Down the Rabbit Hole

The silence of the chamber was deafening as everyone just stared straight at me. I was absolutely stunned at the words sprawled across the screen.

The God of Netorase.....

How in the hell is that even a thing?????

I looked over at Alexandra trying to read her expression but when my gaze landed on her all I saw was confusion on her face. It was then that I realized that she had absolutely no idea what Netorase meant. It wasn't exactly what most people considered mainstream.

I exhaled in relief but then I realized that I was probably going to have to explain it to her.

Shit, how in the hell am I going to explain this to her.

"Oliver, don't worry about this. I will help you explain this to her. You are the first God under the same category as me and so I will naturally take care of you as one of my own. For now return and let the selection continue normally." Ambrosia whispered into my ear reassuringly.

For some reason I found her words comforting despite the shocking turn of events that had just rocked my world. Ambrosia seemed like she really cared about me and would help turn this situation around.

Feeling reassured I stepped back into the crowd amidst the stares and whispers of those gathered.

The ceremony continued and soon under the sheer weight of volume my aspect was forgotten by everyone else. Everyone except Alexandra.

"Oliver, what does Netorase mean?" Alexandra asked in a hushed whisper.

"I'm not entirely sure myself, Ambrosia said she would explain it to me afterwards" I partially lied to deflect the question. I felt guilty but this was not exactly a conversation that should be had in a crowd of thousands of people.

"Oh, why did it seem like everyone was staring at you like it was a big deal?" Alexandra pressed

"Guess we will have to wait and see. Don't worry babe, it's gonna be alright." I pushed my face softly into her hair as I reassured her. Soon the number of people who had gone had risen and it quickly became Alexandra's turn. Her number turned red and she walked up.

Like all before her, she took a leaf and drank the water.

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Category: Love

Aspect: Fidelity

Alexandra, Goddess of Fidelity

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Again, a deafening silence overtook the room as everyone let that sink in.

"Pffft" Ambrosia couldn't help it as a laugh escaped her closed lips then she stopped trying to hold it in. "BAAAAHHAHAAHAHA HAAAHHA OH HAHAHA" her laughter spread through the room and soon it deafened all the other noise.

She was literally crying from laughter as she clutched her sides. Alexandra looked at her confused but many others were also chuckling at the turn of events.

I looked at the screen unable to process my emotions.

....

It was a complicated knot in my stomach that refused to untie. On one hand I guess I should be relieved that my girlfriend represented everything loyal about relationships, but at the same time how would this work between us? I was the God of wife sharing and she was the Goddess of the exact opposite.

My mind was awhirl with confusion but I didn't get a ton of time before Alexandra returned to my side with a smile on her face.

"Well how about that Oliver! I guess you can take that as proof of how much I love you.

But why was Ambrosia laughing so hard?" She asked obviously confused at her reaction.

My eyes found Ambrosia's and I could tell that she was getting a kick out of this whole situation.

"That's amazing babe" I assured her despite my inner turmoil.

We stood there entwined in each others arms for a long while as events continued marching on around us.

Time flew by and many different aspects from all sorts of categories were thrown into the mix, to my relief some were just as embarrassing as mine.

Finally the last person stood in front of the fountain.

It was a gorgeous woman whose beauty easily rivaled both Alexandra and Ambrosia. She drank from the fountain and soon words appeared on the screen.

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Category: Love

Aspect: Cheating

Galana, Goddess of Cheating

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She looked at the screen and simply smirked. Ambrosia whispered something in her ear and as she walked back into the crowd she looked directly at me with a feverish gaze.

I don't know why but at that moment I literally blushed, as if I was some foolish schoolboy unable to control my emotions.

I looked back at Alexandra and she was staring at me with a gaze that was devoid of the turmoil that I was feeling. To her everything seemed fine while I was stuck in this dilemma.

"What's wrong?" She asked clearly able to feel my mood.

I sighed "Love, we need to have a long talk I think" I finally admit to her that something is wrong.

At that moment however Ambrosia clapped her hands and everyone's attention shifted back to her.

"Alright now that concludes the receiving of aspects. I want to say a few words before you are thrust into a trial world that will allow you to grow and get a better idea of what it means to be a God and what your aspect means to you.

First and foremost remember that your aspect is an important part of your identity and power as a God. It is also the defining catalyst of turning you from your current weakness into a powerful God.

