Origin A.R.S. (13 page)

Scott stopped and admired the waterfall. The crystal-blue water in the pool sparkled gently against the light. The scent of wild flowers in bloom filled the air. A happy little fish leapt up out of the lake then flopped back inside. It was quite an idyllic scene.

“Man, this is nice.” He could feel his cares begin to float away as he marveled at the wonder of this place.

He did wonder why there were no other people around, however. This was supposed to be a temple. Where were the supplicants? Arne had said that the temple was old and abandoned, but how could there not at least be people fishing in the lake?

The sorcerer walked to the waterfall and took a deep breath. He could see nothing beyond the curtain of water, but Arne had not lied to him before.

“Well, I need a bath after that run anyway.” He had managed to arrive the following day, but it had come at a cost. He had to constantly eat his supplies and drink water to keep his health from depleting. At some point he would need to learn a skill for long-distance running to avoid such things. He at least hoped that such a skill existed.

Scott walked to the center of the lake using the artfully arranged stepping stones then took a deep breath. He slipped into the curtain of water and shivered at the cold for a moment before he was able to see space beyond. There was definitely something back here!

He walked through the waterfall cave for a short distance then saw what he had come all this way to find. The tumbled down stones and cracked pillars were a pitiful sight. Why had this place come to be in such disarray?

“Hello.” called a soft voice from nearby.

Shocked that he had actually heard a voice, Scott turned to see its origin. After doing so, he could not help but stare.

The soft voice called out again, “Hello, traveler?”

Scott fought down the urge to blush. Despite what his status said, he was far too old for that sort of response. “Hello, ma’am.”

The vision of loveliness glided toward him, a smile on her face. She was an incredible beauty, with bright blue hair and jade green eyes. “I did not expect to meet a fellow traveler here.”

Scott shook his head. “Neither did I.”

The girl laughed softly then waved her hand. “I come here sometimes. It’s sad how this place is neglected.”

“Yeah, I had heard that this was a temple to the goddess of love... Yet, it was left in this sort of state.” replied Scott.

The girl smiled gently. “Yes, it is. Did you come to beseech the goddess on a matter of the heart?”

He shook his head. “I’ve had enough of those sorts of matters to last a life time. I was told that I might be able to secure the goddess’ blessing, here.”

“Ah, one of those guys? Traveler, did you think that the goddess was just some sort of magical artifact that grants power?” Her soft demeanor changed to one of steel and granite. A hint of anger came to her previously gentle eyes.

“No, I did not know what to think. I was told that if I came here, and prayed sincerely, the goddess might be willing to grant me aid in my training.”

The girl sighed loudly then shook her head. Her brilliant blue hair swayed back and forth, giving off a shimmering appearance similar to the waterfall. “If that’s all you came for, then it would be best if you left. That sort of thinking is why she stopped answering requests here.”

“Ah, she did? Is that why people have neglected this place?”

She snorted loudly then nodded. “Yes, if you think to gain her favor just by coming here and saying a few words, think again.”

He tilted his head to the side. It would probably be best to leave. This was not what he had expected, and honestly he did not want to upset the girl in front of him. As it was, he felt like a home invader. Still, something else had brought him here. “Can you tell me about her?”

“Her? You mean the goddess?”

Scott nodded and the girl frowned. “You don’t even know about her, and you came to ask a favor? What kind of man are you?”

“The kind who doesn’t know much about anything, but would like to know as much as possible.” replied Scott sincerely.

The beautiful girl snorted then made a weird sound. Finally, she started to laugh. “You’re so weird. I bet you just want to talk to me and need an excuse.”

Scott tried to fight it, but his recently renewed youth won out. A hint of a blush crept onto his cheeks. “Would I be a horrible person, if I said, yes?”

She stopped laughing and bit her lip. She had not expected such a sincere answer.

Scott looked from the girl to the statue he had come to visit. He had really expected to be granted some sort of blessing from a goddess he had never even prayed to before. He realized his stupidity, but chose to be proactive instead of wallowing in the misery he felt due to wasting his time. “Do you ever see anyone else here?”

The girl shook her head then unleashed a soft, slow, sigh. “No, no one comes here.” 

The sorcerer considered his title, ‘Champion of Origin.’ What did that mean? What was his real purpose in this world? What was his connection to this goddess, if any? More than a simple blessing, he had a desire for answers.

He looked around at the state of the temple and a strange anger rose within him. He had never been particularly religious, but this was wrong. People had once received blessings here, and unlike his home world such things were common and tangible in this reality. Yet, the people had become neglectful of their patron goddess.

Scott did not know his relation to Origin, but even if he did not have any actual connection he hated to see a place of worship in such disarray. This was once a place where people came to pray and pay their respects to a goddess devoted to life and hope, to love.

The blue haired girl looked at the equally blue haired sorcerer. “Why did you ask about visitors, anyway?”

As someone who had been burned by love all too often, he could have used a goddess on his side. There were so many times when he had sincerely wished for answers from a kind and loving deity.

It was the lack of answers, the lack of divine direction that he had experienced in his youth that inevitably turned him away from such things. “I just wondered at why no one would come here. Even without blessings and requests being answers, shouldn’t people at least want to say thank you for anything this goddess does for them?”

Scott knew that the gods of this world were supposed to be real and tangible. There was no reason to disbelieve that since it was also a world were giant rats popped up out of nowhere, and a baby rabbit could kill a grown man.

“You really think so?” asked the girl.

