Might.
Within the world of Artroska, might is to be revered, the strong prey on the weak, such as the natural order of things.
Tribulations wreck the Earth, the mortals wail in despair, yet there is purpose and life sourcing through, the natural order of things.
For each tear, a smile shall pop up in the future.
But... that's not the case for all existences.
Within the endless expanse of the skies, several figures stood, seven individuals with exotic appearances floated, each of the seating on a throne.
From their seats, they overlooked the endless stars and the life within them.
They're the gods of this universe, all of them work together under a single banner.
The God of Creation, Artorsh.
From the beginning of times, he waited for those who the endless course of destiny deemed as the most qualified.
And within these figures, there is one that could only be categorized as the most unparalleled of geniuses.
A big golden head with shining eyes overlooked the seven individuals, his gaze remained mostly on one that unlike the others, had a bored expression and a lifeless gaze.
He wasn't the only one, beautiful lady also glanced at him with this same visage.
"Today's conference is finished... I will see you all again in another thousand years... go back to your respective realms." The God of Creation billowed and the seven figures stood up, each more exotic than the other.
God of Luck and Fate.
Goddess of Light and Hope.
God of Evil and Trickery.
Goddess of Happiness and Love.
God of War and Destruction
"Yes, father..." They said all nonchalantly, too used to this same session for aeons, using the respective techniques they retreated without even saying their farewells to one another.
Only two remained.
"Yaksha, I don't recall telling you to stay here too." The golden head addressed the lady with kindness, she approached the last throne where the handsome auburn-haired man with lifeless golden eyes sat.
"Sorry, father... I just... want to have some words with Morpheus." The lady bowed slightly despite her myriad power capable of destroying planets, she still had to bow in front of the creator.
The lady, a beautiful goddess with ten purple wings with dark glows right at the edges, covered her perfect body with dark robes and a cloak, she was holding an exotic staff that resembled the feathers of a golden crow.
Yaksha... the Goddess of Death and Inexistence, one of the oldest in the group is actually addressing the youngest in the group, but also, one of the most powerful Gods.
The Magic God, Morpheus.
Her golden eyes looked at the man with concern, and when she tried to move her hand and touch him, her hand phased through his body.
"What do you want, Yaksha?" His voice struggled to sound soft and kind, instead of disinterested.
"Aren't you even going to allow me to touch you? have I become so disgusting in your eyes?" She showed an aggrieved expression, and insisted, only becoming a little more depressed when he actually allowed her to touch him, not because of his own accord, but because she asked nicely.
"We have already spoken about this... it's been three thousand years... that's like three seconds for you..." His gaze finally moved towards her, struggling to show a kind visage, not because she did anything wrong.
Whatever it's happening between the two of them, it's totally his fault.
"Not three seconds when you're not with me... let me try again, okay? I will do better this time..." She didn't beg, rather... requested.
Because she knows that if she begs, he's going to accept, but not because he wants, only to make her contented.
"Yaksha, why must you be so...?" Sighing, the man decided that would be better for her, he stood up from the throne that disappeared in a spatial whirlpool and prepared to depart, but only then did she embrace his body, preventing him from doing so.
!!!
"Don't go... come to my realm... isn't that your home? haven't we lived there for hundreds of thousands of years? how can you leave everything so suddenly?!" She resisted, not willing to let go.
"..." In this position, he couldn't do anything else other than just remain like that within her paradoxically cold embrace, she's the death after all.
Her words resonated in his mind, trying to convince him and they were working, but Yaksha seemed to have lost her own purpose amidst her obsession.
The two of them had broken up three thousand years ago, and even then every thousand years in this reunion she always repeats this same scene.
"Yaksha... retreat." The Creation God's voice resounded, kind as usual but a little more firm.
"Father!!"
"YAKSHA..."
"..."
Biting her lips profusely she released her embrace the lady took her floating staff and threw him a glare, "I won't give up, Morpheus..."
*WWOOSSH!*
She disappeared in a wisp of darkness, already awaiting the moment she would see him again in a thousand years.
"My son..." The golden head sighed as if he had grown several aeons older, even when the concept of age and time don't apply to him.
"Thanks, father... she won't stop." the magic god sighed too, his feelings neutral, as much as he wanted to feel sad... he couldn't.
"Why can't you just consider it?"
"You know why, father... she won't be happy with me."
"But she's unhappy without you, son..."
"..." He would say, it's just a matter of time if three thousand years hadn't taken place already.
