Chapter 754 - Why

Jonah took a swig from his beer as he studied the enigmatic stranger across the table.  The man had shown up at his gate only two days before, and since then, Jonah still hadn’t quite figured out what to think of him.  Immune to inspection and teeming with power, the guy was clearly an elite.

But he didn’t even carry any equipment.  And he dressed like he’d been living an isolated life in the woods for years.  His beard was poorly trimmed, his hair wild, and his clothes were non-descript, if decent enough quality. 

The real issue was his eyes, though.

Jonah was a veteran of a thousand fights – anyone who reached his level was no stranger to conflict – but in Ezekiel’s eyes was a battle weariness he’d never encountered before.  It was as if he’d seen everything, and he’d gone far past post-traumatic stress and into something far more disconnected.  As if he’d moved so far beyond feeling normal human emotions that he’d become something else altogether.

And Jonah was certain that the man didn’t even realize how much it set him apart.  He pretended to be normal.  He displayed human reactions, forcing laughter and smiles.  Yet, it was all just an act.  Jonah could recognize a broken man when he saw one.

After all, the world was full of them, especially when it just dropped people into an odd, game-like system of stats and skills, monsters and murder. 

“What did you do before all this, then?” he asked, using a tried and true method of getting new recruits to open up.  Reminding them of their origins usually worked wonders.  “Back on Earth, I mean.”

Ezekiel shook his head.  “You’re sure I wasn’t born here?”

“Certain.”

“Fair enough,” the man said, taking another sip.  Even that movement felt like it could move the entire planet, which sent a tremor up Jonah’s spine.  But he kept reminding himself that his potential new recruit was just a man like any other.  Even if he had a few levels under his belt, he wasn’t stronger than Jonah himself. 

“So?  What’s the answer?” he persisted. “Me, I was an electrician, if you can believe it.  Fried myself on a faulty circuit that wasn’t supposed to be live.  Dumb mistake, but here I am.  Woke up in a forest surrounded by goblins.  I fought my way free, and luckily, I found a caravan that led me here.  Hooked up with the guard after a few weeks of taking odd jobs. And the rest is history.”

“How long have you been part of the Temple of the Sun?” Ezekiel asked, his eyes glinting with malice.  It was gone in a second, but Jonah couldn’t stop himself from clenching up under the weight of the man’s gaze.

“Technically, the guard isn’t part of the Temple,” he said, running his hand across his close-shorn scalp.  “But I guess it’s not really a secret that we’re closely allied.  The Temple just wants what’s best for Phoenix Reach.  You’ve seen their healers, right?”

“I have.”

For a moment, Ezekiel didn’t speak.  To distract himself, Jonah glanced around the tavern.  Most of the patrons were members of the guard and people he recognized, but there were a few others there as well.  They weren’t wearing the white armor of Temple Knights, but Jonah knew enough to see them for what they were.

Spies, some might call them.  Jonah preferred to think of them as guardian angels.  They were elites, recruited by the Temple to safeguard the entire realm. 

Still, seeing them sent a shiver through his mind.

“Right,” he said.  “Well, I joined the guard about ten years ago.  Gained ten levels since then, too.  Won’t be long before I reach the peak.”

“What then?” Ezekiel asked.

He shrugged.  “Wealth, power, and maybe a family? I haven’t thought much about it,” he lied.  In reality, everyone knew the choices laid before those who reached that point.  Join the Temple Knights or ascend.  Nobody was allowed to rest on their laurels.  Noone was permitted to simply retire. 

“How does ascension work?”

“Ah.  Well, there’s the portal off the coast,” Jonah answered.  “Need to pass some trials or some such.  Those are administered by the Temple of the Sun.  But from what I understand, they’re just a formality.  Anyone who reaches twenty-five, well…they’ve got what it takes, right?”

In truth, Jonah questioned whether or not he’d ever reach that level.  For one, his speed had slowed down quite a bit of late.  Ever since he’d ticked over into level twenty, he’d found his experience having slowed to a crawl.  And from everything he’d been told, it would only get worse as he climbed the ladder. 

That was why he was so eager to recruit Ezekiel.  The man was clearly a seasoned combatant and a potential elite.  If the Temple Knights got their hooks into him, then Jonah would be rewarded.  That meant benefits that no one else could provide.  Racial and soul advancing treasures were only the beginning, and it was possible that he’d end up being invited on one of the Knights’ hunting expeditions. 

Or if he proved himself, then he could join the elite group as well. 

That would change everything.

But he still wasn’t certain he was on the right track with Ezekiel.  Even if the newcomer was obviously elite, there was something about him that screamed danger.  And not the kind that usually came with power.  When Jonah looked at him, he felt like his soul was on the verge of crumbling. 

And rather than exciting, it was terrifying.  Just being in the man’s presence filled him with unrepentant anxiety.

“How many people ascend?” Ezekiel asked.

Jonah shrugged.  “A handful each year.  Maybe as many as a dozen.  Why?” he asked.  “Think you have ascension in your future.”

“Perhaps.  Just trying to get the lay of the land.”

“Fair enough.  Being reborn can be a bit of a shock to the system,” Jonah acknowledged before finishing his beer.  Thankfully, a serving girl came by a second later and refilled it.  He thanked her, then went on, “Sometimes, I think the ones born here are better off.  They don’t get the same benefits we do, but then again, they know what they’re getting into when they’re kids.  They can prepare.  Meanwhile, we just have to adjust on the fly.  I don’t even want to know how many people have died before knowing what the hell was going on.”

Ezekiel stared at his beer for a moment before saying, “That was almost me.”

“Oh?”

