Title: Temporary Home.
…
GROAN*
Leucadius awoke with a groan, his senses gradually returning to him like scattered pieces of a puzzle falling into place. As consciousness washed over him, he became aware of a dull ache pulsating through his body, a reminder of his recent escapade.
With a slow, deliberate movement, he pushed himself upright, his muscles protesting the sudden exertion. Rubbing his eyes to dispel the remnants of sleep, Leucadius took a deep breath, filling his lungs with air.
It was then that he realized that unlike before, the air that went into his lungs were so cool and refreshing. It was a stark difference from the one he had mildly gotten used to on Earth.
"Where am I now?" He asked no one in particular as he tried to perceive his surroundings with his newly acquired ability.
It was then he discovered that he was lying on a lush bed of grass, encircled by tall hedges, flower bushes, and shrubs.
The flower beds are clearly in need of a little care, but they're hanging in there; they're giving off a plethora of scents. The hedges, flower bushes, and shrubs reach 1.2m/4ft high, but will reach far higher if they're allowed to.
A single path, marked with round stones, curled around the garden, beckoning people to explore the garden, and showing them the best sights at the same time.
Plants, grass, and roots have yet to try and creep and crawl their way around the garden, probably held at bay by some… intervention.
"You're finally awake." A soft voice voice sounded next to him causing him to tense a little at the suddenness of it all.
That slight tenseness however, caused him to recoil in pain which led to another groan.
"You shouldn't move around carelessly." The voice sound once more, but this time, Leucadius was able to 'see' the owner.
"Gaea?" He asked as his Mind's Eye locked onto the woman who appeared to be standing at 12 feets looking down on him.
"You're one interesting anomaly…you know that right?" Gaea asked as her figure shrunk until she was able to observe Leucadius like a normal human.
"Anomaly?" Leucadius asked with a strange tone as he made to stand up once again.
"Stop. If you push yourself, you might cause permanent damage to you body."
"Don't worry about that. I can manage." Leucadius said with a stiff smile and closed his eyes to get his cosmic energy back into its seal only to be hit by a searing pain that caused him to go unconscious momentarily.
"Wha- What was that!?" Leucadius asked in both shock and confusion. His eyes reddened due to the pain that has just assailed his brain.
"That…is your energy refusing to be shackled." Gaea said softly and placed her palm on his chest. As she did that Leucadius felt a soothing energy pour into his body and calm the bone crippling pain he was enduring.
"What are you talking about? I didn't shackle it, I merely gave it a place to stay for the meantime." Leucadius said with a soft groan. Due to the effect of Gaea's healing hands, he felt a sense of comfort he hadn't felt before.
"That might have been the case in the past, but with the evolution in your Mental Energy…"
"It felt I locked it away to be used at my own convenience?" Leucadius completed.
"Perhaps. I don't know. I just know that it won't calm down no matter what I do." Gaea said with a shrug and took her hands off his chest. "That will suppress the pain momentarily. You need to figure out a way to calm it down…permanently."
Saying that, she stood up and turned to leave.
"Wait!"
"Hmm?"
"Can't you help me out somehow? I don't understand what's going on."
"And you assume I would?" Gaea asked with a sneer on her face.
"Of Course. You're mother Gaea. Elder Goddess of the Earth itself. If you have no idea on what's going on, I doubt anyone else does." Leucadius said with a smile as he sat up.
"Don't you know it's rude to mention a Lady's age?" Gaea turned around and glared at him causing him to smile even more.
"But you're no Lady, Gaea. You're a Goddess. All-Mother even. Mother of Gods and Shaper of the This Very Earth." Leucadius said with an even more sincere smile causing Gaea to freeze.
Despite her old age, she hadn't received this level of flattery from someone with so much sincerity. Anyone who did usually did so with something in mind.
This kid however, directly insulted her and gave a flattering reason on why he did. And surprisingly, she wasn't aversed to it.
"Even so. I'm still a Lady."
"Hmm. Then would you prefer I call you Lady Gaea or Mother Gaea?"
"Mother!" Gaea immediately answered as soon as Leucadius asked the question. For a certain reason, she felt it was more intimate than way.
"Then wouldn't you help out this little child of yours, Mother?" Leucadius asked, this time, with a pitiful look on his face.
