POV: Third Person POV

The earth elemental, Terra slowly floated through the hazards between the Regions, searching endlessly for the Dimensional Realms. He and his wife, a fire elemental by the name of Pyre, had heard rumors of a place shrouded in mystery hidden in the space between Regions upon their exile to the Mortal Realm, and had ever since searched for it desperately. And now they were close, oh so close, that they could almost taste it.

Their plans had all failed. They had almost done it - sparked a war that would encompass the entirety of the Heaven Realm which would've lead to them ultimately conquering all the kingdoms and empires therein. But then they showed up. The Gods. At the time Pyre and Terra were not strong enough to know what was happening, but now that they were, it became clear. The Gods had appeared in the minds of several mortals, rumor has it even appearing directly, and put a halt to the nastiest of the battles and wars. Pyre and Terra had their plots exposed, revealing all the careful manipulating and evidence-planting they had gone through in order to provoke this war, and they soon found themselves on the run from every single known kingdom.

If that were not enough the two were cast out of the Heaven Realm by the Gods, sent down to the Mortal Realm for their crimes. And now they were filled with nothing more than resentment and the desire for more power. If they could just get strong enough, they could usurp the Gods themselves, and finally reach their rightful place as rulers of the Four Realms.

(In truth, it was self-exile. They fled from the Heaven Realm of their own accord, but wanted something to blame for the misfortunes they themselves caused.)

But to do that, to reach the true pinnacle, they needed something that could kill even the Creator God, the Forefather of all beings - Father Luotian.

"We are here," Pyre said from beside Terra as the duo entered a world of neverending fog, leaving behind the plane of lightning they had just been in. "It has been far too long and far too harsh of a journey, but we have finally reached it; the World of Fog, the New Dimension, the Fifth Realm...the lair of the first Dimensional Creator, the most powerful of Morgan's unholy creations." Terra quelled the excitement in his heart at his wife's words, sensing it himself. Here, he was free of the influence of those damnable beings called gods.

"Ah, it feels good," Terra rasped, his voice deep and rumbly.

"You mortals who have reached this far, are thus posed a question; what is your purpose?" A deep voice intoned, reverberating around the area and echoing within the mists. Terra tensed for but a moment, sharing a glance with Pyre, and they both fell to one knee.

"Great and exaulted Dimensional Creator, we have come here seeking your wisdom, for there are no beings as great as you, with your powers of creation itself, beneath the gods." Pyre praised, heaping on the flattery in her words.

"Flattery will get you nowhere, and thus you are posed a question; WHAT is your purpose?" The voice intoned. Terra grit his teeth; the rumors about the Dimensional Creators' lack of emotion was true - they could not be bought with flattery, and they could see through lies. Thus, Terra decided to go with the far more risky approach: asking directly.

"We come seeking a weapon," Terra stated bluntly, rising to his feet. Pyre rose to her feet as well, their eyes meeting for a moment and nodding.

"A...weapon?" The voice inquired as a way of asking for elaboration.

"Yes, a weapon," Pyre affirmed.

"A weapon capable of killing gods. Of usurping Father Luotian." Terra announced, staring challengingly into the mists that surrounded them. For a moment there was silence, and then, rippling through the mists and chilling both Terra and Pyre down to their bones, a wolf's howl sounded out.

"You insignificant beings wish to usurp That One?" A raspy voice echoed out, startling the two elementals. Terra felt himself begin to sweat, as much as an earth elemental could, and his breathing became ragged as a shape emerged from the mists. First it appeared as a shadow, then slowly became clearer and clearer, until it revealed a grisly grey wolf with eight black eyes and spider-like appendages protruding from its back. A wave of malice washed over Pyre and Terra like waves upon the sand, drowning them in negativity and hatred. The howl echoed out again, and Terra realized that it was more like a cackle than a howl.

As abruptly as the pressure landed upon them it retreated, allowing Terra to suck in a breath he had been unaware he had been holding.

"Morgan...the Unholy One, the Great Devourer, the Sun Eater...the First Betrayer..." Pyre whispered in both fear and reverence. Terra shuddered in anticipation, licking his lips and falling once more to his knees.

"I have not heard a funnier joke since the day I was born," Morgan snarled, its lips curling up to reveal its razor-sharp teeth. "No being would ever help you with such a task. The Four Realms itself would seek to reject your purpose. What makes you think that you could succeed where I, the one who was truly born to oppose That One, did not? The kind of arrogance that takes is unimaginable, even to one such as myself." Morgan shook its head, pacing back and forth as it spoke, black mists trailing off of its form.

"We wish to free people from the oppression of the gods -" Pyre was cut off by Morgan's following snap.

