…

Witch of Fate: “Once upon a time, before the world you stand upon, and where I was birthed was conceived, there was an endless expanse of nothingness. You must understand that nothing truly exists in this world by chance, and never by itself…”

The now revealed stage, presented the displeased Fate with a black hole, as if the Witch had merely carved out a section of the room to remind him of the void outside. However, the Witch did not continue speaking, as if she were waiting for him to say something.

He still could not figure out if she was here, but he could feel her mocking glare from all around him.

Witch of Fate: “All lives are interwoven, entwined like threads in a grand tapestry. However, all of that life originated from one event…”

From the darkness, a hulking body emerged, eviscerated and mangled ...Fate was disturbed by the gruesome scene of displaced organs that slowly unraveled and floated from the corpse. He could hear the Witch stifling a laugh, but didn’t pay her any heed, as he was transfixed by the oddity before him.

Witch of Fate: “We gods studied tirelessly to discover our origins, and we were shocked to stumble upon this truth, that mana, as well as all other forces and life...were brought about in sacrifice. A titan from some unknown land, its form mangled, drifted to the void that would become our world…”

While she spoke, floods of blue liquid gushed from the giant’s body, bathing the darkness around it, and as the titan gradually spun around, Fate was finally able to see what remained of its face. Half of it was missing, with a line of skin dividing the exposed convulsing brain and skull, which was somehow being held together by a mysterious force…

Fate attempted to get up from his seat, to get closer to the giant, but was held down by a sudden burst of fear! He quickly sat down and readjusted himself, settling his now rapidly-beating heart.

Witch of Fate: “As you should be able to see quite well from where you are currently seated...this titan’s essence poured into the void, illuminating the space around it with its light. Now, observe carefully...from your seat...what do you see in its eyes...or rather, eye?”

Fate shifted his disgruntled gaze to the remaining eye of the giant, which was nervously trembling and was gradually leaking tears into the space above it. It was...scared, but of what, of death? No, it was definitely scared, however, it kept rapidly shifting its gaze across the endless void, as if looking for something…

The titan eyed his blood that floated in streams before him, and a sudden glint appeared in his eyes. Resolve shone in the dying being’s eyes, followed by a large orb gradually rising from his chest, which began to form a heart shape.

Witch of Fate: “It seems that you didn’t quite understand the dying titan’s gaze...I suppose I should have set my expectations a bit lower on that particular subject…”

Fate turned his gaze around the room, angrily looking for the Witch. However, again, he was met with an empty theater, with no signs of life other than his own, and that of the being on the stage. He once again turned to attempt to understand what the strange giant was intending to do.

The large heart on top of the giant’s massive chest now began to release a strange mist into the surrounding blood, while the giant seemed to struggle in pain. The blue lights surrounding him now seemed to cluster together, forming large constantly shifting blobs…

Witch of Fate: “The blood that spilled from the Titan in those moments is what is today known as ‘mana,’ the manifestation of Ilthea’s life force. It has taken many forms over the aeons, and has been reshaped by those who walk the world’s surface, but it hath never strayed…”

Fate carefully looked at each cluster of ‘mana,’ watching as the mist leaking from the massive ‘heart’ changed them as the giant continued to suffer. Eventually, the mist ceased its entry into these strange pools, and the areas from it leaked, cracked and shattered, the now dim bits floating away from the core…

Witch of Fate: “This was the giant’s plan...out of the fears that plagued him, he used the life-force contained within his soul, with the energy contained in his blood, to create…”

Suddenly, four lights burst into existence on stage, with auras which Fate could somehow feel prickling his skin from where he sat, all the way in the back row. Among them were an especially bright red light, a gentle yet high-speeding blue light, a radiant yellowish orange light, and finally, a dull green light. 

Witch of Fate: “New beings...so that he would not be haunted by the despair of dying...and being alone. These beings were what we now know as the ‘First Gods...’”

...