"I've thought hard on how i should tell you all of this." My mother started as we sat besides each other at the edge of a lake, gazing at the rising sun's reflection on the water.
"From the start maybe?" I suggested uncertainly. Wasn't that how people in novels ask for information? From the start? Though I had no idea what the start really meant. I just said that cause it felt smart. And I didnt want my mother suddenly changing her mind because she couldn't decide where to start.
"Indeed, I feel the same." My mother nodded softly.
The silence once again took control of the conversation, though I did nothing to break it. I knew my mother was simply gathering her thoughts.
"So, the start. First what you should know about me is that I'm not a human, or a mortal."
Duh.
"I'm... I do not know what I am anymore. But I know what I once was. You have read the books I gave you, yes? The ones with angels and devils? Well, I was...an angel once."
I knew it! Though I made sure not to let my smile overtake me.
The silence once again settled on us. I took a glance at my mother, and was surprised to know that she was staring right at me, instead of being lost in her thoughts.
"What?"
"You do not doubt me?" She asked with a raised eyebrow, a mixture of worry and curiosity.
"No, of course not." I replied truthfully. "You won't lie to me. If you say you are an angel, then you are an angel."
"Simply like that? I do not know if i should feel flattered or exasperated. Have I not taught you to question everything?"
"Oh c'mon mum, I've known you weren't a human since like...forever. Besides, if there was an angel in this world, it'd be you." I replied, smiling cheekily, though I meant every word.
I saw my mother's face lit up like a Christmas tree, a smile on her face so bright that the sun would run away in shame. She looked more beautiful than ever in that moment, and I felt proud that I was the cause of it.
"Hush, you flatterer." She said, though the smile soon dissolved and twisted into a bitter one, and I felt my heart cracking a little. She sighed before replying, "though i'm not an angel anymore, Mikael. I was once. But no more."
I frowned at my suddenly sad mother before replying shamelessly with an air of finality. "Well, you'll always be my angel so you'll just have to make do with that for now."
And with that her smile was back again, and I felt nothing could go wrong in this world.
"Come here, you sweet silly child." My mother suddenly grabbed me before i can get away, and promptly settled me down on her lap. I tried glaring at her but she had her eyes closed blissfully. I tried to squirm my way out of the death grasp, clawing at her hands.
I loved my mother, but yeah, no hugging.
Soon though, I had to admit defeat. She was simply too strong for me. I just settled to glaring as she ignored me, knowing I bit off more than I can chew. Shouldn't have buttered her up too much. I shifted on her lap to make myself comfortable while trying not to press too much against her breasts. It was uncomfortable though, considering how freakishly huge they were, so I had to lay my head on her shoulder to avoid pressing my face in them.
"Now, as I was saying, yes I was an angel. Taking care of the heaven was one of my tasks, and I did that quite happily. I've never wanted for anything, never desired anything other than to serve my father's wishes and care for his creations alongside my brothers and sisters. But we were too few. Too few to maintain the... system...after our father's death."
I was very curious about that last one but made sure to be quiet. I could see her lips quivering at this subject, and i didnt wish to open old wounds.
"So my brother, the eldest of us and our new leader, devised multiple ways to increase our population. See, we are not meant to..ah, participate in.. copulation." She finished, a little distressed at the end with her cheeks flaming.
Was my mother actually blushing? Holy hell, isn't she just the most adorable? Though does she realise that an average 6 years old shouldn't know that kind of words?
"If we do, we will fall from heaven and be disgraced, becoming fallen angels. But my brother created a way which let a select few...copulate, without falling." She uttered the word again as if in pain.
Damn, my mother was too innocent for this world.
"As long as both the participants do it out of pure love, whilst not having a single... impure thought, an angel may copulate without falling, though both of the partners had to do extensive holy rituals before and after that. I never thought about it too much of course, being a seraph and the angel of chastity. But that was before I met him. Before I met your father." She took a deep breath then, as if preparing herself.
"When we first met, i did not like him. Which was rare for me.. But that..person..he was bad, Mikael. A cheater who's unfaithful to his wife, knowing he is hurting her. A rapist who forces himself on anyone he desires. I've judged many a mortal men, and I've seen the most dirtiest of them. But I've always pitied them. This was the first time I've disliked someone, and he wasn't a mortal. No, he was the king of Olympus. The king of gods, zeus himself."
