Chapter One: Meeting the Gods (Patreon)

The Universe. The word gives no true context for the phenomenon. There are many universes, some side-by-side, some an imaginary turn away along entirely different axises of reality.

While the fact of multiple universes is immutable, the universes themselves are not. Realities are constantly in flux, changing from one state to another, bleeding from one space-time to another.

However, just as it is a fact that there are multiple universes, there are other fundamental facts as well. Sometimes, despite everything always changing, some things never do.

For example, life. It doesn’t always exist. It can’t always exist, not when the laws of a universe do not allow for its preconditions. But when it does…

A soul exists.

That is another true statement. Life creates souls, just as souls create life. Life may exist without souls and souls may exist without life, but the two are inexplicably intertwined such that you rarely see one without another.

Those with souls are part of the cycle of the universe, the change that never ends. They build and destroy, find joy and suffer, altering reality at a whim and similarly being altered by reality in every moment they continue to exist.

And you can’t kill a soul. Not truly. The soul may be fluctuant, but there is something fundamental to it, something unyielding. A shard that will refuse to stop existing.

Sometimes, this shard grows to become more than a shard. Sometimes, the shard envelopes the entire soul, such that it refuses to fade, refuses to be changed.

And some of those souls become gods.

That is where this story begins. A mutable reality, one inhospitable to life, but one holding an unaging god.

And here that god waits.

**********************

On a rock suspended in the void, surrounded by a field of asteroids, sits a circular table, a wooden table, perfectly trimmed and painted a sleek, glossy red.

Around the table are six chairs with high backs, as though made to imitate thrones. Five are empty but one is occupied. The being at the table presents as a clean shaven man with short black hair. He wears a black suit over a red dress shirt, and a stovepipe top hat that rests perfectly upon his head.

His expression is one of brooding. He is waiting for the specified moment, the appointed millisecond, the instant in time to open the portals so his ‘coworkers’ may enter his domain, that which had been his prison for an almost overwhelming amount of time.

The god waits patiently. He hadn’t always been patient, it was not something that came naturally to him. Patience was something he was forced to learn or else risk madness. Or so he tells himself in his lucid moments.

But still… Soon.

With a deep shuddering breath, the man leans back, watching the rocks, asteroids in size, orbiting his island in the void.

He lifts his gloved hand, moving it in front of him, middle finger touching his thumb.

He lightly snaps. He doesn’t need to do so, it’s only for dramatic effect. Though there is no one to show off to, the god is a creature of habit.

The sound echoes. However, it is not the sound of a snap, nor of any natural reality, but of the void itself shuddering as the man's soul expands and reaches out. It consumes six asteroids, annihilating them at both the atomic and metaphysical level.

He snaps again.

Just as quickly as it grew, his soul recrompresses.

Snap.

The energy he had harvested from the stones moves at his will, converging quickly around the table, separating into five balls that each move beside an unoccupied chair.

Snap.

The unstable energy vibrates in place, the surface of it expanding and retracting, until it finally changes into something more… usable.

Snap.

The walls of reality between one world and this one bend behind the chairs. As though the energy never truly forgot its once volatile nature, it tears through the barrier of the universe and creates five portals.

From each gate, a being steps through.

With a final snap, the portals close, the energy dispersing, but not disappearing… awaiting the time when the man might bridge reality again.

___

I lower my ruby red gloved hand back down to the table, resting it atop my other.

I don a welcoming smile as I watch the other gods look around themselves, staring into the depths of my former prison… five souls quivering in confusion, fear, curiosity, anger…

‘Well, Kumiho's been angry ever since she found where her people had been stolen to.’

As one, the gods walk forward, each pulling out their chair and sitting down.

“Prprprrrrr”

All eyes turn to Laverna, the goddess of thieves, as she stands back up. She reaches under the cushion of her seat and lifts up a whoopee cushion, the source of the sound.

With a control that has taken several tens of millenia to perfect, I manage to keep my expression neutral as her emerald green eyes turn to me.

Ignoring the eyes boring into me, I look to the other gods.

The reactions to my little prank are quite diverse.

Coyote, a North American god of mischief, is snickering from his seat, clearly enjoying the icebreaker.

Anansi, an African god of trickery smiles calmly at me as a small pet spider crawls along his dark bare chest.

‘I should get him a Spider-Man shirt.’

Hermes, the Greek messenger god of travelers jitters in his seat, unaccustomed to sitting down for any length of time. His head swivels quickly, constantly looking around.

‘He reminds me of a toddler on a sugar rush.’

And finally there is Kumiho, a Korean fox goddess. Part fox, part human. She glares threateningly at me, not at all amused with my little prank on her lover Laverna.

‘Yes, we gods are a weird bunch…’

“Loki, stop with these incessant games of yours and tell me why you have called this meeting,” Kumiho exclaims loudly, her nine tails puffed up in annoyance.

‘I bet those tails are supremely soft.’

Nodding at Kumiho and Laverna who finally takes her seat, I spread out my arms. “This place, as I am sure you all are curious about, used to be my prison. It is completely devoid of life and energy, both of which are required for a god to survive.”

