"My kin will be upset... But I suppose this is what we get for being weak." Hissed the strange woman, in response to me asking her if she'd like to strike a deal. She beheld me once more, her serpentine eyes studying my form with a bizarre detachment and near objectivity that I found amusing.

The coldness of her gaze made it feel as though she was actually assessing me pragmatically. I could admire that and allowed her to study me for a bit longer before doing something I felt I ought to do before we continued our conversation.

"As I told you previously, my name is Althos. And I know your name, Beithir." I told her, revealing that she was one of the creatures I had used my abilities on. Her eyes went wide again, and she looked at me in fear for a moment. Though I liked surprising her, I was a bit annoyed that the fear that she felt wasn't because she recognized my strength.

I could clearly tell she wasn't afraid of me because I was a god. She was afraid of me because she didn't know what I was, or how I knew the things that I knew. And the silly creature was still afraid of this dragon, Ygaynth more so than she was of me.

"I believe it is time that we negotiate." I proclaimed, confident that I could strike a deal with this odd creature. Beithir looked at me, anger in her gaze but she nodded at me and approached me openly.

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When the female lizard-creature was in front of me, I declared my intentions. I made no attempt to hide anything from her, and spoke to her as an equal.

"Beithir, I am a god. I am in the process of acquiring followers and building an empire. I am more than happy to make deals with evil creatures. I have no problem forgiving your past actions and working to save you." I told her, speaking frankly. Her personal vice was pride, and I knew that if I were to deal successfully with her than I ought to treat her with some respect.

She gave me a look that told me that she had questions about what I had just told her. I chuckled and waited for her to speak. When she did, her voice was respectful and inquisitive.

"Althos... I suspect your power is the real deal. I can... just tell." She said, speaking hazily for a second. She quickly regained her focus and spoke more sternly. "But what are you? What is a god?" She asked, genuinely curious. I laughed softly at her question, and considered how to best answer her question. It took me a few moments to come up with a real answer to it.

"A god is a higher-being. One of the many types of entities that vanished a long time ago. We can manipulate the system, and do many other things." I told her, while opting to manipulate the system to send her a message.

I activated my power to send messages remotely using the system and wasn't surprised when a textbox appeared in front of me, asking me to compose a message to send to her. I sighed, and quickly mentally scribbled a simple message.

[Gods are creatures of creation and destruction. They were the most powerful entities in the mythic age, alongside other lost species like demon lords, archdevils, elemental overlords, and other devastatingly strong creatures. They were once worshipped by quintillions of living beings throughout the multiverse.]

I chuckled and sent the message. I watched the lizard woman's eyes widen as she received the message I had sent her, and smiled at her.

"Gods possess an incredible diversity of abilities. One of them is that we can arise spontaneously. Which is what happened to me. I came to life a few days ago, and I am already powerful enough to begin to build an empire." I told the woman, speaking confidently and honestly.

She looked at me with an astonished and curious expression on her face. I could tell that she believed me, but I also sensed that she had questions for me. I grinned at her but the truth was that I also had questions for her. So I opted to begin to ask them.

"I believe it is my turn to ask you a question." I told her, before immediately asking her what I was curious to know.

"What is the deal your people made with Ygaynth?" I asked her, getting straight to the point. I didn't believe in not starting with such an important detail. This caused Beithir to cringe, and I could tell it was something she didn't want to reveal. But after a few moments where I just looked at her, quietly, she could tell that she had no other choice.

"Althos... Where we're standing right now was made by Ygaynth." Beithir whispered, speaking of that event reverentially. She looked at her allies, who gave her a neutral stare. There was something oddly cryptic about their reaction to one of their leaders. I had a feeling that I was about to receive a sort of secretive history lesson.

The lizard-woman glared at her companions, and she gestured at me like I was giving her no choice but to reveal the secret history of this region. I chuckled at her pointed gesture, though I made no effort to react to her actions.

"When my people first reached Puerto Rico, there were no human settlements here. We arrived on the island long before humans first left their little continent across the sea. We lived in caves until the day that Ygaynth first roared into the lives of our ancestors." Beithir told me, her serious tone causing me to stop even think snarky thoughts and listen to her.

