Not satisfied with an empty cosmos, Dagha also created beings that could manipulate it, beings that were within time and limited by it, but were still immortal and unconfined by s.p.a.ce. These beings were the G.o.ds.

Since they were created from nothing, they were of necessity created in pairs, each the negation of its twin. In each pair there was a G.o.d dedicated to the elaboration and ornamentation of the cosmos, and another dedicated to returning to primordial nothingness. Dagha created seven pairs in all; the seven dedicated to creation are known as the Lords of Eir (from an archaic word meaning both "tree" and "vitality"), and their seven foes are known as the Lords of Dus (from dusye, meaning "death" and also "darkness").

The first pair created are usually referred to by their attributes rather than their names, Life and Death; they do have names, however. The role of Ayvi, the G.o.d of life, is frequently misunderstood; he is not in any way a preserver of life, but merely its bestower. He brings the first spark to each seed or embryo, but nothing more; and the Final G.o.d does nothing but remove that spark.

The next creation was of four G.o.ds rather than two: Aal, G.o.d of growth and fertility, countered by P'hul, G.o.ddess of decay; and Bel Vala, G.o.d of strength and preservation, countered by Bheleu, G.o.d of destruction. Aal is generally given precedence over Bel Vala, but P'hul is considered inferior to Bheleu; the reasons for this apparent contradiction are unclear.

The next creation was again of four G.o.ds, but this time there was no confusion in rank; Aghad, G.o.d of hatred, fear, and loathing, and his sister Pria, G.o.ddess of love, peace, and friendship, are universally acknowledged as mightier than Sai, G.o.ddess of sorrow and despair, and Gau, G.o.ddess of pleasure and delight.

These ten are the High G.o.ds; their four younger siblings are considered lesser, but therefore more accessible, deities. The sixth pair is Leuk, lord of light and bringer of inspiration, and Andhur Regvos, the G.o.d of darkness and blindness.

The seventh and final pair of Eir and Dus are Tema, G.o.ddess of night, and Amera, G.o.ddess of the day. With the creation of these two Dagha either exhausted his power or lost interest.

These fourteen G.o.ds amongst them created the world, to provide themselves with an arena in which to manifest themselves; and in the early days of their creation, in emulation of their master, they created lesser G.o.ds.

All the various cults of Nekutta and Eramma agree thus far, with the exception of a few outcast religions and followers of obscure deities; however, there is virtually no agreement as to the existence, number, and nature of these lesser G.o.ds, who are actually the objects of most worship, the Eir and Dus being considered too powerful to waste time on mere mortals.

Most of the lesser G.o.ds are collectively cla.s.sed as Arkhein, a word of unknown origin, and there are dozens, perhaps hundreds, of them, including among the more prominent Savel Skai, the sun-G.o.d; Mel, G.o.ddess of the moon; Eramma the earth-mother; Koros, G.o.d of war; Melith, G.o.ddess of storms and lightning, and her brother, (or half-brother, or son, or cousin, depending on which cult one adheres to) Kewerro, the G.o.d of wind and air, particularly the north wind and storms at sea. Others range down through such minor powers as Eknissa, the fireG.o.ddess, to the obscure and pointless, such as Quon, G.o.d of dogs, and Bugo, G.o.d of masculinity and petty aggression.

A popular pastime in some areas is to debate the pedigrees of the various Arkhein, a diversion not readily exhausted, since despite the s.e.xes generally attributed to the various deities it is a.s.sumed that any Eir or Dus can mate with any other and produce offspring, or that any one can by himself or herself produce a child. Furthermore, the Arkhein themselves are fertile; Eramma is generally considered the mother of most of the minor nature-G.o.ds, though their paternities (if any) are debatable.

It is no wonder that, confronted with such a tangle, most overmen prefer to a.s.sume that no G.o.ds exist at all.