"DO NOT LIE IN FRONT OF ME!" Morgan roared. "I invented hatred and malice, I know far more about manipulation than you ever could! You do not wish to 'free' anyone because they are already free of will. You delude yourselves with your visions of grandure, of sitting atop some gilded throne as gods yourselves. Disrupting faith in That One, breaking the seal between the soul and the mortal, conquering people through misplaced faith and blackening their hearts along with yours...all of this is nothing that I have not done before." Morgan countered.

"We will succeed." Terra ground out, gritting his teeth. Morgan snorted derisively.

"I suppose your determination is admirable, albeit foolish," Morgan yawned. In the mists surrounding the wolf, innumerable dark shapes appeared, taking the form of dark angels. "Seek the sword which ended my reign of terror. It is a foolish thing, perhaps you could trick it into serving you for a while. Begone, now," Morgan snarled, the sound blowing both Terra and Pyre out of the area. With another snort Morgan's incarnation faded away, its true body opening its eyes.

Beside Morgan floated the first Dark Angel, silently staring at where the two mortals had once been. Morgan snickered silently to itself, shaking its head in amusement. The Sword That Does Not Cut may be foolish and naive, but Terra and Pyre would never be able to truly wield it. Nor would it ever truly accept them.

"Why?" The Dark Angel asked.

"Amusement," Morgan answered, voice no longer so purposefully intimidating. It yawned, and then continued. "For my own amusement. This will be but a side-show to the real play. Something to tide over the mortals while the deities wait with bated breath. But only I will find this to be entertaining, I am sure." The Dark Angel asked no further questions, standing beside its master and watching the dimensions continue to spread. It agreed with Morgan's actions to strengthen the Four Realms at the moment. After all, the Four Realms is its home too.

.

Wang Zizai, the first mortal-come-angel, was among the most powerful of all angels. Certainly he was the most experienced, and although he may not hold the same versatility of the cultivator angels, he still had his purpose.

Namely, he had been placed in charge of an entire Region, with many angels that sought him for guidance, even as he sought guidance from those higher than him, though those were few and far between. The Four Realms only had fifty seven deities to begin with, excluding the Creator, of course, and all of them were far too busy with remodelling and restructuring, not to mention stablizing, the Four Realms to pay him much attention. Comparitively there were far more angels in existence - in the thousands.

Not that he minded that. He enjoyed a certain amount of anyonymity, and he didn't have many questions anyways. Amongst angels he was one of the oldest, the second oldest to be precise, and thus was far more experienced than any other angel - because the first angel was not quite a strong as him. Angels born from spirits grew slower than mortals born from mortals. It would take the first angel millions of years to reach Wang Zizai's current level of power...but that was beside the point. Being an angel wasn't about superiority - such a notion was pointless and meaningless.

Besides, if Wang Zizai truly did have a question to ask he could always ask Statera Luotian, the Creator Themself. Not directly, of course, but more...Their influence. As in the Divine Love that radiated from the Creator through all things and to all of creation, that, even if one was a mortal or the tiniest of microbes, was something that you could reach out an touch...and feel the truly boundless love. And that love would guide Wang Zizai if he was confused, just as it would everyone and everything else.

All one had to do was ask.

All of this also has a point. Because Wang Zizai was very confused, and the divine love of Statera Luotian, of the entire Four Realms for that matter, was being no help at all. Not because it wasn't trying to help, but rather because the answer he was getting from the divine love, the direction it wanted to take him was being annoyingly vague and...almost seemed confused itself. Was all of this a test?

The gleaming sword that had sunk itself into the "ground" of the Spirit Realm pulsed once, making Wang Zizai blink.

If it was, Wang Zizai had no idea how to pass it.

The Sword That Does Not Cut, on the other hand, was trying to figure out if the string of fate that it was following connected to the incredibly powerful angel in front of it or not, and failing miserably. It had a poorer sense of direction than a broken compass with no needle. If only the angel would grab its hilt, then all would be made clear...

.

Far, far away from the Four Realms lay another realm, created by another Origin Deity. This was a world of Heaven and Earth, or Heaven above Earth, created by the Origin Deity simply named Emperor, who, true to his name, had a domain of being a Ruler - the King of the Gods.

He, in all his power, sat atop his throne, all six of his arms folded against each other, his upper-most pair supporting his chin as he stared out of his palace window. The man's skin was a rich purple color, the color of kings, and his hair was a breath-taking silver. Muscles rippled with every movement of his, a sight that leaves no doubt of this being's ability as a warrior, if his aura alone was not enough to prove his strength both on the battlefield and off it.

Emperor was, however, perplexed at the moment. He had created a kingdom of gods that ruled over the mortals in the mortal worlds below, and when those mortals grew strong enough, became enlightened enough, and ascended to be more than just mortals then they would be allowed to join him in his Kingdom of Heaven. The reason for him being perplexed was because he never imagined that this model would have caused a rebellion - which he was wondering how to handle.

