The Gateway

The Gateway - Chapter 1: The Story of Creation

The Story of Creation

In the beginning there was nothing, all was dark, there was water, no rivers and no oceans. No fire, no wind and no rain. No plants, no soil and no life. No planets, no suns and no Earth. Nothing stirred in the black abyss of the universe.

One single being was all that existed in the universe, a single, almighty being. He shone with such brilliance that even the darkness that stretched for millions of miles all around him was not enough to engulf him. From all over the universe people would be able to see him. Except there were no people, nobody to admire or fear the almighty being. So he began to create the universe we know today. First he created massive balls of light and heat that would eventually be named ‘Suns’ by the people of the earth. After that he made planets to circle his suns and eventually he had his first shot at making life.

He chose a relatively small planet that he had named ‘Aether’. He chose simple designs, like bacteria, and let them grow into more complex creatures like fish, dinosaurs, lizards and eventually, Humans. Aether soon became the almighty being’s favourite planet, and he began giving it all sorts of perks, such as a direct link with his personal realm, where his creatures would go after they died on Aether.

Unfortunately for the being, managing Aether proved to be a far too complex job, and so working on both Aether and the rest of the universe by himself was almost impossible. So he created his three sons; Urumas, Smythe and Vetus Unus. It was the job of these three sons to protect and nurture Aether so that their father could tend to his other duties.

The three descended down onto Aether and in their father’s absence gave it a more modern name; Earth. The almighty being kept checking up on his favourite planet for a few hundred years, but his visits eventually grew more and more infrequent, until he finally moved on and forgot the tiny little, seemingly insignificant planet he had once loved so much.

For two thousand years the three brothers watched over humanity and the Earth’s other inhabitants. At first they attempted to mingle with the human’s and for a time this went well, but eventually the three grew tired of watching their friends and loved ones pass on to their father’s world. So they retreated to a large house in one of the most secluded places they could find - an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

“MAID!” roared Smythe, he had just emerged from his office into a white walled corridor with matching floor and ceiling. “Coming, Mr Smythe” replied a computer generated voice from around a corner further down the hallway. “I told you not to call me that” said Mr Smythe angrily as the robot maid appeared from another corridor “it’s Smith, S, M, I, T, H, Smith” he said to the robot as it approached him. The robot was only waist height when it stood next to Mr Smith, and was coloured entirely grey save for the small blue text printed on its front. M.A.I.D was in a slightly larger font at the top of the panel, with the words; Mobile, Automated, Issistance, Drone, printed below it, the word ‘Issistance’ deliberately spelled wrong to fit it with the mnemonic.

“Please locate my brothers,” said Mr Smith as he walked past the drone and round the corner it had appeared from. “Both are currently in the house,” the drone said immediately, turning and following its master through the hallways, “I gathered that” replied Mr Smith, growing increasingly annoyed. “Urumas is in the conference room and Vetus Unus is walking towards him” said the drone, not responding to the aggravation in Smith’s voice. “Typical of Vetus to walk everywhere” Smith commented as he reached the end of the hallway and turned into another “Me, I find it far too primitive” he said as he ran forward and disappeared in an over-dramatic, movie-style, swirling cloud of smoke.

Urumas sat silently in the large open room that had been designated for meetings with human visitors. He had sent message to his brothers a few seconds ago and knew it wouldn’t be long before they arrived. Sure enough, a few seconds later the door burst open and Vetus Unus strode in. “Please brother, lets not go through this again” he said as Urumas stood up. He was about to reply when a swirling cloud appeared next to Vetus, and a second later the figure of Smythe appeared. “Hello brothers” he said pleasantly, his bright green veins throbbing all over his face. Urumas never quite understood why father had created him like that, he had given the others normal appearances, but Urumas was left looking like a freak. “If you carry on like this you will soon be no brother of mine” said Smythe angrily. He was dressed in a black suit with a crisp white shirt and neat black tie, he wore leather shoes and designer sunglasses, the entire outfit exactly the same colour as his extremely dark hair. “That’s a bit extreme,” said Vetus Unus “but you can’t keep doing this or we will have to do something.” Vetus Unus chose to take the shape of an old man, and was the only one of the three with the ability to alter this. He too wore black clothes, but not a suit, just an overcoat and a hat, his face was completely exposed and his two brothers could see the deep wrinkles he had chosen to wear as a sign of his superiority and wisdom. “I cant help it” Urumas complained  “these humans are become too full of themselves, they are destroying forests and other species all over this world” he said angrily

“So what” Mr Smith argued “nature has taken its course and the human’s have been chosen as the dominant species”

“Father would have done something” Urumas replied, the five words plunging the room into complete silence “You don’t know that” said Vetus Unus eventually “we haven’t seen him for more than two millennium, he could be totally different, he might not even exist any more” he said, turning away from Urumas and walking back to the door. “If you don’t do something I will!” roared Urumas as his brother left the room and the door swung shut behind him. “If you do, you will forever be the enemy of both me and Vetus” threatened Smith as he dissolved into white smoke, leaving Urumas alone in the meeting room. “Then we shall be enemies brother,” said Urumas, standing up and leaving the meeting room through a second door at the opposite end of the room to the other.

It had been several months since Urumas had been given his final warning, and despite making many threats, he had not yet attempted to fulfil the pledge he had made to lay waste to humanity. His two brothers had both remained in the house with their rebellious kin, but the three hardly ever spoke, not wanting to provoke the others and spark another argument. For Urumas this was exactly what he needed to happen. Without his troublesome brothers breathing down his neck he was able to devise a plan and eventually put it into action.