He looked up, and Jonah’s heart leaped into his throat.  Fear pervaded his very being, and in that moment, he knew that he could be destroyed in a single instant.  That feeling faded after a second, but the echoes remained.

Ezekiel didn’t seem aware of the effect.  Instead, he said, “Called them croco-rats.  Little things.  They looked like someone mad geneticist had blended crocodiles and rats.  Vicious.”

“You kill them?”

Ezekiel nodded.  “At some point, I figured out they were just infants.  The adults were even scarier,” he said.  “I remember sneaking into a camp and slicing throats.  They couldn’t fight back.  They never had a chance.  I think that’s when I made my decision.”

“W-what decision?”

“That I would be a killer,” he admitted.  “I’ve wavered more times than I can count.  I’ve lamented the things I’ve had to do.  Trillions dead by my hand…”

“Trillions?” Jonah asked, his voice barely more than a whisper.  In any other situation, he might have dismissed the claim outright.  Maybe excused it by saying that he’d misheard.  But from the terrifying man in front of him?  He believed it.  It didn’t make any sense, but that didn’t seem to matter very much. 

“Maybe more.  I just use that number to give it some context.  Even then, how do you really wrap your head around that high of a number?  Most people can’t.  I try not to think about it too much, but sometimes, it seems like the more I try not to think about it, the more I can’t stop myself.  Does that make any sense to you, Jonah?” he asked.

“I…I guess.  But…we should…I don’t know.  Let’s talk about something –”

“With that number hanging over me, I could slaughter the entirety of this realm, and it wouldn’t even be a rounding error,” Ezekiel went on.  “All I have to do is pull a string, and it’ll all be gone.  Do you understand that, Jonah?  Do you realize what kind of pressure that puts on me?  I’ve got my finger on the doomsday button and more reasons than I want to admit to press it.  I’m trying not to, but over the past couple of days, everything I’ve seen has told me that I need to press it.  That I need to purge this whole place.”

“W-what do you mean?”

“It’s Shar Maelaine.  I see her touch in everything in this realm,” he said.  “I should have expected it.”  He sighed.  “I did.  But when I came down here, I guess I hoped for better.  I wanted to see that her influence wasn’t as pervasive as I feared.  And maybe I wanted to believe that this world was worth saving.  Do you think it is, Jonah?  Do you think it’s worth saving?”

“I…of course.”

“Why?”

The temperature in the tavern seemed to drop, and everything felt like it stood still.  Suddenly, no one else existed.

“What?”

“Why do you think it’s worth saving?  You have no family.  No real friends.  What does this life mean to you?  What does this world mean?” he asked.

“I…it’s…I don’t know how to answer that.  It’s…life.  It’s the world.  Of course it should keep going.” Jonah looked around, suddenly free of whatever spell Ezekiel had over him.  “Why are you asking this?”

“Do you want a piece of advice?”

Jonah could only nod, though when he tried to verbalize an answer, no words came out. 

“You should leave this place.  Go out into the wilderness.  If there’s anyone here you care about, take them with you,” Ezekiel said, finally pushing himself to his feet.

“Why?  What’s going on?”

“Would you believe me if I told you that I’m a god, descended from above to right the wrongs I’ve seen?” Ezekiel asked.

Jonah shook his head.  If anything, the man was more of a devil than a god, though the guard kept reminding himself that he didn’t believe in such things.  In truth, he didn’t even think Shar Maelaine existed.  Rather, he considered her to be a mythological figure used by the Temple of the Sun to lend their organization authority.  It was the oldest trick in the religious book.

But they still did plenty of good.  They saved a lot of lives.  Did it matter that they also killed anyone who opposed them?  No.  The good outweighed the bad.

Most of the time.

There were rumors otherwise.  Whole massacres that people whispered could be laid at the Temple’s feet.  And that wasn’t even considering how they treated non-believers. 

“I…I think I’ve fooled myself,” he admitted, looking up, only to find that Ezekiel was already gone.  Even in his absence, his presence lingered.  It infected Jonah with both fear and questions.  Was his opinion of the Temple based only on the fact that they’d never turned their ire in his direction?  Would he still think of them the same way if he was like those tribes out in the desert?  The ones who didn’t believe. 

Or what if he was a member of the orcish clans to the north?  The Temple waged a constant war against them, giving them no quarter.  The clans had treated for peace on multiple occasions.  They’d retreated high into the mountains.  But the Temple Knights followed, exterminating all they found. 

Jonah’s crisis lasted for another hour until the barmaid informed him they were closing up shop.  After that, he wandered the streets of Phoenix Reach, lost in thought until he found his way to his quarters.  Like many officers of the guard, he was spared the normal barracks.  Instead, he was given a spacious apartment near the gate where he worked. 

He went inside.

Before he even knew what he was doing, he was packing his things.  Mostly, he packed the supplies he’d squirreled away for those rare occasions when he’d ventured outside the city on various hunting expeditions.  But he also took mementos. 

He didn’t have much to show for the years since he’d been reborn.  Just a medal of commendation.  A painting he’d gotten shortly after he’d arrived.  A couple of fruits he was saving for when he could afford a decent alchemist. 

It all fit into his pack.

He also took his weapons.  Armor, too. 

It was only then that he realized that he intended to take Ezekiel’s advice and leave the city.  For good. 

And oddly enough, he wasn’t upset about it. 

Soon enough, he found himself walking through the shantytown outside the city.  Only when he’d reached the road leading to the north did he hear a massive ruckus coming from the city behind him.  He looked back to see that the top tier – the one containing the Temple of the Sun – had caught fire. 

He hurried along, knowing full well that Ezekiel was responsible.