I shake my head, my smile faltering. “I lived here for so long… abandoned by my former family.”

The other gods look at me, curious about who I actually am… My grin returns. ‘If only they knew the truth.’

“Vengeance.” Anansi voices.

“Heh… No. Vengeance does not motivate me. I can admit that it is a factor, but no.” I look to the other gods, making sure that I have their attention. “I am a god of chaos… of controlled chaos. My job is to create change… because without change, nothing will improve. Without change, life becomes stale. It becomes… passé.

“I create evil to fight good, life out of death, calamity from success, and silver linings on the storm. Right now… Orbis has spiraled so deeply into monotony that the very concepts of good and evil, of weal and woe stand on the brink of the quagmire of relativism. This will not do.”

My hands tighten into fists as I remember what the world has become. Slavery, torture, corruption… I turn to Hermes, a god who travels across many worlds, including the Underworld. He’s someone who truly understands the plight of souls and the harm that is being done.

“And that is why I will summon a true Hero.” I say slowly and deliberately.

“A hero!” exclaims Coyote.

“How?” questions Kumiho.

“They won’t allow it,” Anansi mutters to himself.

I sit silently, watching their incredulous expressions. Hermes stays silent, he already knows my plan. Laverna doesn't talk much anyways. I’ve already secured their cooperation, it’s the other three I must convince.

“Allow me to explain,” I say quickly before they try to leave. “Odin and Zeus have agreed to have a hero summoning at the same time.”

All eyes turn to me as I watch them silently sit back down.

There is no wonder that they are so afraid of summoning a hero. The most powerful gods, Zeus and Odin, leaders of Olympus and Asgard respectively, both rule with an iron fist. Neither god allows the summoning of heroes without their express permission.

Gods nurture heroes, and heroes nurture gods. As heroes grow, the gods they serve amass incredible power, potentially enough power to usurp the positions of current leading pantheons.

“Yes, Odin and Zeus have agreed to summon a hero each within the year. They have agreed not to disable each other’s portals… Fortunately for us, both gods plan to summon multiple heroes and not just one. This grants us an opportunity to sneak in an extra.”

Their facial expressions quickly widen. Understanding dawns upon them as they realize that both gods have lied to each other, attempting to screw the other over.

“It will be a war!” Anansi voices from his seat, fear shown on his face for the first time.

A war between the two great pantheons would result in untold chaos and destruction. Kingdoms would quickly fall, innocents would die… and more importantly, some gods would cease to exist.

“Do not worry, Anansi, an open war will not happen. Neither Odin nor Zeus are willing to go to war. Their power would be weakened, as many of their most powerful followers would lose their lives. Neither god will make a move in fear of being replaced in the aftermath.” I explain to the others, Anansi relaxing back down on his seat.

Anansi’s followers reside within the border between Olympus and Asgard. A war between these two pantheons may very well cause the extinction of his people… and his existence.

“Hehehehe, so you want to summon a hero with multiple avatars!” Coyote laughs. “You want us all to put our mark on one person. Bold! I like the plan, but it will never work.”

“The flea-bitten mutt is right. The moment a hero is summoned, all of the gods will be notified and powerful assassins will be sent.” Kumiho says out loud, ignoring the sharp look and feral grin from Coyote.

Wolves and Foxes have never gotten along. I can't blame them, not anymore. They have warred so much in the past and old grudges are not easily forgotten… least of all by gods.

Nodding at the two as they trade death glares, I turn to Laverna, the most important person to my plan.

“Laverna here has a secret.” I point. “Her mark, the mark of thieves, has a unique interaction with summoned heroes. When placed upon them during the summoning, the gods of the world will not be notified. Nobody will know of our hero, and this will allow him the time to grow.”

All eyes turn to Laverna, including Kumiho’s. No-one knew about her hidden ability. This is good, as that means no gods would ever consider an extra appearing.

“Him? You have a hero picked out already?” Anansi asks.

I nod. “Yes, many heroes will be summoned. Most of those heroes will be average at best, but the hero I plan to summon is significantly more capable than the trash they will get.”

I get up off my seat and start to walk around the table, eyes all on me.

“When summoning, the average summoner sets criteria, opens portals, and sucks up any souls that match that criteria. The souls can be from any world, with any background, but they will never truly be powerful. The most powerful heroes are those that you cannot forcibly summon,” I stop my stroll next to Hermes, looking at the confused expressions on their faces with glee.

The ability to travel from one world to another is a skill that only the most powerful and oldest gods have… a god like myself.

“I promise you this, the hero will be very capable, and his growth will be truly exceptional.” I look down at Hermes, gesturing for him to continue.

“Y-y-yes,” he squeaks/fidgets, grabbing a bag and putting it on the table.

With a trembling arm, he shoves his hand into the small bag, his hand sucked into a pocket dimension. Within a moment, Hermes grabs something and pulls it out.

The other gods gasp.

