“Order!” called an authoritative voice that cut across the chatter that had permeated the vast amphitheatre, bringing silence to the gathering. “This meeting has been called to decide what needs to be done about the human race. The floor is now open, you may voice your complaints.”
“The human race has strayed from the true path. They bring nothing but hatred and anguish to the world. They enslave other races and behave as though the world should belong to them and them alone!” said an enchanting elven woman with long brown hair and stunning green eyes, dressed in an elegant blue dress.
“Celestria is right. The humans have done nothing but war with the dwarven people for millennia now.” Added a brawny dwarf with a neatly trimmed beard and short brown hair, wearing shining silver armour with a red cape that hung from his shoulders.
“There is no point to this. We can each take turns standing up and stating how the human race has transgressed each of our races, just as Celestria and Thorgar have done, and it won’t change anything. Something needs to be done to stop them!” interrupted an enormous lizardman, scanning the faces of the gathered races.
“Very well Kallarak, what will you have us do?” asked the speaker of the assembly, an elderly sage with pale skin, dark brown eyes, a long grey beard and matching long hair that hung below his shoulders. “You demand action, so surely you have something in mind?”
“I do Mythus, I suggest that we wipe humanity from existence. Without their presence in our world, the other races will be able to live more peacefully.”
“We cannot simply wipe humanity from existence, we don’t have the authority to do such a thing!” yelled a scantily dressed orcish woman from the other side of the gathering, glaring at her opponent with defiant green eyes that complemented her long red hair.
“Are we not Gods, Narzula? Do we not hold power over life and death?”
“We may be Gods, Kallarak, but we do not have the authority to wipe an entire race from existence!”
“If not us, then who? Who would you suggest we address this matter to? Aerabus?”
“That is exactly who I would suggest! Is he not the eldest of all Gods, the creator of all life, The Progenitor?”
“And pray tell, when was the last time that any of you have even laid eyes on him? The mortal races have long since forgotten about his existence, there are scarcely a handful of living beings that even know of his name! And let’s not forget that it was he that created humanity, their transgressions are his transgressions!”
“You are crossing a line here, Kallarak!” interrupted Mythus, the speaker of the assembly and God of Wisdom. “Aerabus created all life, not just humanity. He created every race that exists today. Each of us rose to divinity from the mortal realm through our actions in life, for which he chose to grant us divinity, whereas Aerabus has existed since time began. How dare you stand here and judge him for the actions of one of the many races that he created!”
“Spoken like a true lapdog of The Progenitor!” yelled Thorgar. “Is it mere coincidence that the humans bear more of a resemblance to Aerabus than the other races? Perhaps he intended for this to happen all along!”
“Why does he not come before us and speak for himself? Why does he always send you, Mythus, to speak on his behalf?” added Kallarak.
“You wish for me to speak for myself? Very well then, I am here now and will hear you out!” said a kind yet stern voice from above, as a bright golden light filled the divine realm. The assembled Gods all scrambled to their feet and stared up in awe at the figure that appeared from the blinding light. There before them was the figure of a well-built human man, barely thirty years old, with brown hair, brown eyes, and tanned skin, dressed in simple long white pants, a long sleeve white shirt with its sleeves rolled up and a brown, sleeveless open cloak that hung almost to his plain brown shoes. The figure's enormous golden winds allowed him to effortlessly touch down on the ground in the centre of the amphitheatre, and though the initial bright light had subsided, the being still gave off a golden glow that showed his true divinity. With his feet now firmly on the ground, the gathered Gods instinctively dropped to one knee with their heads bowed.
“Lord Aerabus, what brings you to the amphitheatre?” asked Mythus with his head still bowed.
“You need not bow before me. We are all Gods here and should stand as equals in this place!”
“But we are not equals Lord Aerabus, you are The Progenitor, the first true God!”
“And I gave divinity to each of you. That makes us equals in my eyes! Now I wish to hear what problems the humans have caused in the mortal realm!”