“I honestly don’t know for certain if she has ever done anything for me, but she has no doubt done a lot for others. Shouldn’t people at least thank her now and then for the good fortune bestowed on friends and family? It seems wrong that such a central figure, such a well-known deity, has only a single follower in this place.”

“Well, technically I am not a follower. I simply appreciate what she does for the world.” replied the girl. Her cheeks began to take on a vividly red shade.

Scott turned to her and smiled. “Will you tell me about her?”

“You really want to know?” She seemed both genuinely surprised, and excited that he wanted to know more about the goddess.

He nodded at her and the girl took a deep breath. She began to speak, though her tone was a little strange. She almost seemed self-conscious and shy. “Origin is the goddess of life, love, and reincarnation. She is the one who allows souls to transcend to the heavens or fall to hell. Her name speaks of her purpose. She is the origin of life in this world.”

“So, like a mother?”

A light pink tinge of color crossed over the bridge of her nose. “Yes, you could say that. She would certainly like to be a mother if she met the right person.”

“Oh? She isn’t married? I would think that a goddess with such an important position in the pantheon would have a mate or lover. They usually do.”

The elf girl pouted at him then looked away and muttered something under her breath. Scott was a little confused as it almost sounded as though she had said, “Don’t start that...”

Scott looked around at the ruined temple. He was potentially the champion of a neglected mother goddess. He could not be sure if that was right, but it seemed plausible.

“What are you thinking about, if you don’t mind my asking?” asked the still unnamed girl.

Scott looked to her again then sighed. “I don’t know how much I can do, but I’d like to at least clean this place up.”

“Do you think such a simple thing would impress her into giving you a blessing?” asked the girl curiously. She reached up and casually grasped a lock of her shimmering blue hair then began to lightly stroke it.

He shook his head. “I’m not even going to ask for one. I don’t know enough about her to feel right about that anymore.”

She tilted her head to the side. “You are a strange one, I’ll give you that.”

Scott smiled at her. A random girl in an abandoned shrine decided he was strange. What were the odds? It did not matter; he set about moving fallen structures and picking up debris. His unnamed companion joined in and they managed to relocate the debris to one corner of the room.

A few hours passed as they cleaned and reorganized the temple shrine, but they at least managed to clear a space around the statue. Scott even used his old tattered T-shirt to wipe down the neglected statue of the goddess.

“There, it’s not perfect, but I feel better about it now.” said Scott.

The girl looked at him then to the statue, and then back to him. “Say, what’s your name traveler?”

“Ah, Scott.” he said.

“Ah-Scott? What an odd name.”

“No, it’s... just Scott. How about you, may I have your name?” he asked, a soft smile upon his lips.

She smiled at him in kind then lifted her gloved hand toward him. “My name is Rhea, Rhea Ardente. It is nice to meet you, Scott.”

Scott took her hand and shook it in a friendly manner. She looked surprised for a moment then gripped his hand heartily. Despite her delicate looks, she had a surprisingly firm hand shake.

She blushed at him then shook her head. “Not exactly what I expected you to do...”

“Oh?”

“Well, yes. Isn’t the gallant janitor supposed to kiss the hand of the fair maiden?”

“I’m a janitor now?” he asked.

Rhea laughed softly. “Yes, well you did clean the place up did you not?”

“You helped.” Scott pointed at her and smirked.

“This is true, but I am still a fair maiden and it is the responsibility of the gallant janitor to kiss the fair maiden’s hand when she presents it. It’s like a rule or something.”

Scott snorted at her. “A rule, is it? Isn’t the fair maiden supposed to.... to... Hmm.”

“Yes?” she asked with a hint of amusement in her voice.

“I’ll think of something, just give me a minute!” Scott laughed a little at his ineptitude. Why couldn’t he manage to come up with something witty!

“Yes, yes. Of course you will.” She patted his hand like a grandmother consoling a child. 

A lull entered the conversation for a moment, but Rhea decided to break the silence. “So, what sort of blessing did you need anyway?”

“Oh, yeah. I wanted to train my spells a bit, but my mana regeneration is so low that it would take weeks to use them enough to do anything.”

“You’re a mage, then? I mistook you for a fighter with your current equipment.”

“I’m actually a sorcerer.”

She blinked. “Ah, that’s fairly rare around here. Hybrid classes aren’t popular.”

“I noticed. It has been difficult to find an adventuring party, so I have had to fight solo.”

“Yes, I have something of a similar issue due to my hybrid class.”

“I find it hard to believe that you would have any trouble finding a party to join.” remarked Scott honestly.

She snorted loudly. “Oh, I get far too many offers. The problem is that those offers aren’t for a real combat position. The offers are for a different sort of position, and I am just not that kind of girl.”

“So, you can’t get people to take you seriously as a fighter?” Scott could understand that problem quite well.

“Yes, that is the case. I’d like to find an adventuring party to join that is filled with worthwhile people, but most of what I have found around here are horny goats in armor.”

Scott laughed at the image that popped into his head. It was the image of an armored goat chasing after the girl while it bleated to get her attention. “Well, send them to Victory Station.”

“Oh, why?”

“The grass in the grasslands has grown a lot in recent days. I figured they could use a few horny goats to clear some of that away.” said Scott.

Rhea snickered then placed her hand to her mouth and giggled loudly at the image. It was quite the thought.

“Every group I meet either laughs at me, or they want me to pay them money to carry their crap loot items.” said the sorcerer.

Rhea shook her head. “Scams and morons. I swear, it’s been hard to do much since those silly rats and rabbits became afraid of me.”