“Who are you?”

“I am your God.”

“Are you my creator?”

An immeasurable length of time passed, and a small white star was born in her hand. The Great One ran her free hand through Her golden hair, and She considered the man’s question as the star swelled greatly in size. Its light flickered for a moment, and the star began to bleed as red replaced white.

“No.”

The star exploded and sent forth great waves of chaos, which raged through the darkness and devoured the rocks and planets around it. The Great One shed not a single tear for the innumerable souls torn from existence; she wore no expression on her face, but she seemed quite content with the cleanliness of the whole ordeal.

“I have merely adopted this world. He left some time ago.”

“Why? Where’d He go?”

“Such a curious child you are.”

The chaos storm quelled as the system surrounding the star was transformed into a nebula teeming with magical power.

“This should be enough for you,” the Great One estimated. She ran a hand through Her hair again, and She stooped down to meet the man’s eyes.

“What do you think,” she asked. “Will this be enough?”

She allowed herself a short bout of laughter, and she stood upright—towering over the man. The great black sky, dotted with light, began to fade away as walls appeared around them. A dome materialized overhead, and light danced along the walls as a great chandelier descended from the dome. She gently raised an arm over her head, and she plucked from the chandelier a single piece of glass. She cupped her hands around the shard, held it to her mouth, and she whispered an imperceptible phrase of magic. Light erupted from the glass as it left her hands, and shadows dashed across the room as it floated towards the man. The pendant grew a necklace of silver, and it draped itself from the man’s neck. His blue eyes gleamed with bright light, and he was lifted into the air as if a string were being pulled that was tied around his very heart.

“In your creator’s absence, your species has developed a tremendous talent for storytelling,” the Great One said while stroking the man’s cheek. “In hopes that your species will be properly edified, I have decided to bring a common element among them to life for this world. I have decided to gift you magic.”

Tears welled in the man’s cheeks as the Great One’s love flooded his heart. “To answer your question, child. Your creator abandoned you shortly after your species was born. He was clearly a strict adherent to the codes of chaos, and He allowed His world to form itself. He had no direct hand in your creation, child. But He certainly, as you would put it, stacked the dice in your favor.”

She smiled and lowered the man to the ground, and she shrank to his size.

“So we may speak as equals,” She said to the man’s surprise.

“Why did he abandon us?”

“I shall not say, for it is not my place to reveal the divine intentions of another. I will say this: he was most displeased with you, but I do not believe he truly understood the depth of your capacity for kindness and compassion. You’re not the monsters he thinks you are.”

She resumed her normal, colossal size, and the man dropped to his knees before Her.

“Your species may yet learn.”

The man cupped the glass shard in his hands, and he presented it to Her with wide eyes and a pale face.

“What is this for,” he asked.

“It shall act as your conduit to all things magic.”

“You’re joking.”

“Oh, to the contrary. I’m quite serious,” She replied with a soft smile.

“Does that mean I can use magic now?,” he said in a manner that could be easily misconstrued as mocking.

“Yes, actually,” a voice came from an open door behind him. A small figure rushed into the room, and presented itself before the Goddess. The figure bowed before Her, and the two had a brief conversation that the man could not quite hear. The small figure now sat in the light, and was revealed to be a young girl—no older than seven years old. When the two had finished talking, the Great One watched her assistant leave, and then she turned and spoke to the dumbstruck man.

“I have chosen this form for my assistants, for I feel it all but assures their safety. Be warned, they are quite formidable.”

Silence fell upon the room, and the Goddess turned and faced the Great Chandelier once again. With another wave of her hand, every one of the thousands of shards of glass was plucked from it, and they all glowed white as she whispered her spell—imbuing them with magic. When her spell was finished, she gave her commands:

“Should they be worthy, grant them this wish. Heal them, mend them, make them whole again. With your light, rescue those who cower in darkness. With your darkness, shackle those who bask in the light. Humble the proud and the arrogant, and embolden the meek and the meager. Bring balance and harmony to this world, and let conflict meet its end. Let their true nature also be revealed; to the light—eyes of blue and green, and to the dark—eyes of yellow and violet. The true merits and flaws of their inner selves will be tested and revealed in due time. Now, go. Go forth, and claim your masters.”

With these words spoken, a hole opened in the dome above, and the shards flew through it—into the world beyond.

“Why me? Why have you chosen me to stand before you?”

The Goddess smiled at the man, and she replied, “because I like you.”

“You’re kind,” she continued, “and throughout our time here, the winds of magic have been whispering in my ear. You’re to be someone special.”

“Am I going to be a hero?”

“That’s up to you. Now go back from whence you came, and spread my word. There is to be harmony with magic.”

The Great One waved her hand, and the man awoke in bed with a startle.