Divine Apostasy Book 9 - Chapter 9 (OLD)

[Author's Note: I'm still trying to get the calculations correct and the details worked out. I'm not completely happy with the way things are, but I don't want to keep delaying the chapter. So some of this will likely change in the future as I work out the details. Thanks!]

[Author's Note2: I have significantly altered the storyline and this chapter is no longer valid. Please see more recent releases which will contain the information I plan on using. Thanks]

Chapter 9

With a thought the display Rami had arranged for him appeared. In the top left corner, a small octagon glowed with a silver light, and it opened his Profile. Here the changes were far more apparent. Instead of listing his Attributes and other basics on the first tab, with subsequent tabs containing Spells, Skills, and Abilities, a single screen appeared with a list of choices.

Personal

Foundation

Traits

Knowledge

Legacy

Other

Ruwen focused on Personal, and a new screen appeared containing far more information than he’d thought possible.

Overview

Name: Ruwen Starfield

System Label: Not Accessible

Race: Enhanced Human

Faction: Unaffiliated

Localized Age: 17

Experienced Age: 141

System Age:22

Physical Qualities as a % of Theoretical Max

Might: 16%

Speed: 64%

Coordination: 99%

Balance: 100%

Reflexes: 99%

Resilience: 89%

Precision: 97%

Weighted Physical: 31%

Mental Qualities as a % of Theoretical Max

Recall: 100%

Comprehension: 99%

Intuition: 6%

Self-awareness: 87%

Decisiveness: 49%

Problem Solving: 99%

Critical Thinking: 100%

Judgement: 77%

Logical Reasoning: 100%

Creativity: 91%

Preferred Activity Focus: 100%

Non-Preferred Activity Focus: 7%

Spatial Intelligence: 81%

Emotional Intelligence: 75%

Social Cognition: 63%

Pattern Recognition: 98%

Adaptability: 84%

Multitasking: 100%

Empathy: 91%

Curiosity: 100%

Mental Pace Manipulation: 79%

Pain Tolerance: 85%

Weighted Mental: 9,999% (Critical Deviation)

Ruwen stared at the analysis of his mind and body, shocked at the detail, especially for his mind. He continued walking but reached out to Uruziel and Rami over his mental link. Okay, I can already tell these displays are going to create tons of questions, so I figured it might save us all time if we discussed them as I went.

They both agreed, so Ruwen continued. It’s interesting to see my age displayed in three ways. Any ideas on what “system” means?

We don’t know for sure, Uruziel said, but based on the scope of the later screens, we think it references either the Outerverse or the best that’s achievable in this Universe.

More than likely it’s our Universe, Rami added.

Why would our, Ruwen searched for the right word, and landed on the term used in the log when his Architect Role had leveled up, Sentinel, track my System age?

Once again this is a guess, Rami quantified, but remember one of those quests you received had a thousand-year deadline. It’s probably tracking that.

Ruwen recalled that relevant portions of that quest.

Name: Path of the Harmonic

Description: Stability from balance, Harmonic, the symphony of Verses bends to your power. The seed of commitment yields strength.

Restriction: If an identity lattice isn’t created within the first millennia the Harmonic must choose the Luminara or Radiant faction for revival.

Uruziel continued. I spent a lot of time considering this restriction because of details in the later menus. It appears the Harmonics function as a sort of neutral party between the other two warring philosophies, and they have the power to enforce their agreements. Not only that, but the “Allocation” rate for Harmonics is “Rare” while the other two factions are “Common.” My first thought was that Luminara and Radiants forced this affiliation because of the rarity of Harmonics, and they wanted to keep as many alive as possible. But if the Luminara and Radiants are in conflict, then a more likely reason is they wish to bind Harmonics as a method to increase factional power.

If Harmonics are powerful, why would they agree to such a thing? Ruwen asked.

Rami answered. It could be part of an agreement that gives them some other benefit, or it might relate to balance. Balance appears to be a theme for them. The other two factions have themes as well. The Radiants search for “enlightenment” and the Luminara for what I’d call “religious unity.”

“Religious unity” does not sound compatible with “enlightenment,” Ruwen replied. That probably explains part of the conflict. Any ideas on the “enhanced human” or all the ways they sliced up my poor brain? It’s hard seeing yourself quantified like that. Is my “non-preferred activity focus” really seven percent?

No one spoke for a few seconds and then Uruziel responded. “Enhanced human” has no context to know if that enhancement came from the System or occurred naturally here. We’ll have to wait until more people start displaying this type of information.

Uruziel had side stepped the focus question, but Ruwen didn’t push it. He did have issues paying attention when it didn’t interest him. What do you mean by “we’ll have to wait until more people start displaying this type of information?” I thought the default template didn’t automatically activate, and we were safe from any of this information getting out.