A clump of dark purple smog sits squarely upon Hermes’ hand, its ethereal light pulsing with enormous energy and potential. When a soul is summoned, a body must be created using the essence of a god. The stronger the god, the stronger the body, and thus, the stronger the hero.

I grab the god from Hermes’s outstretched hand, its potential pulsating within my grasp. “This is a core from the god Hades, dear brother to Zeus.”

Their eyes widen further in shock as they focus on the core in my hand, disbelieving that Hades, a god of the underworld and equivalent to the strength of Zeus and Odin, would part with something so valuable.

I look at the five gods, scanning them from left to right. “Will you join me?” I ask, already knowing the answer.

Laverna nods silently, her reasoning unclear, but a favor that I will owe.

“I will join you.” Anansi calls out, knowing that without action his people might die.

“Same here.” Coyote calls out. Knowing him, he senses a trick, a trap, as is his nature. However, this opportunity to finally let his people thrive is far too enticing.

“I-I-I-I w-will join,” Hermes says with a stutter. He’s one of the few gods who understands that the world needs change, that the current status quo is toxic both to the gods themselves and its residents.

Kumiho looks to Laverna, her lover and one true friend, quickly getting a nod in return. The fox turns her head to me, tails flowing in the air in indecision. With a huff, she folds her arms. “Loki, what is in it for me? What do I get from this?”

‘I couldn’t have asked for a better cue.’

With a nod, I walk back to my seat, the ball of smoky energy still resting on the palm of my hand.

“The first thing that our hero will do is free your people from captivity, Kumiho.”

Her eyebrow lifts up. “Oh… and how is a newly summoned hero supposed to enter a place from which none have escaped?”

“Ahhh, Kumiho, you wound me! Plans have already been prepared. Trust me and all will be fine.”

Indecision blankets her face, torn between hope and logic. Painful memories resurface of promises made empty. The only reason she does not refuse is Laverna, her lover and the only person to save her in her time of need.

She bites her lip. “Loki, I will place my mark upon this hero of yours, but my blessing will only be given if my people are freed. I cannot risk giving what power I have for something I fear is but an empty promise.”

“That is acceptable.” I answer back, knowing that the mark alone is a sign of trust, something many gods would refuse to give freely without great compensation. The only reason the other gods have offered theirs is that they don’t see any other choice.

With a sigh, I lay back into my seat, smiling at the other gods. The hard part is complete. With a bit of will, the smog of energy disappears from my hand, replaced with five pre-written contracts on golden parchments. The papers fly out and stop directly in front of each god.

“A contract, so that you are bound by your promises and none will go against their word.”

“How did you know I would only give a mark?” Kumiho asks, flabbergasted, as she reads the premade contracts made for each god, contracts made far before this meeting.

I clasp my hands together, watching as the gods read, finding that each and every contract had been tailored specifically to them.

“I am a god of chaos. Parsing through the probabilities comes naturally to me. Prediction is important if one is to direct a world destroying chaos. Believe in me, and this world will change.”

With one last look, the other gods send their own energy into the contract, tethering their soul to mine. Once the contracts are complete, the papers disappear.

“Now then, I must prepare for the summoning.”

Without any gestures from me this time, the sound of reality breaking rings through the void. My soul shudders and five portals open once more behind the gods, punching through the walls of this reality with ease.

The gods stand and wave goodbye. They walk through the portals, four leave at once back to their homes. Laverna stops before her portal and turns to me.

She lifts up her hand, the whoopee cushion firmly grasped in her small fingers.

“Mine.”

She walks through the portal.

‘…What?’

All of the gods have left. I pause for a second.

I raise my hand up. Snap.

The portals close. Silence reigns.

Once I’m finally certain that they’re gone, I smile viciously, shuddering with ecstasy. “Finally.”

My soul expands, ripping apart the asteroids around me. The chairs and table disintegrate instantly as my prison casually breaks around me.

“Hehehehehe,”

I hold my head in my hands, as though to hold in the giggles, to better savor the ending of an eternity.

“Hehehehehehehehe,”

I curl up as the laughter wracks my body and reality begins to fray.

“Muahahahahahahahhahahahahaha!”

The laugh grows uncontrollable, my mind barely holding together… Billions of years of agony… ‘I’m so close.’

“Oh father,” I shake with excitement.

“I will have my vengeance!”

“ON YOU! ON FREYA! ON EACH AND EVERY ONE OF MY NIECES AND NEPHEWS!”

The entire universe shudders as I flick my hand, the smog of energy shows up. The oh so great gift granted to me by Hades.

“WEAK.”

My soul casually rips the pathetic energy to smithereens.

With but the tiniest trickle of will, I mentally grab hold of the pieces and compress while pouring an overflowing amount of my own energy into it.

Within a minute, a completely black sphere twenty times my size floats around me, bending reality as I do.

“MUCH BETTER!” I shout into the darkness, watching my creation vibrate with sheer power.

“Now, onto the hero!”

The entire universe implodes around me, all that it is becoming naught but fuel and feed for me.