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Once upon a time, there was a dark sea of stars that hung lonely above the earth.
Woven over the mortal world, the sky was once a black plane of speckled nothingness, and the realm slept soundly beneath. There was much potential in the slumbering domain, but with nothing to wake it, Almighty God took their own eyes and fashioned two separate celestial bodies so that the heavens might watch over the earth, and the Sun and the Moon were born.
Two kingdoms emerged from darkness on opposite ends of the sky, and each bore their own sovereignty and customs, characterized by their respective systems of beliefs. The Solstice, bearing life, and hope, and brightness. Temples rose to embrace the daytime with good-will, curiosity, and hearty frivolity. They tended the earth with the utmost respect and recumbency. Almighty God saw these feats and humility, and called this stock humanity.
Amongst those in service to the Solstice is a small thing, a lesser god by the name Choi Han.
Their Sun is a revered figure of golden light that is capable of the height of duality. The essence of that which burns bright, he is sojourner of light, the fear of the dark, while the source of all the world's shadows.
And of that great power, Choi Han is but one small retainer.
His sovereign is the flame. He is the force of ignition, the body of sparks that catch and share in the god's power. It is an irony of which he is intimately familiar, the fact that he was born of the darkness, a black knight to wield the flame. It is befitting of their god's dichotomy, so he wears his dark colors with pride.
On the edge of their world, he observes the humans burning an offering to his golden god, hums quietly in satisfaction as they fight off their fears and the bitter cold with the small warmth he can provide. It is enough to keep them alive for another day, and it is a struggle he has seen a million times with his eyes.
That small crucible of resistance is different than usual, as the humans still huddle together, still shiver in spite of the heat. Were they ill? Perhaps they were beyond saving.
It is when he looks up and sees something unfamiliar that he realizes he is not alone, and that someone else is observing the same scene.
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The other Kingdom was one that had cultivated their heritage from the stars, their arts sibylline and cultures darkly attributed. They discovered patterns in the structure of the world, and through tracing those patterns, flourished beneath the pale light of the moon. The cartography they built upon was not strictly that of civilization, but of all creation. Almighty God watched these creatures fondly with their glass eye, and called them the Equinox.
Belonging to that domain was a young god by the name Cale Henituse. It was not a name he wanted, but was assigned by Death, the Equinoxial god that brought eternal sleep, the god that promised cold deliverance from a mortal world.
"Your old name will be given to another child, so they can live on in your place. I have a job for you."
Cale remembers those words well, his own voice seeming unfamiliar as he crossed his arms and looked god in the eye.
"I hate working hard, so you picked the wrong person."
"No, it’s a good thing. Maybe, if you slack off in this role, perhaps some people will live who were meant for a different end."
It's not a nice fate, he realizes, attributes this to his long list of sins as a human. He has become a caricature of the grim reaper, ironically dyed red to suit his so-called 'spit-fire tongue', but there is nothing about his existence that is warm anymore.
He can't just do nothing, as there are too many humans and too few resources in the world for everyone to live. So he resolves to test those who seem capable and determine for themselves if they will survive. It is a fitting task for him, Cale, the lesser god of ice.
Permafrost edges in around certain groups, and he admires their tenacity. Watches them fight and strategize and band together. It makes him realize he is their enemy, but it is his existence that forces them to overcome petty troubles in the quest to survive. He failed to pass that test in his own time, so it feels vindicating to watch, to observe many humans who can resist the touch of winter that threatens to erase them from the world.
Sometimes, they fail.
Cale takes no pleasure in watching them die, especially children, but it's not his fault. It's something that must happen for the world to continue, to maintain balance, and hey, if he slacks off now and again and lets the winter pass easily, who's to say he was caught sleeping on the job? If there are gray-haired and red-hair beggars who huddle together, without fire but only each other, and they manage to survive a harsh night's exposure because he turns a blind eye, he pretends not to know and brushes off the god that had given him this responsibility with a wave of his hand.
It is on one rather mundane occasion that they meet.
Choi Han is mesmerized immediately. Taken by the sight of another god, one he does not know, on the world's edge. It is the side of Death, he realizes, but he had always believed death would be a source of fear and terror.
So why is this god modeled after the image of beauty?
Their hair burns, just like Choi Han's very being. Just like the element he is sworn to uphold, the heart he bears so that people may live. It is like watching his image be worn on someone else's body, and makes him flustered and overcome with curiosity. He edges closer, as close as he can before the other notices.
They unbutton the top of their shirt and scowl, blinking and looking up like someone has just interrupted their attempt to read. Brown eyes lined with amber flash at him, almost annoyed, and Choi Han's breath hitches. He hadn't even realized how cold his body can become until he flinched back, like an ember barely left glowing beneath soot and ash.
"Who are you?"
The words are blurted and inelegant, causing some of Choi Han's power to surge when his face burns red.
"I'm Cale. And I'm busy. Do you need something, God of Fire?"
"Oh. You know me."
The other god gives a slight laugh, waving their hand in a way that makes the wintry winds pick up and flap Choi Han's cloak around him.
"Tsk, of course. You're Choi Han. The hero."
Gesturing far below, down to the mortal realm, Cale points to the joyous faces of humans who have braved a harsh cold snap and will live to see the sunrise.
