The First Archmage

As I make my way to the Dekami Scholar's home, a strange sight and sound off in the mountains catches my attention. It's a little past the Dwarfs' mines, and there are Dwarfs outside, gawking at the scene.

Manifesting my wings, I flap them a few times, taking off into the sky, then fly over the buildings that have been constructed, ignoring the gawking members of my Order and residents of the valley. They've recruited people from all over the world, and I'm sure most – if not all – of them have heard about me. Seeing me, however, is vastly different from simply hearing about me.

It doesn't take me long to reach the Dwarfs, who call up a greeting, and I shout one back down to them, passing by them and reaching the unusual scene, where a few Dwarfs are gathered.

"Nali-ho," I dip my head to the Dwarfs, who greet me back as I turn my gaze to the two figures approaching.

One of them is a massive dragon with crimson scales. Known for raw power and anger, red Dragons are among the worst to encounter. According to this one's Status, he's a Dragon King.

He's not walking willingly.

Holding him by the horn, practically dragging this ancient, powerful being down the mountain is what appears to be a boy of around eight or nine, dressed in a tunic of reds and oranges and yellows, almost looking as if aflame in the rising sun, his golden hair and crimson eyes sparkling lightly.

Until I was in his view, he had a fierce look of determination on his face, though a smile broke out once he saw me. He continued to half-drag the Dragon anyway, and stops once he reaches me.

"Hello, Gavin!" He waves to me cheerfully.

He's a Phoenix, according to his Status.

Ulviva Phoenix (IX) 18 Armageddon Mage

The fact that he shares a Classs-type with Michael worries me a bit. From what I can tell, even though it's a highly-disciplined Class, it's also highly chaotic.

"Hello?" I say.

"Hello!" He greets me again, tugging on the Dragon's horn, the great beast letting out a few deep, though muttered, 'ows' in response. "This is the local Dragon King. I've had to keep him in-check the last couple of years, because he's wanted to demand tribute. But we're friends with Gavin, aren't we?"

"I AM-"

"Aren't we?" The Phoenix smiles, speaking in an overly-sweet voice.

"Yes!" The Dragon huffs.

"See?" The Phoenix beams at me. "We're friends! And this Dragon here's not going to be harassing your Order and demanding tribute, right?"

"I AM-"

"Right?"

"Yes."

This is more than a little amusing, the Dragon being 'controlled' by a 'child'. Considering the Phoenix's odd Species, though, it's likely ancient – possibly more so than the Dragon. It's definitely more powerful, considering it's keeping it controlled and preventing it from attacking my Order.

"Alright!" The Phoenix releases the horn, then pats the Dragon on the snout. "And you're going to apologize to Gavin for wanting to harass his Order, aren't you?"

"I AM-"

The Phoenix sweetly smiles at the beast.

"I apologize for wishing to harass your Order. I will not do it again."

"Then our business here is concluded!" The Phoenix claps his hands. "Bye, Gavin!"

The Dragon starts to open its maw, but a look from the Phoenix shuts it up, and the great beast flaps its wings, flying towards one of the peaks, likely to return to its nest. Maybe sulk over its treatment.

The Phoenix gives me a V with its fingers, then erupts into flames, transforming into the fiery bird of legends, though it's more the size of a falcon than a human child.

The Phoenix dips its head to me, then takes off towards a different peak of the mountains from the Dragon. If I'm not mistaken, that's a volcano, which makes sense, as the legends surrounding the mystical creatures claim they favor volcanoes for their nests.

I look back at the Dwarfs, who promptly greet me again and tell me that they've never seen either of those that close before.

"That close?" I ask.

"Yes," one of the Dwarfs nods. "We've seen them fighting before. Every month or two, the Dragon leaves its peak and starts heading towards the valley, and then the Phoenix arrives and attacks it for a few minutes, then the Dragon returns to its peak."

A few more minutes of discussion, and I learn that – at least in the Dwarfs' eyes – it's pretty well-known the Dragon's made a few attempts on the valley, but is stopped by the Phoenix every time.

This is just too unbelievable for me to process, so I unfold my wings and take off, flying back towards the valley. As I do, I remember something.

The Dragon acknowledged that we were friends, and with the X Species, that's all that's required. Even if it doesn't actually believe it or consider us so.

Subspecies.

