_{Time: One Week After the Day the Gods Came}

Pelegath drifted up beside the bear mother and regarded her companion with curiosity, but he was not here for an idle visit. There was matters of grave importance to discuss.
"I'm glad to see you enjoying yourself, sister. You were rather distraught the last time we met." Seihdhara had been looking at Pelegath with her broad smile, but on mention of her sadness it faded slightly.
'Yes, I was awfully distressed and confused. I didn't mean to go through the Door you see.' She sighed and shook her head, her broad smile returning, 'But Mater Lei told me she'll be able to get my children through the Door if I prove I can provide. There's obviously not much to prove, so I'll have to keep pestering her until she's satisfied. That should work...' She turned more fully towards the god of decay, 'But in any case, I'm sure you're not here to idle away the time talking about little old me, right?'

The death god sighed, the wind stirring the edges of his hood. "Unfortunately, yes. Your strength surpasses mine and you have made clear your intentions toward Larwen." His shoulders sagged. "We need to do something about our brother. He presents a terrifying threat to the balance of creation." Seihdhara cocked her head and considered Pelegath for a few moments.
'I don't know...' she frowned and appeared to be in deep thought, 'Do you really think Larwen is that much of a threat? From what I can see he is alone, a sole god with odd ideas. Standing against him there is you, Promus, Ipeyr, Kap Gam, and Regulus. Including myself, that makes six of us. Do you truly think that Larwen is so much of a threat that six of us cannot easily deal with him as and when he carries out his plans? Is this preemptive action you suggest truly necessary?'
"It would be unwise to allow him to build his plans." Came the terse response. Seihdhara furrowed her brows and looked at Dwynen.
'I can understand that you're very concerned about what he's planning, Pelegath, but what do you think we can do? Kill him for being a bit of a blabbermouth? He remains your brother.'

The Reclaimer had an almost offended tone when he spoke. "Kill him? Of course not! I am not saying we need to kill him but that he needs to be restrained in some way before he amasses his strength. I fear not for our own safety but for the sake of creation. Moreover, what would happen if he joined forces with our other chaotic siblings?" At the mention of creation, Seihdhara immediately stiffened. She drew closer to Pelegath and looked into the darkness of his hood, and found only. She had secretly hoped for a pretty face, but did not show her disappointment.
'Tell me, brother, what are you god of?'
"I have domain over rot and decay."
'What must a thing be first before it can rot and decay?' Pelegath’s hood tilted quizzically. He was not sure where she was going with this but he was very curious where the end of this line of questioning would be.
"Alive, of course."
'Indeed. And as you are well aware, life itself emerges from decay. Life gives rise to death and decay, which in their turn lay the foundations for life to bloom anew. Is that not, in so many words, what you essentially told Larwen? - that there must be balance.' Seihdhara, of course, did not much believe in that, but Pelegath had seemed to, and she was now curious where it had gone. 'The balance you speak of requires Larwen, does it not? If he is restrained... would that not in itself create an imbalance? Though he does not recognise your words, does he not ultimately play his role just as you said?'

"I help guard balance. Our brother is not interested in balancing creation with destruction. He wishes only to corrupt and distort. I fear if he is left unchecked he will cause unprecedented and irreversible damage." Seihdhara squirmed in discomfort. Pelegath seemed to have a very particular and contradictory understanding of this balance of his. But she did not really care, balance was stupid - you either go all out for what you want or you go home.

'Alright then! I'm in. What would you like us to do to him? I hope it's not something silly like a chat about how bad he's been...'
"He is, unfortunately, beyond reasoning, as you witnessed earlier. My plan is to somehow limit his power without imprisoning him or killing him. A sort of... metaphorical weight to place a cap on his power. He is needed for balance, yes, but balance also means not letting either end unreasonably endanger the other." Even though his view of balance may have been a mite skewed, his intentions were only the best for his family and all creation. Seihdhara cocked her head curiously.
'Limit a god's power but not imprisoning them? Is that even possible?' She asked, she crossed her arms and placed a finger on her chin in thought... and then an idea came to her and she excitably jumped to suggest it, 'Maybe Lei has some kind of contraption that can inhibit a god's power! Let's go steal it. And while we're at it, let's open her Door and bring my children through!

Pelegath paused, gently swaying in the wind. "Perhaps we could convince Mater Lei to aid us before jumping to such rash action," he replied hesitantly. The goddess sighed, her hair - which had seemed to glow red and float in her excitement - falling down limply.
'Fine, I doubt she'll agree to help but you go try and do that. And when she rejects you come let me know and we can break in!' Pelegath shifted uncomfortably at the prospect. Even if it were possible to steal from the vault, surely Mater Lei would have a way to alert her if it was breached?
"I will find you to deliver the news once I have spoken with Mater Lei. Farewell, sister." With that, Pelegath simply disintegrated into a foul smelling pulp and dust that scattered to the wind.

She watched him leave for a few moments then Seihdhara allowed herself to fall back onto the grass and bathe in the warmth of the sun. The sun-rays danced and whispered, the grasses fluttered and sang in her ears, the soil beneath her hummed, the very air murmured. Dwynen fluttered above her face and gestured wildly, finally scrunching up her nose and holding it with two fingers, eyes closed and brows furrowed. 'Oh don't be rude Dwyni. He's a rot god, of course he smells a bit.

Mater Lei watched Yuu go, pulling her glove back over her hand as she stepped from the Vault. Her hand, where she'd struck him, was unbruised- unmarked- unreddened; still the same gleaming black masterwork it had always been. It hadn't been much of a blow. Still, he was tougher than he looked.

The beach was empty now. Lei raised the shining orb, and one last time, she clicked the Lock. This time she removed the key.

Malkut received the golden Lock with silent diligence. Lei tossed the Key into the air, and watched Alto take it in a blur. Something else was in the sky.

A jaguar? Headed for the Southern Continent.

"Malkut," said Lei, "construct for us a headquarters on the South. Take what power you need. I'll run a portal between the two, such as to extend our presence into every hemisphere."

Malkut nodded. "Schematics?" Lei smiled.

"No, Malkut. Build whatever you please and make it yours. The South I give to you, and the respite you desire. You've earned it." Malkut nodded.

Lei turned to the sky once more. "Alto, keep an eye on that dem- Alto? Alto." But Alto was already gone. Of course he is.

Well, thought Lei, conjuring a journal as Malkut performed a fifth-dimensional turn and disappeared from view. I think it's time we take stock.

In the distance, Alto met the horizon.



Mater Lei's fingertips brushed the edge of the fern that from swamp and forest grew. Pelegath's life ate Ipeyr's death, each completing the other, a cycle of healing and rot. It was beautiful. A second book appeared, and a stylus marked it down.

Great clarions rose among the trees, whispering their secret words, and for that she conjured a journal also, and the sprites beyond her mimicked the motion of the pen, taking up sticks with which to sketch with threads of light. Trailed by an entourage of little artists, Lei watched the subtle glow of the Ley absorbed by the towering pumpkins she had made, and laughed, and ran into the wood.

All around she felt the scent and taste of life.

Fish leapt from the salt waters and crabs lurked in the fresh; The Pendulum ticked its seconds down at the heart of the forest as one explored the other. An akbaba swallowed the Plume she had slain, and its companions drank the nectar of the Centaur's Tree, beneath which Elizer stood in wonder.