Over the past three decades here, Rami said, I’ve periodically turned off my own template. Starting about twenty years ago, System screens and menus similar to yours began appearing. Then ten years ago they showed up in my current template. Uruziel and I think it’s related to the unlocking of the femites referenced in the log when your Architect Role upgraded to level two.

Uruziel explained her earlier statement. When other humans get these screens, and if any of them lack the designation “enhanced” then it means the change occurred more recently and is not universal. If everyone displays “enhanced” we can’t form any conclusions.

Ruwen groaned. I really wanted to keep all this new information hidden, but I guess the System had other ideas.

It did take a decade, so this isn’t an immediate problem, Rami said.

Unless the time is related to femite density, Uruziel added. It might go quicker on Grave.

That worry will need to wait for more information, Ruwen responded. I don’t want to discuss all those values, but the physical ones aren’t bad, although the weighted physical value must really consider Might important to only award me thirty-one percent. And it looks like I broke the weighted mental value.

Uruziel answered. We aren’t sure if the theoretical maximum the Personal Qualities references are the maximum for Archangel, or for peak Deity. Regardless, it appears the disbelief every Deity displayed upon seeing your mental world was justified. They list you as a “critical deviation.”

We’ll talk more about this later, Rami added, but you and I have common choices in many of our menu items, but the ones I lack, and you have, appear linked to your mental values.

The references to later displays made Ruwen eager to move on, and he selected Foundation, wanting to gain as much context as possible from all this new information. The new display resembled his old Spirit view. It contained a cutout shape of a human and displayed his Core, twelve Meridians, and the pathways that connected his Core to each Meridian. As he focused on any section, details displayed showing densities and flow values.

Foundation

Current Fortification: Tier 3 Level 2

Progress to Next Level: 1%

Body Density: 13%

Core Density: 3%

Average Meridian Density: 1%

Meridian Accessible: 12

Average Stream Efficiency: 7%

Tier Modifier: 400

Architect Level: 2

Spirit: 63,511,928,442 seps (spirit energy packet)

The Core Density didn’t surprise Ruwen as he’d slowly Harvested Spirit for almost three decades without ever Condensing his Core, but the meridian density confused him.

Uruziel, is Condensing meridians a thing? Maybe I just haven’t reached that yet in my training.

No, it surprised me as well. No one other than Pen, near the end, had enough essence to bother with Condensing, but it turns out its important. Let’s come back to that, as well as the Stream Efficiency when you get to the Traits display.

Rami spoke up. The thirteen percent listed for Body Density is the best evidence that the percentages listed are compared with a hypothetical Peak Deity, because if it represented the Archangel tier you just entered it would only list a few percent.

Ruwen shifted his focus across the cutout listing his twelve Meridians, paths, and Core. He followed a pathway as it left his center, which contained his Core, and followed it to the Life Meridian. After studying the meridian for a moment, he followed the return pathway back to the center. The stream efficiency changed constantly along the pathways, but one thing remained consistent: low values. The Dark and Chaos Meridians, the two Uru had sacrificed her own pathways to create, had the lowest values.

Three Meridians grouped tightly together in the center of the displayed body, almost on top of each other, and he had to move his mental finger slowly to keep the percentages from blurring together. The Life Meridian occupied the area around his groin, the Death Meridian his intestines, and the Dark Meridian his organs. Just above that clump sat the Chaos Meridian in his torso and the Life Meridian over his heart. They all had depressingly low values density values.

The sixty-three billion Spirit, or as the display had referenced it, seps, cheered him considerably, and while the pathways to each Meridian had terrible flow percentages, the Refining form had filled each Meridian with essence regardless, and each Meridian appeared over ninety percent full. Just like the sep, spirit energy packet, the Meridians had their own values, meps, which he’d just learned stood for meridian energy packet.

Ruwen waved to Archie and Rami as he circled the portal stone again. With all this new information and the questions it raised, he felt jittery and considered jogging, but calmed himself and kept an easy stride. All this would eventually make sense.

Moving on to Traits, Ruwen’s pride took a hard hit after seeing the first value displayed.

General

Physical Power: 84 of 12,000,000

Physical Durability: 7,800 of 80,000

Mental Power: 999,999 of 10,000

Mental Durability: 999,999 of 1,000

Physical Regeneration: Variable

Luminara

Soul Evolution: Rank 2

Soul Capacity: 200 Lumin

Soul Regeneration: 3 Lumin/second

Radiant

Enlightenment: Stage 0

Aura Purity: 1%

Aura Density: 3%

Awoken Chakra: 0

Aura Yield:0 Radi/second

Harmonic

Resonance Stage: Level 2

Harmonic Linkage: 97%

Harmonic Manipulation: 3%

Identity Lattice: 0%

Maker

Construct Incubation: 84%

Construct Quantity: 0%

Construct Quality: 100%

Faction Variation: 5 of 3

Seeding Volume: 100%

Control:11%

Builder

Luminara: Likely

Radiant:Probable

Harmonic:Likely

Nexus:Potentially

Primal:Potentially

Karmic

Serendipity: -2%

Ouch, Ruwen told Rami and Uruziel. Eighty-four power out of twelve million?