Available Subspecies:

Wyvern

Dwarf

Elf

Kulkrul Tiger

Wooly Mammoth

Lichors

Mimi Bear

Nodas

Persias Snake

Dragon

Phoenix

Phoenix? But it's not an X Species? That simple acknowledgment alone shouldn't make it possible for me to take it on as a Subspecies, and what's more – Phoenixes don't have a 'leader'. They have a Conclave, a gathering of many Phoenixes. They decide things through that, but rarely ever meet. According to the one I spoke to when I was younger – it might have changed since then, but I doubt it – the last Conclave had been millions of years ago.

If just acknowledging that we were friends were enough to trigger it for Phoenixes, I'd have had it a long time ago. There's a Phoenix that lives near Kar, and I have visited him since acquiring Access – I'd actually gone to ask him to see if there's a way to obtain the Phoenix Subspecies, and he's specifically told me that it would be impossible for a Human to ever acquire it.

For a Human.

Stopping my flight over the plaza near the Dekami Scholar's house, understanding reaches me.

He wasn't referring to Advancing my Species. He was referring to becoming a Celestial, wasn't he? Celestial Species only continue to grow in Tier, according to the notices, rather than 'get better'. With its bonuses being above even the X Species, that would make sense.

And that's why the Phoenix's Species was just the same thing, but at Tier IX – Phoenixes are a Celestial Species, obtaining 3,000 or more Stats per Level. It's possible that all Celestial Species obtain 3,200 Stats per Level. Let me check theirs.

Phoenix: The Celestial bird of rebirth, it is reborn with every death, be it injury, illness, or age, its powers of life and healing far beyond any others. +500 INT, CHA, LFA, BLA; +200 AGI, STR, CON, LCK, +40 to all Senses per Level

Totaling that up equals exactly 3,000 Stats per Level. But don't I receive 3,200? Checking my bonus again, I confirm that it's 3,200, since INT is added in there in addition to Attributes, and there are 9 Attributes, making that 2,000. Then there is 100 to each Resource, of which, there are 11, that totals up to 1,100, making it a total of 3,100. Then add on the additional 20 to each Sense, of which there are 5, adding in another 100, making it a total of 3,200.

Frowning, I look back at the Phoenix's bonuses, something feeling off about it.

It receives a bonus to INT, CHA, LFA, BLA in massive levels, which makes sense to me, in a way. The first of those provides it a powerful bonus to any of its magics, the second – I guess for aesthetics, as any powerful being should have – then to its Life and Blood Affinities, the two that are used for any powerful form of healing.

The smaller bonuses add into its speed, giving it better movements, and its strength, making it much stronger, both of which meet up with its legends. Then there's the addition to its toughness, making it probably the toughest bird around, and then the bonus to its luck – no clue why that's there.

Then the bonus to its senses – double mine, but it would only make sense that the ultimate mortals have powerful senses. Since a Phoenix originates from a type of bird – likely a bird of prey – it would only make sense, to me, that its senses would be improved more than mine.

So then what is off about-

Oh.

There's no LIF bonus. But why not?

It takes me a moment, but then I remember something the Notices said, when I became a Celestial: Celestials are nigh-immortal.

We don't age, do we? Or maybe we only age to a certain point? Do I have a natural lifespan, now?

Pulling up my stats, I skim the Attributes line. It skips over LIF, going from PER straight to LCK. I have no LIF stat, either.

Which means that I only receive 3,000 Stat Points per Level. Still powerful, but the lack of LIF…

Why couldn't it have let me distribute it to people before removing it? I'm sure Ryan, Dylan, Eli, Tristan, Michael, Warren, and the other important members would appreciate the massive amounts I'd have given them, and the more common people would probably appreciate the few points I'd have given them.

Shaking my head, I take on Phoenix as a Subspecies, and find it listed as my Celestial Subspecies. Unfortunately, I'm not able to add in General Experience to it – which I suspected, since I can't do that to myself.

With it being listed separately, I'm able to take on Dragon as a Subspecies, so I do.

Dragon is now Level 25!

+2,400 to INT, STR, CON, LCK, Resources, OFV, RRN

That notice doesn't even show the LIF bonus – probably because I simply have no limit to my natural lifespan, now, and so it can't add to it.

I find it highly amusing that someone set to die soon has no limit to his natural lifespan.

Yeah, that's funny.

Shaking my head, I land, then make my way to the Dekami Scholar's, and he gives me a curious look when I ask him about Celestials.