...
An awkward silence remained between them, it had been Artorsh who had requested Morpheus to stay after the millennium meeting finished.
"I'm sorry, my son... in order to assist you into becoming the sacred being that you are today, I might have sent too many tribulations... your way, you became an extreme genius capable of surpassing even Yaksha... but in exchange... you lost everything that made you, human..."
"... I'm not a human, I'm a God... I don't need feelings." Morpheus frowned and countered, unlike the other gods who enjoy themselves, he's always working...
He ascended to godhood a hundred thousand years ago, and he started his relationship with Yaksha even before that, his struggle and battle to become stronger remained within her mind, to the point that she descended to give him her blessing in his endeavour.
Morpheus has always been a good man, happy... always rejoicing at the smallest of details, but in order to become stronger, tribulations are needed... and the more talent you have, the more the universe will try to shape you into an amazing individual that will serve as the core.
Sadly for Morpheus, he was one in dozens of millions, and the more tribulations he went through, the more tribulations he surpassed, it only increased.
Sacrificing himself for his family that was in poverty, sacrificing himself for his beloved who died in his arms, sacrificing himself for the country that betrayed him, sacrificing himself for the planet that denied him.
A man's heart can only take so much pain before breaking.
In order to become the magic god, one must have great mastery over the rest of the laws of the universe, not enough to guarantee the title of 'god' but enough to be a demigod with each law.
And he had achieved this feat, with Yaksha's assistance and blessing, he had mastered his first law, Darkness.
Her infatuation for him increased the more he moved through the myriad stars, conquering them, healing them... always sacrificing himself for others, but never doing anything for himself.
She hadn't been the only goddess to show feelings for the promising man, but as the strongest goddess, the other goddess could only respectfully step back.
When Morpheus conquered what today is known as the 'Magic Realm' a gigantic cluster of stars that spreads through a region of the galaxy, it was the moment that Yaksha deemed correct, she descended from the Death Realm to marry him, and he accepted.
But by then, Morpheus' mind was more than skewered.
The alliance between the Magic Realm and the Death Realm became something impressive, a sight to behold, but deep within the house, things weren't that right.
It was a unilateral relationship, for Yaksha, Morpheus was the perfect husband, attentive, caring, passionate, strong... she couldn't have chosen anyone better.
But for Morpheus... the man is incapable of feeling love, and slowly but surely, Yaksha's infatuation would give way to realisation and see the forceness of his actions whenever they were together.
She didn't deem this as his lack of love towards her, for her, this is a disease that he has... therefore, like a dutiful wife, she tried everything she could, they had sons and daughters that grew up and left home, they had grandchildren, they destroyed realms and created new ones... but no matter what she did... those lifeless eyes wouldn't go away... her love would increase, but he would remain unexistent.
At some point, he thought that it is enough, and he left the Death Realm.
That was their first breakup, in order to fix it, she went to the Magic Realm to live with him, but the circle repeated once again and to the ridiculousness of their subjects, there was a period in which she resided in the Magic Realm and he resided in the Death Realm.
Enough was enough, Morpheus prohibited Yaksha from entering the Magic Realm and also forced her to prohibit him from entering the Death Realm.
That was three thousand years ago.
...
"I don't blame you, father... it's because of those tribulations that I became what I am... I'm proud of what I am today!"
"... I know... son, I think... it's time you take some holidays..." The head sighed, there is no worse patient than the one that doesn't want to be cured.
But, a cure is bound to appear eventually.
"Ah?" Morpheus doesn't understand.
"I know of a universe that's going through a severely dire situation... one in which the universe's vitality is swiftly decaying due to humanity's greed... the patron God of that multiverse lost contact with me aeons ago... if I send you there, I think you might find what you're looking for, my son."
"B-But father, I don't want to leave! The magic realm..." Morpheus' ten wings extended, each of them shining with a different colour, a different element.
"The magic realm will be alright..."
*RUMBLE!!*
!!!
Focusing his whole power around Morpheus, the God started to float as a portal appeared beside him.
"F-Father, you can't do this to me! after everything I have gone through!"
"It's because of that, my son... that I'm doing this... because you deserve to be happy, and I know you only find happiness in tribulations, you always liked solving problems, helping people... now that your Magic Realm is excellent, you need to find something else to entertain yourself with!"
"T-That... what about Yaksha then!? what's going to happen with her?!"