She spread her arms and danced reality into a whirlpool. Into the vortex flew books without number.

In a faraway river valley, the automaton stood, and as tomes and sketches and unwary sprites spun around him, he examined a book in his own code. Malkut looked up into the portal, and snapped it shut with content. He raised his hands, and when he struck the dry rock, it quaked itself to powder; and in its absence he dragged his great white stones, into the cool canyon wall where he would rest.

All this world I shall preserve.



Overhead he saw a flash. Malkut nodded to his brother.

And Alto...

Just watch.

Alto swept across land, sea and air. He passed the plains of the Jaguar, where Onca lay in lush green; He traversed the plateau of Perfection, crossing Pervanon and spinning through the jaws of the Vyer that lurked there and the Goldari beyond. He soared low through the flowers of Aella's field, sweeping up a gale of petals.

Alto curved his flight to meet the isles beyond; he saluted the Turtle and soared with the griffins at their morning hunt. Alto struck with the lightning of the Dragon's volcanic clouds, and fell with the spit of his magma.

Alto penetrated the sea and flew there, chasing the Faliargun and their susurring thoughts. His wings clipped the corals and spilled spores o'er the Islands of Song, that new Clarions may one day haunt there. He returned to land, where his demigod charge had summited a mountain to share his wonder.

And Alto chased golems, scurrying at play across the Plains of Madness, pursuing the joy of the broken mould. Alto chased the horses on their way to Surm, where Death raised his solemn land and carved his people from its stone, and purple grass thrived beyond.

This world- could anything match its splendour?

Nay.

The Avatar crossed from day to night to day, and back to the night, and leapt into it, and broke the light barrier.

Solari roared and cheered him as he passed, bright and blue, dim and dour, lords in service to lords. They cheered him and they praised, for all eyes were turned to the Galaxy's true center, from which he was an emissary; And Alto took a seat with their light and looked down, with them, at the world that was.

The envy of the Universe.

Galbar was born.

She had promised a feast and she didn’t know why. Well, she knew why but the goddess was more questioning why she let Azazael catch her off guard with his damned words. However, she was going to be doing it one way or another, but she would need help and she was too lazy to go and ask on of the other gods to do it for her.

Kikoquatl let out a defeat sigh and she slumped on the warm floor of her magma lined cave before looking over at the gift that she had been left. It had a scary, sadistic smile carved into it which reminded her of the facial expressions of others even though none of her siblings had done anything actively sadistic around her as of yet. Yet, the pumpkin gave her an idea, if she didn’t want to go and find help, then she would make the help herself. Getting up, the Devourer walked over to the pedestal and lightly placed a hand on it.

Through will, the pumpkins not only shrunk to a proportional size but began to grow a stem under it, the stem filled out to make a torso and arms and eventually legs. Those stems were more durable than anything that could harm it currently, it would need to be if it would be with the likes of Kikoquatl throughout time. Soon, clothing began to appear on it as well, as the stem fanned out, seemingly choosing its own design. The clothing was fancy once it was completed, and within them, standing on the pedestal, was the pumpkin-headed man which held an aura of pride. The head shifted and looked down upon its creator before doing a needless flip through the air, going into a bow with his sadistically evil grin on its face. A keen eye would notice that his facial features had shifted, no longer and open mouth grin that made it seem as if the pumpkin was madly laughing, but now closed.

”What a wonderful day it is to be alive,” he said, his voice smooth and posh. The pumpkin man stood tall.

”I need help to throw a gala,” Kikoquatl said instantly, not bothering to name her creation, ”I will make the food, you go announce the party and everything else needed for it.”

The pumpkin man’s expression shifted to that of annoyance after being just made and being bossed around, however, his sadistic smile soon came back. ”As you wish my lady,” he bowed, before going on, ”However, it is impossible for only I to everything it is that you wish. You mean for me to do the impossible.”

Kikoquatl thought to herself for a moment before in her hand appeared a deck of cards, a 52-card deck. ”Use this to make puppets of yourself, do things. I dunno.” She then brought the both of them to Mater Lei’s Citadel, ”Spread the word, I’ll be busy.”

The pumpkin man was left there with a deck of card in his hands and confusion on his face as to where to actually begin. He turned to the door of the citadel and thought of the best way to introduce himself to whoever owned the fortress, knowing that he would have to talk to whoever was inside since his master graciously dropped him off here for that reason. ”Hello kind sir, I am here to formally invite you… no far too formal. Hey, guess what idiot- nope to aggressive. Think I’ll just be myself. Worked so far,” he told himself, tucking his cards into a pocket inside his suit.

---

The God of Perfection, nestled within the heart of Pervanon, slept for a time. It was not his intention, he did not need sleep to function, yet it came. And this sleep brought about a nightmare he had not even conceived of. One of horror and degradation.

He stood alone within a vast stretch of nothing. He could not describe it, not feel it, nor see it. Yet a humming persisted, growing louder as it came with its perfect tone. Larwen could not move, yet his instincts told him to run, to flee from such a noise. But why he asked? What fear drove a god such as he? To abandon all sense, all thought and give into such primitive instincts? But as the humming loomed about him from all angles, no answer came to him. No voice in the nothing could be heard, just the humming as it loomed all about him. That perfectly dreadful humming. It drove him mad with fright, thought abandoning him as he felt his flesh be ripped apart. He could not fight back, he was powerless. But instinct told him but one simple thing.

And so Larwen screamed.

On Galbar the scream was heard. Throughout Pervanon it went, throughout the Anathema's, and perhaps beyond. All who thought to listen would hear. All mortal life would grow quiet, for such a noise was terrifying. But the perfected souls, upon hearing his divine cry, went into a frenzy. Not soon after, a part of Larwen's might left his body then, willed without thought and latching itself upon the very black stone of the mountain. Pervanon groaned, and heaved as rock broke itself apart, developing itself into something more. When the mountain finally quieted, over a dozen empty shells stood throughout its depths, but not for long. For the greatest of the ley souls took root inside of them, and at last, they were born. Instinct rushed them to their master's side.

And at last when Larwen woke with a start, they stood over him illuminating the dark with their bodies and he knew what they were. His children. The first born of the mountain, perfected beings in all their splendor. He rose to his full height, yet they loomed over him still. Unwavering, fixated upon their master, almost as if they were waiting for something. They needed a name.

"I shall name thee, the Zalsarix, and I will teach you wonders, in time. For now, leave me."

Hesitantly, the Zalsarix left Larwen alone. He had a great deal to think about, for the nightmare was still fresh in his mind. Such a dream should not have happened, for one such as he to succumb to such... No, it had to be pushed aside. No more resting, no more sleeping, and no more nightmares. There was work to do.

Gremju was bored,plain and simple. After the other God's had began departing from Lei's fortress he had returned to the plains of madness to relax for a time,a few hours maybe. Those few hours had turned into about a day now. What? Existing heavy work, could you really blame him for taking some time to enjoy his freshly desolated home. Oh. That was the issue. His home was boring.