It’s not as bad as it looks, Uruziel said. Rami and I have done the calculations thousands of ways, and we are confident how it’s determined. The good news is the Scarecrow Aspect you merged with during your transition into Divine added three thousand to your durability, and many of your mental skills aid your mental calculations, not that you need the help. The main things that hurt you are your Core and Meridian densities along with the stream efficiency.

Rami took over. The Core density we can fix right away. The method to Condense a Meridian’s essence is a mystery, but hopefully not hard to figure out. The stream efficiency references the wideness of your pathways to and from your Meridians.

Ruwen considered that information and saw the logic it contained. The denser your Core and Meridians and the wider the pathways between them, the more seps and meps you could generate in any given timeframe.

Does anyone know how to widen pathways? Ruwen asked. I didn’t even know that was a thing.

New to us as well, Uruziel responded.

Alright, Ruwen said. Let’s keep going. All this new information is overwhelming me, especially since we don’t know where to start for many of these mysteries.

The good news, Uruziel said, is it appears you broke the calculation for the mental power and durability. Rami and I are confident those five nines are placeholders because the System can’t calculate an actual value with any confidence.

That’s something, Ruwen agreed. It’s nice to see the soul power values quantified, but it looks like my Chakras are terrible.

Ignore that for now, Rami said quickly. When we get a chance, there is a lot to share from Pen’s journal on Chakras. It should help you.

Ruwen smiled, excited about learning what those journals held, but first he needed to get through all these menus. The Harmonic section looks straightforward. My desire to rebalance the Universe makes my linkage percentage really high, and my inability to use Harmony at any significant distance gives me the terrible manipulation percentage. And since I don’t know what an identity lattice is, it doesn’t surprise me it’s zero percent.

It's the god stone, Rami said.

Ruwen stopped and put a hand out to touch the portal stone. What do you mean by that?

The Path of the Harmonic quest you have said Harmonics that can’t create an identity lattice must choose one of the other factions for backup. I think it’s safe to infer an identity lattice is the Harmonics’ way of synching themselves. Which is what Fractal and Mom are so close to figuring out.

That’s interesting, Ruwen said as he continued walking again. Fractal will need to teach me the god stone process when he’s done. Assuming I can comprehend and replicate it.

Uruziel spoke again. Let’s skip the Maker and Builder entries for right now, as there’s a third related term in the Knowledge menu and we can discuss them all there. Suffice it to say the Maker entries have something to do with the constructs you created in your mind. The Builder section we need more context for, but we believe the Nexus and Primal are two more factions. That entry is the only direct reference to them anywhere and the Knowledge section we’ll look at next excludes them.

We think there is also one indirect reference to the Nexus and Primal factions, Rami said. In the Maker section it lists Faction Variation as five of three. It’s as if the System itself doesn’t want to recognize anything other than the Luminara, Radiant, and Harmonic factions, but it was forced to add these two additional factions in this case.

Ruwen considered how the Maker and Builder had been separated in the display. It appeared Makers created mental constructs, but Builders did something with the factions. All five evidently. Maybe Tarot would know.

Ruwen frowned thinking about the golem and considered the final entry. I assume the negative karmic entry is because of Tarot.

Most likely, Uruziel responded.

Speaking of Tarot, Rami said, let’s look at the Knowledge menu. It’s obvious that golem knows far more than any of us thought, because—

Rami suddenly stopped, and Ruwen waited a few seconds, expecting her to continue.

Are you okay Rami? Ruwen asked.

Rami had left her position next to Archie and now walked toward Ruwen, her face serious. Okay, it’s time to tell you.

Well, that secret lasted all of five minutes, Uruziel added.

Tell me what? Ruwen asked, concerned by the look on Rami’s face.

We intended to let you recover longer to reduce your level of pain from the Fortification to Archangel, Rami said, but something happened here, and Mom told us to wake you. She said pain builds strong scales. Anyway, she also said if anything changed, Archie would tell her so she could send help.

What happened? And help for what? Ruwen asked.

Before Rami could answer, twenty feet away, two figures stepped out of the portal stone, one colored black the other green. Both stood around seven feet tall and just like the first time Ruwen had seen them they reminded him of a lizard blended with a dragon. Their feet and hands had sharp claws, and each figure held a large jar which they drank from as they looked around.

Ruwen spoke out loud as Rami came up to stand next to him. “Why are Chip and Stump here?”

“Because we’re not alone anymore,” Rami replied.