Advent – Chapter 38: Framework

GamingWolf

Aperio stared at the window that hovered in front of her eyes. Why now? As if to answer her unspoken question the window shifted, displaying a new bit of text.

Upon reinstitution of the Creator, Custodians with the designations 'Vigil', 'Inanis', 'Lor'kem', 'Natio', 'Heshtar', and 'Epemirial' attempted to access higher privileged functions.

The action was found to be outside of Custodian privileges as designated by the Creator.

Access has been revoked for all Custodians who have not been directly assigned by the Creator.

The winged Goddess tilted her head at the new information. It did not answer the question she had. Why can I only use this now, and not after Roots explained its method of access? Taking her eyes off the window, she looked at the people surrounding her only to find that all of them – even her daughter – were seemingly staring at a System notification. What did I do?!

If she hadn't had to learn how to keep up appearances, the shock she currently felt would have been visible to all. Sadly, looking regal as ever did little to clarify things. Returning her attention to the window, she glared at it, daring it to continue to withhold the answers she sought. And why was Ferio not a Custodian before?

That question was answered immediately in the form of information trickling into her mind. Apparently providing a window she could see was something the System had deemed inefficient for what she had requested. Instead, she now knew that Ferio had been removed from the Custodians – Whatever that is – by popular vote. Though they had attempted to do the same to Roots, the System's information also told her that Roots could not be removed as the tree was supposed to be an impartial overseer of the entire System itself. Clearly favours me, though. It took a moment for her to remember that she supposedly made the thing, so her ability to wield the System as she wished made any favour Roots gave her rather superfluous. But how? Asking it to do anything doesn't seem to work every time. And feels wrong.

Her thoughts on how she should be able to manipulate her apparent creation was interrupted as the blue-tinted window faded from her view. It was replaced by one that looked very similar but had a silver edge. Is everything I make silver? She liked the colour, yes, but that did not explain why her mana turned silver nor why the System window now had a similarly coloured border.

The text that faded into view a moment later answered that question to an extent.

Additional functionality restored.

[Status] view has been enabled for residents of Verenier.

Aperio narrowed her eyes at the words. So I don't need that stupid stone to see my [Status]? ...But how do I view that? Without truly expecting any sort of result, she tried what she had attempted many times before: simply willing the window into existence. Much to her surprise, something did actually happen. Contrary to expectations, there was no new window that showed her strength in neat numbers. Instead, she felt a shift in her own mana.

Furrowing her brow, Aperio's attention turned inwards. Ignoring the fact that the amount of mana flowing around her body had increased in both quantity and purity yet again, she looked at the tiny bit of it that had started to act on its own. She could still feel it just fine, still knew that it would heed her call if she wanted it, but Aperio let it do what it had set out to accomplish.

The tiny strand of mana darted around her body again and again before it turned and rejoined the bottomless well within her, an action that left Aperio slightly confused. A moment later she felt something was amiss. Instead of the overwhelming feeling of disgust of wrong she felt when thinking about the collars, it was a bit of information that let her know that something was not working as it should. Figuring out what was wrong was easy; she had wanted to see her [Status] and the System went to work to fulfil her wish, only to encounter the same problem the [Appraiser's Stones] did.

Nonetheless, a silver-framed window appeared before her.

Titles

Forgotten

Demiurge

Focusing on the words caused more information about the titles to enter her mind. 'Forgotten' was one she could have figured out on her own. She had been gone for a long time and others had actively removed any mention of her over the millennia. The 'Demiurge' title on the other hand gave her pause. It implied something she was not sure she was comfortable with. Do I have that because I made the System, or did I actually make an entire universe?

No ethereal knowledge entered her mind when she asked herself the question, not even a hint if she could or not. How would I make a universe anyway? It has to be the System. She knew she was strong, but what that would imply seemed simply too much. With a slight shake of her head, she willed the window out of existence and shelved the fact that she might be able to create an entire universe probably forever.

Much to her surprise a new window formed before her eyes, one that held more information she was not quite sure how to process.

Race

Primordial (Elf)

Primordial? Are all deities that, or just me? She had never before heard of a race with that name. Was it 'Primordial Elf'? Or was it that she was a Primordial who happened to look like an Elf?

Focusing on the name of her apparent race brought with it information, much like what had previously happened with her title. Sadly, it was a lot less than she had hoped for, and only furthered the implication of her Demiurge title. Aperio certainly didn't feel like she was a being that had existed since time began, and wasn't about to readily believe the claims of the System's windows quite yet.