Gremju stretched on the great mound of crystals found in the centre of the Plains before lazily rolling off the pile, landing in the dark dirt with a thud. He hoped nobody saw that but frankly he wasn't feeling massively energetic at that moment. The very environment he created presented a challenge, the land itself was dead. What nutrients that were in the soil to begin with had been vaporized when Gremju transformed the plains to his liking. He still had his Grem crystals however... After having this thought the imp deity scattered some of his borrowed fungus onto one of the smaller crystal deposits close the impact site of the largest collection of the mineral and began to weave his magic. The spores multiplied rapidly up into a tall and wide figure,growing over the crystals and taking on their glow. Next a great thick bark covered most of it with small gaps allowing for the light and new spores to flow out of and onto the land. These great 'trees' would serve to protect the Grem deposits while they were supplied with energy to function. Any mortal foolish enough to consume any of the tree would be sent into a madness, the shafts in the bark also allowed new spores to flow out and settle across the land and cover the surrounding area in a thin layer of purple fungi. These trees would only take form on Grem crystals of course and any future creatures he created could feast off the excess spores created, of course he'd design his own creations to not be driven mad by the spores or he'd never get things going on these plains.



Smug about his newest creation, Gremju dubbed them Crystal Root trees and spent the next while placing the spores of them on the larger crystal deposits of the Plains of Madness.

From within the woods Faliir sensed a greater power interacting with his horses, he felt some shift and change into other beings from the power to which he felt grateful. It seemed that diversity was not much of an option for him with his current strength - for another to bear the weight alongside him did indeed improve the situation. The two new species were clearly shaped for different purposes; One was short and agile whilst another was taller that Fallir himself and walked in a terrestrial quadrupedal manner... Faliir smiled at the creativity of this being.

Then she walked towards him, emerging from the forest with cane in hand. The female being bowed as she spoke his name before congratulating him on his creations... a joke seemed to be made to which Faliir smiled. The introductions was to be cut short it seemed. As soon as she appeared the Mater sprung off in a haste, bounding after another's creation before finishing what she had said.

It seemed that there were many of his kind around, all the while he had been working one in particular seemed to jump in joy at his emergence and initial creations, though this dwindled after his centaur appeared. Faliir thought about introducing himself but the being flew off in crimson light...

To Faliir it seemed that many of the deities would be extravagant... at least from whom he had met and if they represented the whole...

It would seem that the eons may sprawl into a jumble... sometimes a drag and other times a cause for celebration...

---

The being trotted through the forest spread, the woodland harbouring invisible entities that perhaps would not be as friendly as his creator... The wind whistled through the branches as the Centaur began to slow his pace to a trot, the grass along the path flattening beneath the feet of the being...
Then it emerged.
The Centaur sensed him as he approached, turning sharply to face the being - in fear they became unsteady... Then the Centaur felt at peace as the being moved ever so closer, the began to think; "What was this being that could tame me so easily?" It's instincts drove it to blissful curiosity.
"I am Promus, and I bestow upon you and your kindred the gift of Speech."
Even though he could not speak beforehand, the Centaur simply knew what the being - what Promus was saying...
The first words came out without intention, "My thanks o'Elder." The Centaur stood stiff for a moment as he realised what had passed from his lips, it was then when he realised - sounds could be heard from his head, as though they had always been there - as though they meant more than sound or instinctual impressions... This had occurred only once before in the ever-so-short life of him... When Father Faliir gifted him a similar power...

There was no use thinking any further on the subject as of now, instead the Centaur used it's new found ability on instinct to greet the being.
"Greetings, I am a creation of my father..." the being thought before continuing. "I am tasked with a great quest... of sorts. I must scour the lands to find a safe and worthy land to plant my father's tree... and to protect it whenever harm may befall it... Perhaps you may be of assistance o'Elder?"

---

End of turn 0 - Turn 1 Start: 6.5 Might

---

The days began to pass for Faliir, without much to set his mind to with the lack of creatures and therefore lack of heroism he spent his time empowering ants to fight for scraps, for critters to fight for hearths and what he tended to do; simply watch mortals through their days. Life was already a bore for Faliir and it hadn't been a long while that he had existed... The mortals were ever so boring, either moving or not. What was it they did when they were immobile for so long - they sprawled across the flooring for hours upon end. They only thought of darkness the whole time, an abyss of nothingness that took up so much of their time without granting so much as a use. This needed to change and Faliir had an idea.

One of his relatives created a strange, winged creature capable of flight. It sung melodies and could create serenity within calm listeners. Faliir took hold of one that fluttered nearby, with his calming presence the bird accepted it's fate. The Deity took upon inspecting the bird, it's shape, colours, textures and design committed to memory, plucking a feather ever so carefully before placing it on the ground to which it flew into the air and whisked itself away on the winds. Faliir had all that he required. Whistling on the feather it began to glow a sandy yellow, encased within it's glow it began to grow and change - soon there was an entire being that sat in Faliir's hands. It was a bird yet not as it's brethren. This would be a being shaped with Faliir's power, an avatar to follow his bidding. The creature's wings seemed to be entirely connected... flowing like a thin cloth of silk in the wing.
I grant you life so that you may grant power to those with eyes closed he commands the new being. "For that I grant you my power and a name; Dreay."
The now eagle-sized creature squarks in response, eyes never leaving it's creator.
"May you ever travel through the world, grant visions of an ideal world into the minds of mortals in rest... May they be influenced to act when active."
Faliir outstreaches his palms to the skies and the newly created Dreay shifts forwards before flapping its wings and flying away.

---

Staring blankly at the mysterious and primitive world, the spider stood while stroking its chin with one of its long and scrawny leg. I still can’t believe I had reincarnated, the spider thought as it look the night sky. Although there were more stars to be seen in the wilderness than the city, there are no signs of the spider that it is still on Earth. Just today, it saw a bug, something like a grasshopper, that almost ripped off a bird’s wing with ease in one bite. Unless the spider is living in some kind of prehistoric period of the Earth, which is very possible seeing how he had been reincarnated as a spider, the future is gonna be grim. Beside from that, he had seen his mother filling her hunger with her newly born offsprings. Of course, he ran for his life after knowing such fact. And here he is, in the middle of nowhere and with an empty stomach, Tengu missed his home. But the environment around him provides no compassion. The wind howled, almost ripped him of from the blade of grass that he is standing on.

With no particular place to go in mind, Tengu decided to sleep at the nearby hole and buried himself in the golden sand of this strange place. The hole is narrow and grim, with some peculiar smell coming from the inside. That combined with the howling wind resulted in creating a dreadful atmosphere to the place that Tenji is going to call home. Snuggling close at the bottom end of the hole, Tengu fall asleep with a stomach that is still demanding food.

But Tengu does not sleep well, having a rather dreadful nightmare of him slowly dying in this cave due to starvation. His bones exposed to the air, revealing whatever that is still remained within in his chest. His eyes were still there, decorated by multiple dark circle around. His hair grows dark and stiffer, a common trait among the times of great famines. Around him are men and women from various ages. Some were raped, signalled by their dried blood bodypart and being naked in the wilderness. Others with theirs throats slide open and fingers gone. Some were even more messier, with the later worse compared to its predecessors. And all around him, Tengu saw these bodies stacked upon each other. And for no peculiar reason, Tengu named the place as “The End.”

