The beginning of times

His impact was so strong that the planet moved into space that it started a rotation around the sun and around itself. At this moment, Archanium created the days and nights, the world was a bit farther from the sun and the arid part slowly became fertile. 

Zarkhaïm led his people to migrate to the extreme north of the world where the night was longer but that was not enough. Some Jessadians stayed in the sun, if they were immortal beings in the night, they started to age and die in contact with the light. Zarkhaïm discovered death, he discovered the loss of his people. He knew emotions and he shared the pain of Zuline as she was mourning her people. 

Eventually, the Jessadians were disappearing from the world, their number dropped to a few thousand only and they spread to the poles in a few tribes hiding from the sun. Zuline was building a rage in her, a rage to survive. She guided her people into the deepest darknesses, no matter if the conditions were hard, she managed. Carrying on her shoulders the fate of her race. 

She was special and unique, she was the first of her kind. She was the only one to see Archanium as he was, a threat. Zuline wanted to defend her people from him and all these new emotions made her discover new capacities. The rage, the suffering, and the fear were all mixing in her heart. The shadows answered her call and rapidly she gained new powers. She became able to manipulate them, to make them more or less dense, and chose their form, and Zarkhaïm was observing her evolving on this new path. 

Like an echo to himself, his abilities awakened and he learned from her how to do the same. He became the master of the shadows and her, Jessadian, was his catalyst. Together, they built a dome in the North to protect the Jessadians from the sun and the light never passed again in the lands of darkness. Together, they made a city for her people to live in peace, they made a warm cocoon hidden from the menace of the light, in their image. Loving and caring for the other beings around them. 

And a shelter for all the ones who want to hide from the sun. 

In the light, Archanium was not alone anymore as life grew on the sun's side. Thanks to seasons, day and night, and distance from the sun, the world evolved. Luxurious forests grew, lakes and seas appeared, and one day the first humans were born. It took what felt like an infinite period for them to grow enough to develop intelligence. Compared to the Jessadians, they needed twice the time to learn, they were less resistant in general. They were mortals. All their existence was completely different, they were creatures who were born with an ending date but Archanium loved this difference deeply. 

Their way of living was completely different from the Jessadians, they were brutal and passionate. The fact that they had a short life was making them so much more alive. They had to do everything fast. Archanium had a lot of pleasure watching them struggle. He enjoyed the fact that what happened in the time had random repercussions over the centuries. 

He was amused to do apparitions there and there according to his whims and watched what happened after. Archanium also enjoyed the pleasure of the flesh with these creatures. Their bodies were much more similar to his than the Jessadians and some of them were attractive to him. 

Zarkhaïm and Archanium became more and more different. Archanium enjoyed lust, glory, and short-term pleasures while Zarkhaïm was enjoying the long and calm nights of the North with Zuline, debating about stars in their eternal lives. 

But the terrible truth was that Archanium was missing his brother, he felt abandoned by him when Zarkhaïm turned his attention away from him to take care of his people. Zarkhaïm was not sharing his discoveries anymore, he was only caring about his shadows. The only other being like Archanium was not bound to him and admiring him anymore. 

Archanium didn't have enough admiration. That was never sufficient. He needed to be worshiped by all. His only purpose was to be the absolute light, the only one, the best. He didn't tolerate that Zarkhaïm could find calm and peace hidden in the night. 

Archanium came to see his brother, where was the former border between the sun and the night, Zarkhaïm joined him and they spent hours talking about the meaning of humanity. Archanium considered them as parasites, maybe pets, only there to amuse them. 

Zarkhaïm was talking about their heart and their feelings. Archanium pretended that the humans were weak creatures and that he could kill thousands without even moving. Zarkhaïm was despaired to see his brother acting so roughly, he didn't believe humans were so delicate and he believed in their hearts, he didn't know that he was pushing Archanium even further in his jealousy. The worst was when he shared his moments with Zuline and how they were making dancing shadows together in a beautiful spectacle.

The centuries passed and Archanium was like a little boy playing with his toys. Humans evolved to the time of Faith. Some of them started to worship the sun and Archanium, they started to fear the shadows and Zarkhaïm. Slowly, Archanium was becoming a god, becoming their god, and Zarkhaïm was more and more disappointed by his brother's attitude. He tried to speak with him, explaining that human love was deep and beautiful, it was a precious gift. 

Archanium felt all mighty, the more time passed, the worse he was. He was proud of himself. He declared to Zarkhaïm that he was so strong, he could kill half of humanity without even touching them. 

And Zarkhaïm did the worst thing he could do at this moment. 

He didn't believe in Archanium... 

Furious, Archanium wanted to prove to him what he could do. Archanium had chosen the biggest city of the Men. He landed in the middle of the most crowded place, there, he kneeled and covered himself with his white majestic wings. 

He stayed there, immobile. At first, humans didn't know how to react. Some of them felt honored to be allowed to see such a creature so close, while others were scared of his wrath. 

It was total confusion and Archanium didn't move or speak for a century. Zarkhaïm was hiding in the night to check on what his brother was up to. Archanium did nothing, nothing at all. Humans gathered around him, they wondered what happened. 

Did the god fall from the sky? Was the god dying? There were so many questions. Many of them placed offerings all around him, they were scared that if he didn't wake, the shadows in the North would invade the world. Archanium represented the light; many humans thought he was the sun, and without him, the sun would shut down. They were terrified by the unknown dark dome Zarkhaïm created for the Jessadians.

Nothing happened. 

Men placed more and more offerings out of fear, priests asked for more valuables to please their god and awaken him. 

Some men took weapons and went to the North to attack Zarkhaïm's territory, hoping that killing dark creatures would content the god, but Archanium didn't move. Waiting, patiently. Zarkhaïm was watching things becoming more and more chaotic. 

The priests were slowly leading the population into a fanatic state that terrified him. It soon turned into a fight between Light and Shadow, a fight Zarkhaïm didn't want. 

Zuline saw Zarkhaïm declining. He was powerless in front of the men and the assaults became more and more brutal. Zuline led her people to hide in the darkness but that could not be a permanent solution.

"Zarkhaïm, we will not hide for long this way. We have to fight back! We have to defend our land!"

But Zarkhaïm was only about love. He watched her in the eyes and caressed her head nicely.

"The Jessadians must show an example. You should never fight. No matter what happens."

Zuline didn't believe in peace anymore. These humans were too different, too wild. 

"They will kill us! We have to find a way, Zarkhaïm!" 

But Zarkhaïm was firm about his position, Zuline understood that all the faith he had in the human heart was now up to her. He begged her.

"Promise me that the Jessadians will always only guide the men. The Jessadians should never be involved in a fight, Zuline. Promise me."

She gritted her teeth. She believed in him and his power, she believed he would find a solution and she held her fighting desire. Zuline promised. The Jessadians would never be involved in a conflict with the humans, they would always remain neutral. She believed Zarkhaïm had a plan but he had none. 

Zarkhaïm tried to go to the city to talk with people and reason with them but he understood that the more he talked the more they were aggressive. Zarkhaïm tried to communicate with Archanium but the Priest saw there the proof that Zarkhaïm was the darkness they should eliminate.