I sat next to Rivi on a dimly outlined road stretching through a waste of black volcanic rock and grey-green moss, our thighs softly touching as she began her story of the past.

"Well it all started when Noe decided to send me out of the house for some real-world experience. Up to the point in the first couple millenia of our rule, I'd been pretty lax, traveling around the continent with my sisters helping them with tasks here and there as well as occasionally overseeing my floor in the dungeon, but I didn't really have any responsibilities that were truly my own.

"Eventually Noe got anxious about my 'future growth potential' or something and decided to send me to the Continent of the Gods to spy on the development of the newly formed human pantheon as the aftershocks of the Fall of the Gods had finally settled down and they were starting to coalesce power.

"Of course, I didn't take the assignment that seriously at first." She rubbed her knees, a sadness dwelling in her eyes as she talked. "It felt like the first time I was truly on my own away from my sisters, so I…well, I was quite frivolous, I suppose.

"I started taking lovers and making friends in the south of the continent. And, well, not everyone wanted to move around constantly like I had been doing at first, so I settled down for a bit. My strength naturally made me the target of both the strong and the weak. As the years went on and the number of defeated challengers grew, the village we built to provide ourselves with some food and shelter gradually grew into something…a lot more than that.

"A town grew up, and then a city. Famine, wars, unrest, strife. Gradually one thing or another drew more and more people under our wing. And with me as muscle and my lovers as administrators things were pretty peaceful, and eventually even pretty prosperous.

"But mortals grow old, and not everyone wants to turn undead even if you offer it to them. There was one girl in particular she…" She looked out at the wastes, hesitating. "She was my queen, we…raised a child together, an orphan we took in off the streets. They were supposed to be my heir when I inevitably stepped away, but Oelania she...was worried for the kid, wanted me to stay and watch over her.

"I…didn't really think about the consequences that might have.

"It's not too unusual for gods to raise civilizations themselves. It provides a stable foundation for faith as well as plenty of mortal resources should they ever be needed. The gods…our authority over our domain is related to people's belief in us. A faithless god finds their power slippery to maintain at best. It's why Our Lady maintains her power throughout the Lost Continent, and why the human gods formed a pantheon for mutual support. It's also why the Fall of the Gods is one of the darkest periods in recent human history. Our wars with one another have a way of naturally spilling over into the mortal realm.

"Naturally I wasn't raising my kingdom for that reason. I just had some people I cared about, and like a stone dropping into a pond, my presence inevitably created ripples. But…I wasn't a wise ruler like my sisters are. I never thought about the consequences of my actions, I just…existed, and tried to adapt to whatever fate threw my way.

"With strength like mine that was always more than enough…until it wasn't.

"Eventually the human gods took a notice to what I was doing, and invited me into their pantheon thinking I was one of them. Oelinia at this point had passed away, and my daughter Evera had stepped up onto the throne. But keeping to my promise to protect her I had stuck around and the people revered me at least as the founding ancestor, if not as an outright deity.

"I took some time then to meet with the human gods and figure out their situation, as I hadn't totally forgotten about the task Noe had given me, but I didn't really take it very seriously as I knew I wasn't one of them, and I still viewed my residence on the continent as temporary, despite nearly a century having already passed since I first arrived on its shores.

"So when they offered a place in their pantheon, I turned them down, and, uh, well, I was a bit rude." She scratched her chin with a light chuckle. "The older gods didn't really care, but the younger gods…they were hungry for more power, and stepping outside of their protection...Well, I guess I painted a huge target on my back.

"Demigods…those with incomplete divinities tend to be very aggressive for more power. With true divinity just a step away it feels stupid not to reach for it, and typically the only way to do that is to others with divinity and take it for themselves. Of course, not every shard of divinity is compatible with one another. But there's always trade, and any shard is a powerful bargaining tool even among true gods."

"I've been meaning to ask," I interrupted as she began wandering a bit from her story. "Just what are shards of divinity? Do they always come with parallel minds? And why are some not compatible with others?"

Rivi smirked. "It's not every day you come across a demigod who doesn't know anything about divinity. I really don't know what that bastard Draugner is up to to put himself at such a risk." She shook her head. "He may maintain his control over his divinity now because of his foundation of faith and the control he maintains over the shards in the other Summoned, but if he loses more like this he won't have any authority left."

She sighed. "Sorry, I seem to be in a rambly mood. To answer your question, legend says that the shards of divinity are fragments of the True Creator. An omnipotent being who apparently fashioned the world from his own soul, splitting apart and falling to the earth as stars. Or some such thing, in truth nobody really knows. All we know is that each shard has its own true domain and carries a portion of the power of that domain, which can be fused with a soul to strengthen it.

"But even fused the shard never disappears, only takes on a different kind of form. As an incarnation you might say that I am the child of one of the shards of Death and the original Melphinoe, but with the difference being that my being is dependent on both of them for my survival. If one dies, I will die too, though there has never been a known instance of a shard being destroyed."

"As for your shard, it's of the Mind domain. Normally incarnations do not wake up to themselves until full divinity is achieved. At best powerful demigods can achieve a split-mind technique that mirrors the power of divine incarnations, but with the difference that the copies are not truly self-aware. They can carry the mental and physical capabilities of their hosts, but their willfulness is lacking, they will only ever follow, never command.

"Your little parallel is different, because of a special effect of the Mind domain shards. Even without full divinity she's truly her own person and as such can act in her own interests. Each domain's shards are like that—they all give general boosts to one's power and potential, but each carries unique perks that can contain great power.

"The Mind domain's shards are special because there are so many of them, and they each give birth to a new mind. Death's domain shards are special because they each give one authority over a different domain of undead and are the prerequisites for creating 'perfect undead' without true flaws or drawbacks except for the emotional or mental ones we've already talked about."

"Anyways," Rivi sighed, and for the first time since I'd met her she looked tired, truly tired, like she could pass out right now if given the opportunity. "What were we talking about? I feel like I'm forgetting something…" She rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Your kingdom?"

"Ah right! The fall of the Kingdom of Erlania," She closed her eyes leaning back against the hard ground. "Sorry, let me continue…"

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