Divine Apostasy Book 6 - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Ruwen opened his Profile and navigated to the Root display. The tree with six branches filled his vision, the Worker and Fighter branches full of color. He concentrated on the bottom, in the roots of the tree, and found the Architect Role.

Focusing on the Architect Role, three sub-Roles appeared: Navigator, Creator, and Annihilator.

Ruwen had never used the Creator or Annihilator Roles and didn’t want to start with them here, in the middle of nowhere. If something went wrong, there was no one to help him. So he concentrated on the more familiar Navigator Role and three more icons appeared: Dimensional, Temporal, and underneath those, a Gravitational Role that connected them both.

Focusing on the Dimensional Role, three additional sub-Roles appeared: Pocket, Keys, and Warp.

Ruwen concentrated on the Key icon, and just like the first time he’d used this sub-Role, his Mana dropped to zero, followed by an immediate pressure on his Core. The sensation reminded him of when he Refined Spirit.

When Ruwen had done this before, five gate runes had appeared. But this time, the first four slots were empty and only the gate rune for the Material Realm appeared.

Ruwen recalled his conversation with Tremine in the upper library of the Black Pyramid. Tremine had said the first gate rune represented a planet’s unique name. The next three runes designated a coordinate system to place you on the planet, and the fifth rune specified the Realm.

While disappointing, Ruwen realized he could have guessed this result. He wasn’t on a planet, so that meant no first rune. And no planet meant no coordinates, which meant three more blanks. That left the Realm rune, which didn’t do him much good. Although, he guessed there was some value in knowing he remained in the Material Realm.

Ruwen unfocused on the Dimensional Role and focused on the Temporal one under the Navigator Role. He was curious what the Resonance offset value might be this far from everyone.

Resonance offset was the term Lir had used to describe a version of fate, and Ruwen thought back to what he’d learned. Any value over one thousand meant the current location had almost no impact on the Universe. Even if massive changes happened in that Galaxy, it would remain too localized to matter. A hundred was considered safe for large disruptions like time travel. And anything approaching ten meant the galaxy’s events directly linked to the Universe’s desired outcome.

Lir had been proud that their galaxy, ten thousand years in the past, had gained a Resonate Offset of forty-seven, making it incredibly important. After restoring Uru’s Third Temple, Ruwen had used the Resonate Offset icon in the Temporal Role to get the current value, which had become zero.

If Ruwen remained in the same galaxy, he guessed the Resonate Offset should still be zero, or close to it. So getting the current value would tell him a little about how far he’d traveled.

Focusing on the Resonate Offset icon, Ruwen felt a tug on his Core as a trickle of Spirit left. The result hovered in his vision.

Resonate Offset: 9,999

Hopelessness scattered Ruwen’s thoughts. A value that large probably meant he’d traveled very far from home. He hung his head, fighting the despair that threatened to drown him.

“Hey,” someone said.

Ruwen jerked his head up in surprise, recognizing the voice.

Sitting cross-legged across from Ruwen sat a Scarecrow Aspect. The hood, a burlap sack with a roughly stitched “x” for each eye made him uncomfortable. Had he accidentally triggered a clone? But it had spoken. It had spoken with his voice.

The Scarecrow Aspect lifted its gloved hand's palm outward. “You’re not crazy. Well, not in this way.”

Ruwen’s heart thudded against his chest. “Overlord, is this some sort of joke?”

“I’m not Overlord,” Scarecrow said.

Ruwen shook his head. “I’ve lost it.”

Scarecrow looked around the shed and then stared at the distant star, visible through the missing wall.

“I really miss this,” Scarecrow said.

“Who in Uru’s name are you?” Ruwen asked.

Scarecrow turned from the star and faced Ruwen. “You’ve already guessed. I know because I remember.”

“Oh, no,” Ruwen said. “This can’t be happening.”

Scarecrow placed his hands on the floor behind him, leaning back. “What did Rami tell us about Resonate Offsets? Let me remind you. Any value over one thousand and your actions have almost no impact on the Universe. Even if you made massive changes, it wouldn’t affect anything but your own galaxy. A hundred is considered safe for large disruptions like time travel. But anything approaching ten means your actions are directly linked to the Universe’s desired outcome.”

“Time travel?” Ruwen whispered.

Scarecrow leaned forward, placing his hands in his lap. “On the bright side, we could never do this back home.”

A thousand questions erupted in Ruwen’s head. “Did I figure out a way home? How far in the future are you from? Can I—”

Scarecrow held up his hand, interrupting Ruwen. “I can’t answer any of that, or the hundred other questions you want to ask. Think about it for a moment.”

Ruwen felt frustrated, his curiosity ravaging his mind like a starving tiger. Why wouldn’t Scarecrow tell him anything? After a few seconds of thought, only one thing made sense: Scarecrow worried any information he provided might significantly alter Ruwen’s path.

Which meant things must turn out okay in the future if Scarecrow didn’t want to change it. But then why come back at all? That question rang loudly in his mind, vibrating like Blapy’s gong.

Scarecrow spoke. “I can’t answer that for the same reasons.”

Ruwen hadn’t even asked the question. But then, Scarecrow already knew the question. This experience was a memory for him.

That meant this moment must have been a critical point, like standing at a crossroads. And another realization occurred to Ruwen. If his future self had mastered time travel, then he had likely mastered the Roles of Foresight and Hindsight. That would have given him the knowledge necessary to take a safe path forward and know where in the past route corrections were necessary.

Ruwen nodded at Scarecrow. “I understand. I probably owe you a thank you.”

Scarecrow waved a hand at Ruwen. “Thanking me is like patting yourself on the back. Although, and we can never tell him this, I’m reminded of Sift’s ‘don’t judge a pastry by its frosting’ rule.”

“Are things really that bad?” Ruwen asked.

Scarecrow laughed. “That Resonate Offset value felt devastating, and yet, without such a staggeringly high value, this conversation would have never happened. And, spoiler, time travel is awesome.”

“I can’t wait,” Ruwen said. “And if, no, when I see Sift again, I won’t mention this. He’d never let me forget that his wisdom helped me in a dark moment. His stories are the worst, and the last thing I want is him saving me another time.”

“Ugh,” Scarecrow said. “On that note, I need to leave.” He turned to the star, and after a few seconds, whispered. “Cherish this time.”

Scarecrow disappeared, and the immensity of what had happened replaced Ruwen’s despair. Sometime in the future, he would master time travel. And even if it only ever worked out here in the middle of nowhere, he’d done it.

Ruwen smiled. He had work to do.