Chapter 241: First Threshold Fundamentals

Chapter 241: First Threshold Fundamentals

Noah sat at the desk in his quarters, reading the latest reports from Eldrath. The documents covered all four continents, now united under a single ruler. Although each continent maintained its own production figures, population records, and military reports, they were no longer governed as separate territories. One planetary administration now oversaw their development.

He spent several minutes studying the military section. The goblin forces he had deployed from the Viridian Empire had already fought wars beyond Eldrath, and the reports described their ability to replace weapons, equipment, and supplies. With the entire planet unified, its resources could support future campaigns.

The reports were encouraging, but they did not answer the question that had occupied him recently. Noah opened the record of his accumulated Faith Points and examined the total. It was a substantial reserve, built through the continued development of his people, yet he had no reliable way to judge how close it brought him to the First Ring. He knew that advancement required Faith Points and comprehension of a Law. He did not understand how those requirements worked together.

His schedule showed a lecture titled First Threshold Fundamentals. Noah closed the reports, saved the figures he intended to review later, and left his quarters. He hoped the lesson would explain how to prepare Eldrath for advancement.

The lecture hall at the military training camp was already crowded when Noah arrived. Rows of students occupied seats facing a wide display screen. Some were reviewing notes while others talked quietly about their planets. Noah took an available seat near the middle, where he could see the screen without being drawn into the conversations around him.

An instructor entered shortly afterward and placed his materials on the desk. The conversations stopped as the screen brightened, displaying an ordinary planet beside a second sphere labeled First Ring. The instructor waited until everyone had settled before speaking.

"Today’s lesson concerns the first major upgrade of your planets," he said. "Most of you have heard that you must accumulate Faith Points and comprehend a Law. Those statements are correct, but they leave out an essential part of the process. By the end of this class, you should understand all three requirements and what happens after the upgrade succeeds."

Three headings appeared on the screen: Law Comprehension, Faith Points, and Blood Sacrifices. Noah read the third heading twice. The first two were familiar, but the last had not been included in the explanations he had previously received.

The instructor selected the first heading. "A Law determines what kind of change your planet undergoes. When you comprehend one, you acquire the foundation needed to incorporate its characteristics into your world. Those characteristics can influence the environment and the future development of the species living there. You should study your choice carefully because its effects continue after the upgrade has been completed."

A student near the front raised his hand. "Does comprehending a Law mean our people will immediately acquire its characteristics? Or does the change affect only the planet itself?"

"Do not expect every inhabitant to change overnight," the instructor replied. "The Law becomes part of the planet’s foundation. Its influence on the environment and your species develops from there. The results depend on the Law you comprehend and how it is incorporated. We will cover those differences in later lessons. For now, understand that a Law is not simply a personal ability you acquire for yourself."

Noah thought about Eldrath’s unified population. The goblins lived across four continents, but all now belonged to a single planetary civilization under one ruler. A Law incorporated into Eldrath would influence the planet they shared, regardless of where its inhabitants lived. That made comprehension a decision with consequences for the entire world, not merely for the region where his strongest army was stationed.

The instructor moved to the second heading. "The next requirement is Faith Points. Even if you have comprehended a Law, you cannot incorporate it into a planet without the energy necessary to complete the transformation. That energy comes from Faith Points, and the amount required for a First Ring upgrade is enormous. Having a large reserve by ordinary standards does not mean you have enough for advancement."

He turned toward the final heading. "Now we come to the requirement that causes the greatest difficulty. Your planet also needs sufficient stability to withstand the upgrade. Incorporating a Law changes the planet at a fundamental level. Faith Points can power that change, but they cannot, by themselves, provide the stability required while the transformation takes place."

The instructor selected Blood Sacrifices. "That stability comes from the blood of your enemies. Before advancing, a planetary lord must obtain blood sacrifices through the massacre of enemy species. Their blood strengthens the planet and allows it to endure the incorporation of a Law. This is not an optional method chosen by particularly aggressive lords. It is a requirement for reaching the First Ring."

