GREED: ALL FOR WHAT?

Has the God King finally lost his wits? Has the numerous defeat gotten to him? How can someone sneak into a crowd of gods and no god noticed? The gods may be weak right now but they haven't fallen so low that they would be so blind to something like that. They were all confused by Ode's outburst and wondered why someone like him would be behaving like a loony.

Then they saw a god wink out of existence. He just up and vanished. It is more like he broke apart. Then his Godhood appeared and plunged down to the main plane. This sight terrified all the gods.

"What was that?" A god asked the very question they were asking themselves. Sadly, no one had an answer.

A god just died right in front of them and they didn't know how. But things were not over yet, another god died, followed by another. A straight path of death appeared. Whatever was killing the gods appeared to be heading straight for the god King.

Ode was alarmed. He still couldn't sense what was killing them. That didn't mean he was going to wait for his death though. He roused all his power and the entire divine plane buffed him to create a colossal blast of energy in the direction of the dying gods. The energy detonated amidst the gods and wiped out the nearby gods within its range. His attack had killed more gods than the invisible enemy. He didn't care. Better them than him.

He stood wary, watching for any changes. A ball of energy was in his palm ready to be launched at any moment. He wasn't sure if he had vanquished the invisible assailant, the only thing he was sure of was that he wasn't being targeted anymore. He remained vigilant with other gods, they were watching for any sudden death.

Even though they usually live flimsy lives without any threat, they understood that at this moment they must band together. An enemy that could sneak into their most sacred place within the very heart of the divine plane without being discovered by so many of them is a terrifying enemy. Such an enemy will pick them off one by one if they were to run away. They had to take a stand now and root out this calamity.

Even with the combined vigilance of the gods they didn't notice anything off until another god winked out of existence. And just like before, the deaths increased and they occurred within a straight line. This time Grand god of Justice, Xanc, was on the path of death. He ran sideways to avoid the invisible hand of death but it seemed to be tracking him. Whenever he changed directions any god between him and the attack will die. His scalp tingled when he noticed a celestial god pop like a bursting tomato.

His mind considered all his options that will assure his safety. Only two options came to mind. Hide behind the god King or voluntarily let go of his Godhood. He looked towards the god King but Ode was ready against him. The god King pointed the energy ball within his hand towards him as if to tell him 'Come any closer and I'll blast you out of existence.'

And so he chose the other viable option. He chose to fall. He rejected the godhood within him and he began to sink. The process of falling is not an immediate one but it is irreversible.

He began to fall through the divine plane. He crossed through the void between the planes and as soon as he reached the boundary of the main plane a searing pain erupted within him. Every fiber of his being screamed out in suffering as his Godhood coalesced into a shining ball of light beside him. He had rejected his Godhood so he must give up everything that made him divine and everything that he gained from his Godhood.

The two of them then separated. The Godhood went towards an unknown location within the main plane and him directly towards the ground.

He free fell for a while but he didn't get to enjoy the feeling. He was mostly unconscious after he lost his Godhood. He was weakened beyond compare but the danger wasn't over yet. He might not survive the fall at the end of the day. He was heading straight for the ground and unless he was really lucky, he was going to turn into a gruesome meat paste no different from the bloody ending of that celestial god.

There was nothing he could do about it. There is nothing any god can do about it. At the moment when they chose to fall, they've left their future up to fate. They can't choose where they exit the divine plane from. Distance and direction are wonky within the void so they can enter the main plane from any direction. Even if they have something prepared to survive their fall, they will be too weak and unconscious to use it. This is in the event that the separation of their Godhood doesn't kill them in the first place.

So there he was, awaiting death. A grand god shot down in his prime. He approached the ground like a falling star, his hopes and dreams damned to go unfulfilled. His divinity and glory were lost forever.

He still had his oath, that was the only thing keeping him awake. He picked up speed and smashed into a body of water. He lost consciousness and was in danger of drowning. He was not a god anymore so he had lost his so-called immortality. He is currently weaker than a transcendent so he needed to breathe, but it wasn't something he could fix right now. Being submerged in water usually leads to a lack of air to breathe. He resigned himself to fate and closed his eyes to accept the bitter embrace of death.

He opened his eyes a long while later. Xanc was surprised to be alive. He looked around him to determine his situation. He was on a woven mat on the ground. The heat of a fire was coming from his side. A voice spoke to him from beyond what he could see.

"It's good that you're awake." The voice said.

He recognized the voice, it was a very familiar sound. The image of a familiar person came unbidden into his mind

He tried to sit upright to see where the voice came from. His soul is currently too damaged to use his divine and it will probably never recover.

"Sito, is that you?" He flailed about trying to see who the person his. His voice was weak and tired just like the rest of his body.

"Stop struggling. You are lucky to be alive." The voice reprimanded him.

A few moments later, a face came into view. The face was aged but he could still recognize the features of Sito.

"Are you Sito?" He asked uncertainly.

"It is me. Are you surprised about my looks? The same thing happened to you too." She informed him.

He touched his face to realize he had gained a few wrinkles. His face was no longer smooth, blemish-free, and spotless. He had lost his youthfulness and he was aging now. He had gained the same mature look that Sito has.

"What happened to me?" He asked in shock.

"Do you mean why you're old or how you survived? I'll tell you both. The answer to the first question is simple enough. You are not a god anymore and have lost all the perks that come with it. In fact, we are worse off, we are broken products. Our souls, mind, and bodies have been broken. We will die in about a maximum of 100 years and we will continue to age until we die. Nothing can save us from this fate."

She stopped for a while to let him digest the news. There is a reason that grand gods that want a better future for themselves go to the tower of heaven and fight for the god fire extinguisher. They don't just remove their Godhood and be done with it. Only with their god fire properly extinguish can they acquire another Origin core and switch to the path of perfection. Their original Origin core had frozen over when they became gods.

Becoming a god comes with drastic changes and benefits. Reverting to a mortal comes with equally drastic changes but with detriments. But the will of the realm has made a safe way out for the truly outstanding gods. They just have to fight for it.

Siti went over to stoke the fire and add more wood to it. The heat of a fire is important to them now. No more lavish divine kingdom for them. No more wealth and a host of angels to cater to their every whim. In a way, they are worse than the mortals that used to rely on them. They have fallen so low that they don't have a future anymore.