And It All Falls Down

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The heavens remained calm and silent as always, not even the faintest breeze dared to stir in her presence.

She found it so dull, she thought.

She gazed out at the world and observed her creations, which carried out only the tasks she intended for them. Whenever she attempted to converse with them, they would either shrink back in fear or simply listen in awe, both revering and dreading her presence. As a being whose very breath could bring life into existence, they couldn't fully comprehend her nature but knew she was meant to be worshipped.

She had become weary of their servitude and chose to create new beings with free will, hoping they might bring some excitement to her dull, eternal existence. Once she brought them into existence, she named their race humans.

She observed them.

She observed them with a quiet, weary amusement, her heart fluttering with anticipation to see if they would ignite a spark of excitement within her. Pride swelled in her chest as she surveyed the fruits of her labor. To her, they appeared to glide through life with ease, a stark contrast to the trials faced by other races. Intrigued, she conjured obstacles, curious if they would turn to her in reverence when confronted with adversity. Yet, instead of worship, they adapted, their resilience a source of amusement for her. She pondered how much their delicate forms could endure, and so she unleashed calamities and afflictions upon them.

From the shadows, the other races watched as the goddess toyed with her newly crafted beings, careful to remain hidden and avoid incurring her wrath or interrupting her playful whims. To her astonishment, even amidst her trials, they still did not offer her their devotion. Perplexed, she sought counsel from the leaders of the other races. Their suggestion was simple yet profound: perhaps these beings had never been introduced to their goddess.

“Who will take on the task of introducing me to them?” she mused, a glint of challenge in her eyes. “You all excelled at hiding from them, so I suspect it won’t be an easy feat. But fear not! Whoever succeeds shall be rewarded with elevation.” Some, enticed by the goddess’s promise, and others simply thrilled at the prospect of drawing closer to her divine presence, eagerly accepted the challenge.

Nothing could have truly prepared them for the storm of emotions they would unleash among the humans.

The first to make contact were the beast folk, a diverse assembly of creatures, each bearing the traits of various animals. Their appearance sparked chaos; some humans recoiled in terror, perceiving them as grotesque abominations, while others, driven by fear and rage, lashed out violently, only to be met with swift and overwhelming defeat.

The goddess, furious at the destruction of her creations, unleashed her wrath upon the beast race, cursing them to be eternally hunted by the very humans they had approached. Thus began a relentless cycle of vengeance; the humans, now fueled by a thirst for retribution, banded together, gathering their strength to pursue the beast folk, reducing them to mere prey in a merciless game of survival.

In a twist of fate, the goddess found herself utterly captivated by the plight of the beast race, yet she remained unmoved by their struggles. Curiosity danced in her mind as she pondered whether the humans’ actions would fracture the bonds of loyalty among the other races. Observing the misfortunes that befell the beast race, the elves, in their wisdom, chose to distance themselves from the goddess's summons, refusing to engage in her fickle whims.

This defiance ignited a fierce wrath within the goddess. In her fury, she cast a curse upon the elves, condemning them to a life of seclusion. Forevermore, they would be isolated from all other races, their connections severed, save for the tenuous link to her. Thus, the elves were doomed to dwell in their hidden realms, cut off from the world, their fate entwined with the whims of the goddess alone.

In the wake of witnessing the dire fates of other races and their subsequent punishments, the celestial beings convened in a hurried assembly. Their mission was clear: to devise a strategy for introducing the goddess to humanity. First, they resolved to study the humans, seeking to uncover the secrets to winning their trust.

“It’s quite straightforward,” one of them declared, a glint of cunning in their eye. “We’ll create a scenario that leaves them indebted to us. There’s no need to delay.”

Thus, they embarked on a path of deception, ensnaring the humans in a web of falsehoods. They presented themselves as exalted beings, convincing the mortals that the goddess was an unreachable entity, one whose blessings could only be accessed through their intermediaries.

However, the goddess herself was not amused by their machinations. In a fit of rage, she turned the tables, rendering the celestial beings subservient to the very humans they had sought to manipulate. Their schemes and vulnerabilities were laid bare, revealing to the mortals that these so-called gods were nothing more than pretenders.