The room grew noticeably quieter. Noah looked from the heading to the instructor. He had known that planetary lords frequently fought wars against other worlds. He had also witnessed how readily they deployed their civilizations in those conflicts. Until now, he had understood warfare primarily in terms of territory, resources, and military objectives. The instructor was describing another reason for it, one directly connected to planetary advancement.

A student several seats away spoke after receiving permission. "Suppose a lord already has enough Faith Points and comprehends a Law. Can the upgrade begin while the sacrifices are still being gathered, or must all three requirements be completed beforehand?"

"All three must be fulfilled for a successful advancement," the instructor answered. "Faith Points do not replace blood sacrifices, and blood sacrifices do not replace Faith Points. One provides the energy for transformation. The other provides the stability to withstand it. If the necessary blood sacrifices have not been obtained, the planet cannot successfully complete its upgrade."

Noah wrote a third line beneath his notes: Blood sacrifices stabilize the planet during transformation. It clarified the relationship between the requirements. Even if he selected a suitable Law and gathered enough Faith Points, Eldrath could not advance without the sacrifices. He could not solve the problem simply by increasing the rate at which his people generated Faith Points.

The instructor changed the display to show several planets separated by open space. "This requirement has shaped the behavior of planetary lords throughout the Empire’s history. As a lord approaches advancement, obtaining enemy blood often becomes a priority. That is why wars between planetary civilizations are not always fought for land or resources. Many begin because one side needs sacrifices for an upgrade."

He paused while the class studied the planets on the screen. "Planetary lords invade inhabited worlds, defeat the defending civilizations, and massacre members of the enemy species. Entire populations can be destroyed. Some of you may find these campaigns difficult to accept, but the advancement requirement remains the same for everyone. A lord who intends to reach the First Ring must acquire sufficient blood sacrifices."

A student near the aisle frowned. "Does that mean a war fought to capture territory might not be enough? A lord could conquer an entire region and still lack the sacrifices needed to upgrade?"

"Exactly," the instructor answered. "Military victory and fulfilling the advancement requirement are not the same thing. A conquered region might provide resources, territory, or strategic advantages. Those gains do not automatically mean the lord has obtained the required blood sacrifices. You must understand what your campaign accomplishes rather than treating every victory as progress toward the First Ring."

Noah considered the wars his goblins had fought under his direction. He had judged those campaigns by their objectives: territory seized, enemy forces defeated, and the ability to hold captured positions. The lesson introduced another factor. If he intended to advance Eldrath, his forces would eventually have to fight a campaign that supplied the blood sacrifices necessary for the planet’s transformation.

Eldrath’s unification would help him prepare. A single ruler could coordinate the planet’s military and industrial resources instead of having separate governments pursue competing priorities. However, unified command did not eliminate the dangers of war, nor did it guarantee that any future campaign would yield enough sacrifices. Noah would still have to assess his soldiers’ capabilities and the enemy they faced.

The instructor returned to the original three headings and placed them beside the image of the First Ring planet. "Remember what each requirement accomplishes. You comprehend a Law so your planet has new characteristics to incorporate. You supply Faith Points to power the transformation. You obtain blood sacrifices so the planet remains stable while that transformation occurs. When all three requirements have been met, the advancement can succeed."

Noah finished recording the explanation. The requirements were finally clear, although fulfilling them would be another matter. He still had no Law in mind and did not know how to begin comprehending one. Further lessons would explain how to begin.

The instructor cleared the screen and replaced the diagrams with a wider view of the cosmos. Several regions were marked as Imperial territory, while the space beyond them had no indicated boundaries. "There is one final subject you must understand. Completing the First Ring upgrade does not end your responsibilities. After your planet advances, you must choose where it will be placed."

A student raised his hand immediately. "We choose its location? I thought the Empire assigned upgraded planets to a designated region. No one mentioned that we would have a choice."

