The Domains of Valentia held many creatures, of many walks of life and talents. All of which stemmed from the Three Ladies. In truth, the Ladies were more akin to gods of myth and legend rather than the noble women that were their namesakes. Instead, the Ladies were creators, believed to have crafted every single being together. First came the body and the mind, each crafted by one of the sisters before the youngest pulled the parts together with a soul.

Of course, the Three Ladies were not wholly responsible for all matters of the Domains. According to the priests, each was only responsible for one aspect of all mortal life.

The eldest of the Ladies catered to the knowledgeable. She was known to follow those gifted with intelligence. Sometimes she would be seen with sorcerers, other times with lucrative scholars. Her very presence would announce the great potential of one’s mind.

The second sister watched over the capable. From her came the strength that only legends held. Few could match those she had gifted. In combat, her Chosen were the most formidable, the first and last line of defense for many nations. She had infused the strength of a hundred warriors within one person and watched the carnage they had left in their wake.

Meanwhile the youngest sister was unlike the others. She disdained the thought of being an influencer, so she hid as a spectator. Instead of a blessing, her presence was commonplace among all in the Domains. She ruled over the spirit, and hence the emotions of every individual. Some say she guided them to their soulmate. Others believed she had brought grief to them as an act of revenge for a past life.

None of that was true. The Lady of the Spirit remained neutral. She would watch the mortals and live among them at times. It was rare that she interfered with the actions of her creations. And while her sisters guided their Chosen, she watched over all her children across the domains.

However, it had been decades since the Ladies had been seen in the Domains. Mind, Body, and Spirit had vanished from the land after war between the Vali and the Dolings had broken out. No one quite knew why the three had disappeared, but without their presence, the war seemed to never end.

Entire kingdoms would be donating their harvest to the soldiers, who would not be heard from for months at a time. Many believed it a wasted effort. But the King and Prime Minister were said to be chosen by the Ladies. With the Doling nation following the Chosen faithfully, sons and daughters would only continue to disappear in their crusades.

However, the Vali were relentless and never released their hold on the war. Some would say they were vicious warmongers. Other nations would watch and offer their soldiers when it would benefit them most.

Eventually, war would reach every nation and person. And war was something the Ladies disputed over time and time again.

“Your war has desecrated sacred grounds, sister,” spoke the eldest.

“Stop complaining, would ya?” The sister jabbed a finger at the other. “Besides, you’ve only made it worse.”

The eldest glared at her sister. “And what have you done?” she retorted as she strode closer, “You too have added fuel to this flame. Gifting strength upon the mortals was a mistake. It has only brought battle after battle between them.”

Standing taller than her elder, the Lady of the Body crossed her arms and looked down her nose to the other Lady. “So much for your smarts. Your blessings just create new ways to devastate armies. I mean, look at them. Some of them can summon storms now!”

“And your Chosen can withstand a lightning bolt with barely a scratch. You have no ground on which to complain.”

While the two sisters bickered over the war, the third Lady watched from afar. Her hair flowed down, wrapping around her like a shell with tresses comparable to roses. Compared to her sisters, she was in the middle in terms of height, yet would shy away whenever the two began to shout or argue in the slightest.

Mind was held tightly with her bun and small figure. The blond curls remained bound to her head, even when she would explore the vast recesses of genius and stupidity.

Body was straight to the point and the most imposing of the three. Cobalt encrusted and guarded her body, from her ever-present armor to the braid that danced behind her with every movement.

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Spirit regarded herself as freedom where her siblings would cling tightly to whatsoever caught their interest. The free-flowing dress that she would always adorn kept to that idea.

Despite all of this, she was the most prone to worrying over the mortal realm. Distant she may be, but from the heavens where she hid, the Lady could watch over all. Neither seemed to be doing well from her perspective.