But the nightmare could not stop him from letting his eyes to close shut. Burrowing in the golden sand, only leaving eight paired of eyes to be revealed, the spider fall asleep. Outside, the sun slowly arises from the West, signaling a new day and a new cycle to begin on this desolated desert.

---

Mater Lei walked the halls of her citadel, watching the waves of Grimloq's latest contrivance batter and fail against its ashen walls. Spray soaked the window as though it were raining; it had been a sunny day before, but now Lei had made it clouded. She felt it more appropriate. She could almost hear the roar of his avatars duelling out in the distant sea.

The gods had left, by and large, to forge their own territories. One or two remained- Kap Gam was still here somewhere, as was Ipeyr, fostering his son. Kiko was still around, though fate alone knew where her tunnels led. Alto was gone. Malkut was resting. For the most part, she was alone. Lei pulled a thin slab of metalled glass, the Book of Alto, from her coat, watched the letters dance thereon; the only source of light in a dark dark hall. He did send reports. When he could.

Could be bothered.

Lei looked into the darkness, the corridor extending endlessly before her. It was moody. Every wall bore the scrawlings of the desperate golem. Her magic still soaked the place, residual power that would come when she called and until then stayed where it had been left, darkening. She curled her fingers. The magic zephyred. Tiny specks, so small as to be fog, hanging in every corner, living but not breathing, dead, hungry. Her magic was the magic of dust.

She clenched a fist. The walk that had been dim was now black. Beneath her mask, Lei smiled. It had been a long, long time since she had indulged herself.

She didn't need to be lonely, of course. She was just watching the Door (that cold and distant door that ever seemed to be watching back). She could make this place as lively as she wanted, a sight to heal tired hearts. She could make her guards like flowers, dancers and warriors, fill it with shrine maidens to please her eye. Then she could wander.

But, thought Mater Lei, watching the lightless curl, she had a theme going.

The dust swirled and condensed, thickened with flesh. It did not take shape- it was still dust and dustshadow. Lei kneeled, extended her finger, and bored a wound of light into the black. The bright spot wavered, shook, swam, and split in two. Lei grabbed the darkness by the throat and pulled it out.

A Haze Man.

Lei threw it back into the dust and it stayed there. She looked into the dim. Plenty more where that came from. One by one she filled her halls with Haze Men. They lay in the dust, the shadow, embedding themselves in the concrete, motionless, unseen, traps for the audacious. When she had some two hundred, Lei filled a bag with rabbits and threw them into the Citadel. They didn't last long. Those thin arms sprung like beartraps.

Lovely.

Lei selected a room in the Keep and filled it with weapons, great iron weapons, spears and hammers and axes, and garottes, and bolas and boomerangs- not the light returning kind, made for sport, but the heavier kind, for killing. They were crude weapons, heavy and huge, sharper than they ought to be, and the Haze Men suited them well.

That will do, thought Mater Lei, for now.

She stepped into the garden and listened to the Plumes. Did she hear a knock?

Newygnong let the Vyer drop from her mandibles, the massive corruptor worm's carapace crushed and useless, its corruptions oozing out. Newygnong did not feed on the Vyer - she was not dumb, she knew what the flesh of these things could do. But she did not permit them to simply ooze into the earth either. She laced the corpse and the ground around it in acids and enzymes that would break the corruption down back into its most basic elements. And from there, it would only benefit serve as good food for creatures and fertiliser. Nearby she came upon the creature's eggs, and laced them in the acids too.

Newygnong was not satisfied, however. She had seen her creator's form, she had seen the form of her crimson-haired mother (but she was not her mother, because Newgnong was ugly and was not worthy), seen even the delicate and elegant form of little Dwynen; she had seen the centaurs and the humans that had erupted into being, and she had seen the mindless creatures that she so resembled. She did not like it. She wanted to resemble higher beings, to be beautiful. She wanted to become her mother's child.

She stalked the man, the man her mother had spoken to as she spread the golden mists across the world. Watched his movements, the strength of his form (nothing before her own strength, of course, but there was something alluring about it, something essentially superior). She ventured from the forests and searched the Citadel, looked in the shadows and was confronted by creatures of darkness. She escaped from them, naturally, but not before she took note that they too had the perfect form. Not slithering or crawling, but humanoid.

In the first forest, she hunted Vyer with a fury and brooded glumly over her state. She never should have been created in this form. It was wrong. It was a punishment.


The spirits whispered. They were wrong. She would be as she wished to be. She would shed this form one day, and she would be truly beautiful. And her mother would love her.

Orfai felt himself called by the thoughts of his Faliargun and swept through the darkness of the oceans to meet them. The shadowy figure formed above them, looking down through the waters to the seven Faliargun as they fought with a pair of Goldari. There were younglings among them now; hundreds of tiny larval forms; they were little more than tiny blobs of flesh with tentacles, barely the size of a humans little finger. They would grow dramatically through several stages until they reached adulthood, each stage growing in size, intelligence and features; In this hatchling state, they had no intelligence and ran on very primitive instincts. And so they scattered as they tried to avoid the Goldari, who would snatch up dozens at a time, snuffing them out like nothing.

The adult Faliargun fought off the Goldari as best they could, trying to gather up and defend their young. One of the female Faliargun still carried her eggs wreathed around her like a sash, sealed together with a sticky waxy substance. She kept as far back from the Goldari as possible, waving a large rock menacingly whenever once came near her to drive it away.

Orfai watched the scene below with interest but remained a shapeless, unseen shadow...

One of the Faliargun surged forwards in a sudden burst of speed, breaking a section of bone off a nearby whale carcass. Using this whale bone like a lance, it moved forward at an astonishing rate and impaled the first Goldari through the side, the long length of bone smashing straight through it's scales and out the other side. It writhed around in agony and the brave Faliargun withdrew it's boney spear as the beast retreated, turning and clutching it with both hands as it brought it's attention to the other Goldari. The beast lurched forwards towards him with it's jaws wide open, letting out a screech. But the heroic Faliargun did not falter; he stood his ground until the vest last moment, propelling hismelf forward at a lightening speed and into the creatures jaws! The lance plunged down it's throat as the Faliargun entered it, piercing through it's vital organs.

There was a moment of silence as the Goldari came to a halt, blood seeping from it's mouth. It turned slowly and began to float limply through the water. The Faliargun watched in unison- and then finally the warrior burst forth out the creatures mouth and back into the water, raising it's bone spear above it's head triumphantly. The wave of emotion that rushed over their minds was entirely different; the Faliargun no longer panicked but hailed their conquering hero.

And then, dread.

Goldari were usually solitary creatures and the presence of a pair meant it was mating season. Sure enough, a large group of them began to work their way over through the waters, a dozen of them or so. They knew there was blood in the water, and they were coming for the meat. The Faliargun turned to flee, gathering up their young and moving through the waters in a sphere around them.

All save one. The brave warrior swam into the blood of the Goldari he had killed, coating himself in it before swimming forward and then off to the side to draw the attention of the Goldari, fleeing towards the reef as they chased him.

And the Keeper was satisfied. He swept down towards his creation and took form again, becoming a shadowy figure rather than shapeless darkness, and from within that figure rose his brilliant bronze Faliargun form, wreathed in shadow and with many shadowy tentacles branching off from it. His aura and appearance inspired terror in the Goldari and they turned and scattered, fleeing before his might and wroth.

