Jump 078: Lord of Light

Jump 078: Lord of Light

Location: The Star of India
Identity: [-800] God
Drawbacks: [+700] Unique Neurology, The Star of India

[Free]    Divine Physique
[Free]    Approach of Splendor
[300/900] The Noble Eightfold Path
[Free]    Attribute Induction: Magnetism
[Free]    Divine Pursuits: Sword
[900/900] Master of Karma
[Free]    Aspect Cultivation: New Beginnings
[Free]    Opulent Warehouse

Waking up on a slow-boat colony ship arriving on a new world is an entertaining experience. Especially discovering the numerous hostile native fauna that await us all. Really not a fun time, either. There are MULTIPLE intelligent natives of one sort of another - you'the two most notable threats were the Mothers of the Terrible Glow, sea-dwellers who will happily slay and enslave the newcomers, you've got the Rakasha who were ascended beyond the flesh into pure energy only to find they still have a psychological need for the physical... and of course there's plenty of less intelligent threats, such as the others' servitors and some of the deadlier native life.

Carving out a home in this world is an interesting task. Of course, this colony ship is from a humanity that was advanced enough to have tools and weapons that are in fact useful against the native life, even if they aren't the most advanced possible. Of course we tried to parley with the native life once we realized it was intelligent, but that generally went very, very badly. The Mothers simply tried to kill us at the negotiating table and stole colonists, trying to twist their minds and bodies into slaves. The Rakasha used more subtle means, but were no less terrible and would happily sow discord simply for fun.

While I was not anywhere near my ideal state to begin with, things were far from bleak. As the months and years progressed, a curious thing began to happen: we began to realize that the planet was changing us. Mutating us. Granting us powers the likes of which were for most to be right out of science fiction. Initially, it was something of a joke, how we referred to each other by the names of Indian gods; after all, we were from a ship named the Star of India. After a few years it became less of a joke.

Initially, I jokingly suggested reincarnation based on one's karma - we'd had the cloning tubes, after all this was how we brought native Earth life to this world. It was how we saved the grievously injured from death, so long as their minds were intact- and then the discovery was made that one could use such to create better bodies. More perfect, more suited to purposefully induce such mutations, to cultivate purposeful changes. While I was in a position that I couldn't utilize the equipment to that end because my brain was atypical... my experience with the Third Magic (and my reawakening abilities) ensured I could sit down and literally write out exactly how it all worked, how it affected individuals, and how to ideally accelerate the results to what was desired and build the ideal bodies to suit those purposes.

Ten years in, the Mothers had been beaten back and the would-be gods were making strides toward their full extermination. The Rakasha had been imprisoned in the Hellwell with a tongue-in-cheek warning. The joke of being gods started being taken seriously. It could only end in sorrow.

But I had more important places to be than worrying about a small colony's delusions of grandeur and their future stagnation.