The young man who refused to be called a god introduced himself to the young girl, while walking toward their destination, as Tcenex-Za-Vendranex, a space marine captain from planet Voltrago within the Aries Stella System.
Seeing that she had no single idea what he was talking about – not that she wasn't understanding his words, for he was speaking in her native language, but rather his terms of reference were all alien to her – he decided to use the language she would understand. So, he simply said that he fell from the sky. And that she can call him Tcenex, meaning "The People's Protector."
That she understood. And she replied that her name was Adamma, meaning –"Beautiful First Daughter," he finished for her, to her utter consternation.
"How did you know that?" she asked.
"Your mind was already saying it before your mouth could voice it," he replied in a bid to impress her.
And not only was she impressed, but further convinced that he was, without doubt, a god. "If you could read my thought," she emphasized, "what other proof do I need?"
"Oh, come on, anybody could do that," Tcenex replied dismissively.
"No, not anybody, my lord," Adamma protested.
"Why not?" he asked.
"We lack the ability. Only very few of us can read other people's thoughts. These are mostly Dibias, Seers, and Diviners."
"I see." This revelation gave him insight about these people. They are primitive, he mused. Among his people, Psionic Science, particularly mind reading, was commonplace, as was telepathy. This stemmed from his origins in a highly advanced star system.
His people possessed the ability to shield their minds from being read or block telepathic communication channels when desired—details he chose not to explain to Adamma, believing she lacked the capacity to grasp such concepts.
"Your food was delicious, by the way," he complimented, changing the subject.
"Thank you, my lor—"
"And I wish you would stop calling me your lord," Tcenex interrupted.
"That's impossible, Lord Tcenex," Adamma protested, halting abruptly. Since she led the way to their destination—wherever that might be, as he had been wondering—her stopping forced Tcenex to halt as well.
Tcenex studied her face. She possessed a modest beauty, he admitted silently. She also demonstrated unwavering faith in the gods. Convincing her to abandon addressing him as "my lord" would require significant effort, he gleaned from her thoughts. I have two options, he considered briefly: command her or hypnotize her.
He quickly dismissed the latter, recognizing it would strip away her free will. He recalled her words about him being chosen to bring "justice, peace, and free will to the people." Such mental manipulation should be reserved only for situations of absolute necessity. He opted to command her instead.
"As your god," he said, feigning seriousness while inwardly laughing mischievously, "I command you to—"
Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, a previously invisible scene materialized. His Psionic ability seemed to activate independently, without conscious effort. He turned for a better view of the unfolding vista. Though brief, what he witnessed left him aghast:
Two human-sized Imps engaged in a heated confrontation—husband and wife. The wife seethed with bitterness over her husband's actions, while he begged forgiveness.
Tcenex realized, mysteriously, that he knew their names despite never having met them: Ekanris and Halliaris. Typical Rapscallions, he observed silently. Interesting...
"How could you even fathom such vile thought?" Halliaris hissed venomously, hurling a hateful glare at Ekanris.
"Pray, wife, forgive," Ekanris implored, consumed by guilt. "The Lust-Demons possessed me. I was not myself. I am sorry."
"You had better be, husband!" Halliaris retorted.
"I promise it will never happen again."
"That I am very sure of."
With lightning speed, the warrior-woman Halliaris unsheathed her sword from its scabbard—and in an instant, Ekanris's head flew from his neck, rolling bloodily across the ground.
Coldly, Halliaris spat on the floor, returned her sword to its scabbard—and suddenly wheeled to face Tcenex, her eyes fierce as ice!
Then the vision vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
"Did you see that?" Tcenex asked Adamma, momentarily overwhelmed.
"I was going to ask what you were looking at, my lord," Adamma replied calmly, "but thought perhaps you were communicating with other gods, so I decided to let you finish with them first."
He smiled as an impish idea formed in his mind. Something about this primitive world makes me feel like a god to these people, he reflected silently. Such experiences never occurred on Voltrago. There must be something here drawing my attention.
Tcenex had no desire to embrace the divine role these people thrust upon him. Yet it dawned on him that this primitive planet might be unearthing latent gifts within him, fueling their belief in his divinity.
What if I explore these gifts and use them to help these people during my stay? he contemplated mischievously. The notion appealed to him, despite knowing the bitter truth—he was as ordinary in his world as these people were in theirs. His god-like appearance stemmed merely from his advanced origins and his status as a genetically enhanced Super-Soldier.
As they continued toward their destination, he pondered whether to assume this new "god" role... or not...
From the Spirit Realm's perspective, Halliaris, who had decapitated her husband, suddenly sensed a presence. Someone was opening a portal—someone other than herself.
Until now, she believed herself the only one capable of such feats. She turned to observe the Presence—an Outworlder, according to his aura readings. A visitor from the stars, possibly lost. Not that she cared. His "Shine" blazed extraordinarily high and bright.
Never had she witnessed such concentrated brilliance in one being before. This one is different, she noted silently. Fundamentally different.
Though youthful in appearance, his aura revealed he had existed for countless millennia. A star warrior, she deduced. Before she could extract more information, he vanished!
The data she downloaded from his aura took merely a second or two, yet provided sufficient knowledge for her purposes.
"Seems like we have a new sheriff in town," Halliaris announced.
Suddenly, Ekanris appeared beside her, his head intact. "Is it a good thing or a bad—?" Before finishing his question, his head flew off amid a gory blood-splatter—courtesy of Halliaris's sharp sword—bouncing and rolling across the floor.
"It's an interesting thing," Halliaris replied without mirth, returning her sword to its scabbard.
Where once was one head, now lay two identical heads of Ekanris. The two heads were very much alive, the one before now saying to the new head: "I told you she was still mad at us," to which the second head said: "Indeed, you did," while the headless body of Ekanris was bidding its time, pondering whether it should grow another head yet – or wait for her madness to subside...