In the command hall, eastern city.
"So, are you the man prophesied by the gods?", asked the priest sent by the people of the southern mountain ranges.
"That's what the prophecy says", I said reassuringly, while the High Priest nodded beside me after hearing our conversation translated by one of our priests. I had told the envoys about the prophecy, about the knowledge I possessed, and, recalling the first meeting of our people's leaders, I told them about the questions I had asked the High Priest when I was less than a year old.
They continued to question the High Priest about whether what I was telling them was true, even making him swear by our gods, to ensure that this was all a ploy to take over his people. However, the High Priest continued to tell them a few extra anecdotes to convince them.
"I think it's possible that you are the prophesied one of your people, but our gods are very different from yours. I don't understand what your prophecy has to do with us", the priest said skeptically.
"Before I answer that, I'd like to know, how many days do you plan to stay?", I asked.
"We have provisions for the round trip; we weren't planning on staying", said the leader sent by his people.
"I would appreciate it if you could stay a couple more days so we can talk and show you a few things. Of course, all your food will be on us, and we will also send gifts for your people", I said cordially, inviting them to stay.
"Yes, you can help us with food; I see no problem with staying", said the leader sent.
"That sounds great to me", I told them both, pleased with their decision.
"High Priest, I would like you to show the sent leader around the village while I stay and chat a little with the priest about the gods", I told Simte.
"No problem, Son of Heaven", he replied.
Part of the group left the command center. The leader, along with some spear-wielding warriors, followed him for protection, while his priest stayed behind with some warriors for safekeeping.
"Dear priest, I would like to speak with you alone for a moment. Only this priest will stay for my care; after all, I am still a baby. He will be unarmed; your guards can search him if they wish", I asked the priest. At first, he seemed reluctant, but after looking at me and the priest for a moment, he ordered his warriors to wait outside the building.
"Now that we are alone, I would like to ask you something, priest", I said, drawing his attention after his guards had left the room. "Do you know exactly what the language of the gods is?", I asked him in a mysterious tone. "Our language, of course", he assured confidently.
"In our case, we believed that too", I said playfully. "Another question: Do you have a God of the Sun and the Moon?", I asked.
"Of course, they are our main gods", he replied.
"Ours too", I said sarcastically. "Although I highly doubt, they understand sarcasm", I thought.
"Do you mean they are the same gods?", he asked, surprised, after some thought.
"It seems the gods have also blessed you with wisdom, dear priest. You are a lucky man", I said at his revelation. "What I mean is, for both peoples, the gods are beings of incredible power, wise, and kind, but they can also judge us for our lack of devotion. However, one thing the gods have in common is that they are eternal", I explained to the priest with an air of wisdom. "They existed when everything began, and they will be here when everything ends", I continued, seeing how he was trying to understand what I was saying. "Do your people believe they have been here since the origin of the gods?", I questioned the priest.
"Of course not. The gods brought us here after they created our world", he replied in a less effusive tone than his previous responses.
"That's what I mean. Our people were also brought to this world after they created it, its mountains, forests, rivers, and animals", I said, tying his answer into the idea I was developing. "The only difference lies in our language. Our bodies are the same, our children are born on the same number of moons, we grow and die in the same way. So why should the gods of our race be different?", I asked the increasingly astonished priest.
"I don't know", he replied, confused.
"Dear priest, I'm not questioning your faith. Nor do I want to force you to believe in our gods. What I want you to think, knowing that I was born with some of the knowledge of the gods, is that the gods are greater than us. They speak their own language, one that is impossible for us to ever understand. Even I, who have been prophesied, don't know the depths of their wisdom", I explained to the priest.
"Our people speak different languages, so when the gods communicated with our ancestors for the first time, we could only understand a fraction of the knowledge they gave us. Our people know some things about the gods that you don't, just as we don't know some of the messages the gods have left for yours", I continued when he didn't respond.
"That makes sense", he said after a couple of minutes of reflection.
"Dear priest, my intention in telling you this is not to convince you of anything. I only want you to think about the gods. In fact, this meeting between our peoples, which I requested, is solely intended to improve our relations and open trade routes between our peoples", I clarified to the priest. "I only spoke to you about the gods because I noticed that you are a faithful follower of them, for which they are surely very grateful, so that you could admire their greatness", I added in a friendly tone.
"It's a lot to understand", he said, somewhat shaken.
"And we have time to discuss it", I told him. "That's why I asked you to stay a couple more days. Now I will leave you free to tour the village with the rest of the envoys, and you are free to ask me anything", I offered the priest.
Three days later.
"We appreciate your hospitality. Your new food is incredible. I've never tasted that stew before. I wish I could take some of it home with me", said the leader sent by the southern people, lamenting that he couldn't bring the food home to his family.
"No need to lament. You are our guests; we will welcome you whenever you want to come. Besides, very soon our southern city, which is your neighbor, will also have this food", I told him.
"I can't get used to it", he said in a low voice.
"I hope you're speaking in the best way", I said playfully.
"Hahaha… Of course, I said it that way. After all, you are the chosen one from heaven", he said, a little embarrassed.
"I regret our leader's actions", said the priest sent.
"I understand that it may be difficult to understand at first. If it weren't for the help of our High Priest, I don't know if it would have been so easy to make our people understand", I said ironically.
"I'll speak with our head priest about a meeting before winter arrives", he said, changing the subject. "However, for security reasons, we'll only be able to visit your southern city", he clarified.
"No problem. You can notify the leader of the southern city the day of the meeting, and we'll meet there. It would be an honor for me to meet him", I said without hesitation.
A month later, in the command hall.
"Welcome to our northern neighbors. It is a great joy that you have accepted the invitation of the Son of Heaven", said the High Priest.
"Son of Heaven?", asked the priest sent from the northern people.
"I suppose this will be the same as last time", I thought as I watched the priest's initial reaction.
A couple of days later.
"Young Chuta, I loved the food here. If trade routes included food, it would be the best our people have ever made", the sent leader told me as we said goodbye. "Very soon we will be able to fulfill your wish. We have been working on building boats to navigate the river to reach closer places", I told him confidently.
"Boat? Is it something like rafts?", he asked me in confusion.
"It's very similar, only it's more stable against the rapid currents of rivers", I explained.
"I see", he said as if he understood, but his face showed total confusion at the new word.
"Son of Heaven, this knowledge the gods gave you is incredible. Paper is very versatile, but the best of all is the language. Now we will be able to write the stories of our gods and the legends of our warriors", the priest sent me enthusiastically.
"It's good that you appreciated the knowledge of the gods. Very soon you will be able to access it; it all depends on the response of your priests and leaders. Remember that the gods are always judging us; we must unite as one people", I told them in a friendly tone that gradually turned into a warning. "I hope our people open their eyes. In any case, I'll organize a meeting for our priests after the winter", he told me hopefully.
"I look forward to the reunion. Safe journey", I said as we all said our goodbyes.
"It looks like a promising future awaits us", I said, standing next to the High Priest.
"That's right, Son of Heaven", Simte said.
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[A/N: CHAPTER CPMPLETED
Hello everyone.
First chapter in this new update schedule.
Chuta (the protagonist) is uniting the gods of these ethnic groups into a single pantheon, looking for similarities between them, and convincing people that the gods are the same, but the way they view them varies depending on the village.
Unnecessary fact of the day: did you know that many of these villages believed in similar gods, but the names varied, or perhaps the things they were involved in?
Read my other novel called The Walking Dead: Vision of the Future.
You can find it on my profile.]