The fungal lord blesses you with his spores...

All five creatures were momentarily trapped in a prison of their own making. They were experiencing lucid, fungal infested visions, and hearing the soft, satin-like, whispers of the spores that were wracking their brains.

Service to the lord is bliss...

Each of their visions was different, with all five predatory creatures having lived different lives and seeing different visions of fungal madness. The visions were also pacifying, soothing things that made it difficult for the creatures to muster the energy needed to resist the powers of the spores.

Experience fungal euphoria...

The quiet whispers of the mind-altering and will-eroding spores clashed quietly and effectively with the minds of the jackaloids and the dire-scorpion. The creatures all had weak minds, minds that were being

Submit...

Althos quietly walked to the creatures in front of him. They were still, either frothing at the mouth or still. He examined them, wondering what was going on, and spent a few moments grabbing their weapons.

He grabbed one of the jackaloids simple swords and studied it carefully. He looked at the roughly-made handle, his eyes peering at and through it. He admired the construction of the thing, respecting the efforts that it took to either make or acquire swords in the desert.

This was the first time the deity had ever held a sword. He visually investigated the simple iron blade, carefully studying it and quickly coming to the conclusion that he liked it.

This is mine now.

But then he wondered if he should prepare a substitute weapon for the jackaloid. He thought about for a few seconds, before realizing that he probably should. The deity sighed and set to work magically preparing such a weapon.

We serve the lord... there is no escape unless you submit...

Over the last few moments, the whispers of the spores had taken on a considerably more aggressively tone. But the visions remained the same, unchanging, unique, and calming.

There is no need to resist. There is only the sweetness of submission.

The creatures felt their wills diminishing in the wake of the spores' relentless assault on their psyches. They felt their wills breaking down, and found a small part of themselves wondering what submission would be like.

Althos used the sword in his hands as a model off which to base the sword he was going to create using magic. He had spent several moments studying each observable detail that he could, and when he was convinced that he could make something close to it, the young god began researching his surroundings to see what he could make a sword out of. He was disappointed but also unsurprised to find that all that surrounded him was sand.

I'll just... make something suitable out of sand I guess.

The deity sighed and then got to work.

I guess I should make a glass sword? Glass is formed from sand right? Superheating it?

The deity carefully thought about how to proceed. And then he began to use magic to manipulate the massive pools of sand underneath and around him.

Your wills are weakening... The hour of your submission draws near...

The creatures who were trapped in their own minds fought the spores that invaded their brains but they recognized that the voices in their minds were right.

Why fight it? Why resist when you could give in?

They felt an increasingly large part of themselves want to submit to the deity. They felt the pleasantness of the deity's mental touch begin to manifest itself more plainly. They shivered in pleasure as the spores began to corrupt and erode the part of their brains that handled pleasure, and began to exert themselves by inflicting agonizing pleasure on the creatures.

This is unpleasant solely because you resist. Once you cease your pointless resistance this will become sublime pleasure that you will continually feel in our lord's presence.

The deity visualized the basic shape of a thick looking blade, including the handle, and willed the sand he had gathered to form that shape. He watched, focused, as grains flowed freely through the air until they collided with each other. In time the deity watched as the sword began to look more and more focused.

The blade was easy to make, but the handle needed to be thicker than the sword's cutting edge. The deity concentrated as he formed the sword in his mind, willing his spell to plunge into the ground and explore the depths of the desert, depths long-buried underneath tons of sand. As he did that the deity was also scrying the world underneath his feet.

He was casting three spells at once. He carefully concentrated on the sand in front of him, while fusing wind magic with scrying magic so that he could find something thicker than sand with which he intended to form the sword's blade to form the handle.

After a few moments, and after diving into the depths of the desert beneath his feet, he found iron ore. He grinned and increased the intensity of the wind spell he was using to comb the depths of the desert. The spell he was using slammed into the deposit and hit it with such force that the thing was wrenched out of the ground and sent sailing upwards on a nearly transparent cyclone.

