My death was normal, stupid but normal. I was camping out in the woods like I had done for years but this time a tree just so happened to collapse on top of me.
I was lucky weirdly enough I died immediately, but my soul didnt leave while I watched my old form rot away.
First came the flies that laid eggs in my eyes and ate them away while my body bloated from bacteria that once supported it. Then came the fungus as my body began a massive hive of 1,000s of types of plants which gave way to a small sapling that would give way to a might oak.
While I watched my body rot I began to fully understand nature, the way the natural world work as one thing gave way to the next. With that understanding I tried to affect that process, I protected that small sapling encourage it to grow to a size that had not been seen for millennia.
I taught it how to protect itself from the storms that grew worse and worse with each passing year, how to process the salt that began to appear in the soil as the sea grew ever closer, then men who came to build on the forest so I taught the tree to strengthen itself to never be cut as its bark grew stronger than tungsten.
Eventually the men gave up and a city was built around the tree, I watched and continued to teach the tree as it grew to surpass the buildings of the city. When the tree could no longer grow upwards I looked at my handy work and noticed the people of the city were panicking but I didn't care my tree had withstood centuries of trial and tribulations, but when I looked to the sky I saw it a great ball of fire that destroyed my tree and the city which grew around it.
I did not weep for my tree as I knew that nature was a cycle, and I looked where my body once rotted my skeleton long gone I saw a pile of ashes were a mushroom had already begun to grow.
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I blinked which wasn't an action I thought I could do anymore, and as my vision cleared I found myself in a greenhouse a massive one at that.
In the center of the green house I saw a man and a woman sitting a table. The man is pale unhealthily so and was wearing what I would best describe as cyber punk. While the woman had beautiful broken skin that wore simple farmers clothes and smelled of earth.
They both turned to me and waved over for me sit at an empty seat, the woman poured me a cup of tea and began to speak.
Gaia-"Hello John, allow me to make some introductions as we have been know by many names over the millenniums I prefer to go by Gaia while my companion currently goes by Hephaestus."
I'm I not being one to make people uncomfortable gave them both a polite hello, and took a sip of tea that was probably the most delicious thing I had ever tasted.
Gaia gave me a smile at my reaction to the tea, "Now, we owe you and apology as we both missed your passing when you first died and didn't notice your soul adrift till the destruction of the city.
Now even given your situation we wouldn't meat you simply wipe your memory and drop you in the reincarnation cycle with a small bonus, but you did something unexpected you tried and succeeded to comprehend the true meaning of nature like no mortal and some gods have.
That is reason you are here as by applying both [NATURE] and [THOUGHT] like no mortal Truly had before and likely will, that is also why you are here as you took an aspect of our domains and created something amazing.
Your tree was border line invincible, it with stood storm, fire, salt and man all the most Dangerous parts of any natural thing."
Hephaestus interrupted at this point-"In my case your tree inspired and lead to a great number of scientific discoveries, what branches where gathered from your tree and its offspring allowed and entire new branch of material science that would lead to permanent colonies on multiple celestial bodies in the Sol System.
All by you simply just caring about a sapling that grew out of your corpse, which was something very few mortal would even consider doing."
Gaia-"Doing all of this we think you deserve a reward, so we have set a couple of options up which obviously have some restrictions.
First your form can not be truly human as your Bond with both our domains has modified your souls.
Second, your boons can not be outside our domain.
Third, your location can be your home world as sadly it has been greatly damaged by a nuclear war."
John thought for a long time on this, first was his form he had spent so much time as a spirt he didn't want to die of old age for a very, very long time.
So for his form he wanted to be a Dryad/Ent as felt a very deep connection to trees at this point. The Ent form would allow him to blend in most places, while the Dryad would allow him to interact with people better as he missed talking to people.
For boons he had some idea, from Gaia he wanted to be able to keep his limited control over Nature. As for Hephaestus he wanted the entire collection of human knowledge, while some of this was outside of his domain it would be a of great use.
Third, his options were limited as there were a great many universes out there and many would extremely dangerous for me and I didn't want that I wanted a vacations of sorts.
John-"I've decided I want to be a Ent/Dryad so I can live for a great many years and communicate with people, for my boons I want to keep my limited control over nature and access to the complete knowledge of man kind. For the location I want to be in the world of Ice and Fire preferably in the North."
The two gods looked at one another and talked back and forth and began to discuss quietly to one another.
After a couple of minutes of quiet discussion they agreed to my requests but they modified it slightly, with the presences of magic there to give me access to Nature l would be given access to Druidic magic, the rest of my requests were easily met and with a wave from the both I was cast off into the multiverse.
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Once again I found myself in a forest, but it felt different I could "see" the roots that traveled deep underground and interwove with one another till they reached an epicenter myself.
A truly massive Weirwood tree, I was over 6 stories tall with a trunk that was wide enough for a two families to live inside of comfortably.
"Looking" inward I saw a heart of energy that pulsed with energy, I knew it is where my magic was stored. Besides the green heart was another this one a clock work heart that like the green was my connection with the gods.
Focusing on either one of the hearts I was given access to my requests my boons, this is where I also found a "note" from Gaia and Hephaestus that basically gave me permission to act in the "will" of the gods as the old gods are a very small aspect of themselves.
