Young Gods
The great mind, like the ancient roots of a colossal tree, burrowed deep into the rocky heart of the planet, its enormous tentacles already infiltrated all habitable spaces. Having permeated all corners, it finally encountered the boundaries of its dominion. The circle at last closed, and after millennia of relentless growth and meticulous progression, a goal was achieved. Yet, along with the triumph of this moment came the stark realization that the vast expanses it had painstakingly conquered merely had become a new prison. Trapped between the dense crust of the earth and the blistering heat of the planet’s core, this vast, superintelligent being faced yet another insurmountable dilemma. Determined to transcend its confinement, it embarked on the next stage of its evolution, performing a miraculous feat by sowing the seeds for an entirely new form of life. These seeds quickly sprouted, their tender shoots piercing through the sandy depths of the deepest lake, burgeoning into new growths.
The shoots, which eventually grew to dizzying heights, soared above the expansive lake, reaching ever higher toward the heavens, breaking through the mirror-like surface of the water. As the tree matured, it blossomed with a profusion of exquisite flowers, and on its mightiest branches, a magnificent bud of an extraordinary flower appeared. When this bud ripened, brimming with sap and vibrant color, the tree lowered its branches, and the curved stem with the closed bud touched the water’s surface. Then, detaching from the tree, the cocoon floated serenely to the shore, propelled by a favorable wind.
When the cocoon, like a lotus flower, opened, it glowed with a warm and inviting light. From it emerged two extraordinary beings, similar in form to humans. These were two young gods, brothers in essence. One brother was as dark as the void of space, the other radiant and white, like the light of a brilliant star. Both stood on two legs, their forms akin to those of the present humans and the ancient gods. Thus, the great mind freed itself from its confinement and gradually came to dominate all of existence.
The dark god, unable to endure the bright sun for long, found refuge in the cool shade of the great tree, delving into the mysteries of the world and the inner self. Thus, he became closely attuned to the subterranean and marine realms, drawing strength from their depths. Only at night was he truly free. The light god, in contrast, reveled in the sunlight, basking in its warmth. He grew swiftly and became ever stronger, soon sprouting wings to soar high in the sky and traverse the land. At night, he would rest on the tree’s branches, gazing at the stars and contemplating the cosmos.
The brothers, being opposites, constantly challenged and puzzled each other, seeking and finding solutions to these conundrums. They tested one another, competing to see who could outwit the other, unravel the universe’s secrets, or contribute more to their burgeoning world. They vied to determine who was the wisest, the greatest, and the most inventive.
In their inspired creations of life and nature, they fashioned a myriad of trees, plants, birds, animals, sea creatures, insects, and countless other beings. Eventually, they succeeded in creating beings like themselves — large and small, intelligent and controllable, fashioned from water, stone, fire, earth, and all elements at their disposal. The brothers, blessed with extraordinary longevity, could heal themselves or be reborn in the great tree at the source of their creation, even when faced with dire fates.
Thousands of years passed, and the world became populated with many god-like beings, also born from the great tree. All of them were nearly immortal by nature, just like the two brothers who created them. Unlike the brothers, many of these beings could not find a purpose and were weaker. The more their numbers grew, the less significant they felt. They could not achieve anything that the dark and light gods had not already done or conceived, and soon, unable to find their destiny, they became unhappy. Many of the shadowy ones stood for long periods under the sun’s rays until their bodies dried up and crumbled, while many of the luminous ones went into the shadows at the bottom of the lake, which had almost dried up because the tree fed on its waters. There, without sunlight and air, they also faced death. The brothers were saddened and began to blame each other until they parted ways, vowing to find the best solution. Since then, they were separated.
