Zeleck seethed in anger as he stood over the laborers while they chopped wood. Yet again, he regretted his reckless honesty.

  Why did I tell Lord Galrod anything? I should have kept my mouth shut!

  Six months before, he had woken from what he thought was a prophetic dream. It was so real, he felt as if it had actually taken place. In his foolishness, he had immediately detailed the events to his faction leader.

  Throughout the tale, Lord Galrod grew increasingly infuriated. By the end, he raged at Zeleck’s gall. He accused Zeleck of fabricating the story to co-opt his position, and punished him accordingly. For the last few moons since he shared his tale, Zeleck had been forced to guard laborers as they felled trees.

  As they were a poor, tiny faction, they did not have access to any of the numerous scenario gateways spread throughout his planet. The major powers of his world had long ago seized control of the gateways, and charged hefty fees for outsiders to access them. They could not afford to gain access, and were forced to gather cheap materials from a forest outside their lands.

  Zeleck gazed at the relatively safe lands which surrounded him and remembered better days, before Lord Galrod, before he was banished from of his old faction in disgrace.

  What I wouldn’t give to go back and correct that mistake.

  Years before Zeleck shared his foolish vision to his new faction leader, he had belonged to a power. Groomed from birth to lead, he had been trained as such. His great faction had paid handsomely for access to numerous gateways. They were necessary for him to gain the feats necessary to harness all four energy types.

  Once he gained that mastery, he rapidly grew in power and passed the first threshold. He had then been placed in charge of the defense of one of his faction’s small regional towns. Despite his superior leadership, it had fallen to a rival faction.

  Zeleck had only survived the slaughter because he wisely set aside the funds to purchase a portal home. Unfortunately, his escape was seen as cowardice and not a strategic regrouping. When that label was combined with the loss of land, he was exiled from his family and removed from his faction. Zeleck’s fists tightened in anger as he remembered the look of disgust on his father’s face.

  To him, it was a fate worse than death.

  No power accepted him, and he was forced to beg for the scraps a tiny faction could grant him. A year prior, Lord Galrod took him in, but watched him carefully. Zeleck believed his new faction leader harbored envy toward him, as the Lord did not control all four energy sources. Unlike Zeleck, Lord Galrod only had access to two. For this reason, Lord Galrod remained wary of him, and he was watched carefully.

  I should have known better.

  His dream had left him unsettled and off balance. He had forgotten to hide his ambition and had been punished accordingly. Rather than suffer the embarrassment, he could have challenged Lord Galrod for leadership. Unfortunately, the faction leader was far more powerful than Zeleck, despite Galrod’s access to only two forms of energy.

  Zeleck used an upgraded Mind Sense to ensure they remained alone. When his spell assured him they remained safe, he returned to his thoughts.

  Suddenly, a portal appeared before him.

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  His hand tightened on his spear, and he readied himself for combat. However, before he could warn the others to flee, he was consumed by darkness.

  I don’t understand. Who could bring me here?

  It had been over a year since he last entered the darkness of a gateway. He had never heard of a gateway that appeared randomly within the world, and was frightened by what it could mean.

  Then, before him, the mighty Conqueror appeared. Their deity was a Koza, twenty feet tall, clad in the finest armor. Zeleck immediately fell to his knees and debased himself. “Oh glorious Conqueror, I am not worthy!” he cried out.

  “You are not,” the Conqueror agreed. “Yet I have summoned you regardless.”

  “How may I serve?” Zeleck asked as he averted his eyes from the creator of the Collective.

  “By gaining power and enacting revenge for your defeat by the Humans and their trickery.”

  Zeleck’s eyes widened.

  Was the dream true?

  “That was no dream, my faithful servant,” the Conqueror replied aloud to his thoughts. “Your memories were sent backward through time, as was the Human’s, Blake Summers. While you have wasted your time, he has grown in power. If you wish for a second chance to prove your worthiness, you must grow stronger as well. Is that what you wish?”

  Yes!

  “I will do anything to prove myself worthy, mighty Conqueror!”

  “We will see,” his deity replied.

  Suddenly, Zeleck, was thrown backward, out of the gateway, and appeared back on his home world. Strangely, when he searched for the workers he was tasked to guard, they were not present.

  Was I with the Conqueror longer than it seemed?

  Zeleck shook his head.

  It does not matter. I must grow strong, and this faction limits me.

  From his memories, as he now knew them to be, he remembered his path to power. Soon, his current faction would be invaded. They would war for a full year before they were victorious.

  He reviewed each step along his prior path.

  First, Zeleck was emboldened by the war, while Lord Galrod grew fearful of further attacks. Out of desperation, the faction leader named Zeleck his champion, and paid vast resources for access to gateways so his new champion may protect the faction.

  Zeleck thrived and took every opportunity to hone his skills.

  Next, Zeleck conquered thousands of gateways, and grew in power until he reached the precipice of the first threshold. All the while, he defended the many incursions his faction suffered.

  Finally, when he could progress no further without fulfilling the Conqueror’s demands, fearful Lord Galrod cut off his access to the treasury. The faction head wanted a strong, pliable defender to protect the faction, not someone to usurp his position.

  However, unbeknownst to Lord Galrod, Zeleck had not spent all of his wealth. He had saved vast amounts for just such an occurrence. Zeleck leveraged his wealth to gain access to the gateways required to fulfill the Conqueror’s demands, and then paid an alchemist to concoct his potion.

  Zeleck consumed the Conqueror’s elixir and broke through the second threshold.

  He learned expert quality spells, and almost immediately challenged Lord Galrod for leadership. The battle was closer than he liked, but in the end, Zeleck proved the superior fighter. He took over leadership of the small faction, and became Lord Zeleck.

  After his glorious victory, he was presented with a directive from the Conqueror, to eliminate all major human factions. He eagerly accepted the faction-wide directive, and a portal opened before him. Lord Zeleck ushered his fighters through, and left only the bare minimum behind for defense.

  For even if he returned and his faction was overrun, the rewards for completion of the directive would far outstrip any losses incurred. With the riches and feats he would receive, he would be strong enough to conquer a larger faction, and claim it as his own.

  It is unfortunate that that path is no longer available to me.

  After his foolish confession, Lord Galrod was wary of him. He would never invest the wealth necessary for Zeleck to grow stronger. Not after his revelation.

  Zeleck raised his clawed right hand and clenched his fist, resolved to make the Conqueror proud.

  I must find a new path to power.

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