Slumrat Rising

Truth tried to cough politely, but it didn’t seem to work in the void. Now that he wasn’t constantly moving with magic, it seemed that not much did work in the void. There was a distinct lack of air, for one thing. Could he… tap on the storage ring, or something? Maybe wave? He tried to wave. He could feel himself slowly spinning in place. It felt undignified. Worse, the Shattervoid didn’t respond.

We were one-hundred-percent willing to honor the tickets. Unfortunately, the ticket holder never reached out to us, so after waiting the industry standard three tenths of a second, we left orbit. Regrettably, refunds and exchanges are not possible.

He spun in place for a little while longer. The Angel was still possessing him. It was impossible not to notice. Divine one, could you transport me back to the surface? I’m not sure I could step there safely.

There was continued silence. He could hear the thunder of his heart beating. He could actually hear the blood moving around inside of him. It was that quiet.

Fantastic. I am very happy that this is my normal. Also, and not to be petty here, but there has been exactly zero loot off this corpse. I just killed the most powerful man in the world, and I have nothing to show for it. I’m not looking for money, but a spell library would be great. Maybe some decently enchanted weapons? Natural treasures? He must have a warehouse full of them somewhere. Yes I am getting paid in tickets off-world, and there is the satisfaction of a job well done, but even a saint wants their palm crossed with silver, right? Pretty sure that’s how the sermon went.

There was a slithering in his shirt, as Perks worked his way out through the enormous holes left behind by Starbrite’s torture.

Perks, while I am quite happy to see you, just how in the actual Hell did you manage that? How are you alive?

Perks tongue flicked out, tasting orbital space. Sariel. He can do your unnoticability trick even better than you can. Also he kept prodding me to scoot around your body while you were getting smashed up. It got a little weird. I thought I should hold my tail in a strange pose, and then your elbow would come smashing down and barely miss it. Move my head down a little, and a fraction of a second later, there was a big iron stick where my head was. Very odd.

Truth nodded. Then frowned. He had been at the site of a remarkable number of coincidences and near misses in his life. He had known he was getting puppeted around, of course, but…

Perks looked around. Truth wondered what his eyes were seeing. Did snakes have good eyes? Perks said he did, but how would he know?

He said it was the burden of serpents. Which I didn’t understand, but I think I do now. He wants to talk to you, and I’m going to be passing your words back and forth.

Truth blinked. Which didn’t do anything to change the slow spin he was in, but it was quite a powerful blink regardless.

Snakes are angel translators?!

I don’t understand it either. Anyway, he asks what you would do if you did acquire all Starbrite’s treasures?

Laugh hysterically while rolling around in vast piles of silks and treasure-pills. Then power up enormously while I can, and bring the best of the rest back to the Sibs, Etenesh, Jember and whoever.

Truth tried to think of a diplomatic way to phrase that, when Perks cut back in.

Got it. I think Sariel understands the ‘get stronger, look after my people’ bit, but the rest doesn’t translate. He says no.

No to what?

No, he won’t give you those things.

Ah Hell. Why?

He didn’t say. I think he looks down on them.

Truth nodded. That was fair, given who was talking. Then his eyebrows shot up. Also not slowing his tumble through space, but they really got up there.

Is he planning on rewarding me?

I… don’t think so? Or maybe he doesn’t really understand the concept of ‘reward.’ You should do the things you should do because they are the things you should do.

Ah, yes, that sounded properly angelic.

Any chance my performance has persuaded him to lift his order banning human empathy and limiting our cultivation?

No. But he did say he is willing to lift the order now, as it has accomplished its purpose.

That’s amazing! Incredible!

Yes, apparently translating it as “Children of Seth” is also not quite right and there are things in there that would harm the Nephilim. Now that the planet has been so thoroughly depopulated even before the energy famine, there really is no need to keep it around any longer. Well, I think that’s what he’s saying anyway.

Truth was feeling a lot of feelings at the moment. It was quite hard to sort through them.

So… any humans left on this planet should look forward to a lifetime of slavery?

Yes. Ah, correction, generations of slavery. I think the concept he is trying to express is ‘unending,’ with the understanding that nothing below the Divine is truly eternal.

Truth spun in place, rotating between the stars and the world below.

He is lifting the order?

It is already gone.