Damn, I was the child of a god? wait, so was I a god too!? Why was I a 'tier 1' being then? The system never gave me too much information but I knew a god was at the peak of this world. Was I crippled or something? Though my father was starting to seem like a random one-dimensional evil villian. I honestly hoped he got a redemption arc before he became my father. God or not, I did not want a rapist as my father. Too much bad rep.
"He tried to court me and i rejected him. But he was too powerful for the heaven to have as an enemy, though we refused to back down and were willing to fight should he push further. But I did not want that. So, I gave him a chance then. A chance where I did my best to change him, and he did his best to get me out of my clothes."
Lady, why are you telling this to your child? I wanted to tease her, but I was just too invested in the story to break her flow.
"So we kept going to different places, visiting different mortal sites, and doing mundane things while repeating the same ritual of me trying to change him, and him trying to convince me. He did not force himself upon me once, so I felt like I was making some progress. But then the world war happened in the mortal world, and the real cause behind it was his children. His and his brother's. The demigods. Have you read about the devil ranking?"
The question came abruptly and I had to think a little to understand what she meant. My mother had written more than a single book for me when I was a baby. One of them described this huge great war between the three factions; Angela, fallen angels, and devils. All of their rankings and power levels were written in detail as well.
"Yeah, I've read the whole war book." I replied with a nod.
"Well, the demigods are mortal, and yet they are considered some of the most powerful species. A demigod from one of the three elder male Olympians can be as strong as a high-class devil while the most powerful of them reached even the ultimate class. And there were dozens of them. The world war was fought between the children of Hades against the children of zeus and posieden. The result had been... catastrophic. Millions dead before the greek gods finally stopped the madness. Then merely two decades later, the war started again. This time, the results were much more serious. Entire cities devasted, entire countries suffering, just because a bunch of teenage children wanted to know who's father was better. The other pantheons were not amused. They requested the three elder Olympians to not sire children with mortals again if they cannot control them. The elder Olympians brothers surprisingly agreed, swearing on the most sacred river, Styx. The rest of the children were hunted down by the monsters, devils, and other races who wanted the glory of killing such powerful blights. Zeus was devastated, while his queen was overly happy, which infuriated him all the more. I comforted him as best as I can, and it was in this time when I felt maybe, just maybe, I was changing him."
"But it was only after four more decades that I trusted him enough to have a child. I knew it was wrong, he was still married afterall. But he somehow convinced me and I found myself doing it anyway, for I truly thought that he had changed. Truly thought that what we had was love, pure and unadulterated. My brothers gave me their blessings, creating a barrier of holy magic for us to..ahh, use. We were together for more than an year, Mikael. But deep down I knew it wouldn't last. Deep down, I knew our love was not as pure as I pretended it to be. And then it happened. To be blunt, I fell. I fell from grace and from heaven. Even now, I do not know who was to blame; Me or him. Was I simply fooling myself when I thought he'd changed, that it wasn't simply his.. lechery? Or was it I, who had changed instead. I, who grew impure. I did not know, but at that time, I blamed myself. And so I ran away."
"People makes mistakes when they are being controlled by their emotions. I knew that I should join my other fallen brothers and sisters. Azazel will no doubt have accepted me. Perhaps I held some contempt for the fallen, perhaps I was simply not of sound mind. But, as I said, people makes mistakes when they are not themselves. I made mine by joining a devil's pearage–Ajuka Beelzebub's peerage, instead of joining the fallen angels. I was desperate, see? I did not wish to face the goddess hera. Not because she was more powerful, but because I was ashamed. When I finally found out that I was with a child, I ran away again, thinking that I'd killed you by becoming a devil. But then the time came, and alone in a hut I gave birth to you. A boy, unnaturally quiet, but certainly alive, and very healthy. You were...a miracle. You had the blood of a god and an angel, while also having access to demonic power. It would not have been a problem had you simply been a god; I could've hidden you away from even the most watchful of eyes. But no, you were not a god. You had the power of a god, burried deep inside you, but your soul was that of a mortal. I do not know how my child, but you were nothing I've ever seen or heard. Physically you were, and are, a mortal human, and yet your aura was so intense that it bought unnaturally strong monsters and creature from all around the globe, from all the different pantheons."