"Yo..you are…something." Gaea said before she sighed and walked back to him. A small(large) stool made of earth rose up from the ground allowing her to sit down beside his bed.
"Do you know what energy makes up the Universe as we know it?"
"Cosmic Energy." Leucadius replied causing her to nod.
"But other than Cosmic Energy, there are also other forms of Energy like Spiritual Energy, Divine Energy, Mystical Energy and Dark Energy. Of course there are others but these are the ones to note."
"Cosmic Energy is a fundamental force that permeates the universe, often associated with celestial beings and cosmic entities. It is derived from the vast energies of the cosmos and is capable of manipulating the fundamental forces of reality, such as time, space, and matter." Gaea said with a low tone.
Leucadius picked up on this as he felt a slight feeling of anger coming off her as she mentioned that. But being the sensible person he was, he decided to ask later rather than now.
"Then there's the Spiritual Energy. It encompasses the mental and spiritual aspects of existence. It is derived from the collective consciousness of sentient beings and encompasses emotions, thoughts, and psychic abilities."
"Unlike Cosmic Energy, which operates on a cosmic scale, Spiritual Energy is more intimately connected to individual beings and their inner selves."
"Divinity, or Divine Energy, is the power wielded by gods, deities, and divine beings."
"Like yourself?" Leucadius asked with a tone of surprise but She shook her head.
"What I possess is Cosmic Energy, but this isn't about me. Don't interrupt me." Gaea said while glaring at him causing Leucadius to chuckle wryly.
"Divinity is a source of immense power, capable of shaping reality, and manipulating certain elements related to said power."
"I don't think I understand." Leucadius said. He was genuinely confused. Since Cosmic Energy could affect reality and Divinity could too, why was Cosmic Energy of a higher grade than Divinity?
"You're probably wondering why Cosmic Energy is of a higher Grade than Divinity…right?" Gaea asked and Leucadius nodded
"Well, as I said, Cosmic Energy is the Energy of the Universe itself. Divinity on the other hand, is a source of power. It's like your immense Spiritual Energy, but more…physical." Gaea tried to explain.
"I don't think I follow." Leucadius said with a deadpan expression.
"Sigh. Think of it this way. Cosmic Energy is the father, Divinity is the son. All living things possess Cosmic Energy, but when it is personalized, it becomes Divinity."
"So…should I attune my cosmic energy to the Earth, I could get a divinity over the Earth?" Leucadius asked and Gaea nodded. "It's that simple?"
"Yes…and no. You were engineered into this form by those pesky ones, so while you focus on attuning yourself to an element, Divine beings are literally born with that attunement from the get go."
"Woah…is that like…cheating?" Leucadius asked but Gaia shook her head.
"It's not. Take me for example. I possess Cosmic Energy due to my relationship with the Demiurge(Chaos). My Children, although not born with Divinity, were influenced by my Cosmic Energy and were all physically strong."
"Their children however, were then born with Divinity."
"So Divinity is like a Recessive Gene?" Leucadius muttered to himself.
"Huh?"
"I mean, since it didn't appear in your children, it must have been blocked by something. A Dominant Gene which could be your Cosmic Energy which they possessed, but limitedly." Leucadius tried to explain to which Gaea nodded in understanding.
"Then it appeared in your grandchildren…perhaps because your children married each other, so their limited Cosmic Energy either clashed, erased each other and gave way to Divinity or they mutated and formed Divinity."
"I see. A sound logic. It's likely that it mutated since my grandchildren are all astronomically stronger than my children." Gaea said with a sense of pride.
"Then Divinity could be the mutation of Cosmic Energy…is it an upgrade or a downgrade?"
"A downgrade." Gaea replied instantly.
"Oh? Why is that?"
"Because while Divinity grants one an attunement to one or two natural forces, Cosmic Energy holds dominion over those natural forces…with some being capable of Creation." Gaea said with pride.
She had after all been the one to create the species that will later come to be known as humanity.
"So in the long run, it is similar to Spiritual Energy." Leucadius came to his own conclusion.
"Hmm. With proper mastery, one's Mental Energy could rival Divine Energy." Gaea affirmed.
"That's good to know. How about the other forms of Energy?" Leucadius asked again. "Mystical and Dark Energy."
