Jebidiah's Change Bk. 01 Ch. 01

Polly, Charlene, and Stern finally arrived with their food to fill out their table. They greeted Jebidiah and congratulated his Awakened status, but he only gave half gestures as he was lost in his thoughts.

The senselessness of it all angered Jebidiah. Why were these odds immutable? Why the randomness of how the odds played out among his friends? He was closest to Dana and Crys, with Joy and Tenner close behind, but he also enjoyed the company of their other male pod member, Stern. Stern had drawn Ogre, which turned him into a massive man, but Ogre was borderline Truly Lost. Jebidiah could not recall having heard of any Light Ogres. Plus, Stern had drawn Warrior as a Talent, which increased his potential danger by at least a magnitude. His odds of surviving the tenday were practically zero. Why should Jebidiah get a pass while Stern pays the penalty?

Stern's nameday was the last among the pod, and Jebidiah guessed the others had not done the necessary math to figure out they would not be seeing him again after Judgment. He wasn't even sure the others would be upset, which depressed him further. His appetite evaporated as his emotional turmoil increased. Dana sensed his discomfort and gave him a reassuring hug. Finally, he'd had enough and announced he was tired and wanted to read.

Tenner, once again clueless to his or anyone else's mood, cheerily called out to him as he left. "Don't get lost in your books again. We'll have to send another search party."

The rest of Jebidiah's week continued with the same routine of eating, seeing who emerged from their Changing Room, and then hiding in his cot to read. He was an avid reader and burned through books at a pace few could keep up with. He loved books about philosophy and metaphysics, but when none were available, he also liked books on math theory and other hard sciences like physics and biology. Anything he could use to prepare for study as an Artificer. He did spare some reading time for the current pamphlets and broadsheets floating about so he could hold conversations with some of the other girls.

The privacy in the main dorm rooms was next to nonexistent, which meant Jebidiah was never really alone with his books. There was always someone around. It also meant there was little opportunity for Jebidiah and his girls to play their private games, including the favorite 'Who came first?' Sex was strictly forbidden until adulthood was reached, not puberty. The penalties could be pretty severe, especially in the case of accidental pregnancies. Mating rights could be revoked or denied, bonding denied, prison time, or even forced sterilization and indentured servitude in the brothels. That didn't mean that sexual activities were off the table. Tongues, mouths, and fingers tended to work wonders.

While full intercourse was punished harshly, even light activities would not go unanswered when caught. The punishments were more administrative or political but could still sting. The privacy levels in the creches and schools were hard to come by, so any dalliances tended to be quick. This caused their private games to trend more toward competitive orgasm, i.e., who could make the other come the fastest. Jebidiah jokingly referred to their games as team-building exercises.

With each day, more humans joined their respective tables. Crys never walked through the door as an Awakened, and by the end of the tenday, Polly, Joy, and Charlene had joined their table, making up their six expected humans. Henna did not.

The stress of it all had really worked over Jebidiah in the last days of the tenday as the Judgment drew near. The last night was filled with one of the strangest nightmares he had ever had. Forest animals chased him through the streets and avenues of the city, shouting mathematical formulas that all contained one-minute errors that would break them. He tried and failed to catch them as they weaved in and out of various shops in hopes he could correct their errors. All the while, a giant rabbit in the background kept chanting "Two plus two equals five" over and over again. Finally, he had chased a ram into a corner but tripped, falling to his hands and knees facing the ram. The rabbit laughed and said, "rules were meant to be broken," and the ram charged him. When their heads collided, he heard a sickening sound like a melon being dropped on the floor, and he woke with a blinding headache.

It was only this last morning when everyone's thoughts had turned to Stern. The rest of the pod finally realized that Stern would not be joining them ever again. "By the Divine's balls, Stern's a goner, isn't he?" Polly realized.

"Yes," Jebidiah simply stated, followed by a quiet sigh.

Dana looked at Jeb with concern. "Your head is always in your numbers, how long have you known? Is that why you have been avoiding us with your books?"

"I knew when I didn't Change." The suppressed anger began flaring again, his voice rapidly raising. "It's the fucking math and just like the Divines, math doesn't care. Neither gives a fuck if Stern is a better person, more Human, more useful than I am. They don't care what happens to Crys. They don't consider the love I have for Crys or any of you. And math is all I have to look forward to for the rest of my Divine-forsaken life." His fist slammed against the table, shaking plates, and the room quieted to stare. "Fuck the Divines!" Jebidiah stood, leaving his unfinished food behind.

"Jeb, please." Dana tried to reach out to him but missed his sleeve. "We still need you."

That brought the unwanted tears to Jebidiah's eyes. He paused for a second. "No Dana, there's no need for me." Then picked up his pace to leave the mess hall and return to his room.

Eyes blurred with tears, such was his rush that he failed to see the large mass entering the doorway at the same time as his exit. Even though Jeb topped out at 6'3", he bounced off the unyielding bulk of a man who grabbed and steadied Jebidiah.

"What's going on, Jeb?" asked the man, the voice breaking through Jebidiah's anger and grief.

"Stern?" Jebidiah's brain briefly locked up. "Stern?"

Stern grinned, "Yes, we established what my name was when we first met."

Finally Jeb's brain clicked back into gear. "Stern! What the actual fuck!"

-- Elsewhere --

The Divines all understood the Power had been set free as part of the Great Rending when the planet itself was pierced in battle with the Others. None knew if the Power caused the Rending to gain its freedom or if that freedom came as a side effect. The Divine's ascension, the series of events that gave them their current powers, was the result of what the Power called the First Trial. Amongst the Divine it was known as the Great Game. Two of those that ascended during the Trial were replacements, backups for the original chosen players that failed the Trial and perished.

The Power then educated the newly created Divine about the Others and the danger they represented to their reality. The sole purpose of elevating the Divine was to fight and destroy the Others. Everything else, their religions they started and their petty squabbles amongst themselves, was secondary. Twice since the First Trial a conjunction of significant events and alignment of celestial forces happened that allowed the Others to mount an attack on the Power.

The Divines would choose champions, which they all referred to as players, to represent their part in the defenses of the Power. The battles in the war would play out on the surface of Tresolmar in the material plane. There were times the danger was so great that it would require direct intervention of the Divines themselves making them vulnerable. The Second Trial saw two of the Divine be defeated and replaced while the Third Trial saw three more of the Divine replaced. Trials were a dangerous thing and not taken lightly.

They had all felt the stirrings of the Others and the two probing attempts to break through the weakening barrier. Each knew their partner and together ten new players were chosen. The new champions of the Power. The Great Game must be started.

Thoughts ripple across the void, swirling and congregating until a consensus is reached. A congress is required. Twelve pentagonal shapes slowly form, each with its own hue, until they create a dodecahedron floating in the void. The thoughts separate from each other and race to one of the twenty vertices, forming into globes ranging from the brightest white to the darkest black.

One of the brighter globes emanates a thought. "We are unanimous in our need for Congress. Events push our hands and several have begun choosing their players. Are there any objections to the Fourth Trial?"

A darker globe responds "I hesitate. The Others gather as well. They have already taken notice of the change in the rules. We were lucky to survive the last Trial. If this Trial fails even my luck may not be enough to save us."

The darkest globe adds its thought. "I thirst for events to come. Too long have I been held in check. Cast your dice and they will land where they will. The Power demands we find a way."

"I agree." comes from the grayest of the globes. "If it is our time to depart, that is the will of the Power. All things must end. The Judgment of the Trial must be passed if a solution for the others is to be found."

The hesitant globe responds. "Then let us begin. My die is cast."