The Vali were always resilient and tough-skinned, but now her sister had gifted them unprecedented strength. Meanwhile, the Dolings were valiant and quick beings that were capable of great feats of magic. Now with the knowledge of far more formidable spells and tactics, their destructive prowess was unparalleled. Which left either side at a stand-still.

“Then what do you suggest?” Body’s voice cut Spirit from her thoughts. “If you’re so smart then surely there’s a way to fix this mess.”

Mind huffed at the taunt. “We can always revoke our blessings. Though with the knowledge I had given them, it wouldn’t be long before the mortals recreated the technique.” She tapped a finger to her chin. “Perhaps we need to approach this differently. Our gifts are being used to fight the war, so—”

“We give out more gifts?” interrupted Body.

“Well, we can.” The blonde turned to the sister that had kept silent. “Spirit, how would the mortals feel to have new Chosen?”

The pink-haired woman’s eyes glazed over until she blinked. She shook her head. “It would be the same as before.”

“Then we need to do more,” concluded the eldest.

Body groaned, “How’s that supposed to get us out of this mess?”

“In theory, a proper champion or champions could bring peace. After all, much of the Domains follow every word that our Chosen spew out. But in the same line of thinking, taking away our gifts would just cause anger and the mortals would revolt against them—and by extension, us. If that happens, we may have to restart.”

“Restart?” The Lady of Body grabbed her elder sister by the shoulders. “If we restart, we’ll be the laughing stock of the realms!”

“It’s either that or we let them settle their own problems.”

“Oh, because that worked out so well.” She scoffed. “I mean, look at Christ. He just left. And last I heard, His mortals are dying to some disease right now.”

“A disease would be a good way to kill the mortals,” mumbled Mind.

Spirit was of a different opinion. Letting out a new disease would cause untold pain to the mortals. It would be too cruel to unleash on them. So it was back to the other options. “What was that about champions?” she piped up, curious at her sister’s earlier remark.

“Oh, well, champions would probably have more of our gifts than usual. Perhaps we can infuse children with our ideals and a fraction of our power.” Knowledge slipped away and began to pace. “If everything goes according to plan, they’d be able to stop the war, but it’s highly possible they could start another. So maybe making the gifts last until the end of the war? Yes, that may work if the champions act inappropriately.”

“How about we try that idea?”

Body shrugged. “Not like we have any better ones.”

The eldest sister nodded before turning to her siblings. “Then we should pick a mortal each. From there, we can gift and guide them as they need it.”

“And hopefully we don’t become the next Christ.”

“I’m sure no one will ridicule us for trying to keep peace,” Spirit reassured.

Body chuckled, “We’ll be fine.”

“We will not abandon our children,” agreed Mind, “Now, we need to make our decisions.”

And so, the three sisters split away from each other.

Mind had looked toward the Dolings, beings gifted with flight. Through their history of blessings, Mind had taught them how to control the winds through magic. So it was an obvious choice to select one of their people. Knowledge deserved to go to those who would use it and so Mind sought out her champion.

Body decided she would side with the Vali, beings forged in the heat of valleys and volcanoes. They would be excellent recipients of her strength as their bodies could already endure the hardships of Valentia. Her gift would not be as beneficial to the Vali as a whole, but strength should be used to protect and fight for those without it. Strength deserved to go to those who would protect and so Body sought out her champion.

Spirit watched her siblings scour the domains for their champion. Worry rolled over her, doubt sidled up to her side.

She didn’t know what pushed her to look for a mortal. Perhaps it was the grave sensations that lingered around her form. Was it the dread of more Chosen? She shook her head. Only time would tell. Now was the present. Now was the time to choose a champion.

Spirit had no preference between the two warring peoples, so she looked for someone outside of the conflict. To them, she could give emotions, guide people to what felt right, and compel others. All of this would be best used by someone who wanted to help. Which meant all Spirit had to do was give a mortal the ability to offer help. Such things should go to those who would help, not those who could bring suffering and enforced their ideals on others. And so, Spirit sought out her champion.