"I know you've probably heard about the Phoenix," he says. "But how did you know it was a Celestial?"

"I didn't actually mention the Phoenix," I say. "Though I have met him. Why did he look like a kid?"

"He probably died recently," the Dekami Scholar shrugs. "A Phoenix's human form ages one year for every ten that passes. After a thousand years of a natural life, they'll die, and be reborn again – while their mortal forms will have the same issues that those of those species would at the infant ages, their true form doesn't, and that's the form which they're locked into at first."

So he probably died around eighty or ninety years ago, then. "Recently" is a relative thing.

"So how did you know of the Celestials?" He asks.

"What, exactly, are they?" I ask.

"Beings that are nearly immortal," he answers, probably remembering that I won't answer unless I want to.

Unlike all those years ago. I'd just blurt things out, back then. Then again, I was a child, so it makes sense, even if there are those who'd refuse to acknowledge that.

"They have no limit to their natural lifespan," he continues to explain, ignorant of my musings on the past. "And can live indefinitely, if nothing delivers unto them a true death. The Phoenixes are the only ones we Dekami know of for sure, though according to the ones we've communicated with, there's at least one other out there. They're highly resilient, and even what would be fatal to others would fail to kill one, in most cases.

"As such," he continues. "They have no natural lifespan. That said, it's believed that every member of a Celestial Species can create three 'Seeds' of their Species, which will either hatch or be born into a newborn of it, though the Phoenixes said that they can mate normally as well.

"In addition to that," he continues. "The Phoenixes stated that Celestials are not bound to any universe, and can easily pass between them at will. We've also theorized that they can probably enter the Divine Realms as well."

A commotion outside catches my attention, and I frown, turning towards the door.

"What's wrong?"

"There's something going on," I frown. "It sounds like Ryan's coming towards me, though his voice is a bit deeper."

"Yes," the Dekami Scholar nods. "Ryan's voice has deepened a bit, these last two years. He's matured a bit as well, and has stopped making comments about the chests of women. It seems that after meeting a couple of the recruits from Jozan, he learned that in Jozan's region of the world, having a large chest is seen as a bad thing."

Didn't I make that clear to him?

Looking back on it, I realize that I never actually said something, just smacked him or silenced him or punished him for it. Oops. He must have been so confused by that.

"He's probably just wanting to meet up with you again," the Dekami Scholar tells me.

"No," I frown. "He seems like he's in a panic."

His Soul is filled with it as well.

Ryan bursts into the room, gasping. He's dressed in black and violet with silver trim to his outfit, and has grown several inches since I last saw him, his blond hair cut shorter, the blue of his eyes more vibrant, though filled with panic as he bends over and presses his hands to his legs as he starts catching his breath.

Oddly, he hasn't advanced his Species, Class, or Subclass yet, and hasn't taken on a Subspecies. Is he waiting until he's a bit older and more mature, due to the Fog of Power? Wouldn't that have cleared up by now? Or is he just taking the cautious route, knowing he has plenty of time to work on stuff later?

Ryan's breathing heavily, his face red from the effort expended to reach me in his hurry. Did he run and fly all the way from the Tower? That's where he's been since I arrived.

"Gavin," he gasps. "Issue. No time for reunion."

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"Kade-" he gasps.

"Take a few breaths," I tell him. "Speak once you've caught yourself. A few seconds of rest can mean a few seconds less of gasping."

He nods, taking a few seconds to collect himself, straightening up and looking at me with those panic-filled, clear blue eyes. In addition to the ring I gave him, he's wearing a second ring, this one looking as if it's made of bone, and worn on his left ring finger.

Congratulations. She's probably a lucky girl.

Or unlucky, depending on how one views it.

"Kade just contact me a few minutes ago," he tells me. "Hundreds of Dragons are flying towards the isles. He said that, leading the charge is a Dragon of unbelievable size, and that it-"

"Has so much Mana and other Resources in it, it's impossible to fight?" I ask.

"Yes," he nods. "You-you know it?"

"Yes," I say. "I know the Dragon very well."

Looks like I made it back just in time for my death. I'm not letting Kade and the outpost there be destroyed. They're part of the Order, and I am going to do everything I can to protect it.

Then again, I'm a Celestial, now. I'm nigh-impossible to kill. I don't even know what the ways to kill me are. So it might just be that the tables have turned, and it's not me who's going to die.

Time to go kill some Dragons, and possibly gain a lot of Experience.