The Gamer's System

Chapter 94: End of the Ark

Mythos is the land which almost reached perfection. The gods, wanting a trouble-free world even for once finally created one by accident. Sure, there were still some problems that came with the world. Dangerous areas, plagues, sickness and all that. Yet, these were all overcome by the intelligent and wise Dwellers. This is what the inhabitants of Mythos once called themselves. All races and joined hand in hand in order to continue growing with the world they are given. 

Materials were used efficiently day by day. Even if some would be wasted dues to experiments and some unexpected troubles, the Dwellers would recover from these all on their own. The holes and cracks were patched soon enough and, out of these, bloomed greater knowledge which made them reach new heights. They treated every problem as an opportunity for growth and, always faced everything head on.

They welcomed all questions. They welcomed all queries. They balanced everything out, planting only values which would benefit the whole and, uproot those which are unbeneficial. Not all Dwellers liked this, As expected, there are few who questioned a balanced society where the powerful cannot stand on top of the others.

These individuals have been exiled to faraway lands using the transportation devices created by the Dwellers. Yet, they were not left without care for, they've been given enough provisions and supplies to use until the day they die. That is, if they do not use these in excess. With these weeds rooted out from the fold, the Dwellers continued growing on and on.

Every race was thought to be an equal. Some has physical prowess, some were highly intelligent, some were gifted with mana, and there were many others. They had different skin colors, different sizes, different traits and, unique behaviors. Yet, there was a peace that was maintained. Nothing destroyed their balance, as if they could clearly see what would tip the scales off balance.

Through the passing of the years, the Dwellers only continued growing and, the gods loved this at first. Yet, years passed and these same gods began to fear. This fear turned uncontrollable causing the first time for the minor gods to unite almost unanimously, disrupting the peace created in Mythos. They said that: 

"Mythos is too perfect for mere mortals."

An ironic statement from the same divine beings who wanted to create a trouble-free world with self-sustaining creatures dwelling there. With the minor gods uniting this way, the three major deities had no choice but to listen just this once. Hence, they allowed the minor gods to meddle until, Mythos becomes perfectly unperfect.

Little by little, they dipped their finger on Mythos. The Dwellers felt this and, created countermeasures. But such things could only do so much against the powers of the divine. 

War and famine soon came. Doubts sprang from the Dwellers for the first time and, this ran like wildfire. For, with it came all the other negative emotions and behaviors that they have been trying to suppress for so long.

Some raped the women. 

Some stole. 

Some murdered. 

Some tried to rule over others with sheer force. 

And those exiled came back, wanting blood.

Yet hope was not entirely lost. A large group of Dwellers came together to prevent their beloved world from falling entirely to ruin. Tribes and races of every kind joined hand in hand in order to force back the corrupted Dwellers. Leading their warriors are Yaeger and his husband. Once again, the scales began balancing out.

But even this proved to be futile for. The minor gods have Pier as their leader. The one and only god who could trick mortals into thinking that they are behaving justly. Hence, the final wall of resistance crumbled. Yaeger became a goddess as a punishment, with her one and only daughter being trapped as a monster within a [Summoning Crystal]. A creature which Yaeger herself has to slay over and over again in order to prevent her crystal from decaying.

Years of chaos followed. With it came the extinction of a lot of races. There was much blood spiled and, although the gods only wanted to stop the Dwellers from advancing, they now saw what little chaos could bring upon the land.

A small pebble thrown into a large pond will always create a large ripple. Horror and regret filled some of them. And though they wanted to restore the balance once more, they did not know how. For, the natural laws forbade them from creating more changes to the world. Hence, they watched in terror as, what was once their greatest masterpiece turned into the most grotesque and gut twisting scenery they ever bore witness to.

Years and years passed. Until, finally, the chaos began dying out. They promised to themselves that this will never happen again. To seal this treaty, the gods created a contract. One which would sentence any god who went against it to instant mortalization - a punishment more severe than death. This means that any violator would be stripped of their powers and be given sickly bodies to tend to.

This warning proved to be useful for, nobody went against the code. Or at least, not while the major deities could sense it. For even with the contract being laid out, Pier continually meddled and tweaked with a lot of worlds. Causing the things befitting his tittle: The God of Mischief and Deceit.

With the years passing by, the major deities finally thought that it is time to seal the deal with Mythos. They needed to patch up all the holes and, in order to do this, they needed the most capable human for the job.

For years on end, they tested a lot of humans. Those who failed were sent back to the mortal realm and, even if some succeeded, their scores weren't good enough for the task awaiting them. They went and scouted from the most successful entrepreneurs to all top-class athletes. They even tried to go for the people with the highest IQ but, none of these ever proved to be enough.

That is, until they chanced upon Zeke Elwood. With the suggestion of Chrono, they tried one thing they never thought of before. That is, to get the strongest gamer on earth and turn him in to the hero of Mythos. Wellthat isif he would pass the test.

Soon after, Zeke entered [Trial Island]. A lot of records were made by Zeke but, on top of all these are the following. Zeke finished it within the shortest amount of time, needing only a week to deal with all that [Trial Island] has in store. Then, there is also the fact that he finished it without sustaining much damage nor, being placed in too much risk.

The skill combination, the creativity, the imagination, the adaptive capability, the calmness, and the wit of the gamer excited the deities. Hence, they took him right after the test ended. The gamer who ranks first in each and every game on earth - Zeke Elwood.

When he was transported to Elysium, there was one thing nether he nor the major deities were aware of. That is, Pier has already began tapping into the world bit by bit. 

This god was the one who informed the Viper Bandits of the whereabouts of Hark and Sylvia. This caused Zeke to take fatal damage from high leveled professional bandits although he was still at level one. He was also the supplier of the formula for the crystals which could house a hundred [Shadow Wolves]. Ones which would've ended everyone's lives. He was also the reason why Gallio was able to survive for so long and, also helped in finding Hark, the perfect host for the king. But more important than all this is the fact thathe is the benefactor of Glade Leonis.

He loved how sinister the boy was. At a young age, Glade already knew how to fool everyone around him. He'd put poison on food just because it was fun and, let someone else take the blame for it. He'd smile in front of a playmate then stab them on the back simply because he wanted to test how good his sneaking ability is. He could act out any role and fool anyone. 

Pier loved the boy and watched him grow more and more. Then, when the time was right, he began sending hints and messages which were undetectable to the gods. Thus, their alliance began. Destroying Mythos effectively including Zeke Elwood the precious champion of the major deities.

Pier couldn't help but burst in laughter when he accomplished this. Although they are higher beings than him, his champion was able to outsmart theirs. And to top it all off, Glade has even began conquering Mythos destroying the scales of balance even more and shifting all powers to himself.

The trial which followed Zeke's death came swiftly. With Pier's masterful scheming, the god Calitha took all the blame and, was forced to be mortalized - leaving the seat of the god of fire open for a while.

Years soon passed with Pier's successful implanting of evil within Mythos. There was nothing stopping him from his goal and, the chaos only continued on and on. The major deities began their search once more but, finding someone of Zeke's caliber is one in a million. 

Even if they chose a human, one wouldn't be enough for the task at hand. Glade changed Mythos so drastically that the danger level skyrocketed. Hence, even though they thought to would be risky, they chose more humans. 

They added more and more to the selection. Drafting and weeding out the weaker ones bit by bit. Until, finally, with Glade reigning supreme on all of Mythos, they have deployed the last hope of that world. Twenty heroes in all, working together toward defeating Glade and restoring balance.