Chapter 752 - Phoenix Reach

Zeke approached the tiered city with characteristic nonchalance.  He was unconcerned with how he was viewed, largely because there was nothing in the realm that could inflict consequences upon him.  Perhaps not in the entirety of the multi-versal landscape. 

Instead, he focused on the city itself, which, at first glance, looked much like its predecessor.  There were five tiers, each smaller than the one below.  Zeke had once compared it to a wedding cake, and that comparison still rung true.  However, that wasn’t to say there weren’t changes.

The first major alteration he encountered was that the sprawling slums at the base of the city stretched much further.  Before, it had played host to a few thousand people.  Now, that number likely reached into the hundreds of thousands.  Even stacked on top of one another, the shacks that comprised the shanty town extended almost a mile from the city proper.

And when Zeke entered, following the road alongside many other travelers, he was accosted by the sheer human misery that came with extreme poverty.  The smell was the first to hit him, but he soon recognized filth, starvation, and horrid living conditions.  Not everyone was in such bad shape, but there were enough that Zeke found himself growing angrier with every step.

He kept telling himself that they didn’t matter, that he wasn’t there to right wrongs or mete out justice against those who exploited the less fortunate.  But somewhere deep down, there was still a human heart.  And no one could look at a starving child and not feel an ounce of pity.

And on its heels came righteous anger.

For all that he wanted to believe himself above it all, Zeke wasn’t a monster.  A comforting realization, but one that he knew would send him down a more difficult path. 

Still, he maintained control as he traversed the slums.  Many hawkers tried to sell him trinkets and food of questionable origin, but a simple glare was all it took to send them on their way.  Some enterprising pickpockets tried to steel from him, but he carried nothing but the clothes on his back, so they soon lost interest.

Gradually, he made his way to the city’s gate, where he found that the Radiant Host maintained a significant presence within the city.  Every guard in sight bore the sunburst badge that marked membership in that hateful organization.  And unsurprisingly, they balked at Zeke’s entry.

After all, while he plainly wasn’t one of the wretches who lived in the outer city, he also lacked any show of wealth.  Inevitably, they chose to interpret that as evidence that he was poor.

What would they think if they knew that, at his fingertips lay untold wealth?  Treasures that would destroy them simply for looking too closely?  He expected it wouldn’t have made much difference.  He clearly didn’t belong in the city.

But aside from a few interested glares, they did nothing to bar his way.

The first level of the city was unsurprisingly much cleaner than the sprawling slums.  However, what did interest Zeke was that, aside from the basic layout, the city looked much different than the last time he’d been there.  Not only was the architecture more varied, but most of the buildings had also been subdivided to maximize available space. 

Eventually, Zeke entered a tavern. 

In most ways, it was no different than any other bar he’d ever visited – like an Irish pub crossed with something out of a fantasy novel.  It did beg the question of why such a layout seemed so popular.  He’d encountered similar establishments on all three realms, suggesting that there was a throughline between them he had yet to consider. 

In any case, he sat at the bar and, using some of the coins he’d taken from the guards he’d killed, ordered a drink.  The bartender served him a frothing beer, which Zeke sipped with no small degree of enjoyment.  He’d never been much of a drinker, but he could certainly appreciate a well-brewed beer.

As he sat there, he overheard many snippets of conversation, most of which centered on the events and surroundings of the patrons’ comparatively small lives.  Gossip was the prevailing theme, though he did hear a few interesting bits. 

For one, the only people allowed to live in the city were adherents to the official government religion.  They didn’t say it in so many words, but to Zeke, it was obvious that if someone didn’t worship the Sun Goddess, then they weren’t welcome in Phoenix Reach. 

It had been a similar state of affairs back when the city was called Beacon.  Back then, the Church of Purity held sway, though that was just another name for adherents to the Sun Goddess.  Now, the church at the top of Beacon was called the Temple of the Sun.  Fitting, Zeke supposed.

In any case, citizenship in Phoenix Reach was tiered.  The lowest of the low – people who eschewed the religious establishment – were barely even allowed to enter the city, and only permitted in the bottom tier.  The other tiers were associated the upper levels of the caste system, ranging from citizens to nobility. 

Zeke instantly hated the very notion of dividing people like that.  Sure, it gave them incentives to follow the path Shar Maelaine wanted – worshipping her – but it just felt wrong to him. 

It clearly worked, though.  Everyone just accepted it as the natural state of the world.

Perhaps more importantly, Zeke discovered that the government was not theocratic by nature.  Rather, powers between church and state were nominally separate.  On the secular side was the king – a reputedly powerful warrior with a long history of heroism.  On the religion side was the Arch Bishop, a woman just as legendary, but with the added weight of their goddess on her side.

Unsurprisingly, what the Temple of the Sun wanted, they got.  The king was expected to rubber stamp their requests while taking care of the mundane tasks associated with running a government.  Meanwhile, the Temple occupied itself with its mission – converting as many people as possible.

