Chereads / Regressor's Ancient Travel Guide / Chapter 5 - Era of Evolution I

Chapter 5 - Era of Evolution I

Deus mediated.

The art of Mystery expressed from Cultivation. While he wasn't able to properly cultivate anymore due to the Mystery in his body having expressed it in a matter unknown to him.

He did not mediate for Cultivation, but instead a modified way of gathering Mystery. Which Deus guided Mystery not within his soul and body, but instead to the star which connected him and Miraak.

And it brought him many fruits of progress.

Within him were abilities not his own, advantages that came from Miraak being a subspecies of turtles Deus propagated.

Immense lung capacity, skin as hard as steel, being able to go days without food or sustenance, without the need to use Mystery, and of course the special attributes of them being able to create shockwaves.

It was a parasitic and at the same symbiotic exchange with Miraak. Deus absorbed or gained all the traits of Miraak, and if Deus agreed, could Miraak use the connection between them to channel the ancient and large Mystery residing in Deus.

And so, days passed, Deus carefully instructed Miraak with the method of channeling and the choices he had, be it Cultivation or Magic, he was open to all possibilities.

One evening, when the sun dipped behind the horizon and cast a golden glow over the world, Miraak approached Deus in Test Site 12.

"Lord Deus, I believe I can handle part of your power now.." 

Miraak announced to him with a voice with hope and resolution, which elicited a small smile from Deus. 

"Show me."

Closing his eyes, Miraak focused intently on the presence of Deus. The name and how it tastes, his appearance which was blurred by the divine glow… He felt a sudden pull towards an undetectable direction. Allowing himself to be drawn in, Mirak felt his mind becoming detached from his body. He couldn't feel the air on his body, nor the warmth of the world.

Instead, he sensed only one thing— a line, a string pulling him somewhere. And thus, he followed it to its end, passing through what seemed to be an infinite stream of 'something,' until he finally felt his senses return to him.

Miraak saw an egg, an egg surrounded by everything and nothing. He wouldn't dare understand it, as it comes from His Lord, and instead focused on his senses. However, unknown to Miraak, Deus observed a change occurring right in his mind. 

A special symbol appeared on the mind of Miraak, and as his senses washed over it, which felt like using a hand to read Braille when blind…. A line of information reawakened within Deus from the special symbol engraved on the consciousness of Miraak, as if it was a memory once forgotten—

[Ruler of Creation]

And when Deus saw the miraculous awakening of the power within Miraak, in the world filled with everything and nothing, Miraak felt like he might lose consciousness, if he stayed any longer. 

With a struggle, Miraak disconnected from the Lord's immense power that was but a fraction, finally returning to his body of a turtle, utterly exhausted.

The [Ruler of Creation] bestowed authority upon Miraak over all of creation under his governance: Be they animals with no intelligence, or the humans in the future, as long as Miraak was involved with them, he would have power over them.

—And thus, Deus also gained the same ability, yet on a far greater scale. Every creature on this planet had been modified, created or influenced by him in countless ways. With the Human Development Plan, this range would extend even further, from their kids, to their grandkids and affecting unborn generations.

Using the Ruler of Creation, Deus started to control the animals to mix. Genes, instinct, senses—- They all were modified, changed, dissected or mixed with others.

Plants that thrived on the blood of the living to live, were merged with monkeys bearing the genes that would eventually lead to the birth of humans, then these hybrids were released into new territories that fit them, to repopulate and diversify the lands.

Birds that could pierce boulders with their beaks, wolves immune to the cold, worms that infested the brains of animals—Deus brought forth a new era of evolution, each animal used to accelerate change and opposition to create a need to grow even further.

"How did that one quote go? 'Necessity is the mother of invention.' I think."

One evening, as the sun dipped below the horizon, Miraak approached the teleporter in Test Site 12. 

It wasn't a teleporter in the traditional sense, more of a unique creature that evolved to exist in two places simultaneously. Usually, the creatures would digest the animals that entered its crown, and excrete out the non-digestible parts at the other end. But with the Ruler of Creation, it fully transported Mirak and Deus to his lab.

Miraak, who moved at the quickest pace he could without injuring this creature, entered its crown and let it envelop his body with its fleshy interior. The sensation and stunk was disgusting, even for his turtle self—- In an instant, the flesh unfurled itself and revealed the lab of Deus. A place teeming with animals of wide abilities and looks, though unintelligent.

"Lord Deus," Miraak began, his voice obviously drenched with hope and urgency.

Deus, who was engrossed in merging the genes of the teleporting creature and a living bomb, looked up with acknowledgement.

"A group of primates have begun to exhibit signs of what you described as 'culture'! They were creating shelters and developed some sort of hierarchy in their race!"

Deus's eyes twinkled, he was too engrossed in mixing genes recently, so he didn't bother many glances to the HDP. he snapped his finger to exert [Ruler of Creation] to stop any changes that could occur to his teleporter and living bomb experiment, standing up and carrying Miraak on his shoulder.

"Think of the direction, I wanna see the place with my own eyes." Deus said, before suddenly speeding up to subsonic speed.