The Tenets

Damon woke up in a cold sweat. Barrages of steel spikes and a pair of black talons had filled his nightly reverie.

Looking around, he found himself strewn across his bed. His armor was still on but he felt…fresh.

He didn't feel the burns anymore. Going to the mirror, Damon saw that his face was now clear of any burns or wounds.

It took him a moment to recollect, but once he did Damon froze in shock.

'That supervisor must be the one who healed me! Does that mean he's still in the manor?' Damon thought in horror.

Even though the supervisor had seemed very laid back and even kind, Damon wouldn't trust a book by its cover.

'Perhaps he's even trying to see if I let down my guard!' Damon theorized.

Shaking away his paranoid thoughts, Damon decided to meet the man and see for himself. He barely even remembered half of the broken conversation they had before.

Ambling down the stairs, Damon listened in order to hear where Hero could be.

Almost ceremonially, he heard. "I'm in your parlor!"

Damon cautiously walked down the hall as he prepared to draw his greatsword. Appearing in the parlor, he saw Hero sitting very casually on a sofa by the central fireplace.

"This is really a nice place you made! The fireplace and comfortable seating make me feel at home." Hero praised as he lit the fireplace.

"Were you the one who healed me?" Damon asked with some suspicion.

"I am." He answered.

"But why-"

"Come sit down first if you want to get any more answers. I'm not going to hurt you. Afterall, I have no need or wish to." Hero explained.

Sighing, Damon sat down across from Hero.

"Now that we're acting civilized, what other questions do you have?"

"What exactly happened to the Earth and who is the "Almighty One?" Damon asked with determination.

"Well it'd be best to give you some context before I start spouting out facts that will confuse you."

"You are now an employee of APG or the Association of Planetary Governors. APG exists to develop and sell planets that have not yet developed past a certain level. My-

"Wait, wait, wait! How did I become an employee of this APG? I never volunteered for this."

"Ahem. It's a bit of an embarrassing story to be honest. My superior is a very powerful God and he is tasked with the recruitment of more planetary governors as we expand our operations. Unfortunately, he only applied for the job because of the nice paycheck and has never really taken his job very seriously. This has led to his rather…unorthodox ways of recruitment." Hero's face darkened with every word he spoke.

Damon tried to keep calm. "So you're telling me, that your…superior has condemned my entire planet to become 'employees' of your company."

"I'm afraid so. To be honest, that's not even the worst part either. Because of the part where he made all of you gods, you'll have to earn the cost of ascension back from the company. Until then, you won't be able to quit."

Immediately, Damon's eyes blazed with anger. "Your superior has basically forced eight billion people to become indentured servants! How is this even allowed?"

Hero's eyes were tinged with regret. "I'm afraid that is just how things are. Believe me! I hate it too! But none of us can change it. The company benefits from this kind of arrangement and so they won't stop it. In this universe, the strong control the lives of the weak."

BANG

Damon kicked the table into the fireplace.

"Then how can I become one of the strong?"

Hero smiled as he gestured for Damon to sit. "That's quite the loaded question."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere." Damon said.

"That's the attitude. Now the most important thing to understand is the difference between a divine being and a mortal being. A divine being is fundamentally different from a mortal due to the presence of the 'divine spark.' The 'divine spark' gives many benefits that we will delve into later but its main benefits are the accumulation of faith, the quality of the energy, and the aspect of creation, destruction, and balance." Hero explained.

"James has already mentioned that but can you explain it all?" Damon asked.

"Sure. I'm certain that James has done very well at explaining everything but there are some things that are better explained by me. James is an artifact that has access to the company's database but he hasn't experienced the changes and complexities that one experiences as a God. I'm sure that you noticed that he wasn't able to really able to relay to you just how different the changes in your strength were."

"I did notice that but I just thought that everyone adapted much faster than me. Why is James so limited?"

"It's mainly because he only understands the information, not the feelings behind the changes. It's like knowing how to throw a punch, but you have never actually punched anything."

"Ok, I think I get it. Can you explain some of those main benefits now?"

"I can but it would be much more effective to show you them. Afterall, you've already utilized most of these benefits." Hero said as he stood up.

"Follow me."

Damon started thinking about what exactly he had done as they walked outside.

'I've used creation in order to build the manor, my weapons, and my defenses. I used destruction when I destroyed part of that tree branch. But I don't know about balance or faith.'

"Now I want to show you all of your home. This should help you understand just how you have and could have used your abilities more effectively." Hero said as he started flying a distance from the manor.

With the full manor in view, Damon waited for Hero to begin.

"Do you see those knights you made?"

"Yes."

"You used the tenets of creation and destruction to make them. But you failed to use balance." Hero said as he shook his head.

"What do you mean?" Damon asked with uncertainty.

"You created something. That satisfies the idea of creation. You created something that is meant to destroy something else. That satisfies the idea of destruction. But you made it so that the knight's sole purpose was the destruction of your enemies. That meant that it wasn't balanced on the side of creation and thus you lost the idea of balance."

"Why does that matter?"

"It matters because balance is what gives the target consciousness. Balance is what allows someone to create an entire race of people. Think about it in the perspective of humans. Humans can destroy but they can also create. They kill people but they can also give birth to them. It is this duality and balance that allows for a consciousness to be formed."

"So you're saying that I could make the knights conscious as long as I give them the ability to make life." Damon said with doubt.

"This requirement is part of the universal laws. It makes it so that it is impossible for the absolute control of any race. It promotes free will. And it is something that you must respect as a god."

"What is faith then?"

"Faith is a very complex energy that gods can use. It is, however, very dangerous to the god and thus we will explore it later on. Only when one begins to have devout followers can they generate faith anyway."

"Then what about-"

"The rest of your questions can be answered with examples that you have already come into contact with. I'll bring you around and show you them soon. For now, I suggest you deepen your understanding of the tenets of godhood by using them and experimenting with them." Hero explained.

Although unsatisfied with the abrupt dismissal, Damon entered the manorial courtyard, intending to experiment with his creations.

He started with a small basil plant. Damon gave it the ability to slowly replicate itself by growing more roots and eventually, another plant. It could then separate itself and they would become two separate plants.

Intending to see just what consciousness a plant could have, Damon also gave it some defenses.

A basil plant whose leaves were covered in poisonous thorns rose from the ground.

'He-He-Hello?'