Chapter 18: 550th Day

Hephtas was tired. He was tired of the all the political ploys and power struggles that went on in the Tower of the Gods. So, he buried himself in his forge, and refused to come out.

He refused to make anymore weapons for the Gods to kill each other with. He refused to answer prayers of his followers. Hephtas wanted no part in the new world the Gods had made for themselves.

Hephtas was the Grandmaster blacksmith of the Heavens, and the only blacksmith that could forge Godsteel. Even his son, Bo, wasn't able to grasp the concept.

The weapons of Hephtas were legendary, and he absolutely refused to make another. Although he'd make anything else for them, it was his weapons that were wanted the most. The Gods were furious, but they could do nothing but beg.

Hephtas sighed as he struck his hammer to the anvil. His dark hair and soot covered face catching the light of the forge.

To him, all the Gods had fallen, and the Heavens were not what they used to be. Soon, he would give most of his Essence to his son, and lay down his hammer for good. He felt like his purpose in life was finished.

That was until he received a very special visitor.

"Hello old friend..."

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".....!"

Hephtas looked up from his work to find a face he'd never thought he'd see again.

"Tegaia...what are you doing here? I thought you'd..."

"They couldn't be rid of me that easily."

Hephtas shook his head as he laughed for the first time in years. It seemed his hammer would see more work before the day was through..

"What can I do for my favorite Goddess?"

"I need a new weapon and armor."

"At once!"

Hephtas cast aside his vow without hesitation. The Goddess of War had come. Anything made by a lesser smith wouldn't hold against her fury. And he knew, whatever her cause, it was just.

"I need it as soon as possible, I want to be long gone before they notice I'm missing."

"Where have you been all this time?"

"I've been sweeping the lower floors, bidding my time."

"Sweeping floors!? How much humiliation must the so called Gods deliver before they're satisfied!"

"Peace Hephtas. Their time will come. Would I be standing before you were it not true?

"Indeed, but where are you going?"

"Do you truly wish to know? Gods have been cast out for knowing less information. I don't know what they'd do to you..."

"Let them come. The only wrath I fear is yours." Hephtas said with a look of resolution in his eyes.

Tegaia nodded, Hephtas had always been fearless. "I'm going to find our friends. Thena may be in power, but she can't strike without cause. And I don't intend to give her one unless I know I'll emerge victorious."

"Wise as always...."

"Flatte-"

Tegaia's words stopped in her throat as she looked at the wall of the forge. There was a sword hanging from it. It was a simple sword, yet there was an elegance in its simplicity. The polished Godsteel shined like a mirror in the light of the forge.

Tegaia reached out with trembling hands. When she touched it, tears streamed down her face as memories and emotions washed over her.

Hephtas watched in silence. His own eyes threatened to brim over. A weeping Goddess of Love had that effect on people.

"Where did you find it?" She whispered.

"After the battle...if you want it...."

Tegaia shook her head. "No, let it rest as he does."

"Aye."

Tegaia sat down in the corner of the forge as Hephtas set to work. A forgotten fire had been rekindled in her eyes. The Godly light in them shined brighter than it had in years.

'Your time will come, Thena. As sure as the sun sets, your time will come!'

---

Far north, in the Kingdom of Todos, was the Mountain of Yune. Near the top of the mountain, hidden in the forest, was a waterfall gathering into a clear pool.

The waterfall was half frozen, and in the pool was an elderly man swimming on the surface. He ducked underneath the water, then flipped, and kicked off the wall into the opposite direction. It was a scene of serenity, completed with a statue under the waterfall.

The statue depicted a warrior clad in full steel armor, with a combined set of twelve rings on its limbs. The serenity wouldn't be complete with that alone. It was the child on the warriors shoulders that completed the atmosphere. The child, in similar armor, clinged to the warrior under the falls.

If anyone saw the statue, they would think of a father and his son, training in meditation. Unfortunately, truth is stranger than fiction.

Truthfully, anyone seeing the old man would think he had a death wish, swimming half naked in freezing water. They wouldn't know that the reason the water hasn't frozen already was because of him.

If anyone looked closer at the statue under the waterfall, they would clearly see steam rising up from it. Then the fact that it was actually two statues would flair the curiosity of onlookers, drawing them closer. Only then would they realize that they weren't statues at all. They were a man and a child, enduring the pounding of the waterfall.

Who would suspect it to be a scene into the daily life of a legendary swordmaster and his pupils?

After learning how to swim from Thadius, Corban set out to use his new skill as his students trained. Though after a few hours, he called for them to come out.

Thadius climbed down from the boulder, the steel bands of his armor rubbing against one another. Yuna clung to his head with her hair falling down to his waist. He was thinking about the conversation he had with Curtis yesterday about his stats. He had looked at them for the first time in almost two years in-game.

"View stats and skills."

[

No Title

CLASS Disciple of the Iron Dragon

NAME Thadius RACE Human

FAME: 0 LV. 1

HEALTH 7700/7700

MANA 1350/1350

STAMINA 12540/12540

VITALITY 770 STRENGTH 1572

DEXTERITY 1042 WISDOM 21

INTELLECT 18 LEADERSHIP 0

CHARM 34 FAITH 502

*FIGHTING SPIRIT 2932

MAGIC RESISTANCE

ICE 99% FIRE 0% EARTH 0% DARK -5%

WIND 0% LIGHTNING 0% HOLY 5% WATER 0%

+Weapon mastery skills gain x10 EXP

]

[

Passive:

Sword Mastery LV. 100 Master

Shield Mastery LV. 100 Master

Dagger Mastery LV. 48 Expert

Dual Wield Mastery LV. 52 Expert

Cooking LV. 73 Advance

Tailoring LV. 1 Novice

Active:

Fighting Aura LV. 72 Expert

Controlled Breathing LV. 100 Master

Meditation LV. 42 Advance

Concentration LV. 76 Expert

Sense Presence LV. 90 Expert

Hide Presence LV. 81 Expert

Slash LV. 12 Intermediate

Dragon Claw LV. 22 Intermediate

Dragon's Path Completion 64%:

Dragon's Scales Mastered

Dragon's Tail Mastered

Dragon's Fangs 49% Mastery

]

Thadius still couldn't help being a little disappointed. Curtis told him that most stats maxed out at 9999, with the max level rumored to be 1000.

Even his highest stat was something commonly found among higher level players.

In the end, the only thing he could be proud of was his Fighting Spirit and Faith, which were passive stats. Since passive stats can't be raised manually, they max out at 999.

*FLASHBACK*

"Your Fighting Spirit is at what!?" Curtis asked after he told him.

"2932."

"Jeez, I'd heard about 'broken' stats, but that's ridiculous."

"'Broken'?"

"You have a star next to your Fighting Spirit stat right? That means it 'broken'. 'Broken' stats have had their cap removed, so they'll continue to rise forever."

"Whoa..."

"Yeah. It's pretty rare too. Though I've never heard of a passive skill being 'broken'. Most of them aren't that useful to begin with."

*FLASHBACK END*