Hundreds of Achaeans congregated at the Shrine of Ascension in Miramar
of 395 A.F. to bear witness to a uniquely momentous event in Achaean
history.

Sarapis, the Logos, spake to the gathered throng thus:

"As it is written in the Mythos: Past legend and lore, before memory and
myth, I as Ayar willed into existence everything known and unknown."

"After the passage of countless millennia, a singular desire rose within
Me. Wishing to experience Creation firsthand, I split Myself in two:
Ayar and Proteus."

"Following the great War of Humanity and the Chaos Wars, Ayar and
Proteus became One once more to ensure the survival of Creation itself.
I stand before you as that One."

"...still more countless millennia have passed, and I have witnessed it
all from My throne."

"I have gathered you here before Me to deliver this pronouncement: Once
again, I have found a desire growing deep within Me -- for a profound
change unlike any before."

As He concluded these words, a crimson form streaked through the
firmament, banking and wheeling in the clouds high above the Shrine of
Ascension. The flying figure then dove straight down, swift as an arrow
shot from a crossbow, and became recognisable as the dragon
Yudhishthira. He bellowed a thunderous roar as he descended, flames
wreathing his frame.

As the red dragon's descent drew nearer to its nadir, a dark figure
could be seen seated astride his massive back, seemingly untouched by
the fire that surrounded Yudhishthira.

At the last possible moment to avoid a fiery collision with the earth,
the dragon spread his leathery wings and slowed, alighting atop the
Shrine of Ascension with a stately grace belied by his enormous form.
Yudhishthira unleashed a second earth-shaking roar before slinking down
low upon his belly, allowing the dragonrider to dismount with a nimble
leap.

The dragonrider, now revealed to be Makali, Goddess of Destruction,
called out a resounding hail to the Logos and strode towards Him in
three swift, sure steps. She dropped to one knee at His feet and knelt
with Her head bowed low.

"Rise, O Goddess," the Logos commanded.

The Destroyer rose fluidly to Her feet, and the Logos began to speak
once more.

"It is claimed by some that you represent Mine opposite: Destruction
where I am Creation. In this they believe falsely. Forsooth, I exist
beyond such simplistic dichotomies, beyond the Veil that shrouds the
immanent essence of reality."

"I exist at the heart of that essence; I am its very consciousness. The
Gods of the Pantheon spring forth from that heart. Regardless of the
individual circumstances of each God's birth, the true source of each
God's divinity lies within that core -- within ME."

"On this epochal day, I, Sarapis, desire to relinquish My place at this
source and pass on the torch of overseership of Creation to another."

The Logos paused. Then, softly, He said:

"But this torch shall not pass to You, Goddess of Destruction."

As the Goddess's eyes flickered towards Him in surprise, He continued:

"As is the case with all Gods aside from Myself and perhaps Daedalus --
indeed, with all beings -- an imbalance exists within you that would
endanger Creation were you to take My place."

"Now, historians amongst those gathered may know that at the end of the
Chaos Wars, I raised the Aldar named Maya to Godhood."

"Though tragic and terrible, the rape of Maya that begat humanity
transformed the very essence of Maya in mysterious ways. As the first
divine Mother, touched by the unpredictable hand of Chaos, She possessed
great creative powers only one such as I could begin to fathom."

"Long ago, She fell into a deep slumber, concealing Herself from
mortalkind. The place of Her rest is here, beneath this very shrine."

The Logos paused again, then took a deep breath.

"RISE, O GODDESS!" He called out in a voice sonorous with unequivocal
power.

Slowly.. dreamily... a delicate white mist began to drift upwards from
the ground beneath the Shrine of Ascension.

The lacy tendrils of mist wended and wound together, knitting tighter
and tighter into the form of a pale woman swathed in white, next to the
dark form of the Goddess of Destruction.

Addressing the pale woman, Sarapis, the Logos intoned: "Fecund in
creative power though You are, Maya, there exists imbalance in You
also."

"Hence to bring both of you into the necessary balance, I shall merge
together the two Goddesses who stand before Me, just as once the divine
essences of Proteus and Ayar merged to form Myself."

With nods of acceptance towards the Logosian decree for Their fates, the
two Goddesses turned to face each other: one of white mist, the other
black as night. Their movements exactly mirrored by the other, They each
stepped forward until they stood a mere few inches apart.

Then with another step, so fluidly it appeaed as if a trick of the
light, an optical illusion -- they each strode forwards once more.
Reality flickered for a brief instant, the scene suddenly distorting,
shapes and colours fluctuating and bleeding into one another. In that
instant, the two Goddesses could be seen as still two separate beings,
yet somehow, impossibly, occupying the exact same spatio-temporal
location.

Reality flickered once more, and where once were two, there was now One.

A brilliant glow began to emanate from Sarapis, the Logos, faint at
first but growing brighter and brighter until a blazing corona of light
surrounded Him. The Logos reached towards the Goddess and clasped His
hands upon Her shoulders. Her outline began to glow radiantly as well.

The more the light grew around the Goddess, the more it faded from the
Logos... until finally it surrounded Him no more.

Sarapis, the Logos released the shoulders of Maya, the Great Mother.

The Logos uttered: "It is done."

Then He slumped slightly. A faint look of weariness flickered over His
face, then was gone, replaced by the same impassive, ageless countenance
as it had ever held.

"It is done," echoed Maya, the Great Mother.

She then lifted Her arms heavenwards. The ground rumbled and quaked
contentiously, then acquiescing to Her wishes, began to elevate rapidly
beneath Her feet.

When the dust had settled and the earth had ceased shifting, the Shrine
of Ascension rested upon a mountain peak higher than any other in the
Siroccian range, rivalled only by the twin peaks of nearby Mount Sinope
and Mount Callisto, named for the twin children of Maya.

The Gods of the Pantheon then stepped forward. In attendance were
Daedalus, Guardian of Balance; Matsuhama, the Eternal Warrior; Prospero,
the Merchant Lord; Keresis, Goddess of Vengeance; Aegis, God of War;
Ourania, Goddess of the Moon; Miramar, Goddess of Justice; Lupus, Wild
God of the Beasts; and Lady of Vundamere, Tarah Concordia. Swearing
allegiance to the new supreme Creatrix, each presented Her with a gift
formed from Their divine essence.

Thus the torch of Creation has passed, and a new epoch has begun. With
the Great Mother's blessings, may it be a glorious one.

Penned by my hand on the 6th of Scarlatan, in the year 395 AF.