"We lived in caves until the dragon arrived. He didn't arrive alone Althos. He was being pursued by dragon hunters." Beithir announced, speaking dramatically. And to this, I actually did react. Mostly because the way she spoke about it suggested that that was something I ought to be surprised by.

I shrugged at her, which caused her to look at me in disbelief. While she looked surprised at me, I sighed and began to remind her of something.

"I'm a few days old Beithir! You could write an endless number of books on the things I don't know. And that includes what dragon hunters are. Or rather... I can infer from the name and context of the history you're telling me what dragon hunters are, but I don't have the cultural or historical knowledge to understand why hearing that would shock me." I told her, annoyed at her surprise.

She listened to my explanation and then quietly mulled over my words. After a few seconds, she nodded at me, understanding my statement a lot more. She was silent for a second while considering how to best reply to me. When she did, a smile settled on her lips.

"A long time ago, this portion of the world was not inhabited by humans. At all. Only other things lived here. Things like my people. Humans came in pursuit of Ygaynth. And when he arrived, he saw my ancestors who had settled into their caves and lived relatively peaceful lives. But he came and made us an offer." She explained, opting to go back to the beginning and start over.

"He offered us a grander life. He said that he was tired of being hunted, and wanted to go to sleep. He informed us that he was going to tunnel through the island, and create a lair for himself. He asked if we'd come to guard his realm and capture sacrifices for him. We said yes, and so he granted us the power to tunnel through the earth and capture people to sacrifice to him." The lizard-lady revealed, speaking proudly of her people's bloody history.

"He awakens once naturally every few decades, and when he does we tunnel through to him to uphold our end of the bargain. But once after we didn't have the sacrifices we needed he reacted. And he reacted viciously. He ate many of our members, showing us the steep cost of failure." She told me, speaking sternly and frightfully when thinking of what'd happen if they failed to keep their end of the deal they struck.

"So the slaves you'd acquired were just going to be dragon food? That doesn't make me regret doing what I did." I told her, curious as to if there was some deeper meaning to all of this. She sighed and then began to laugh.

Her laughter was a harsh sound, like that of a dying animal. I wondered what she found so amusing because I wasn't amused by this. It took her a moment to regain her composure and pull herself back together. When she did she immediately began to speak to me once more.

"It's not about making you regret what you did, it's about explaining why I regret what you did. Why my people will regret it. And the truth is... A lot of people will suffer if Ygaynth decides to continue to rampage the next time he awakens." She explained, trying to get me to see her side a bit more. That said I wasn't about to passively accept her justifications for her behavior. I wasn't that nice.

"What you did was wrong. You took random people and enslaved them and you're just trying to justify it so that I'll stop my attack." I told her, not feeling inclined to do so now that I actually knew the annoying justification her civilization had for its immoral behavior. And I still had more to say.

"Plus, Ygaynth won't be a problem." I told her, speaking confidently. There was an arrogant smile on my lips and a glow in my eyes when I said this. She looked at me, intrigued by what I said.

"Oh? And why is that?" She asked, and I could tell by the gleam in her eyes, a strong glow that was surprisingly astute that she knew why.

"Because I am going to go and ensure that that dragon either never bothers you again, or never wakes up. And in exchange for that you all will join my empire. Those of you I let live anyway." I told her, grinning all while I spoke. And I had one more condition to reveal.

"In addition to that, I'll reanimate those of your people who already died as undead you can use to make up for the loss of labor that you have to deal with now that your slaves are gone. I recognize that slavery, though unpleasant, was seen as a necessity before. It's not now." I told her, speaking sincerely.

Beithir looked like she had something to say. There was a steely expression on her face and a flare of anger in her eyes.

"And if we say no?" She asked, sharply. I could tell this was her way of suggesting she planned to refuse my very generous offer. I smiled at her and chuckled.

"In that case you all die. Well... not all of you. I'd keep you alive. Or anyone who opted to accept my offer. Even the men, though they are unnecessary." I told her, speaking sinisterly and allowing myself to sound as evil as possible. My comment confused my audience though and one of them spoke up.