The ore appeared in front of the deity, emerging from within a newly formed hole he had created with his magic. It sailed upward, out of sight and took a few moments to begin to fall back down to the ground.

Nearly half of a minute passed before the ore reentered the deity's view and landed on the ground close to him. The deity grabbed it using his mind and began to silently slam it with flames, watching as the thing began to melt in mid-air, transforming from solid ore to molten liquid.

The first of the jackaloids to submit to Althos and the spores fell to its knees minutes after it had begun to fight for its mind. Of all of the creatures who had been fighting to retain control over their bodies and to remain the masters of their own minds, it was the least intelligent.

Submission is... bliss.

The creature nodded as the spores seized control of its brain. A wide, stupid grin appeared on its canine face. Its tongue lolled out of its mouth vacantly, as if pulled by gravity. Its body went slack as if it were a puppet whose strings had just been cut, and it fell to its knees. The look in its eyes was one of euphoric idolatry, its gaze turned at Althos reverentially.

The other creatures quietly noticed that their companion, or their foe in the case of the scorpion, had fallen. They were both unable and unwilling to do anything to aid the creature, as the voices in their own head were softly eating away at their own resistances to the soft power of the deity before them.

Althos had finished transforming the small iron deposit into the amateurish handle he was making for the sword and was transforming the sand into a sharp glass blade. He turned and looked at the jackaloid who had fallen to its knees. He beckoned the creature to come forth and the thing did, getting up and running to the side of the devil god briskly.

The creature came right up to the god and then fell to its knees again. It placed its head down on the sand, and its fur caught many grains of the stuff, trapping it. Althos gently patted the thing's head, grinning at his new pet. At this point, one of the deity's hands was blasting the sand floating in the air with flames, while the other treated the jackaloid like a newly adopted pet. And in a sense, the thing was.

While the deity was petting the thing that was now its newest minion, he also broke into its mind and stole all of the creature's knowledge.

There's no need for you to selfishly cling to all of your knowledge and memories. After all, you're mine now and nothing of mine keeps secrets from me.

He didn't bother to try and make a copy of the thing's mind. After all, he knew that if the thing's mind broke it was no skin off his back. He'd simply repair the thing's mind, or use his spores to control the creature. The deity valued knowledge above all else, including other living things. Nothing mattered more than the pursuit of knowledge to the god.

The deity's mind was quickly flooded with new visions, new memories, and alien thoughts due to his invasive actions. The experience the young god had with gaining incredible amounts of new knowledge quickly, made itself clear through the ease with which the young deity's mind began to adjust to the foreign additions to his brain.

The deity gained a sort of intimate familiarity with the creature who was on its knees, a creature whose mind was now a blank canvas. After he recovered from the suddenness of the jackaloids memories, thoughts, and knowledge, the deity wondered if it'd be possible for him to create new memories from scratch. He was surprised to hear a familiar voice respond to his vague curiosity.

[Hello Althos. Yes, it is possible to create new memories. What exactly are you thinking of doing?]

Althos was pleasantly surprised to hear the voice of his mental assistant for the first time in a while. He grinned as he formulated a response.

[I would like to replace the memories this jackaloid had, with memories that are more convenient for me. I'll create conditions under which I don't have to re-dominate them again and again. Instead, I'll make it so that this one feels as though it and its allies have always worshiped me.]

Althos was then pleasantly surprised yet again to receive a two-part notification.

[Double notification:

Two new menus have been created. The first menu is the memory creator menu, which as its name implies allows you to create new memories and implant them into targets. Usage of this menu grants influence over the domains of deception, memories, and when used to create particularly powerful memories can grant influence over other domains.

The second menu is the religion menu, which is an evolution of the worshiper menu you already have. This menu has been created because you've gained a variety of titles and are likely to gain another one with your next action. By using it you can create new holidays, create artifacts, create miracles, create new rituals, manage tributes and sacrifices given to you by your worshipers, and assorted other things related to religion.

Oh, and you can access your divine realm. You'll learn more about that later. It's a dimension you have complete and total control over. Well... one day. When you're a stronger deity than you are now.