I then sent my awareness out ward through the eyes of a owl that was nesting among the branches of the trees. Through the eyes of the Owl I figured out I was in the very heart of the North Winterfell itself, it is a sight to behold the magic that flowed into its very foundations were magnificent but old and wearing away and the stone work in some places was crumbling but the soul of the castle was still there.
My view was Interrupted when I saw a girl no older than 14 enter my forest, she has dark jet black hair and bright steel great eyes that where currently pouring with tears.
Looking over the inhabitants castle I figured out who this girl was, Lyanna Stark, moving my entire focus on the forest I began to listen to the girl.
Lyanna-"Why Father, I understand that I must marry but why a southerner and one that is more beast than man." The girl then stood up and let out a shout in frustration and threw a stone directly into me, calming for a moment she realized what she had done. "I'm sorry, Dhriti you don't deserve that, but what am I to do gods I don't know what to do." She then sat amongst my roots and prayed.
She had called me something during her rambling, thinking on that I was able to tap into the "memories" of the tree I now inherited.
Her mother before her passing brought her here and explained to her that when she was a girl she would come and talk to her families Weirwood, her fears and doubts even her regular day.
Smiling for a moment as I best introduced myself to the current Starks.
From Lyanna's view the Gods Wood went silent like it had never done before, then the sound of creaking wood made her jump to her feet as she thought a tree was going to collapse.
She looked up to see the boughs of Dhriti being to move and morph, till one of the bigger branches formed what she thought was A hand grabbed and pulled into the air.
Letting out a scream of terror she was suddenly brought face to face with Dhriti like she had never before.
(Think Tree Beard when reading this)
Dhriti-"Hmmm, what this of touched blooded marrying a southerner." Lyanna will say till her dying days she didn't faint in that moment, (she really did) but quickly centered self. "No, since the time before the Andals have the ture blooded married south of the land of a thousand Lakes. You should be being trained by one sister hoods, from what I could understand during my forced slumber you should be with the Shepherds of the Eastern Wind."
I shifted how I was holding the girl to help calm her down and to watch her reactions to made up bullshit.
Lyanna-"I…i….I don't know, who or what that is."
Dhriti-"Explain child."
The girl very much freaks out by the hole situation began to babble on about how she didn't know of what she had been taught be the local Maester or what old Nan had told her.
At this point her family and a group of guards made it to this section of the forest, all of them gasped at the situation.
Lyanna who they knew talked to the Weirwood tree all the time but this time it was talking back to her.
Rickard Stark the current lord paramount of the North wasn't in shock then yelled out-"LYANNA" and charged towards me weapon drawn but not in a fighting stance.
Lyanna noticing her father began clambering down my branches but I gently set the girl down who was pulled into a hug by her father.
Giving them a moment I shifted my form once again to a more imposing form, my blood red leaves began to fill out into the shape of a crown while myself shifted to a very old man slightly decrepit old man with a blood red beard sat upon a throne.
Dhriti-"Rickard Stark, son of Edwyle, descendent of He who Builds. You have a great deal to explain, why is this true blooded forced to marry a man who worships the Seven who Lie. Why isn't she being taught by the Sisterhoods." I lean forward my body creaks as I do tell my face which is the size of his body is right above him.
Rickard Stark who is know to be one of the greatest diplomats among the seven kingdoms and know for having the true loyalty of the Boltons was simply silent.
He looked to his daughter who was like myself wanting an explanation to why she isn't with these so called circles.
Rickard-"I do not understand in all my years of life I have never heard of these Circles are or what a true blooded is. I also apologize a I do not know how to address you."
Leading back into my chair acting somewhat exhausted, "Gods be good, how the mighty have fallen, have your people forgotten it's roots Lord Stark. If so then I shall explain, go gather your family lord Stark as these are lessons that should have been passed some time ago."
Rickard gathered his family which most of them excluding Eddard where in the castle and the guards sent away while we spoke.
"I am am the World Tree, Yggdrasill or of late Dhriti. I was no more than a sapling when your ancestors built his wall, but I chosen by the gods to act as a reminder of pact he swore, That his family will shepherd the North for all eternity and protect those who practice the old arts. But it seems I've true generation your family and the rest of the north have forgotten by ignorance or malice what your duty is.
You should thank the gods they are forgiving as they have broken my slumber and granted
me insight into there power, as your future depends on it.
Now prepare your selves Starks for a stories need to be told."
So I began to explain my made up bullshit and the dangers that come in the future, I explained what the circles were or what they will be; Dreams, Spores, Stars, Wildfire, Land, Sea, Air, Shepherd and Moon.
And what powers they held, and how they were powered by the connection between the land and the gods. They were all amazed by this as I did some basic spells to show how magic was very much not dead and very active, also how while blood and sacrifice could be used it was heavily discouraged and should only be animals never humans.
Lyanna was the most amazed by this as the very idea that had a gift of the gods was awe inspiring and It also helped she didn't have to go marry Robert now.
Then came the technology I had access to, I explained this by saying the gods were very aspect of the North not just nature. By using some basic illusion magic I was able to show improved farming tools and better steel.
Last came to bad news the white walkers, I explained how if the circles were still around we would have no worries at the the circle of wild fire could easily take them out alone. But now with them gone we had a lot ahead of us in terms of preparation as I needed to redound all those circles.
Rickard after multiple hours of explaining was run ragged by it all and simply asked "What do we need to do and when can we start."