"Ah. Those two…hmm. There's not much to be known about them actually. Take it as a form of Science. You Deviants excelled in that Field." Gaea said only to receive an eye raise from Leucadius.
"That doesn't explain anything." He said, causing Gaea to sigh.
"You brat… Mystical energy is any form of energy imbued with magical properties. It is often used in spellcasting and enchantments. It is drawn from mystical dimensions and sources of arcane power."
"Oh? That's interesting. Which is stronger between it and Cosmic Energy."
"Are you stupid or just pretending to be?"
"Huh?"
"I just said it's any form of energy imbued with magical properties. So if you imbue Cosmic Energy with Magical properties…"
"It becomes Mystical Energy." Leucadius replied. That sounds underwhelming for some reason.
"It is…but don't be mistaken. Depending on its source of power, mystical energy can be quite dangerous."
"How so?"
"Take for example. I grant you access to my cosmic energy…what would happen if you manipulate as you desire on Earth?"
"I'd…probably be invincible."
"Exactly. But should you leave Earth, while you still have access to it, you lose its protection. Also, I could also decide at my whim to cut off that connection." Gaea explained.
"Then a binding contract will do."
"Hmm. But not all cosmic beings are tolerable to beings lesser than them. There are also a huge number of Cosmic beings out there that… forget it. You won't be needing it since you have your own source of energy."
"I guess. Then Dark Energy?"
"That's just the opposite of Cosmic Energy. If Cosmic Energy is good, Dark Energy is bad. It's that simple…You should have nothing to do with it…am I clear?" Gaea said, sounding like a mother admonishing her kid.
Leucadius could only roll his eyes and nod. It's not like there'll be anything that'll make him turn to Dark Energy while he has an abundance of Cosmic Energy wasting away in nearly every corner of the Universe.
"So? Are there any other types of Energies?" Leucadius asked and Gaea nodded.
"A lot, Quantum Energy, Kinetic Energy, Potential Energy, Gamma Radiation…didn't you learn all this in Lemuria?" Gaea asked as she looked at him weirdly.
"For the umpteenth time…I was a reject. I didn't go to their fancy schools or have access to any Technological knowledge." Leucadius sighed and looked at Gaea with a frown.
"But you seem like an intelligent one. It's a good thing I always keep a copy of every interesting thing you Humans come up with." Gaea said and waved her hands in the air causing reality to fade away as they both found themselves in a humongous library.
Leucadius who was previously sitting on a bed made of grass now found himself on a wheelchair made from some unknown materials, as he looked at it a bit curiously, his Skill made to activate but Gaea placed a hand on his shoulder.
"I don't know what you're about to do, but I'd advise against it until you've sorted out yourself."
"Hmm. Thanks."
"Then for the meantime, get yourself acquainted with the building. It'll be your new home from now. All the knowledge on both Science, Technology And Magic you Deviants and the Atlanteans discovered are all here." Gaea said and turned to Leucadius once more.
"Take as much time as you need. Also, refrain from using that Mental ability of yours. I don't know what it is but it gives me a weird feeling."
"What? A weird feeling?"
"Hmm." She nodded and looked into the skies within the Library. "I can't place my finger on it but it's there…just be careful."
"I will." Leucadius replied. He could feel her genuine concern for him at that moment and True to what she said, he actually found it a bit annoying and…creepy.
Although it was his ability, not being able to control it was annoying and activating on its own despite knowing it could kill him was downright annoying.
Shaking the thought out of his head, he turned to the Library and smiled. "I guess I have to go old school for a while now."
"I don't know what that means, so I'm going to leave it to you. If you feel the need to eat, you can always help yourself out in my garden. In this part of the galaxy, I boast the most exquisite fruits." Leaving that sentence, she disappeared from the library.
"Oh? Then I'll hold you up on that." Leucadius said with a smile before Willing his Wheelchair forward.
…
"That kid…didn't I just tell him not to use his mental strength?" Gaea sighed but shook her head moments later. "At least he's not using that Ability. I wonder what it is. He actually created a World within himself…How Godly is that ability?"
***
Read extra 10+ Chapters on my Patre@n
patreon.com/JoshRichie2.
buymeacoffee.com/JoshRichie