Echoterra: Rise of the Verdant King-Chapter 97: Answers [2]

"Food is ready".

After the barrage of questions that Clayton threw at him, Torren complained, but he didn’t decline.

He only had one condition. He had to be eating as he explained.

So once Clayton asked, Veyra took it on herself to be the chef again. She roasted another batch of Raptor meat that she preserved till now, and now, they feasted as Torren looked at them with a satisfied look on his face.

He belched. "Ah, I feel better now".

He looked at Clayton and grinned.

"Well, I have to say, you really do have a lot of questions".

"Ok, now to your questions. You asked what Nexus Guardians are, what the Nexus Law is, and what the Old Order is right?"

Clayton nodded.

"The Verdant Armistice Network too".

"Oh, right". Torren nodded. "To answer the others, first I’ll tell you what we, humans understand by the Old Order".

"Well, like I told you before, I was once part of the Scorched Clans".

"I had a mentor," Torren paused as if he just remembered memories from long ago. "Well, he was the lead historian of the Scorched Clans".

"Afterall, like the other factions that survived the end of the world, the Scorched Clans know that they can’t survive the new Earth without information, so they put a lot of importance to people like my mentor".

"I learned most of what I know from him".

Torren hesitated. "It’s not prove. But from what we know, the Genesis Protocols, Echoterra, the end of the world was not triggered by some technology or some random Apocalypse nonsense".

"Rather, we think Pantheons are behind it".

Veyra frowned. "By Pantheon, do you mean gods?"

"Yes". Torren nodded, looking at her seriously.

"We have reasons to believe that somehow, Aspect and all these are not a result of technology or a random occurrence, but a result of Divine alteration".

"My mentor believes there are at least 5 Gods in Echoterra. No one knows who they are, what their motivation are, why they invaded Earth, but from the Aspects that humans have awakened and other evidences, we have reasons to believe we already know about 3 of these Gods".

Torren looked at them seriously. "Veyra, Clayton, I believe both of your Aspects came from one of the Gods".

Clayton’s eyes flickered, unknown thoughts flowing through his head.

When he asked these questions that had been plaguing his mind for a long time, he expected answers that would shock him, but this? Gods? He didn’t expect it.

"Which god?"

"I believe you got your Aspects from the Verdant God". Torren answered.

"Apart from the Verdant God, my mentor and others of his profession believe that there’s also a War God, and the Ruin God, or the God of Ruin and Memories".

’God of Ruin and Memories?’ Clayton’s eyes narrowed, a vivid image of an Awakened appearing in his head.

Torren leaned back against a slab of concrete. "Most pure Combat Aspects out there, and those related to fire, we believe they all came from the War God".

"Then Aspects related to plants like yours and Veyra’s, we believe they came from the Verdant God".

"I doubt any of you have encountered them, but there are some devious Awakened out there with insidious Aspects related to memories, ruin, or even decay".

"A word of advice," Torren’s face turned somber. "If you encounter anyone of these bad guys, run for your life".

"Anyways, my mentor believes that they got their Aspects and powers from this so called Ruin God".

Torren looked at Clayton. "This brings me back to your questions".

"We believe Nexus Guardians are sentient constructs, ancient protectors created by the Gods. Designed to defend the integrity and purpose of the Trial Nexus".

"Each one embodies a concept or trait essential to the system’s law".

"Lots of Awakened who survived the trials recounted their experiences, and some of them encountered Nexus Guardians".

"From our information, we believe them to be hybrids of bio-mechanical entities, with AI-like minds but deeply tied to nature or evolution-based coding".

"They test not just strength, but leadership, adaptability, domain influence, and most importantly, awareness of the Old Order, all things the system focuses on before an Awakened can complete his/her trial".

"As for Nexus Law, when a Trial Nexus is unsealed, Nexus Law activates, which means all organisms in that trial region are bound by new survival conditions".

"Natural growth pauses or slows. Only conquest, influence, or network command can sustain expansion now".

"Of course, new penalties and rewards also kick in for actions in the trial".

"Nexus Law amplifies the difficulty of Genesis Trials manifold, and it’s a big component why so few humans survive the Genesis Trials".

Clayton’s eyes widened slightly as so many things finally made sense. Heck, everything he experienced in Trial 1 made sense now.

Torren smiled on seeing the look on his face. "You don’t need to say it, I know I’m a genius". He said smugly.

Clayton scoffed.

Torren chuckled and continued. "As for the Old Order, we’re not sure, but my mentor thinks it refers to the original, now-lost Pantheons of the Old Gods".

"If I’m to guess, you were sent to a region of Echoterra dominated by plant life right?"

Clayton smiled darkly and nodded. "Monster plants".

Veyra looked at him in surprise. "Is that were you lived as a plant?"

He just stared at her.

That stare said it all. They were surprised.

"Well," Torren continued. "The Old Order, the pantheons are the ruling class of different regions in Echoterra".

"They operate like hive minds, ruling territories not just as beings, but as ecosystems made flesh".

"We believe the Trial System is a corrupted version of their legacy, a crucible meant to resurrect worthy successors".

"We also believe Nexus Guardians are remnants of their will".

"One day, maybe if we’re to survive this age and usher in a new age where Behemorphs haven’t taken more than half of the world, we’ll have to destroy the Pantheon of the Gods".

For a long time after Torren finished his explanation, Clayton just sat in deep thought, his eyes in a daze.

"I hope I managed to clarify all your questions".

Clayton snapped out of it. He looked up at Torren, and smiled sheepishly.

"Damn!" Torren cursed.

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