The Faliargun beside him looked to his God in amazement, and Orfai could hear the beings thoughts within his head.

"My maker! Hail!" It thought.

"Hail you, the conquering hero." Orfai 'replied' with a glance. He reached out one of his arms and touched his creation and the mark of Orfai formed on the Faliargun's chest for a moment before fading away again. "Hail, Nikarnith of the Faliargun, for you have shown great bravery and cunning. Such heroics could be the beginnings of a legend! Such deeds must be rewarded, and so I mark you now with the sign of my favour. Go forth and defend your people as you journey along the currents to the islands Rytia has provided, for your journey now flows with the tides of fate itself..."

_{Time: Takes place between one-week and two-weeks after the Day the Gods Came}

Seihdhara landed on one of the thirteen strange spiralling singing islands and looked around. These islands were full of sound and life, so much was clear, and the indelible mark of her siblings was unquestionable. The sound of laughter and merriment reached her, and she smiled at it. And there reached her, carried on the winds, a soft sad tune that inspired within her such a feeling of longing that she could not but help sing out with all her heart. It was a song she knew from long ago, but which she changed ever so slightly - for her circumstances differed now from then.



Her voice had attracted the attention of those who had been singing before, and as her song came to a close she found that they were approaching her curiously. They were small little things, easily dwarfed by the enormous hair-clad goddess. They were very thing and had elongated fingers and toes (which, on closer inspection, were also webbed). Some were pale-skinned with large eyes of deepest honey, others dark with eyes of white, others yet red, their ears were pointed and they had what appeared to be gills on their necks. Their lips were a funny hue of dark red which stood out immediately in those with pale skin, and some had hair which was - to Seihdhara's delight - different shades of orange and red. Others were were blonde, or with hair of blue or green or purple, but that could not be helped - if everyone had red hair it would lose its novelty and sacred nature.

They chittered curiously about her, and one of them reached upwards towards her mouth trying to fathom how she could produce that heart-stirring sound. 'That Promus hasn't gifted everything with speech, eh? That's not nice now, is it little scrumpling?' The nerai only oohed and aahed and, not to be outdone, Dwynen suddenly emerged with a flourish from deep within the goddess' hair, releasing a peel of laughter and squeals. The nerai cried out and jumped after the faery, laughing and squealing. Seihdhara laughed also and looked around, wondering who had made all of this.

Location: Purple Grass Desert (The Locusts' Plain)
Timeline: Day 10 since reincarnation.

---

“The spiders are talented hunters, using their webs and venom as their tools to capture the preys. Some even possessed venom potent enough to kill a person.” David Attenborough said, while using his hand to demonstrate how the red back spider killing its prey. His hand snapped, accompanying by the scene of a fly getting tangled in the spider’s web. Nearby, the redback spider slowly approaching its prey. Its long legs traversed on the sticky silver thread, raising question and fear in the fly’s compounded eyes. Death is near, it could feel the carnation of death getting closer and closer by every second. And with one quick strike, faster than a blink of an eye, the fly dies.” Maybe, to the viewers eyes across the glasses, the fly died a dumb death and the spider is simply lucky. And then, they would went on and on, telling if they were that fly what they would do to escape the sticky situation. And maybe most would think it was an easy job for the spiders, just simply to weave the web and kill the prey with their venom. Like how hard could it possibly be?

But for Tengu, the whole thing was a lie. On TV, the job was easy as it could ever be. But in real life, the job is hard as hell. Why can Tengu say that? Because he is A spider, just with less skill and more moral. He had been waiting for a damn locust to fly into his trap for the last f***ing 15 hours. And he did just like what he saw those spider do at the upper corner of the room, weaved his web around the nest and hoping for some stupid locusts or a bird would just fly in and got caught. But that never comes. Instead of hiding in the shade as anticipate, the locusts flies across the blue sky that has a soft hint of the glamorous golden sand and to somewhere eastward. Of course Tengu really wanted to ask the locust for what reason did they leave when there is literally foods everywhere. But little did he know, the locusts had now evolved to not only able to eat plant but flesh as well. And instead of eating bird, they prefer to eat things with less furs. He had also found the locusts’ eggs, laying beneath the burning sand. But still, held back by his moral, Tengu looked the other way and decided to drink some water to wet his jaws before going back to sleep.

But one thing for certain, if he can’t adapt, Tengu is gonna be the first hero to due because of starvation.

Yuu was glad someone had invented straw, because having a rice-hat to keep off the sun made it ten times easier to work.

"C'mon, girls," he said to the horses that had followed him along to the spot where he'd been digging. "Off you get. Kck kck. Shoo." Of flat ground on which to roam there was plenty, but of grassy field there was but little. The horses followed him around, and kept to the edge of the woods. Yuu hmphed, watching them trundle off a little ways, and met eyes with his hoe.

It was a demon hoe, a primitive one, all beak and head and mounted on a stick. With a little more time Yuu would have liked to fashion it so that no mass was wasted on a skull (a hoe didn't need one) and more could be used for some other tool, but for now it would do. Yuu shrugged at it and swung its makeshift handle, burying its head in the dirt.

With a few more strokes he lifted a wad of turf out of the grasses. It went into a woven cylinder along with a dozen others. With this makeshift backpack on his back, Yuu set off for the stream. Even with the grass he planted and the water fresh, the land still seemed barren. Hopefully not for much longer.

Regulus felt something occur in the nearby plains. He took a step forward, and immediately he disappeared and reappeared a few steps behind the curious androgyne. It seemed as though he was a mortal man, but he also seemed to not be native to his world.

He watched the man work for a short period of time. There was something right about it. While he had interacted with other gods before, this was his first time interacting with a mortal, or at least someone who seemed to be a mortal. He spoke up, "What is your name?" he said, more of a demand than a question.

"Ah- o- Hello." Yuu perked, looking up from his patch of turf with grass on his fingers. He recognised a god. Not this god, but a god. "I am Yuu," he explained, bowing somewhat. The big basket was still on his back. "Can I help you?"

Regulus stood paused for a moment. "I am Regulus. I noticed you working the land, and I came to watch."

Yuu smiled, as if he had some doubt about that but didn't mind. "Well, watch all you like, if that's what you're here to do," he said. Yuu looked at the mud stream and softly laughed. "I'll be here for a while."

The god looked at the horses with a strange glare. A foreign feeling came over him, jealousy. "Prehaps it would help if you had sturdier beasts to aid you." he said, taking his spear into the ground and displacing the earth. The hole that formed covered itself up, and the displaced earth took the form of an ox. As he did this, other oxen formed in the nearby region.

Yuu took a good look at the rising cattle, resting on his hoe. He slapped the bullock on the flank. It gave a small low, but didn't budge. "Well, thank you," he said, tilting his head. "I guess that saves me time, once I have a plough. But what will these animals eat? I'm..." he kicked a recently-planted patch of turf, already being chewed away by the cow. "...Running out of grass."

Regulus smirked. "That should be no problem." he said, dipping his spear into the river and then splashing the water symbolicly across the ground. Grass began to sprout out from where the water touched land, and it spread out from those points. Yuu took one long look at the green spilling across the earth, pulled the head off his hoe and threw the handle into the river. He wouldn't be needing it anymore. Truly, God helped those who helped themselves.

