The New Realm
In the beginning of time, when the world had no name, everything was ruled by the Gods. After millions of years, they became tired and decided to create beings that worshipped them. The leader of the Gods, Ilaah, came down of his throne and took a handful of mud and sand and made creatures of different shapes and sizes, naming them animals. At first, he created them for the sole purpose of feeling loved and important, to have beautiful creatures worship him and the rest of the Gods, some special and fascinating for their own taste. But then Ilaah realized how useful they were, how they gave them goods and presents in their innocence, that he started creating them with another view. Each one of them had a purpose: he made tiny animals that worked the soil so it could flourish and he made animals big enough to collect goods from the trees. The animals served the Gods getting nothing in return, until the Gods started getting greedy. “We want the pearls from the bottom of the sea” the Gods told Ilaah one day. So he took more mud and sand, and created animals with tails instead of legs, giving them gills and scales so they could travel the ocean. “We want the shiny rocks from the mountains” they said. So he made creatures with wings, sharp claws and beaks. Everyday he received more and more requests, and soon enough he had made thousands of animals that served their selfish wishes.
Everyday, the Gods descended to gather the animals’ outputs, becoming less grateful with time. The animals became aware of this, feeling sad at first, and then mad. One night, all of the animals reunited at the seashore to talk about their issue. “We dedicate our entire lives to them and we get nothing in return!” a small squirrel said. “The only solution is to stop working for them, that way we’ll get the recognition we deserve” a hawk said. Agreeing to this, the next day the animals hid in their homes and didn’t work at all. That night, the Gods descended with their baskets, ready to gather. Seeing how the animals stopped working, Ilaah got furious, and designed a plan to get them back to work. He took mud and sand, and started shaping new animals. He made them almost exactly the same as the Gods, and added a drop of his blood to the shapes, calling them humans. “These humans”, Ilaah thought, “will take everything from them and give it to us”.
The next day, as the animals came out of their homes, the humans were already working, picking up their duties and completing them faster than any of the animals ever had. Instead of being mad, the animals were relieved to have help, so they started working with them. Humans and animals worked harmoniously and effectively, making the Gods very happy. But at the end of the day, when the Gods descended to gather, the animals and the humans had already made an agreement. They would work together, but they would work for themselves. The animals no longer needed the acceptance from the Gods, and the humans, a similar image to the Gods, wanted to make the world theirs. So they took all their hard work and hid it from the Gods, using it themselves. Together, they forged their new Godless world and called it Earth, to remember what they were made of and where they came from.