Book 2 Ch 29: Plot

“You heard his voice,” said the old priest behind them as he approached quietly at a steady pace. His expression was still stern, but Michael saw that there was a twinkle of some kind in his eyes.

“Yes,” said Michael, rubbing his wrists. “Thank you for untying us.” He looked around. “What is all of this? Why the traps? Is it to defend the statue?”

“It’s to defend the people that live here first, and the statue second.” He gestured with his pipe back up to the room he’d first greeted them in. “Follow me, we shall have tea and I will explain things to you.”

Michael nodded, taking one more moment to look at the statue of Bruntus before following the diminutive old man up the steps into his small home. Several pillows and a small table had been placed in the center of the room, and warm tea had already been poured into three small bowls for them.

They all took a few moments to drink. It was pleasant, and oddly hearty for tea, with an earthy taste highlighted by just a few delicate floral notes.

“This is very good,” said Pyotr as he took a long sip, nearly draining half the bowl.

“I would go easy on it. There is caffeine in this tea.”

Michael raised an eyebrow and took a deeper sip. He wasn’t used to caffeine in his new body, but he missed it a bit. Or at least he missed the ritual of brewing a cup first thing in the morning to share with Sara.

“Michael, Pyotr, my name is Absalom. This is the hidden village. A place we have successfully maintained for hundreds of years by being certain, deliberate, and focused.”

He took a long sip.

“I have a good idea of what your questions will be. I’ve often thought about how I would explain things here to outsiders. I’ve even considered how I would explain them to takers. Please allow me to see if my planning has been successful before you ask any questions.”

Michael and Pyotr exchanged a glance, then nodded at Absalom.

“The purpose of this village is to maintain the worship of Bruntus. To keep his name alive as best we can, and to preserve what parts of his story we are able to. It is commonly known that the gods have all merged into the divine, a general force made of their combined divine will. I wish that I knew the exact reasons why, but much knowledge has been lost over the years. It is generally understood by us that the gods became the divine to protect us. Specifically to protect us from the erosion between our world and those which are close to us. The Takers and the rifts are a consequence of this erosion, but the root cause is unknown. Their sacrifice of themselves to become the divine is believed to have coincided with the cataclysm, but we have no way of knowing for sure as so much was lost.”

Michael swallowed. From what he understood the occurrence of Rifts were increasing, was the erosion speeding up?

“It is also known to us that worship and veneration are the keys to strengthening the gods and thus, the divine. Bruntus had us seeded here before his self was completely consumed by the divine. Our worship and devotion has kept some shred of him independent and alive. It is not enough to last forever though.”

He took a breath and had another sip of tea. Michael considered himself a patient man, but it took serious effort not to ask a dozen questions immediately.

“Unfortunately, you are not the only one who has been drawn here. Monsters, great carapaced beasts, horned men, beings of liquid darkness, and even creatures of great silver wings have searched for remnants of the divine. Over a thousand years they have done everything they can to stomp out any remains of shrines, statues, and houses of worship to the divines. This has led to the loss of their names except in the most isolated and protected communities such as ours. We have attempted at times to sneak out an acolyte into the larger world, but people are uninterested in worship of the divine, and those few success stories are soon wiped out. All of this also affects our ability to remember the divine. Their names, their deeds, what they represent. It all becomes harder to hold in ones mind the more of them are lost. Like trying to clutch water in one’s hand.”

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Michael remembered the shattered shrine by the rift in Tusinia, and the lack of complete and unbroken statues and temples he’d looked for as well as the overall lack of interest in the divine except as a tool that he’d encountered.

“We believe that some kingdoms may be aware of what is happening, and others may know, but simply not care. Our own isolation has made it difficult to ascertain truths in the wider world, and we have been attacked and lost much of ourselves over the years. We have even lost the names of the other gods. We only have knowledge of Bruntus’s opposite brother, the lord of joy.” He scoffed a bit. “As if there is no joy in duty and perseverance.”

~boring~

Michael waited to be sure that Absalom was done.

“If being the divine is helping to prevent the rifts, isn’t individual worship of one of them weakening the divine?”

“Yes, but it is the gods’ will. I have not been able to ascertain the exact truth from Bruntus, but I believe that the barrier is already so weak that now they believe that they would be better able to protect us as themselves rather than the ever-weakening divine. I believe… that’s why you are here.”