"Well, that's a debt," he said. "But who are you, Regulus? You've covered me in gifts, and I still can't tell why."

Regulus paused. He was confused, had he done something wrong. "Is that not the way of things. Besides, I do believe you have much more in you than being a simple grass farmer. That hoe you created is strange. You are not of this world, tell me what it was like in your native realm."

There was a smile, but mostly a sigh. "Oh. I see." Yuu suddenly regretted not having a gardening implement to lean on. "Well..."

A long steppe extended in front of him, stalks swishing softly in the wind.

"...It wasn't this quiet," he began. "That's... All you need to know, really. I'm glad I made it here." Yuu hadn't realised that before saying it, but it was true. "I'm glad I made it somewhere."

Regulus gave a solemn nod, his voice softened for just a moment, "I can understand not wishing to speak of places left behind. The realm I was... forged in was one that fell to dark entities. I have only glimpses of what it was like."

...Yeah. Yuu tried not to show anything on his face. He was good at it. Dark entities.

His voice returned to its normal cadence, "Though, surely you have grander aspirations than simply covering the land with grass. I thought you were creating a farm. Though, even then it seems like you are capable of much more."

A nod to confirm. "By trade I'm an armourer. A marksman. A demonicist. I... have had a lot of trades, come to think of it."

Regulus shook his head, "That is what you have done, not what you wish to do."

Yuu shrugged. "When you find a cause that's noble, you do all kinds of things."

He once again paused. He liked this mortal. "I am not one to know of demons or the ore of the earth, but I do have memories of markmanship. Perhaps I can leave you with one last gift. There may be a time in the future where you will have a noble cause to take up, you should have a weapon when that time comes."

From his spear, a gnarled branch of wood grew into the shape of a bow that he snapped off. He took one of his own hairs to form the bowstring, and threw it at Yuu's feet, before turning around. Yuu picked it up immediately, wiping mud off the bow.

"...Thank you," he said, trailing a finger along the stave of the bow.

Regulus took his spear, and threw it back towards the forest. "There may be a time where this world is threatened by the other gods who found their way to this world. I would suggest you prepare for that time." After a few more moments, he disappeared.

Yuu stood alone. After a while he walked to where he'd left his quiver, and nocked an arrow. Even at half draw, the recurved shortbow pierced low clouds.

...I'll accept that suggestion, thought the slayer.

Over the weeks and months that followed Newygnong's decision to become humanoid, the giant millipede took active note of her body and the divine energies that soared within her, granted by her mother. Even as she hunted the Vyer, she willed herself to change, reforging herself in her mother's image. It was a slow process, but one day as she crossed a stream she paused and looked down, and the form that greeted her was very different from what she had once been. It was not perfect, it was not what she wanted, but it was better.

Still a hulking giant, her innumerable legs were gone - some she had ripped off aggressively, others she had willed to wilt and fall away - and she now stood on four legs, much like those centaurs. Her mandibles remained horrendously large, and the terror of their strength had caused many a Vyer to cry out in their final moments. Her carapace, blessed with adamntine strength, now covered her body whole and was of inky blackness, glistening now and again into blue.



From innumerable legs to four, from a head indistinguisbale from the rest of its body to one well-formed and defined. She was doing it, forging her very body into the image of beauty. She moved from the river and stalked the proliferating humans, watching their movements and knowing, with certainty, that one day she would walk like that and move like that.

She presented herself before one such human one day, stridulating proudly that he may see the form she had wrought with her will. But he only looked upon her with horror and dread, turning about and fleeing. Newygnong watched him flee, head cast down. It seemed they would not accept her either.

Kap Gam rested on the shadow of a tree within the fortress while she recovered from the burdensome tasks of the first day of this world. She heard more siblings talk, she was impressed even the very one who was the first to raise a hand against Larwen was now talking about compromise, seems like the god of twisted views did not make his message and stubbornness clear enough. Kap Gam felt like once again warning them, but so be it, disaster breeds discipline, they will learn.

She continued to rest, until she noticed almost all gods had left, and the fortress was now inhabited by odd hazy creatures. She would have grunted if that was not a waste of movement, she was nowhere nearly rested enough, but it seemed the approach of the Door was turning increasingly unwelcoming.

With a single movement, a single hair-like thread. It had been a while since she had to create such a relic. She focused, and snapped the thread in two, a small, almost imperceptible sound, resulting from such an action. In seconds, it quietly echoed all the world, telling hear each and every single thing it touched, telling her tales of isles of fire and isles of sound, of continents and of divine constructs. One thing, above all, stuck out with her.

"It has no center?" she thought aloud, a very rare action for her, but the disappointment was just that loud. She would think the door was the center of the planet, a perfect point for the Leylines to focus, but it was not, it did not align with its poles and the telluric flow was just all wrong. That was bad. A temple to harmonize the Ley needed a perfect balance of all elements, that was unattainable under the ocean.

The goddess placed a hand on her temple and frowned, thinking over the possibilities. Mater Lei had made her work much harder, she could make a run for it and do what she wanted while leaving the consequences for the gods of this world to deal with, however, this was not her way to act.

She looked at the map again, pinpointing its center, and then drawing circles around it, the smallest having a radius of the distance between the Door and the center of the world. She chuckled when noticing what was in each cycle, Fate was a predictable thing at times.

After setting up a few points, she went to the nearest, which was more distant from the Door than she wished, but she would do what needed to be done. Her hand touched the field near the mountain, and the whole landscape started to shift, rocks were brought upward, rivers were moved and their waters purified, unpleasant plants withered in seconds, their nutrients feeding the flowers and the groves, the Ley was arranged beneath the alpine land in very specific form.

For the finishing touch, the goddess waved her hand, and the raised stones composed of marble were carved into a simple yet beautiful temple. Kap Gam's Locus Amoenus had been formed.

_{Time: Takes place between one-week and two-weeks after the Day the Gods Came}

Watching the strange island folk play with Dwynen, Seihdhara could feel a distinct sense of inspiration come over her. Their lithe movements, and Dwynen's elegant aerial dance, inspired such a degree of excitement to rise up within her that her hair seemed to truly be aflame. Looking carefully at them, she reached for her hair and pulled away a handful of burning hair which she began to fashion into the shape of a faery - yet larger by far than any faery of Kap Gam's making; indeed, she was easily three feet tall, and the span of each of her wings twice that. Her skin was blue and her eyes gold, and she looked at Seihdhara with clear animosity.


The goddess frowned.

'Well, that came out wro-' but before she could wipe the strange fae from existence, she spread her wings and rose, and in her wake there scattered a thousand smaller fae of complexions blue and green and yellow and purple, turning their heads frantically here and there with clear mischief in mind.
'There's no taking Asula back!' Said the mother-fae - not with her mouth, but the very world spoke her words aloud around her. A few of her children attacked Dwynen, and others yet pulled at the hair the the nerai, who cried out in shock and distress - for they had never been subjected to this kind of treatment before and had not thought it at all possible.

