How do you tell the story of the birth of a god?
World-building is more than just the physical geography, itis also the myths and legends of a people, culture, or place. These stories framethe foundation of the world being created and help to define how and why eventsunfold the way they do. For this week’s World-building Wednesday, I will betelling the story that is the backbone of the world I am creating. It is theentire reason for the events that unfold in the primary plot and all thesecondary characters.
Fate, Chance, and the Phoenix
As the Creator began to form all things, he could not decide if he should have all events perfectly planned or if he should allow everything to be determined only by random actions. In previous iterations of the universe he had used both designs. To debate with himself, he made two other entities, one the part of him that wanted randomness, and the other the one who wanted the perfect plan. These two were his first children, his son and daughter, and he named them Chance and Fate.
The siblings argued with each other, and still no determination could be made as which form would be better. The Creator wanted to test both, so he set a competition for his children. He designed a creature that would seek out life, use its energy, and then launch itself into the nearest star with a piece of the Creator in order to be reborn in a fiery cataclysm that would wipe out all life and substance nearby.
He built the universe out of himself, so that all matter, everything that surrounds us is part of him. We are part of him. He placed his power in the life stones, which became known as the Stones of Creation. Each world that held one of these stones would grow and support all manner of life, especially humans. The Phoenix would be drawn to these worlds, feed off of the life energy of humans as it searched for the Stone of Creation, and once it had enough strength, it would launch itself into the sun, to become reborn through destruction once again before seeking out the next.
The Creator promised that whoever defeated the Phoenix would be given the full status of deity of this universe, then did not speak to his children again. They would need to solve this on their own. The two squabbled over supremacy, often destroying each other’s works. As they fought, the Phoenix grew stronger, gobbling up worlds and Stones of Creation, and quickly the siblings realized he was stronger than they. They could fail, and if the Phoenix destroyed them, would this destroy their father as well?
They could no longer work alone. They began to plan together, Fate setting strategies and allowing Chance to interact with his chaos and randomness. Over and over they worked, each time refining and correcting that which had failed. The Phoenix grew stronger.
In their plans, they created creatures that also fed on humans, seeking them out and using them. One type of these creatures grew so strong they were able to seek out new worlds where humans could one day grow, and sow them much like a farmer with livestock. They recognized the danger and the effect of the Phoenix, and put other predatory monsters on the worlds in order to keep the human population low, to limit the speed which the Phoenix could grow. Using their magic, they devised a plan to trap the creature on one world, so they could continue to feed without the risk of destruction.
The plan was perfect, but Chance intervened. Or was it Fate?The creatures underestimated the strength of human love. Their sorcery did notwork as expected, and now the fate of all creation lay in the simple hands of man. Who will reign supreme? Chance? Fate? The Phoenix? Or does the Creator himself have a plan involving someone else entirely?
(If you want to read what happens to disrupt their plans, check out the first episode of the serial: Betrayer Awakened, Season 1 Episode 1″Escape”.)
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“World-Building Wednesday: Fate, Chance, & the Phoenix” copyright © 2018 by Richelle Sepulveda