"Umm... What do you mean by 'unnecessary'? Men are pretty necessary!" He remarked, calmer than some of his fellows. There was an innocence to the question that made me chuckle. I turned to face the questioner and replied to him.

"Not for gods! I can cause someone to become pregnant, even a virgin. So long as one female is alive I can ensure the eventual regrowth of a population." I explained, hinting at the diversity of powers I possessed. I then turned back to Beithir with a smile on my face.

"Don't underestimate gods. I am a natural-born emperor with the ability to build buildings instantly, and so long as one woman exists, be it you or someone else, I can make full use of my powers to control your population. I could even render you immortal long enough to restore the population to this point and use my powers to make your child grow to adulthood almost instantly." I explained, making it clear that my powers allowed me to inflict a horrible fate on those I wished too.

The lizard-lady shivered when I informed her of this. I chuckled at her. She visibly deflated, sensing that her defeat was at hand now that she knew about some of the things I could do.

She looked to her companions once her, her people. There was a sadness in her gaze, and the sadder she looked the happier I did. I knew that I had won, that there wasn't a way forward for her people without me.

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In the safety of my mind, I realized something. This constituted the third time I was about to add territory to my empire. And it felt right. I wanted to celebrate it somehow.

I wondered how I could celebrate it. But the truth was, that I knew how I wanted too. It was just something dark.

I wanted to gain more servants. And I enjoyed the evilness of the servants I had already acquired. I liked the viciousness and the violence of my undead horde, the sophisticated evil and culture of the dark elves, and the basic evil of the reptilians I had defeated.

I also liked the casual evil of Sombra, my shadowy minion. I especially liked my shadowy minion, and indeed I felt bad that the thing didn't have more of a chance to shine.

A sympathetic part of me wanted the creature to have more allies. More peers. And I knew about three types of demons, in particular, that would be well-suited to serving me. Incubi, succubi, and of course praereptor demons. And I even knew about how to learn to bring them to this world.

Internally, I whispered to my pet. I did so soothingly and kindly.

"Sombra, I have a task for you." I told the demon. I felt its energy shift and turn towards me, turning away from the drama that was unfolding between myself and Beithir.

"Oh? Master, what is it?" The demon asked, speaking energetically and eagerly. I chuckled and began to question my minion.

"I believe that it's time that we bring more of your kind into the world. Together." I declared. Before I let the creature reply, I continued to speak. I had more to say.

"I possess a number of powerful abilities and things that I can influence. Among other things I am a god of dreams, undeath, darkness, evil, and lust. I want to summon demons that are like me. I want to summon more of your kind, but I also want to summon succubi and incubi." I declared, speaking honestly.

"Oh master, are you telling me the truth? If so, what a day! A chance to serve you and to fulfill my kind's purpose at the same time? Glorious! Truly glorious!" Sombra replied, catching me off guard with the sincerity and energy it showed me.

"And you even gave me a body! With a body I can make a demonic summoning circle myself!" It almost screamed in my mind. I chuckled, and spoke softly to it once more.

"Sombra, that is your task. I shall watch and learn from you, but go ahead and build a demonic summoning circle. Just not here. Not quite yet." I remarked. I had a place I wanted to put the circle. A special place. One I was about to build.

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I refocused on the scene in front of me and I began to do something silently.

I selected the area to my left and locked in on it. When I felt that I could do something with that area, I did the mental version of raising an arm and activated a potent power.

I silently activated my "Create building" power, and willed a large but ultimately simple building to be made out of the stones that made up the floor. Before the eyes of the gathered creatures, the stones beneath our feet began to shake.

The stones shook, and visibly changed. The gathered humanoids turned to face the source of the shaking. They watched as the stone changed and as it slowly began to rise out from the rest of the rock.

A simple structure, as plain as a wooden house but three times as large, rose up out of the ground. It was a windowless, plain place, and it suited me perfectly. It was made from onyx colored stones and rocks and thus matched the overall aesthetics of the rest of the cavern. I didn't mind that at all.