The angels found themselves captured, imprisoned and treated like pets or test subjects. The humans, curious about the nature of their captors, sought to understand the mechanics of flight and the secrets behind their wings.

“Perhaps I granted them too much free will?” the goddess mused, but the thought quickly faded. She was far too entertained by the unfolding chaos to dwell on such concerns. After all, if things took a turn for the worse, she could always erase them from existence.

Then there was the dwarven race, the architects of technology and the harbingers of civilisation for the humans, yet they chose not to introduce the goddess into the mix.

"You uncultured fools, remain as you are—uncultured and unwanted," she declared, her voice dripping with disdain. Their insatiable curiosity had repeatedly led them astray from the sacred path of the goddess. They were the only race with an almost complete lack of loyalty to her, yet they possessed just enough wisdom to avoid provoking her wrath.

Yet, lurking in the depths of darkness were the shadow beings, those enigmatic entities she had cautioned to keep their distance from humanity. Undeterred, they slyly spread whispers among the mortals, sowing seeds of doubt about the goddess's allegiance. They urged the humans to rise against her, imparting forbidden knowledge of magic that twisted the very essence of the divine.

"You cunning tricksters," she declared, her voice echoing through the void, "if you revel in your deceit, then remain in your shadows, forever shunning the light!" And so it was decreed.

True to their mischievous nature, the shadow beings flitted about, sowing discord and unrest among the humans. Before long, chaos erupted; war ignited like a wildfire, and suspicion festered like a wound. The humans, blinded by their ignorance of the true adversaries lurking in the dark, turned upon one another, embroiled in a conflict that only deepened their divisions.

Against all odds, the goddess found herself thoroughly amused by the unfolding chaos. The various races, weary of their struggles, united in a fervent plea for fairness, reminding her that they too were her creations. Heeding their cries, she elevated all those who had dedicated themselves to spreading her glory among humankind. The elves, initially destined for a life devoid of power, were unexpectedly transformed into gods to restore balance.

Yet, as the elves took on their new roles, one particular elf, tasked with maintaining equilibrium, grew increasingly frustrated with the goddess’s interference in her efforts. The goddess, sensing the discontent brewing among her creations, turned her attention to the shadow beings, whose mischief seemed to be at the heart of the unrest. In a moment of inspiration, she decided to forge a new deity to oversee these unruly entities, thus Abaddon was born—an embodiment of her pure essence.

To the goddess, Abaddon was like a child in need of guidance, and she took it upon herself to train him personally. This decision, however, ignited a spark of jealousy among the other gods she had appointed, who felt overshadowed by the special bond she shared with her newest creation.

She felt no need to justify herself as they frolicked with such adorable innocence; each day had blossomed into a tapestry of joy for her. Yet, the tranquility was shattered one fateful day when the gods, weary of her bliss, sowed a treacherous seed of ambition within the hearts of her beloved creations. They yearned to drag her from her celestial abode, hoping to seize her divine essence and ascend to godhood themselves. Though they were aware that true divinity was beyond their grasp, they believed that her favour could be their ticket to power, and if anyone could lure her down, it would be them.

Amused by the naivety of her children, she chuckled softly, a sound that irked the gods, for it hinted at her omniscience—an awareness that they could not fathom. They pondered why she remained passive in the face of their scheme. As the humans succeeded in their audacious plan to pull her down, she relinquished her powers to the other gods, her laughter echoing as she descended.

Confusion enveloped the gods; they could not comprehend her inaction until the very end. As she touched the earth, she finally stood before her creations. Yet, even stripped of her divine powers, her presence ignited a frenzy of emotions, magnified a hundredfold. The lust they felt for her spiralled into chaos, culminating in a wild orgy, while fear twisted the atmosphere into one of both ecstasy and dread.

The king, overwhelmed by an insatiable desire, succumbed to his fate, his demise a tragic consequence of his direct encounter with her essence. In that moment, the line between reverence and madness blurred, leaving a world forever altered by the goddess's fall.