a substitute god. The relics I've taken serve as layers of the machine—processor, command center, computation, judgment, and so on. When I'm done, you will all be free.”
“And how will we fuel our magic?” Odin asked. “We will be free, but also drained. The draining will continue until we become mortal.”
“I've been assured that will not be the case. We have enough energy to fuel us forever. Come now, Allfather, you know this. You don't have worshipers anymore. Not enough to fuel the Norse Realm. And yet, you endure.”
“I don't know,” I murmured. “I mean, I agree the Gods shouldn't be taking energy from humans. We haven't, and we're fine. The God Realm was made with Fey magic, so it will be fine. But there are gods like Lucifer, whose people rely on the energy provided by humans. What will happen to Hell?”
“The Demons will be free.” Agwusi shrugged her slender shoulders. “Don't you want that for them? They almost died because of their ties to humans.”
“That's only because Katila was hunting them, and he was a god.”
“Regardless, they will never have to worry about that again.”
I looked at my men. Kirill and Re had remained silent, but they scowled at Agwusi.
Then they looked at me and shook their heads.
Change was hard, but sometimes necessary.
What Agwusi said made sense. I fought gods who manipulated humans into war or other fatal situations just to take the energy of their deaths as a sacrifice.
Humans didn’t freely give that worship and received nothing in return.
But worship wasn't black and white. Most energy offerings didn't harm humans and were given freely.
The Gods provided protection, luck, prosperity, and more in return.
I didn't see a problem with that. It was a win-win situation.
Then there was the energy transferred through malicious acts that went straight to Lucifer because humans blamed him for every evil.
I kinda felt like he deserved it for playing the role of their scapegoat.
And he never manipulated humans into committing those evil acts.
So it was sort of like making the best of a bad situation.
Agwusi was nutso, but I had to at least try to explain this to her.
“I've fought gods because they harmed humans to gain energy.” I held up a placating hand.
“But that's only one side of worship. When humans offer their energy, it doesn’t harm them. And some gods still care for their people. They give blessings to those who offer sacrifices. It’s not a simple matter.
You can't say that taking this away will benefit everyone.”
“This system has been in place for centuries,” Odin added. “Tear it down now, and you will put the realms in jeopardy.”
“I don't agree.” Agwusi looked at Ty. “Do you?”
“I don't know.” Ty frowned. “I don't like that you've injured souls.”
She looked at Fenrir before settling her gaze on Ty. “It was an accident. It will be better now that I've added more layers to the machine.”
“What if it's not?” I asked.
“It will be.”
“That's not an answer.”
“Agwusi, you promised me that no one would get hurt.
Accident or not, you've broken that promise.” Ty stepped away from his father and took her hand.
“I love you, but I won't let you destroy people's souls.
That's worse than gods manipulating humans into dying for them. At least those people have intact souls to enter the afterlife with.”
“I won't hurt anyone else.” Agwusi stroked his cheek. “I fixed it.”
Torrent, who had remained silent up to this point, stepped forward. “I am Torrent, God of the Internet.”
“Yes, I remember you, Torrent.” Agwusi inclined her head.
“I understand what you're building more than you do.”
“Oh? And what do you think, Technology God?”
“I think you're making a mistake.”
“Why?”
“People think of machines as predictable.” Torrent shrugged. “They can be. When they function properly. But when a machine malfunctions, it can do terrible damage.”
“Yes, I know it malfunctioned. I've corrected the problem.”
“That wasn't a malfunction. That was an incorrect build.
You corrected it, and now the machine should run as you hope.
But this machine is the first of its kind, and new builds always have issues.
That's why a prototype is made first. It's tested so that flaws can be found and fixed.
Even tried and true machines break down or make mistakes.
That's with normal machines. You've made a machine with god magic, powering it with relics that aren’t meant to be used in this manner, and releasing it upon the realms without testing it. You don’t know what it will do, but I guarantee you that it won't work as expected.”
“If it doesn't work as I wish, I will rebuild it.”
“That would be fine with a normal machine, but this machine sorts souls.
