[Third Person's PoV]
A few months ago…
Lucian was seen in his workshop, drawing the same symbols from his previous ritual on the ground. He set up everything as he had before: the candles and the books. After arranging everything, Lucian sat down in the middle of the ritual circle.
He used a bit of his blood to draw a line on his forehead. Then, he closed his eyes and began to chant in ancient Greek.
Just like last time, even though he was underground, the wind started to pick up, the pages of the books flipped and turned, and the flames of the candles flickered. A slit began to appear on his forehead where the blood mark was, causing Lucian to grit his teeth as he continued to chant.
Eventually, he abruptly stopped, and his arms and head flopped down. Suddenly, he looked up, eyes wide open, revealing his glowing red eyes and a third eye on his forehead.
His smile stretched unnaturally wide, exposing his canines as he ran his fingers through his hair. "So, I'm back in my mini-me, it seems," he said, standing up.
He began to stretch and talk to himself, "Right, it was after this that I received the Cards of Blasphemy."
"Beatrice, make sure to tell my mini-me this," he continued.
Beatrice emerged from Lucian's shadow, narrowing her eyes at him. "Who are you... you feel like my master, but different."
"Just an older version of me," Lucian waved her off. "Anyway, as I was saying, the objects that will be in his/my hands are called 'The Cards of Blasphemy.' They're named as such because they enable mortals to achieve godhood independently, without the aid or interference of any other deity. This is seen as an act of blasphemy against the gods themselves, hence the name. They will reveal sequences and their ingredients, along with an advancement ritual for later sequences.
It's crucial for them to start gathering faith. The faith of the people functions differently for them compared to the gods; it amplifies their innate qualities. For gods, it tends to amplify their godhood, leading to arrogance, conceit, and cruelty. However, for them, it will ground their humanity, preserving their original personalities. If they don't focus on this, they risk becoming the very beings they despise. Got that?"
Beatrice was still a bit confused but nodded. Lucian sighed. "This is going to use up way too much energy."
He closed his eyes and placed his hands near his third eye. A pure, bright red beam of energy escaped from the third eye, and the space in front of him began to open.
From the portal, a beautiful hand appeared, throwing two cards at Lucian. "Thanks, Annabeth," Lucian muttered.
The hand turned into a thumbs-up before forming a small heart with its thumb and index finger and disappearing back into the portal. Lucian stopped the beam from his third eye and looked at his hands, feeling himself growing weaker and fainting. "Oh, and tell him the first three are the easiest."
With that, Lucian fainted on the floor, his third eye closing.
Seeing Lucian knocked out and turning pale, Beatrice appeared from her shadow worriedly.
She noticed how he had used all of his energy and if he didn't receive help soon would most likely suffer from terrible consequences.
Beatrice went back into her shadow and quickly came out with a bottle of blue liquid. She quickly turned Lucian over and tried to make him drink it but seeing that he was choking a bit Beatrice took a drink from bottle and gave Lucian a move to move.
Making him able to safely drink the contents of the bottle, after a while his pale color started to disappear and his breathing became more stable.
Seeing that Beatrice let out a sigh of relief and pat her chest, she then saw Lucian's eyelids quiver before he slowly opened them.
He held his head in pain and let out a groan, "I also hate doing this, the headache I get it's also insane"
Lucian then saw that he was lying on Beatrice's thighs and smirked happily, "You know what worth it."
He then felt he was holding something in his other hand and when he took a look he had a look of surprise, "And who's this handsome devil"
"Master, I believe that that's you from the future"
"You're right, only I can be as handsome as that, it makes sense," Lucian said arrogantly before looking at Annabeth's card. And letting out a low whistle.
"So I would be the god of Paradoxes and Annabeth of Ruins… makes sense as well. Ruins are like the main symbolism for Architecture and Knowledge/Wisdom."
End flashback...
"And that's pretty much what happened," Lucian said as Annabeth kept looking at the cards.
"So, it was the future you that made these? But then, how..." Annabeth started.
Lucian just smiled. "I don't know, and that's the thing about paradoxes."
Hearing that, Annabeth flipped the card and looked at all the words written on the back. "The Paradox Pathway:
Sequence 9: Stuntman
Sequence 8: Artisan
Sequence 7: Treasure Seeker
Sequence 6: Cursed Knight
Sequence 5: Earth Sentinel
Sequence 4: Mist Shaper
Sequence 3: Ethereal Warlock
Sequence 2: Light of Destiny
Sequence 1: Shadow Monarch
Sequence 0: The Paradox"
"Pretty cool, right?" Lucian said with a smug expression.
Annabeth smiled and shook her head before looking at her own card.
"The Ruins Pathway:
Sequence 9: Librarian
Sequence 8: Architectural Engineer
Sequence 7: Historian
Sequence 6: Occult Scholar
Sequence 5: Tomb Raider
Sequence 4: Arcane Antiquarian
Sequence 3: RuneMaster
Sequence 2: Time Weaver
Sequence 1: Empress of Decay
Sequence 0: Goddess of Ruin"
"Woah," Annabeth exclaimed. She puffed her chest. "Empress of Decay sounds awesome."
Lucian scoffed. "Well, nothing beats the Shadow Monarch."
Annabeth playfully rolled her eyes as she handed Lucian back his Card of Blasphemy. "So, you want to create a book about Paradox and Ruins?"
"Kinda. It follows the lead of two teenagers, a boy and a girl, who throughout the story slowly ascend to godhood, fighting and scheming against other gods while trying their best to survive."
"I see... Instead of just one book, I think it'll be better to make a series. It'll keep people wanting more, and who knows, it could be turned into a movie, making the lines, or in other words, our prayers, more iconic and reaching more people who simply don't want to read all of it."
Lucian put a hand on his chin and nodded. "It makes sense. Let's do it. We need to create characters, side characters, worry about world-building, the power system, plot twists, the antagonist, the climax... everything."
"Most importantly, we can't forget the title," Annabeth said. "The title is like the main hook to everything."
"The Pathways through Ruins and Paradoxes," Lucian suggested, waving his hand in front, imagining the title.
"It's not bad, but let's think of more before deciding on one," Annabeth suggested, causing Lucian to nod in agreement.
Lucian and Annabeth then began to brainstorm, tossing ideas back and forth around the room. Lucian even enlisted the help of Beatrice, who was older and more knowledgeable about things.
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A/N: Please held me pick a title 🙏 😔