These new menus are the first of your advanced menus, they have distinct icons in your H.U.D., but you can just access them with a thought. Use them wisely, as becoming familiar with them and with other advanced menus is the part of how you advance as a god.]

[What's a ritual?]

Althos asked, genuinely curious, and it took just a second for his angelic advisor, the orb angel Samyaza, to let him know.

[Rituals are a fairly special, fairly powerful, form of magic. The sort of creatures who could create and cast them on their own are the sorts who vanished long ago. Gods, archdevils, archfey, old-ones, and other such creatures. They can produce unique effects, similar too and often more intense than divine magic, and some of them are usable by weak creatures if the creators of them wanted them to be.]

Althos nodded and sent a quick message of appreciation to the quiet orb angel. Then he turned back to the main notification.

Althos read over the notification once, then again to be sure he understood it, and then he willed it away. He grinned at it and willed open the memory creation menu. As he was reading through the notification that alerted him to the creation of the menus he was mentally alerted that the spores had successfully ensnared all of the jackaloids, but that the scorpion managed to resist the spores. That surprised and delighted the deity.

Huh... I suppose there might be some worth in making the scorpion actually mine. It'll make a nice new pet.

The deity looked openly at the scorpion, but rather than wait for it to regain its focus he instead opted to explore the first of the newest menus that his schemes had created. Within seconds he had familiarized himself with the menu, which was a part of him and his mind, and he began the rigorous work of creating logical, intelligent memories.

The scorpion broke free from its mental prison, and the lucid visions the spores inflicted on it, and as its vision expanded from outside of its brain, it was shocked to see Althos staring openly at it.

The deity's gaze was still, calm and unfocused. In actuality, the deity was more focused on using its new memory-creation menu than he was interested in taming the scorpion. The overly large creature considered skittering away, but even as the thought crossed its mind the deity cast a single paralysis spell on it, which its own system alerted it too even as it took hold.

The creature couldn't move forward or back but it could gaze at the deity. The deity in front of it stood imposingly and leered down at it, a grim grin etched on its face. He was now present in the moment, but his mind was split as he continued the work that came with creating thousands of hours of memories.

Althos's eyes regained their usual focus after a few moments passed and the deity's gaze fell fully on the scorpion. The deity grinned at it, his eyes filling with an unpleasant combination of mischevious malice and open curiosity.

I suppose I should just make it an offer? Given that I've just saved it from the jackaloids it'll probably be a bit easier

The deity wasted no time creating a mental link with the dire-scorpion. In the brief moment that he set up the mind-link his green eyes turned an icy shade of blue before reverting to the verdant green, they had become when he used his mind-controlling spores.

[Hello there. I see you managed to overcome my spores. That's quite a feat.]

The scorpion was alarmed by the sudden words that appeared in its mind, and the eerie, quiet voice that suddenly resounded throughout its mind. Althos heard the shock in the scorpion's mind and quietly chuckled.

[It's me. The creature looking up at you. I know that you're intelligent and I know that you're capable of understanding me. I saved you from the jackaloids and now they serve me.]

The jackaloids started slowly getting to their feet behind the scorpion and Althos could feel the anxiety the creature began to exude thanks to both his powerful vision allowing him to see the creature begin to shake slightly and the fear visible in its various eyes. He also sensed the creature's emotional state, which revealed the depths of its terror.

Althos considered how to proceed carefully.

This thing's terror maybe... a bit of a liability. I don't want it terrified. I want it to realize that being with me, being my servant is the best route forward. What can I do now? Would faith be a good tool? This is... definitely a faith moment.

He activated the domain's subversive power with but a thought and watched as a nearly invisible, light-blue gas began to exude from his pores and into the surrounding area.

It swiftly invaded the hill the deity stood on and began to roll down the hill. It effortlessly struck the scorpion, who was unable to resist this particular power's more subtle effects. Althos waited to receive a notification he was familiar with: the one that would alert him that his power was taking hold. Within seconds it was.

