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Chapter 9:
GODS & DEMIGODS
Rise & Fall of the Gods
When human tribes first spread out over the continents
of Khitus, the world was new and unspoiled. Simple peoples sought new places for pastures to tend their flocks.
For a time, few significant obstacles slowed their progress. Still, the people grew understandably grateful for
the ease of their lives, the abundant bounty of the land,
and offered thanks to personifications of all the wonders
they beheld. And as happens in such places and times,
the chicken preceded the egg: powerful beings appeared
as worthy creators, eager to soak up the worship so readily
offered up. Thus Khitus’s gods emerged.
Literally hundreds of new godly powers flocked to the
burgeoning new world, and why should they not? The
population grew at a rapid pace then, and tribes spread
and splintered quickly in those days, adopting new godlike beings for their own once they demonstrated their
existence and power. Only when the world slowed to
a more predictable pace did competition check their
numbers, as new worshipers were spread thinner and
thinner. Pantheons filled themselves out completely, oftentimes with multiple gods with overlapping roles, and
the people granted them all wide acceptance.
Toward the close of the Classic Age, though, the old
gods gained competition for the attentions of the masses in the Daragkarik. The Dragon Kings presented an attractive alternative to those tired of worship or tribute,
as they were approachable creatures that demonstrated
repeatedly their love of the people and the world. Jealous gods grew angry but directed their hatred against
one another, initiating a series of terrible inter-tribal
wars. God fought god, and the weaker were killed or
driven out, along with those who sought better opportunities on other worlds. The animalistic gods fled Khitus, wounded or otherwise, after time or circumstances
stripped them of their worshipers.
For a time, though, the remnants of once-proud pantheons lingered. The still-humble masses retained their
relationship with the gods, but many were left wanting
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for emotional support or more direct intervention in
specific areas; an absent god of agriculture meant famine reared its ugly head. Some pantheons consolidated
into blended religions, forcing desperate clerics and
priests to tighten their grips on ecclesiastical authority to chokeholds on power. The people grew even more
disenchanted with the remaining clergy and gods,
turning toward the benevolent Dragon Kings instead.
The Gods are Dead!
Long Live the Gods!
It should be pointed out that creatures commanding
genuine godlike powers are wholly different to other
beings, even the powerful Dragon Kings. The latter, despite enormous power and faithful armies, were mortal creatures, tapping into reservoirs of magical power
available to everyone else. Gods, on the other hand, exist
as embodiments of the coarse universal fabric. They are
magic manifested as emotion, conduits that transform
worship into magical energies and redistribute these to
their priests. The gods exist throughout time and space,
though it takes worshipers to name and worship them.
Without them, the energy and the ideas do not manifest into a deific physical or metaphysical presence. The
power is there but dormant and unnamed.
Such is the situation upon Khitus, a world that has ignored the gods for a long period of time. The Shadazim
seek to change that.
Return of the Gods
Shadazim recognize the vast power available to them
or to anyone who reignites the godly fires upon Khitus. The necessary kindling is all around: masses desperate for something to believe in, an absence of other
authority, and lack of confidence in the authority that
does exist. In these rough days, a firm, confident voice
finds an audience. The people are ready to believe in
gods again.
