"The Creator surely made this world too large. This is inconvenient for us small, fearful humans. For all the world’s vastness, we can’t measure the distance between ourselves. There’s 6 billion of us, yet still…everyone is all alone. That’s why we’re all frantically searching for that one person we need no distance from."
Kou Ichinomiya (Arakawa Under the Bridge)
It was just another day in the history of the created universe. A tiny speck in the infinite lifetime of the Divine Nature. The Goddesses continued their reigns over their worlds, making and unmaking, creating and destroying, declaring peace and instigating chaos. The worlds kept spinning, the stars kept shining, the supernovas expanding. It was in this infinite cosmos that a most insignificant story began. It involved a human man, and several women. It involved monsters. It involved the beginning and the ending of lives. And yet as insignificant as the actors were on this grand stage of the Divine, their story would forever change the fate of their world and of the Pantheon of Goddesses.
Where should I begin? To tell the story from the beginning would take eons to finish, and I have neither the time nor the energy to do so on my own. So, I regrettably must start in the middle of it, the point in which you will be most interested in.
I could give you the stereotypical, "There once was a knight who went on a quest". To do so would be correct, but it doesn't quite give you the full picture. So let me fill in a little for you.
Many years ago, there was an impoverished son of a nobleman. This son had become a Knight, and one of the Order of the High Goddess no less. His life had been a sad tale of death, war, and great sacrifice. His parents, dead. The lands that were rightfully his, burned and salted. His castle, raised. His treasures, his livelihood, his very name and rank, all were gone. He was alone in the world with not a penny to his name (in a manner of speaking).
But this man, Mark Aurelius, was a hero to his nation. He had given up all of the above things in a great battle for the rights of monsterkind. Unlike his predecessors and most of his fellow noblemen, Mark believed that all sentient beings should be treated equally. All had the same inherent, glorious value. All were forms of beauty and perfection. And all must be treated with a reverent respect... even if they did have spider legs...
In the grand scheme of things, one might think that Mark was still insignificant. He had nothing, save his armor (he didn't even have a helmet!), sword, and a small bag of coins. Yet this man would be at the center of a battle between the Deities.
And there he was, walking (since he didn't have a horse either) down the long rocky path to City X, the capital of Eccharia. It was his destiny to go and meet with Her Royal Majesty, Empress Celinda Ssanyu Jannike Van Der Aart XII, Empress of City X, Divine leader of the New world, Chairwoman of the council of elders. This woman had called upon him to lead a quest to bring down the followers of the Goddess Ilias, who had recently rebelled and started the XXX Confederacy.
He lifted his weary head as he trudged along, and saw the capital rising into view. It was quite the sight, sitting just on the coast of the Sea of Jasper. The rays of the suns (for there were two suns that governed this planet) left sprites dancing across the waves. The ocean air was crisp and salty, leaving a wonderful smell in one's nostrils. And as always, it was neither too hot nor too cold. This was the perfect beginning for a quest like this.
Finally, the City. It had taken Mark a two week trip to make it here, and he was battered to say the least. But the sight of the city gave him strength. He hefted his small pack once more, and pressed onward to the front gates.
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