Downfall And Rise Read online

“She would,” Stell rolled her eyes. “Anyway, there are some things I can do to try and figure it out from here. I was actually about to try and put out a Call to see if I could summon you anyway.”

  “Right. You said several worlds were in danger somehow.”

  “Not yet, but they will be, which makes this different. On one hand, I've never seen so many warning signs for so many worlds at once, and that's terrifying. But on the other hand, I've never had a Challenger show up so much earlier than the Tumults began, and that's wonderful. It means I have more time to train you, help you discover your unique powers. You could potentially become stronger than any Challenger I've ever trained, strong enough that hopping between different worlds to help all of them overcome their Tumults at once would be just a simple exercise.”

  That sounded disturbingly awesome. Like I was living through every empowerment fantasy at once, as the hero of all my favorite video games, also at once. I began to worry more and more that this whole thing was some kind of delusion on my end.

  “It sounds like you're really confident that I'll be able to save everyone that's everywhere. I hope that I can live up to that idea of a hero.”

  “Oh, I'm not worried about that at all,” Stell said dismissively. “I mean I would be if you were someone else. And I have to make sure that your body and skills will keep up with your goals. But I'm not worried about your inner mettle at all.”

  “Why?” I asked. “No offense, but I've talked to you twice, and it's not like you've had a chance to really see me under pressure.”

  “Not under pressure.”

  One of the eyebrows on her light-chocolate face rose a half-inch.

  “You're on a foreign planet for the first time, talking to a multi-bodied girl that changed her shape and skin color since the last time you've seen her, and is telling you that you're supposed to save the worlds-emphasis on the plural.”

  “Well yeah,” I replied, somewhat lamely. “But that's not the same thing as being in danger. No one's holding a weapon to my head right now. And besides, you said I can't easily die.”

  “No, I said the opposite. Dying is very easy. Most Challengers do it at least several times. By glossing over that fact, you're proving my point for me.”

  “Okay, fine,” I said. “I was trying to say that it wasn't going to be permanent, but I see your point. My point is that you're taking a lot of risks by just going with a guy who just walked in on his own. It's not like I brought a list of references with me.”

  “But you did,” Stell said with another one of her beautiful smiles. That was one thing that hadn't changed at all with her new look. “Every Challenger has two types of imprint on them, and once they enter Avalon the imprint lingers. With time and the right tools,” she gestured to the stones behind her. “I can read them.” She looked up and suddenly called out.

  “Lights!”

  The top of the ceiling suddenly twinkled, creating an odd sparkling effect over our heads that, combined with the blue glow that sprang up from the floor tiles, somehow gave enough light to easily see by. Stell touched the large stones by her, and they slowly sank into the floor. Another, larger stone rose out from the middle of the room, as if it was replacing them.

  “Even though you came into Avalon on your power somehow, you still left the same types of imprint every Challenger leaves. We call them Deeds and Renown. Deeds are the imprints left behind directly by the actions you do on another's behalf. They are by far the most important tool for measuring Challengers, because they record what you do no matter where you are or who is watching. I always try to read a Challenger's Deeds first, even though most Challengers come with only one or two. After they spend enough time here conquering Trials, that list tends to get much longer. Renown is the imprint people leave on Challengers by expressing opinions on them. If people are repeatedly talking about your exploits, or spreading the news of your exploits, then you're going to have a lot of titles from Renown. But since people tend to exaggerate a hero's deeds, a Challenger can have Renown for something he or she hasn't actually done. That's why I only examine a Challenger's Renown after I have seen his or her Deeds.”

  As the stone in the floor rose, I thought for a minute to make sure I understood all of that.

  “So when I came here, something was able to look at me and magically record everything I've ever done?”

  “Not exactly,” Stell shrugged, her dark hair bouncing a little as she did so. “It's more like your soul was writing a book based on what you did or what people said about you, and then gave everyone in Avalon a copy as soon as you came over. I'm not going to be the only one who can see it, and you have to actively do things to hide them. And it's not everything you've ever done, just things that felt especially meaningful to someone. Actually, that's really important. A lot of times I've had Challengers that performed Deeds they didn't realize were meaningful to someone.”

  “Can Deeds be bad, too?”

  “They can,” Stell said darkly. “Some Challengers find that they hurt someone they didn't mean to in the past when they look at their Deeds. And some other people, or creatures, perform actions so heinous that they wind up generating Deeds and Renown as well, even though they're not Challengers.”

  “That...feels invasive and useful at the same time,” I said to Stell. She gave me another raised eyebrow. “Well, on one hand, someone can find out things about me that I wished stayed private. On the other hand, if I actually have hurt someone, and didn't realize it, I'd really like to know, so that I can try and make it right somehow.”