Irritated, Seihdhara caught one of the fae and shook it till it was dust, then pounced upon another and did the same. But the air all around was swarming with them, and many had flown far away - certainly the first one had and was leaving newborns in her wake. Gahtering the dust of all those she had slain, and throwing in her crimson hair, the goddess created once more. There arose another, of similar height but powerfully built and wingless, a clear warrior. He was horribly pale and his hair was all wrong - devoid of life and colour. And above him, yet another rose - a woman winged -, and another.
'Brentylwith arises!' Declared the wingless male.
'Eirgwyn takes flight!' The first female announced.
'Dichdorka ascends!' The second female proclaimed. And as with the very first, in the wake of these latter two there erupted others, these ones seemingly more benign, and they immediately set about tugging their blue- and green- and purple-skinned kin off the nerai and freed poor Dwynen. But these new fae had not the strength or martial prowess of their firstborn cousins and were immediately set upon. Only the intervention of the larger three tipped the balance, but only slightly. And so Seihdhara fashioned a blade and summoned the wingless warrior to her (who, though wingless, flew just as easily as the rest) and she handed it to him. And immediately he was filled with its power and was made mighty. For in his grasp was the First Warsword; Seihdhos Sword of Victory.

And the Sullied fae scattered, and the wingless warrior gathered his Unsullied kin and gave chase. Wherever Asula and the Sullied went, they spread mayhem and chaos, ranging from the slightly mischievous to the downright cruel, and wherever the Unsullied came they spread seeds and great forests grew all over Galbar, and streams exploded from the earth and gushed forth to the sea. And the fae clashed and battled - in the skies and in the deep dark forests, in streams and in lakes and atop the mountains and the hills.

'Whoops.'

The many acts of villainy against the sanctity of souls had not gone by unnoticed to the goddess of souls. While looking at the pleasant fields of her holy site, she could not stop but to think about the offenders. The God of Twisted Views seemed to be bound to be dealt with, what worried her were a few less stubborn others. With Death, she thought diplomacy could help, but the very act of talking with The Challenger would be a disservice to her cause, it would make it into an issue, which meant the god would target her.

Still, she had matters to deal with first. Many sprites had flocked to her field, reminding her she needed to continue working on new bodies for the free souls.

Sprites were neutral creatures, merely mimicking the world around them, as such, the ones in the swamps south of the Door were very different from the ones in the forest, their skin was slick and of strong green or brown, their wings were long, and their antenna was bulbous, rarely ever spotting a horn. Kap Gam gathered them, and a few select ones were blessed, gaining limbs to manipulate reality and gaining more advanced shapes. These would be the Dracs, and they would inhabit the oceans, lakes, and rivers. On her sanctuary, they would keep the gentle flow of waters within the land, watering the pleasant plants.

With that done, Kap Gam was about to return to her holy field, but instead, she decided to continue, past the mountains and fields, until she reached the borders of the Plains of Madness. She approached a Crystal Root, and made it so its wood gave away. Collecting the crystals, both pure and Ley infused, she then left to a nearby mountain.

She held the crystal near her face, observing it, comparing it, feeling the Ley inside it, and the resonance of the tormented and deranged souls. She closed her eyes, and sighed. There was not much hope for these, but one day there would be hope for others.

The Challenger too, shall be challenged." she thought, before giving up on her attempt to cleanse the crystal of its corruption by sheer force. She would keep one, the design was simple and primordial, not a lot of samples were necessary. The others, she threw to the ground and right after freed her whip from her belt.

The whip once again came to life, its many thongs moving about. "Awake, Hydra." with that whisper, fourteen eyes opened, shining in seven colors, all surrounded by scales of a single tone of silver. It ravenously lunged forward at the crystals, shattering them and swallowing them whole, devouring the souls and savoring the hint of ichor reminiscent in the god's creation. It was a very diluted taste, but it was still the taste of heaven.

The weapon eyed the last crystal that remained, the one Kap Gam planned to store, but the goddess's grip was strong, and with a single move, the whip was once again at rest.

Having knocked frantically for the past few minutes, the Pumpkin Man was completely drenched in water. One could imagine his facial expression of being slammed into the wall of a citadel, not a very happy one for sure. Steam rose off his head as his annoyance grew, two great plums rose from his eye holes, making his appearance all the more hilarious to anyone who had been watching him. Though, the Pumpkin Man was certainly not in his (sadistically) happy mood.

Mater Lei, however, was.

She didn't know who was knocking, and given the circumstances, she wouldn't have opened for anyone anyway, except maybe Promus, or a desperate maiden of the soaked variety. When her pocket-watch had ticked thirty seconds, she made it rain. When the watch ticked ninety, she snapped it shut and waltzed slowly to the citadel door, swinging her cane.

"Lovely weather we've been ha-"

Lei stopped dead, then screamed. Within well under a second, the Pumpkin Man was the unfortunate victim of a powerful long-armed grip, raising him up like a proud son and shaking him like a doll.

"I LOVE YOU, KIKO!" she screamed down the nearest tunnel, gripping him tightly to her chest and drying him instantly.

The Pumpkin Man was quite literally being crushed, even with his divinely enhanced body was straining against the absolute bear hug that had been bestowed upon him. Thankfully, he didn’t have lungs so the air he didn’t need to use to breathe wasn‘t being forced out of him. However he did let out a sound of pain, attempting to break free from this psychopath of a god.

”Miss, if you could please let go. I’d prefer not to die after just being born,” the Pumpkin Man said in a pained voice, simply wanting to be free of the grip.

"If you die from this~ you are weak~ and did not deserve to live~" reminded Mater Lei.

Granted, he wasnt actually taking damage from Lei’s hug, he just really disliked hugs. He disliked them so much, it caused him actual physical pain.

”Please stop...,” the Pumpkin Man pleaded.

Lei stopped, held him at arm's length. "You really aren't familiar with chaos gods, are you?"

”Considering I was born and immediately put to work with no explanation, no. But if they all hug then I wish I had stayed a simple pumpkin,” he said, his face making a motion as if he were rolling the eyes he didn’t have.

"They do," she confirmed. "Of all the gods that walk this earth, I am the least prone to embrace. You have to stay here forever now." Lei put him down and twirled her cane, leaning back on it. "If it helps, I much prefer you as an impeccably dressed pumpkin. Simple doesn't suit you, darling."

”I thank you for your compliments,” The Pumpkin Man said with an elaborate bow. ”As for staying here forever, I don’t think my lady Kikoquatl would very much like that. Especially with the important task she sent me here for,” he pulled a single card from the inside of his suit. It was all black, save for the orange pumpkin with yellow eyes and the sadistic smile on it. “My card,” he explained, offering it to Lei as he held it between his index and middle finger, ”My creator sent me here to invite you to a gala that she will be holding, she also wants me to organize everything that doesnt pertain to food.”

Mater Lei froze for a second, then disappeared. Scraps of fabric and smoke drifted slowly down the air.

It was then that a rotten odor wafted through the doorway, quickly followed by yellow slime mold that spider webbed across the floor. From the mold rose a familiar, rounded form that manifested just behind the pumpkin man. The Lord of Rot leaned down to inspect the orange creature with a curious tilt to his empty hood.
”What an interesting creature,” he murmured.