Often, that meant healing people or doing other charity work, but they also had a martial arm that very much resembled the Radiant Host.  According to their propaganda, they worked hard to keep the peace and protect the populace – even non-citizens – from bandits, warlords, and hostile wildlife. 

The people had lionized them, and rightly so.  They were heroes who put their lives on the line for their fellow humans.  If that wasn’t a laudable stance, Zeke didn’t know what was. 

He suspected it was all a lie.  Or at least a half-truth.  Did they protect people?  Probably.  But Zeke knew that their protection wasn’t free.  At best, they expected it to spread the glory of Shar Maelaine.  At worst, it veered into extortion. 

Then again, maybe it was just the social contract.  Follow the rules, and the government provides safety. 

Still, Zeke didn’t like it.  Not one bit.

After finishing his beer, he left the tavern and headed toward the central ramp that led straight to the second tier.  Along the way, he saw more of the same, save that he encountered quite a few clergy from the Temple of the Sun.  Suitably, they maintained a humble appearance, wearing only white robes featuring the familiar sunburst on the back.  More importantly, they were clearly part of the community, healing people and otherwise helping where possible.

Seeing that, it was difficult for him to feel any enmity for them.  They might’ve been part of the enemy’s force, but they weren’t enemies themselves. 

Or so he thought right up until he sensed divine energy flowing from one of the priests and heading toward the central church.  That was when he realized what was happening.

They were conduits. 

Back when the city was called Beacon, the clergy had offered contracts where they sent a portion of their experience to the Sun Goddess.  Now, it seemed that she was unconcerned with that form of energy.  Rather, she seemed to only care about being worshipped.

It made sense, too.  Hers was not a war where experience – or kill energy – mattered.  She meant to rival Zeke.  Or failing that, to overwhelm Talia and Pudge.  And that required personal power, which she could only obtain through garnering more worship.

Or that was how Zeke thought it worked.  Though he had to admit that he’d skipped most of that step.  He’d never really cared about worshippers.  Not that he’d needed to.  The kobolds had worshipped him since he’d rescued them, so he’d had a base well before he really needed it.

Still, even if he didn’t quite understand the interplay between worshippers and divine energy, he knew it was a powerful connection.  After all, it had seen him through Hell when nothing else could have. 

But next to the strings, it was nothing.  Even divine energy was formed of those same threads.  Why mess around with that enigmatic form of energy when he could manipulate the purer form of power that made up all of reality.

Zeke knew the answer to that question.

In any case, even though he didn’t rush, it didn’t take him long to reach his destination.  That was where he found his way barred.  The guards took one look at him and told him to turn around, adding that, as a non-citizen, he simply wasn’t allowed onto higher tiers within the city.

As he stood there, Zeke realized he had two options before him.  The first was simple enough.  He could simply ignore their threats and go where he pleased.  They were incapable of stopping him, after all.  Even if everyone in the city came together to try to pin him down, they would fail.

He knew that.

He also knew that barging in was the easiest way to accomplish his goals.  Overwhelming force had always been his calling card, and he was uncomfortable considering other means of entry.

Yet, there were two factors that pulled him up short.  The first should have been obvious, especially after everything he’d been through.  For a while, he had been allowed to pretend he was just like everyone else, and against all odds, he had begun to enjoy himself.  The simple act of sitting down in a bar and drinking a beer was something he’d not experienced in centuries.

Not because he couldn’t do it.  Rather, because if he did, he’d end up as the subject of so much curiosity that it cheapened the whole experience.  Even before he’d stepped outside the Framework, he had lived his life apart from everyone else. 

The last time he’d felt like a normal person was when he and Adara had gone to that bakery in the Imperium town they’d intended to invade. 

How long ago was that?

Zeke wasn’t sure, but he missed it.  And if he allowed himself to admit it, he missed Adara too.  What they’d shared had never been love, but she still had a place in his heart. 

If he followed his instincts, those moments would be lost to him.  Probably for forever. 

The second factor keeping from giving in to his nature was that he still didn’t know everything there was to know about the rot represented by the Temple of the Sun.  He needed to tear them apart, and to do that – especially without spending years hunting down individuals – he needed information.

No – as much as he wanted to simply barge in, handily defeating all challengers, it just wasn’t the smart move.  So, instead, he asked a simple question, “How do I become a citizen, then?”

The guard grinned broadly, as if that had been the purpose of blocking his path all along.  Then, he clapped Zeke on the shoulder and said, “I could tell you were a smart one the second I laid eyes on you.  Strong, too.  You feel like you’re made of solid rock!”

Zeke chuckled.  “Yeah.  I get that a lot.  The second part.  Don’t get called smart very often, though.”

“A misunderstood genius, then!  Come on, friend.  Let me show you to the City Registrar.”