  Also, could this somehow prove that this world was real and not a delusion of mine?

  I hoped so.

  “So you're about to show me my Deeds right now? And you've already looked at them, so you know whether or not I've hurt anyone?”

  She gave me another smile. This one actually seemed bigger, and brighter than her earlier smile. With her current dark skin it looked absolutely beautiful.

  “I have. And you really should stop worrying about that. In fact I've never been this excited about showing a Challenger their own Deeds before.”

  “Really?” I asked, puzzled. “Why?”

  “You'll see. Just wait for the stone to finish.”

  The stone kept rising. It was already up to my waist, and now that I looked carefully, I could see writing all along its sides. I watched it rise for a few more moments.

  “You look nice, by the way,” I offered.

  “What?” she asked, suddenly looking up.

  “The... change? Your new...appearance?” I tried not to wince as I thought up a way to say 'I like your new skin' without sounding like a creep or something even worse. “I don't understand how it happens, but I know you said your skin and body changes, and it looks really good on you, so I thought I'd let you know. Sorry if that came out weird.”

  But she was still smiling. Only now it was even wider, with her cheeks moving like two rising suns.

  “Thank you. That was actually really sweet. And I'm glad I get to see you today,”

  I must have been imagining things, because she almost sounded shy with that last sentence.

  Then, after trying so hard to not make any more creepy stares, my eyes inadvertently glanced at her torso, and I could finally read the writing on her shirt.

  Warning, OC it said, listing the abbreviation like it was a moving rating, such as 'R' or 'PG-13.' Then it went on to explain the rating.

  Overly Caucasian. Do not put on dance floor.

  She looked back up at me, and realized I was glancing at her chest.

  “Ummm,” she said.

  “Oh! Sorry!” I said in embarrassment. “But your shirt...”

  “Oh, right,” she said, no longer weirded out. “I forgot I wore that one today.”

  “Um,” I added. “You do know that Caucasian means...”

  She grinned at me, and after a moment we both laughed.

  We went back to silently watching the stone rise for a few moments, until i
t finally rumbled to a stop.

  “It's done!” Stell said excitedly. She actually clapped her hands, like she was about to unwrap a present. “Finally!”

  “Is it usually faster than this?”

  “It's usually a lot faster,” the woman said smugly. “Your list is really long.”

  “Really?” I asked. That didn't sound right.

  But she didn't answer, and instead stepped forward to touch an indented part of the stone. Blue light began to form along the scribbled writing. On the stone's top, writing, the kind I could actually read, began to rise, as if it were being projected by a screen.

  The Deed Records of Wes Malcolm

  18 years old

  Deed Level: Veteran Challenger

  Deed List:

  Steadfast Friend (Constant Action)

  Guide for the Lost (Thrice Over)

  Shield for the Harassed (Thrice Over)

  Flame Fighter (Once)

  Saver of Lives (Thrice Over)

  Brother to the Wounded (Once, Year-Long Action)

  Denier of Fear and Despair (Continuous, Daily)

  Denier of Those Who Assault (Twice)

  Orphan Shield (Continuous, Monthly)

  Widow Shield (Continuous, Monthly)

  Slaver's Bane (Continuous, Monthly)

  Builder of Villages (Continuous, Monthly)

  Skilled in Arts (Once)

  “Umm,” I said, as I looked at the writing in the air. “I've never been actually called any of these things. Ever.”

  “I know,” Stell said, still happily. “This is Avalon's direct expression of your deeds, created by its own interpretation from your actions. The personal titles will appear in a moment. Some will be just translations of what you've already seen, but others will be new because Avalon's didn't grasp their significance at first. I'll just read them out as I see them...”

  Her eyes began to dart back and forth as she went across the list. She still sounded excited and began to point.

  “See, at least three people call you a protector from bullies and mockers, so that explains 'Shield for the Harrassed'... Some of the same ones said you were their personal welcomer when they moved into your town... two women credited you from rescuing them from someone who was going to hurt them very badly, and that matches the assault-denier title...”

  “Two?” I cocked my head. “That doesn't sound right at all,”

  “Oh?” Stell said. “Should it be more? Not everyone recognizes the things you do for them.”

  “No no,” I said quickly. “I stood in front of three guys that wanted to take advantage of an unconscious girl during a party. But that only happened once, so I don't remember anything about a second girl. And for the first girl, all I did was stand in front of her and talk.”

  “I see,” Stell said calmly. “Did that make her any less saved?”

  “Huh?”

  “Would something bad have happened to her if you hadn't stepped in?”

  “I hope not,” I shrugged. “I'm pretty sure someone else would have stepped in if I hadn't.”