But also remember that your aspect has to find it's definition within you. It's not something you find in a dictionary but literally something that you discover along your journey.

I had to find what Love meant to me before I could fully embrace my power and rise to full Godhood.

Upon entering the trial world you will receive a system that will help you along the way but never feel like you can't make your own decisions, that is an important part of realizing Godhood.

Another thing to remember is that you need to disseminate your faith among the people who inhabit the world. Faith is a powerful thing that will shake the foundations of even a God if you allow it too. It's one of the deciding factors on which Gods are more powerful than others."

She instructed everyone like we were her children.

"Now I wish everyone good luck and success."

She clapped her hands again and suddenly the entire crowd of people disappeared.

The only people who remained in the room were Ambrosia, Alexandra, and me.

Ambrosia walked toward us and she looked straight at Alexandra.

"Honey, I'm sure you have plenty of questions and I'm going to explain everything so I want you to pay attention and open your heart to understand.

You two are the only two people I have met who before becoming Gods were already in a relationship. It's a unique situation that was made even more interesting given the nature of your aspects.

Alexandra, you are the Goddess of Fidelity, this means you represent loyalty to your partner. This is an incredibly important part of love because it facilitates long lasting relationships that are full of love.

You love Oliver right?" She asked Alexandra

Alexandra nodded emphatically.

"Then you need to understand what Netorase means. Netorase has many different names and definitions but in essence it is sharing your partner with someone else and getting sexual pleasure from that act.

It can be or mean a lot of things and its an extremely delicate form of love that can easily break. I'm amazed that something so nuanced actually became an aspect."

As Ambrosia explained calmly Alexandra slowly went from confused to understanding. A variety of emotions flitted across her face.

"Oliver needs time and experience to learn and grow with his aspect.

If you truly love him then you need to have confidence in him and let him grow." Ambrosia placed a hand on Alexandra's arm.

"You two are Gods of Love and therefore you have to fervently pursue your aspect if you want to grow. Thus at this moment I want to help you two get ahead. Simply put, you need to be separated.

Alexandra it will be easy for you to grow because of your nature and affinity to your aspect. I want to keep you by my side while I monitor the trial world. You will learn directly from me.

This is probably the easiest road to Godhood anyone can get.

The tough part is that for Oliver's sake he has to enter the trial world and he will need to take a variety of lovers. This is the only way he can grow. If he remains only with you then one of you will always be a detriment to the other.

If you love him then you have to let him go for now. If you can stay loyal to him after knowing all that and what he has to do in the future then you will become very powerful very quickly.

Trust Oliver to grow as well and eventually you will find your way back to each other."

Ambrosia's words seemed to resound with Alexandra and I realized that Ambrosia really did want us to find the best solution possible to this situation.

Alexandra seemed to think for awhile before she turned to me. She held out her arms and I quickly rushed to hug her. As I pulled her into a tight embrace she began to speak.

"I don't know if today is a blessing or a curse but I feel like we can't escape our circumstances.

Ambrosia's words make sense and I know that to grow you need to have space." She gripped me a little harder.

"Just promise me that you will always have a place for me in your heart, because you occupy the whole of mine" She said hoarsely almost crying at this point.

I say nothing but I pull back far enough to look her in the face and then passionately kiss her, trying to convey my emotions through this simple act.

As our lips meet the heat between us melts our two bodies into one, and the moment feels like it lasts forever.

Finally we break apart and I look toward Ambrosia, I give her a nod and I look at Alexandra one last time.

"I will always love you" I say before Ambrosia snaps her fingers and I disappear from the room.

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The next moment I look around and I realize that I'm falling from the sky. For some reason this doesn't startle me though. I feel alive, powerful, as if the whole world was mine for the taking.

I look down and realize that an entire world is spread out before me as I rapidly hurtle toward the ground. As I draw closer I notice the scenery I am plunging toward, vast farmlands and pockets of forests get closer and closer until finally I slam into the ground right in the middle of a wheat field.

The impact doesn't hurt per say but I do feel like the air was knocked out of me as I rapidly gasp for breath.

- Erasing all previous powers and levels of the host -

- Integrating Netorase System -

-Integration Successful, welcome to the Trial World of the Gods -

These words pop up in my head but I've been through so much in the last couple of hours that I just slowly close my eyes and lapse into sleep.