“Very well Lord Aerabus. The humans are nothing more than warmongering, hateful creatures that desire nothing less than the subjugation of all other races!”
“Thank you, Kallarak. Do you all feel this way?”
“We do Lord Aerabus. The humans enslave many of the other races, forcing them to perform humiliating acts or act as labourers to build their ever-growing empires. They have even gone so far as to create new Gods and religions that make them the only true race, claiming that all other races are abominations that need to be purged from existence.”
“I did not know that things had gotten so bad in this world. It saddens me to learn of this.” Said Aerabus as he looked down at the ground, causing it to suddenly vanish, creating a window into the mortal world. The other Gods looked on in amazement as this window started showing scenes from the world below, as Aerabus used the eyes of the birds of the world to show him what was happening. Aerabus watched on as scenes of vicious wars, slave camps, false churches, and atrocious crimes were being committed across the world that he had created. “I can see that the humans of this world truly have turned from grace and have started behaving in a deeply misguided manner. What is it you would have me do about this?”
“We would ask that you rectify this world, Lord Aerabus!” answered Narzula.
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“And how would you have me do this?”
“I would ask that you erase all humans so that the world might return to the way it was meant to be!” answered Thorgar.
“But is this not the world that you desired, Thorgar?”
“Why would anyone desire a world like this?”
“Are you not all Gods? Do you not have the power to influence the minds of mortal beings? If this is how the world is, then it is that way because you made it so.”
“You would blame us for the way your creation turned out?”
“I would, Kallarak. I have never had any influence on this world. I created this world and gave each of its beings the free will to do as they see fit. I watched over it for a few millennia and hand-picked a few beings that I thought would be capable of overseeing it. After that, I moved on and continued to create other worlds. This world is as it is because you, its Gods, did not use your influence correctly.”
“This is rubbish, you are only blaming us for your failings!” yelled Kallarak.
“You are out of line, Kallarak! You will not speak to The Progenitor in that way!” interrupted Mythus.
“It's quite alright Mythus, did I not say that we are all equals here. I can see that mere words will not resolve this situation. However, I also have no intention of wiping an entire race from existence. Every race that I have created is precious to me and has the potential to be either good or evil…”
“You stand here before us, after having witnessed the atrocities of those humans for yourself and you still choose to defend them?” yelled Kallarak getting more worked up.
“As I said, all of my creations are precious to me. If you can suggest another method to rectify the situation that does not involve culling an entire race, then I will hear you out.”
The amphitheatre fell silent for some time as each of The Gods thought about Aerabus’s words before Kallarak finally broke the silence. “I would have you live among the mortals and attempt to sway them from this evil path that they have turned down!”
“I find this to be an interesting proposition that you have given me Kallarak. Very well, I will go along with this idea of yours, provided that you allow me to modify it slightly?”
“As you wish!” answered Kallarak smugly.
Aerabus looked around the amphitheatre and examined each of the thirteen Gods in turn. Before him was a male and female of each race; Elves, Dwarves, Orcs, Lizardmen, Fairies, and Humans, with Mythus being the thirteenth and third human God. With Aerabus’s eyes passing from one God to the next, the divine realm began to shudder. “From this moment on, myself, and each of you will live among the mortals. Each of us is to use our power and influence to change the mortal world for the better. You will continue to be Gods with all of your current powers; however, you will no longer be able to directly influence the minds of mortals, nor will you be able to use your power to unjustly attack a mortal that is not from the same race as you are. If directly attacked, you may use whatever power you see fit to defend yourself, but only if you have not instigated the altercation, and you may not use the altercation as an excuse to destroy kingdoms or entire races. Mythus, you alone will remain in the divine realm to oversee both realms and you alone will be able to see what each of the Gods is doing, but you may not under any circumstances intervene. Each of us will be allowed back into the divine realm only after we are truly content with the world as it is, I on the other hand will only be able to return to the divine realm after all other Gods have returned.” Announced Aerabus as magical circles appeared at the feet of each of the Gods, bathing them in a golden light. Before another word could be spoken, a blinding flash of golden light enveloped the Gods. With the light slowly subsiding, the Gods found themselves standing in a large clearing deep in a forest at the centre of the mortal realm.
