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The First Convening was a small gathering of Gods led by the God of Fulgurite. Each of the Gods summoned to the event were chosen by Fulgurite for having all seen the first death of a God. The convening would see the birth in the belief of an afterlife, a concept brought forth by the God of Chromodynamic Energy.
Overview
Fulgurite, having witnessed the first death of a God, would organize a meeting of differently opinionated but equally visionary and embodied Gods. Seventeen figures, including Fulgurite themself, would be hand-picked to attend, each of whom had witnessed the first death and were what Fulgurite would describe as dreamers. Either by complete coincidence, or Fulgurites keen ability to discern the inspired, all seventeen members of the First Covenant would go on to be pivotal figures in the war, shaping it both positively and negatively.
Following the First Convening, Chromodynamic Energy, a member of the First Covenant, would publish the Afterlife Star, concluding that an afterlife must exist. According to Chromodynamic Energy, a God’s consciousness is not subject to the whims of reality and unreality, but is instead tethered only by the greater fabric of nature outside of those concepts. Thus, they concluded, a God’s mind cannot truly be lost like materials or laws. Though the claim cannot be proven nor disproven, the Afterlife Star would spark debate and division among Gods, creating believers and deniers. And so, religion was born.
Gods soon divided into two opposing beliefs: those who argued the afterlife renders life trivial—why fear death if it is no different from life?—and those who claimed the afterlife made living even more precious—why risk life for an afterlife that, even if promised, may pale in comparison? These ideological branches grew rapidly, with many members of the First Covenant becoming vocal advocates for their own beliefs. The invention of organic life would only accelerate the growing divisions.
The invention of the first single-celled organisms—by Hydrogen Cyanide, a member of the First Covenant—would present an abrupt and unexpected challenge to the emerging foundations of God’s philosophies, which would only be further exacerbated by the subsequent invention of multicellular life by Rubidium Perchlorate, another member of the First Covenant. Organisms are capable of sensing their environment and making decisions based on that input; they can think.
Together, Hydrogen Cyanide and Rubidium Perchlorate would develop a theory with profound implications—one they would choose, for the time being, to keep largely to themselves. Hydrogen Cyanide and Rubidium Perchlorate would, together, invent the first fungi. It was within this invention that their theory would surface; a God’s mind might simply be a mirror of nature’s most complex behaviors. The Mycelia Star, detailing the two’s invention and theory, sent many Gods into frenzy. Fungi could communicate, learn, and remember, but lacked complex language, empathetic emotions, and self-reflection. Faint traces of these traits were present, but were not yet fully realized.
The invention of the first mammal, courtesy of a non-Covenant member, would mark significant progress towards the theory presented in the Mycelia Star, yet it would not be until the invention of humans that it would finally be realized. Porous Rock—a First Covenant member—would create humans, publishing the Humanity Star. In an instant the foundations of God’s religions would shatter. The Humanity Star would become the Humanity System as it was flooded in a chaotic storm of stars, Gods bickering and arguing over the implications of humanity’s very existence. Humans were an undeniably excellent tool for the war, but had also marked a turning point at which Life and Death had to draw the line. The Second God Council would be called for and the Creations Act would be passed, severely limiting God’s abilities to create life. The subsequent invention of the dwarves by humans would only further strain the war’s tensions.
Amid the growing tension and changing tides, one unsettling detail stood out: the strange silence from the Higher-Gods. The cynic Ethionamide—a First Covenant member—began to ask questions: why do Life and Death refuse to elaborate on their actions? Why does Matter ignore the pleas of the Lesser-Elementals? Why do Time and Space only interact with those who abuse their domains? Ethionamide published the Greater God Conspiracy Star, purporting that the actions of the Higher-Gods were facilitating an agenda against the Lesser-Gods. The reasons for it remained unclear, but Ethionamide suggested entertainment or an attempt to fix a mistake made by Matter.
Among the growing conspiracies, the fragile recovery of religions was already beginning to crumble. The voices of First Covenant members—Sodium Ethyl Xanthate, Diethyl Dixanthogen Disulfide, Fulgurite, Ethionamide, Tectonics, and others—dominated the stars, reigniting debates about the afterlife. Divisions would grow between those who believed the afterlife was reserved only for Gods and those who argued it was for any self-reflective beings. This tension would come to a head when Fulgurite, a staunch proponent of the God-only afterlife, would confront Sodium Ethyl Xanthate, a champion of the open afterlife. The dispute would escalate into a battle, and the result would be Fulgurite’s death. The remaining First Covenant members would grow more resentful of each other, and in the aftermath, Sodium Ethyl Xanthate withdrew into reclusiveness, though this would not be the last time two First Covenant members found themselves at odds.
Humanity introduced the Gods to something new: relationships. Through their interaction with humans, dwarves, and elves, the Gods would experience a level of understanding and companionship they had never known outside of their own kind. Some Gods were drawn to relationships, while others opposed them vehemently. Tectonics and Water, both members of the First Covenant, would clash over the issue, resulting in the publication of the Lover’s Stars. Their conflict would end in the tragic death of Tectonics, and Water republished many of Tectonics’ stars. Ironically, despite Water’s best efforts to curb mortal-God relations their actions would cause them to flourish.
As the Lover’s Period unfolded something new was developing on the horizon, and it would seize many Gods’ attention. A star had appeared in the sky, coauthored by Oxygen and Hydrogen, issuing a cryptic apology for the threats made by Water. Few understood its meaning, but on the new year of 25BT, Sodium, Calcium, and Iron would storm the Oxygen-Hydrogen territory, beginning a slaughter of the Oxygen-Hydrogen Compound Gods—they were aware of a conflict which threatened half the world. Water, alongside other Compound Gods and a select group of allies, including Weather—another First Covenant member—had been devising a plan to flood the world: the Great Flood. This plan, revealed to Sodium and Calcium by way of a spy, forced them to act. Matter had been notified, but nothing had come of it, and it was left to the two to act on their own volition.
Despite Calcium, Sodium, and Iron’s best efforts a select few individuals, including Water and approximately six dozen other Compound Gods, would escape the massacre and initiate the flood. Nearly all would perish soon after, their locations revealed under the Creations Act. The flood would be catastrophic, submerging half the Plane over the course of fourteen grueling years. It marked the return of Sodium Ethyl Xanthate from their prolonged reclusiveness, and the creation of the Northern Mountains, inadvertently causing the birth of the first Womb-God. This birth would spur the holding of the Fourth God Council and the passing of the Relations Act.
Sodium Ethyl Xanthate’s return marked a pivotal shift in the war. Alongside their close relative, Diethyl Dixanthogen Disulfide, they would publish numerous stars advocating for humanity’s protection and exploring mortal consciousness. The two siblings would rally southern Gods to their cause, succeeding in passing the Human Protection Act which would end the use of humans as instruments of war in the south. The war would drag on for five years longer, ending only after the creation of the Great Tear and the tragic passing of Sodium Ethyl Xanthate. As their final act they would publish the Plea Star, calling for a true end to the conflict. Diethyl Dixanthogen Disulfide republished as many of their sibling’s stars as they could, ensuring the continuation of their legacy. Shortly thereafter the Sixth God Council would be held and unanimously passed the Harmonic Treaty, putting a true end to the war.