"I... I am just doing my job."
"And I am doing mine."
Cale gets up and turns to leave, the edge of their worlds seeming more distant, and Choi Han wants to reach forward and stop him, to at least apologize. He doesn't know what he's sorry about, but it feels like he's just upset one of Death's gods and doesn't know what to do. Besieged by the idea he'd wronged someone who had only been doing what they had to do to survive... Doesn't that go against his nature?
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They meet again, at another edge of their worlds. This time Cale approaches the edge and asks him if he's hungry.
"... Hungry?"
"Well, you need to eat well to do a good job."
Choi Han doesn't know what to make of that, thinks Cale would want him weaker so he can save fewer people and make the other god's life easier, but he finds Cale fascinating. New and strange and exhilarating. Makes him want to fight, to burn when his body wavers against that frigid cold, and he agrees. They end up sharing some ambrosial offerings from Cale's side that he has to toss over the rift, else they would collide in the divide and who knows what would happen. One of them might die. Or both of them.
Choi Han has never tasted fruits so sweet.
They see each other more often, working, quietly saving and reluctantly carrying away souls that failed to persist. Cale likes Choi Han's company, makes life a little less dull and time seems to move faster when they're together. It gives him a challenge, one that he enjoys losing, enough to make humanity curse him and herald Choi Han's name and god as a hero.
It's fine. Cale has played the villain before. Watching Choi Han's flames burn so brightly, he can do it again.
The Equinox and the Solstice are aware of their strange friendship and do not mind it. There is no reason gods cannot converse across the skies, as long as they do not cross the line that divides them. To do that would be to go against what is natural, what is fated, and Cale and Choi Han are both full aware of it.
Cale is content, writing letters and freezing them, passing them off so that Choi Han can read them quickly before they burn up. Choi Han can't give him anything that wouldn't hurt him, so he apologizes and makes small, empty promises, like he will find someway to show Cale how much he means to him, someday, somehow.
It's hard to know how much time has passed. Tens, hundreds of years. Maybe millenia. They meet with increasing desperation. Choi Han wants to be able to keep Cale's letters, wishes he could commit them to more than just memory. He attempts an embarrassing foray into poetry just because it makes Cale laugh, reciting cheesy lines out loud just to get a reaction..
"Cale-nim, you are so beautiful when you laugh."
The other sighs and says nothing but laughs a little more, like it's truly a funny thing for him to hear.
"You're a lovesick idiot, God of Fire Choi Han."
Almost cheekily, Choi Han attempts to send over a little wick of fire across the rift, watching it burn out and leaving stars burning across the mortal's sky.
"Only for you, God of Ice Cale Henituse."
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One day, neither of them appear as planned on the edge of their domains.
They both appear, but it is the sort of ridiculous circumstance that makes them both stop and stare.
Choi Han looks different. Cale looks different.
"What the...?"
They both say it in unison, and then, they cover their mouths to laugh at each other. How did they mess up this badly?
"Choi Han, what did you do?" Cale says, pressing a hand up against the edge of the domain, feeling heat scorching his fingertips.
"I, well, I decided I couldn't stand not being able to touch you. I wanted to do anything if it meant..."
"So you switched sides. Look at you, you idiot. What do you call that?"
Cale laughs and points, and Choi Han sheepishly scratches his head.
"I am the God of War now. I serve the Equinox, and will lead humans into strife."
"All so you could touch me?"
Cale says it, pretending it isn't the most uselessly romantic thing he's ever heard. What a fool. He's become one too.
"All so I could touch you."
Choi Han confirms it simply, without hesitating. He puts his hands on his hips.
"And what about you?"
"I, well. I slacked off a bit too much, I suppose. I guess too many people lived. I'm the God of Protection now."
A shield emerges when he says it, pressing up against the rift, a beautiful, seraphic set of wings spreading wide across, but never passing the edge of the domain.
"You look so pretty in white," Choi Han remarks, touches his heart like Cale's given him a gift, and Cale feels his skin heat-up.
Almost grumpily, he crosses his arms and looks down at the mortal world.
"... I can't believe we did this."
"I'll come back, if you'll wait for me."
Choi Han promises it, swears his immortality on it. It's so cold on this side, and Cale looks so inviting across the sky, like he's always belonged there. Choi Han doesn't care if he has to lay waste to entire civilizations in this role. He'll do it, he'll do anything as long as he can go to the other side.
"Are you sure? I could come to you. It's not so bad over there."
"No, I want to do this. Just promise you'll wait for me."
Cale smirks, gesturing his shield.
"I won't make it easy for you."
"That's even better. It makes me want to fight for it."
"... Such nonsense, God of War Choi Han."
"I told you once. Only for you, God of Protection, Cale Henituse. We'll meet again. On the right side this time."
"Why is this side the right side? There is no right or wrong."
"Whichever side Cale-nim is on is the right side. Plus, I have to pay you back for the meal."
"The..." Cale laughs, covers his face with his hands. "You mean those fruits I brought? All that time ago?"
Waving, looking almost excited by the prospect of his new challenge, Choi Han sets a hand on his scabbard and nods.
"Of course, I am always someone who pays for his meals."