Conception of a New Breed
Even with the advent of technology and other innovations, the inherent value of the gods never truly diminished, and they played a pivotal role in societal development over the eons. However, in the short span of two hundred years, the Godtypes started to disappear en masse, leaving humanity bewildered and helpless to compensate for the loss. A number of luminaries in the scientific community, gods and humans alike, theorized how such longevity could be replicated using parts from the deceased gods.The only successful trial was headed by Godtype Ark Townsend, aided by a small number of unknowns who, judging by the intricacy of the methods employed, likely consisted of talented Thaumaturges seeking new heights. Their endeavors met mostly with failure, oftentimes at the expense of their human test subjects. Following years of trial and error, they made the greatest possible breakthrough, succeeding in granting the powers of the gods to a mortal. Although this did involve liquefying living specimens as an injection, Ark Townsend announced to the public that the gods chose to sacrifice themselves for posterity, and this new Godtype-human, the Remnants of a dying race, would ensure their memory lived on.
In Truth
Previously unthinkable due to its sheer morbidity, the steps towards processing a Godtype into a workable form had to be performed at a rapid pace so that the god’s “body” did not vanish and reform elsewhere. Since each Remnant required eight gods to successfully function, the specimens would often be prepared simultaneously.The first step called for the god to be cleansed by fire, after which it was bathed in sulfuric acid and then dismembered using a god’s ether weapon. Time became most essential at this stage, and the parts of the eight gods were placed into a specially made “press”, using heat and pressure to simulate the depths of the Earth’s mantle. In under a minute a rough crystal form would take form–pivotal to the procedure due to its geometries, entrapping the gods while causing them to believe they would soon return to Earth.
After removal, the crystalline substance was allowed to rest, during which the gods attempted to regenerate their bodies, but to no avail. It gradually blackened with ether and leaked a milky white solution, considered to be the collective “consciousness” or “souls” of the eight gods. At this point the blackened ether crystal had to be boiled down, condensing the liquefied gods into an injection meant for a single person.
Even upon entering the human bloodstream the eight gods from the beginning were still technically alive and somewhat conscious, able to communicate with one another and form partly coherent thoughts. Try as they did, there was no way out of this prison, and even wishing for death was not enough in a place without form.
Theomachy
Utilizing the powers imbued in the gods becomes second nature for the Remnant, but doing so essentially caused the souls inside their bodies to break down, and slowly each individual god loses its sanity, melding with the others into a singular hive mind fueled only by pain, a spirit of vengeance driven to complete madness.Deterioration was gradual and almost imperceptible. Once the Remnant could no longer sustain the raging gods, he or she would experience a violent death of personality, their reasoning replaced with nothing but a thirst for destruction. Horrifically enough, this caused a loss lost took on a monstrous form, comprised largely of viscous black ether and resembling more a mass of sludge than a human being.
Losing all cognitive function, the corrupted Remnants laid waste to their surroundings and killed anyone who approached through a messy assimilation. Those who managed to retain their human appearance termed the failures as Remnants, believing what remained of the souls of the gods inside them had led to their downfall. It was only a matter of time before nearly all of the Remnants were reduced to mindless killing machines, formally termed as Degenerated Remnants, or D-Gens for short.
Suddenly the failing Remnants posed even more of a threat than the impending Godtype extinction. As a human, the Remnant was unable to summon an ether weapon or otherwise harm the Godtypes, but the monstrous form, did just the opposite. Despite losing any semblance of Thaumaturgy, the weapons of the sacrificial gods never left them, and the D-Gens could summon all eight weapons at once, intent on wiping out the gods for allowing this to happen, along with anyone else who got in the way.
Having realized what was done, the remaining Godtypes grew distrustful of humanity, and even of each other. Many went into hiding and abandoned their pledge to protect the Earth. Those who allied with the humans, largely outnumbered, entered into a bloody struggle called the Theomachy, during which each side endeavored to eliminate the other.In the end, the opposing Remnants were all but eliminated, though at the cost of entire countries and countless human lives.
Aftermath and Consequence
Ironically, following the conflict, numerous Godtypes emerged from concealment to aid in reconstruction efforts, and remained with the humans without ever disappearing as previously feared.It seemed none of the Remnants had survived through the war, although there was a possibility, however slim, that some Remnants never surrendered control and maintained human form throughout the conflict. Nonetheless, no one ever reported a persisting Remnant, and the people considered the war officially over.
Over time, however, the Remnants managed to reform themselves, tethered to existence by their enduring grudge, and launched isolated attacks on the human populace, leading to further concern over national safety, especially in areas bordering former war zones.
A few decades following what historians dubbed the “Fall of the Gods” the Hybrids may never have existed at all, but the fear of Remnant counter-strike became very real. Not long after, the Nascent Empyrean Union, abbreviated to NEU, was established by a coalition of gods to serve as a bastion of society guarded by the gods themselves, where people could go about their lives without fear of Remnant attack.
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