Every tweak you make can destroy a person's immortal essence.
Do you understand that? When you break a soul, you've destroyed a life.
You can't just say you're sorry and fix it. You are being reckless with the lives of everyone in existence.”
“It's not reckless if I know the outcome, and I do. God has assured me of my success.”
“TryggulfR, this person is insane. You need to come home.” Fenrir held out his hand. “Please, Son.”
Ty stared at his father's hand.
“I'm as sane as you are.” Agwusi lifted her chin.
“You stared into the Aether, didn't you?” I asked. “How long did you look? Long enough to find the secrets of gods?”
Everyone went still, all eyes on Agwusi.
She blinked, her mouth opening, and looked from me to Ty and back.
“Agwusi?” Ty asked. “Did you look into the Aether? Is that how you know where gods hide their treasures?”
“There's no harm in it,” she said to Ty. “The memories are right there for anyone to see. I was taught how to linger and look.”
“Taught?” I asked. “By whom?”
Agwusi lifted her chin and grinned at me. “You know who.”
“No, I don't. Who taught you?”
“You have felt their touch upon your life, Godhunter,” she insisted. “You know who taught me.”
“Who, Agwusi?” Ty demanded.
Agwusi's smile turned serene as she looked at Ty. “God. The one true God.”
It was silent for five seconds. Then Fenrir burst into laughter.
Odin grimaced. “You have lost your wits to the Aether.
I don't know how you learned to linger, but you should have known better. The Aether is a living realm. It takes pieces of the mind—memories usually. But if you linger too long, staring into its hoard, it will take your sanity as payment for its secrets. That is a fact, Agwusi. You are not the first to think you could withstand the Aether.”
“If I'm crazy, it was worth it.” She chuckled. “But I did not imagine God. He came to me before I looked and showed me how.” She looked around at us and shook her head. “You are not gods. I'm not a god. But that doesn't mean there is no God. Have you never considered that?”
A shiver ran down my spine.
“Starlight?” Viper whispered.
“Faerie and Al have both noticed a presence beyond their own,” I said.
Everyone looked at me.
“They've noticed something powerful watching, possibly doing more than watching,” I went on. “It's been a while since we spoke of it.” I looked at Odin. “Agwusi is right. Just because we claim to be gods, it doesn't mean there isn't a real one.”
Odin scowled. “Yes, I agree. But it also doesn't make the words of an insane person true.”
“Could there really be a god?” Trevor asked his father.
“The one you should ask is Re,” Agwusi said.
Again, she was right. Re was one of the twenty council members who ruled Atlantis.
His name was Reandar, and along with the other members of the High Council of Atlantis, he destroyed Mars.
The planet had once been as bountiful as Earth.
Then the High Twenty conducted an experiment meant to harness the solar winds and the electromagnetic field of Mars.
Instead of harnessing power, they destroyed the electromagnetic field, and solar winds destroyed the planet.
Despite the failure, the High Twenty were the most powerful, adept magic-users of Atlantis.
If anyone could verify the existence of God, they could.
I looked at Re. “Did the council know about a real god?”
“No, we never saw proof of any such being, even when we killed a planet. Nothing punished us or tried to stop us,” Re said.
“Of course, that doesn't mean God doesn't exist. But I will say this: if there is a god,he is either stupid, apathetic, or cruel. We do more for humans than this imaginary god does.”
“You're lucky he doesn't take offense to non-believers,” Agwusi said.
“Ty, she's insane.” Re waved at the woman. “Staying with her will only hurt you and the people you love.”
Ty looked at Fenrir and then Agwusi. “I will stay.”
Agwusi smiled.
“Son, please!” Fenrir reached for Ty.
“I am the only one she listens to,” Ty's words echoed as the territory spun around us. “I have to stay. Forgive me.”
I held onto Kirill, but we fell together. All of us tumbled to the ground. I closed my eyes, the sensation of traveling without moving so familiar and yet so terrifying. When I opened my eyes, we were on the VIP level of Moonshine.