Not A God

Chapter 3 - Sacrifice For God

The next moment, the ants under the clouds all raised their heads with expressions of what seemed to be shock and ecstasy bordering on madness.

Zen sensed the difference and looked around him.

Unlike the normal overhead perspective he had been in before, he felt that he was now in a very strange perspective, a panoramic view similar to that of an insect's compound eye, looking down from the clouds at the altar below. This strange perspective should reasonably have been uncomfortable, but Zen quickly got used to it and was pleased with the holographic immersion-like experience. Not only that but his senses were also strengthened considerably. The barrier disappeared, everything was no longer separated by a membrane as if he was dreaming, and he could even feel the softness of the clouds around him and the breeze blowing. 

He squinted comfortably, the breeze caressing his face, making him quite comfortable. But it was also then that Kosu realised that his arms and legs were missing, which made him very uncomfortable. If only there were arms and legs. He thought subconsciously.

Zen's thought was but a fleeting one, but the next moment, something strange happened. As if by magic, his limbs came into view, and as he looked down, he saw that he was covered in a grey robe in the style of a nightgown, and everything looked the same as usual, except that his arms and legs were a little too large compared to the ants below the clouds. Curiously, he looked at his arms and legs, which did not feel solid, and it seemed that he was indeed dreaming. And it was this moment of effort, which seemed to Zen to be only a brief adaptation of his hands and feet, that seemed to the ants below the clouds to be a dreamlike miracle that brought tears to everyone's eyes and made even their souls tremble.

At some point, perhaps while they were engrossed in the chanting of hymns, or perhaps while they were doing the ritual rites, the azure sky became overcast and a huge hole broke in the mirror-like clarity of the sky. Deep, chaotic darkness mixed with bits of celestial light from a distant universe emerged from the pitch-black hole, offering a glimpse into the reality of the world. A biting cold wind whistled past, and the anthropoid citizens looking up could not help but shed tears, their eyes stinging as they were greeted by a huge figure peeking out of the black hole. The figure was as large as a mountain, cloaked in a veil of nameless mist, chaotic darkness rolling through the fog, its soft, uncovered limbs a disembodied mass of flesh, bulging from time to time as if following some insect-like breathing pattern, with only two arm-like limbs spreading out from the flesh, strangely supported in the sky, with a rounded, soft texture that the ants did not possess.

Looking upwards, the God's tentacle-less, chaos-encrusted, the polished face looked so strange to the ants looking straight up at the sky, yet so holy and unimaginable. Looking unblinkingly at the gods, all the believers felt in unison that this was perhaps the true face of God. The supreme deity was supposed to be different from them, the humble believers, and from those artificially created idols. In a flash, in the face of this unprecedented miracle, the devotees of the anthros knelt down in tears and greeted the first appearance of their god with the most exuberant and enthusiastic cheers.

After all, for ardent believers, to receive a response from the God they believe in with all their heart and soul is a great honour and gift in itself. At the altar, the nearest high priest trembled with excitement, his voice hoarse as he spoke of his devotion to the gods.

"O, God! You have answered us at last! O - great God! You are ever-present with the faithful! Thank you for your mercy and your gaze!!!"　

The High Priest choked back tears, feeling that it was the devotion of the Empire's faithful that had touched the gods, and that was why the gods had finally gazed upon their Curtis Empire! The devotion of the faithful had always been watched by their merciful God! God had not abandoned their people! This knowledge was the greatest honour and the greatest happiness for the High Priest, who had believed in the Gods for most of his life, and he would have fainted with excitement if he had not been mindful of his mission to complete this great and unprecedented ritual.