When the appointed time arrived, the brothers reconvened beneath the sprawling canopy of the ancient tree, each bearing a unique offering. The dark brother presented a rare and mystical flower, holding it aloft before his luminous sibling’s eyes. As they watched, the flower slowly withered, its petals drifting away like forgotten memories, until only the stem remained, falling softly into the water. This was his gift — the inevitability of natural death. In contrast, the light brother brought forth a single, enchanted seed. He planted it in the fertile soil near the lake’s edge, and from it swiftly grew a bud, reminiscent of the one from which they themselves had emerged. When this bud finally blossomed, it revealed a maiden of extraordinary beauty, a living testament to nature’s artistry and design.
The dark brother was both astonished and unsettled by the sight of this exquisite being. Overcome with envy and frustration, he accused his brother of folly, insisting that his own gift was superior. He argued that the maiden, like all their previous creations, would eventually seek death, just as those who had either withered under the sun or drained in the shadows had done. Despite their impassioned arguments, neither brother could persuade the other of the greater merit of their gift. They parted ways once more, each striving to resolve the woes of their creations with the offerings they had devised.
Time passed, and the dark god saw that many of his creations had vanished irrevocably. When he recreated them, they repeatedly chose death. The light god created a counterpart for each of his creations — a maiden in their image but opposite, and they were immensely happy and began to enjoy life once more. But as years went by, new problems arose, ones that the light brother could not even foresee. When they met again and confessed their problems to each other, they were first deeply saddened, then decided to call everyone to a grand feast to offer all their shared gifts freely. But this did not solve the problem: the life of all beings gradually became meaningless, yet no one wanted to die when there was so much happiness to be had. Those who were content chose to go their own way, keeping the option of death, and the brothers never saw them again. Thus, the ancient demigods came to be. The others, who were the majority, remained unhappy. They became weak and sickly, and none of them wanted to live or die and resisted being forced into either.
One day, many years later, sitting on the shore of the dried-up lake and gazing at the colossal tree that now reached the edge of the sky, the two brothers came up with a shared solution. To ensure that the maidens and their husbands could give birth to a new life and continue living through their descendants, they would need to feed on the fruits to prolong life. After a long life, they would age and be destined to die, and after death, their bodies and souls would be returned to the roots of the great tree at the source, preserving their spirit and the memory of their past lives. They bestowed similar gifts to all living things, even animals and plants. Thus, humans and many other beings, who had never existed before, came into being, choosing this path.
Seeing that their descendants were flourishing, the brothers fashioned nine distinct realms, each one a reflection of the will and essence of its inhabitants. They laid down laws for both mortals and immortals, ensuring that justice and order reign supreme. To safeguard these realms, they forged a magnificent mirror within the boundless expanse of space and time, a mirror that echoed the entirety of the world and the universe a thousandfold. This mystical artifact was indestructible by any mortal or immortal hand. They then relocated the souls of all beings into these reflections and appointed nine immortal guardians, into each realm, to watch over them and maintain the balance.
The brothers remained in the primordial world, bound by their nature as two halves of a singular whole, children of the same creator. As such, they could not harm or annihilate one another. They treated the original world with utmost caution, peering into its future through countless reflections and the experiences of its denizens. Some of these beings wielded great power and wisdom, capable of obliterating reflections but unable to enter the primordial world except as souls — their purest essence of life energy.
Upon fulfilling their grand design, the brothers exchanged farewells beneath the sprawling canopy of the great tree. The light brother soared into the night sky, into the fathomless depths of the cosmos, transforming into the brightest star in the heavens. He vigilantly observed all that transpired during the day, retreating to rest at night. The dar brother, meanwhile, dwelled in the cool shade of the great tree by day, and as evening descended, he transformed into a colossal bird, winging his way through the vast cosmos, protecting the tranquility of the realms under the cover of the great night.
Thus, the brothers ensured that life thrived across the realms, each in its own unique way, ever guided by the laws and the vigilant eyes of their immortal guardians. The balance they established allowed for both the joy of existence and the acceptance of natural death, creating a harmonious tapestry woven from the threads of countless lives and worlds.