“Why have you brought us to the mortal realm Aerabus? This makes no sense, we are Gods, we are not meant to interact with the mortals.” Asked Celestria, patron Goddess of the Elves.
“All of you are of the opinion that this world is not as it should be. This is your opportunity to set the world on the right path. You may go where you like and do what you like, just go out there and make this world better, in whatever way you see fit.”
“What does that even mean?” asked Thorgar, the Dwarven God of Protection.
“It means whatever you want it to mean. Just know that you will be here in the mortal world until you are truly happy with the way the world is. Now go out into the world and improve it!” said Aerabus, causing the other Gods to pause and look at each other. After several moments of contemplation, most of the Gods sprouted their wings and took flight, each headed in a different direction, with only the two Elven and Dwarven Gods choosing to travel together.
As one of the only Gods yet to depart, Kallarak stared at Aerabus for a while longer before his scaled wings sprouted from his back. “Very well, if you want me to do your work for you, then so be it. I will make this world into a paradise for all races!” he said, before propelling himself into the air with such force that he left Aerabus standing in a cloud of dust.
“Do you also believe that I made the wrong decision, Fellaroth?” asked Aerabus of the small human God who was now the only God to have not flown off in a hurry. With no answer from Fellaroth, Aerabus slowly approached him and watched him intently for a moment. “The other Gods were saying such hateful things about your people and yet you said nothing in their defence, why is that?”
“It would have made no difference, they have already made up their minds about what is happening in this world, even though very few of them have even bothered to look in on the mortal realm since receiving their divinity… Though I suppose I don’t have room to talk, my own people no longer know my name. They worship false Gods now. Gods who desire nothing but ruin and destruction. Was I truly such a worthless God that it took so little for my people to forget me?”
“Do you think that being able to walk among the humans will allow you to set things right?”
“I don’t know, but I was unable to do anything from The Divine Realm. A God that is not believed in is powerless. Perhaps this way I can find the beings that have taken my place and purge them from this world.”
“I can sense your anger Fellaroth, I would advise you to let go of that anger before you face this foe, or it might be your undoing.”
“How in the world do you expect me to let go of my anger? They have perverted the human race and led them down a path from which there might be no redemption!”
“Every God of every race now walks beneath the same moons once more. Perhaps, if provided with enough evidence, they will be able to influence their races to make amends with the humans. But make no mistake here Fellaroth, you have more work to do in this realm than the others, for you have fallen further than the rest, though I must admit they were not too far behind you.”
“And what of Mythus? He was the first being that you chose to grant divinity too and I was the second. How is it that he is the only human God that still has followers?”
“That’s simple, because Mythus never stopped performing his duties as a God. He guided his followers and even interacted with those who he thought needed to hear his voice. Can any of the other Gods say as much?”
“Is that why he was exempt from this punishment?”
“It is!”
“So you admit that this is a punishment then?”
“You can look at it in any way that you see fit Fellaroth, though if I were you, I’d choose to see it as an opportunity to fix past wrongs. Before I leave you, I’m going to give you some advice. Do not raise your weapon to another God in anger, and should you even encounter any of the other Gods, it would be best to interact one on one, if there are more than two of you, I would keep the interaction to less than ten minutes.”
“I don’t understand, why am I the only one you are giving this information to?”
“I highly doubt that the others will be seeing each other directly any time soon, and besides, I will be watching each of you very closely.” Said Aerabus as he vanished, leaving Fellaroth standing alone in a large clearing deep in a forest in the middle of the human realm.