Her hands suddenly tightened around me, hugging me close to her chest. "Your father and I had made a promise, long ago, even before you were born. For eight years you will stay with me, in the heavens; for eight years with him, in olympus; and then you would be free to do as you wish." Her words then became desperate whispers of confession, mixed deeply with self loathing. "Your father sent me a message after he became aware of our plight, saying he will be more than happy to take care of you even before our promise came into play. But I couldn't bear to lose you, the thought itself sends me in deep darkness. And so I cursed you with this life. Hunted and alone. I truly am sorry, child. I know my faults better than anyone else. I know I'm a selfish coward who put your life and comfort at risk, but I did not wish to let you go. I cannot...not so soon." She clutched me even tighter and I could feel her tears drizzling down my neck.
I desperately thought of something to say, something to comfort her. To reassure her that I didn't need anyone else. To give a rousing speech that'll wash away her sadness, but I could think of nothing. So instead of thinking too much, I just laid my hands on her head and whispered, "And I'm really glad you didn't send me away, mother. I'd rather live in the wilds with you than go to some fancy palace or whatever. Now would you please stop crying? cause you are making me feel like a bad son." I finished with a kiss on her brow. Surprisingly, I felt absolutely no cringe. Like, I'm sure I never did anything like this for my first mother. I'm especially pretty sure i never shed tears when I hugged her, as I was doing now.
My mother gave a startled laugh and I counted it as a win.
"The creator must have rewarded me for my lifelong services to have a son like you." She mumbled in my ears as she rocked me back and forth.
The rain was just starting to fall again when me and my mother finally grew aware of our surroundings. The moment she released me, a blinking window flashed in front of me.
[Divine Achivement– Who Am I?]:
[Objective]: Find out who you are
[Reward]: Unlock full Gamer System, Unlock Skill: Observe, Unlock your Powers: Divine energy unlocked, Demonic power unlocked, Holy power unlocked, Angelic wings unlocked, Multiple affinities unlocked.
'Wait what.' I stared blankly at the screen for a few seconds before I comprehended the message. 'So my powers were locked? Now that made an awful lot of sense. Maybe I could finally be strong enough to survive this world of gods and monsters'. I barely managed to stop the enormous smile threatening to escape me. After 6 boring years we were finally moving somewhere.
I opened my status to check the changes with hurried expectations.
'Status'
Mikael
Age: 6
Tier: 1
Race: God/Angel/Devil Hybrid
Level: 60
Divine Power: 600/600
Holy Power: 600/600
Demonic Power: 600/600
Stamina: 500/500
Health: 570/570
Stats
Strength: 46
Speed: 81
Dexterity: 69
Endurance: 50
Constitution: 57
Mental: 31
Spirit: 60
Points: 30
Skills:
Combat–
Basic Spear-wielding (10/10)
Advanced Spear-wielding (5/10)
Godly Skills–
Air Manipulation (Lvl 2)
Lightning Manipulation (Lvl 1)
Demonic Skills–
[Power of Creation] Passive
[Power of Imagination] Passive
Holy Skill–
Magical Affinity:
Divine Lightning: 70/100
Holy Light: 70/100
Lightning: 90/100
Light: 90/100
I felt a bit disappointed but quickly shook it off. My tier was still mortal tier, but maybe I can increase it after mastering my newfound powers? I now had 3 different types of powers and my main job would be to learn how to control them. Plus I've also unlocked the observe skill, and I already had someone who's level I was dying to see. I turned towards my mother and–
A spark of pure pain went through my back and spine for a short instant, almost knocking me out.
"Mikael wha–"
This time I had to grit my teeth to stop a scream as unimaginable pain went through the same spot as if someone was driving a hot knife in my spine to carve it out.
"Mum.. something is... my back.." I groaned out between pants, trying to ask for help.
"Hold on, child. I'll–"
I didn't hear the rest as another, superior, bout of pain spread across my back. This time i didn't even try to suppress my scream. I bellowed out to the world my pain as fire lit upon my back. It felt like someone was carving my back out with an axe, like someone was performing the Vikings blood eagle ceremony on me. From the pain hazed mind, I could barely feel something come out of my back.
And just like that the pain was reduced to mere Ambers of what it was, but I can feel an addition weight upon my back. Confused and disoriented, I laid in my mother's grasp, not knowing what the fuck happened. But it became clear as soon as I blearily opened my eyes, even though tears made it hard for me to see. But I couldn't miss the glowing and twinkling words right in front of my face now, could I?
[Angelic Form Unlocked]: 2-Winged Angel
+50 Levels
You have entered the 2nd Tier (Superhuman Tier)
"Oh dear." My mother's voice reached my ears and I could feel her hands caressing my back, or my wings specifically. I didn't have time to think more though cause the next moment sent me in deep embrace of sleep as my tired body finally gave out.