"Why do you care about Yaksha? I thought you couldn't feel anything..." The golden head furrowed its shining eyes.
!!!
"T-That... I'm just worried."
"Don't worry, since you're going to be away, she's surely going to find someone else, that's what you want, right? you want her to be happy!"
"... y-yes..." Indeed, that's what he wants, but... why does it hurt?
"Then be on your way, my son! I hope you will forgive this useless father of yours that destroyed your heart!"
*RUMBLEE!!!!!*
Even as the God of Creation, it took a lot of energy out of Artorsh to take the Magic God away from this universe, but it took a lot more effort, to take a big wisp of Morpheus' divinity.
Going through the portal, the Magic God was successfully exiled.
But the portal didn't close.
A stone sized shining stone floated, the magic god's divinity.
'When it is time for you to come back, I will give it back to you.'
...
"Are you sure about this, Yaksha...?"
"Yes, father... if it's not him... I don't want to live anymore..."
*WOOOSH!!!*
"Foolish child, to trap your husband like this..." The head sighed as the lady appeared amidst a black haze, walking to the portal that was still open, with a solemn yet warm expression.
"You should be aware father, he can 'feel' but he can't recognise those feelings, as if he's actively denying them... possibly because he was hurt so much that he can't bear to leave anyone the opportunity to hurt him again... I'm going to fix it."
"... It's going to be difficult if we're missing two gods." Another wisp of energy was released and he took away a big chunk of Yaksha's divinity as well.
Unlike Morpheus, hers is pitch black, like a black hole.
"It's our holidays, I think we deserve it... thanks for this, father..."
"No, It's me who should thank you... you're doing what should have originally been my responsibility... that brat really found a good wife."
Yaksha smiled and nodded before making her way to the portal, now she didn't have her ten wings or her staff, but her control over the laws of Darkness and Soul was as excellent as ever.
She's the Goddess of Death and Inexistence and a God is not made out of divinity it's made out of mastery.
Just like that, two Gods disappeared from this universe, heading to a world that's totally different from what they could possibly expect.
...
*WOOOSH!!*
But before the portal even closed, a wisp of crimson flames revered through this starry world.
"Hmn, Zekron? what are you still doing here...?"
"Father... give me those two stones~" A man with crimson red hair and golden robes lifted up a gigantic sword and exuded his entire divinity!
After taking away both of Morpheus and Yaksha's divinities, Artorsh was in a weakened state, but still, he's the Creation God!
"DISOBEDIENT CHILD! WHAT ARE YOU EVEN TRYING TO DO!?"
*RUMBLE!!!!*
The entire creation seemed to shake under the might of this golden head, but... the crimson man wasn't deterred.
He released his entire divinity as well and slashed through, hitting the portal and obliterating it!
"LET'S DO IT, FATHER!"
And just like that, amidst the departure of two of the strongest gods, the God of War and Destruction, Zekron, decided to revolt.
**
**
The Earth, United Kingdom, the year 2389.
*WOOOSHHH!!*
The alarms rang through several of this world's security measures the moment a foreign object was detected entering orbit, a meteor.
'Unknown object entering the orbit, proceeding with scheduled erasure.'
The automated protocols that detected this object worked together to erase it after its invasion of the atmosphere didn't result in its disintegration.
*FIUSSH!!!*
Dozens of heat beams shot straight through the skies towards it, hitting it... but they couldn't do anything!
The flaming object continued its trail.
*BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMM----------------
That was until it was one of the tall shiny buildings.
**
**
Morpheus woke up, scratching his head slightly and stood up, flapping his wings a little.
"Father... was that really necessary?" He thought as his eyelids opened to regard the world that he fell in, but there was a prominent thought within his mind, much stronger than the sudden annoyance.
His chest hurt slightly, Yaksha... is going to be with someone else?
'It's better that way...' he concluded and sighed, perhaps wondering why is this thought still in his head.
After moving the thought of his wife away, he regarded the world he fell at.
Disgusting... utterly disgusting.
'So much artificial light, colours... what a disgusting place.'
It was so much neon light that it impacted his eyes as if he was looking at the sun straight, however, to him, the light of the sun is soothing, but this...
Almost inadvertently, he used a spell as the magic god he is.
*RUMBLE!!!*
And then, thankfully, the annoying light stopped entering his sacred eyes.
In fact, every single 'light' that existed within two kilometres, ceased to shine at that moment, and for the first time after hundreds of years, this city knew what a 'blackout' truly is.