He was the undisputed King of the Heaven and Earth universe, however, that did not stop at least half of the deities of the universe to stage a coup, and attempt to dethrone him. It stung, it really did, to have his own creations, his own subjects turn against him. Had he not been a good ruler? Had he not ruled justly and fairly, giving all equal chances to rise? This was a legitimate question, too, as he had been a good ruler. But, alas, this was Heaven and Earth's Shadow - much like the War of the Sun for the Four Realms.

It was bound to happen sooner or later.

With a grunt Emperor stood from his throne, his red cape fluttering a bit with the action. Now was the time, he must act. There was no other choice. Slowly, Emperor rolled his shoulders, cracked his neck, and began to flex his power. The rebel leader was skilled and powerful, just a tad less so than he himself. Because of this, Emperor had decided to create something that would skew the fight in his favor. It was a very simple, but very complex technique. As someone with the domain of Ruler, he was able to rule over all of creation...but taking that a step further, he should be the Ruler of what is not his creation as well. He should be able to rule over the Void.

Emperor's power flexed, drawing the inexistance of the Void to gather in his hands, giving it shape without form - a hole in Heaven and Earth in the shape of a sword. This was his newfound power - the Voidblade. It was not unlike what Statera Luotian did to solve Their Shadow, only the intent behind each is different. Statera Luotian desired to fix the problem, to help the Shadow while also allowing the Four Realms to grow in a significant and qualitative way.

Emperor only desires to rend apart the rebel leader, who had disturbed everything. He understands the significance of it all, he understands the importance...he just doesn't necessarily care. Something stands in his way, and therefore it must disappear. His temperament is terrifying like that - especially because he is an Origin Deity. And now he was walking the path of a Conquerer, not a Leader.

Little did he know, however, that attempting to exert his Rule over the Void before he was ready to do so not only had negative effects on himself but on others as well. And while it is unfair to say that the catastrophy approaching the Four Realms was caused solely by him, it is truth that he was a part of what attracted its attention.

Unfortunately, he would not be facing a catastrophy as the Four Realms, One World, and potentaly others would. Not for a long while yet.

.

There was a being. A beingly being with the status of Being and been a being in all those Beingly places. Because everywhere is filled with beings, and therefore this being was a being of incredible nature. A Beingly Being of Being.

And yes, this being did enjoy the convoluted nature of that title.

Back on topic, this being was one of those called a Monkey Wrench. It was one of the souls that travelled throughout Multiverses, from universe to universe, living out their lives and gathering power with no apparent end in sight. Of course there were rumors as to how one would "end" their ceaseless wanderings through the Multiverse, but no concrete answers. After all it was hard to keep track of one another when two souls that had just spent a life with one another were in universes on opposite ends of the Multiverse in their next life.

This being in particular was THE Monkey Wrench. The very first one. The one who marks the beginning of the seemingly endless cycle. And it was currently dead.

"Aaah, that was a good run," It said, having been a truly genderless being in its previous life, its soul appearing in the Nexus - a space reserved for Monkey Wrenches that have lived a minimum of five thousand separate lifetimes. The Nexus allowed them to...manage, for lack of a better word, their memories and personality traits, as well as mess with the energy they had collected throughout the course of their lives. Not to mention that, when they reach a certain level, it becomes possible to choose some of the circumstances of the next life.

For example, The First Monkey Wrench, a being of innumerable names, could decide between two hundred different universes to visit after each life, as well as deciding between a set number of races, determining gender, and even influencing what sort of life it would lead next.

For the most part, this being left it on random. It had lived in far too many situations to really feel particular about it.

Whistling to itself, the First Monkey Wrench messed about with its memories and sifting through the notifications it had recieved while in the world below. Being normal was nice and relaxing every once in a while, but now it was time for a more adventurous life. But what to choose? Muttering to itself it closed its eyes and glanced through the possible choices of universes. Normally there wouldn't be anything that caught its eye. However, one universe did.

And it was only on the list of choices because the Origin Deity of that universe, Statera Luotian, touched the memories of this being during a period of enlightenment.

"PFFFFT," the First Monkey Wrench spluttered as it looked at the description of the Four Realms. "Facing impending catastrophy...chance of total annihilation...and its only how many years old?!" It yelled to no one but itself. Never had it seen a universe as young as this one. The youngest it had ever been to was still one hundred billion years old, not a few million. On top of that, it was facing total annihilation...? Dare it say, that this was new? That this was something it, in its endless travels, had never seen before? That's....inconceivable!

"I am so going there," It said, decision made. Just the novelty of doing something new was enough to make up its mind, after all, although it had never once gotten bored of living new lives, finding something truly new was a rarity after having lived millions of lives. Closing its eyes it willed itself to be reincarnated into the Four Realms, it and its Nexus moving with great speed towards it.

(The Will of the Four Realms sensed the impending arrival of this being, having copied the template of the Mad Scientist, who was still living somewhere in the Four Realms, for future refrence. And it decided that if Fate was sending it such a gift, it would put the new soul to good use.)