"The Empire provides one of the available options," the instructor replied. "It does not require every newly advanced planet to remain within its protected territory. You will be given a choice between placement in an environment controlled by the Empire and placement at a random location somewhere in the cosmos. Both choices have consequences for the civilization under your care."

He enlarged the Imperial territories. "The first option is the safer one. An Empire-controlled environment offers protection, stability, and relatively predictable conditions. Your people can continue developing without immediately having to contend with unknown civilizations that may be far stronger than they are. For many planetary lords, those advantages outweigh the possibility of unexpected discoveries."

Noah could understand the appeal. Eldrath had only recently become a unified world, and its single government could now direct the development of all four continents. A protected location would give the ruler time to strengthen transportation, production, and military readiness across the planet. It would also reduce the likelihood of a dangerous encounter before the goblins had adjusted to their upgraded world.

The instructor then shifted the display away from Imperial territory. The marked regions disappeared, leaving an expanse of stars. "The second option is random placement in the cosmos. You do not get to select a favorable destination. Your planet could emerge in a quiet region with few immediate threats. It could also appear near hostile civilizations or in an environment that presents dangers your people have never encountered."

The screen displayed several planetary environments without identifying a destination. "The consequences are unpredictable," the instructor continued. "A lord may discover valuable resources, unfamiliar knowledge, or opportunities that would be difficult to obtain inside a protected Imperial region. Another may encounter enemies before the planet’s inhabitants have adjusted to their surroundings. That uncertainty is the price of choosing the wider cosmos."

A student in the back spoke up. "If the location is random, isn’t that an unnecessary risk? We spend years developing our planets. Choosing the second option could place all that work in danger before we gain anything from it."

"That is a reasonable concern," the instructor said. "It is also why many lords choose the Empire’s protection. Others believe their civilizations have the strength to survive outside those borders. They accept the danger because of the possible rewards. Some opportunities can only be found beyond the regions the Empire controls. Danger and rewards often go hand in hand."

Another student asked whether the instructor recommended one option over the other. "I recommend understanding your civilization’s actual capabilities before making the decision," he replied. "An army that dominates its home planet may still be unprepared for what exists elsewhere. On the other hand, a civilization with sufficient strength and the ability to adapt might benefit greatly from an unexpected discovery. There is no choice that suits every planetary lord."

Noah considered the decision in relation to Eldrath. Imperial protection would allow its unified government to continue developing the entire planet under relatively stable conditions. Random placement might expose the goblins to valuable resources and new opportunities, but it could also bring enemies whose capabilities he could not predict. His soldiers had experience fighting beyond Eldrath, yet that did not guarantee they could overcome every civilization they encountered.

There was no need to make the decision now. Eldrath had not reached the First Ring, and Noah still lacked the knowledge needed to begin the process. First, he needed to study Laws, accumulate Faith Points, and meet the blood sacrifice requirement.

The instructor brought the three requirements back onto the screen, placing the two location choices beneath them. "These are the matters you will face as you approach the First Ring. The Law determines the characteristics introduced to your planet. Faith Points power the change. Blood sacrifices provide the stability necessary to survive it. After the upgrade, you must decide whether your civilization will develop under Imperial protection or face the uncertainty of the wider cosmos."

He closed the display and gathered his materials. "Our next lessons will concentrate on identifying Laws and beginning the process of comprehending them. Do not choose one simply because another planetary lord benefited from it. Learn what it does and consider what kind of development you intend for your planet. The consequences of that choice will remain with your civilization after this course has ended."

When Noah returned to his quarters, he reopened Eldrath’s reports. He looked first at the combined military figures and then at the records of production from the four continents. Those numbers described the resources available to a single planetary ruler. The Faith Point record showed another requirement he still had to meet. He left the question of which Law to comprehend unresolved until he could attend the next lesson.

A private notification appeared on his terminal before he finished reviewing the reports. Noah opened it and found confirmation that his upcoming meeting with House Aelwyn had been arranged. Further details would be delivered through the same private channel. He read the message, closed the reports, and saved his lecture notes beside the confirmation so he could review them before the meeting.