The Achievement Junkie

"That's enough about your decision." Daruun sighed. "You still haven't checked to find your new completed achievement, Jack. Were you too distracted by Daliea yesterday?"

Ignoring that last comment, Jack checked his achievements, startled to see such an achievement existed.

[The gods are my messengers: completed]

"I told you I would help, and here's a big reason why. Consider it a parting gift," Daruun added as Jack was dumbstruck by his discovery. "Since we won't be meeting face to face for some time, I thought I'd leave my grandson with a gift. You'd better be grateful."

"Thank you, Grandpa!" Jack shouted back to Daruun even though his eyes were still glued to the newly claimed achievement.

[The gods are my messengers: claimed]

[Only the gods are worthy of declaring your identity and goal to all the world, inciting the jealously and attention of the warring godly factions. Legendary reward: 2000 skill points.]

"Want any tips on spending?"

Finally coming out of his trance, Jack excitedly chuckled. "I can just throw it into my bloodline skill, right?"

"And what about Tralon's legendary spells?" argued Daruun. "Or his mythic spells? Remember, you're lv. 49 now, soon to be lv. 50. You've got far more mana and can start to use mythic spells sparingly."

"In that case… Give me a few minutes."

Jack started to reexamine the different abilities and spells he had to choose from. As tempting as it was to level up his abilities, Jack was eyeing Tralon's spells. With his heart set, Jack started to devise a plan on how to maximize his spending.

"Daruun, let me ask you a few things." Finishing his long trip on that train of thought, Jack asked, "Greater Teleportation allows me to personally teleport anywhere that I've been before. Couldn't I technically store my party in a bestial storage and use that to travel?"

Laughing, Daruun replied, "And this is exactly why I chose you as my champion, Jack. Of course, that can work given the circumstances you just mentioned. Just be careful of putting something inside your storage that will fight back. A small amount of resistance could result in your bestial storage shattering and releasing everything inside."

"I'll keep that in mind," continued Jack. "And even though I have plenty of mana thanks to my skills, I could technically use Greater Replenish indefinitely to keep my mana consumption regulated, right?"

"That would work better than taking potions in a similar manner. But after enough uses, your body will still feel the pain and fatigue of your mana constantly draining and instantly refilling. You can still remember how that felt from summoning me, so I'm sure you wouldn't like to repeat that any time soon," explained Daruun.

Jack scratched his head and sighed. "So it's not indefinite… But it's more than worth the hundred skill points, so I'll get that too."

"And Jack," Daruun added, "since you haven't yet used your portion of the spells Sterfen gave you, why not strengthen your party with those? You'll still have access to the spells via your system and the party will get a boost unlike anything else you can offer them."

"Since you're thinking the same thing, I'll do that after this," replied Jack. "But should I buy more of their skills or buy Tralon's three space type peak-tier spells?"

"For now, those peak-tier spells should work just fine. Plus, they'll give you versatility in combat and other situations, which you like more than anything."

"You know me well, Gramps."

Chuckling to hear that nickname, Daruun asked, "Do you have any more questions for me?"

"Is there really no other way to keep Tralon alive?"

"No, there's no other option for him, even if you're involved, Jack."

Sighing, Jack then asked, "How can Lorwynn and Sterfen free Lunara sooner?"

"Well, it's a simple concept. Unlike how Sterfen and the other Neutral Gods do things, the other factions have formed actual contracts with each god entering their pantheon. It uses a blood seal similar to your pact that takes EXP, but instead, it can incur a curse that's similar to Skaryn's Vengeance, only tailored for gods. Should the curse written on the contract be activated, they will be stripped of all EXP gained after godhood."

"Then they would no longer become gods?!" Catching onto what Daruun was entailing, Jack asked, "Are there conditions that need to be met for them to enact that curse?"

"Correct, they can't just activate it whenever they wish. So long as the gods don't act against the will of their faction, those curses can't be activated. But should they betray their faction or ally with other gods, then the curse is allowed to be activated," explained Daruun. "That's why Lunara is on a short leash. After her marriage to Sterfen, she almost lost her godhood. Kori has a bit more leeway but only enough to falsify your kidnapping, as you experienced in Maltor. And Choron is currently on the run, but he hasn't done anything to prove his betrayal as of yet."

"Choron is on the run?!"

"Right, you weren't informed of that," Daruun added with a smile. "That's why the greis elves were transported before you arrived, because the Chaotic Gods wanted him to start running surveillance on the other factions. Instead, he disappeared without an explanation.

"Also, keep in mind that Lyrun's situation is much more fragile than any other. He's been acting against the Holy Gods in secret for some time now but has yet to get caught. However, should that happen, he'll immediately be stripped of his godhood and killed."

Stirred to hear that, Jack asked, "And what about Perchet, or Moranti?"

"Perchet is powerful enough to keep the other Holy Gods from messing with him, but they'll be searching for him soon so he can run surveillance on the other factions, like Choron and the Chaotic Gods," answered Daruun. "As you can guess, both Skaryn and Halmut rewarded strength more than everything. So when they gave favor to the strongest and at times ignored the more strategic gods, like Choron or Perchet, some antagonism started to foster.

"Moranti, though, is a special case. He's a man that has endured more than most gods combined. After Skaryn and Halmut, he was the next god to rise. And with his powers over space, he could arguably rival either Skaryn or Halmut. It was mostly coincidence that he happened to choose Skaryn as his benefactor long before Moranti better understood the ways of the world," explained Daruun.

"He eventually became the first god to rebel, even doing it openly among those of his faction. The Chaotic Gods are hesitant to enact the contract, though, as his presence has kept the Holy Gods from attacking. Their only hope of defeating Moranti without great sacrifice is Halmut, but Halmut's still recovering and doesn't dare to upset the delicate balance. That's why the Chaotic Gods captured and imprisoned Moranti instead of killing him. And should they activate his contract, they'll not only deal with the Holy Gods but face Moranti's wrath even further. Even if he became a mortal, Moranti's power could rival gods, so the Chaotic Faction is stuck between a rock and a hard place thanks to him."

"Wow… There's a lot going on… What plans does Lyrun have?" asked Jack.

Shaking his head, Daruun answered, "You shouldn't look into those plans, Jack. They'll only deter you from doing what you must. You've already entered the sight of the gods, so you're meddling would both ruin your own plans and get Lyrun caught in the act."

"Got it."

"Since I've already mentioned Skaryn's Vengeance, I'll remind you about how to undo it," added Daruun. "You'll need either Skaryn, Halmut, or three Chaotic Gods that know the curse to undo it. Luckily, there are two rebel Chaotic Gods so you'll only need to figure out which other god you will sway."

Surprised to catch what Daruun insinuated, Jack asked, "Any suggestions as to who that third Chaotic God should be?"

"Time will tell, Jack. Before thinking about that, you should free Choron and Moranti. As for the third, you might decide to get creative. It's not that you need a third Chaotic God to rebel, you just need a third god who understands the intricacies of the curse to willing help remove said curse." With that thought finished, Daruun then asked, "Is there anything else?"

Jack scratched his head for a moment, finally replying, "Can I give you a hug, Gramps?"

"Of course!" Daruun laughed and stepped forward with open arms, embracing Jack with a smile. "We're family now, Jack. Don't forget that, okay?"

"Alright."

Both men let go and nodded to each other. Then, Daruun waved goodbye as another flash of light was created by his departure, leaving Jack in the room with everyone else.