>>5748686“I do not understand,” the Archer admits. “The subtle arts are key to the Great Conspiracy, yes? They always have been. Why should the Dark Gods Below and Beyond care for the particulars?”
The Great One simply tilts his head in silent consideration. You wonder how much of this he truly understands, in truth. He is wise, and old, and a good friend, but his creation and first century-or-so of life left him with rather stunted development… And in truth, you have never really had cause to discuss deeper matters of the True Faith with him. However, you also glimpse the gleaming glow of the Diadem of Clarity upon his forehead, your gift to him which was further augmented by the Dark God of Wisdom. His grammar has improved, and his ambition has grown since he first donned the great circlet… And who are you to neglect wisdom at this time, no matter the source? You need all the advice you can get.
“Pow-uhr,” the Green Dragonborn concludes.
“What do you mean by this, Great One?” you ask curiously.
“The Gods… They are like the Chap-luhn, maybe,” he says. “They want your pow-uhr… Hrrr… POWER. They want you to do their work, use your strength, but in their way. If you do it your way, it is YOUR power, not theirs.”
The Archer fidgets with a discomfort you feel, and notes carefully: “The Dark Gods are the source of all power. That is what we are taught. Dark magic flows from them. When we divine the stars and signs, it is with their borrowed senses. Those who grow sickly and ill do s for their neglect; those who grow strong do so because they please the Dark Gods Below and beyond, and are permitted to live, and destiny curved in their favour.”
You nod along, for all this is true… And in particular, one of your gifts as a Knight Ascendant has been to grow mighty without limits, or so you were told when you made your great pact to serve your divine patron as the Glorious God’s personal Antipaladin. But your older brother, well, he seems to regard this with skepticism, snorting and shuffling his great wings.
“I was made stuh-rong. BORN st-strong. I never asked for strength. No one gave it me—TO me. Only tried to use it.”
Maybe so… But his greater consideration and articulation were, arguably, a gift from the Dark Gods, albeit through you. His freedom, too, since your mother was the one who freed him; the exact particulars are unknown to you, but you know she was loyal to the Dark Gods are well, Truly Faithful, and they no doubt guided her and aided her in her course. And since you disobeyed the Gods Below and Beyond, well, haven’t you FELT weaker?
Hm.
