Against The True Gods

Years ago, on an otherwise ordinary day, Caine had been assigned a mission by Nova.

The mission was simple: plant trackers on a few Celestials who had begun to suspect Nova's schemes. Yet, that day turned out to be the one that changed everything.

On that day, Caine discovered a cave, sealed away from the world and its endless conflicts. Inside, he met a man.

This man, who never revealed his true name, went by [The First Sinner] and from that day on, became Caine's first and only master.

"The reality you live in is fake, mortal. The earth you walk on is illusory, the stars you gaze at are mere reflections, and the heavens that shackle you are nothing but servants serving a greater purpose."

"You, mortals of the world, are lab rats endlessly bred as they seek something within you."

"Boy, what I am telling you is that you live in a dream and are nothing but an ant, shackled by the chains of fate and imposed with a perverted destiny."

These were the first words Caine heard as his gaze fell on the decrepit figure of an old man, with more bones than flesh on his frame.

He wore tattered dark robes, had long oily black hair, and his body was covered in ancient cursive marks. Yet, as Caine stood there, he couldn't help but think that this man was the most majestic entity he'd ever seen.

Immediately, and perhaps on instinct, he knelt and begged for deliverance.

He begged the First Sinner to free him from this wretched world and take him away, but the answer he received was nothing like what he expected.

"Little bastard, stand up. I will not be handing you anything, you stupid mongrel. If you seek something, TAKE it!" The old man's voice boomed across the cave. "But just this one time, I'll show mercy and impart you with a seed."

"What you do with this seed of knowledge will be up to you."

And just like that, the years that shaped and permanently changed Caine began under the harsh and merciless tutelage of the man he knew as The First Sinner.

After years of planning, as Caine pierced his blade into his heart and killed himself, a smile bloomed across his face as the figure of that grumpy old man popped into his mind.

"I'll be seeing you soon, master."

****

Upon an ocean of amethyst, emerald, and rose colors that extended into infinity and beyond, a small wooden boat could be seen calmly and peacefully making its way across this infinite expanse of water.

On this boat, a figure could be seen.

Tall, extremely so, wearing wide and airy dark robes that revealed the entity's Lich-like body, covered in golden runes, with its left hand holding a scythe of purple fire.

Its skull was entirely black, covered in ancient cursive marks that gave it a primordial and primal air, only accentuated by the terrifying mantle of dark energy that hung around it, reeking of death and destruction.

This entity seemed to be the perfect embodiment of what mortals called Reapers.

Despite its terrifying appearance, the Reaper hummed a harmonious and ensnaring melody that echoed across the vast ocean it sailed upon, as within this strange space, time seemed to hold no meaning.

An unknown amount of time later, from the black starry skies of this space, a figure could be seen, wearing white garments, unconscious and falling from the skies without any support.

The Reaper didn't react, but by the time the entity fell from the skies, it had somehow magically appeared in the perfect position to retrieve the body.

PUH!

Despite the terrifying height from which the body fell, it only made a soft thud as it landed on the wooden boat, barely rocking it as the figure remained unconscious.

"Awaken."

Immediately, the entity who had fallen from the skies, Caine, sat up and violently snapped his eyes open, his breaths labored as he subconsciously slicked his hair back and began to look around, alert.

When Caine noticed he was indeed alive—well, somewhat alive—he calmed down and exhaled a final breath that regulated his mind and body.

He then immediately stood up and bowed to the Reaper, who still stood indifferently at the helm of the wooden boat, looking off into the distance.

"I greet the mighty and revered Reaper, Traverser of Life and Death."

His body was bent at a ninety-degree angle as he uttered these words.

After dying, most wouldn't know what would happen, but if Caine was in the same case, wouldn't he be a fool? Why go through so much just to blindly kill himself?

Of course, though he didn't know much about where he was, he knew enough to have planned his whole escape around it.

He knew this entity before him could kill him and anything he'd ever met in a mere instant.

The Reaper, for the first time, reacted and stopped humming as it chuckled and turned to face Caine.

Its empty eye sockets lit up as a swirling golden flame appeared within them. Although Caine was still bowing, unable to meet its gaze, he suddenly broke into a cold sweat as his hairs stood on end and his heart began to slam violently against his chest, not from fear, but because his very existence felt threatened, like prey before a predator.

Despite this, he tried his best to remain calm and collected. After all, after coming so far, he couldn't allow himself to fail now.

The Reaper's eerie chuckle echoed and spread throughout the entire ocean they sailed upon as it then shook its head.

"It's rare to see mortals like you. Usually, I only hear about your kind during the Era meetings."