“Shattervoid Clan, can you hear me? Will you speak with me?”

He felt space firm up around him. There was suddenly a ‘down’ and he was standing on it. There was an impolite cough from behind him. The same middle-aged-man illusion he saw before was standing behind him.

“It’s Ragnax, right?”

The illusion blinked momentarily, looked away, then looked back. A matronly voice replied- “Is that still a common name?”

“Sure.”

“Then yes, I’m Ragnax.”

Different person, the original person didn’t want to talk to him. The Shattervoid had perfect memories. To say they held a grudge would be an understatement.

“How are the Nephilim going to get here?”

“Eventually, they will pay us to carry them.”

“You have a monopoly on interstellar transport?”

“Below a certain level, yes. The economics of interstellar commerce don’t work unless you can operate at a certain scale.” Her smile was colder than winter on a comet. If there was one thing the Shattervoid had, it was scale.

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“Could we… make a slight alteration to my ticket?”

“No.”

“It would mean seeing less of me specifically, and people from my planet generally.”

“Well everything can be discussed.”

“Nobody in or out.”

There was a long pause. “Pardon?”

“Nobody in or out. You were already planning to blockade the planet, right?” Truth asked.

“Embargo. There is a technical difference.”

“Well, I’m saying, rather than take anyone off-world, embargo it completely. For… I don’t know, as long as the cosmic energy famine is happening, plus a couple thousand years.”

“That will be literally tens of thousands of years. Forty thousand at a minimum, and likely longer.”

“Yeah, but you guys have a strong oral history tradition, right? And… I have to assume you live a long time?”

Ragnax’s mustache twitched, underlining a feminine snort of amusement. “Oh, it wasn’t a problem for us. I just wanted to make sure you understood.”

“I do. Nobody comes in. Not with grain, or books or soldiers. Nobody. Especially not the Nephilim. And we don’t go out. Or if we do, we do it under our own power.”

There was another snort. “Good luck with that.”

“I’m not optimistic on that front.” Truth had a smile that looked like crying. “I’m a bit optimistic that humans will still be here at the end of it all, though.”

Perks flicked his tongue. Sariel will permit this. He will not aid you further, but given your body’s repeated reconstruction, you will live longer than most. Cultivation will become more difficult for you, but not impossible.

And for others?

He expressed indifference, while implying that he will do nothing to prevent the energy famine or to speed its resolution. If humanity figures out a way to cultivate, that’s their fate. If not, that’s their fate too. He won’t aid the Nephilim in coming, but he won’t stop them either.

Demons were always his favorite. I think the Nephilim were Sariel’s compromise with putting up with humanity.

Truth nodded and looked over at Ragnax. “Sally doing okay?”

“You can keep your bullshit nickname, and any version of my granddaughter’s name out of your mouth.”

Well, the ring still worked, so she was probably doing okay. “Well. I wish her well regardless.”

“Goodbye, earthworm. We will never meet again.”

The universe twisted and Truth was falling. The air ripped at his clothes as he plunged downwards. Over an ocean, thankfully, though he couldn’t see an island anywhere. Which, given he was still high enough to see the horizon bending a little, was concerning.

Not doing that again.

Truth stepped on the empty air, and crossed tens of kilometers. It felt effortless, so he did it again. Smiling, he began a casual stroll through the air, until he found land. Sticking the landing was tricky, but he eventually shed the momentum with little upward steps and letting gravity and air resistance work their magic.

He looked at a street sign. Didn’t recognize the language. Shame. It looked like the Free State. Not the language- the road. Empty, with a feeling of recent violence. He walked on. He found a city. Black plumes of smoke were rising, he could hear the explosions from the suburbs. Signs for an airport. He followed them.

The airport was a frenzy too, with spellbirds fighting for runway position. He walked over to the biggest of them and stepped inside. There were four people inside, not including the pilots. Three looked quite wealthy, the other, some kind of spiritual grifter.

“Where’s this bird headed?” He asked.

“Who the HELL are you, and how did you-” At least, that’s what Truth thought Fatty #1 was saying. He didn’t speak the language. Truth knocked him out with a slap. He repeated the question.

“Ganet-Sho. Apparently, they own a villa there.” The grifter tapped their walking stick lightly against the floor, their face hidden under a long hood and loose robe.