Before she could further explore the nature of the System, she heard distant shouting that steadily grew louder. A smile tugged at her lips as she recognised the voice as Maria's. Directing her attention to the little girl, Aperio saw her running towards the dining hall followed by exhausted-looking maids that could not keep up with the child despite their longer strides.

"Maria will be joining us shortly," she stated.

Perhaps it was the fact that she sounded unconcerned with the events that had just transpired, or the fact that she somehow knew the daughter of the Lord would be arriving at any moment, but her words seemed to call the people around her back to the world of the living. There was a questioning magical nudge from her daughter that she answered with one of her own, promising explanations later. At least she hoped she had managed to convey that, as her daughter still looked quite confused.

The first to speak actual words was the Lord of the house, and the confusion was evident in his voice. "What?"  

It brought a question to Aperio's mind that she had not asked herself yet. What did they see? As an answer to her question, a pair of windows formed before her eyes. One just said that the System had been restored and that they were now able to view their [Status]. The other was one Aperio was very sure had appeared before Ferio and the rest of the pantheon. It informed them about the change of status and that she had been reinstated. Why that had not happened when she returned but only now was sadly still not answered.

Not wanting to appear as confused as the mortals, Aperio just pointed towards the door after mentally dismissing the windows. "Your daughter. She seems very eager to join us."

A moment later the door opened and Maria skidded to a stop only to start running again as soon as she spotted Aperio. The girl did not seem to care for any etiquette the winged Goddess was certain she had had to learn, simply running towards Aperio with the same joyful abandon as one might see in reuniting with family after a long journey.

The maid that had guided them all here managed to shake off whatever seemed to still hold all the mortals in place and moved to stop the girl. Maria stopped her rapid approach once she caught sight of the maid moving her way. She spoke a few words of protest that Aperio did not understand, but the maid continued on.

"I do not mind if she stays," Aperio said, turning her head to face Geshton. "Unless you do not want her to?"

The man looked between her and his child, unsure how to answer the winged Goddess. Aperio wasn't sure if it was because he thought her words were a threat or if he was still confused as to what had just happened. He came to a decision fairly quickly nonetheless, giving Aperio a nod and gesturing for Maria to take a seat beside him. She slowed down as she walked past Aperio, only to be gently pushed forward by the stern-faced maid. The winged Goddess gave her what she hoped was a kind smile as she passed.

Aperio still felt a bit guilty at the happiness Maria was practically radiating. The girl might be happy to see her, but for Aperio it was just a reminder that she had to pay more attention to what she did. A bit of curiosity on her part might have ruined the life of a person. It did not matter if Maria liked the life she had. She had never known a different one. But maybe that is for the best. Aperio had only known the life of a slave for the longest time, and she had hated every bit of it. In the end, it did not matter what she thought was best; she could not change the past.

Once Maria had seated herself, Lord Terenyk cleared his throat and looked back at Aperio. "Lady"– he cleared his throat –"Lady Aperio, do you know what just happened?"

The truth of the matter was that she did not. But that was something she could not bring herself to admit, the thought of it so revolting that her regal facade briefly cracked. Lord Terenyk seemed to interpret the brief flash of disgust on her face to be directed at him and was already starting to bow when Aperio spoke.

"You could call it housekeeping. A few things that I did not know were broken needed to be fixed, so I did."

It was the most blatant lie she had spoken since she had returned, and even if it made her feel disgusted with herself, it was not nearly as bad as admitting that she did not truly know. Annoying. There was a part of her that wanted to rebel against the feeling, to not bow to what was perceived as control. She knew that there were no external forces controlling her, but only her own self. The clashing of different emotions was something new for her, something that had to have been previously suppressed by the collar.

The man slowly sunk back into his seat at her words, seemingly not quite able to comprehend what she had said. Diana, too, seemed to have trouble fully making sense of her words, as she was looking back and forth between her Goddess and Aperio.

Maria was happy. Not as happy as she could be, but fairly close. She had still not dismissed the window that floated at the edge of her vision, as it served as a reminder that her Goddess had truly returned. It was also proof that she was not what Maria had expected. She had thought her a Goddess of death of some form or another, but there had always been this feeling that she was more. Something ancient; beyond the other Gods.

[Status] view enabled by the grace of the Creator.