  “Then why didn't they?” Stell asked quietly.

  I didn't have an answer to that. I almost mentioned Davelon, and he would have acted, but he wasn't at that party to begin with.

  “And if it wasn't at personal risk to you, wouldn't someone else have at least done what you did, if what you did was so little?”

  I didn't have an answer for that either. So I just stood there for a moment looking like an idiot until Stell went back to reading.

  For some reason, she seemed to be smiling even wider at me. It reminded me the smile people sometimes make when they get to meet their favorite celebrity. But I had to be reading too much into that.

  “Three people say you literally reached through fire to save their, so that explains two titles. Are you going to say you don't remember that one either?”

  “No,” I admitted uncomfortably. “That one was Davelon's family. Their vehicle lit up after a real bad crash. Dad and I were able to pull them all out but his mom got burned badly on her legs and never walked after that.”

  That was a bad night, I remembered. One of the worst days except for Dad's death.

  And my accident.

  Davelon's mom kept clutching her legs, screaming for us to get her husband, get her baby. Davelon's father was half-consciously trying to help us, begging God not to punish his family for his mistake, and that he didn't mean to do it, even though the accident wasn't his fault.

  “Dad and I wished we could have helped Davelon's mom faster but yeah... I remember that one. No arguments around it.”

  That was one of the few things people actually did call me a hero about for a while. It went away eventually, and completely disappeared after Dad's suicide, but I remember the respect our actions used to earn us.

  “That's the last one, right?” I said uncomfortably. It brought back more bad memories than good.

  Aside from that, it was starting to feel like I had stumbled into a dream where someone spent the entire night telling me how I great I was. It was starting to worry me, and I was afraid if I were to admit it to a counselor she would use it to explain how I had some other major issue. But Stell didn't seem to notice my internal drama at all.

  “Of course not!” She said happily. “Look, I'm sure you usually get so much credit it embarrasses you, but Deeds and Renown are something I need to have the clearest understanding about. So just bear with me here.”

  She was still happy, but I was detecting an annoyed edge to her words.

  “And it's clear you're bent on completely ignoring all the accolades being heaped on you,” she added. “I get I'm maybe the thousandth person to be impressed with you, but we still need to go over this!”

  Thousandth person…

  I could only shake my head at that. There was so much wrong with that statement I didn't even know where to begin. So, once again, I shrugged.

  “Fine,” I said numbly. “Let's just get through this,”

  Her eyes dazzled a little less when she saw me shrug and lower my head. She cocked her own head, then bit her lip.

  “I'm sorry,” she said. “I got excited, and I didn't consider that this would make you feel uncomfortable. Look, most of these are incredible, but I can sum them up very quickly for you. Will that work?”

  “Sure,” I replied. “And thank you.”

  “Okay,” she took a breath. “Do you remember rescuing a dozen widows and orphans from slavery, feeding, protecting, and taking care of them for several years, and helping them form a community?”

  “What?” I balked at that. I saw the annoyance flash back over her face like gathering thunderclouds.

  “Oh, right, the scholarship,” I finally remembered. I put a hand over my face at the memories came back. “Sure, I guess that makes sense. Why not, if all the other stuff counts.”

  “Other stuff...” she huffed. “Okay, whatever. But what do you mean about a scholarship? This Deed looks like it came at cost to yourself, not as a benefit.”

  “Early on,” I began, taking a breath for the long explanation. “When I told my father I wanted to go to college, he made a deal with me. He explained that he already saved up enough money a long time ago for both me and my sister to attend most four-year colleges. But if we wanted to feel like we earned the money ourselves, he'd make it a game. We'd do work, either chores or actual jobs, to earn money. Then we'd work out some charities to donate that money to. The amount we'd donate, he'd match as a scholarship for us. Since my country's money was pretty valuable in certain other countries, my donations were able to do a lot of good, even though all it cost was me giving up a few songs, expensive meals, and other vanity items.”

  “So you got money for giving money?” She still looked confused.

  “No, an... emergency came up, and Dad … wasn't able to continue the scholarship. But again, it's not like I traveled to these countries and did those things. I just helped pay for them.”

  “You do
realize money's actually one of the best ways, sometimes the only way, to help someone, right?” Stell said seriously. “Some of the Trials coming up wouldn't be there in the first place if there were more resources to deal with them. And if you manage to solve a world-ending Trial with finding more resources instead of bloodshed I guarantee the inhabitants of that world will give zero complaints. Both Avalon and the people formerly in need have recognized you as playing a role in these people's rescue, and neither would do so if someone else had stepped up instead or if it had cost you nothing. And I'm noticing a pattern with you and great Deeds.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.