“Is that anywhere near Siphios?”

“Not even the same continent.”

“Okay, well, change of flight plan. We are going to Xandere.”

“We are?”

“Yes.” Truth nodded, with his best reasonable expression. He could feel Perks shifting around inside his shirt, then slithering out one of the holes and onto the floor. Sariel had thoughtfully returned him.

“They might object.”

“Ask them if they would like to walk to Ganet-Sho from here, or arrange further transportation from Xandre.”

It seemed that, once he demonstrated the ability to snap a talisman clean in half with his left hand while having his right hand wrapped around a fat neck, they all desperately wanted to go to Xandre. A broad minded flexibility he appreciated.

“So. My name is Truth. And… oh, sorry, it looks like my snake wants to climb your stick for some reason?”

“No problem, quite nostalgic actually. I’ve always liked snakes. Two would be even better.”

“Wouldn’t they bother each other?”

“Well, sometimes.” He got the impression the grifter was grinning. “Your name is Truth?”

“Yes.”

“Found any?”

“Lots.”

That seemed to get the grifter’s attention. He leaned in “Really? Like what?”

“Haven’t a clue. They didn’t stay true, you see.” Truth nodded seriously.

“Then were they even true?”

“Yes, it was reality that kept changing.”

“How can reality change, it’s reality!” The grifter sat back and scoffed.

“Can there be an objective reality beyond our ability to understand it? And if our reality is defined by our ability to understand it, doesn’t reality always change with our understanding?”

That had the robed figure sputtering. “There are more holes in that than your shirt!”

“Isn’t.”

“There is!”

“There isn’t. Would you like some crackers, by the way?”

“Oh thank you, been a while since breakfast… hey, you didn’t bring any luggage, where did they come from?”

“Don’t worry, they are imaginary crackers.”

“They aren’t, I’m eating them.” The crumbs sprayed out from under the hood.

“But you couldn’t perceive their origin, so it doesn’t exist. They are therefore imaginary.” Truth stuck out his hand. “I’m going to have to ask for them back.”

“Oh no you don’t, that was your position!”

It was a long flight. The bird really wasn’t built for such a long haul, and they had to stop a few times along the way. Truth wasn’t bored. He found bickering with the grifter effortless. For some reason, his very normal questions seemed to wind them up. Truth thought he was being quite reasonable when he asked them to define what a human was.

He was fairly sure a human wasn’t a series of insulting hand gestures and a five minute monologue on his persistent failure as any sort of sapient lifeform.

“But really, what is it? I keep asking everyone, and nobody can give me a good definition.”

“That’s because nobody knows! The point isn’t the answer, the point is the question. To make you think, reflect, question your assumptions about… everything, really.”

Truth digested that for a minute. “So if someone told me they wouldn’t discuss theology until I could answer, definitively, “What is a human-”

“They were telling you to shut the Hell up forever. But in a really classy way. I think I’m going to steal that one.”

Truth bumped visiting Merkovah up his priority list. But there was someone else ahead of him.

The mountain was cool, lush and green. Far from the smoke and bloodshed of the cities. There were people up here, but they seemed reasonably social, from what he could tell. The house was exactly as promised. Beautiful, with a wonderful attached food garden and fruiting trees. There were even coffee trees. No goats, though. Or at least, not yet. And the view over the valley, with its thousands of shades of green and singing birds, was unmatched.

“Alright, and I just… push the lever down? Then pull it up again? Then push it down again? Okay, I hear something- Water? Really? Water came out. Not a hint of magic. I would have put good money on that not working.”

Truth saw a truly disreputable iron horse peeking out from under a tarp in the driveway. It looked glad to see him. Or maybe he was just projecting.

Etenesh was working the handle on a pump, filling a water cup with wonder. Her legs were long, peeking out from under a flowing dress that fluttered in the mountain breeze with her hair- wild and free. Her arms had gotten stronger. There was something in her eyes that said she had seen, and done, some things that she would never forget. But she was smiling. Marveling at this new wonder, and laughing at the strangeness of the world.

Truth stumbled over, not minding his rags or the dust from the road. He collapsed down in the dirt in front of her, laying the Tongue at her feet. He looked up at her, smiling through the tears. “I’m home.” And laughed, as her kisses rained down on him.

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