Nomad opened a portal to the mortal plane.

It was a thrilling experience for The Grandmaster as he had to create his homunculus. Within the portal, in between the Heavenly Realms and the Mortal Plane, The Grandmaster found himself flying in this neutral zone. He was spirit yet beginning to perceive the sensations that come with mortality. A slow heartbeat, a sense of warmth and cold, and hunger. He was exhilarated, having never experienced these sensations directly.

His body fully formed within a while and moved towards the Mortal Plane. Nomad and Gnosis were waiting for him on the other side.

The Grandmaster arrives and exclaims “This is incredible!” while jumping out of joy and exploring the area. He quickly assesses the situation he found himself in. It was a new place; the colors were different from the bright Heavenly Realms. This planet was darker, with a gray hue. Loud noises sounded in the background, probably echoes of war.

Gnosis was excited – “I can’t remember the last time I felt like this!” – He said while flying on the skies and breathing fire.

“I hope you found the journey comfortable” – Said Nomad

“It was indeed a unique experience” – Replied the Grandmaster, while Gnosis was flying freely.

“This is incredible!” – Exclaims The Grandmaster, while exploring his body, stretching, and touching things. He was experiencing mortal senses for the first time. He approached the trees and felt the leaves; the water of the river; the grass, the rocks, the sand. Until he mishandled a sharp rock and cut his finger. For the first time, he bled.

“Is this the so-called blood?” – Asked The Grandmaster

“Yes, it is” – Replied Nomad – “And this is the source of your vulnerability. This is proof that you can die and get hurt. However, as gods, we are still above regular mortals. If you focus your ether, around the wounds you will heal. Although, it will not work with bigger wounds. Make sure they don’t kill you instantly”.

Suddenly, a little girl, probably aged around 5 years old was screaming, running, and panting. She was escaping from the ferocious soldiers that were chasing her.

“Help me, Help me!” – She exclaimed.

Looking from above, Gnosis warned Nomad and the Grandmaster that the soldiers were coming and asked if he could do anything about it. However, Nomad considered this as an opportunity to test The Grandmaster’s new body and abilities. A way to give him a fuller sense of this new reality.

The soldiers approached the gods and said, “Kill them, kill them all!”. The Grandmaster had lost some of his godly abilities, but he was still a prime tactician. He observed every movement the enemy was making, how their joints contracted when they moved certain ways, how they grabbed their weapons, vulnerable body parts, and surroundings, and quickly assessed the situation.

As the first enemy rapidly approached The Grandmaster with an axe, he kicked a pebble from the ground and shot the soldier’s eye. As a result, the axe that was headed towards him ended up wounding his companion. He grabbed the axe’s haft, pulled his weight off and threw the soldier onto the floor while taking possession of his weapon and beheading him and other enemies with it. Likewise, Nomad was already experienced and cultivated his powers in the Mortal Plane. He used his orbs to create portals and send some of the enemies into pitfalls or cut them into two pieces. And last, but not least; Gnosis flying from above burned the rest of the soldiers into ashes.

After their victory, the gods felt a strange sensation. Energy came that came from the corpses vitalizing them. It was Ether.

“So, this is how it feels to play the game” – Says the Grandmaster

“That is correct, but the difference is that we are not ‘playing the game’, we are not possessing mortal beings, we are here, fighting as a mortal would do” – Replies Nomad

The little kid that was escaping the soldiers felt a sense of relief. “Thank you, thank you very much!”, She said.

The gods already understood that this incident was related to the war.

“Tell me, why were these soldiers chasing you?” – Asked The Grandmaster

“I don’t know! Why is this happening” – Said the little girl while crying – “Mama, Papa! Please help them! They told me to run, but they are still there! Please, please help them!”

“Where are they!” – Asked Gnosis

“A talking Dragon!” – exclaimed the little girl

“Don’t worry, he is Gnosis and he is of great help” – Replied the Grandmaster – “But where are your parents, can you guide us?”

“Yes, it is this way” – Said the girl while pointing in a direction.

The gods and the girl climbed into Gnosis while he flew through the skies towards the girl’s village. As they were approaching it, they saw many houses on fire, pillaging, and soldiers attacking innocent people.

Gnosis from above, had already understood who the enemies were and started burning them. Nomad opened a portal and transported everyone into the town hall where the elders of the village were discussing war.

“We do not have enough weapons to fight them off” – Said an elder – “We have to escape, or we’ll all die!”

“How can you be such a coward! If we do not fight, do not protect what is ours, where are better off dead than wandering on the battlefield and starving!” – Said another elder

Nomad’s portal opened in the middle of the discussion.

“Who are you?” – Asked one of the elders, while the guards positioned themselves in a defensive stance. Meanwhile, the little girl ran off to his father.

“Papa, Papa!” – Cried the girl

“Oh, my little Maya, what are you doing here? I told you to run as far as possible!” – Said one of the elders

“These are my friends! I was being chased, and they did a kapum! And Kapot! And defeated the bad guys!

“Thank you so very much for helping my daughter! My name is Ishkad, and this is my daughter Maya” – Said Ishkad while kneeling to show his gratitude.

“I am sorry to bother my daughter’s saviors, but who are you?” – asked Ishkad,

“We are just wanderers who wish to end the war” – Said Nomad

“Then please help us, help us defeat these monsters that are destroying our village. Please! We implore you” – Said Ishkad and the other elders.

By the time Nomad and the Grandmaster went outside many of the enemy soldiers were already killed by gnosis.

“A dragon! The enemy has a dragon, we are doomed! What will we do now?” – Cried some of the elders

“Worry not, he is on our side” – Said The Grandmaster

As the elders sighted on relief, a group of soldiers approached them. The village warriors were fighting. Gnosis was attacking most of the soldiers, and Nomad used a big orb and transported a large group of opponents into the nearby volcano.  All of the attacking soldiers were vanquished.

“Thank you very much!” – said Ishkad.

The night fell, and the village prepared a feast to welcome and thank their saviors. After the celebration, Ishkad and the other elders requested Nomad, The Grandmaster and Gnosis to meet them at the conference chamber.

“We are of utmost thankful to you, our saviors.” – Said Ishkad – “But please, can we request your names?”

“My name is Gnosis” – Said Gnosis with a prideful tone.

“And we… You may refer to us by our titles. He is known as Nomad and I am known as the Grandmaster” – Said the Grandmaster

“Such splendorous titles you have. Very intriguing” – Replied one of the elders.

Then, all of the five village elders surround the gods and kneel – “Please, help us end this war, we have seen your powers, and we know you can end it” – Said Ishkad

“That is our purpose here” – Replied the Grandmaster – But we need information, a list of every general on each side of the war, and everything else you know”

“We will finish this, regardless of which side you support” – Continued Nomad – Are you prepared for that, even if your side is also affected?”

The five elders spoke amongst themselves for a while and concluded: “Yes, it matters not to us, we are victims of the war, victims of every side, and we only wish to live peacefully, will you be able to provide peace for us?” – They asked

“Yes we ar