The thing continued to divinely clamber out of the floor. I watched this, excitedly, as what I was doing was creating the first-ever formalized seat of worship for myself.

I felt a surge of power flow into me, and after a second of contemplation I realized that I had gained the worship of one of the lizard-people who I had come to subjugate. And that only increased my triumphant mood further.

As the place continued to slowly climb out of the ground, I whispered a mental command to my shadowy servant. It was simple, but important.

"Sombra. Enter that building and go ahead and prepare a summoning circle." I informed my shadowy worshiper. I sensed the creature depart from my shadow and watched as some of the darkened floor at my feet became fluid and began to crawl towards the chapel I had created.

I grinned and turned back to face the creatures I was speaking too.

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"You all are not foolish. I know in your hearts that you have already accepted my deal. I am ready to put an end to the violence. I have even given you a gift." I said, arrogantly explaining the circumstances which led to the creation of my first ever chapel.

"What you see before you is a sign of my magnanimity. I have created, for you, the first building dedicated to my worship. Because you see, what you will give me is worship, and what I will give you is a real purpose." I told them, beginning to clearly outline the terms of our peace agreement.

"I am your god now. You will worship me, and in exchange I shall grant you protection, food, a source of labor, and power." I told the assembled creatures. I let pride fill my voice and I grinned at the creatures before me.

"You all think Ygaynth is strong? I am power incarnate. And I can give you more than just the means with which to tunnel through the earth. If you come over to me, forsake your old master, I will protect you from all enemies, and I will give you more power than you could have ever dreamed." I told them, speaking to their pride as a species.

"I shall free you from your dark task of enslaving others. I shall free you from the fear of the sleeping dragon. And I will give you new work to complete. You shall become the first, but not the last of the civilizations lurking below the world that gives themselves over to me. Surrender to my power." I told them, speaking proudly and magnanimously.

I reprojected the images of the battle, showcasing what would happen to them if they continued to stand against me. They watched their companions fall to my power and saw the darkness of the coming onslaught. It served to remind them that this was time-sensitive and each second they stalled was a second they were closer to death. I didn't pretend to be kind to them.

"What do you say, little ones? Will you come and serve me, the king of darkness, the god that lurks below?" I asked, giving myself two easy to remember and grandiose titles.

I sensed magic beginning to come from within the chapel I was constructing. I could tell that in the time that I had been speaking Sombra had eagerly and expertly begun to work towards constructing that summoning circle.

Before my very eyes the reptilian creatures began to fall to their knees. They prostrated themselves before me, and as they did I smiled and instructed my horde to cease their relentless attacks. I had won, and so I began to treat my former foes with kindness.

I targeted all of the warriors who had been bold enough to stand against my servants. They were now mine and I intended to be kind to them. They had courage when many of their peers did not. I recognized that.

I channeled potent healing energy into them. I cured them of the diseases they had contracted and regrew their lost limbs. As I did, I felt many of them begin to wonder what was going on. It was an understandable confusion.

I targeted my own hordes and teleported them away. I deposited them elsewhere, scattering them amongst the endless broken tunnels situated throughout the darkened world. My speedy mind allowed me to place them safely in parts of the world below the world that were fitting for their size and body-type. And then I turned my attention back towards the reptilefolks and spoke to them.

"Come. Come to your innermost cavern. Bring your dead. The battle is over, and the time has come to establish a new order." I said, speaking ambitiously and magnanimously to the newest members of my empire.

As I said this to them, two things happened at once. The first was that my chapel stopped rising out of the stone. It was a large thing, several dozen meters tall. And the second was that I received a message from Sombra. It was an excited one.

"Master! The circle is ready." The excitable demon informed me, its voice filled with energy and enthusiasm. A part of me glanced at the chapel and felt a potent surge of magic coming out of it. I smiled and felt grateful to my servant.

It was at that moment that Beithir finished considering her circumstances. And she too knelt before me, falling to one knee and bowing her head. I chuckled and then began to laugh. The battle was over, and I had won a decisive victory.

I teleported myself into my chapel, all while shrinking down into a new and regal form. One I made on the fly and was quite proud of.