The Pumpkin Man jumped, not expecting something to show up behind him. What he saw was something revolting to the sight and even worse for his sense of smell, luckily he had enough resolve to at least survive the encounter. ”Hello there, didn’t notice you sneaking up on me like some kind of creep. Not that I would peg you for one, rotting corpse man. I don’t mean any offense of course,” he said with a smile.

”Apologizes if I frightened you, but I do not sneak. I materialized here.” The correction was not made with any sort of hostility. It was more a statement of fact to Pelegath. ”Do you know where Mater Lei is? I have urgent matters to discuss with her.”

There was a small 'bang'. Lei turned up with two coat-hangers on each hand and a dress on each of them, wearing a lacy black gown and a new mask. "I," she announced, "am ready. To the ball!"

Then, after a few seconds, "Oh. Hello, Pelegath."

He looked her up and down for a brief moment and had he any eyebrows, one would be raised.
”Hello. You seem busy so I will try to be brief. I assume you are aware of my brother, Larwen’s ideals concerning “perfection”, yes?”

"Mmm, distantly aware, yes," offered Lei. "He hasn't exactly perfected anything yet, has he? Just forged a few monsters."

”Nothing more than a swath of now leveled swamp, but I fear the day when his plans come to fruition. Something needs to be done proactively before he causes irreversible damage to creation.”

"Oh, is that so." Mater Lei glanced round, and finding no nearby handmaidens to carry her accoutrements, palmed them off on the Pumpkin Man. She dusted her hands (which weren't dusty) and opened a small portal to the western plateau. "Our friend is currently... Nowhere to be seen. Some small titans are wandering around his Pervanon like lost and frightened children." She snapped the portal shut and shrugged. "What seems to be the problem, again?"

”The problem is not imminent, but looming. I am not suggesting we destroy or otherwise imprison my brother if that is what you are thinking, but his power needs to be kept in check before something catastrophic happens.”

Mater Lei pulled out her pocketwatch and stared at it. "Before... something... catastrophic... happens. Alright," she said, closing the watch, adjusting her already impeccably bunned hair. "Who's 'we'?"

Pelegath shifted uncomfortably at the shift in her tone, but retained his composure for the most part.
”We is myself and anyone willing to help.” He purposely neglected to mention his sister for fear of her taking any sort of punishment for his idea. ” The balance of creation is the concern of everyone, and so I humbly request access to an artifact from the vault that would limit my brother’s power without harming or imprisoning him.”

"Denied." Lei faced him, hands settled on her cane. "What kind of coward are you, Pelegath? Have you seen the rest of the pantheon? This family is infested with order and law. If you and your siblings cannot quiet down a rogue brother without my help, you certainly don't deserve to have it granted. And if Larwen rises to dominance in spite of all of you, he is worthy of that throne." Lei tapped her cane. "I hope that wasn't all."

Pelegath sighed quietly, the putrid air of his breath stirring the edges of his hood. She had made it abundantly clear to him that she would be of no help.
”Unfortunately, it was. Apologies for delaying you.”
Without another word, the death god crumbled into dust that rotted away to the point where they seemed to disappear from existence and he was gone. "Ta ta, boy, better luck next time," she chirped, waving him off.

Lei turned back to the Pumpkin Man. "Now about that gala."

The Pumpkin Man, still holding the clothes that Lei had pawned off to him. His sadistic smile was clear as day after watching the god get turned down in such a manner. ”I love the smell of crushed hopes,” he chimed before getting to the topic at hand, ”Anyways, the gala isn’t quite ready yet. Kikoquatl is probably making enough food to feed several pantheons and I have yet to put up decorations. Or get something to provide music. Or get anything in fact.”

Lei shrugged. "I think Orfai ran off with my record player."

He let a slight sigh of frustration before looking back to the spot where Pelegath had disappeared. ”If you wouldn’t mind me asking, do you know of anything else that could help me in my task? I’d ask you, yourself, but such a refined woman shouldn’t have to do any work. At the same time I’d rather not get on the bad side of the pantheon for not providing the adequate care for such an occasion.” Lei marinaded in the validation, then wound back her hands and formed an orb of energy between them.

"I don't know, Pumpkin Man-" Her mask was grinning. "-Do I?"

She hurled the orb, and it struck a wall of the citadel, exploding into paper and fire. From the wreckage and burnt pine needles, Mater Lei retrieved a large book. It was weighty and filled with annotations. "Let's see. Pumpkin... Soup. With cream."

Lei selected a page and tapped it with a heavy finger. Dust flowed from her and into the book, and she folded the page and glided it off into the woods, where it sparked, fizzed and blurred into a steamy cauldron of the same. She palmed off the tome to the Pumpkin Man without taking back her dresses.

"True to recipe," she explained, dipping her finger in the soup and touching it to the lips of her mask. "It's almost every dish I know. You may have to recharge it after the first few uses." She sat down on the edge of the cauldron.

"Send Kiko my regards," said Mater Lei, blowing a kiss before leaning back and disappearing into the soup.

The Pumpkin Man watched the soup for a few moments before letting out a sigh. Now that he had four new dresses and a cook book, he supposed it was time to go and report back to Kikoquatl. That would be fun.

Gremju had returned to the center of the Plains of Madness to ponder how else to breathe life into his little slice of Galbar before he had sensed the presence of one of the other Gods enter the Plains of Madness,perhaps they were having a look around to see what the others had made? He was afraid he would be a disappointment in that regard, his sastuk dwelled far from his own realm and his crystal root trees were only the beginning of his creations.

He arrived too late. His visitor had already left it had seemed, now he was near their original position he recognized the Deity in question had been Kap Gam. One of his crystal root tress were missing. It did not take long for Gremju to realize that she was not happy with the imp. The fact she had stolen one of his crystal root trees also implied to intended to destroy the rest of them, or change them. Now he couldn't have that just yet. At that moment Gremju burst into a fit of laughter, the challenger had been challenged already; he had not intended this to happen as quickly as it had but oh well he should probably devise some kind of defense for his shiny new creation. Frankly he couldn't think of a better time to introduce his own little race to the world.

Gremju quickly made his way to the largest crystal root tree that currently lived in the Plains of Madness, it was in the north a small distance from the ocean. Gremju began easing chaotic souls from the tree and began grafting bodies from his own power and the blackened soil of the plains. They were small creatures only rarely reaching his form's full height (which is about 5') with leathery skin that varied in color from black,grey,brown,green and even white or purple on rare occasions. The creatures had sharp claws and teeth with small bat-like wings on their backs. They were not useful for flight but could allow the creatures to glide from heights and to blow the dirt of the plains into the eyes of attackers. Gremju also infused his new creations with a basic territorial attachment to the crystal root trees, they would sleep and raise their young in these trees until the Challenger had a further use for them.

After designing his new 'imps' as he had named them, he placed 4 groups of them near the largest crystal root trees in the Plains of Madness where they would ideally spread out as their populations grew and act as primitive defenders for other trees which would serve as a home, a food source and a a birthplace (both of their souls and their physical forms). These creatures would be of no use if Kap Gam personally tried to uproot his creations again but at that point he would intervene directly, even if that sounded incredibly boring to Gremju it would have to be done. With that the imp father took a step back and watched his creations develop and survive in the harsh conditions of the Plains of Madness.