The Birth of the Gods

"Listen carefully, my students. You have been here in the tower for over three years. Now, those of you who are still here intend to stay, and you will complete your training. The last of the unfaithful has left; today your true training begins. You wear your robes of blue, robes which you were given only yesterday. You are now Apprentices, no longer the Supplicants in white you once were. It is time to breach those subjects known only to the magi, and the high priests. Today, I shall teach you of the gods, and their birth-of Astrea, Mistress of Justice; of Kirika, Mistress of Purity; of Almaas, Mistress of Hope; of Rykea, Mistress of Disillusion; of Gia, Mistress of Love; of Quailen, Master of Balance; of Vashon, Master of Forgiveness; and of Shinji, Master of Magic. You all know of these Gods, they govern our very lives. As you have dedicated you lives to the way of the wise, the way of the Magi, you must learn that which will shock you, even make you wonder if it is true. The tale which I shall tell is one of these. So sit, and listen to this tale, which you will most likely regret ever hearing."

The students shifted nervously, afraid of what they would learn. For more than three years they had learnt nothing, only a few small things that would never be of use in the outside world-that had been the point, had it not? To make sure that if they left nobody would come to harm.

Once, there were no Gods running our affairs, guiding us. Once, there were only the Creators, those we know as Father Earth and Mother Flame. There were humans, animals, and all varieties of plants. Of the humans, there were a special group of chosen-sixty-four mortal men and women, who embodied the positive aspects of humanity. These were Justice, so that we might live in peace; Purity, so we might be happy; Hope, so we might dream and progress; Disillusion, so we might see life as it is; Love, so we might feel needed; Balance, so that evil might never reign over all; Forgiveness, so humanity might not destroy itself; and Magic, so all lives might be made easier. But only one chosen of each Aspect would be selected. They would have to be tested, narrowed down to eight, who would be granted a separate realm of their own in which to live and guard over humanity-eight who would be named Gods, who would become supreme beings. Father Earth and Mother Flame decided on how this would be done, and acted. They created the land of the Gods, and allowed the Chosen to enter. There they would, hopefully, form friendships among themselves, face dangers unknown in the world of mortals, and create a place for themselves.

Overall, only half of those summoned survived. The others perished, killed by immortals, new beings unknown to the mortal realms, poisonous plants that were rare or unknown within their lives before that time, the climate, harsh even to those of the harshest in our world, lack of food- these Chosen were not farmers, used to cultivating the land upon which they lived or, worst of all, some were murdered. Those who might have become masters or mistresses of Balance, Justice, or Disillusion performed those harsh actions, but only within reason, even if those reasons were revealed only to themselves. The remaining thirty-two formed four alliances, a member of each Aspect in each alliance, excepting the representatives of Love. Those four stayed separate from the rest, preferring to be free to have open hearts for members of all alliances.

Soon the Alliances revealed their ultimate natures. Two were not as they had seemed, even to Father Earth and Mother Flame-they were, in fact, the exact opposite to their earlier appearances. Justice became Injustice; Purity became Impurity; Hope, Despair; Disillusion, Illusion; Love, Hatred; Balance, Imbalance; Forgiveness to Condemnation; and Magic became Necromancy. The members of the Alliances quarreled among themselves, and every living being within the realms of the Gods. Father Earth and Mother Flame did not wish to give mortals evil gods to worship-they wished for harmony between all creatures, therefore, the two Alliances were banished to a place from whence they might never return, and only sixteen Chosen remained.

There was no test left. It was up to Mother Flame and Father Earth to make the final decision. Only eight chosen could be named Gods, and be allowed to live on in their realm. One Alliance was made up of Gods from all ends of the earth; they had lived in harmony with each other and all of the other Chosen since the beginning of the trials, and their Chosen of Justice had killed only once-a member of one of the anti-alliances who had previously killed a number of Chosen who were undeserving of the death they received. The other Alliance was from one area, and all had known each other since before they entered the realm. They had fought numerous times among themselves, and were ill able to cope with what had happened among the Chosen in their realm. They were ill suited to become Gods over all of humanity. It was decided. Astrea was named Mistress of Justice; Kirika became Mistress of Purity; Almaas, Mistress of Hope; Rykea, Mistress of Disillusion; Gia, Mistress of Love; Quailen, Master of Balance; Vashon, Master of Forgiveness; and Shinji, Master of Magic. The Gods had been named, and all was well. Within eight gods, the world had been united into what would hopefully become a bond of peace and prosperity. The new Gods worked for years in harmony, all living as Father Earth and Mother Flame had intended. They were granted many kindnesses from bother Creators-food was plentiful without cultivation, and the climate evened into a place of perfection for each God. They were given divine powers, the ability to preordain mortals' lives in their circle of influence, and the ability to vanquish all evils that entered the mortal or Godly realms. All was peaceful, and all was set. The world had its gods, and all were happy. Friendship between the Gods grew into love for Kirika and Shinji, and also for Quailen and Astrea. Children were born, and lesser Gods fell into the worship of mortals, gods favoring physical aspects of our world-forests, deserts, rivers-they are our elemental Gods. The Gods were born, and humanity was set upon the path to peace.

The students stirred uncomfortable in their seats. Only a few had taken notes at the beginning, and somewhere near the beginning, all movement had stopped. There was only one student in the room who appeared calm and at peace with himself. Master Iyonjin stared at the young man. Not one student had heard that lecture and remained perfectly calm.

"Apprentice Galen! Do you have something to say? You seem highly undisturbed by all of this!" The boy smiled. He was only young, brought to the Citadel at an early age for training. He was used to odd things, but these facts had never before been mentioned before the boy. He rose, bowed, and began to speak

"Yes, Milord, I wish to speak, if I may." The boy was unnaturally polite, his voice as calm as ever. Nothing had ever shaken the boy before, but this should have.

Master Iyonjin frowned. "Would I have invited you to speck had I wished you to remain silent? Of course not, boy! Speak!"

"Yes, of course, Milord." The boy gazed up at the Master. "You told that very well, for a mortal. Every word you said was accurate. My parents and siblings are impressed. You magi have done well. Shinji-san was right to foster your order." The boy changed as he spoke, growing taller, and his robes lengthening to fall to the floor and becoming wrinkled and well worn. All gathered knew his name, and each fell to the floor, head bowed.

Jeidiel, Lord of Knowledge, only son and child of Almaas and Vashon, stood before them. A God, even a lesser one, rarely appeared to anyone, let alone a large group such as this. He had never before appeared, and now he spoke again.

"You are my chosen. Learn, live, and grow. You hope to become Magi. Know this-if you work, my Mother will grant you your hopes. But if you do not work, and take risks, you will be unaided in achieving your dreams. Life long and live well. Farewell, my chosen." With those words, Jeidiel vanished. A God had visited the first lesson of the Apprentices of the year 1057. A blessing indeed had been placed upon them.

Record of events of First Lesson of Apprentices of the year 1057, taught by Master Hitomi Iyonjin, Divine Loremaster, Blessed of Jeidiel, on the twenty- fourth of the seventh month of 1057, as recorded by Scribe of the Dreamlight Citadel Naria Moonquill, Half-elf.