The System notification proved that much, at least to her.

Looking at her father she gave him a smile and whispered, "See! She is real!"

Her Goddess seemed to have heard her quiet exclamation as she looked at her, tilting her head slightly. There was no time for Maria to question why the winged Goddess was confused with what she had said as her father motioned her to be quiet. The action caused a scowl to briefly flicker over the Elven-looking woman's face which in turn made her father shrink slightly.

Maria was not quite sure what was happening, but she did not like the fact that her Goddess and her father were not getting along. She wanted to speak, but her father had made it clear that she was to observe etiquette and that meant she could not voice her thoughts without breaking the age-old rules. Her internal struggle was solved by the voice of her Goddess.

"If she has something to say, I would love to hear it."

She looked at her father for permission – as was proper – which she received in the form of a nod after a moment of hesitation. Maria sat as straight as she could, trying to remember what she had learned in her etiquette lessons. It took her a moment to find the right words for what she wanted to say, and yet another to find them again in the rather ancient form of Common used among certain races – and, now, by her Goddess. Another reason to get good at it!

While Maria was trying to think of a way to properly convey her thoughts a tense silence settled over the gathered people, something she knew should be avoided when dealing with people of higher status. She started to wring her hands as her mind raced, still unable to properly chain the words she found to make a proper sentence, the attention she had on her simply too much to bear. A tear started to form in her eye as Maria began to look around the gathered people for someone to help her. She had been able to speak to her Goddess before; why could she not do so now?

Her racing mind ceased its fruitless search as she heard something crack and felt a heavy hand rest on her shoulder. Looking up, she could see that her Goddess was now standing behind her, looking very displeased. She managed to stammer out a few incoherent words as the tears started to flow. She had wanted to help them get to know each other, but instead, she had seemingly confirmed what had angered her Goddess before.

She could feel the rage flowing from the woman. The air surrounding her turned colder with every passing breath, gaining a weight that it should never have. She could hear the rustling of feathers as the wings of her Goddess spread ever so slightly, could see cracks form under the hand that rested on the back of her chair.

"What did you do to her?"

The words caused her father to pale and his breathing to quicken. Amelia had drawn the dagger she always carried with her, the action causing the other two women that accompanied her Goddess to rise from their seats. For a second Maria thought she recognised the fiery-haired woman, but the words that came next only confused her.

"Calm, mother," the woman said. "This is just a misunderstanding. She probably got scared when she had everyone's attention."

Maria felt her Goddess shift behind her at the words, probably to better look at the fiery-haired woman, before she squatted down next to her.

"Is that true Maria? If he did anything despicable, you can tell me. Okay?" The tone of voice reminded Maria of what little she remembered of her own mother. Her father had never told her what happened to her, only that her mother was no longer alive. Maybe she can bring mommy back?

"Did he do anything?" her Goddess asked again.

Maria shook her head, still unable to speak; the words simply stuck in her throat. She tried to get out of her chair, an action that was stopped by the hand on her shoulder. Once her Goddess realised what she wanted to do, the weight came off of her shoulder as her hand was instead offered to Maria to hold so she could more easily get out of the chair.

Once she was standing on her own two feet again, Maria approached her father. She took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself, to be able to speak. The silence settled, threatening to drown out her words yet again, but this time Maria prevailed.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled. "I didn't want to make it worse, but...but..." She started to fidget as she struggled to find the words she needed. "I don't want you to fight. I wanted to help, to… to show that my blessing is not a curse."

Geshton unsteadily rose from his chair. He faltered slightly as he approached, but pushed on until he could wrap his daughter in one of the rare displays of affection they shared. "Lady Aperio told me that it is not a curse," he said. "But… she also said that the Gods are free to lie, so how can I trust her word?"

Maria perked up at the mention of the name. Finally she knew what her Goddess was called. Sadly, she could think of no way to prove to her father that her blessing was not a curse in disguise. The System notification at the edge of her vision still told her that the [Status] view had been enabled, but she had no idea how that was supposed to work nor if she could show it to her father.

She was about to ask Aperio for help when the blue-tinted window that had previously changed her life appeared before her.

Status

Name

Maria Terenyk

Race

Human

Level

25

Mana

125 / 125

Strength

25

Dexterity

65

Intelligence

120

Vitality

20

Titles

Touched by the All-Mother

GamingWolf

We have reached peak tables. At least for now.

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