The dire scorpion was an intelligent creature. It was a sentient being. But its thoughts, particularly in moments of fear and in moments of awe were simple. Powerful emotions left no time for complexity, and a dire-scorpion in Infernius only survived if it knew that and embraced it.

This... creature... powerful.

It recognized Althos' terrible power in a really simple, instinctual way.

This... creature... dangerous.

Althos couldn't quite hear the creature's thoughts, but he more or less guessed them. The mist that the deity conjured smacked the creature in the face, and almost immediately began to alter the creature's thoughts.

Power... good. This creature... good? No... this creature... bad.

The scorpion resisted at first, putting in an admirable effort. That resistance was short-lived. Just until Althos messaged it again.

[The jackaloids won't hurt you. No one here will... if you join us. And that'll be the least of your rewards. I am a god. An actual, literal god. Join me. Serve me.]

An... offer? A chance to... not die?

The scorpion mulled the offer over. The deity pressed his advantage.

[I could kill you, but your ability to resist the spores is intriguing to me. I could like you. Joining me and serving me is a good opportunity for you. You'll get more food, and you'll get a chance to meet more scorpions. If you're lucky... you may even evolve.]

The scorpion, being a determined pragmatist, quietly weighed the pros and cons of the deity's offer.

Food... other things like me... a chance to evolve? That's... a good... offer.

Althos saw the gears in its mind turning and realized that the faith domain was doing its job. He grinned smugly as he realized that the scorpion was moments away from joining him. He sent the thing one final message, knowing it'd be all that was needed.

[If you want to join me... just direct your thoughts towards me. I'll be able to hear them. And when you're mine, you'll undergo a ritual I've created, a ritual that will boost your powers.]

At that moment, Althos opened up the religion menu and began to come up with a new ritual. It didn't take him long at all since he was, in essence, just codifying what he did to Silander.

Once he finished the speedy process he quickly looked over the ritual he had created. And at that same time, he received a message from the scorpion. It was a simple message, one that the deity expected he'd see.

[Hello... I... accept... offer.]

This made the deity quite happy.

Ritual Creation Ritual Name: Birth Of A New Mind Ritual Type: Modification How Often Can This Ritual Be Done By Worshipers? Once A Day, unless otherwise authorized by Althos. Description: This ritual creates a new and empowered sort of familiar. It does so by bathing a living, wild creature in Althos' divine energy and then casting awakening on it. Creatures affected by this ritual are transformed, their minds expanded, and their bodies infused with divine energy. They become loyal to the person who oversaw the ritual, or to anyone designated as their new master by the ritual's overseer.

Effects: Creatures who are subjected to the ritual become advanced familiars, powerful creatures who are mentally bonded to the ritual's overseers or those who the ritual overseers designate as the recipient of the advanced familiar. They become Althos' worshippers, their abilities are improved, their intelligence is increased significantly, and they gain access to advanced evolutions.

This ritual's effects are permanent unless undone by Althos himself, though the creatures who oversee the resulting familiars can free them from their mental bonds. Creatures can try to resist the ritual, but it's impossible to resist if the ritual is done by Althos.

Althos activated two distinct powers at once. He targeted the scorpion with the newly created and codified ritual, and he hit the jackaloid with a lifetime of false memories. The jackaloid's mind went from being empty to being filled with tens of thousands of hours of false memories almost instantly. The deity was alarmed to receive a new, surprising notification for afflicting the jackaloid with a series of false memories.

[New Title Acquired: Lover of Lies.

This is a powerful title that you can be known by, by any of your servants or worshippers. You've acquired this title by pulling off one of the ultimate acts of deception: the creation of a lifetime of lies that you've inflicted upon an unfortunate victim. This was an act of considerable evil, and it's amused many different domains and subdomains. Upon using it for the first time, a few feats might be gained immediately.]

The scorpion felt two powerful sensations overwhelm it at once. Its mind was assailed by the potent mystical powers of the awakening, and its body was invaded by the incredible energies that flowed through Althos, in a bizarre and powerful synchronization that rendered the thing immobile.

Althos grinned as he watched this happen. He was relieved to have a distraction from the serious notification he had just received.