A few hours later, a disgruntled and sweaty Theron appeared at the entrance to Aeliana's house. He raised his hand to knock on the door, but inexplicably stopped and decided to walk into the house, whose door was open. Walking into the living room, he spotted The Observer reclined against one of the chairs, with Aeliana sitting beside him, reading a book.
The Observer started to speak when Theron interrupted him. "' Next time you want to bind someone to an agreement, make sure they know what they're getting into, do you understand?' Believe me, I understand loud and clear."
For a moment The Observer was quiet as he observed Theron. "You know, you need to stop using your precognition so much. It makes you appear insufferable."
Ignoring him, Theron sank into a couch and turned to Aeliana. "Have you explained the details to him yet?"
She shook her head. "No, I was waiting for you to return unharmed first."
He nodded as his disgruntled expression eased. At least she cared enough about him to wait till he was here. "Alright then, let's get started. What… what is your name by the way?"
"You can call me Reynard," The Observer said.
Theron gave him a deep look. "I mean your real name, not that random name you came up with on a whim."
"If you don't like Reynard, you can call me The Observer."
"Why? Do you Observe things? How good are your observation skills?"
The Observer gave him an exasperated look. "Do all those really matter? If you want to know why I was given that title, it's because of my powerful divine sense. For example, should I decide to, I can tell you everything going on in this city at this moment."
Aeliana looked a bit skeptical, but Theron seemed intrigued by that idea. "Alright, let's test it then. In the Secrets District, there's a giant observatory. There's something hidden underground there, can you tell me what it is?"
Sighing, The Observer closed his eyes and concentrated a bit, a moment later his eyes snapped open. The observatory was one that he had noticed when he first arrived, and though he had barely noticed the underground, he hadn't looked too deeply into it. Until now. There was a giant statue of a woman underneath the observatory, with undefined facial features. Despite it looking like an ordinary, worn statue, the moment he observed it, something had crossed over and attempted to invade his mind.
After repelling the ambush, The Observer turned to face Theron who had a gleeful smile on his face. The Observer knew that it was Theron's attempt at payback for being teleported out of the city. Despite his fury, The Observer smiled at him even as he plotted his revenge.
Noticing the tension between the two, Aeliana was forced to ask. "Theron, what did you try to get him to see?"
"The Statue of Eidara."
"Theron! He's supposed to be our guide, why do you keep trying to make an enemy out of him? Apologize this instant or get out of my house."
Theron seemed taken aback, as though he had not expected such a response from Aeliana. Still, he acquiesced to her demand, and lowering his head to The Observer he apologized. "Forgive me. I should not have done that."
Nodding graciously, The Observer decided to shelve his ideas of revenge for the time being. When he needed them again, he would make use of them.
"So," Aeliana took control of the conversation. "Is there anything you need to know to be able to help us more effectively?"
The Observer nodded. "Yes, actually. There are a couple of things I want to know. First, is the Paragon of Destruction the only one I have to worry about while helping you."
Aeliana considered for a moment then shook her head. "No, I don't think so."
"You don't think so?"
Theron jumped in to explain. "There have been a couple of incidents lately that have caused us to believe that we're being targeted and watched. Unfortunately, I have been unable to figure out the cause."
"Why? You can see things past and probably future, can't you? It shouldn't be too hard."
"Yes," Theron agreed, "I can see things, secrets. But, that doesn't mean my sight is foolproof. There are ways around it. For example, some Devotees of Vorgraz can create little alternate spaces around themselves which my sight cannot fully break through because those spaces technically do not exist in our reality. It's a bit complicated, by my abilities have limits."
"What exactly is a Devotee?"
"People who have been blessed by the gods, giving them access to part of their god's abilities."
"How can I become one?" The Observer asked, curious.
"Well, if you really want to it's not hard," Theron said, "but know this: when you accept the gift of the gods, you also accept their will. Their divine will shall then proceed to try and turn you into an extension of the gods. If you are ill-prepared, you'll become a monster, a walking fraction of an authority. But even if you succeed and suppress the will, you can never truly get rid of it, so some part of that god will always be there within you. Is that truly what you want."
It was obvious to The Observer that Theron was not telling the full story, but even so, what he had said was most likely true. And so, he gave up on learning to acquire their abilities.
"So who are the gods? Start with those mad gods you all keep mentioning." The Observer said, even as he closed his eyes.
This time, Aeliana took the lead. "The gods are beings that many believe created the world. They have been alive for eons and there are ten of them. The mad gods consist of only four of the ten. The Unmaker, Zalthar, The Unquenchable Hunger, Zarach, Fractured Reality, Vorgraz, and finally, the Cosmic Void, Azaroth. Of the four, Vorgraz is the least mad, but when he is triggered, he can prove crazier than the rest."
For some moments The Observer was quiet as he committed those four names to memory. "Their titles-"
"Reflects their authority, yes," Theron finished for him. The Observer opened his eyes and monitored Theron for a few seconds, before letting out a small sigh, shaking his head, and closing them once again.
"What about the rest of the gods?"
"Well," Aeliana continued. "Apart from the mad gods, we have the five orthodox gods. Astraia the Whispering Serenity, Eidara the Shrouded Mind, Aurion the Celestial Harmony, Nyxia the Eternal Dusk, and Oblivion the Final Embrace."
"The Final Embrace? That sounds menacing."
Aeliana let out a small laugh. "It does, doesn't it? But he's the calmest of the gods. He embodies the sweetness of oblivion and non-existence."
"Oblivion, and The Unmaker, aren't their authorities conflicting?"
"Not really," Theron answered. "The Unmaker's authority is more about destruction than anything else, while Oblivion has more to do with detachment, the ultimate form being detaching completely from reality and becoming nothing. The one whose authority conflicts with Oblivion is the Cosmic Void. But that's only barely."
"So who's the last god."
"The Harbinger of Truth, Lirithia. She and Eidara also have conflicting domains."
"How?" The Observer sought to clarify. "Eidara is the Shrouded Mind, right? Shouldn't that have more to do with secrets than the truth for Lirithia?"
"Yes," Aeliana began to explain. "But they both deal with Knowledge and in most cases, Eidara is better. As such, they don't like each other very well."
"So, what is she? Lirithia? She not orthodox, and she's not a mad god, so where does she fall."
Aeliana shrugged. "She's more like a wild card than anything else. So, is that enough knowledge for you?"